Cedar Rapids Kernels Baseball

Kernels drop opener of road trip

MIDLAND, Mich. —  The Cedar Rapids Kernels fell, 8-4, at Great Lakes on Tuesday night in the first game of a six-game road trip before 2,826 fans at Dow Diamond in Midland, Mich.

The Loons scored three runs in both the second and sixth innings. Jeremias Pineda and Bryan Haar homered for the Kernels (2-3) in the loss.

The Loons (4-1) jumped out to an early 4-0 lead by plating three runs in the second inning and one run in the third inning. Justin Chigbogu blasted a two-run home run in the second inning, putting the Loons up by a pair.

Later in the inning, Jesmuel Valentin was hit by a pitch and scored on Dillon Moyer's RBI double. In the third inning, Paul Hoenecke plated Kyle Farmer with an RBI double, extending the Loons' lead to four runs.

Zack Larson doubled to lead off the fourth inning for the Kernels. It was one of three hits, including two doubles, for the right fielder. He scored on Michael Quesada's RBI double, cutting the Loons' lead to 4-1.

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Kernels pitcher Sulbaran traded to Yanks

The Cedar Rapids Kernels will need to find a new starting pitcher for their Midwest League game at Great Lakes Tuesday night.

It was supposed to be Miguel Sulbaran, but the Minnesota Twins traded him Monday to the New York Yankees organization for infielder Eduardo Nunez.

Nunez, once considered the heir apparent to Derek Jeter at shortstop for the Yankees, reportedly will be assigned to Minnesota's Triple-A team in Rochester, N.Y.

Sulbaran compiled a 3-0 record and 2.70 ERA for the Kernels in the 2013 season after being received in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He had a 0-0 record and 0.00 ERA in one inning for the Kernels this season before being dealt away.

Sulbaran, a 5-foot-10 lefthander from Venezuela, had a 9-4 record and 2.96 ERA with Great Lakes and the Kernels in the Midwest League in 2013 with 101 strikeouts in 112.2 innings.

A source with the Twins organization has confirmed that righthander Ethan Mildren is being called up to join the Kernels from Extended Spring Training to replace Sulbaran.

Mildren, 22, was selected by the Twins in the 12th round of the 2013 Amateur Draft from the University of Pittsburgh. He threw just 16.1 innings, all in relief, for the Twins' Appalachian League affiliate in Elizabethton, Tenn., after signing with the Twins, accumulating a 1-1 record and a 1.65 ERA.

Kernels have 3 catchers on the job

Bo Altobelli, Michael Quesada and Mitch Garver have several things in common. They are similar in age and each played some college baseball before starting their professional careers with the Minnesota Twins organization.

In addition, each of the three hails from areas of the country that you would assume allows baseball to be played in more moderate weather than what welcomed them to Cedar Rapids last week. Altobelli is from Texas, Quesada went to school in California and Garver is from New Mexico.

They were asked Sunday if they had any prior experience playing ball in conditions comparable to what they faced in their first week of Midwest League play this season.

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Wade's homer helps Kernels have good day

Logan Wade has liked everything about playing for the Minnesota Twins organization since he arrived from Australia two years ago, but Thursday night's Kernels' opener in the bitter cold and rain in Cedar Rapids was an exception.

The 22-year-old infielder had trouble gripping the baseball and made three throwing errors that night as he struggled to keep warm.

"The coldest I'd played in before was probably 65 degrees," Wade said Sunday. "Yeah, opening night was a bit of a chill for me.

"After that night I went out and bought some hand-warmers and extra clothing. I'm trying to make an adjustment and realize what the cold does to you when you're playing baseball."

He enjoyed Sunday's weather in Cedar Rapids a lot better, even though it was only 55 and cloudy.

Wade celebrated the extra warmth by hitting a home run in the seventh inning to snap a 2-2 tie and help the Kernels trim Clinton, 4-2, before 1,019 fans at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids.

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Light-hitting Kernels drop pair

The sun came out in Cedar Rapids on Saturday, but a temperature that neared 60 degrees was not enough to warm up the Kernels’ bats as they dropped both ends of their Midwest League doubleheader against the Clinton LumberKings at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Cedar Rapids lost, 4-1, in the opener and things only got worse for the Kernels in Game 2 as they fell to Clinton, 6-0.

The Kernels had trouble finding outfield grass at the plate, totaling 19 groundouts in the two games.

“We’ll have to have games where those groundballs find holes,” said Manager Jake Mauer. “But we’re not a team that’s going to score 10-12 runs a game. That’s not going to happen.

"We’ve got to find ways to keep it close and find ways to scratch out three or four runs and bunch something together. That’s what we’re going to have to do.”

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Kernels postponed, set twinbill Saturday

Friday night's game between the Clinton LumberKings and Cedar Rapids Kernels has been postponed in the interest of player safety due to the cold weather.

The game will be made up Saturday as part of a doubleheader starting at 2:05 p.m. with the gates opening at 1 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadiium.

Friday's Captain America Theme Night promotion has been moved to Saturday's game. The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a free Kernels Captain America T-Shirt.

The 2014 Kernels Magnet Schedules, courtesy of Wells Fargo, will be passed out to fans throughout the entire Opening Week series.

Haar's walk-off homer warms up Kernels

Bryan Haar gave the Cedar Rapids Kernels a warm, happy feeling on a cold, miserable night at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids on Thursday.

Haar belted a towering walk-off home run into the fog and mist in the bottom of the 10th inning to give Cedar Rapids a 4-3 victory over Clinton in the season opener before about 50 brave fans who stuck around to the end.

Haar, from San Diego, had never played in rotten conditions like this. "Not this cold," he said in the warm clubhouse.

The air temperature was about 40, but there was a 19 mph wind that blew the mist sideways — from right field to left field —  and made it feel like winter.

The Kernels wore their newly issued parkas and huddled around a giant heater in the dugout to try to stay as warm as possible. Several fielders wore special face gear that covered their ears and chins and left only their eyes and nose exposed to the weather.

"It was tough," said Haar. "It was cold."

The Kernels won despite committing five errors, all on errant throws by third baseman Logan Wade and shortstop Engelb Vielma.

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Kernels pitcher towers above the crowd

Aaron Slegers is 6-foot-10 and a star athlete, so you might automatically assume he was a star basketball player somewhere.

Actually, he never made it past the junior varsity team in high school. Baseball has been another story, however.

Slegers helped the Indiana Hoosiers reach the College World Series last year as a 6-foot-10 righthander and he'll get the starting nod Thursday night when the Cedar Rapids Kernels begin the 2014 Midwest League season against Clinton at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The first pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m., weather permitting (bring your parkas and umbrellas).

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Christensen plans to enjoy home cooking

Chad Christensen is a college graduate and a pro baseball player, but he's living at his mother's house in Cedar Rapids now while playing for the Kernels, and that means the old rules still apply.

He'll be expected to take out the garbage, wash the dishes, cut the grass and help with all the other household chores.

"Of course he does. And he knows that!" said Tracy Christensen, his mother. "I know he'll be a good help."

Christensen jokingly claimed he'll be too busy playing for the Kernels to help out around the house. "I'll tell her I have to devote all my energy to baseball," he said.

As it turns out, Christensen is a pretty good cook and will be happy to help around the house as much as possible.

"He said Sunday nights when the weather gets warm, he'll grill just about every night," offered Tracy. "I said that would be awesome."

Christensen, an all-stater at Washington High School, called his mother Saturday morning with the good news about making the club.

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