May Awards

Minnesota Twins

• Pitcher of the Month: Nick Blackburn- Nick had another very good month in his rookie campaign for the Twins. Nick went 2-2 with a 3.24 ERA in May. In 5 starts Nick went 33.1 innings and only walked 5 batters and struck out 10. Nick has been the biggest surprise for the pitching staff this season. Not many people myself included thought he would make this type of impact on the team and man has he. Through the first 2 months he is 4-3 with a 3.32 ERA which are very good numbers and should put him in the discussion for Rookie of the Year if he can keep it up. Previous: Nick Blackburn

• Hitter of the Month: Justin Mourneau- Justin had another really good month for the Twins. Justin hit .336 in May with 4 homeruns and 20 rbi's. He also had 4 doubles and a triple with a obp of .405 and a ops of .901. The ridiculious thing is it is just the tip of the iceberg for Justin he is capable of so much more. That is saying alot since he has way better numbers this year than he did in '06 when he went on to win the MVP award. Justin means so much to that Twins lineup and with Mike Cuddyer starting to get going it is going to mean better and better pitches for Justin and look for his numbers to keep going up as he chases another MVP award. Previous: Justin Mourneau

Rochester Red Wings

• Pitcher of the Month: Francisco Liriano- Liriano has shown some real signs that the Twins are getting back The Francise of old. Liriano went 0-1 with a 3.46 ERA in May with 10 walks and 27 strikeouts in 39 innings for May. The biggest thing is he brought his walk total down and his strikeout total up. In May he averaged less then 3 walks per 9 innings which was huge for him because in April that was his big problem. I think Liriano has 1 more full left in Rochester before he joins the Twins sometime after the All-Star break. The biggest thing for him is he is walking less which allowed him to go deeper into games which is huge when you get back to the show. In May he averaged 6 and a half innings a start which is getting higher every start and has been the stopper the Red Wings have sorely needed. Previous: Kevin Mulvey

• Hitter of the Month: Jose Morales- Now this is something I did not see coming because I was not a huge Jose Morales supporter and he proved me wrong. In May he hit .382 with a homer and 6 rbi's along 4 doubles and a triple. In May he had a .402 obp and a pretty decent .885 ops. Jose will never be a power hitter but he is a singles machine who if he could improve defensively could have a job with the Twins someday as Joe Mauer's backup. Previous: Jason Pridie

New Britain

• Pitcher of the Month: Jay Rainville- Now this was a surprise for me because I had all but given up on the tall righty. I think I was justified by Jay's 10.12 April ERA. However, Jay rebounded in May and went 4-2 with a much better 3.42 ERA. In 6 May starts Jay went 34.1 innings and only walked 9 and struck out 24 along with holding the other team to a .237 oba. I really think Jay has turned the corner and will have a very good season with the Rockcats and along with Ryan Mullins and Anthony Swarzak will make up a very good top of the rotation. Previous: Anthony Swarzak

• Hitter of the Month: Steve Tolleson- Steve had a phenomenal May after a pretty good April. In May Steve hit a awesome .375 average with 2 homeruns and 21 rbi's along with 10 doubles and a triple. In May Steve had a .460 obp and a phenomenal 1.023 ops. Steve really turned the corner and May and should be considered for a promotion to Rochester with his good start of the season. I look for him to someday be wearing a Twins uniform and it is probably time for a new challenge for the Rock Cats 2nd baseman. Previous:


• Luke Hughes

Fort Myers

• Pitcher of the Month: Cole Devries- Cole really turned it around for himself in May. He was not awful in May but he had the best month for the Miracle and thats saying alot with the good months put in by Jeff Manship and Tyler Robertson. He was ok in April with a 5.08 ERA and majority of that was in a couple bad outings. However, in May Cole was awesome going 2-1 with a 2.40 ERA. In 5 starts he went 30 innings with only 8 walks and 14 strikeouts. The best part was he held opponents to a .250 oba. Cole is a very interesting prospect because he doesn't have shutdown stuff, but he finds a way to get hitters out and really thats all you want out of your starter to give yourself a chance to win the game. I'm not sure he will ever have Major League stuff, but overall he is a very good pitcher who will probably help Fort Myers compete for a league championship this season. Previous: Jeff Manship

• Hitter of the Month: Danny Valencia- No big surprise here as he won the award last month also. He had a .286 with 19 rbi's and then in May he just exploded. In May he hit .402 with 2 homeruns and 25 rbi's along with 12 doubles and 3 triples. His obp was a whopping .431, but thats nothing compared to his slugging at .663 for a ops of 1.094. Danny is a doubles machine who impresses me every night when I hear about his game. Danny will be up in New Britain in a couple weeks after the All Star game i guarantee you. The only thing that he has major work on his defense which is adequate, but he has the size and arm strength to be a very good defensive 3rd basemen. I think he will be with the Twins in 2010 when that new ballpark opens and will be the starting 3rd basemen for the Twins for years to come. Previous: Danny Valencia

Beloit Snappers

• Pitcher of the Month: Dan Berlind- Dan had a very solid month to go on top of his solid April. In April he had a 5.40 ERA and exploded in May. In May he went 2-2 with a 2.97 ERA with only 10 walks and 20 strikeouts. The best part was he help opposing batters to a .202 average off of him. Dan put together a good month and could be in line for a promotion to Fort Myers with a few good starts in June because not only does he deserve it, but I think there is going to be some openings in the Fort Myers rotation. I don't know how he grades as a prospect, but all I know is he gets batters out and thats all thats important he reminds me of Cole Devries and if he can do that he will be fine. Previous: Spencer Steedley

• Hitter of the Month: Ben Revere- Really was there any doubt who would get this award. Ben came onto the scene at the end of April after spending the first month in EST after being the Twins first round draft pick in 2007. Ever since he arrived he has tore it up and unlike some people I think this is a big deal and deserves a promotion to Fort Myers. In May Ben hit .433 with 1 homerun and 18 rbi's along with 14 stolen bases. He hit an awesome 11 doubles and 5 triples for the month. His obp is crazy at .469 and an ops that is out of this world at 1.1o2. Ben has done everything that was expected out of him and more.

Minnesota Twins organization Player and Pitcher of the Month

Player: Ben Revere

Pitcher: Jay Rainville

everyone let me know what you think