CEDAR RAPIDS — That really was first base Niko Goodrum was playing. You weren’t just seeing things. Goodrum is the most-day’s shortstop for the Cedar Rapids Kernels, where he’s considered a legitimate prospect for the Minnesota Twins. This first base thing has never happened, until Monday afternoon. “A couple of spring training games and instructs,” [...]

CEDAR RAPIDS – His first grand slam, his first walk-off hit, his first postgame shaving cream pie. Yet another step out the door here in Cedar Rapids and toward Fort Myers. Honestly, there’s probably not much more Byron Buxton can do at the low-Class A level. The 19-year-old phenom sent Veterans Memorial Stadium into a tizzy [...]

CEDAR RAPIDS — You’ve never met Hudson Boyd, so you look for the real big guy in the Cedar Rapids Kernels clubhouse. You finally find his locker, but the dude sitting in a chair in front of it is this svelte kid nowhere near the 268 pounds the roster lists him. Hudson Boyd? Yep, Hudson Boyd. “The [...]

05-07 Roster Move by Jeffrey Johnson  

First-year Minnesota Twins director of minor league operations Brad Steil was in town for an entire six-game Cedar Rapids Kernels homestand that ended Tuesday. The Kernels went 6-0, prompting Manager Jake Mauer to tell Steil “you’re going on the road with us, too, now.” Steil replaced Jim Rantz – for whom he worked for 13 years – as [...]

Kernels reporter Jeff Johnson talks with the team’s manager Jake Mauer about his club’s recent winning streak, Byron Buxton and more.

Baseball America magazine ranks its top minor-league teams periodically, and it’s rankings after April have the Minnesota Twins all over them. The Twins’ high-Class A affiliate Fort Myers is BA’s top-ranked team. The Miracle have the minors’ best record of 21-4. The Cedar Rapids Kernels (Minnesota’s low-A affiliate) are ranked No. 2 on the list. [...]

CEDAR RAPIDS – There is nothing about 354 12th St. SW that seems out of the ordinary. It’s a nice little white house inhabited by pair of brothers. It also just happens to sit a sometimes uncomfortable distance beyond the left-field fence at Veterans Memorial Stadium and has become a favorite target for Cedar Rapids Kernels outfielder Byron Buxton. The [...]

CEDAR RAPIDS — As Jose Berrios left the mound and walked toward the dugout after being removed from the game with two outs in the seventh inning Monday night, you noticed how he snuck a peak at the stands. Two conspicous gentlemen wearing Puerto Rico national baseball jerseys were standing at their seats along the [...]

That question was posed Tuesday to Minnesota Twins farm director Brad Steil. He was non-commital about his prized outfield prospect, as you’d expect. “Good question,” Steil said. “I understand it. He’s playing very well. There are still some things I think he can learn here. We’ll just continue to evaluate it as we go.” Buxton, 19, [...]