Article: Twins Minor League Report (5/19): Wahoos Walk-Off, Two Blown Leads

[Cody Christie]

All four Twins affiliates found themselves in close contests on Sunday. Two clubs were able to hold on and win by two runs or fewer. The other two clubs held big early leads and saw them disappear in the late innings. Who was able to perform well? Who struggled on Sunday? Let’s jump in.TRANSACTIONS

OF Tanner English promoted to Rochester.

OF Luke Raley placed on the 7-day IL with a left-ankle strain.

 

AWARDS

The Twins announced their weekly Hitter and Pitcher of the Week:

• Hitter of the Week: Lewin Diaz, Fort Myers

Diaz played in six games for the Miracle and went 9-for-27 (.333 BA) with one double, three home runs, six RBI and a 1.037 OPS. Diaz, 22, was signed out of Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic in July of 2013.

• Pitcher of the Week: Andrew Cabezas, Cedar Rapids

Cabezas made one start his week on Wednesday against Quad Cities. He pitched seven shutout innings with one hit allowed, no walks and nine strikeouts. Cabezas, 22, was drafted by the Twins in the 18th round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft from the University of Miami.

 

RED WINGS REPORT

Rochester 6, Durham 4

Box Score

Rochester used a balanced offensive attack to score runs in five different innings. This included two runs in the final three innings, which turned out to be the difference in the game. The Red Wings scored first with two runs in the second. Randy Cesar hit a two-run home run, his fourth long ball of the season. In the fifth, newly promoted Tanner English hit a solo shot. To put that in perspective, he only had four home runs all last season.

 

Zack Littell pitched five strong innings by scattering four hits. He allowed one earned run with two strikeouts and a walk. After Littell allowed a run, Jack Cave quickly got it back with a home run to push Rochester’s lead to 4-1. Andrew Vasquez struggled to keep the Red Wings ahead. He was able to get only one out and he was charged with three earned runs.

 

Jake Reed pitched the next 1 2/3 without allowing an earned run to score. He was charged with a blown save because of the inherited runners he got from Vasquez. Reed struck out three. Gabriel Moya pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. Preston Guilmet earned his fifth save with a scoreless ninth.

 

Rochester was able to come back thanks to a solo home run from Zander Wiel. It was his seventh of the year. Jake Cave added a two-out insurance run in the ninth. LaMonte Wade had walked and Wiel moved him to second on a single. Cave took care of the rest with a single to center.

 

BLUE WAHOO BITES

Pensacola 4, Mobile 3 (10 Innings)

Box Score

Pensacola is usually in good shape with Brusdar Graterol on the mound. That continued to be the case on Sunday, but he wsa not around to see the end of this one. Graterol pitched five strong innings as he allowed two runs on six hits. He struck out seven and walked two. Of his 81 pitches, 51 were for strikes. He reached 102 mph with his first pitch of the game.

 

Alex Kirilloff created a run by himself in the bottom of the second. He doubled to lead off the inning and stole third. On the play, there was a throwing error by the catcher and Kirilloff was able to scamper home. Pensacola plated two more runs in the third after Travis Blankenhorn blasted his sixth home run of the year. The Blue Wahoos were up 3-1 and the game was in the hands of the bullpen.

 

Alex Phillips and Tom Hackimer took over from Graterol. Each pitched a scoreless frame. Phillips walked one and allowed one hit, but he kept Mobile off the board. For Hackimer, he hasn’t allowed an earned run since 4/26. Ryan Mason pitched the final three frames. He allowed the tying run in the eighth, but he finished with two shutout frames for his second win.

 

Joe Cronin started on second in the bottom of the tenth. Mark Contreras moved him to third on a sacrifice bunt. After a walk to Blankenhorn, Jaylin Davis slapped a single past a diving third baseman. The Wahoos won and celebrated on the field.

 

MIRACLE MATTERS

Ft. Myers 6, St. Lucie 8

Box Score

For the first time since 2015, the Miracle were swept at home in a three-game series. Fort Myers was up by as many as five runs in this game, but the Mets proved to be too much.

 

Fort Myers built their lead with four runs in the first inning. Royce Lewis collected a one-out single and moved to third on a double from Lewin Diaz. With Jose Miranda batting, a wild pitch allowed Lewis to score. Then Miranda drove Diaz in with a single. Ryan Jeffers capped the inning with a two-run homer.

 

Diaz was also part of the scoring in the third inning. He led off the inning with his seventh home run of the season. Fort Myers had their largest lead of the game at 5-0. Lewis would score a run in the fifth without the help of his teammates. He lined a one-out double then he moved to third and scored on two wild pitches. Fort Myers had a 6-2 advantage.

 

Jordan Balazovic started but he couldn’t make it out of the sixth inning. Overall, he was charged with four runs on six hits. He struck out eight including the first five batters of the game. Also, he has collected seven strikeouts or more in every appearance this season. Johan Quezada pitched two scoreless innings in relief. He walked one and allowed a hit.

 

Joe Record ran into some trouble in the ninth after pitching a scoreless eighth. He allowed four runs on four hits with a walk and a strikeout. Anthony Vizcaya came in to try and clean up the mess. It was a tough situation with a tie game and two runners on base. He walked the bases loaded and then saw runs score on a single and a sacrifice fly. He struck out the final two batters he faced.

 

KERNELS NUGGETS

Cedar Rapids 7, Clinton 8

Box Score

Much like the Miracle, the Kernels saw an early lead evaporate in the late innings. Andrew Bechtold put a two-spot on the scoreboard in the second with his third home run. Chris Williams had doubled earlier in the frame.

 

Cedar Rapids kept the scoring going in the third. Gabriel Maciel walked to start the inning and then Gilberto Celestino smacked a two-run home run. Jacob Pearson followed with a single and then Williams drove him in with a triple. Williams was able to score on a wild pitch and the Kernels were up 6-0.

 

Josh Winder was given an early lead, but he struggled to hold on to it. He allowed four runs on seven hits while striking out three and walking one. It was his shortest outing since 4/20. Brian Rapp took over for Winder and he had his own struggles. In two innings of work, he allowed three runs on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

 

Derek Molina took the loss, but he came into a tough situation after the first three batters had reached in the eighth inning. Cedar Rapids was still up 7-5 but there were two runners in scoring position. The first batter he faced hit a single to score a run. He struck out the next two batters but a two-out single put Clinton up by one.

 

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY

TD Pitcher of the Day- Brusdar Graterol, Pensacola (5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 7 K, 2 BB)

TD Hitter of the Day- Travis Blankenhorn, Pensacola (3-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI, R, BB, K)

 

PROSPECT SUMMARY

Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:

 

#1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) – 2-4, 2B, 2 R, K

#2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) – 2-3, 2B, R, BB, K

#3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 7 K, 2 BB

#4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) – Did not play

#5 - Wander Javier (EST) – Injured (quad), return…unknown

#6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) – Injured (wrist)

#7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) – Did not pitch

#8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) – Did not pitch

#9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) – Did not pitch

#10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) – Injured List

#11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (adductor)

#12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List, late-May return possible

#13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) – 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, R

#14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) – 0-3, BB, 2K

#15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) – Injured List

#16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) – 1-3, 2 RBI, R

#17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) – 5.0 IP, ER, 4 H, 2 K, BB

#18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) – 0-4, R, BB, K

#19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) – Did not pitch

#20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) – 1-4, RBI, R, K

 

MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS

Rochester – Scheduled Off-Day

Pensacola vs. Mobile (6:35 CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (5-0, 1.43 ERA)

Fort Myers vs. Bradenton (5:30 CST) – RHP Jhoan Duran (0-3, 4.21 ERA)

Cedar Rapids vs. Burlington (6:35 CST) – RHP Luis Rijo (0-4, 4. ERA)

 

Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Sunday’s games.

 

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[ChrisKnutson]

Promote Graterol.

[nater79a]

Just noticed the listing of Wander Javier with an injured quad.

Man, it always seems to be something with him.   Realize he's still very young but missed all of last year and is struggling to get on the field this year too.

Needs to start playing some games to continue his development.

 

[rdehring]

Always glad to see multi hit games from the top two prospects on the Top 20 list.  But 30% of that group is out with injuries.  Don't recall how many were injured in previous years, but this seems to be too many.  

[IAMNFan]

What would Cave & Rooker bring in a trade?  Seems like a position of strength.

 

If they are limiting Graterol's innings, should he be coming out of the pen?  Maybe after an opener?  I think he could help the Twins, but this year would most likely be from the bullpen and I'd like to see him get some reps from the pen in the minors instead of the majors.

[IAMNFan]

 

Just noticed the listing of Wander Javier with an injured quad.

Man, it always seems to be something with him.   Realize he's still very young but missed all of last year and is struggling to get on the field this year too.

Needs to start playing some games to continue his development.

 

At least to increase his trade value.

 

[Tibs]

Has there been any indication from the front office that they would consider Graterol for the bullpen later this year?

 

I mean I guess with how he is pitching they may even have to consider him for the starting rotation.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Has there been any indication from the front office that they would consider Graterol for the bullpen later this year?

 

I mean I guess with how he is pitching they may even have to consider him for the starting rotation.

 

He's not on the 40 man but has to be added this offseason, so my guess would be a late August/September callup so as not to waste an option. If he pitched well, he could potentially be on an October roster (though I do believe someone has to be on the 60 day for that to happen if he's called up in Sept.. it won't be as simple as adding him)… 

[jmlease1]

nice to see Kirilloff have a good outing; he'd been scuffling a bit lately. (I'm not worried about him)

 

Graterol is doing fine. I'm baffled by the people who are already clamoring for him to be promoted (and seemingly to MLB!) considering how little he's actually pitched. Last year he pitched 102 innings between low & high A ball, in his first year in full season ball. Before that, he threw 51 professional innings in 3 years. He's pitching well right now, but he definitely has some developmental work to be done to refine his approach and manage more advanced hitters. His K/BB ratio is a career worst right now. He's still a puppy, why would we want to throw him to the wolves?

[Seth Stohs]

 

He's not on the 40 man but has to be added this offseason, so my guess would be a late August/September callup so as not to waste an option. If he pitched well, he could potentially be on an October roster (though I do believe someone has to be on the 60 day for that to happen if he's called up in Sept.. it won't be as simple as adding him)… 

 

I agree with this timeline.

Also, if he's on the roster before September 1st, he can pitch in October. So I think that is a realistic timeline. I think that timeline could happen as early as mid-June. I personally kind of expect him to be up at some point. 

But I do think they still envision him long-term as a starter so they are going to want to get his innings up a bit before they bring him up as a reliever. 

[Cap'n Piranha]

Why do the Blue Wahoos wear red jerseys?

[Aerodeliria]

I'm glad to see Zack pitch better. He might be the next call up in a pinch situation...since we've seen Stewart a couple of times, why not bring up Littel again?

[jkcarew]

I'll play the contrarian on Graterol. He isn't dominating like the ERA might indicate. His FIP is actually 3.12, and his BB/9 and K/9 are no better than league average. In fact his K/9 is a fraction below league average which...when you have a 100 mph fastball...is usually a pretty good indication your secondary pitches are not being particularly effective. His BABiP against is extremely low right now...100 points lower than it was last year at Fort Myers.

 

So, I'd say...he continues to progress nicely as a 20-year old starter in AA ball. But, I doubt he's ready to help at the major league level quite yet, and I want him to start as many games as possible as he continues to develop the other pitches. I do hope he gets to AAA soon.

[ashbury]

Why do the Blue Wahoos wear red jerseys?

Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.

[jkcarew]

And are we sure Taylor Grzelakowski (#23) is really only 25 years old?