2022 Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Opening Day Roster Preview

[Seth Stohs]

On Wednesday, the Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels announced their 2022 Opening Day Roster. The roster includes several of the team’s top prospects including two of Twins Daily’s Top 20 prospects. Let’s take a look at the Mighty Mussels roster. 

In 2021, the Mighty Mussels adjusted to their first season in Low-A ball. It was even more difficult because there wasn’t an Advanced Rookie League anymore since the Elizabethton Twins were no more. Players who likely would have played in E-Town were pushed to play in full-season ball. For some, that’s good. Others will have to repeat the level. This group is filled with many 2021 draft picks, some of whom played in Ft. Myers some late last season. 

We will introduce you to the 2022 Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Opening Day roster with a tweet-length bio. For much more on each player, click the hyperlink with the name and see all of the Twins Daily stories in which each player is tagged. There are some terrific prospects on this roster, and there are some great stories. 

COACHING STAFF 

• Manager: Brian Meyer 
• Hitting Coach: Rayden Sierra 
• Pitching Coaches: Jared Gaynor, Carlos Hernandez 
• Bench Coach: Takashi Miyoshi 

PITCHERS 

• RHP Travis Adams (22) - Twins sixth-round pick in 2021 out of Cal State, Sacramento, where he was a starter for three years. He made just one appearance in the FCL last year after signing. 
• RHP David Festa (22) - The New Jersey native spent three college seasons at Seton Hall. Last year, he went 6-4 with a 2.00 ERA. Twins 13th round pick, he throws 94-97 and will be a starter for the Mussels to start the season. 
• RHP Regi Grace (22) - Grace was the Mighty Mussels Opening Day starter last year. He was the Twins 10th round pick in 2018 out of high school in Mississippi. 
• LHP Steve Hajjar (21) - Hajjar was the Twins' 2nd round pick in 2021 out of Michigan. He didn’t pitch after signing, but he has a chance to move up quickly. Between 2020 and 2021 at Michigan, he went 7-2 with a 3.01 ERA. He had 134 strikeouts in 101 2/3 innings. 
• RHP Jackson Hicks (24) - signed last summer out of the USPBL, Hicks split his time between the FCL and the Mighty Mussels. He walked two with the FCL squad and struck out 16  batters in 14 innings. 
• RHP Hunter McMahon (23) - McMahon came to the Twins from the Nationals after the 2019 season in exchange for Ryne Harper. He had been the Nats' ninth-round pick that summer. A lost 2021 and an injury-plagued 2021 in which he pitched just five games, four with the Mussels. He needs to get some innings under his belt. 
• RHP Juan Mendez (23) - The Dominican made his pro debut last year as a 22-year-old in the FCL. He went 2-3 with a 3.58 ERA over 12 games (5 starts). In 27 2/3 innings, he walked 14 and struck out 37 batters. 
• LHP Jaylen Nowlin (21) - The lefty was the Twins 19th round pick last summer from Chipola College. He pitched in just one game last year in the FCL. He was clocked in the mid-to-upper 90s with a good slider during instructs. He’ll need to work on control and consistency, but he has potential. 
• RHP Pierson Ohl (22) - He was the Twins 14th round pick last year out of Grand Canyon University. Last year, he went 10-2 with a 2.60 ERA. In 100 1/3 innings, he walked just 12 and struck out 103. He pitched in just one game with the FCL Twins last year and was a guest on Twins Spotlight in the offseason. 
• RHP Michael Paredes (21) - After three seasons at San Diego State, he was the Twins 18th round pick in 2021. In the FCL, he struck out six and walked one batter in four innings. He profiles as a starter, but he will likely work in multiple roles with the Mighty Mussels. 
• LHP Samuel Perez (22) - Perez was the Twins Daily short-season pitcher of the year in 2021 when he went 4-2 with a 1.45 ERA. He struck out 39 batters and walked just five in 37 1/3 innings. The Twins had signed him in the spring out of the Frontier League. He had initially signed with the Angels and spent two seasons in the DSL. 
• RHP Marco Raya (19) - Raya was the Twins' fourth-round pick in 2020 out of high school in Texas. Minor shoulder issues kept him from pitching during the 2021 season. However, in Instructs last fall, he was impressive, hitting 97 with the fastball to go along with a four-pitch mix.  
• RHP Niklas Rimmel (22) - The Berlin, Germany, native signed with the Twins late in 2017. He pitched in the GCL in 2018 and 2019, and injuries slowed him last year limited him to just three games and seven innings in the FCL. 
• RHP John Stankiewicz (23) - After three years at Fordham University, he went undrafted in the five-round 2020 draft. He signed with the Twins. Last year, he pitched once in the FCL before making seven appearances (4 starts) for the Mussels. Combined, he went 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA. He had 30 strikeouts and nine walks in 25 1/3 innings. 
• RHP Matthew Swain (24) - The Twins drafted Swain in the 23rd round in 2019 out of NAIA Georgia Gwinnett College. Last year, he pitched in n35 games for the Mussels. In 60 2/3 innings, he struck out 70 batters while walking 31. He was 6-2 with five saves. He stands 6-7 and throws hard. 
• LHP John Wilson (24) - The southpaw was a freshman All-American at Old Dominion in 2017. Unfortunately, he was hurt and missed the 2018 and 2019 seasons, and the 2020 season was cut short. After the draft last year, he signed with the Twins and pitched in 17 games between the FCL (14 games) and Ft. Myers.  

CATCHERS 

• Noah Cardenas (22) - The Twins went over slot to sign the UCLA backstop as their eight-round pick last summer. A solid defensive catcher, he hit .268/.371/.404 (.774) with 12 doubles and five homers in 57 games. He then hit .300/.400/.500 (.900) in 13 games in the FCL last year. 
• Kyle Schmidt (24) - Twins 33rd round pick in 2019 from Richmond, Schmidt’s defense has kept him jumping all over the Twins organization. Last year, he played 25 games in Ft. Myers, 22 in Cedar Rapids, and even one game up in St. Paul. He hit a combined .250/.370/.329 (.699), including .302/.423/.430 (.853) at Ft. Myers. Great defender all-around. 
• Dillon Tatum (21) - Tatum was the Twins 20th round pick in 2021 out of UC-Irvine, where he hit .278/.401/.684 (1.085) over 40 games last year. He had seven doubles and 15 homers. He played just five games in the FCL late in the season. 

INFIELDERS

• Keoni Cavaco (20) - The Twins selected Cavaco with the 13th overall pick in the 2019 draft. Last year in Ft. Myers, he played in 60 games due to a concussion and other minor injuries. He hit .233/.296/.301 (.597) with six doubles, two triples, and two homers. He is a solid defender at shortstop, but he could return to his high school position, third base, in 2022. 
• Noah Miller (19) - Miller, whose older brother Owen plays for the Guardians, was the 36th overall pick in the 2021 draft out of high school in Wisconsin. In 22 FCL games last year, he hit .238/.316/.369 (.685) with three doubles and two homers. He has impressed the spring, especially defensively, in the four games he played for the Twins. He also had two hits in seven at-bats. 
• Daniel Ozoria (21) - Ozoria came to the Twins from the Angels after the 2018 season for John Curtiss. In 2019, he split time between E-Town and Cedar Rapids. In 2021, he was moved all over. He started the season at Cedar Rapids (now High-A). In 51 games there, he hit .252/.388/.328 (.616) with six doubles and a homer. He also played five games for Ft. Myers and three games in St. Paul. He’s been around a while; it’s hard to believe he’s still just 21.  
• Mikey Perez (22) - After three seasons at UCLA, the Twins made Perez their 15th round pick in 2021. He only played significant time in his junior season. He played well in Mankato in the summer of 2019. After signing, he played one game in the FCL (and went 3-for-4 with a homer). He moved up to Ft. Myers and hit .500 (13-for-26) with five doubles. Primarily a second baseman, he can play around the infield. His mom is the UCLA softball team’s head coach.  
• Jake Rucker (22) - Rucker was the Twins' seventh-round pick last year out of the University of Tennessee. As a junior, he hit .330/.399/.520 (.920) with 21 doubles and nine home runs. In 22 games with the Mussels after signing, he hit .265/.377/.324 (.700) with two doubles. 
• Ernie Yake (24) - Yake was the Twins 10th round pick in 2021 out of Gonzaga. As a senior in 2021, he hit .333/.423/.433 (.856) with 14 doubles and one homer in 42 games). He played seven games in the FCL before moving up to St

OUTFIELDERS  

• Kyler Fedko (22) - Twins 12th round pick in 2021 out of U-Conn. In 2021, he hit .398/.485/.674 (1.159) with 14 doubles and 12 homers in 52 games. He was putting up similar numbers in 2020 before the pandemic. In 23 games last year for the Mussels, he hit .235/.346/.265 (.610) with two doubles. 
• Dylan Neuse (23) - Neuse was the Twins 17th round pick last year from Texas Tech. He was limited to just 27 games in 2021 and hit .281/.440/.427 (.867) with seven doubles. He has good speed and stole 11 bases. He didn’t play last year after signing. 
• Emmanuel Rodriguez (19) - Rodriguez was a big international signing in 2019 from the Dominican Republic. After a lost 2020 season, Rodriguez played 37 games in 2021 with the FCL Twins. He hit .214/.346/.524 (.870) with five doubles, two triples, and ten homers. He also stole nine bases and has become a top Twins prospect. 
• Kala’i Rosario (19) - Rosario was drafted in the fifth round of the five-round 2020 draft out of high school in Hawaii. He was one of the most potent prep bats in that draft class. In 2021, he hit .277/. 341/.452 (.793) with ten doubles, four triples, and five home runs. He was the Twins Daily short-season Hitter of the Year. 

So what do you think of this roster? There are several very young players with big potential. Leave your Comments and Questions below.

 

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[Rosterman]

There's a lot of age. Looks like a graduating class from college ball!

 

I know we lost the 2020 minor league season. A lot of these guys will definitely be pushing towards High-A as the season progresses...and the Twins prospects, as a whole, should be glad minor league teams have to plan for hosuing.

[Dman]

I have to say the A ball team will have one darn good infield this year.  After watching Cavaco this spring on MLB.tv I can see now why the Twins fell in love with him.  His actions and arm at third look pro ready so he is absolutely rock solid at third base for sure.  I haven't seen him at short but looking at him he looks like he could play there to me.  Just need that bat to come around.  If it does he could be a 5 tool player for them.  

I was pretty low on Miller sticking at short and he is a big boy to be playing there but looked really, really good there this spring as well.  At this point he looks like he can play short no problem but he has a big body for 19 year old and if he does get bigger hard to say.  At any rate he is going to be a great defender no matter where he plays and he has the arm for third as well.  The bat looks OK so far, but it will be interesting to see how he does at the plate this year and his defense already looks very strong.

I am guessing second will be manned by Perez or Rucker which will give them a very good defensive infield.  Hopefully they all find great hit tools to match but that is a pretty exciting group especially on the defensive side.

Hajjar and Raya look like the headliners for pitching group but Festa and Grace are interesting arms as well.  I am also interested on how Ohl and McMahon do.  Lot's of new guys so no idea how they will do.  I was surprised not to see McCleod on this list.

I think everyone is hoping Rodriguez can move that into all star status and Rosario could be a nice right handed power bat if he develops.  So some fun talent in the outfield as well.

Lot's of good players to watch and hope that guys make names for themselves and move up the list.

[4twinsJA]

Great to see Twins pushing most of 2021 draft class up to at least low A. Most of these guys are already 22. Miller was playing HS ball at this time last year.

[roger]

Like the switch to having their low-A team at the Fort Myers complex.  

As for this team, am really high on a several position players.  Appreciated Dman's comments above, especially those related to Cavaco.  He has moved into the 'show me camp' for me.  Hopefully, this will be the summer he does.  With Miller, Rodriguez and Rosario, this team should have an excellent lineup.  Will see how the pitching does, but can't wait to see Raya getting some innings.

[RJA]

Great comments from everyone.  Like at every level, there are plenty of prospects to be excited about watching at Fort Myers--Raya, Cavaco, Miller, Hajjar and Rodriquez all of whom could move quickly.  I am with Dman on Cavaco.  I really considered him to be a bit of a bust, but my goodness he looks good at third.  I hope they find a way to get him straightened out at the plate as he has so much potential.  I wasn't real excited about the Miller pick, but he passed the eyeball test at short and I have noticed a number of pretty good talent evaluators think he can stay at short.  We'll know a lot more later in the summer.  Raya and Rodriquez could be at the top of our prospect list in a year or two.  I love minor league baseball, and thank you TD for keeping us informed.  

[Sielk]

Seems like there will be a lot of interesting young prospects at Single A. Raya and Hajjar on the pitching side and Miller, Cavaco, Rodriguez and Rosario as position players.

I gotta say, I was just blown away by Noah Miller this spring training. He managed not to look overmatched at the plate which I thought is pretty impressive for a 19-year-old in big league spring training. And defensively, wow, just a succession of incredibly smooth, easy plays that were a joy to watch. I don't know if he will eventually outgrow the position but on the other hand there are some tall shortstops in the big leagues that are also good defensively (our current one, for example). And at least to me, all his actions there just screamed SHORTSTOP.

A lot of people have been calling Cavaco a bust, but it's easy to forget how young he still is and how good his tools could be. It might sound weird after his not so inspiring performance so far but I would be really interested to see him in Cedar Rapids at some point this season. There are just so many hitters that absolutely explode the very second they get out of the Florida State League. That environment is just an absolute offense killer and some hitters seem to handle it worse than others. Would be a shame to give up on Cavaco prematurely only to find out that the FSL was a big part of his problems.

Now the Mighty Mussels just need to broadcast their home games so we can actually watch. ?

[Seth Stohs]

1 hour ago, roger said:

Like the switch to having their low-A team at the Fort Myers complex.  

As for this team, am really high on a several position players.  Appreciated Dman's comments above, especially those related to Cavaco.  He has moved into the 'show me camp' for me.  Hopefully, this will be the summer he does.  With Miller, Rodriguez and Rosario, this team should have an excellent lineup.  Will see how the pitching does, but can't wait to see Raya getting some innings.

Miller, Rodriguez and Rosario are 19. Most of the pitchers in the league will likely be 21-23 with either 3-4 years of college, or several years of pro ball experience. So, I don't expect the 19 year olds to put up big numbers, especially in the Florida State League. But they are definitely the prospects in the group, along with Cavaco. 

I'm excited about Raya too. He could be special. Hajjar should be a quick mover. 

[se7799]

27 minutes ago, Sielk said:

Seems like there will be a lot of interesting young prospects at Single A. Raya and Hajjar on the pitching side and Miller, Cavaco, Rodriguez and Rosario as position players.

I gotta say, I was just blown away by Noah Miller this spring training. He managed not to look overmatched at the plate which I thought is pretty impressive for a 19-year-old in big league spring training. And defensively, wow, just a succession of incredibly smooth, easy plays that were a joy to watch. I don't know if he will eventually outgrow the position but on the other hand there are some tall shortstops in the big leagues that are also good defensively (our current one, for example). And at least to me, all his actions there just screamed SHORTSTOP.

A lot of people have been calling Cavaco a bust, but it's easy to forget how young he still is and how good his tools could be. It might sound weird after his not so inspiring performance so far but I would be really interested to see him in Cedar Rapids at some point this season. There are just so many hitters that absolutely explode the very second they get out of the Florida State League. That environment is just an absolute offense killer and some hitters seem to handle it worse than others. Would be a shame to give up on Cavaco prematurely only to find out that the FSL was a big part of his problems.

Now the Mighty Mussels just need to broadcast their home games so we can actually watch. ?

I agree Miller handled himself very well down in Florida.  I see him sticking at short.  He acted as a leader already on the back fields during spring.