Our morning snow has pretty much melted here at One Morrie Silver Way, and it now feels a lot like a day we could play a game here, don’t you think?

Our home opener Saturday April 7 against Wally Backman’s Buffalo Bisons looms in the distance, but today Twins pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in Fort Myers, FL. We’ll begin speculating on possible combinations of a 2012 Wings roster here in a few weeks…for now, check out TwinsBaseball.com for complete coverage as the Twins’ exhibition opener against the Rays is just two weeks away on March 3.

Speaking of the Twins: 2011 marks the 10th season of the Red Wings-Minnesota Twins affiliation. The relationship has produced five winning teams for Rochester in nine seasons with one trip to the Governors’ Cup finals – plus two league ERA leaders (Scott Baker, 2005;  Kevin Slowey, 2007)…three IL Rookies of the Year (Jason Kubel, 2004; Francisco Liriano, 2005; Randy Ruiz, 2008)..one league strikeout leader (Boof Bonser, 2005)…one league wins leader (Dave Gassner, 2004)…and two batting titles (Kubel, 2004 and Ruiz, 2008). This season, we’ll feature 10 players from the 10 seasons with the Twins in a magnet series, and we’d like your input. Check out this detail page for information on how you can vote.

And to help kick things off, see if you can identify this player from the 2003 Red Wings season – our first as a Twins affiliate. The first five fans to correctly ID this player   by e-mailing Info@RedWingsBaseball.com will receive a full set of the MT 10 magnet series.

MiLB.com’s Benjamin Hill posted a story on the impending “residence of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees in Rochester this coming season. Here’s a link in case you missed it - the piece provides an updated overview of the how’s and where’s of this unique arrangement at our ballpark this season.

Next week’s blog will go into detail about our 2012 Red Wings Yearbook – which will be bigger than ever before, and include special features on the SWB Yankees playing here this summer. The same book will be sold at all Wings and Yanks games this season. We’re quite proud of our yearbook, which is available each game for only $1 and comes with rosters, stats, lineups and team notes. The 2012 yearbook will also have an expanded scorecard section, as we wil now have just one print product available at the games; we’ll go a little more into detail on that decision next time also.

A couple of dates to note: Red Wings Insider on Time Warner Cable Sports returns on February 29 at 6:30 pm, featuring an interview with new Wings Manager Gene Glynn and features on new Hitting Coach Tom
Brunansky; and players Liam Hendriks, Brian Dozier, and Joe Benson. Check out the Multimedia section of RedWingsBaseball.com for the complete list of air dates and times, plus archived episodes of previous Insiders. And our annual Ballpark Hiring Day takes place here on Saturday, March 10; find out more about what kind of ballpark jobs will be available, what to bring and when, etc, by clicking here.

-Nick

Quick Links:

Regular Season Schedule | Ticket Information
Season Tickets

Group, Picnic & Outdoor Suite Information
Knot Hole Gang Kids’ Club | Ballpark Birthdays

Official Facebook: Facebook.com/RocRedWings | Official Twitter: @RocRedWings

With the World Series taking a day off, we turn your attention back to your hometown team: the Rochester Red Wings.

2012 TICKET PLANS ANNOUNCED, ON SALE

By letter to season seat holders earlier this week, and by press release yesterday, we provided the details on tickets for the 2012 season which will include 37 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees games here, in addition to our usual 72 Red Wings home games. In fact, eight of those 37 Yankees games here will be against the Wings – making it easier than ever to see a Red Wings game when you want to. All told, 109 Triple-A International League games will be contested at Frontier Field in 2012, and fans can expect the same high level of entertainment, giveaways, fireworks, food, and affordable family entertainment every game regardless of who is playing.

Red Wings seat holders have until November 15 to claim their Wings seat locations for all 37 SWB games here, or just the eight-game package for the Red Wings “road” games when we play the Yankees here. We are also taking orders now for our pre-season discounted Flex Pack voucher books, which will be good for ANY of the 109 games slated for Frontier in 2012. Click here for more information on the Flex Packs.

Spikes & Mittsy with friends, Oct. 2010

TRICK-OR-TREAT WITH SPIKES

Again this year, kids will have a chance to have Spikes and Mittsy join them for a night of trick-or-treating on Halloween night. Here’s a link to how your kids can enter, and a pic showing the fun of last Halloween night.

HOLIDAY PACK, HOLIDAY SALE

In the next week watch for details on our annual Holiday Pack, the perfect gift for every person on your gift list. This year’s Holiday pack includes four undated ticket vouchers for any 2012 game at Frontier Field, a voicher for a 2012 yearbook, and your choice of either a Red Wings t-shirt or cap.

Our Frontier Field Team Store Holiday Sale kicks off on “Black Friday” Nov. 25, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with plenty of free off-street parking in our VIP Parking lot. The Team Store is open from Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. (closed Thanksgiving Day), along with these special holiday hours:

• Sat. Nov. 26, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Sat. Dec. 3 , 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Sat. Dec. 10 , 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Sat. Dec. 17 , 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Thurs. and Fri. Dec. 22-23, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Stay tuned for details on special Eastview Mall dates and hours

PLAYER NEWS

The Voice of the Wings,™ Josh Whetzel, provides these baseball nuggets:

RHP Cole DeVries has been effective in the Arizona Fall League. In three starts, DeVries is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA and has struck out eight and walked only one in ten innings for Mesa. Brian Dozier, a possible 2012 Wings infielder, continues to impress in Arizona. Dozier is hitting .311with a .377 on base percentage for Mesa while playing both second base and shortstop.

The Twins always have a lot of players who compete in the Venezuelan Winter League and this year is no exception. In his first seven games for the Lara Cardenales Rene Tosoni is hitting .269 (7 for 26). Fellow outfielder—and possible 2012 Wing—Joe Benson is 2 for 16 in his first five games for the Aragua Tigres.  Meanwhile, RHP Andy Baldwin—who seems to always pitch well in winter ball—has won his first start in Venezuela going 5.2 innings and allowing only two runs on two hits for Anzoategui.

In other news, congratulations to former Wings outfielder David Winfree who has been added to the Arizona Diamondbacks 40 man roster. Winfree was limited to only 39 games last year with Arizona’s Triple-A affiliate in Reno due to injury, but hit very well when healthy batting .321 with 9 home runs and 37 RBI.

-Nick

Quick Links:

Regular Season Schedule | Ticket Information

Season Tickets

Group, Picnic & Outdoor Suite Information

Knot Hole Gang Kids’ Club | Ballpark Birthdays

Official Facebook: Facebook.com/RocRedWings | Official Twitter: @RocRedWings

We return to our off-season every Friday blog post mode with reminders on upcoming events, player news, and a topic that our fans have been talking about and asking about for over a month: the Wings hosting the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees for 37 games in 2012.

NEW TENANT MOVING IN

Let’s start with the Yanks. Next week, our season ticket holders will receive a letter in the mail with details on how the whole Wings/Yankees season seat packages will work. As you might guess, this entire undertaking has many different levels of planning and execution, and if you’ll recall the whole thing came together for real very quickly the week of September 26. We’re fine tuning all the numbers, but we can tell you we’ll be offering a package for Wings seat holders to have their seats for the 37 SWB games here….or an eight-game package for Wings season seat holders who want their seats for the eight Red Wings “road” games when we play the Yankees here. Non-season ticket holders can choose a ticket plan that will give them the same great seats for the 37 SWB games, plus an additional three coupons good for a ticket at any other Red Wings home game. And we’re happy to tell you that our pre-season ticket voucher books – already a great way to enjoy a game when YOU want to, at a discounted rate – will be good for ANY of the 109 games slated for Frontier in 2012. Complete details will be released to the public later next week.

WORLD SERIES PARTY, TRICK-OR-TREAT WITH SPIKES

We still have some tickets remaining for our third annual World Series Party, taking place in our Press Box and Suite Level Wed. Oct. 19. Enjoy a great ballpark buffet at our suite level, and watch the game on a variety of TV’s including our video board. Also again this year, kids will have a chance to have Spikes join them for a night of trick-or-treating on Halloween night. Check the Fan Zone section of our website Monday for details on how to be a part of it.

PLAYER NEWS

The 2011 Arizona Fall League started up last weekend in suburban Phoenix. Every year each Major League team sends a group of their top prospects to participate. The alumni from the league reads like a “Who’s Who” of big league baseball. In fact, this year’s MLB All Star Game featured 41 players who played in the AFL at some point.

Twins prospects are playing for the Mesa Solar Sox this Arizona Fall League season where they are managed by Joe McEwing. The former Cardinals and Mets super-utility man managed Charlotte in the IL this past season and just got named the third base coach for the White Sox and their new manager Robin Ventura.

The Voice of the Red Wings™, Josh Whetzel, provides a look at the Twins prospects that are playing for Mesa…

Shortstop Brian Dozier - MiLB.com photo

Infielder Brian Dozier: The Southern Mississippi product has picked up where he left off in Arizona going 7 for 19 (.368) with a HR so far in 5 games. He has played both SS and 2B for Mesa. Dozier is a good bet to start with the Wings next season after a terrific 2011. He hit a combined .320 with an .890 OPS while hitting 9 HR and stealing 24 bases between Class A Fort Myers and Double A New Britain. Virtually everyone who sees Dozier loves the way he plays.

Catcher Chris Herrmann: In 3 games for Mesa, Herrmann is 3 for 8 with 2 doubles. He has done nothing but catch so far in Arizona, but one of his calling cards is his versatility. Herrmann has also played a lot of outfield so far in the minors. Like Dozier, he played for both Fort Myers and New Britain this past season hitting .269 with a .385 OBP while walking more than striking out (79 to 75). He was a 6^th round pick of the Twins in 2009.

Outfielder Aaron Hicks: The former Twins 1^st round pick—who just turned 22—is only 2 for 20 (.100) in his 1^st 6 games out in the desert. The switch-hitter had an up-and-down season with Fort Myers batting .242/.354/.368(BA/OBP/SLG) with 31 doubles. Baseball America recently ranked Hicks the 18^th best prospect in the Florida State League.

RHP Cole DeVries: The lone 2011 Red Wings player to participate so far in this year’s AFL is the curve balling Cole DeVries. The Minnesota product—who pitched effectively this past season for the Wings out of the bullpen—has started in both of his appearances in Arizona. He has allowed 5 earned runs on 8 hits in 6 innings.  He turned in a good start Monday allowing only 2 earned runs on just 3 hits in 3.1 innings.

RHP Brett Jacobson: In two relief appearances, Jacobsen is 0-1 having allowed 3 runs on 4 hits in 2.2 innings. Jacobson came over to the Twins this past off season from the Orioles in the same deal that brought Jim Hoey to the Twins in exchange for J.J. Hardy and Brendan Harris. An Eastern League All Star for New Britain in 2011, Jacobson was 5-6 with a 4.56 ERA for the Rock Cats.

RHP Bruce Pugh: It’s been a rough start in the AFL for Pugh who has allowed 9 hits and 6 walks in 3.2 innings. His ERA right now is 17.18. Pugh is a hard thrower who spent most of 2011 with Class A Fort Myers going 2-4 with a 4.53 ERA and 13 saves.

RHP Dakota Watts: Like Pugh, Watts is off to a slow start with Mesa. He is 0-1 with a 10.38 ERA in 3 appearances. He has allowed 5 ER in 4.1 innings. Watts may be the hardest throwing pitcher in the Twins system and split 2011 between Class A Fort Myers and Double A New Britain.

One more note…The Baseball World Cup is going on right now in Panama and Tom Stuifbergen has really pitched great for the Netherlands. The big RHP pitched seven shutout innings against Puerto Rico in one start and followed that with eight shutout innings against South Korea in his next start. Stuifbergen finished 2011 with the Wings but will probably open up 2012 with Double A New Britain after skipping that level this past season.

You can follow these players, and stay up to date on player moves – like the Twins’ signing of three 2011 Wings to minor league deals for ’12 on today, or today’s 40-man roster moves by the Twins that could help populate our 2012 roster – in our Hot Stove Report, found in the News section of RedWingsBaseball.com

Coming up next week: an update on our Team Store Holiday Sale, Holiday Card Design Contest, and more information on the 109 opportunities you will have to see great Triple-A Baseball at Frontier Field next season.

-Nick

Quick Links:

Regular Season Schedule | Ticket Information
Season Tickets
Group, Picnic & Outdoor Suite Information
Knot Hole Gang Kids’ Club | Ballpark Birthdays
Official Facebook: Facebook.com/RocRedWings | Official Twitter: @RocRedWings

Opening Day is finally here, and the Red Wings—after that seven hour bus trip to New England—will get started tonight in Pawtucket at 7:05.  Personally, I can’t wait to see what this year’s Wings team has in store. Here’s Manager Tom Nieto’s starting lineup:

1) Ben Revere-CF…1st Wings game….328 career batting average!

2)Brandon Roberts-LF…hit .333 in 38 games for Wings last year

3) Trevor Plouffe-SS…his 15 HR last yr were most by Wings SS since 1996

4) Luke Hughes-2B…if healthy could have huge yr…hit 6 HR for Twins in ST

5) Brian Dinkelman-DH…led Wings last year in games, hits, 2B, total bases

6) Jeff Bailey-1B…IL MVP in 2008!

7) Rene Tosoni-RF…Nieto loves him…would’ve been a Wing last yr w/o inj.

8—Matt Brown-3B…newcomer was on 2008 Olympic team with Brian Duensing

9) Rene Rivera-CA…IL North experience with Buffalo and Scranton

SP) Anthony Swarzak…still only 25-years-old

Here is a quick little breakdown on the make-up of the Wings Opening Day roster:

-Only 6 were on the Wings 2010 OD roster (Swarzak, Waldrop, Hughes, Plouffe, Dinkelman, Martin)

-12 (half of the 24 man roster) are in their 1st year in the Twins sysem

-The 12 newcomers to the Twins system played with a combined 10 different organizations last year…plus Korea and the Atlantic League.

-Only 2 (Ben Revere and Rene Tosoni) have NEVER played in Triple A…and Revere played in the big leagues last year.

-Speaking of which—14 of the 24 players have played in the Majors

-This might be a bit of a veteran team, but it is not over-the-hill…12 are 26-years-old or younger…9 are 25 or younger.

Anthony Swarzak earns the Opening Night starting nod for the 2nd straight season.  He is the first Wing to start back-to-back openers since Josh Towers in 2000-2001.  His mound opponent for the Paw Sox will be former Yankee Alfredo Aceves. 

Other notes:  the Wings had won six straight Opening Day games until losing last year at Pawtucket…BTW, last year was the first time the Wings had opened in Pawtucket since winning here OD 1992 18-1…the last Wings pitcher to start three openers=Bill Swaggerty 1984-1986…the festivities tonight in Pawtucket should be emotional since I’m sure they will honor their late owner Ben Mondor who was kind of the Morrie Silver of Pawtucket baseball.  Mondor passed away during the offseason…can’t wait to see how Jeff Bailey does for the Wings tonight.  He played in 455 games for the Paw Sox (was the IL MVP  for them in 2008) and the fans here LOVE him…Happy Birthday to former Red Wings great Tom Phoebus.  The little righty turns 69 today.

The Home Opener, of course, is Saturday at 4:05 with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in town.  Tickets are still available but they are going fast.

Also, a programming note: our broadcast tonight will be on 107.3 FM and 1280 AM, Rochester’s Sports Talk.  You can also tune in online at www.WHTK.com.  The Friday and Saturday games will be on NewsRadio 1180 WHAM…the 50,000 watt blowtorch!

That’s all for now.  Thanks for reading and we hope you enjoy a GREAT 2011 season!

-Josh

Well, our annual visit to Twins/Red Wings spring training in Fort Myers wrapped up today. 

This has been a great spring weather-wise for the folks down here.  Unfortunately, it rained this morning which cancelled the Wings tilt vs. Pawtucket.  There was news from camp, however, which impacts the Red Wings roster pretty significantly.

When we arrived this morning at the Lee County Sports Complex, Twins farm director Jim Rantz informed us that the Twins had released Justin Huber.  Wings fans were justifiably excited when the Twins signed Huber as a free agent this past offseason.  The affable Aussie was the Wings MVP and a Triple A All Star in 2009 when he hit .273 with 22 HR and an .838 OPS.  He spent last year playing in Japan.  This spring, unfortunately, Huber just didn’t perform well enough to land a job with the Wings who have a glut of players battling for a few precious spots.   Hopefully, Huber will land a job soon with another organization.  He is an awesome guy whom his teammates and coaches all love.

In the other move that impacts the Wings, the Twins were able to swing a deal with Atlanta to keep LHP Scott Diamond by traded RHP Billy Bullock to the Braves.  Diamond was taken last December from Atlanta in the Rule V draft.  Because he was taken in that particular draft, the Twins would have had to keep Diamond in the Major Leagues all season or offer him back to Atlanta…or work a trade with the Braves to keep him in the Twins system.  That is what happened and now Diamond will start the season with the Red Wings probably as the only lefty in the Wings starting rotation. 

Diamond went 4-1 with a 3.36 ERA in 10 starts for Gwinnett last year.  That included two very good starts against Rochester.  He is a 24-year-old from Guelph, Ontario who signed with Atlanta as a non-drafted free agent out of Binghamton University.  Consequently, he is a guy with some ties to the region.  Diamond certainly has the stuff to be one of the better lefties in the IL. 

The trade is going to cost the Twins a talented pitcher, though.  Bullock is a hard-throwing closer type who is considered a very good prospect.  He had a good chance to appear with the Wings at some point this season.  Now he will try to reach Triple A with Gwinnett.

If Diamond does work as a starter for the Wings, it will be interesting to see who moves into the bullpen.  Right now, it looks like the Wings starting rotation will consist of five of the following six pitchers:  Kyle Gibson, Anthony Swarzak, Yorman Bazardo, Andy Baldwin, Eric Hacker and Diamond.  Again, Diamond is the only lefty in the bunch.  Also, notice David Bromberg is not on that list.  Bromberg, who had some impressive moments for the Wings late last season, is probably going to start this season back at Double A with New Britain. 

While the Wings did not play today due to the weather, the Twins were able to play their final game of the spring at Hammond Stadium.  They rallied to beat Garrett Jones and the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3.  Possible Wings outfielder Brandon Roberts (whom Rantz says has had a very good spring) ripped a double and a triple for Minnesota.  The Twins set a Hammond Stadium single game attendance record today with a crowd of 8,347.  The Twins’ overall attendance this spring was their second best ever in Fort Myers.

To conclude our final post from Fort Myers this spring, how about a couple dining recommendations.  We had a chance to hit up Fort Myers Beach last night, and The Beached Whale is a cool spot.  The food is good and the outdoor deck on top of the restaurant has a great view of the beach with a cool atmosphere.  It’s a small world, too.  We wound up next to a young couple from Buffalo while sitting at the bar.

Additionally, our final big meal of the trip might have been our best.  We ate at Grimaldi’s Coal Brick-Oven Pizzeria on the strong recommendation of Twins beat writer LaVelle Neal, and the pizza lived up to its advanced billing.  Without a doubt, in the top 4-5 pizzas I’ve had.  For me, it rivals Bob and Timmy’s in Providence which GQ magazine ranked as one of the Top 10 pizza places in the country.  Really, really good.

That’s all from here.  Keep your eyes open for our spring training edition of Red Wings Insider on Time Warner Cable Sports Net.  That show will feature a ton of footage from this visit to balmy Fort Myers.  And…don’t forget…the home opener is April 9 at 4:05 against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre!!!

Hello once again from sunny and hot Fort Myers where the Twins Major League Spring Training is winding down.  The Twins and Red Sox met for the final time this Grapefruit League schedule last night with the Twins using a 9th inning rally to come back and win.  The victory gave the Twins the Mayor’s Cup which goes to the team that wins the spring training series between the Twins and Sox who both train here.  Last night’s game was also the last game for the Red Sox at City of Palms Park.  The Red Sox will move into a brand new complex next spring close to the airport. 

Today was a quiet day on the Minor League side…especially in comparison to the MLB side of the Twins complex where the Yankees are in town.  The Red Wings faced the Twins Double A affiliate from New Britain and played to a 4-4 tie.  Possible Wings outfielder Rene Tosoni went deep with a solo shot in the first inning for the only real highlight for Rochester.  Anthony Slama started the game and pitched one effective inning for the Wings.

Slama, the terrific Wings closer last year, was optioned to the Wings today prior to the game.  Infielder Luke Hughes and pitcher Jim Hoey were also optioned to the Wings.  Hughes had been in a battle with Matt Tolbert for a utility role with the Twins, but ultimately Tolbert’s speed and defense must have won out.  Hughes certainly put his best foot forward leading the Twins this spring with 6 HR and 15 RBI. 

Hoey, a former Baltimore Oriole, could be real find for the Twins.  The right-hander throws very hard.  In fact, he will probably be the Wings hardest thrower since Juan Morillo in 2009. 

In other transaction news, the Twins will reassign LHP Phil Dumatrait and catcher Danny Lehmann to the Minor League camp after tomorrow’s game.  RHPs Carlos Gutierrez and Kyle Waldrop, LHP Chuck James, catcher Rene Rivera, infielder Chase Lambin and outfielder Brian Dinkelman will be reassigned to Minor League camp after the Twins Wednesday exhibition in Atlanta.  All or almost all of those players will wind up in Rochester to open the season.

Have had a chance to catch up with some former Wings on some of their memories of Frontier Field as the ballpark gets ready for its 15th anniversary season.  Among some of the entertaining responses:

-Brian Duensing will never forget when the Wings presented him with his Olympic jersey in 2008.  The Wings players that year also donated memorabilia that was auctioned off to pay for Brian’s wife being able to travel to Beijing for the Games.

-Michael Cuddyer’s memory that really sticks out is a painful one.  He was with the Wings on a rehab stint in 2008 when Garrett Jones hit him on the foot with a screaming line drive while Cuddyer led from first base.  The rocket broke a bone in Cuddyer’s left foot and he missed a considerable amount of time after that. 

-Darnell McDonald still wants a rematch with Zippy Chippy.  The famously awful racehorse beat Darnell in one of the Man vs. Beast races at Frontier Field, but Darnell feels a bad scouting report and a late change of the rules cost him a win.  He’s ready if Zippy Chippy is.

Miscellaneous:  RHP Anthony Swarzak had  a rough 2010 season with the Wings despite some high expectations coming into the season.  This offseason Swarzek pitched some in Venezuela and lost some weight…initially because he got sick.  However, he worked hard to keep the weight off, and everybody is saying that Swarzak is looking very good.  His velocity is supposedly back up into the 90-92 mph range while topping out at about 94 mph.  He will be one of the Wings starters again to open the season…speaking of velocities, LHP Phil Dumatrait has been throwing in the low 90s as well according to Twins VP of player personnel Mike Radcliff.  Dumatrait is a former Red Sox first round pick who has pitched in the big leagues for the Reds and the Pirates.  He spent much of last year pitching in Korea and will be a lefty in the Wings bullpen to start the season…Ran into former Wings lefty Mike Venafro last night at the Twins-Red Sox game.  (Venafro, who pitched for five MLB teams, pitched briefly for Rochester in 2007.)  Venafro is now a scout for the San Diego Padres and he thinks he will spend some time covering the Wings this year. 

Red Wings face the Pawtucket Red Sox tomorrow at the Lee County Sports Complex.  Should be fun!!!

The Red Wings won this afternoon in blowout fashion at the Lee County Sports Complex blowing out Pawtucket 11-1.  Fans at the game were treated to seeing a future Hall of Famer in the Wings lineups as Jim Thome went 3 for 3 with three singles and a walk.  OF Dustin Martin clobbered a 3 run HR off the batters eye in center.  The Wings pitching obviously stood out too.  Kyle Gibson, who has been highly touted all offseason, started and went four VERY strong innings.  He allowed only one hit while walking one and striking out three.  Scott Diamond, a Rule V pick from the Braves who is trying to stick with Minnesota, went the next two innings and allowed the only Pawtucket run. 

A name to file away is Spencer Steedley.  He is a lefty out of UNC-Charlotte who missed last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.  Steedley worked two scoreless innings today and looked impressive.  He has a chance to be a southpaw out of the Wings bullpen.

In other news…Toby Gardenhire has stopped switch-hitting.  Toby now is strictly batting right-handed…had a good chat with Ben Revere, the former Twins first round pick who figures to be the Wings centerfielder this season.  It turns out that Ben has aunt that lives in Rochester so he is very pumped to play in the Flower City.  ..it’s always fun to see former Twins great Tony Oliva meandering around camp and checking out the proceedings while in full uniform.  He apparently suggested to Revere that he work with HOFer Rod Carew on his bunting this year, and Revere is planning on trying to bunt more for hits this season than in the past…had a great dinner last night at local seafood favorite Prawnbrokers with—among others—Wings GM Dan Mason, Wings manager Tom Nieto, Wings pitching coach Bobby Cuellar., new Wings trainer Chad Jackson, former Wings trainer Tony Leo, new Wings strength coach Tyler Donahue, Twins farm director Jim Rantz and his wife Pearl, Twins assistant farm director  Brad Steil and new Wings video production director John Blotzer.  A good time and a great meal was had by all. 

Now we are off to catch the big league Twins who are in action across town against the Boston Red Sox.  Former Red Wing Brian Duensing is starting tonight for Minnesota.  We are hoping to bump into former Wing Darnell McDonald with the Red Sox to try and find out his favorite memory of Frontier Field in this—the 15h anniversary—of the ballpark.

Our first day in Fort Myers for Red Wings/Twins Spring Training is in the books. 
 
Unfortunately—on the field—the Red Wings lost 6-3 to the Durham Bulls.  All three of the Red Wings runs came in the 8th inning on four straight hits that went like this…
1) Jeff Bailey single
2) Dustin Martin RBI double off the right center field fence
3) Toby Gardenhire RBI single…takes second on throw home
4) Michael Hollimon RBI single
 
Otherwise it was a pretty uneventful game for the Red Wings offense.
 
On the pitching front, Anthony Slama…who is still in Major League camp…started and allowed one run in the first inning.  Twins reliever Joe Nathan—coming back from Tommy John surgery—pitched a perfect second inning and retired the Bulls in order on 11 pitches.  RHP Yorman Bazardo then pitched the next 3.2 innings and allowed four runs.  Bazardo reportedly has had a good spring otherwise and appears to be slated to be one of the Wings starting pitchers.  Alex Burnett followed Bazardo and looked VERY good over the course of a couple of innings.
 
Other news so far from the trip…
-seeing former Wings manager Phil Roof throwing BP for the Twins.  Phil is going to start the season as the Twins bullpen coach filling in for the ailing Rick Stelmaszek.  It will be the first time in 20 years that Phil has been in the big leagues and he couldn’t be more excited. 

-Pittsburgh Steelers star Troy Polamalu threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Twins game vs. Baltimore.  Polamalu was in town to film a commercial for Head and Shoulders shampoo with fellow pitchman—and Twins star—Joe Mauer

-speaking of football…sitting two seats away from us on the connecting flight from Atlanta…none other than former Bills coach Gregg Williams.  He was sporting quite the Super Bowl ring…something he earned as defensive coordinator a couple years ago with the New Orleans Saints.

-a little bit of a temperature difference between Rochester and Fort Myers.  It was 28 degrees when we left the Flower City yesterday.  Today’s high in Fort Myers:  92!!!

Be sure to check out Facebook.com/RocRedWings for a few photos from today – including friendly faces Phil Roof, Floyd Rayford and Stu Cliburn.
 
Looking forward to a staff meal tonight with the Wings coaching staff and Wings GM Dan Mason.  Tomorrow should be fun too with super prospect Kyle Gibson expected to pitch for the Wings.

One other note: A co-worker of mine is spending way more time on his AT&T iPhone today than usual…and for good reason. The new Red Wings iPhone app is in beta testing today, with the launch happening before Opening Day; and the Windows Mobile and Android apps launching sometime later in April. It’s a whole new way to stay in touch with all things Wings on your smart phone.