2008 Rochester Red Wings season

The 2008 Rochester Red Wings season was the franchise's 109th season and their sixth season as the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. The team, a member of the International League since its inception, attempted to win their first Governors' Cup Championship since their inaugural season at Frontier Field in ; however, the team went 74–70, good for third place in the IL North Division. The Wings finished 14 games behind the first-place Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees and 11½ games behind the second-place Pawtucket Red Sox; both the Yankees and the Red Sox earned playoff berths.

Regular season

First half summary

The Red Wings entered the season with high expectations, with many predicting a playoff berth. However, the team failed to live up to the expectations in the first half of the season. The Red Wings went into the All-Star break with a 45–54 record, putting them in fourth place in the International League's North Division. The mark was 16½ games behind that of the first-place Pawtucket Red Sox, who posted a league-best 61–37 record in the first half.

Although the team struggled as a collective unit in the first half, several players fared well individually. Randy Ruiz, the Wings' first baseman and designated hitter, entered the All-Star break on a 22-game hitting streak. The streak was the longest of the season to that point in all of Triple-A and the longest by a Red Wing since . Francisco Liriano, the 2005 International League Rookie of the Year and 2006 American League All-Star, starred for the Red Wings as he recovered from Tommy John surgery. He went 7–2 with a 3.53 ERA in the first half; additionally, in his last three starts prior to the break, Liriano pitched 20 consecutive scoreless innings for Rochester. Outfielder Darnell McDonald was voted to start for the International League in the Triple-A All-Star Game in Louisville, Kentucky, after a hot start to his season. He was the Red Wings' lone representative on the team.

Second half summary

The Wings' play greatly improved in the second half of the season. At one point in August, Rochester won 10 of 11 games (from August 4 to August 14) to reach the .500 mark (64–64) on August 14. The team had last been at .500 on April 13, when the Red Wings were 13–13. Rochester continued to remain around .500 until August 22 when they defeated the Pawtucket Red Sox to improve to 68–67. The Red Wings remained over .500 for the rest of the season.

Rochester closed out its season in dramatic fashion on September 1 at home against the Buffalo Bisons. With the score tied at six and two runners on base in the bottom of the ninth, Garrett Jones, playing in what was ultimately his final game with the Red Wings, drilled a three-run home run into the Red Wings' bullpen to win the game 9–6. The win moved Rochester to 74–70, their high-water mark for the season, and closed out a second half in which the Wings went 29–16. They finished 11½ games behind Pawtucket—a gain of five games compared to the standings at the All-Star break—but also 14 games behind the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, who surged in the second half to pass Pawtucket and win the North Division.

Standings

Game log

Roster

Regular season transactions

• April 3 – Zach Day placed on the disabled list
• April 3 – Danny Graves placed on the disabled list
• April 3 – Alejandro Machado placed on the disabled list
• April 3 – Doug Deeds placed on the disabled list
• April 3 – Darnell McDonald placed on the disabled list
• April 5 – Denard Span called up to Minnesota
• April 5 – Francisco Liriano called up from Ft. Myers to Rochester
• April 11 – Doug Deeds activated from disabled list and traded to Chicago Cubs to complete November trade for Craig Monroe
• April 12 – Francisco Liriano called up to Minnesota
• April 12 – Danny Graves activated from disabled list and sent to Ft. Myers
• April 14 – Tim Lahey placed on the temporary inactive list
• April 15 – Darnell McDonald activated from disabled list
• April 18 – Tim Lahey sent from Rochester to Ft. Myers
• April 19 – Brian Buscher called up to Minnesota
• April 22 – Zach Day activated from disabled list and sent to Ft. Myers
• April 22 – Tim Lahey called up from Ft. Myers to Rochester
• April 25 – Tommy Watkins placed on the disabled list
• April 25 – Bobby Korecky called up to Minnesota
• April 25 – Denard Span sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• April 28 – Francisco Liriano sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• April 29 – Matt Macri placed on the disabled list
• April 30 – Ryan Jorgensen activated from suspended list
• April 30 – Jon Knott traded to Philadelphia Phillies for cash considerations
• May 1 – Brian Buscher sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• May 1 – Eli Whiteside released
• May 1 – Kevin Slowey sent from Minnesota to Rochester on rehab assignment
• May 2 – Tommy Watkins activated from disabled list
• May 8 – Kevin Slowey called up to Minnesota
• May 10 – Glen Perkins called up to Minnesota
• May 10 – Danny Graves called up from New Britain to Rochester
• May 11 – Alexi Casilla called up to Minnesota
• May 14 – Darnell McDonald placed on the disabled list
• May 14 – Sergio Santos claimed off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays
• May 15 – Matt Macri activated from the disabled list
• May 17 – Howie Clark called up to Minnesota
• May 22 – Denard Span placed on the disabled list
• May 22 – Darnell McDonald activated from the disabled list
• May 23 – Felix Molina called up from New Britain to Rochester
• May 23 – Matt Macri called up to Minnesota
• May 30 – Bobby Korecky sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• June 2 – Howie Clark sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• June 2 – Felix Molina sent from Rochester to New Britain
• June 6 – Heath Totten released
• June 11 – Howie Clark placed on the disabled list
• June 12 – Brian Buscher called up to Minnesota
• June 12 – Denard Span activated from the disabled list
• June 12 – José Morales placed on the disabled list
• June 13 – Trevor Plouffe called up from New Britain to Rochester
• June 13 – Jeff Christy called up from New Britain to Rochester
• June 13 – Alejandro Machado activated from the disabled list
• June 19 – Chris Basak traded to New York Yankees for future considerations
• June 23 – Matt Macri sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• June 30 – Howie Clark activated from the disabled list
• June 30 – Denard Span called up to Minnesota
• July 24 – Adam Everett sent from Minnesota to Rochester on rehab assignment
• July 28 – Brian Duensing placed on the temporary inactive list
• July 28 – Tommy Watkins placed on the disabled list
• July 28 – Anthony Swarzak called up from New Britain to Rochester
• July 28 – Tom Shearn signed as a free agent
• July 29 – Adam Everett called up to Minnesota
• July 31 – Darnell McDonald placed on the disabled list
• July 31 – Luke Hughes called up from New Britain to Rochester
• August 1 – Francisco Liriano called up to Minnesota
• August 1 – Randy Ruiz called up to Minnesota
• August 5 – Michael Cuddyer sent from Minnesota to Rochester on rehab assignment
• August 9 – Brock Peterson called up from New Britain to Rochester
• August 12 – Bobby Kielty signed as a free agent
• August 23 – Casey Daigle released
• August 23 – Brian Bass sent from Minnesota to Rochester
• August 27 – Tom Shearn placed on the disabled list
• September 1 – Bobby Kielty released

Player stats

Batting

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In

Starting pitchers

Relief pitchers

External links

• 2008 Rochester Red Wings, provided by Baseball Reference.