Opening Night Notes
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I will be at the
Twins/A’s game on Saturday night at Target Field. Looking forward to my first
glance at the updated Target Field and seeing a game there.
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Be sure to check
out last
night’s 45-minute episode of Twins Minor League Weekly for much more
Twins minor league information.
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If you missed it
live, you can listen to my appearance on KFAN with Paul Allen this morning by clicking
on here. It was live at 10:55 yesterday.
Thank you for stopping by SethSpeaks.net.
Before we get into the minor league game notes, I wanted to briefly touch on my
thoughts on the Nishioka injury and what will happen.
First, I thought that Swisher was well within his rights and the slide was hard
but legal. Second, Nishioka’s feet were planted,
something you don’t want for obvious reasons now. But it was a fairly close
play at 2B and clearly Nishioka’s intent was not just
to stand there. I’ve heard a couple of people blame Gardy
and his coaches for not preparing Nishioka better.
Yes, I too find that comical. It is an unfortunate injury, to be sure. A fractured fibula will likely cost Nishioka
anywhere from four weeks to two months. Maybe longer.
The Twins immediately put him on the Disabled List and to the surprise of no one, they recalled Luke Hughes from Rochester. (In as
subsequent move, Toby Gardenhire will move from New
Britain to Rochester.) Does it hurt to lose your starting second baseman and
Number Two hitter? Of course. Does it somehow mean
that the Twins 2011 season is over? Of course not. The
Twins have overcome much more in recent years. Losing an MVP
for a month. Losing an MVP for a half-season.
Hughes will come up and hopefully be the primary second baseman. He won’t be as
good defensively, but he will be fine. Offensively, he won’t be as good
overall, but he can provide power and should do well against left-handed
pitching. Yes, I would move Joe Mauer up to the #2
spot in the lineup, Delmon Young to #3, Cuddyer to 5 and Valencia to 7 with Hughes batting eighth.
I think the idea of Alexi Casilla batting second is
ridiculous. But even if they do go in that direction, the team will be alright.
Below are game notes and highlights from the
Twins affiliates’ Thursday night games. As the season goes along, I will post
highlights, extra base hits and pitching performances. I’ll also discuss some
notes when applicable. Please feel free to share topic ideas or notes with me.
If you have any articles on Twins prospects, notes or more, please feel
free to e-mail me.
SethSpeaks.net Minor League Hitter of the Day – Ray Chang,
New Britain Rock Cats
Seth Speaks.net Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Anthony Swarzak, Rochester Red Wings
Red Wings Ramblings
Thursday
– Red Wings 1, Pawtucket 2 – A slew
of veterans played well, but Rochester starts off 2011 right where they left
off in 2010, with a loss. Anthony Swarzak pitched
very well. In 4.2 innings, he did not allow a run. In fact, he allowed three
hits, walked one and struck out seven. He left with a lead and just one out from
being able to record a win because he was at his 75-pitch limit. Yorman Bazardo came in and gave
up two runs on two hits and two walks in just 1.1 innings to take the loss.
Chuck James made his Red Wings debut and gave up one runs on one hit and one
walk while striking out three in 1.2 innings. Alex Burnett came on to record
the final out. Luke Hughes had been scheduled to play 2B and bat fourth for the
Red Wings when, during batting practice, he was told he was heading to
Minnesota. The offense managed just six hits in the game. Ben Revere had a
double. Nine-hitter Rene Rivera collected the lone RBI with a long double. The
Paw Sox threw four guys with big league time in the game. Scott Atchinson found out at the last minute that he was starting
because the Red Sox had just called up Alfredo Aceves,
who was supposed to start. Atchinson was followed on
the mound by Rich Hill, Hideki Okajima and Michael
Bowden. Led by three from Trevor Plouffe, the Red
Wings had 13 strikeouts and no walks.
On Friday, these two teams will play again,
and Eric Hacker will be on the mound. He will be caught by the Red Wings second
catcher Steve Holm who caught him last year in Fresno, the AAA-affiliate of the
Giants.
Rock Cats Report
Thursday
– Rock Cats 4, Richmond 6 – Ray Chang
led the Rock Cats offense. He started at 3B and went 3-4 with two doubles and
two RBI. Mark Dolenc went 2-4 and stole a base. The
team got doubles from Yangervis Solarte,
Joe Benson and Danny Lehmann. David Bromberg started on the mound. He gave up
three runs on six hits and two walks in just four innings. Jake Stevens came in
and threw two shutout frames, allowing a walk and a hit. Spencer Steedley returned after an arm surgery just last May. He struggled
and gave up three runs (2 earned) on three hits and a walk in 1.2 innings.
Tyler Robertson came on to record the final out.
Deolis Guerra is scheduled to make the start for New Britain
on Friday.
Miracle Matters
Thursday
– Miracle 3, Jupiter 2 – The Miracle
was the only affiliate of the Twins to record a win on Opening Night. Kane Holbrooks made the start. He gave up two runs on four hits
and two walks in his five innings. Lefty Blake Martin came on and pitched two
perfect innings. Jhon Garcia pitched a clean eighth
inning. Hard-throwing Bruce Pugh came on for the ninth. He gave up one hit, but
he struck out three batters to record his first save. Nick Romero led the
offense by going 3-4. Aaron Hicks was 1-3 with two walks. He knocked a triple off
the wall for his hit. Danny Rams was 2-3 and scored two of the Miracle’s runs.
Brian Dozier went 1-3 with a walk and drove in two runs. Paul Kelly started at
3B and batted third for the Miracle. He was 0-4 with a walk.
Miguel Munoz will tote the rubber for the Miracle
on Friday night in Jupiter.
Snappers Bites
The Beloit Snappers’ season opener in Quad
Cities was postponed by rain. A week earlier, officials were not certain that
the games could be played due to flooding concerns. BJ Hermsen
will take the mound for the Snappers when they debut on Friday now. The two
teams will try to play a doubleheader on Saturday.
Feel free to leave
your thoughts, questions or comments.
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