Minor Leagues

One month of minor league action is in the books, and for the most part, it has played out better than could have been anticipated. The Minnesota Twins' top prospects are performing very well. As important, several of the second-tier prospects have been able to establish themselves early. The Ft. Myers Miracle has the most wins of any team in the minor leagues. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have a roster filled with players who were on the Beloit playoff team a year ago and from the Appalachian League champion Elizabethton Twins. ...

Cedar Rapids Kernels outfielder JaDamion (J.D.) Williams is in his fourth season with the Minnesota Twins organization. He was drafted by the Twins in the 10th round of the 2010 amateur draft.

After a very productive 2011 season at Rookie League level Elizabethton, where he hit .324, Williams hit only .237 for the Beloit Snappers a year ago and accumulated an on-base percentage of .311.

In his second year in the Midwest League, Williams is off to a much better start for ...

After finishing an eight game home stand at 3-5, the Rochester Red Wings took the short trip east on the New York State Thruway to Syracuse to play the Chiefs (Nationals). Last season the Red Wings won just three games in Syracuse, a total they matched in their first trip to NBT Bank Stadium.

The Bats Come Alive
In their four-game series against the Chiefs, Rochester scored 31 runs on 50 hits. Outcomes can change when you average almost eight runs and over twelve hits per ...

When I was younger, my brothers and I loved to play video games. We took a liking to games of all kinds, but especially enjoyed playing baseball games together. Typically we wouldn’t “play” many of the games, we would simulate them. This allowed us to get in a number of seasons in a short amount of time. We would sit for hours in front of the television, hanging on every game in the careers of imaginary players on a screen. It sounds ridiculous, but video games gave us a hope that these players could be us one day.

Each of us would usually take a liking to a specific guy. This guy would play a similar style to our game and we would take them from draft day to the Hall of Fame…in a few weeks time. We would imagine ourselves in his shoes, getting called on draft day, debuting in the big leagues, becoming an All Star and a hero for his team. It was wash, dry, fold, repeat. ...

For a few years now, I have been doing a feature, pretty much on a monthly basis, which was called "Who is hot in the Minesota Twins' minors" (you can see last seasons' versions here.) This included a list of the best players in the Twins' system, based on cumulative performance year to date, broken down by position.

I am giving it a new twist this year: I am listing the best team of 25 players in the Twins' organization, by position based on cumulative performance. ...

On Thursday, the Minnesota Twins fell to the Texas Rangers by a score of 2-1. Vance Worley gave up two runs in five innings and the bullpen threw four scoreless innings and kept the team in it. Unfortunately, the Twins’ bats were quiet. Their lone run came on Josh Willingham’s third home run of the year.

All four Twins full-season affiliates won on Thursday. Two of the the teams scored double-digit runs. The top two prospects added to their home run totals, while their top pitching prospect was on the mound early in the morning. So much to write about, so let’s get to the Minor League Report for Thursday, April 25! ...