Minor League Report (7/24): Double Dingers from Contreras and Cavaco

[David Youngs]

Water is wet, grass is green, and both Mark Contreras and Keoni Cavaco know how to hit a baseball (very well). Dig in for all the info on today's games across the Twins' farm system!

 

TRANSACTIONS
No transactions within the Twins organization on Sunday.

SAINTS SENTINAL
Indianapolis 5, St. Paul 3
Box Score

A stellar day at the plate from Mark Contreras wasn't enough to push the Saints to a win against Indianapolis on Sunday afternoon. Contreras crushed two homers in St. Paul's loss, marking his multi-homer game of the season and first game with a home run since July 2 against Omaha. 

Contreras' first moon shot came in the fourth inning with Jermaine Palacios on base, scoring the Saints' first two runs. Contreras would launch a solo shot to right-center field in the eighth inning to plate St. Paul's final run of the day.  Both of Contreras' homers came on the first pitch of the at-bat. That aggressive approach at the plate is only going to benefit him as he continues to develop his offense in hopes of a return to the parent club in Minneapolis.

Elliot Soto was the only other Saint with a multi-hit game, tallying a double (11) in the second inning and a single in the fourth. The pair of hits were Soto's first since July 10 at Louisville, where he recorded a pair of singles. 

Starting pitcher Cole Sands lasted 3 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out six in Sunday's loss. Sands threw 45 of his 70 pitches for strikes and pitched scoreless innings in the first and third innings; ultimately, the talented prospect ran into trouble with a trio of hits in the second and a leadoff walk followed by a homer in the fourth. 

St. Paul's bullpen was excellent on the day. RHP Ariel Jurado followed Sands with 3 1/3 innings of hitless, scoreless, and walk-less ball while striking out three. Northfield, Minnesota native Jake Petricka pitched a flawless eighth inning for his hometown organization, striking out two while walking none. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Tulsa 3, Wichita 0
Box Score

Like a wind turbine on a still day, the Surge weren't able to propel any momentum, dropping a shut-out loss to Tulsa that resulted in the Drillers taking home the Propeller Series for the first time. 

Wichita tallied just five hits in the loss, going 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and leaving seven men on base. Two of those hits came from highly-touted prospect Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who laced singles in the first and third innings. Encarnacion-Strand has recorded multi-hit games in four of his last eight games and is slashing an impressive .400/.438/.833 in the month of July. 

Starting pitcher Kody Funderburk (L, 7-3) didn't have his best outing....but it still wasn't all that bad. Through three innings, the Mesa, Arizona native allowed just one run on two hits and a walk while striking out five. And while accelerating prospect was tabbed with the loss, his performance was far from poor. 

The Surge used five relievers through five innings following Funderburk; Daniel Gossett allowed two runs on two hits while striking out five through the fourth and fifth innings. Following Gossett's two runs, the bullpen shut out the Drillers. Bryan Sammons, Andrew Cabezas, and Osiris German allowed just one hit through the final three innings while allowing no runs and just one walk while striking out a combined four batters. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Peoria 9, Cedar Rapids 7
Box Score

There's a first time for everything...including sweeps. 

Despite a three-hit game from Yunior Severino, the Kernels dropped the series finale to Peoria on Sunday, resulting in their first time being on the wrong side of a sweep through 2022. 

Severino laced three singles and two RBI alongside a walk in Sunday's matinee, making it his second consecutive game with three hits. The 22-year-old is on a tear, hitting safely in five of his last six games and slashing .292/.433/.583 through July. Aaron Sabato also made some noise for the Kernels at the plate, crushing a three-run homer in the fifth inning to keep Cedar Rapids in the game. Sabato also homered on Saturday against Peoria and has recorded four extra-base hits through eight games in July. 

Starting pitcher David Festa (L, 6-1) suffered his first loss of the season, allowing six runs (five earned) on nine hits and two walks through four innings. And while Festa did strike out three hitters, his moment of brilliance came in the third and fourth innings. Allowing three consecutive singles (two in the third, one in the fourth), Festa picked off all three baserunners. 

While the end result wasn't there, that's pretty incredible. 

MUSSEL MATTERS 
Fort Myers 6, Dunedin 3 (7 innings)
Box Score

After a weather delay limiting Saturday's play to just 1/2 of an inning, the Mussels came to play on Sunday, taking down the D-Jays thanks to stellar hitting from Keoni Cavaco and a total team effort from the pitching staff. 

Crushing an opening inning two-run shot of game one last night, Cavaco brought his bat on Sunday. With Nelson Roberto on base in the fifth, Cavaco punched a single to left field to score Roberto and knot the game at three. Cavaco's RBI served as the ignition for a monster three-run inning in the sixth for Fort Myers. 

The Mussels were rock-solid on the bump through all seven innings in game one. After Steve Hajjar got the ball rolling in the first, Mike Paredes (W, 6-2) carried the weight through 5 1/3 innings, allowing just one earned run on five hits while striking out three. With a three-run lead in the final frame, Anthony Escobar shut down the D-Jays to nab the Mussels' 50th win of the year. 

Game Two
Fort Myers 3, Dunedin 2 (7 innings)
Box Score

A flat 50 just wasn't enough for the Mighty Mussels on Sunday afternoon. 

After swiping their 50th win of the season in game one of Sunday's twin bill, Fort Myers earned win number 51 on the season thanks to a multi-hit game from Cavaco and a solid outing from Travis Adams. 

Cavaco got the first run of the day on the board with a first-inning single that scored Misael Urbina to put the Mussels up 1-0. The 21-year-old's daily dinger derby continued in the third inning when he crunched a solo shot over the left field wall to give Fort Myers a 2-0 lead. Cavaco now has eight home runs on the season and has hit safely in his last four games (three of which have been multi-hit games). 

Starting pitcher Travis Adams gave up a flurry of hits but locked down when it mattered, allowing just one run through 4 2/3 innings while striking out five. The Mighty Mussel bullpen was just as (if not more) effective. Niklas Rimmel (W, 3-1) pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless ball followed by a scoreless seventh inning courtesy of Samuel Perez (H, 3) and Johnathan Lavallee (S, 2).

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Hitter of the Day: Keoni Cavaco (Fort Myers) - 4-for-7, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 K
Pitcher of the Day: Travis Adams (Fort Myers) 4.2 IP, 6 H, R, ER, 5 K

PROSPECT SUMMARY
See how our Twins Daily Minor League Top 20 Prospects did on Sunday afternoon.

#6 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, K
#8 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-5, 2B, H, R, BB, 2 K (two games)
#12 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-for-3, BB, K
#16 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Wichita) - 2-for-4, K
#17 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - (L, 1-5), 3.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 6 K
#18 - David Festa (Cedar Rapids) -  (L, 6-1) 4.0 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
#19 - Steve Hajjar (Ft. Myers) - 0.2 IP, H, BB, K

MONDAY'S PROBABLE STARTERS
FCL Twins @ FCL Rays (11:00am CST) - TBD
DSL Twins @ DSL Rockies (11:00am CST) - TBD

 

 

 

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[darwin22]

David:  Thanks for the summary of today's action.  Nice work.  

Made road trip up to Cedar Rapids this afternoon to see Kernels game.  Despite the loss, a few observations.

#1 For those that live within driving distance, attending a Kernels game is definitely worth the time.  Stadium is easy to get to (either off US 30 or I-380).  Paid $28 for two box seats between home plate and 1B.  Concessions are very affordable and parking is free.

#2  Bummer to see Festa struggle with his command today.  He almost escaped a self induced 1st inning jam (Hit 1st batter, bunt single and WP advancing runners to 2nd and 3rd), but gave up a 2-out single that scored both runners.  Seeing him pick off three runners was very impressive, but he did give up a lot of hard contact through his short start.  Hopefully, just a bad day that he'll rebound from.

#3  Aaron Sabato:   Yes, he did have a nice game with an oppo 3-run shot and a hard hit line drive single off the leg of Peoria pitcher, but his other 3 AB's were brutal:  weak tap to pitcher in 1st inning, K in his 2nd AB and another whiff in 9th to end the game.

Wondering what his future is with Twins.  Overall 27th pick in 2020 draft who has struggled to hit with any consistency at Fort Myers and with Cedar Rapids.  His power numbers are up this year, but will be interesting to see if he gets a promotion to Wichita next year.

#4----This is for others that follow Kernels more than I do.

What is the future for Severino, Wander Javier and Seth Gray?  All 3 are in their 2nd full season ( I think) at CR as I saw all 3 here last July.  

Hopefully the Kernels can get back on track this coming week.

 

[mikelink45]

Like yesterday I was hoping to see a SP shine for the Twins and no luck - the reinforcements are not ready for the big leagues.

[JimPohlad1]

4 hours ago, darwin22 said:

David:  Thanks for the summary of today's action.  Nice work.  

Made road trip up to Cedar Rapids this afternoon to see Kernels game.  Despite the loss, a few observations.

#1 For those that live within driving distance, attending a Kernels game is definitely worth the time.  Stadium is easy to get to (either off US 30 or I-380).  Paid $28 for two box seats between home plate and 1B.  Concessions are very affordable and parking is free.

#2  Bummer to see Festa struggle with his command today.  He almost escaped a self induced 1st inning jam (Hit 1st batter, bunt single and WP advancing runners to 2nd and 3rd), but gave up a 2-out single that scored both runners.  Seeing him pick off three runners was very impressive, but he did give up a lot of hard contact through his short start.  Hopefully, just a bad day that he'll rebound from.

#3  Aaron Sabato:   Yes, he did have a nice game with an oppo 3-run shot and a hard hit line drive single off the leg of Peoria pitcher, but his other 3 AB's were brutal:  weak tap to pitcher in 1st inning, K in his 2nd AB and another whiff in 9th to end the game.

Wondering what his future is with Twins.  Overall 27th pick in 2020 draft who has struggled to hit with any consistency at Fort Myers and with Cedar Rapids.  His power numbers are up this year, but will be interesting to see if he gets a promotion to Wichita next year.

#4----This is for others that follow Kernels more than I do.

What is the future for Severino, Wander Javier and Seth Gray?  All 3 are in their 2nd full season ( I think) at CR as I saw all 3 here last July.  

Hopefully the Kernels can get back on track this coming week.

 

Both Severino and Javier are rule 5 eligible after this year. I expect Severino not to be added nor selected and to start in Wichita next year. This will be Javier’s second time being eligible as he is not an attractive prospect to major league teams. He will probably play out his last year of his minor league deal next year and become a free agent if he is not released beforehand. Lastly, Gray is likely to end the year in Wichita with one more year of protected control before becoming rule 5 eligible (drafted in 2019). He has put up solid numbers and is older than most of his teammates. 

[h2oface]

Sands has been a first option for fill in games when Winder not available in the show. But he can't even command AAA. 

Balazovic yesterday and Sands today. Crushed. Again. 

The Twins' pitching pipeline established by the pitching gurus:

[Major League Ready]

51 minutes ago, h2oface said:

Sands has been a first option for fill in games when Winder not available in the show. But he can't even command AAA. 

Balazovic yesterday and Sands today. Crushed. Again. 

The Twins' pitching pipeline established by the pitching gurus:

Do you have anything to say other than management is stupid?

[goulik]

Minor point of interest, Petricka may have been born and begun his life in Northfield but he grew up in and graduated from Faribault. Having lived in Northfield for 20 years and worked in Faribault Public Schools 18 years while he was a student, I’d consider him a Faribault native… especially given Faribault and Northfield are rivals and don’t like each other much.

Northfield is also credited with being a birthplace for Thielbar but he is from Randolph not Northfield. At least Randolph and Northfield tend to like each other though.

As a Northfield Raider, we find it amusing to get credit for these two…

[Dman]

9 hours ago, darwin22 said:

David:  Thanks for the summary of today's action.  Nice work.  

Made road trip up to Cedar Rapids this afternoon to see Kernels game.  Despite the loss, a few observations.

#2  Bummer to see Festa struggle with his command today.  He almost escaped a self induced 1st inning jam (Hit 1st batter, bunt single and WP advancing runners to 2nd and 3rd), but gave up a 2-out single that scored both runners.  Seeing him pick off three runners was very impressive, but he did give up a lot of hard contact through his short start.  Hopefully, just a bad day that he'll rebound from.

#3  Aaron Sabato:   Yes, he did have a nice game with an oppo 3-run shot and a hard hit line drive single off the leg of Peoria pitcher, but his other 3 AB's were brutal:  weak tap to pitcher in 1st inning, K in his 2nd AB and another whiff in 9th to end the game.

#4----This is for others that follow Kernels more than I do.

What is the future for Severino, Wander Javier and Seth Gray?  All 3 are in their 2nd full season ( I think) at CR as I saw all 3 here last July.  

Hopefully the Kernels can get back on track this coming week.

 

When I saw Festa in Beloit a week or two ago it looked like he was giving up some pretty hard contact to left handed batters and he struggled with his control from time to time. Still at the game I went to he was able to consistently get out of jams.  To be honest his stuff did not look that impressive to me but he was getting a lot of weak contact in that game so it is better than it appears as he has had really good success all year at least until this last game.  The Season is getting longer and I wonder if some of the younger starting arms are going to waiver down the stretch.

I did not get to see Sabato in the game I went to as he ended up being the first base coach.  So no idea what he looks like at the plate other than numbers that don't look that great.

The poster before me has it right on Severino.  He looks good to me still but not good enough for MLB and even though I still like the hit tool it has to be almost elite or he might not even make it out of MiLB.  He has been hurt a lot.  I don't see the Twins protecting him though.  Javier won't be protected and as mentioned will likely hang around until he become a free agent.  Gray is rule V eligible this year as is the whole college 2019 class but Gray won't end up on the 40 man.  He still has contact concerns IMO and is no threat to be taken.

Guys the Twins will likely need to worry about in rule V would be Canterino, Steer, Wallner, Varland, SWR, next tier being Headrick, Jullien, Isola and Legumina.  With even more fringe guys like Mooney Lawyerson, Shulffer and SGL.  2019 was a pretty good draft year for the Twins.  Also I have no idea how they feel about Palacios but he is still not the on the 40 man either.  Lot's of guys to protect so Severino, Javier and Gray are the least of their worries if you ask me.

[Dman]

Good to see Cavaco swinging a hot bat.  Would really be nice if he took off as he is one of the few potential 5 tool guys in the system.  Unfortunately the hit tool is the most important tool and he hasn't really shown much progress to this point.

I was down on the CES pick when the Twins drafted yet another slow plodding corner power bat but boy has he been amazing.  His first year of pro ball and he is already at AA and killing it there just like he has every level so far.  He should have been a 1st round pick.  I can't think of another college hitter that has moved this fast in the Twins system with this much success.  Have to give the draft team credit as he was a real find in the 4th round.  Hopefully he can improve that defense at third base but he looks like he has a major league bat IMO.

[roger]

Looking at the Saints box score today got me thinking about Jermaine Palacios.  I was impressed with his defense in his brief callup with the Twins.  He continues to hit around .270+/-, which combined with better than average D makes him a legit future big league shortstop.  Maybe not a starter for a contending team, but certainly someone who is competent and won't be a hole in the batting order.  

As the Twins FO looks forward to 2023, I expect that if Correa opts out they will go with Lewis as his replacement.  I also suspect they are comfortable with Palacios handling the job until Lewis is ready to return, whether that be in May or July.

Palacios certainly had value in Tampa's eyes when they took him in return for Odorizzi.  Twins got a huge break when he struggled while with Tampa, was released and signed back with the Twins.  Should pay big dividends if he is in fact their starting shortstop on opening day.

[2wins87]

1 hour ago, Dman said:

Guys the Twins will likely need to worry about in rule V would be Canterino, Steer, Wallner, Varland, SWR, next tier being Headrick, Jullien, Isola and Legumina.  With even more fringe guys like Mooney Lawyerson, Shulffer and SGL.  2019 was a pretty good draft year for the Twins.  Also I have no idea how they feel about Palacios but he is still not the on the 40 man either.  Lot's of guys to protect so Severino, Javier and Gray are the least of their worries if you ask me.

I mostly agree with this assessment, except I think some of the fringe pitchers are are worth really thinking hard about.

Schulfer in particular as a guy getting AAA hitters out with an upper 90s FB and solid looking slider seems like an easy stash for some team.  I think of Nick Anderson who dominated AAA but didn't even get a September trial and was then traded to Miami for basically nothing because they weren't going to use a 40 man slot on him.  He was already 27 but they seriously misjudged his ability to get MLB hitters out as he went on to dominate quite quickly with Miami and Tampa Bay.  One of the new FO's worst self-scouting mistakes IMO.

I don't know that Schulfer's stuff will necessarily play as well in the majors but I think it would be a good idea to find a way to get a look against MLB hitters this year.

Laweryson, one of the few pitchers still looking great in the very high offense Texas league could also probably be stashed, though I'd agree he is a lot more fringy to be taken in the rule 5.

Given the needs of the MLB club they should be very motivated to include some of these guys in trades.  Even though I'm very high on Steer I'm pretty open to trading him at the right price for that reason.  If they find that another team is very high on one of these guys it would probably be a good move to cash in their value now.

[USNMCPO]

2 hours ago, goulik said:

Minor point of interest, Petricka may have been born and begun his life in Northfield but he grew up in and graduated from Faribault. Having lived in Northfield for 20 years and worked in Faribault Public Schools 18 years while he was a student, I’d consider him a Faribault native… especially given Faribault and Northfield are rivals and don’t like each other much.

Northfield is also credited with being a birthplace for Thielbar but he is from Randolph not Northfield. At least Randolph and Northfield tend to like each other though.

As a Northfield Raider, we find it amusing to get credit for these two…

Didn't Petricka's family own a grocery store in Northfield? I lived there for a few years in the 90's and seem to remember that.

[Dman]

8 minutes ago, 2wins87 said:

I mostly agree with this assessment, except I think some of the fringe pitchers are are worth really thinking hard about.

Schulfer in particular as a guy getting AAA hitters out with an upper 90s FB and solid looking slider seems like an easy stash for some team.  I think of Nick Anderson who dominated AAA but didn't even get a September trial and was then traded to Miami for basically nothing because they weren't going to use a 40 man slot on him.  He was already 27 but they seriously misjudged his ability to get MLB hitters out as he went on to dominate quite quickly with Miami and Tampa Bay.  One of the new FO's worst self-scouting mistakes IMO.

I don't know that Schulfer's stuff will necessarily play as well in the majors but I think it would be a good idea to find a way to get a look against MLB hitters this year.

Laweryson, one of the few pitchers still looking great in the very high offense Texas league could also probably be stashed, though I'd agree he is a lot more fringy to be taken in the rule 5.

Given the needs of the MLB club they should be very motivated to include some of these guys in trades.  Even though I'm very high on Steer I'm pretty open to trading him at the right price for that reason.  If they find that another team is very high on one of these guys it would probably be a good move to cash in their value now.

Totally agree with your assessment there.  Schulfer is an easy stash and I think he has the stuff to be good in the pen but the Twins don't seem to like to add reliever's to the 40 man that easily. So i put him on the outside looking in for now.  Lawyerson's ERA at AA is incredible but he doesn't have a big fastball if I remember correctly so wasn't sure how long this dominant streak was going to last at AA.  Looking at his numbers again you might be right the WHIP has been there all year and the ERA too so he must have developed and elite out pitch somewhere along the way.  The main jist of my post was there are a lot of guys probably worthy of protection.  It is hard to know who the Twins will add but one thing I do know is they can't add them all.

[DJL44]

2 minutes ago, Dman said:

one thing I do know is they can't add them all.

This is what they should be using to get better MLB relief pitchers

[terrydactyls]

15 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

This is what they should be using to get better MLB relief pitchers

Exactly!!!!!!

[nicksaviking]

Sands really needs to be moved to the pen. He can't help the big club in the rotation this year, let's see if he can help the bullpen though.

 

[Alex Schieferdecker]

Sabato and Cavaco, two names I haven't heard in a while!

[jmlease1]

2 hours ago, Alex Schieferdecker said:

Sabato and Cavaco, two names I haven't heard in a while!

Cavaco still might have a chance, but Sabato continues to disappoint. It's nice that he's having a decent July, but his season is poor, especially for a 23 year-old in A+. Too many Ks, not enough contact, no real positional flexibility...he's going to need a monster second half to be considered anything other than a disappointment.

Cavaco certainly hasn't lived up to his draft slot, but he was also really hurt by the lack of a development year because of the pandemic. If he were 20 and playing like this in the FSL we'd be talking about his tools and his potential a heck of a lot more. He's definitely still got a lot of work to do to get on track again, but he's also got the tools to do it. Other than a 22 game stretch last season in Cedar Rapids, Sabato simply hasn't hit as a pro, and he doesn't have a lot else to fall back on. If he can't make contact in A-ball, I don't see him doing it in AA or higher, and his power doesn't mean anything if he never touches it. You have to wonder if all those walks he collected in Ft. Myers was really more a matter of facing teenagers who couldn't control their stuff than a superior batting eye.

CES is having the kind of performance I think we expected from Sabato. He's a college hitter who has come in and swung the bat with authority. Hopefully he finishes the year strong at AA and lines himself up for another promotion.

[MMMordabito]

6 hours ago, goulik said:

Minor point of interest, Petricka may have been born and begun his life in Northfield but he grew up in and graduated from Faribault. Having lived in Northfield for 20 years and worked in Faribault Public Schools 18 years while he was a student, I’d consider him a Faribault native… especially given Faribault and Northfield are rivals and don’t like each other much.

Northfield is also credited with being a birthplace for Thielbar but he is from Randolph not Northfield. At least Randolph and Northfield tend to like each other though.

As a Northfield Raider, we find it amusing to get credit for these two…

In my neighbor's garage, where I tend to watch a lot of games, Thielbar's nickname is "Northfield".  I'd love to see Petricka get called up just for the novelty of it, and if he produces, that's a bonus.

[goulik]

9 hours ago, USNMCPO said:

Didn't Petricka's family own a grocery store in Northfield? I lived there for a few years in the 90's and seem to remember that.

That was my favorite Grocery store in town but Cub Foods decided to move to town. They had the same suppliers so they told their suppliers they couldn’t supply Petricka’s anymore. Forced them to close down. There is a retirement center there now. I enjoy canoeing down the cannon river from Faribault and pull my canoe out right beside what used to be the store…

[bean5302]

Cavaco has really fallen down the ladder to the point where he's probably MiLB roster filler at this point. He hasn't played a single game at SS this season so it's obvious the Twins have given up on that potential. Unfortunately, moving him off SS to 3B hasn't helped Cavaco's yips in the field as he owns a brutal fielding percentage yet again at .906. That said, there's some hope he can make the changes as despite his high error rate, his range factors are solid against his competition due to his mobility.

It sure seems like Cavaco has changed something in his approach at the plate as his power has fully manifested out of the blue. But, like with the fielding, there's a big caveat. He doesn't get on base thanks to very poor plate discipline. Cavaco hasn't improved his walk rate which sits right around 5% and his K rate remains right around 30% in Low-A ball. That just doesn't project at all. Still, Cavaco just turned 21 and there's raw power and athleticism to work with. Is Cavaco's struggles with plate discipline related to just being overly aggressive like Royce Lewis or does Cavaco have a problem recognizing pitches? Time will tell.