Minnesota Twins Minor League Report Thursday, September 1, 2016 Team Level Record (Overall) Yesterday’s Scores Streak/Last 10 Rochester Red Wings Triple-A 79-60; 7.5 GB 3 rd in International League North W, 4-3 vs. Syracuse W3, 8-2 Chattanooga Lookouts Double-A 35-30 (71-64); 3.0 GB 3 rd in Southern League North L, 6-2 vs. Mississippi L2, 6-4 Fort Myers Miracle High-A 34-32 (68-67); 3.0 GB 3 rd in Fla. State League South Game 1: L, 5-2 at Palm Beach Game 2: W, 1-0 at Palm Beach W1, 5-5 C. Rapids Kernels Low-A 40-25 (76-58); 4.0 GB 2 nd in MW League Western L, 3-2 at Wisconsin L1, 8-2 Elizabethton Twins Rookie 36-31; 2.0 GB 2 nd in Appalachian League West L, 6-2 at Greeneville L3, 4-6 GCL Twins Rookie 31-28; 0.5 GB; 2 nd in Gulf Coast League South L, 5-1 vs. GCL Rays L1, 4-6 DSL Twins DSL 36-34; 11.5 GB 5 th in Dominican Summer League South No Game W3, 6-4 Table of Contents Yesterday’s Boxscores, Team Stats and Standings Pg. 2 Minor League Clips Pg. 24
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Minnesota Twins Minor League Report
Thursday, September 1, 2016
Team Level Record (Overall) Yesterday’s Scores
Streak/Last 10
Rochester Red Wings Triple-A
79-60; 7.5 GB 3rd in International League North
W, 4-3 vs. Syracuse W3, 8-2
Chattanooga Lookouts Double-A
35-30 (71-64); 3.0 GB 3rd in Southern League North
L, 6-2 vs. Mississippi L2, 6-4
Fort Myers Miracle
High-A
34-32 (68-67); 3.0 GB 3rd in Fla. State League South
Game 1: L, 5-2 at Palm Beach
Game 2: W, 1-0 at Palm Beach
W1, 5-5
C. Rapids Kernels Low-A
40-25 (76-58); 4.0 GB 2nd in MW League Western
L, 3-2 at Wisconsin L1, 8-2
Elizabethton Twins Rookie
36-31; 2.0 GB 2nd in Appalachian League West
L, 6-2 at Greeneville L3, 4-6
GCL Twins Rookie 31-28; 0.5 GB; 2nd in Gulf
Coast League South L, 5-1 vs. GCL Rays L1, 4-6
DSL Twins DSL
36-34; 11.5 GB 5th in Dominican Summer League South
No Game W3, 6-4
Table of Contents
Yesterday’s Boxscores, Team Stats and Standings Pg. 2 Minor League Clips Pg. 24
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Rochester Red Wings (79-60) 4, Syracuse Chiefs (59-79) 3 August 31, 2016
None out when winning run scored.
Gott pitched to 6 batters in the 9th. Game Scores: Ross, J 50; Berrios 69. Pitches-strikes: Ross, J 31-21; DeFratus 4-4; Voth 89-57; Gott 24-14; Berrios 99-70; Busenitz 8-5. Groundouts-flyouts: Ross, J 0-3; DeFratus 0-0; Voth 8-4; Gott 0-0; Berrios 0-5; Busenitz 0-1. Batters faced: Ross, J 6; DeFratus 1; Voth 21; Gott 6; Berrios 29; Busenitz 3. Umpires: HP: Jeremy Riggs. 1B: John Bacon. 3B: James Rackley. Weather: 73 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 9 mph, Out to LF. First pitch: 8:41 PM. T: 2:23 (1:36 delay). Att: 6,333. Venue: Frontier Field. August 31, 2016
MINOR LEAGUE CLIPS Berrios collects career-best 14 strikeouts Josh Jackson – MiLB – 9/1/16 Returning to the International League after struggling with command over his last couple starts for Minnesota, Jose Berrios was in control Wednesday night. "He commanded the fastball real well and everything worked off that," Triple-A Rochester pitching coach Stu Cliburn said. "He changed speeds with his offspeed stuff and his breaking ball was probably the best I've seen it, depth-wise, strike-ability-wise. And it all worked off the fastball." Berrios tallied a career-high 14 strikeouts, allowing three runs on five hits and a walk in the Red Wings' 4-3 win over the visiting Syracuse Chiefs. "He threw 99 pitches [70 for strikes] in eight innings, and he was sharp," Cliburn said. "[Twins pitching coordinator Eric] Rasmussen is here, so we had a little side session with him. That worked pretty well. It was a real positive outing he can build off." The 22-year-old right-hander hadn't pitched in the Minors since July 27, and over his last three Major League starts, Berrios had gone just 11 innings and given up 16 runs -- 14 earned -- to see his big league ERA balloon to 9.24 over nine starts. By contrast, Wednesday's start put his IL ERA at 2.51 and he's 10-5 this season with 125 strikeouts over 111 1/3 innings for Rochester. "This kid don't walk people and he walked one tonight in eight innings. His last outing in the big leagues, he walked five. Hopefully, he'll have one more start here," Cliburn said. "I assume, but I don't know. We don't know here in Rochester what Minnesota's going to do yet because of the September callups, but it was a positive outing, something for him to build off." Byron Buxton was pulled after his first two at-bats after his recall by the Twins. If Berrios gets another Triple-A start, it will be in the Red Wings' final game of the season Monday at Lehigh Valley. Wednesday's outing got off to a shaky start as he gave up a two-run homer to Matt Skole in the first inning. The damage would have been worse if Berrios hadn't picked off Brian Goodwin following a single. Even so, Cliburn believes the native of Puerto Rico really only made one mistake in that frame. "He picked [Goodwin] off first and then [Neftali Soto] hit a ball through the shortstop-third base hole and he left one over the plate to Skole. He hit it for his 23rd home run," the pitching coach said. "He can do that. He didn't miss the fastball over the plate -- a mistake pitch, and he did what he's supposed to do with it." Berrios allowed two more baserunners from the second through the fifth, but Goodwin led off the sixth with a homer. "That was a good one too," Cliburn said. "It was a mistake pitch middle-in, but from then on, everything was good. He threw 48 fastballs and 33 of them were strikes. That's pretty impressive." Berrios wrapped up the start by punching out the side in order in the eighth. "To finish up like that, striking out the side..." Cliburn said. "He was at 99 pitches. He probably could have gone back out there for the ninth, but we had a bullpen guy who needed work. And he did his job, Berrios. That was fun to watch. He was fired up after that last strikeout. It was a good night for him." Alan Busenitz (1-0) worked an uneventful top of the ninth and wound up with the win after 15th-ranked Twins prospect Adam Walker doubled in the tying run in the bottom half and scored on John Ryan Murphy's walk-off hit.
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Kennys Vargas went 3-for-4 with a run scored for the Red Wings. Austin Voth, the No. 9 Nationals prospect, allowed an unearned run on a hit and a walk while striking out five in six innings of relief. Rehabbing Joe Ross threw 21 of 31 pitches for strikes, giving up a hit and fanning two over 1 2/3 frames.
FSL notes: Family aids Gordon's perspective Guy Cutright – MiLB.com – 8/31/16 As impressive as Fort Myers shortstop Nick Gordon has been this season, Miracle manager Jeff Smith says the No. 5 overall pick in the 2014 Draft is physically only getting started. "He's going to get bigger, stronger and faster," Smith said. "With his work ethic, he'll be better and better as his body matures." The slender Gordon doesn't turn 21 until Oct. 24, and the Twins are letting their No. 2 prospect advance one level at a time as he progresses toward Target Field. The left-handed hitter got off to a hot start with Fort Myers and was named a starter for the Florida State League All-Star Game. The Twins, however, weren't going to promote him from Class A Advanced to Double-A prematurely. Although Gordon has had a few low points along with many high points this season, that just makes his statistical breakdown even more impressive. Gordon had a .288 batting average and a .341 on-base percentage for the first half and was at .303 and .340 in those categories with six games remaining in the second half. "The thing that sticks out with me the most is his consistent at-bats," Smith said. "It's great to see. He had good at-bats and hard contact right from the start. You don't usually see that kind of consistency." Of course, Gordon has had to deal with an occasional slump. He was in a 5-for-38 swoon before going 5-for-5 at Palm Beach on Sunday and getting his average back to .296. When things temporarily go badly, Gordon can call on his family for support and encouragement. He is the son of long-time Major League pitcher Tom Gordon and the younger brother of Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon, the 2015 National League batting champion. "My dad always knows what to say," Nick said. "He's gone through it. You just have to take it one game at a time and have fun even while you're grinding through a tough time." There have been a lot more good times than bad ones for Gordon, who is No. 52 among MLB.com's Top 100 Prospects. Gordon had four hits, including three doubles, in his fourth Florida State League game and reached base five times on four hits and a hit by pitch during a late July game before his aforementioned 5-for-5 slump breaker. He says his baseball pedigree helps him keep the game's highs and lows in perspective. "You have to remember that the season is a marathon, not a sprint," Gordon said. "That's what my dad always tells me." He doesn't have the speed of brother Dee, but Smith feels the Florida native can improve drastically on the 16 steals he has in 29 attempts through 111 games with Fort Myers. "He's getting in the attempts and he'll learn to study pitchers a little more," the manager said. "I really believe he'll get faster and I'm confident that he'll steal a lot of bases."
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Gordon already has a little more pop than his brother and should add more. He has 31 extra-base hits for the Miracle in the pitcher-friendly Florida State League and a .393 slugging percentage. The strong-armed Gordon has committed 26 errors, eight more than he made in the Class A Midwest League a year ago, but the Twins are convinced he's their shortstop of the future. "He's put in the work and made very good strides," Smith said. "A lot of his errors came in bunches." All the while, Gordon has remained upbeat. "He's always playing with a smile," Smith said. "He comes from a very special family and is a joy to have on the team." In brief Streak broken: Daytona right-hander Tejay Antone, who leads the Florida State League in victories, won six straight starts before a no-decision against Lakeland on Thursday. He was 14-6 with a 3.51 ERA, getting decisions in 20 of his first 25 starts. Antone, 22, had 105 strikeouts to 28 walks while leading the league with 151 1/3 innings pitched. The fifth-round pick by Cincinnati in the 2014 Draft had a 2.91 ERA in the Midwest League last year despite posting a 6-10 record. On comeback trail: Clearwater left-hander Brandon Leibrandt, coming back from shoulder surgery, extended his shutout streak to 17 innings when he threw a scoreless first inning before rain forced a suspension at Brevard County on Monday. The son of former Major League pitcher Charlie Leibrandt allowed four runs over five innings against Dunedin in his first start for the Threshers on Aug. 3, but then he had scoreless outings in victories over Lakeland, Tampa and Brevard County while allowing six hits in the combined 16 innings and striking out 17. Leibrandt, 23, made the Florida State League All-Star Game in 2015 but finished the season on the disabled list. Impressive stretch: Dunedin right-hander Conor Fisk won his fifth straight decision, finishing a perfect month by allowing a run on two hits and two walks while striking out six over eight innings in a victory over Lakeland on Saturday. He improved to 10-3 and lowered his ERA to 3.17. Fisk, 24, was 5-0 with a 1.96 ERA in seven August outings, the last four of them being official starts. He threw a seven-inning complete game as a fill-in on Aug. 6, taking over after a long rain delay at Brevard County and allowing two hits in a 1-0 victory. Leaving on top: Right-hander Luis Castillo was leading the Florida State League with a 2.07 ERA and was second with a WHIP of 0.96 when he was promoted from Jupiter to Double-A Jacksonville on Aug. 23. Miami's No. 5 prospect went 8-4 in 23 games with the Suns, recording 91 strikeouts to 18 walks in 117 2/3 innings. Castillo, 23, was 1-2 with a 1.32 ERA and had completed one of his five starts since he was returned from San Diego after Colin Rea suffered an elbow injury in his first start with the Marlins after being traded from the Padres. Wings picked wrong year to be good but not really good Kevin Oklobzija – Democrat & Chronicle – 8/31/16 As the International League's regular season nears an end, the South Division features the dream final-weekend pennant chase. All four teams are in contention for the division championship. Too bad none deserve it. Heading into play Wednesday night, the division-leading Gwinnett Braves were 62-75, followed by the Charlotte Knights (62-76), Durham Bulls (60-78) and Norfolk Tides (60-78). Imagine that celebration on Monday afternoon wherever it may be. Yee-haw, we had the least pathetic season of four teams that had pathetic seasons. We're the best of the worst. Yea, us. That winner doesn't deserve to toast with champagne, it deserves bathwater in a paper cup.
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Meanwhile, the Rochester Red Wings could close the season with at least 80 wins, and that will allow them to stake claim to the IL's consolation prize: Nothing. Such is life in the 14-team, three-division IL. The Wings picked the wrong year to be really good, but not really, really good. Following Wednesday's rain-delayed, come-from-behind 4-3 win against the Syracuse Chiefs, Rochester was 79-60. That makes four consecutive seasons over .500, and unless Indianapolis wins out, the Wings will be the only team in the league with that distinction. This year they could reach 80 wins yet they will not be playing for the Governors' Cup. Well, it's called playing in the IL's North Division, where traditionally strong teams compete year after year. And where there are six teams battling for one automatic playoff berth. Year after year after year. The playoff format calls for the three division winners to be given spots, and then the second-place team with the best record receives the one wild-card berth. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre was the class of the IL again. They're 86-52 and won the North Division for the second consecutive summer. Lehigh Valley is second at 82-56. So unless the Wings sweep Lehigh Valley in the final five games, they will finish third in the North with the league's fourth-best record. And will be on their way to their off-season homes on Tuesday. The format is intrinsically unfair. Year after year, the six North Division teams always face worse odds of earning a playoff spot than the teams in the four-team South and four-team West divisions. Adding a second wild card isn't really feasible. When Major League rosters expand from 25 to 40 on Sept. 1, Triple-A teams are often decimated. Adding another two days (one for travel, one for the wild-card game) wouldn't get voted in. But a possible solution to make it slightly more fair for the North: Combine the South and West into an eight-team division (geographically it doesn't make sense to have two seven-team divisions). From a scheduling standpoint, nothing would need to change. The IL uses a an unbalanced schedule now, so they can keep the current template. The current South teams and current West teams would still play their neighbors more frequently. The division winners would be given the top playoff seeds, then the two teams with the best records would get wild-card spots, regardless of division. Could that happen? Of course not. The IL has used the current three-division set-up since 1998, when the American Association went belly-up and the IL inherited six teams. If the folks who operate the teams and the league haven't cared for 19 seasons, no one else should either. Game night The matchup: Red Wings vs. Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies). Time/place: 7:05 p.m. Thursday/Frontier Field. Gates open at 6 p.m. Tickets: $9, $11.50, $13. Pitching matchup: Wings left-hander Nick Greenwood (5-3, 3.11) opposes LHV lefty Anthony Vasquez (4-0, 2.83).
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Radio: WHTK-AM (1280). Ticket exchange Because of the 96-minute delay due to weather on Wednesday night, the Wings say tickets from the game can be exchanged at the Frontier Field box office on Thursday or Friday, or in any game next April and May (excluding opening day).