Search the Community

When Minnesota Twins legend Harmon Killebrew announced that his health was deteriorating and he was entering hospice care, fans around the country, and especially in the Midwest, chimed in to tell tales of Killebrew. Amazingly, very few of those stories had anything to do with what occurred on a baseball field. Most of these stories involved something he had told a kid, shaking hands with fans, his impeccable autograph, or some charitable event that he came to and inspired masses. People talked about how great he was as a person. His baseball prowess was hardly mentioned. His 573 home runs. His 1,584 RBI. His MVP. His six AL home run championships. His 11 All Star appearances. Those are all part of his story, but the stories people told were of Harmon Killebrew, the great human being. Following Killebrew’s death, the Minnesota Twins established the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service, and each year, the Twins have named one winner for each of their four full-season affiliates. Each affiliate’s GM nominated a recipient who exemplifies Killebrew through their work in the community. Earlier this week, we announced that Jake Reed was the 2018 Killebrew Award recipient for the Red Wings. Today, we’ll discuss the 2018 Killebrew Award recipient of the Chattanooga Lookouts, infielder Chris Paul.Chris Paul came to the Twins as their sixth round draft pick in 2015 out of Cal-Berkeley. After signing, he went to Elizabethton but quickly moved up to Cedar Rapids. That’s where he began the 2016 season but just a couple of weeks into the season, he was promoted to Ft. Myers. In 2017, he hit .328/.380/.471 (.851) in 61 games in Ft. Myers. Unfortunately he broke his hamate bone. He made up for some of the lost time by representing the Twins in the Arizona Fall League last year. Paul has done a nice job representing the Twins on the field, but also off of the field, and that’s why he’s been selected the Chattanooga Lookouts’ recipient of the Harmon Killebrew Award. Dan Kopf is the Lookouts Media Relations Manager. Asked about Chris Paul, he said, “Chris was our choice. He was also willing to get into the community. This year, Chris helped underprivileged youth go back-to-school shopping at Academy Sports. Chris was also always one of the first players to volunteer for player appearances or interviews.” Helping in the community, and especially working with kids, was something that Chris Paul really enjoyed. He pointed out, “I helped with some teammates to play games and hold camps for unprivileged kids, usually through the boys and girls club or YMCA. Also, I have helped these kids go back to school shopping and find things they needed to help them succeed in life and in school! It was very rewarding and humbling experience. You learn just as much from these kids as they do from you, and it reminds me to be grateful for everything and all the opportunities I have been given.“ It’s obviously a great perspective. Paul understands and appreciates what this award means and the legacy that has been left behind by Killebrew. “It’s an incredible honor to be given the Harmon Killebrew Award. Both on and off the field, Mr. Killebrew was held in very high regards by all; so obviously, I’m gratefully accepting this award hoping to live up to such a high standard set by such an outstanding individual and baseball player.“ Previous Twins Double-A Killebrew Award winners: 2011 - Bobby Lanigan 2012 - Shawn Roof 2013 - Dan Rohlfing 2014 - Tony Thomas 2015 - Tim Shibuya 2016 - David Hurlbut 2017 - Travis Harrison 2018 - Chris Paul 2018 Killebrew Award Recipients Rochester Red Wings - Jake Reed Chattanooga Lookouts - Chris Paul Fort Myers Miracle - Cedar Rapids Kernels - Congratulations to Chris Paul on earning the 2018 Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service for the Chattanooga Lookouts. Click here to view the article

It was a day full of close games and extra innings in the Twins minor league system. Two games went to extra innings. One game ended with a walk off in the bottom of the ninth inning. Alex Kirilloff and Brent Rooker continued to rake. And don’t forget you can Get To Know Elizabethton first baseman and 2018 eighth-round pick Chris Williams.Keep reading to find out more on the night in the Twins minor league system on Monday. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS Officially, Adalberto Mejia was called up to the Twins with Alan Busenitz being sent down to Rochester.Infielder Alex Perez has returned to the Chattanooga Lookouts. Also, infielder Chris Paul has been activated from the disabled list. RHP Cody Stashak was activated from the temporary Inactive List. RHP Todd Van Steensel was placed on the disabled list.RED WINGS REPORT Rochester Box Score No Game Scheduled. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 4, Pensacola 3 Box Score Down 3-2 going into the bottom of the ninth, Lookouts baseball found itself with a few heroes. Mitchell Kranson was called upon to pinch hit, and he hit a game-tying home run, his second since joining the Lookouts. Tanner English followed with a triple. After two batters were walked intentionally, Chris Paul provided the walk off single. Brent Rooker led the offense. The powerful slugger went 2-for-3 with his 18th home run of the season. Paul went 2-for-5 in the game. Jaylin Davis also went 2-for-5 on the night. It was Sam Clay’s turn to play the role of “Opener” on Monday night. He gave up one run on two hits and a walk in his inning. He struck out one. Anthony Marzi then came on and worked the next five innings. He gave up just one run despite five hits, three walks and a hit batter. He struck out four. Andrew Vasquez got five outs, two on strikeouts, and Ryne Harper struck out the one batter he faced. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 11, Jupiter 12 (11 innings) Box Score The Miracle began a road trip on Monday, and it was a ‘70s Road Trip… KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Lansing 2 Box Score The Kernels got another quality start from righty Randy Dobnak. He gave up two runs (one earned) on seven hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out four. Melvi Acosta came on and threw two scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and walked one. Unfortunately, the Kernels managed just two hits and two walks in the game. Andrew Bechtold hit his 16th doubles while Ariel Montesino knocked his second two-bagger. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton , Princeton Box Score The doubleheader at Princeton was cancelled. Obviously with a short-season, there are fewer off days to make up games, so instead of postponing, they need to cancel them. GCL TWINS TALK GCL Twins 4, GCL Rays 5 (10 innings) Box Score Another extra innings game for a Twins affiliate in Florida… Same result, unfortunately. The Twins scored two runs in the top of the 10th inning, but then gave up three runs in the bottom of the inning. Prelander Berroa started and gave up two runs on three hits over four innings. He walked four and struck out four. Niklas Rimmel, a 19-year-old from Germany, made his first pro appearance in the States. He gave up two hits over two scoreless innings. Michael Montero gave up a hit and walked one but did not allow a run over his two innings. JT Perez came on and gave up two runs (1 earned) on two hits over 1 2/3 innings. He struck out two. Osiris German came on and gave up a home run that ended the game. Gabe Snyder led the offense. He went 2-for-4 with his fourth double. LaRon Smith and Janigson Villalobos both went 1-for-3 with two walks. Smith added his first double. Hunter Lee added his first GCL double, and Willie Joe Garry, Jr., added his third double. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Alex Kirilloff, Ft. Myers Miracle (3-4, BB, 3-2B(11). Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Randy Dobnak, Cedar Rapids Kernels (6 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that this Prospect Summary has been updated. #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 1-6, 2B(3), 3 RBI, R, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Ft. Myers) - 3-4, 3-2B(11), #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch. #4 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did not play. #5 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Did not pitch. #6 - Trevor Larnach (Elizabethton) - Did not play #7 - Brent Rooker (Chattanooga) - 2-3, 2 BB, HR(18), K, R, RBI #8 - Akil Baddoo (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, BB, K #9 -Wander Javier - out of for the season #10 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did not pitch. #11 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch. #12 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Did not play. #13 - Travis Blankenhorn (Ft. Myers) - 1-5, 2 R, 2 K #14 - Lewis Thorpe (Chattanooga) - Did not pitch. #15 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 1-5, R, K #16 - Yunior Severino (Elizabethton) - Did not play #17 - Lewin Diaz (Ft. Myers) - 0-2 #18 - Ryan Jeffers (Elizabethton) - Did not play. #19 - Jacob Pearson (Cedar Rapids) - Did not play. #20 - Luis Arraez (Chattanooga) - Did not play. #21 - Jose Miranda (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4 *I figured that since Wander Javier is out, I’d add #21 to the list. TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Indianapolis (6:05 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves (6-3. 3.34 ERA) Pensacola @ Chattanooga (7:05 CST) - TBD Ft. Myers @ Jupiter (5:30 CST) - LHP Charlie Barnes (4-5, 2.93 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Lansing (6:05 CST) - RHP Blayne Enlow (1-2, 3.49 ERA) Elizabethton @ Burlington (6:00 CST) - LHP Kody Funderburk (0-0, 3.55 ERA) GCL Rays @ GCL Twins (11:00 am CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions about Monday’s games, or ask any questions you may have. Click here to view the article

There was plenty of action in the system on Tuesday even with Elizabethton’s doubleheader getting rained out. A left-handed starter delivered another strong performance as he makes his way back into the prospect picture, a grand slam powered the Kernels to victory, and there were couple walk-offs games.To find out how all your favorite prospects fared on Tuesday night, read on and be sure to add to the discussion in the comments! TRANSACTIONS Before we get to the games, there were a few transactions in the system on Tuesday: -Jake Cave was recalled by the Minnesota Twins and started in RF in their game. -Fort Myers activated RHP Adam Bray from the 7-day disabled list (and would debut tonight) and released RHP Logan Lombana. -After getting his stateside career started with a bang, C Yeremi De La Cruz was placed on the 60-day disabled list for the GCL Twins, effectively ending his 2018 season. -LHP J.T. Perez was assigned to the GCL Twins and pitched on Tuesday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 3, Syracuse 4 (10 innings) Box Score The Red Wings came out on the wrong side of an extra-inning affair on Tuesday, falling to the Chiefs 4-3 in the tenth inning. Rochester took the lead early, scratching two runs across after loading the bases with no outs thanks to a double-play ball with the defense back and an RBI single from Chris Carter. Starter Zack Littell kept it close for nearly seven innings, exiting after striking out the first two hitters of the seventh as he reached a pitch count threshold (100 pitches, 64 for strikes). He allowed two runs on nine hits and one walk, along with picking up four strikeouts and was in line for the win when he came out. Tyler Duffey got the final out of the seventh and retired the first two hitters in the eighth before he ran into trouble. A walk and consecutive singles tied the game at three and charged Duffey with his second blown save of the year. Jake Reed was summoned and got out of the eighth before also adding a scoreless ninth. Reed gave up one hit, walked two (one intentional), and struck out two. After the Red Wings went one-two-three in the top of the tenth, Luke Bard came on for the bottom half. He struck out the first batter of the inning, but with a runner starting on second base the double to the next hitter meant the end of the game. In the loss the offense got two hits from Zack Granite, Nick Gordon, and Carter who added a solo home run in the sixth. As the DH Kennys Vargas went 1-for-2 with three walks. LaMonte Wade finished 1-for-4 with a walk. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Biloxi 4, Chattanooga 5 Box Score The Lookouts bullpen gave up a three-run lead in the ninth inning, but unlike their triple-A cohorts managed to walk it off in the bottom half to put them back above .500. Lewis Thorpe took the mound for Chattanooga and was again strong. In 5 2/3 innings he allowed one run on four hits while racking up seven strikeouts. He was removed in the sixth after loading the bases with his only walk and two outs. In his two starts in the second half of the Southern League season, Thorpe has allowed just one run on five hits and two walks in 12 2/3 innings and has struck out 19. Coming off surgery and other ailments, Thorpe appears to be rounding back into the form I saw when I had the chance to interview him with Cedar Rapids. In the month of April his WHIP was 1.61 and opposing batters hit .349 off him. In may his WHIP didn’t improve (1.62), but opponents hit .277. Now in June he’s improved his WHIP to 1.09 and that batting average against is just .229. That includes a disastrous game on June 9th where he allowed 9 earned runs in 3 1/3 innings. Chattanooga struck first in third inning, as a Jimmy Kerrigan double brought in Alex Perez who had singled a batter before him. They took the lead back 3-1 in the sixth on an RBI single from Mitchell Kranson and a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch from Ryan Walker. Walker added a needed insurance run with a bases-loaded groundout in the eighth that made it 4-1. In relief of Thorpe, Andrew Vasquez mowed the Shuckers down for 2 1/3 innings. He retired every batter he faced, including sending five of them on walks of shame back to the dugout. Todd Van Steensel was summoned for the save opportunity in the ninth and got two quick outs, but then the wheels fell off. Two walks and three consecutive RBI singles tied the game before the Lookouts could get another arm warmed up. That was Paco Rodriguez and with the go-ahead run on third base he was able to coax a groundout to bring up the home team. A one out single from Perez put the winning run on base, and a deep fly to center got him into scoring position. The Shuckers chose to intentionally walk Brent Rooker to bring up Chris Paul, and he delivered with a single to left field. The Chattanooga offense got multiple hits from Perez (2-for-5, 2 R, K), Kerrigan (2-for-5, R, 2B, RBI, K), Paul (3-for-5, 2 R, GW-RBI), and Kranson (2-for-4, RBI) while no other batter picked up a hit. Jaylin Davis walked three times, and Walker drove in two. MIRACLE MATTERS Fort Myers 3, Tampa 10 Box Score Tyler Watson took the mound for the Miracle on Tuesday and got nickel and dimed by the Tarpons offense. He was finished after just three innings and sixty pitches as they took a 3-1 lead. Watson surrendered three runs (two earned) on three hits and two walks in those innings. He struck out four. An error on Lewin Diaz in the first led to the first run of the game, then a walk, passed ball, bunt single, wild pitch, and another single led to two runs in the third. Brady Anderson came out of the bullpen in the fourth, but before he got out of the inning three more runs were on the board for Tampa and they took a 6-2 lead. Anderson allowed four hits, walked two, and struck out two. Adam Bray managed to put a goose egg up in one of his two innings, but also gave up five hits and walked one while striking out two. Colton Davis finished the game for the Miracle, allowing three runs on three hits and a walk in his two innings. He struck out three. Fort Myers got multi-hit and multi-walk efforts from MLB-ers Jorge Polanco and Miguel Sano, and Diaz and Taylor Grzelakowski each collected two hits themselves, but as a team they finished 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left twelve men on base. Polanco clubbed a home run in the third inning to put the Miracle on the board, and Grzelakowski added a double for their only extra base hits on the game. Alex Kiriloff went hitless in five at-bats, striking out three times. KERNELS NUGGETS Beloit 0, Cedar Rapids 6 Box Score The Kernels popped for four runs in the bottom of the first inning thanks to the bat of Jose Miranda, and that would be more than enough behind the arms of starter Edwar Colina and MWL All-Star Jared Finkel. Batting cleanup, Miranda stepped into the box with the bases loaded in the first and delivered a grand slam, his seventh home run of the season, to put Cedar Rapids out front 4-0. They would add two more runs in the fourth on a Royce Lewis two-RBI single to account for all of their scoring. Colina went the first six innings, holding the Snappers to just three hits and one walk. He struck out two and had three one-two-three innings. Finkel finished the game with three scoreless frames to pick up his second save. He allowed just one hit on the game. Akil Baddoo would finish 1-for-2 with two runs scored and two walks. Jacob Pearson scored two runs and drew a walk in addition to going 1-for-3. Lewis went 1-for-3 with a run scored and a walk. E-TWINS E-NOTES Game 1: Johnson City 9, Elizabethton 2 (6 innings, rain) Box Score Game 2: Postponed by Rain (no makeup date announced) Elizabethton was scheduled for a double-header due to their postponement yesterday, but rains continued to play a part on Tuesday. They were able to get just one game in, and even it was shortened due to the weather. It was probably an act of mercy for the Twins however, as they got rocked by their in-state rivals from the words “play ball.” Twins starter Pedro Garcia failed to record an out, and before he was lifted five runs had already crossed home plate. Another inherited runner would score to affect Garcia’s line along with another for an early 7-0 lead for the Cardinals. Christian Broussard ended up pitching the games first four official innings worth of outs, and he allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out four. Juan Gamez allowed one run on two hits and a walk in his 1 2/3 innings before the rains cut the game short. He also struck out four. The Elizabethton offense scored their two runs in the third inning thanks to a two-run triple off the bat of Lean Marrero. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Rays 6, GCL Twins 2 Box Score In this one, both squads managed only six hits and committed five errors on defense, but the Rays were the only ones able to take advantage thanks in part to five walks and other miscues from Twins starter Tyler Benninghoff. In the top of the first a leadoff single was followed by a throwing error on a pickoff attempt and then three additional walks, two hit batters, and two wild pitches led to three runs for the Rays. Benninghoff settled down a little from there, finishing 3 1/3 innings without allowing another run. He gave up two hits and struck out two. The Twins scored single runs in each of the sixth and ninth innings. In the sixth it was a single to short that also included a throwing error on once upon a time Minnesota signee Jelfrey Marte, that allowed a run to score. In the ninth, a throwing error on a steal attempt put a runner on third and a groundout brought him in. Aaron Whitefield led the offense with two hits in three at-bats and also drew a walk. Gabe Snyder and Edgar Herrera picked up the RBIs. Out of the bullpen Dylan Stowell pitched 2 2/3 scoreless frames. He allowed two hits and a walk while striking out four. Thanks to four errors in the seventh inning, left-hander Erik Cha allowed three unearned runs on a hit and walk in 1 2/3 innings. He struck out one. J.T. Perez finished the game for the Twins with 1 1/3 scoreless. He gave up one hit, walked one, and struck out two. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day – Lewis Thorpe, Chattanooga Lookouts (5.2 IP, ER, 4 H, BB, 7 K) Twins Daily Hitter of the Day – Jose Miranda, Cedar Rapids Kernels (1-for-3, R, GS (7), 4 RBI) TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY 1. Royce Lewis (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI, BB, K 2. Fernando Romero (Rochester) – Did not pitch. 3. Nick Gordon (Rochester) – 2-for-5, R 4. Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) – Did not pitch. 5. Alex Kirilloff (Fort Myers) – 0-for-5, 3 K 6. Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) – Out for season with injury. 7. Brent Rooker (Chattanooga) – 0-for-4, IBB, 2 K 8. Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) – Did not pitch. 9. Brusdar Graterol (Cedar Rapids) – Did not pitch. 10. Akil Baddoo (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-2, 2 R, 2 BB, K 11. Zack Littell (Rochester) – 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 9 H, BB, 4 K 12. Lewis Thorpe (Chattanooga) – 5.2 IP, ER, 4 H, BB, 7 K 13. Lewin Diaz (Fort Myers) – 2-for-5, 2 K 14. LaMonte Wade (Rochester) – 1-for-4, BB, K 15. Mitch Garver (Minnesota) – (game in progress) 16. Ben Rortvedt (Fort Myers) – 0-for-4 17. Travis Blankenhorn (Fort Myers) – 0-for-4, BB, 2 K 18. Yunior Severino (Elizabethton Twins) – 1-for-2 19. Tyler Jay (Chattanooga) – Did not pitch. 20. Felix Jorge (Rochester) – Did not pitch. WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Syracuse (5:35PM CST) – RHP Fernando Romero (0-1, 2.57 ERA) Chattanooga – Scheduled day off. Fort Myers @ Tampa (5:30PM CST) – RHP Clark Beeker (2-5, 3.20 ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (12:05PM CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (5-2, 4.18 ERA) Elizabethton – Scheduled day off. GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! Click here to view the article

Chris Paul, LaMonte Wade and Zander Wiel all homered for Chattanooga in a Lookouts victory and Trevor May continued his rehab in Rochester, throwing 60 pitches over four innings. See what else happened in this lightning round edition of the minor league report.I apologize for the extremely abbreviated report tonight. I had to spring into action unexpectedly and this was the best I could do. A couple of real quick things to note: LaMonte Wade hit a big game-tying home run for the Lookouts in the top of the fifth inning tonight, but then was removed from the game in the bottom of the sixth. No word on why that was. Also, infielder Joe Cronin pitched for the Miracle tonight, getting out the only two batters he faced. RED WINGS REPORT Syracuse 4, Rochester 2 Box Score SP: Trevor May (4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) HR: None Multi-hit games: Jake Cave (2-for-3, 2B, BB) CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 6, Biloxi 4 Box Score W: Lewis Thorpe (5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 4 K) SV: Ryne Harper (2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K) HR: Chris Paul (2), LaMonte Wade (6), Zander Wiel (3) Multi-hit games: Brian Navarreto (2-for-4, RBI) MIRACLE MATTERS Jupiter 5, Fort Myers 2 Box Score SP: Charlie Barnes (5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K) HR: None Multi-hit games: Brandon Lopez (2-for-4), Luis Arraez (2-for-3, 2B) KERNELS NUGGETS Quad Cities 2, Cedar Rapids 1 Box Score SP: Bailey Ober (6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K) HR: None Multi-hit games: Alex Kirilloff (2-for-4, RBI) STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Bailey Ober Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day: LaMonte Wade TOP PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Prospects performed: 1. Royce Lewis: 0-for-4, K 3. Nick Gordon: 1-for-4, 2B 5. Alex Kirilloff: 2-for-4, RBI, K 7. Brent Rooker: 1-for-4, 2B, 2 K 10. Akil Baddoo: 0-for-2, BB, R, 2 K 11. Zack Littell: 4.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K 12. Lewis Thorpe: 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 4 K 13. Lewin Diaz: 0-for-3, BB, K, SB 14. LaMonte Wade: 1-for-3, HR, R, RBI, K 16. Ben Rortvedt: 0-for-3, BB, K 17. Travis Blankenhorn: 0-for-3, R, 2 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester vs. Pawtuckett, 6:05 pm CT (Stephen Gonsalves) Chattanooga at Biloxi, 6:35 pm CT (Kohl Stewart) Fort Myers vs. St Lucie, 6:00 pm CT (Brady Anderson) Cedar Rapids at Clinton, 6:30 pm CT (Blayne Enlow Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the games. Click here to view the article

FORT MYERS - 2017 was a fantastic year for Twins prospect Brent Rooker. After being drafted in 2016 by the Twins, he went back to Mississippi State where he won the SEC's Triple Crown, a feat not accomplished in about 30 years. He was drafted again by the Twins, this time 37 rounds higher, and diced to sign. He hit a combined 18 home runs between Elizabethton and Ft. Myers in his professional debut. 2018 could be an even bigger year for Rooker. He is now engaged. He participated in his first Twins Fest in Minneapolis in January. And he is currently participating in his first spring training. Could he be up with the Twins in 2018, maybe 2019? That’s to be determined, but it isn’t out of the realm of possibility.On Monday on the back fields of the Lee County Sports Complex, Brent Rooker played first base for the Chattanooga Lookouts work group against the AA work group of the Boston Red Sox. Long-time big leaguer Chris Heisey came down from big league camp and introduced himself to the Twins 2017 draft pick. As usual in those games, he got a couple of at-bats and played half of the game at first base. He was then replaced by another quality Twins prospect, Lewin Diaz. However, Rooker’s day was not over. After watching an inning of the game, he shifted to the half-field adjacent to the field in which the game was being played. He and fellow prospect Chris Paul went to first base where Joel Lepel hit them ground balls, and they were to throw it to second base. They were working on turning and throwing and other footwork basics. After a while, the were joined by a couple of new Twins instructors. Michael Cuddyer and Justin Morneau found their way over there. Cuddyer mostly observed and later hit fungoes to other infielders. Morneau stood by Paul and Rooker, offering suggestions and even showing the footwork. The opportunity is great for the minor leaguers to learn from such talent. Twins Hall of Famer Torii Hunter has worked with the players. Michael Cuddyer was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame following the completion of his career. Justin Morneau announced his retirement in January. The former MVP has joined the Twins front office as a special assistant to Baseball Operations. These are guys who have accomplished so much, including All-Star Games in their long MLB careers. To get pointers from them can mean the world. Rooker noted later, “Having guys like Justin and Michael around is awesome because they have so much first hand experience and knowledge that they’re able to share. Just being around them and listening to them talk about the game is a huge help to guys like me who are trying to get where they have already been.” Rooker grew up in a small town, Germantown (TN), just miles from Memphis. His father played baseball at Memphis, and his younger brother is currently on the Memphis team. Rooker headed south a couple of hours and chose Mississippi State for his college baseball. Rooker noted, “I originally thought, in my junior year (of high school), that I was going to play football in college. Then I started getting bigger looks for baseball, from SEC schools. I went on a few visits. The atmosphere. The energy surrounding Mississippi State is what sets it apart.” Rooker is a great athlete and participated in three sports during his high school career at Evangelical Christian Academy. Not only did he participate, but he was a team leader in all three sports. “I did it because I really enjoyed all three of them. I was blessed to have the opportunity to play all three (sports) and compete for a state championship in all three sports. We won in baseball twice, and then lost in football and in basketball my senior year. When people ask what advice I have for younger players, it’s always to play multiple sports as long as you can and as long as they enjoy it and have some success and contribute to a team. I think they should try to compete in multiple sports for as long as possible because it helps develop young athletes both mentally and physically.” The coaches at Mississippi State told him that he would redshirt his freshman season. While it wasn’t ideal and could be frustrating at times, Rooker says it was the best thing for him. “Simply put, I wasn’t ready to compete at the level I needed to to help the team, so the redshirt was the best thing for me. I was told I was going to redshirt. It’s not the most fun thing to do. You have the choice though. I could leave and go to a JuCo and play right away, or I could stick around and try to figure out how to play at this level. I chose to do the latter and it really paid off for me. That year was hard. It was a lot of hard work, and it was tough not to be able to play and compete and practice all the time. At the end of the day, I really needed it and think it was the best decision for me. Following a strong junior year (redshirt sophomore season), the Twins took Rooker in the 38th round. He chose not to sign, betting on himself. “Going into the draft, I was telling teams, Top 5 rounds and I’ll sign. After that, it would be a financial decision that we can discuss. After I got picked, I did have some conversations with the Twins people. At the end of the day, it was a better decision for me from a development standpoint to go back to school and compete in the SEC which is as good as amateur baseball gets.” He continued, “I knew there was more in me.” He spent a lot of time that summer trying to figure out how to take his game to the next level. “My focus was to figure out what that was for me whether it was an approach thing or a physical thing or a swing thing. I knew it was in there. I knew I had more capability than I was showing. I did whatever I could, talked to people to try to figure out what it was that would take me to the next step.” Video has become a big part of Rooker’s preparation and work toward becoming a better player. He notes that while he has had favorite players and favorite teams in the past, he now watches baseball players a little differently and has found a couple of guys whose swings he likes and studies. “I didn’t necessarily model my game after people. I found people that I liked what they did with their swing and watched a lot of video of those guys and tried to learn a lot from those guys. The two guys that I’ve watched the most video on and studied the most over the past two years while I was trying to figure out my swing. Josh Donaldson was one, and Barry Bonds is another guy I’ve watched a lot of video on.I look at how they move and how they made their swings work efficiently.I think those are the two guys I’ve probably learned the most from from an offensive standpoint.” On Sunday, Lance Lynn pitched in a minor league. In that game, Rooker lined a double to left field. The below video was recorded, and it illustrates the results of his work. You can see a nice, efficient swing with little extra movement and a lot of power generated. Rooker noted that the jump from the SEC to the Appalachian League “wasn’t too big, but the jump from E-Town to the Florida State League was a big jump for me in terms of seeing the quality of stuff that guys are throwing every day.” He is working with the Chattanooga group right now, so it makes sense the that organization may plan to have him start the season back in Ft. Myers where he posted a .917 OPS with six doubles and 11 homers in just 40 games in 2017. It’s also possible that he will begin the season with the Lookouts. While we will continue to look at his statistics, Rooker will continue to work on his process. As he said, the numbers will take care of themselves. Could we see Rooker in a Twins uniform, playing games at Target Field by season’s end? The odds probably aren’t high, but the fact that at this time a year ago, he hadn’t even started SEC games yet, it is remarkable to note that it is absolutely possible. If not, maybe 2019. He’s been working hard at first base, trying to learn some of the nuances of the position. Getting help from a guy like Justin Morneau, who made himself into a very solid defensive player over his career, can’t hurt. He’s also spent some time in left field this spring. “My job is not to worry about the assignment. My job is to show up wherever they put me and continue to work my process and get better every day. If I continue to take incremental steps, every game, every week, then I’ll be where I need to be and I think the numbers should take care of themselves. I don’t worry about the end results. I just worry about my own process and what I need to do to be the best player I can.” Twins fans, that player could be really good. Click here to view the article

Now that the 2018 Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook is complete (order paperback or e-book), it’s time to get to know or catch up with some of those prospects. Today, we get to know Mitchell Kranson. The Twins drafted the catcher from the University of California in Berkeley with their ninth-round draft pick in 2016. He put together a solid first full season. Berkeley has become a team that the Twins draft many players from. They didn’t draft any in 2017, but in addition to Kranson, the Twins took Alex Schick (6th) and Ryan Mason (13th) from Berkeley. In 2015, the Twins took Chris Paul in the sixth round. In 2014, the Twins took Trevor Hildenberger in the 22nd round and then Michael Theofanopoulos in the 30th round.Kranson spent four years at Cal, and after the draft, he went to Elizabethton for the remainder of the 2016 season. In 2017, he began the year in Cedar Rapids. After helping the Kernels to a first-half playoff berth, he moved up to Ft. Myers for the remainder of the season. Today, we have the opportunity to get to know a little bit about Mitchell Kranson. Thank you Mitchell! Seth Stohs (SS): Growing up in California, who were some of your favorite players and teams? Do you follow other professional or college sports teams throughout the offseason? Mitchell Kranson (MK): I grew up an Oakland A's fan. I am a Golden State Warrior fan as most of my Twins teammates know since I put almost every game on the TV whenever they are on. SS: What was your recruitment as a high school athlete like for you, and what was it about Berkeley that made it the right choice for you? MK: My recruitment in high school was a lot of fun. Stressful at times, but I really enjoyed the whole process. I took my time and didn't commit to a school before I was ready. I did my research and visited many schools, but in the end, the combination of world-class academics and being able to play in the Pac 12 made my decision to go to CAL one of the best decisions of my life. SS: You played all over the field during your four college seasons. Tell us about your position history there, and do you think that has been beneficial for you as you’ve started your pro career? MK: I have always taken pride in being able to play multiple positions. I want to be in the lineup every day and if playing more positions gives me a better opportunity to be in the game, then I have no problem making sure I am ready to play all over the field. I think it has really helped me in my pro career so far! SS: What was the highlight (or two) of your time in college at Cal? Any memories that really stand out? MK: My biggest highlight of my time at CAL was hitting a walk-off home run in the 14th inning of the Texas A&M regional on ESPN. SS: What was it like for you leading up to the draft? Were there a lot of scouts, and specifically, did you speak with scouts from the Twins? MK: Leading up to the draft my senior year I had heard from nearly every team and spoken extensively with a few, including the Twins. It was a nervous yet exciting time! SS: The Twins selected you with their ninth-round pick in 2016. Was that about where you were expecting to be selected? What were your initial thoughts when it was the Twins that selected you? MK: I had a pretty good idea that I would be selected on the second day of the draft. I was extremely excited that the Twins decided to pick me and give me a chance to live out my dream of playing professional baseball SS: What was the transition to pro baseball like for you, both on and off the field? MK: I felt very prepared coming from Cal and playing in the Pac 12 for professional baseball. Nothing can completely prepare you for the grind of playing every day but after my first full season I learned it's all about preparation and sticking to a routine. SS: Your season has been done for a couple of months now. Have you had a chance to reflect on your season? In doing so, what are your thoughts on your first full season as a professional baseball player? MK: Yes, I have had a chance to reflect on my season. I was very happy with my season. I was a part of two great teams and had a bunch of great coaches make my first full season a memorable one. I have a lot to work on and that's what the off season is for so I will be ready for Spring Training. SS: You were part of a Cedar Rapids team that earned a playoff berth in the first half, and helped the Miracle to the second-half playoff spot. As a player, how do you weigh the idea of winning versus the idea of development and advancement up the organizational ladder? MK: It's always fun to be able to play for something. We were able to do that in Cedar Rapids and in Fort Myers. It was obvious that when our team was winning, our personal stats were better. It was an honor to be a part of both playoff teams. I think we have a really good group of guys. SS: What was that adjustment like for you from the Midwest League to the Florida State League? Did you notice much difference? MK: The biggest difference was the heat and humidity. Catching was tougher because you're just soaking wet of sweat. SS: What were your thoughts about playing for Tommy Watkins and Brian Dinkelman, and then Doug Mientkiewicz and Steve Singleton? Maybe some styles are different, but were you able to glean information from each of them? MK: Playing for Tommy and Dink in my first experience of full season ball was great. They were extremely loose but when it was time to turn it on, they were serious. They were great resources to have while in Cedar Rapids and with their help and knowledge of the game, they absolutely helped me get the mid season call up to Fort Myers. I loved playing for Doug. Both he and Sing really helped me with my hitting approach. It would be ridiculous to not listen to Doug after the career he had. I was all ears trying to learn as much as I could from him. SS: How would you describe yourself as a player? What are your strengths? MK: I would describe myself as someone who comes prepared to play everyday and will do whatever it takes to win. I love to hit, but I know that I have the defense to not just be a hitter. SS: What are the areas of your game that you hope to work on this offseason to improve as you look to 2018? MK: I felt pretty consistent last season hitting, but I want to keep improving on being consistent. I also have continued to improve my catching! SS: Have you been able to do to get away from baseball this offseason at all? What do you do outside of baseball for fun? MK: GOLF. and Golf a lot! SS: At what point do you not only start thinking about the 2018 season, but when do your workouts and preparation begin? Do you think you’ll do anything new or different after going through a full season? MK: After getting home, I took about a week and a half off. I think I did three weeks of pre training where I would go to gym and get my body ready for my actual training with my trainer that started October 1st. I've been in the gym since then, mostly twice a day working with my trainer getting my body ready. It really helped me last year so I have committed even more this year . SS: Did you learn anything about yourself, or did anything surprise you about working through a full season? MK: All the days seem to be the same. Some days I didn't know what day of the week it was because they all just started to blend together. With that said, I learned how to turn the switch on to be ready to compete each and every day! SS: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career? MK: I have had a lot of people help me get to the point I am in my career. Of course, my family has helped me out with their constant support and then all of my coaches as well. They all taught me how to play the game the right way. Also, my trainer, JJ, has changed my career and my body! SS: There are probably some high school baseball players reading this. What would one piece of advice be that you would share with them, or share with a 14-year-old Mitchell? MK: I would say that when being recruited, enjoy it and take it all in, but make sure that you never give a coach a reason to cross you off his list of players for something that doesn't have to do with your baseball abilities. SS: Favorite Baseball Movie? MK: The Rookie Thank you very much to Mitchell Kranson for sharing his responses with the Twins Daily readers. Feel free to discuss or ask questions in the comments below. Click here to view the article

(This report includes the games played through 11/19 and the end of the AFL season) Week 6 of the AFL season means that the circuit has come to an end, and for the first time in the last four seasons Twins prospects weren’t playing in the circuit’s championship game. The Surprise Saguaros finished their season with a 13-17 record, good for fifth place in the six-team league. While there wasn’t the same upper echelon talent from the Twins organization that had contributed to those championship runs in the AFL this season, it’s better to know that’s because those players were helping the parent club to a playoff run this season. Mitch Garver, Nick Gordon, Stephen Gonsalves, and John Curtiss were there in 2016. Trevor Hildenberger, Taylor Rogers, and Garver won it in 2015. Your 2017 “nothing but raindrops” outfield of Byron Buxton (though he didn’t play in AFL championship due to breaking his finger), Eddie Rosario, and Max Kepler helped win it all in 2014. The point here is these guys playing in the AFL are all players that have potential to help the Twins in the future in some way. LaMonte Wade will be on the shortlist to play outfield in a pinch in 2018. If Tyler Jay can remain healthy he may remind us of another Big Ten left-hander in a bullpen role soon. Ryan Eades, Tom Hackimer, and Andrew Vasquez all have bullpen potential if they can build on their performances here. There are lots of things to like about the bat of Chris Paul and glove of Sean Miller as well. Plus, these are our guys. We all want them to succeed as it means good things for our hometown team if they do.To find out how each of these guys wrapped up the AFL season’s final week, keep reading! (links provided to each player’s overall AFL stats by clicking their name) Tyler Jay: 2 appearances, 2.0IP, 3 H’s, ER, 2 K’s; 5.59 ERA (overall). The left-hander’s first appearance of the week came in Monday’s 2-0 loss to the Scottsdale Scorpions. He came on for the seventh inning and faced the middle of the lineup. He gave up a single to the leadoff man, but worked around it with a fly out, strikeout, and ground ball to the second baseman. Of his fourteen pitches in the inning, seven went for strikes, including two swings and misses. The single allowed was one of only two hits on the game for Scottsdale, but thanks to a walk, a triple, and a sac fly in the second inning, the two runs were more than enough. In the final game of the season on Thursday, a 10-5 win for the Sagauros against Mesa, Jay came on for the bottom of the sixth inning with his team out front 5-1. A nine-pitch battle with the leadoff hitter ended up with him clubbing a ground-rule double, and this time Jay wouldn’t come out unscathed. He got a swinging strikeout to the next hitter, but then allowed a single that put runners on the corners. A sac fly made the score 5-2 before Jay got a flyout for the final out. He threw 24 pitches in this outing, with 19 of them going for strikes (two swings and misses). Jay didn’t finish his season with eye-popping numbers, but the important thing for him in the AFL was logging innings and staying healthy after his entire 2017 MiLB season was basically wiped out. In 9.2 total innings, he gave up 13 hits (two home runs), walked five, and struck out 11. It’s likely Jay is back in AA to start the 2018 season, but if he comes out hot a bump to AAA could happen quickly. LaMonte Wade: Did not play (concussion); .238/.351/.413 (overall). As detailed in the Week 5 report, Wade did not play this week as he recovers from a concussion. Overall, he played in nineteen games collecting three doubles, a triple, and two home runs while scoring nine runs and driving in eight. Of note (facetiously), is for the first time in any league he’s played as a professional, Wade struck out more times than he walked (10/9). The on-base machine will be ready to take his talents to AAA next season, knocking on the door to his MLB debut. Chris Paul: 3 games (2 starts), 4-11, 3 R’s, 3 K’s; .292/.329/.444 (overall). In the shutout loss to Scottsdale on Monday, Paul entered the game in bottom of the third inning after the Saguaros right fielder, Michael O’Neill, was ejected after being picked off at first base. He took over in left field. He came up to the plate only twice the rest of the game as Surprise’s lineup wasn’t able to bunch any of their seven hits and three walks together. Paul flew out to center in the fifth and struck out leading off the eighth. In his first start of the week in Tuesday’s 6-5 walk-off win against the Scorpions, Paul batted cleanup and was again manning first base. He singled in the bottom of the fourth inning and reached base on an error in the sixth, but was left stranded both times. In the bottom of the eighth, with the score 5-2 in favor of Scottsdale, Paul got a rally started with a one-out single. He later scored on a double that brought them within one before an RBI single tied it at 5 heading to the ninth. Paul was on deck when teammate Yanio Perez delivered the game winning single to finish off the Surprise comeback. Paul’s final game of the AFL season came in Thursday’s season finale, and he again batted fourth and played first base. He and both his teammates in the second inning struck out swinging against Mesa starter Logan Shore (of Coon Rapids, MN), but they would get him back in the fourth inning. Paul’s first single of the game was part of four consecutive hits that led off the inning, and before it was over the Saguaros had extended their lead to 4-0 and ended Shore’s game. In the top of the sixth Paul led off the inning with his second single, and he scored on a sac fly that made it 5-1 Surprise. He finished this one 2-5 with two runs scored and two K’s. Overall on the AFL season, Paul led Twins hitters with a .773 OPS. In 18 games he racked up 21 hits including three doubles, a triple, and two home runs. He scored fifteen runs which tied for the Saguaros team lead, and drove in 10. He’s ticketed for AA in 2018. Andrew Vasquez: 1 appearances, 1.0IP, 2 H’s, ER, BB, K; 0.77 ERA (overall). Vasquez made just one appearance in the season’s final week, and it came on Wednesday in their 5-2 loss to the Mesa Solar Sox. He came on for the ninth inning, finishing the game for the Saguaros but not in the way he might have hoped to end his AFL campaign. He got a quick ground out for the first out, but went a little downhill from there. A double, passed ball, walk, and single to the next three hitters made the score 5-2, and was just his second earned run allowed on the season. He recovered and struck out the next batter before getting a line out for the third out. In the outing, eight of his eighteen pitches went for strikes. Vasquez finished his off-season season with 12.2 innings pitched, allowing two earned runs on nine hits and five walks. He struck out 14, which was good for a 9.9K/9IP rate which while dwarfed by his 13.2K/9IP during the regular season, is a solid number to build on considering he was coming to the AFL from A-ball. Due to that success and his showing here, I would expect he starts the 2018 season in Chattanooga. Ryan Eades: 1 appearance, 2.0 IP, 2 H’s, 3 K’s; 0.66 ERA (overall). Like Vasquez, Eades saw action in just one game during the season’s final week and it was in the 6-5 win over Scottsdale on Tuesday. He was the first reliever summoned in the game for the fifth inning with the score 5-0 in favor of the Scorpions at the time. He was again effective in the outing, with 23 of his 29 total pitches going for strikes, though he did hit one batter with a pitch. In his first inning, he got two outs before giving up a single, but promptly picked that runner off first base for the final out. In the sixth, he got all three of his outs on strikeouts, working around another single and the hit batter with swing and miss stuff. All the K’s were of the swinging variety, and three other pitches resulted in whiffs in the frame. Eades performance in the AFL was perhaps the best surprise among the Twins prospects. In 10 games and 13.2 innings, he allowed just one earned run (on a home run) on fourteen hits and three walks while striking out 13. He also picked up two wins and led Twins prospects with a 0.66 ERA. The right-hander has always had stuff that didn’t quite match the results, but he may yet still find a home in a bullpen in the future. After two years in AA, it’s time for him to perform in AAA in 2018 and see if he can jump over the final hurdle. Tom Hackimer: 2 appearances, 2.0IP, H, K; 2.31 ERA (overall). Hackimer got in on two games during the week, and finished on a high note. In Monday’s 2-0 loss he came on for the bottom of the eighth inning to finish the game for Surprise. He set the opposition down in order, including a strikeout for the final out. Of his 13 pitches, eight went for strikes. In Thursday’s season finale win for Surprise, he again came on for the bottom of the eighth, this time with his team up 10-4. He was greeted with a leadoff double, but that runner only made it to third as he retired the next three in order. In this outing 11 of his 19 pitches went for strikes. The sidewinder finished the AFL season with an 0-1 record in 10 appearances, totaling 11.2 innings pitched. He allowed three earned runs on eight hits and seven walks, while striking out 10. I would expect he begins his 2018 season back in Fort Myers, but if he can limit walks as he did in Cedar Rapids during the 2017 season, it may be only a few months before he’s with Chattanooga. Sean Miller: 3 games, 1-10, K; .255/.293/.273 (overall). Miller made the start in three games during the week, playing both middle infield positions in two games and DH-ing in the season finale. In Monday’s contest Miller played short and batted ninth, finishing 0-3 in the 2-0 loss to the Scottsdale Scorpions. He grounded out in the second, reached first on a fielder’s choice in the fifth, and flew out to right in the seventh. On Wednesday against the Mesa Solar Sox, he again finished 0-3 in the 5-2 loss to Mesa, batting eighth and manning second base. He struck out in the second inning, grounded into a double play in the fourth, and popped out in the seventh. In the season finale 10-5 win over Mesa, Miller batted ninth as the DH. He finished this one 1-4, with a single in the fifth inning. He also lined out once and flew out twice in the game. Miller finished the season with a .255 average in fifteen games. He collected 14 hits including a double, scored and drove in seven runs, and stole two bases. While he’s strictly a singles hitter, he had a hot stretch in weeks 2 through 4 of the season where he hit .379 in eight games and there’s plenty to like about his glove in the middle-infield. After playing 122 games with Fort Myers this season, it’s likely he takes another step up the rung to Chattanooga in 2018. Other AFL/Minor League Links: - David Schoenfield of ESPN.com examines several young pitchers who have the potential to become the next “superace” in the mold of Clayton Kershaw, Corey Kluber, Chris Sale, and Max Scherzer. Appearing on the list, is the Twins own Jose Berrios. - MiLB.com has started looking at organizational all-stars, and Stephen Gonsalves and John Curtiss are brought up as those closest to helping the Minnesota Twins in 2018. It’s also fun to compare their list with our at Twins Daily (hint: it’s basically the same). Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the AFL season! Click here to view the article

(This report includes the games played through 11/12) Week 5 of the AFL season saw the Surprise Saguaros compile a 2-3 record, with two of their losses coming in the final at-bats of their opponents. At 11-15 on the season, they sit in third (last) place in the West Division. Twins prospects had a mixed bag in week 5. One pitcher gave up his first earned run of the season, while the others all had scares but came out unscathed. One hitter racked up five RBI’s on the week, and another may have had his season cut short due to a scary outfield collision.To find out what happened with all the Twins prospects in the AFL during week 5, keep reading! (links provided to each player’s overall AFL stats by clicking their name) Tyler Jay: 1 appearance, 1.0IP, 2 BB’s, 2 K’s; 5.87 ERA (overall). After appearing in the Fall Stars game on Saturday of last week, Jay made just one appearance in week 5 of the AFL season. That came on Thursday in a 6-2 loss to the Glendale Desert Dogs. With the score already 6-2, Jay came on for the top of the sixth inning. He struck out the first batter of the inning, before issuing a walk to the next. This pattern repeated a second time giving him two outs with two runners on base. He got the final out with a pop up to second base to deliver a scoreless inning. LaMonte Wade: 4 games, 1-8, R, HR, 3 RBI, BB, 2 K’s; .238/.351/.413 (overall). Wade had perhaps the most noteworthy week of Twins prospects in Arizona, but the reason for that was an unfortunate one. He appeared in four games on the week, but got at-bats only in the first three. In the first game of the week on Monday, a 2-1 walk-off loss to the Salt River Rafters, Wade batted seventh and played in right field. He finished the game 1-4, but was responsible for the Saguaros only run of the game, when he slugged his second AFL home run in the top of the fourth inning. This gave Surprise a 1-0 lead that they held until the bottom of the ninth inning. Wade’s second game of the week came in the loss to Glendale on Thursday, and like the rest of his team didn’t have much success. Batting fifth, he finished this one 0-2, but did draw a walk in the sixth and was hit by a pitch in the eighth, so he did reach base multiple times. In Friday’s 11-5 win over Peoria, Wade hit sixth in the lineup and was productive despite not reaching base in the game and also accounting for all three outs in the Saguaros seven-run fifth inning. Wade drove in the first run of the game with a sacrifice fly in the second inning, then the last of the game with another in the seventh that made the score 11-2. In that seven run fifth inning, Wade led off with a strikeout, and when the lineup got back around to him he grounded into a double play. Weird and unfortunate things happen in baseball games, and that was the case for Wade on Saturday. In the top of the second inning, Wade and teammate Oscar Mercado collided on a fly-ball heading toward the gap. Mercado made the catch for the final out of the inning, but Wade’s diving attempt put him in harm’s way on the collision. Wade was taken off the field on a stretcher and diagnosed with a concussion, likely putting an end to his AFL campaign a little early. In good news, Wade was reportedly able to return to the stadium before the conclusion of the game, so it could have been a lot worse. I’ve had a concussion or two myself from playing baseball, so I know how this feels! Get well soon, LaMonte! Chris Paul: 3 games, 5-13, 4 R’s, 3B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 K’s; .279/.323/.459 (overall). Paul’s first game of the week came on Tuesday, in a 6-1 win over Glendale. Batting fifth and playing first base, Paul finished 1-5 with a strikeout. His hit came in the form of a single to lead off the sixth inning, but he was erased quickly on a double play ball from the next hitter. In Friday’s win, Paul batted seventh in the lineup behind Wade, and collected two hits on the day. In the seven-run fifth inning, Paul got the hitting started with a one-out single, and later scored on a ground ball from Sean Miller for the first run of the frame. He then led off the top of the sixth inning with his second AFL home run to left field. He finished 2-4 with two runs scored and the home run. Paul put up even better numbers in Saturday’s 11-10 loss to Peoria, where he batted sixth in the lineup. His first hit of the game came in the fourth inning, when Surprise again put seven runs on the scoreboard. His single brought in the first two runs of the game for Surprise to make the score 6-2, and they would take the lead with the long two-out rally before the inning was over. In the bottom of the fifth Paul came up with two runners on base and delivered a triple deep to center field to extend their lead to 9-6. He then scored on a passed ball to make it 10-6 before the Saguaros pitching gave the lead back in the last two innings. All told Paul was 2-4 with two runs scored and four RBI to end his week on a high note. Andrew Vasquez: 2 appearances, 1.1IP, H, BB, 3 K’s; 0.77 ERA (overall). Vasquez was the only Twins pitcher on the week to make multiple appearances, and they came in Thursday’s and Saturday’s contests, both losses. He got the eighth inning with his team down 6-2 to the Desert Dogs on Thursday, and retired the first two hitters of the inning with strikeouts before a fielding error and single put runners on the corners. He was able to get out of that jam by getting a ground ball for the inning's final out. He threw 27 pitches in the outing, with 19 going for strikes. On Saturday against the Javelinas, Vasquez again came into the game in the eighth inning but this time it was with the bases loaded, two outs, and his team now up by two. He was charged with a blown save after he walked in a run, then hit a batter to tie the game at 10 before picking up a strikeout to end the inning. On ten pitches, he threw just three strikes in the outing and in the ninth inning Peoria took back the lead. Ryan Eades: 1 appearance, 1.1IP, 3 H’s, ER, 2 K’s; 0.77 ERA (overall). The righthander’s lone appearance on the week came in Thursday’s 6-2 loss, when he was the first reliever summoned from the bullpen, with two outs in the third inning after the starter had run in to heaps of trouble. Three runs had already scored in the frame, and the first batter Eades faced clubbed a ground-rule double for a fourth before he picked up a strikeout to end the inning with the Saguaros now down 5-0 early. Back out for the fourth inning, Eades gave up his first earned run of the AFL season, as the leadoff man clubbed a home run to left field. He struck out one more hitter and gave up a single but no more damage in the inning. On the game, 15 of his 18 pitches went for strikes, including four swings-and-misses. Tom Hackimer: 1 appearance, 1.0IP, 2 BBs, K; 2.79 ERA (overall). Hackimer’s only appearance on the week was also in Thursday’s loss to Glendale, coming into the game after Tyler Jay for the seventh inning. He hit the first batter of the inning with a pitch and later walked two batters that loaded the bases with two outs, but picked up a big strikeout to keep any damage off the scoreboard. Of his 21 pitches in the inning, just 8 went for strikes. Sean Miller: 2 games, 1-7, RBI, BB, K; .289/.333/.311 (overall). The middle infielder saw action in two games in week five, playing second base and batting ninth on Tuesday and Friday, both wins for the Saguaros. Miller finished Tuesday’s game 1-4, picking up a single to leadoff the top of the ninth in the 6-1 victory over Glendale. He ended up stranded on third base with the bases loaded. On Friday Miller was 0-3 in the batters box, but picked up an RBI and scored a run for his team in the 11-5 rout. In the seven-run fifth inning, his ground ball to third base scored Chris Paul as the throw home was late, allowing him to reach first. He later scored on a single. In the sixth inning Miller drew a walk but ended up stranded in while in scoring position. Other AFL/Minor League Links: - If you want to hear more about the Twins prospects in some of these games from an in-person perspective, make sure to check out Twins Daily’s blog section, and the three entries from member ashburyjohn. He and a few friends were on hand in Arizona this week and he provided his thoughts each day they watched, along with some great pictures of the action! (Thursday, Friday, Saturday) - As they do every week during the minor league season, Baseball America has an AFL Hot Sheet, with Chris Paul checking in at #9 for his performance this week, and is the first Twins prospect to appear on the lists. - In somewhat disappointing news for a prospect follower like me (and perhaps since it’s fun to mention #SonOfPudge every once in a while in the minor league reports), pitcher Dereck Rodriguez has moved on from the Twins organization and signed with the San Francisco Giants. I’m disappointed to see him go as he was a very intriguing prospect to follow with his switch to pitching. Good luck Dereck, hope to see you in the bigs soon! - Paul Sporer of RotoGraphs gives his annual favorites from his time out in Arizona. While there aren’t any Twins in the list of prospects this year, he does mention Brian Dozier and Eddie Rosario as some of his favorites that he has seen in the past. Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the last week! Click here to view the article

(This report includes the games played through 11/5) The AFL season turns the corner in Week 4, culminating in the Fall Stars Game where the top prospects (not necessarily performers) are showcased out in the desert. Tyler Jay was selected from the Twins and appeared in the game, recording the final two outs for the AFL West squad in their 4-2 loss. Besides that, the Surprise Saguaros went 2-3 during the week, with three of the Twins relievers posting scoreless lines for their squad. Sean Miller also continued his recent success, and LaMonte Wade continued putting up LaMonte Wade-like stat lines.Read on to find out how each of the Minnesota Twins prospects fared in the AFL during week 4 of the season! (links provided to each player’s overall AFL stats by clicking their name) Tyler Jay: One appearance, 1.0IP, 2 H’s, 3 ER’s, 2 HR, 2BB; 6.75 ERA (overall). Gave up two HR’s on 10/31. With Jay being the only Twins prospect selected to play in the AFL Stars game on Saturday, he made only one appearance on the week for the Saguaros, and it wasn’t a very good one. In Tuesday’s 9-2 loss against the Peoria Javelinas, Jay was summoned for the top of the sixth inning with the score 4-2 Peoria. He walked the first two batters he faced before getting a double play ball that gave him a chance to salvage a scoreless inning. He instead gave up back-to-back home runs to Ronald Acuna and Austin Riley, the number two and three hitters in the Javelinas lineup. With the score now 7-2, Jay got a ground out to end his inning. Playing for the AFL West team in the Fall Stars game, Jay was brought in during the bottom of the eighth inning with one out, two men on base, and the tying run already across the plate in the frame. A single to the first batter put the East squad out front 3-2, and a sacrifice fly to the next made the final score of 4-2. Jay got a strikeout to end the inning, and none of the runs were charged to him. On a positive note, the Gameday tracking had him sitting 94-95 MPH with his fastball in the outing and 13 of his 19 pitches went for strikes. LaMonte Wade: Four games, 4-15, 2 R’s, 2B, 3B, 3 BB’s, 4 K’s; .255/.369/.400 (overall). Wade saw action in all but one game on the week for Surprise, getting Halloween night off. As he is known to do, he reached base at least once in each game and raised his OBP in the AFL to .369. In Monday’s 6-3 win on the road against Peoria, Wade batted second in the lineup and finished 1-4 with an RBI triple, run scored, and a walk. His triple followed another one from the hitter in front of him and put the Saguaros up 4-2. Against the Mesa Solar Sox on Wednesday, Wade batted fifth in their 8-5 loss. After drawing a walk to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning, he advanced to third on a single and scored on sac fly to put Surprise up 2-0. He finished 0-3 with the run scored and two strikeouts. He also added an outfield assist, as he combined with Sean Miller to throw out a runner at home in the top of the eighth. Wade batted third on Thursday, his first time taking up that mantle for his AFL team, and he delivered in the 8-6 loss to Mesa. He doubled in the first inning but was left stranded and added a single in the fifth to account for his two hits on the day. He also drew a walk in the second inning, finishing 2-4. Back to batting fifth on Friday, he was 1-4 in their 4-1 win over the Salt River Rafters. He singled in the fourth inning but did not tally any other marks in his stat line. Chris Paul: Three games, 1-12, 2 R’s, 2B, BB, 4 K’s; .250/.308/.375 (overall). Paul played in three games during the week and was a bit quiet, with his only hit coming in the loss to Mesa on Thursday. That was a good game for him, however. In the Monday tilt against Peoria, he was 0-4 with two strikeouts in the Saguaros 6-3 win. On Halloween he also 0-4 in the 9-2 loss to the Javelinas, striking out once. Of note in this one, Paul saw his first action in left field during the AFL season. On Thursday, Paul closed out his week with a good line, finishing 1-4 with a double, walk, and two runs scored batting sixth in the order. His double came in the second inning and put runners on second and third before Surprise took a 4-3 with the single and three-run home run that followed. He led off the top of the sixth with a walk and later would his second run of the game on an RBI single that closed the score to 6-5 Mesa. Andrew Vasquez: Two appearances, 3.0IP, 3 H’s, 2 BB’s, 3 K’s; 0.87 ERA (overall). Vasquez again made an appearance in two games on the week, pitching multiple innings in their Halloween night loss, and another inning on Friday in a win. He came on following Jay for the top of the seventh inning against Peoria, and although he gave up three hits in his two inning none led to any damage on the scoreboard and he also struck out three. 25 of his 39 pitches in the outing went for strikes. In Friday’s win against Salt River, Vasquez picked up his second hold in the AFL as he came on in the seventh with his team up 3-1. He walked two batters in the frame, but worked around them to record another scoreless inning, and lower his ERA on the AFL season to below 1.00 on the week. Ryan Eades: Two appearances, 4.0IP, 3 H’s, 2 BB’s, 2 K’s; 0.00 ERA (overall). Righthander Ryan Eades also saw action in two games on the week, going two innings in each appearance and picking up his second AFL win. That came in Monday’s game on the road against Peoria, when he was pitching while his offense took the lead in the top half of the sixth. He had a one-two-three fifth inning, picking up the last two outs with strikeouts. In the sixth, he made it a little interesting after giving up a leadoff double, hitting a batter, and walking one to load the bases with one out, but got an infield fly ball and grounder to escape the jam and keep himself in line for that win. Against Salt River on Friday, Eades made his first start of the AFL season and pitched two scoreless frames. The first hitter of the game singled to center field, but later got erased on a steal attempt which proved fortuitous, as the next hitter tripled but ended up stranded on third. In the second inning, he gave up a two-out walk but retired the other three, including a strikeout. He threw 35 pitches in the start, with 23 going for strikes. Tom Hackimer: Two appearances, 2.2IP, H, 0 BB, 2 K’s; 3.12 ERA (overall). The sidewinding Hackimer saw action in the loss to Peoria on Tuesday, and in Friday’s win against Salt River. He entered the game on Halloween in the fourth inning, after a double had scored two and left runners on second and third with just one out. He stopped the bleeding with a grounder back to him on the mound that caught the runner on third out at home. Then, after plunking a batter, he got a fly out to end the inning. Back out for the fifth Hackimer faced just three hitters, striking out one and doubling off a runner on first on a bunt attempt after giving up a single. Hackimer also picked up his second hold of the season in Friday’s win, when he came in to start the sixth inning. He got a ground out and a K for the first two outs before he hit another batter, but that runner ended up out at second base on a play the recap did not qualify as a caught stealing attempt (did he try to pull the “Little Big League” move after getting hit by the pitch?! I guess we’ll never know…). Sean Miller: Three games, 3-12, 3 RBI, 3 K’s, SB (2); .316/.350/.342 (overall). Miller saw action in the Saguaros wins on Monday and Friday, and in Wednesday’s loss. He batted ninth, eighth, and second respectively in those games, playing second base in two and shortstop in the third. After piling up the hits last week, Miller continued his recent success by collecting one in each game. In fact, his lines were the same in each: 1-4 with an RBI. On Monday, his RBI single in the fifth inning tied the score at two. In Wednesday’s loss, he singled in the fourth inning, but collected his RBI in the ninth on a ground out that made the score 8-4. Miller final hit of the week came in the fifth inning on Friday, when his single to center brought in a runner that tied the game at one before they tacked on two more to take a 3-1 lead. Other AFL/Minor League Links: - Twins Daily’s own Seth Stohs has kicked off his offseason Top 50 prospects list with entries covering number 50 through 41, and 40 through 31. It’s hard enough for me to put together my top 10, so his work to go through 50 names you should know is truly extraordinary. You can’t beat the little information nuggets he puts out for these guys, either. It’s also very telling about the Twins system that he has several players who you should see on the MLB team soon populating these lists so early in his countdown. - Also be sure to check out the Twins Daily forums, where several 40-man roster moves happened to kick off this week. Pitcher Nik Turley was claimed by the Pirates, lefthander Randy Rosario was claimed by the Cubs, and power-hitting outfielder Daniel Palka was claimed by the White Sox among a few other purges to clear room on the roster. - Bill Mitchell of Baseball America, tackles the question the Twins have been wondering since drafting him with the sixth overall pick in 2015: Will Tyler Jay be a starter or reliever? Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the last week! Click here to view the article

(This report includes the games played through 10/29) Week 3 of the AFL season saw all four of the Twins pitchers make their appearances in the same two games. Not sure if that was planned, but I wouldn’t complain if it was as it’s more fun to write about when they do! They pitched 4.0 scoreless innings in Tuesday’s 4-3 victory over Salt River, and 4.2 innings in Friday’s 6-5 loss to Scottsdale. Despite one inning where one of them got wild (kind of…I’ll get to that…) in the latter, they were stellar with 8.2 total innings pitched, two earned runs allowed, and eleven strikeouts on the week. The hitters also had a good week all-around, but if you were to pick one who stood out the most, I’d reckon it wouldn’t be the one who did.To find out just how good each of the Minnesota Twins prospects performed in week 3 of the AFL season, keep reading! (links provided to each player’s overall AFL stats by clicking their name) Tyler Jay: 2 appearances, 2.0IP, 2 H’s, 3 K’s; 3.18 ERA (overall). In Tuesday’s win, Jay got the ball for the bottom of the sixth inning with his team up 3-0. He started his outing with a strikeout but then got himself into some trouble, surrendering a double and single that put runners on second and third. Instead of giving up any runs, he went right after the next two hitters and bulldogged it, striking them both out on three pitches with the K’s coming on a pair of 93 MPH swing-and-miss fastballs. His strikeout to start the frame also came on just three pitches, with an 83 MPH backdoor slider sending the hitter back to the dugout. 14 of his 17 pitches went for strikes in the outing. In the 6-5 loss to Scorpions on Friday, Jay again was summoned for the sixth inning, this time with his team down 4-2. The first batter reached on an infield error, but Jay retired the next three hitters for a scoreless inning. 13 of his 17 pitches in this one went for strikes as Jay continues to demonstrate his strong control after a tough season. LaMonte Wade: 4 games, 4-14, 3 R’s, 2 BB’s, 2 K’s; .250/.362/.375 (overall). In Monday’s 4-3 win against the Salt River Rafters, Wade batted second and played in right field. He drew a walk in the third inning but was retired on a double-play ball from the next batter. In the fifth, his single was the second of three consecutive to start the inning, and he was on third base when the Saguaros attempted a double steal. He was thrown out at home to end the inning, and the Surprise was only able to score one with the bases loaded and no outs. He finished this game 1-3 with a walk and a strikeout. Against the Rafters again on Tuesday, Wade batted fifth in the lineup and was in right field yet again. In typical fashion he picked up a single, scored a run, and drew another walk to finish his day 1-3. After singling in the fifth, Wade stole his first base in the AFL and then scored on a double for the first run of the game in the 4-3 win. In a 10-5 loss versus the Glendale Desert Dogs on Thursday, Wade finished 1-5 with a run scored batting second. His hit came in the first inning with a single and he didn’t reach base again until the ninth when he grounded into a fielder’s choice. The next batter tripled to bring him in for the Saguaros final run and a tally in his overall stat line. Wade finished his week on Friday with yet typical day. In the 6-5 loss he went 1-3 with a run scored and was also hit by a pitch to reach multiple times. That HBP loaded the bases for Surprise in the sixth inning, and the next hitter cleared them with a triple that put them out front 5-4. He singled in the top of the eighth, but was later thrown out at home representing the tying run as unfortunately this was the game where an appearance went awry for a Twins reliever. Chris Paul: 3 games, 3-10, 2 R’s, 2B, HR, RBI, BB, 3 K’s; .306/.359/.443 (overall). Paul started his week 3 with a bang after winning the Bowman Hitting Challenge on Saturday, as he slugged his first AFL home run in Monday’s win against Salt River. His solo shot led off the bottom of the fourth inning and tied the game at two. Paul was also hit by a pitch in this one, so he reached base multiple times. Paul was the only Twins prospect to appear in Wednesday’s 6-4 win over Glendale, but he wasn’t able to make much of an impact, finishing 0-4 with a strikeout. In their loss on Friday to Scottsdale, Paul was back in the cleanup spot after batting fifth in the prior two games, and stood in at third base instead of first. He led off the top of the second inning with a double, but ended up stranded on third base. In the sixth inning he drew a walk and scored on the same triple as Wade that put Surprise out front briefly. He also singled in the eighth inning but was erased on a double play ball. Andrew Vasquez: two appearances, 2.2IP, 0 H’s, BB, K; 1.23 ERA (overall). Vasquez got the eighth inning in the Twins bullpen game on Tuesday, and threw 21 pitches (12 for strikes) in a scoreless inning. He did walk a batter, but no damage was done in a good appearance in the 4-3 win. In Friday’s 6-5 loss, Vasquez was summoned in the middle of the fourth inning as starter Zach Lovvorn ran into trouble. With two runs already in and runners on first and second, Vasquez came on and…hit his first batter to load the bases. But he still wasn’t the pitcher who gave up runs in this game, as he got the next hitter to line into an inning-ending double play. Back out for the fifth, Vasquez pitched a one-two-three inning, striking out the first batter of the frame to close out his week. Ryan Eades: 2 appearances, 2.0IP, H, 4 K’s; 0.00 ERA (overall). In Tuesday’s win Eades was the first Twins prospect called in from the bullpen for the fifth inning and was untouchable against the middle of the Rafters lineup, striking out all three hitters he faced. 10 of his 12 pitches went for strikes, and they included three swinging strikes and only a few pitches hitters managed to foul off. The K’s came on two high fastballs at 92 MPH, and a curveball in the dirt for a swing-and-miss. On Friday, Eades pitched the eighth inning, finishing the game for Surprise in the 6-5 loss. He got two quick outs on just four pitches, including a three-pitch K, before surrendering a single on a grounder through the left side of the infield. He got the next batter to line out, finishing the inning on just seven pitches (six for strikes) and punctuating an efficient and dominant week for the right-hander. Tom Hackimer: 2 appearances, 2.0IP, 2 H’s, 2 ER’s, 4 BB, 3 K’s; 4.50 ERA (overall). Hackimer came in the game after Jay on Tuesday, pitching the seventh inning in their win against Salt River. Like Eades and Jay before him, Hackimer delivered a scoreless frame to keep the shutout intact to that point. He did give up a one-out double, but followed that with a groundout and a three-pitch strikeout on a 93 MPH fastball to slam the door. Surprise may have felt better about this game if they had another Twins prospect to run out there, as in the ninth the only non-Twins reliever gave up three runs on five hits that made it interesting. Since you haven’t read about the prospect who got wild yet, you would be correct in assuming it didn’t go as well for Hackimer in Friday’s 6-5 loss to the Scorpions. Hackimer again followed Jay in this one, coming on for the seventh inning with the Surprise up 5-4. He retired the first batter of the inning before things went off the rails – but I’m not blaming the pitcher after looking hard at what transpired. Two walks book-ended a single to load the bases and it looked like Hackimer might get out unscathed as he got the second out with a big K. Unfortunately for him (and I suggest you check out the Gameday pitch locations), he appeared to continue to be squeezed by the home plate umpire and two more walks brought in two runs before he got the final out with another K. If you don’t want to investigate the link above, I counted nine pitches tracked inside the zone that were called balls by the umpire, and you could argue as many as 17 called balls (17!) were strike-worthy (half his total pitches). Most are borderline I’ll concede, but something is amiss when that many show up in one inning. Here’s the most egregious example, for quick reference: It’s quite amazing how many similar pitches like that were tracked, and is why only 13 of Hackimer’s 34 total pitches went for strikes in the outing. Maybe that ump doesn’t like submariners?! I really don’t know how to explain it beyond that and the result was unfortunate for Hackimer and his Saguaros team. Sean Miller: 2 games, 5-7, 2 R’s, 2 RBI, BB, K, SB (1); .346/.393/.385 (overall). If I told you Sean Miller was top 10 in the AFL in batting average after week 3, would you believe me? Well, I aint lyin’… Miller took advantage of his two starts on the week to pile up five hits in seven at-bats, raising his average to .346, which would rank 10th in the circuit if he had enough plate appearances. Batting ninth and playing second base in their 4-3 win over Salt River on Tuesday, Miller went 2-4 with a run scored and an RBI to help turn his team’s lineup over. He may have gotten a little lucky, as both those hits were deflected by infielders, but you can’t argue with the results. His single in the fifth inning brought in a runner to make the score 2-0, and he followed that by stealing second base (his first SB of the AFL season) and scoring their third run of the frame. In Surprise’s 10-5 loss to Glendale on Thursday Miller really stood out, going 3-3 with a walk to reach base each time he stepped in the batter’s box. He drew a walk in his first plate appearance in the third inning, then singled in each of his final three at-bats. He drove in one in the fourth that put his team out front 2-0 before the Desert Dogs pulled away late. In the ninth after his third single, Miller scored along with Wade on a triple that accounted for their final tally of five runs in the loss. Other AFL/Minor League Links: - John Sickels of MinorLeagueBall.com started his offseason review of Team Top 20 Prospects lists, with the Minnesota Twins. I have always loved how John looks at prospects and while they may be short on elite talent, there is a ton of depth. I’m not sure I’ll put him that quite that high on a list, but I love where Brent Rooker comes in. - Also on MinorLeagueBall.com, Wayne Cavadi takes a deeper look at three Twins prospects you should know. They are the AFL’s Tyler Jay (2018 will be big year for him), Gabriel Moya who saw action late with the MLB team, and Lewis Thorpe who is one of my personal cheeseballs. Thorpe was dominant when I watched him in Cedar Rapids and was a great interview, but injury and illness have delayed his timeline a full two years. Don’t forget about him! - Moya also was named a winner of one of MiLB.com’s MiLBY awards, for Top Relief Pitcher during the 2017 season. To recap just how dominant he was for two organizations in AA, Moya made 47 appearances, pitching 58.1 innings and allowing just 30 hits and 15 walks while piling up 87 strikeouts on the year. He went 6-1 and converted all 24 of his save opportunities, finishing the season with a 0.77 ERA and WHIP before holding his own in 6.1 innings with the Twins. - Check out a great read on Tyler Jay and what he went through this season with injuries. While thoracic outlet syndrome was often in the notes on why he was missing in action, we found out later in the season that wasn’t the case. Jay cites unclean mechanics, and in the most interesting note to me, perhaps the fact he put on 20 pounds coming into the season. - Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com looks at all the Twins prospects participating in the AFL, with even more details on Tyler Jay and how starting helped him gain confidence in his changeup and how he viewed being switched to the bullpen for the 2017 season. Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the last week! Click here to view the article

Today starts the 2017 Arizona Fall League season. Each week throughout the Fall League, Steve Lein will post an update on each of the Twins prospects there. As I watch my dad post picture after picture of himself trudging through the northern woods for grouse and sitting on the island of our northern lake waiting for ducks with the family lab Sage by his side, I’m reminded of how much I love the Fall season. These are things I grew up doing with him, my brother, and our dogs, and has instilled a lifelong appreciation of this time of year and the colors that come with it. It is my favorite time of the year. But October also holds a different feeling for a lot of sports fans, myself included, as it also means it is time for the MLB playoffs and the race for the pennant for their favorite team. While the Minnesota Twins finally made it back to the postseason this year, their early exit was a hard one to take until you realized what it meant for the future. That it is very bright for a young hitting core of Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton, Eddie Rosario, Jorge Polanco and Max Kepler. All of these players spent some of their minor league development time playing baseball in the offseason. While Sano and Polanco spent this time in their home country of the Dominican Republic where they grew up not too far away from each other, Buxton, Rosario and Kepler all spent time in the Arizona Fall League, which kicks off today around 2:35PM CST.For anyone who doesn’t know, the AFL is a short season league where every team in Major League Baseball sends some of their top prospects in October and is often used as a proving ground for these players who are looking to take the final steps to their MLB dreams. Many of the top prospects in baseball are sent here to make a case for an early call-up next year, but there are also many experienced MiLB-ers on the doorstep who are evaluated whether or not to be placed their team's 40-man roster. These minor league games in October can determine a lot going into the next MLB season for these players, and that’s why I love these games. Each MLB team typically sends seven players to the AFL, and they are split up among six teams. This year the Twins are again represented on the Surprise Saguaros roster with pitchers Ryan Eades, Tyler Jay, Tom Hackimer and Andrew Vasquez and position players Sean Miller, Chris Paul and LaMonte Wade. They will join prospects from the rosters of the Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays and the Texas Rangers. It will be the first trip to the league for all of the Twins players, and each them will be looking to accomplish something different with their time there. Of players sent to the AFL last fall for Minnesota, three made their MLB debut during the 2017 season. They were catcher Mitch Garver and pitchers Randy Rosario and John Curtiss. So as you can see, a lot of these guys have potential to impact the majors in the following season. Each week I’ll be recapping the action for all of the Twins representatives during their time in the desert of Arizona, so who are these guys? What have they done and what will I be watching for in the AFL games this year? Let’s take a look! 2017 Minnesota Twins Prospects in the AFL: — The most interesting name may be that of pitcher Tyler Jay. With high expectations coming into the 2016 season after being drafted number six overall the year before, Jay has had trouble staying healthy. That was the case again in 2017 as he pitched just 11.2 innings on the season, essentially losing an entire year of development. In thirteen starts with the Fort Myers Miracle in 2016, Jay did flash a lot of the stuff that made him an attractive pick at the top end of the first round. He went 5-5 with a 3.10 ERA and struck out 8.8/9IP with a 1.22 WHIP. He was even bumped up to the Chattanooga Lookouts roster early in July of that season, but he didn’t finish that month or his season due to a neck injury. Because he has missed so much time, many of the same questions I had when writing his draft preview two years ago remain. We also aren’t quite sure if the Twins new brass thinks he could still be a starting pitcher since before the 2017 season started they moved him into the bullpen with the Lookouts. The main thing I believe Jay will be doing in the AFL is getting some of those missed innings under his belt. It also will intrigue me to see if he makes any starts as typically each team sends at least one starter, but none of the others prospects sent quite fit that role. If Jay can show that his plus-stuff still plays up against the elite competition of the AFL after being out so long, I can envision a scenario where he starts in AAA next season, a phone call away from the majors. — All LaMonte Wade has done since joining the Twins organization as a ninth-round draft pick in 2015, is get on base. Across four levels so far in his career, he has a .404 on-base percentage and has drawn more walks than strikeouts. Even more amazing from a comparison standpoint, is the number of walks he has drawn is significantly higher than Joe Mauer did in his MiLB career before debuting (177 in 273 games vs. 129 in 277 games). What Wade hasn’t done so far in his career, is hit for much power but there is some in there. He had 22 doubles, three triples, and seven home runs with Chattanooga this season, and his 67 RBI and .397 OBP ranked second on the team to only team MVP Jonathan Rodriguez. As the year progressed he went from hitting in the middle of the Lookouts lineup to batting in the top third, finishing the year as their number three hitter. He doesn’t have the “wow” tool or tools that many top prospects do, but can do a bit of everything and is not a slouch in any regard. He also doesn’t struggle against same-sided pitchers, as his career OPS vs. left-handers is actually higher than against righties. Wade gets high marks from scouts for his baseball acumen, work ethic, and makeup that they say allows him to outplay his scouting report. There is not much more development needed here as Wade has excelled at every stop, so the AFL will be a good point to judge just how big of an impact he might be able to make in the majors if needed next season. He remind sme a lot of Denard Span at the top of a lineup and we may get to see soon if that is indeed his ceiling. — Infielder Chris Paul was a force in the Fort Myers Miracle lineup this year when he was on the field, where he slashed .328/.380/.471 in 61 games. His issue as he heads to the AFL is that it was just for 61 games as he dealt with a wrist injury. Drafted in the sixth round of the 2015 draft from California-Berkeley, Paul was a senior sign and will turn 25 on Thursday so he has been older than his competition to this point. He played primarily third base this year with Fort Myers, but has played in all the corner spots of the field in as he looks for the role best suited for him. In the AFL the Twins likely will want to see some power from him and perhaps a bit more clarity of what role he might be able to fill in the coming season. He will likely start the 2018 season in Chattanooga, with perhaps his position determined by his AFL performance. — Reliever Andrew Vasquez goes to the AFL out of the single-A levels and spent most of his time at Low-A which makes his selection intriguing as he’s not as far along as most other prospects who go there. In Vasquez’s case, it is likely deserved as he flat out dominated the Midwest League in 2017. He checked in at number five on Twins Daily’s Relief Pitcher of the Year Award, due to his 1.55 ERA and 85 K’s in 58.0IP on the season. That mark was good for a 13.2K/9 rate, which is elite territory. At 6-foot-6 and left-handed, he looks intimidating, but it’s not a big fastball that he uses to dominate hitters, or anything with velocity for that matter. It’s his big curveball that should probably be classified as a “bugs bunny” type, as it is known to come in below 70MPH. Player’s know it’s coming, but they still can’t hit it and it allows his below 90’s fastball to play up while they sit on it. He is also nearly unhittable against same-sided hitters, as he didn’t allow a single extra-base-hit to them during the 2017 season. It will be really interesting to see how his curveball-centric approach plays against the elite competition of the AFL, and I’ll be watching to see if right-handers are able to figure him out enough to limit his upside. — Pitcher Ryan Eades was drafted in the second round of the 2013 draft out of LSU as a guy who held a lot of projection and showed elite “stuff” at times in his collegiate career. He always got mentions about how his stats didn’t live up to his arsenal. As a pro so far in his career, you might say the same thing has held true. He was used primarily as a starter in his first three seasons, spending an entire season at each rung of the ladder until he plateaued during the 2016 with Chattanooga. Late in the year they made the switch to the bullpen where he struggled to keep runs off the board, but he did boost his strikeout rate. In the 2017 season he started off in the bullpen, but whenever a need arose he stepped in as a starter was actually pretty effective at times. He even made a couple of appearances with Rochester in early June where he allowed just one run on six hits in eight innings, while striking out nine. When he was sent back to the Lookouts, he maintained around a mid-3.00’s ERA through the end of the season, finishing with a mark of 3.63 in AA. In front of Jay, Eades is the most likely nominee to get starts in the AFL from the Twins representatives, and the likely outcome from his performances is whether he gets another shot as a starter, or moves to the bullpen full time in 2018. — The name Tom Hackimer probably isn’t a well-known one for Twins prospect followers quite yet, but that could be changing very soon. Drafted in the fourth round of the 2016 draft out of St. Johns, he is a pure reliever prospect who is performing at a level near the top amongst his peers. He began the 2017 season in Cedar Rapids, and was outstanding as evidenced by his 0.58 WHIP. He appeared in 16 games, pitching 24.0 innings with a 28/3 K/BB ratio and pick up the Save in 6 games. After his promotion to Fort Myers, he pitched another 37.1 innings with 43 K’s against 19 walks. He finished the season with a 1.76 ERA and 0.85 WHIP across the two levels. Like Trevor Hildenberger who made a big impact with the Twins this season, Hackimer is a sidewinder who comes at hitters from a drastically different angle. This also allows him to be deadly on right-handed hitters, who managed just a .352 OPS against him in 2017. Like with Vasquez in the AFL, I’m going to be watching if left-handed hitters can negate his effectiveness moving forward, but with a good showing he should be in Chattanooga to start the 2018 season. — Infielder Sean Miller came to the Minnesota Twins organization out of the 2015 draft in the 10th round. He has been what you might call a utility player so far in his career, as he has played all over the infield and even got a few games in the outfield with Fort Myers in 2017. After being drafted, he spent a couple of weeks in Elizabethton before moving up to Cedar Rapids to finish the season. He hit .284 in 26 games with the Kernels that season and remained there for the first 90 games of 2016 before being bumped up to the Miracle to finish the year. He spent all of the 2017 campaign with Fort Myers, playing 122 games in the middle of the infield as a steady glove presence with some speed. He hit .262/.299/.322 on the year with 51 runs scored and 38 RBI. The AFL may be a big challenge for Miller but I’m sure that is appealing to him and guys like him are fun to root for and learn about on their journey to the majors. Good luck to all of the players in the AFL for the Twins this season, and I’m looking forward to following along with everyone at Twins Daily! Please feel free to ask any questions about the AFL and discuss this week’s performances! Click here to view the article