Slowey could join Red Wings

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Slowey could join Red Wings
09/10/2006 3:59 AM ET
By Kevin T. Czerwinski / MLB.com

MOOSIC, Pa. -- The Rochester Red Wings pitching staff just might be one starter deeper when the Governors' Cup Finals begin Tuesday at Frontier Field.
Kevin Slowey, one of the Twins' more heralded pitching prospects, may be added to the Red Wings roster before the club faces Toledo in the International League Championship Series. Slowey already is traveling with Rochester and was in uniform for the final three games of the semifinals against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He joined the team Thursday after helping Team USA clinch an Olympic berth during the qualifying tournament in Cuba.
Whether Slowey actually joins the Red Wings in an official capacity won't be known until early next week. He said Saturday afternoon that he was told by the Twins that he would be activated for the Finals if a roster spot opened. Rochester manager Stan Cliburn said it was likely one of his pitchers would get called up to the parent club after the semifinals ended, regardless of the outcome.
Slowey, a 2005 second-round pick, has been rising rapidly through the Minnesota system. He started this year in the Florida State League and dominated, going 4-2 with a 1.01 ERA in 14 starts. Opponents hit just .164 against him as he struck out 99 and walked only nine, prompting a promotion to New Britain.
The adjustment to Double-A proved to be a relatively smooth one as he went 4-3 with a 3.19 ERA in nine starts.
"Anytime you start the season you're looking forward to making strides and progress through the organization," said Slowey, who lived in a Rochester suburb for several years while growing up. "I've been lucky, though, because I've had great coaches and teammates. Anytime you get to play at a higher level is good and this is a great team. I've been watching them from afar and I'm looking forward to it.
"Just being around a team like this is important. Hopefully, a spot will open up because I really want to be here until the end."
Slowey started a pair of games in the Olympic qualifier, including the finale against Cuba, but didn't earn a decision. He allowed five earned runs in 10 innings (he pitched five innings against Venezuela in his first start), striking out seven and walking two.
Team USA officials told Slowey the night before he left Cuba that the Twins wanted him to join Rochester. Slowey said that because he and Team USA were virtually cut off from the outside world while in Cuba he wasn't aware of what of what was going on in Rochester and that the Red Wings were vying for a playoff spot.
"Cuba was a trip," he said. "It was amazing. There's a lot of stuff we take for granted here. You realize how amazing it is here. We're blessed with a lot of opportunities. The people there were very accommodating, though. And they're huge baseball fans."
MOOSIC TO THEIR EARS: The locals in northeastern Pennsylvania don't appear as if they will be without baseball for long, if at all. Though the Phillies have terminated their working agreement with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after this season, speculation is rampant about a new team coming to Lackawanna County Stadium in 2007.
The Yankees, Mets and Orioles are three of the teams rumored to be testing the market, and there was a front-page story in The Times Tribune on Saturday that fueled further speculation that at the very least the Bombers are interested in moving their Triple-A affiliate from Columbus, Ohio. The Mets are also mulling a move from Norfolk, Va.
Baltimore, meanwhile, will need a new Triple-A affiliate because the Phillies will be heading to Ottawa for the 2007 season before moving into a new ballpark in Allentown, Pa.
Washington also is rumored to be looking for a move out of the Pacific Coast League, and Scranton would be a geographically desirable destination. Currently, the Nationals' Triple-A affiliate plays in New Orleans.
THIS AND THAT: Rochester's Quinton McCracken was 1-for-3 Saturday and finished the opening round hitting .533 (8-for-15) with a homer and three RBIs. ... The Red Wings bullpen allowed only four runs in 20 innings (1.80 ERA). ... Rochester hit .307 (42-for-137), while Scranton/Wilkes-Barre saw its average plummet from .337 to .271 after picking up only one hit Saturday.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.