Twins Minor League Report (4/22): St. Paul Completes Twin Cities Sweep

TRANSACTIONS

• INF Keoni Cavaco activated from IL. 
• INF Edouard Julien activated from IL
• C Chris Williams moved to the Developmental Roster

SAINTS SENTINEL 
St. Paul 9, Toledo 4
Box Score

The Saints were the lone Twins’ affiliate to pick up a win Friday night thanks to a six-run eighth inning. On the night, St. Paul registered 11 hits and drew seven walks against the Mud Hens.

Jake Cave led the Saints with three hits in six at-bats, including a double, raising his batting average on the young season to .302. Utility man Jermaine Palacios also tallied a multi-hit game (2-for-5) with his double being St. Paul's only other extra-base hit save for Mark Contreras’ (1-for-4) two-run home run in the third inning.

Royce Lewis remained on a tear, reaching base three times in six plate appearances and driving in a run. Fellow top prospect Jose Miranda went 1-for-4 with his single plating two runners. Derek Fisher (1-for-4), Daniel Robertson (1-for-4), and Jose Godoy (1-for-5) also picked up hits.

JC Ramirez started on the bump for St. Paul and was touched for four runs in 3 2/3 innings. However, the bullpen did not cave for the remainder of the game as Jake Petricka, Trevor Megill, Tyler Bashlor, and Yennier Cano tossed the final 5 1/3 innings, surrendering four hits and walks, but striking out seven and not allowing a run. Cano, a 28-year-old fireballer who slots somewhere in between former Twin Edwar Colina and Jhoan Duran in terms of talent and potential, has now struck out eight batters and only walked one in seven innings.

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Midland 10, Wichita 8
Box Score

Louie Varland did not have his best stuff as the 2021 Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year fell victim to the Rockhounds' offense. Varland was sitting 95-97 mph with his fastball for the majority of his outing, but he lacked command of his curveball and Midland took advantage. Varland served up three home runs and six runs overall (three earned) in five innings, striking out four and walking two batters. 

Friday’s start was emblematic of why it is difficult for two-pitch pitchers to find success as starters at the MLB level. Today's hitters, even those at Double-A, are able to mash upper-90s heat if they know it is coming and doubly so when they know that the opposing pitcher isn’t going/able to drop in a breaking ball or other off-speed pitch into the zone. Varland has shown enough during his brief time in the minors to suggest that he is an MLB talent, but unless he greatly improves the command of his breaking pitch or further develops his nascent changeup, it will be unlikely that he reaches the precipice as a starter. There is no shame in that. Varland could be another Duran-type for the Twins in short stints, but he needs more refinement if he wishes to do so.

Bryan Sammons and Austin Schulfer each threw two innings in relief with the former allowing four runs while the latter punched out two and kept his ERA at 0.00.

Offensively, the Wind Surge faired much better. Austin Martin’s bat continues to wake up following his slow start to the season as his 2-for-4 night leaves his batting average a .296. (Quick aside: Martin continued to display why many questions his ability to stick at shortstop long-term as he registered his fifth error of the season on a routine ground ball. Martin has all the physical tools to play shortstop. However, he looks much more comfortable in centerfield as well as during his appearances at second base. He’s a smooth athlete with quick feet but lacks the arm strength or sure-handedness that are needed for success at arguably MLB’s most important defensive position. His strengths play much better in either the outfield or a less demanding infield position like second or even third.)

Spencer Steer had the best night at the plate across all levels, going 4-for-5 and driving in two runs. Michael Helman (1-for-4, 2 RBI, BB) launched his third home run of the season in the fifth inning and Dennis Ortega (2-for-5) contributed Wichita’s only other extra base hit, a double. Cole Sturgeon (1-for-5, 2 RBI), Andrew Bechtold (1-for-4, RBI), and Edouard Julien (0-for-3, RBI) were the other Wind Surge players to register RBIs.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Peoria 8, Cedar Rapids 2
Box Score

Very little went right for the Kernels on Friday. Offensively, Cedar Rapids only managed five hits, all of them singles, and struck out 10 times. A silver lining: Christian Encarnacion-Strand remained hot, going 2-for-5 to raise his batting average to .434 and OPS to 1.229 across his first 55 plate appearances of the season. One might argue that Encarnacion-Strand has already earned a promotion to Double-A, but with Steer and Miranda still in the minors and playing the same position, it would seem as though a call-up is still a month or two away. The other three Kernels to reach base via hit were Wander Javier (1-for-4, RBI), Willie Joe Garry Jr. (1-for-3), and Jeferson Morales (1-for-3, BB).

Brent Headrick’s strong start to the season hit a pothole against the Chiefs as he was unable to make it out of the fourth inning after walking four batters, serving up a home run, and surrendering three earned runs. Miguel Rodriguez provided a nice respite for 2 1/3 innings, striking out two and keeping the Peoria bats at bay. However, they woke up after he exited, torching Cody Laweryson and Andrew Cabezas for five runs. Tyler Palm pitched the final frame, striking out the side, despite loading the bases.

MUSSEL MATTERS
Dunedin 2, Fort Myers 1
Box Score

The Blue Jays and Mighty Mussels combined for three runs and all of them came in the ninth inning.

Noah Cardenas’ (1-for-2, BB) second home run of the season put Fort Myers on the board during the top of the final frame, but the Mighty Mussels walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning before Gabriel Martinez hit a walk-off two-run single.

John Stankiewicz once again dazzled as he struck out nine batters and allowed only a single hit in five innings. The 23-year-old now boasts a 1.13 ERA with a 7:1 K:BB ratio over the first 16 innings of the season. Hunter McMahon tossed three innings in relief, walking and striking out one batter.

Emmanuel Rodriguez broke out of his 0-for-12 slump by going 1-for-3 with a double. However, he exited the game earlier for a currently unknown reason. Kyler Fedko (1-for-3), Dillon Tatum (1-for-3), and Jake Rucker (1-for-4, 2B) also registered hits.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – RHP John Stankiewicz (Fort Myers): 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 9 K, 78 pitches
Hitter of the Day – INF Spencer Steer (Wichita): 4-for-5, 2 RBI 

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed:

#1 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 2-for-4, 
#2 - Royce Lewis (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, RBI, 2 BB, 2 R
#3 - Jose Miranda (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, 2 RBI, BB, R
#10 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4
#11 - Gilberto Celestino (Minnesota) - Defensive Replacement 
#14 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 5 IP, 4 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 3 HR
#15 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-3, 2B, BB
#16 - Ronny Hendriquez (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch
#18 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - 4-for-5, 2 RBI 
#19 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 0-for-3, RBI

SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Toledo ( 4:05 PM CST) - RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-0, 2.35 ERA)
Wichita vs Midland (6:05 PM CST) - RHP Brandon Lawson (0-1, 17.18 ERA)
Cedar Rapids vs Peoria (2:05 PM CST) - RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (1-0, 1.00 ERA)
Fort Myers @ Dunedin (5:30 PM CST) - RHP Travis Adams (1-0, 0.90 ERA)