Cedar Rapids Kernels Baseball

Kernels schedule set for 2014

The Cedar Rapids Kernels will open the 2014 Midwest League campaign against the Clinton LumberKings on Thursday, April 3 at Veterans Memorial Stadium at 6:35 p.m.

Starting Sept. 23, the Kernels will begin taking group outing reservations for the 2014 season. Contact Andrea Brommelkamp at (319) 896-7603 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) to reserve one of the Kernels' many group outing areas. Areas include the Plumbers and Pipefitters Pavilion, Arctic Insulation Party Plaza, Miller Mezzanine, Cedar Rapids Area Association of Realtors Grand Slam Suite and Kernels Diamond Suites.

Season ticket packages for the 2014 season will go on sale in late September. Individual game tickets for the 2014 season will go on sale to the general public on Monday, March 10 at 10 a.m.

Kernels 2014 schedule

Host families make Kernels feel at home

The life of a professional baseball player has many challenges off the field, none bigger than finding housing at each stop along the way.

For players whose careers pass through Cedar Rapids, that is not the case.

In a program unique to professional baseball, the not-for-profit Cedar Rapids Ball Club, Inc., has offered housing to each player through the Host Family Program. It's stated mission is to provide a positive home-like atmosphere for young men to live while they pursue their dream of someday playing baseball in the major leagues.

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Kernels have more trouble with River Bandits

DAVENPORT - Nobody has given the Cedar Rapids Kernels more trouble this season than the Quad Cities River Bandits.

That's potentially bad news for the Kernels, because there's a good chance they'll meet the River Bandits when the Midwest League playoffs begin Sept. 4.

The River Bandits trimmed Cedar Rapids, 3-2, before 6,913 fans at Modern Woodmen Park Friday night to finish with a 10-and-6 record against the Kernels for the regular season.

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Goodrum goes on DL; Walker joins Kernels

Infielder Ryan Walker has joined the Cedar Rapids Kernels from Elizabethton of the Appalachian League to replace infielder Niko Goodrum, who has been placed on the 7-day disabled list retroactive to Aug. 22 with a right groin strain.

The Twins selected Walker in the 18th round of the 2013 draft from the University of Texas-Arlington. He played 42 games at Elizabethton and hit .267 with a home run and 14 RBIs.

Goodrum has played in 100 games for the Kernels, batting .256 with three homers, 42 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 24 attempts.

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Bandits snap Kernels' streak at 8

DAVENPORT - Jose Berrios returned to the mound for the Cedar Rapids Kernels Thursday night after spending a week on the disabled list with a right elbow contusion.

The 19 year-old right-hander shut the Quad Cities River Bandits down without a hit for the first three innings, but things turned sour after that and the Bandits snapped the Kernels’ eight-game winning streak with a 7-1 win over Cedar Rapids in front of 3,882 fans at Modern Woodmen Park.

The Kernels rapped 11 hits, seven during the game’s first four innings, but managed just a single run. Adam Brett Walker opened the fourth inning with a double and scored on an RBI single by Bo Altobelli.

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Kernels activate Berrios from DL

Jose Berrios has been activated from the 7-day disabled list and will pitch for the Cedar Rapids Kernels against the Quad Cities River Bandits in Davenport Thursday night, the club announced.

Berrios was placed on the DL Aug. 11 with a right elbow contusion.

Berrios has made 17 starts for the Kernels with a 7-5 record and 3.45 ERA. In 94 innings, he has allowed 96 hits and 48 runs (36 earned) with 34 walks and 92 strikeouts.

Kernels reach milestone with 80th win

DAVENPORT —  The Cedar Rapids Kernels have something in common with the Mississippi River these days.

Just like Ol' Man River, the Kernels keep rolling along.

Cedar Rapids won its eighth straight game Wednesday night with a 6-1 victory over the Quad Cities River Bandits at Modern Woodmen Park along the banks of the Mississippi.

It was the Kernels' 80th victory of the season, marking only the 10th time since pro baseball began in Cedar Rapids in 1890 that the local team has won 80 games or more.

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Kernels sweep Peoria for 7th in row

PEORIA, Ill. -- The Cedar Rapids Kernels won their seventh straight game and finished a four-game sweep of the Peoria Chiefs on Tuesday night with an 8-3 victory before 1,164 fans at Dozer Park.

The Kernels (79-46) have won 12 of their last 13 games and stand a season-best 33 games over the .500 mark with 13 games left in the regular season.

Cedar Rapids scored five runs in the third inning and added three more runs in the fourth for the victory. The Kernels held the Chiefs to a total of six runs in the four-game series.

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Mauer making plans for MWL playoffs

Cedar Rapids Kernels Manager Jake Mauer has been in an unusual situation for the past couple of months, since his Kernels nailed down a Midwest League postseason berth by finishing second in the MWL’s Western Division during the first half of the season.

Only in minor league baseball is a manager occasionally faced with the challenge of keeping his roster focused on winning games even after locking up a spot in the postseason with 70 games remaining on the regular season schedule.

Recently, Mauer talked about that challenge as well as the steps he and his coaching staff are taking to prepare for the Midwest League playoffs that begin for the Kernels on Sept. 4.

“We’re a lot different team than we were at the beginning of the year,” Mauer said. “Obviously, (Byron) Buxton and (Dalton) Hicks and (J.D.) Williams were a big part and they’ve moved up, along with some of our pitchers, (Steven) Gruver and (Tyler) Jones and (Tyler) Duffey. That’s kind of what happens and how the nature of the beast is.

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