Minor League Report (8/29): First-Place Surge Find A Way

TRANSACTIONS:
C Ben Rortvedt recalled to the Minnesota Twin
LHP Charlie Barnes optioned to the St.Paul Saints

SAINTS SENTINEL 
Game one: Mud Hens 10, Saints 9
Box Score
Drew Strotman: 2 2/3 IP, 3 H, 6 R/ER, 6 BB, 2 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Jose Miranda (2-for-7, 2B, 2 RBI, R), Tomás Telis (3-for-7, 2B, R), Gilberto Celestino (3-for-7, RBI, R), Ben Rortvedt (2-for-6, RBI, R), Jimmy Kerrigan (2-for-5, 2 R, BB), Drew Maggi (3-for-4, R, 2 RBI)

This wild affair finally finished Sunday afternoon, unfortunately in a loss for St. Paul. The game was halted Saturday night in the 14th inning due to curfew. No inning could start after 1:30 am local time. 

Drew Strotman started and once again struggled with his command. Strotman has walked nearly 13% of batters he’s faced since being traded to the Twins. Offensively, the Saints got plenty. Eight of their nine starters recorded a hit and three recorded three hits each. 

The Saints issued 14 walks and pitched with runners in scoring position 27 times. 

Game two: Mud Hens 9, Saints 8
Box Score
Beau Burrows: 4 IP, 4 H, 8 R/ER, 4 BB, 6 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Jose Miranda (2-for-5, RBI), Tomás Telis (2-for-5, RBI), Drew Stankiewicz (2-for-5, 2 R), JT Riddle (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI, BB), David Bañuelos (2-for-5, 3B, 2 RBI)

This one came down to the wire with the tying run on second in the ninth. Jose Miranda and Tomás Telis each drove in a run with singles in the eighth, but the Saints couldn’t get Miranda back to the plate in the ninth. 

Twins fans may need to get used to watching Riley Greene do damage. The top Tigers prospect blasted a two-run homer off Beau Burrows in the first. Greene is ranked as the No. 7 prospect in baseball via MLB Pipeline. His teammate, Spencer Torkelson, is ranked No. 4.  

The Saints fell to 53-49 after the losses. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM 
Surge 8, Drillers 6
Box Score
Austin Schulfer: 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R/ER, 3 BB, 4 K
HR: Austin Martin (3), Leobaldo Cabrera (9), Caleb Hamilton (8)
Multi-hit games: Martin (3-for-4, HR, 2B), Cabrera (2-for-3, HR, 3B, 3 R, RBI, BB), Aaron Whitefield (2-for-4, 2 2B, R, RBI)

The Drillers got out to a 2-0 lead before Austin Martin hit his second homer in as many days. Martin is six for his last nine with two homers, a double and five runs driven in. Leobaldo Cabrera stayed hot with a triple and a homer. Cabrera entered the game hitting .255/.371/.509 in 35 games with the Wind Surge. 

Austin Schulfer came into the game with a 2.84 ERA over his last four starts. He battled through five hits and three walks in Sunday’s win, providing five innings. Schulfer’s ERA on the season rose to 4.38. 

The first-place Surge have shown incredible fight and tenacity, especially over the last few weeks. The offense is clicking on all cylinders and Martin’s ability to sparkplug at the top of the lineup is benefitting the group. 

KERNELS NUGGETS 
Snappers 9, Kernels 8
Box Score
Aaron Rozek: 3 1/3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K
HR: Aaron Sabato 2 (2), Alex Isola (11), Jeferson Morales (4)
Multi-hit games: Sabato (2-for-4, 2 HR, BB), Isola (5-for-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI)

Alex Isola was three for his last 28 entering Sunday’s game. He turned it around in a big way. Isola homered in his first at-bat, drove in a run with a single in his second, singled in his third and singled again in his fourth. Oh, and he singled again in the 10th inning. 

Aaron Sabato also had a great day at the dish, hitting his first two home runs for the Kernels. Sabato earned a promotion after a hot start to the month in Fort Myers. He’s now hit nine homers in 19 August games. 

The Kernels are 56-46 after the walk-off. They still sit 11 games behind the Quad Cities powerhouse (67-33) in the High-A Central. 

MUSSEL MATTERS 
Marauders 22, Mussels 5
Box Score
Landon Leach: 2 2/3 IP, 4 H, 9 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 2 K
HR: Christian Encarnación-Strand (2)
Multi-hit games: Jesús Feliz (2-for-4, RBI), Willie Joe Garry Jr. (2-for-4, R)

Yes, you read that right. The Mussels gave up 22 runs while allowing zero home runs. The Marauders went 21-for-49 (.429) with eight doubles and 20 runs driven in. Bradenton went 14-for-30 (.467) with runners in scoring position. It was a hitting clinic. 

It was out of character for the Mussels to pitch so poorly considering they have the second-lowest ERA (4.03) in the Low-A Southeast. Third baseman Christian Encarnación-Strand, the Twins’ fourth-round pick in this year’s draft, hit a solo homer in the ninth. He’s recorded a hit in all six games since debuting. 

Struggles continued this week for Twins’ top prospects Keoni Cavaco and Misael Urbina. Cavaco went 1-for-14 with a single and no walks while Urbina went 3-for-18 with three singles and five walks. Both are sporting an OPS at .600 or below. 

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
The FCL Twins did not play Sunday. 

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Adam Lau (1 ⅔ IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER, 2 K, 0 BB)
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Alex Isola (5-for-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI)

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#1 – Royce Lewis (Rehab) - Out for season (torn ACL)
#2 – Austin Martin (Wichita) - 3-for-4, HR, R, 2 RBI
#3 – Jordan Balazovic (Wichita) - Did not pitch
#4 – Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - Did not pitch
#5 – Jhoan Duran (St. Paul) - Injured List (Right Elbow Strain)
#6 – Jose Miranda (St. Paul) - 4-for-12, 2B, 3 RBI, R
#7 – Joe Ryan (St. Paul) - Did not pitch
#8 – Matt Canterino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List (Right Elbow Strain)
#9 – Chase Petty (Complex) - Did not pitch
#10 – Keoni Cavaco (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4, RBI, R
#11 – Josh Winder (St. Paul) - Injured List (Right Shoulder Impingement)
#12 – Matt Wallner (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-5, 2 K
#13 – Gilberto Celestino (St. Paul) - 3-for-7, RBI, R
#14 – Drew Strotman (St. Paul) - 2 2/3 IP, 3 H, 6 ER, 6 BB, 2 K
#15 – Noah Miller (FCL Twins) - No game
#16 – Brent Rooker (Minnesota) - 0-for-4, 3 K
#17 – Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Out for Season (Tommy John surgery)
#18 – Misael Urbina (Fort Myers) - 1-for-3, BB
#19 – Cole Sands (Wichita) - Did not pitch
#20 – Spencer Steer (Wichita) - 1-for-4, R, RBI