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The Minnesota Twins signed Byron Buxton to a seven-year contract extension worth $100 million earlier this week. I wanted to know what his production might look like, so obviously, I consulted the best source... MLB The Show. I simulated the 2021 season (in which the Twins wound up winning the World Series, crazy) and then signed Buxton to his lucrative extension. With him in tow for the better part of the next decade, I then simulated every season and offseason through 2028 while allowing the computer to do its thing. This might not be surprising, but the man is pretty good. Before we dive into what took place, let’s catch you up to where we are now. Following the 2028 season, Buxton is 34 years old and an 86 overall player in the game. He began this process as a 90 overall player at age 28 and has only started to see a slight decline. In terms of relatable advanced analytics, MLB The Show uses its own calculation for WAR. In 2019, when Buxton posted an .827 OPS and 2.7 fWAR, The Show valued him at 2.9 WAR. That gives us a pretty even comparison. Now, let’s dive in. Even in real life, Buxton should never be expected to hit for a real high average (though he did over 61 games in 2021). That was true in The Show during the first year of his contract. Despite being worth 3.8 WAR, he posted just a .225 average. It translated to a .700 OPS with 17 dingers and seven triples. That’s where things took off. In each of the following three seasons, Buxton posted increasing WAR marks. Starting with a 4.6 effort in 2023, going to 4.7 in 2024, and topping out at 4.9 in 2025. He led the league with 19 outfield assists in 2023 and stole 24 bases. His 26 long balls were a new career-high, and he tallied eight triples. It was that 2025 season where the magic happened. Rewarded for his career year, the .261 average and .779 OPS were enough to earn him American League MVP honors. His 12 triples were a career-high, and the 17 homers added some nice thump to a decent Minnesota lineup. From 2022 through 2026, Buxton averaged 148 games per year, playing in all but three during the 2026 season. Injuries got him a bit the last two seasons of his deal, in which he played just 124 games in 2027 and 79 in 2028. Throughout the extension, Buxton compiled 24.2 WAR which Fangraphs valued as worth roughly $191.9 million, or just shy of double his contract. Accolades were often tallied for the Twins centerfielder. He racked up five straight Gold Gloves from 2022-26 and was named to three All-Star teams. The roster was largely turned over, with names such as Logan Webb, Abraham Toro, and Carlos Correa welcomed. Still, Buxton remained the organization’s best player for the vast majority of his time. He didn’t get to play with a couple of top Twins prospects as Royce Lewis was shipped to the Cubs after the 2023 season, and Jordan Balazovic went to the Yankees in 2025. I found myself interested in how Buxton’s final years would go, so there was a need to play out the string of his career. When reaching free agency for the first time, Buxton was handed a qualifying offer from the Twins. He hit the market as the best available centerfielder. Buxton opted to remain with Minnesota on a one-year deal worth $9.5 million when the dust settled. Another year of regression for Buxton at age-35 had him playing in just 71 games and bottoming out to the tune of a .391 OPS. He now has dropped to an 81 overall talent and enters the free agency market with significantly depressed value. He’s competing for a payday against top players such as Gabriel Maciel, the Twins prospect who was traded to Kansas City in 2022 and put up a 4.6 WAR season in 2028. Maciel wound up signing a six-year $116.4 million deal with the Diamondbacks. Royce Lewis also hit free agency for the first time this season, and San Diego inked the 88 overall 29-year-old to a four-year deal worth $56 million. Despite having 26 and 33-year-old centerfielders who are better, the Los Angeles Angels gave Buxton a one-year deal worth $4.2 million for his age-36 season. Byron played just 25 games for the Angels before his release. He bounced back from the disastrous end in Minnesota and posted a .796 OPS, but the opportunities weren’t there. Now looking at free agency as a 37-year-old, Buxton had to convince a team he still had something in the tank with his overall dropping to 76. Unsigned heading into Opening Day, this looked like it could be the end of the road. Ultimately no suitor presented themselves, and after sitting out the 2031 calendar season, that’s where Minnesota’s mega-star would call it quits. Buxton retired following the conclusion of the World Series. For his career, Buxton compiled 14.160 years of service time and had a slash line of .232/.295/.422. He ripped 204 homers and stole exactly 200 bases while recording 62 triples. His 37.3 WAR would be good enough for 66th best among centerfielders all-time per Fangraphs. While not having a Hall of Fame-caliber resume, it’s certainly fair to deduce that MLB The Show sees Byron Buxton contributing as a star for many more years. Coincidentally, there was another superstar outfielder that retired in 2031 as well. He was an immediate induction into the Hall of Fame with 601 career homers. Congrats Mr. Trout. What do you think? Would you sign up for this type of trajectory Twins fans? MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email View full article

The Twins’ minor league teams won more than they lost on Saturday, and most teams did better on offense than the Twins. Of course, that isn’t much of a bar to clear, but I digress. Read all about that and more in this edition of the minor league report. TRANSACTIONS INF Tzu-Wei Lin transferred from 7-day IL to 60-day IL Saints Sentinel St. Paul 3, Omaha 1 Box Score Andrew Albers: 5 ⅔ IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K HR: Drew Maggi (11) Multi-hit games: Tomás Telis (2-for-4, 2 RBI) The Saints took down the Omaha powerhouse on Saturday. Andrew Albers was brilliant in his start. The 35-year-old lefty almost completely shut down an offense powered by some serious prospect talent. I hope that some grateful teammates took him out for a nice steak dinner afterwards. Drew Maggi continued his power surge as he blasted his 11th homer of the year in the 6th inning. The blast gave him a new career high in home runs in any given season over his extensive minor league career. He may end up with the Twins if (when) Andrelton Simmons is traded. The big hit of the night came off the bat of Tomás Telis. His 7th inning single added two extra-crucial runs for the Saints. Jovani Moran threw a pair of scoreless innings with three strikeouts. It’s difficult to imagine a scenario where he is not pitching for the Twins by September at the latest. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 5, Arkansas 4 Box Score Adam Lau: 3 ⅔ IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K HR: Jermaine Palacios (12) Multi-hit games: Roy Morales (2-for-5, R, RBI), Andrew Bechtold (2-for-4), D.J. Burt (2-for-4) Wichita played an absolute dog fight of a game on Saturday. Adam Lau kicked off the game with an impressive start. He was not meant to get many outs, but the ones he got were efficient. It’s hard to criticize a guy who allowed just two baserunners over 11 outs. The offense was there for Wichita early as Roy Morales singled home the first run of the game in the 3rd inning and Jermaine Palacios bashed a three-run homer in the 5th. If Palacios is not the outright most surprising minor leaguer of the year, he’s at least in the conversation. He quietly returned to the Twins after the Rays were unable to work their magic on him. 2021 has been nothing but a rake fest as he came into Saturday with a 120 wRC+. It has been a good year for Palacios. It was looking like Wichita could set the game to cruise control on their way to an easy W, but things did not shake out that way. Some shenanigans in the 7th inning by Arkansas knotted the game and suddenly upped the stakes. The game went into extras where the Wind Surge were able to take advantage of Manfredball an honest runner in scoring position with a sacrifice fly by Aaron Whitefield. Zach Neff and Ryan Mason combined forces to hold the Travelers scoreless in the bottom of the inning, and Wichita was able to walk away with a win. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 10, Beloit 4 Box Score Ben Gross: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K HR: Michael Helman (9), Matt Wallner (6) Multi-hit games: Matt Wallner (3-for-5, HR, 2 R, RBI), Michael Helman (3-for-4, HR, 2B, 4 R, RBI, BB), Kyle Schmidt (3-for-5, R), Gabriel Maciel (3-for-4, 2B, R, 3 RBI, BB), Daniel Ozoria (2-for-5, RBI) Something, something, beware the 7th inning, something, something. Ben Gross, was, uhh, gross in his start on Saturday. The righty struck out eight batters over five shutout innings and was generally the man in charge. I mean, how can a pitcher not succeed when he has such an appropriate last name? He proves the theory of nominative determinism. The Kernels supported Gross early as Gabriel Maciel knocked home the first run of the game in the 2nd inning, and Michael Helman added on in the 5th frame with a solo shot. Oh, but did things ever get wacky after that. The Snappers responded in the 7th inning with four runs off a sacrifice fly and a bases-clearing double. Suddenly, the game was tilted four to two in favor of Beloit. The Kernels were having none of it. In the bottom half of the inning, a wild pitch brought the game to within a run. Maciel then doubled home two runs to gain the lead before Edouard Julien doubled home two more runs for posterity sake. Matt Wallner homered in the 8th inning just for giggles (and for scoring, I guess). Daniel Ozoria singled home yet another run, and Julien walked in the tenth (and final) run for good measure. Eight hitters for the Kernels reached base multiple times on Saturday. Mussel Matters Fort Myers 1, Daytona 4 Box Score Orlando Rodriguez: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Yunior Severino (2-for-3, RBI, BB) Fort Myers attempted a tribute to the Twins on Saturday, as they also could not find much offense on the day. Starter Orlando Rodriguez did his job well as he allowed just a pair of earned runs over his five innings of work. He walked three, which is a bit much, but he also struck out seven batters, which is also a bit much. So it evened out in the end. The offense just could not find anything, however. Will Holland and Nick Anderson were both able to work a pair of walks, and Yunior Severino got on base three times. Outside of them, the box score is quite dusty. Aaron Sabato and Misael Urbina both had especially rough games as they combined for seven strikeouts without a hit. You tend not to win many games when your three and four hitters put up lines like that. Matthew Swain and Steven Cruz combined for three shutout innings in relief of Rodriguez. Complex Chronicles FCL Twins 4, FCL Red Sox 7 Box Score Juan Mendez: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K HR: Kala’i Rosario (2) Multi-hit games: None The FCL Twins lost on Saturday, but not without a vicious comeback attempt. The game was even through four as Juan Mendez did his best to support his team on the mound. He would end with the best line of any FCL Twins pitcher on Saturday. A double by what I can only assume is someone’s superhero alter-ego, a man named Blaze Jordan, kicked off a run of, well, runs for the Red Sox. They would plate seven over three innings in what ended up being the dagger. The FCL Twins did not go gentle into that good night. Kala’i Rosario blasted a 9th inning grand slam that, while awesome, was not enough to turn the game around. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Ben Gross Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Michael Helman PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Royce Lewis (Rehab) – Out for season (torn ACL) #2 – Jhoan Duran (St. Paul) – Injured List (elbow strain) #3 – Jordan Balazovic (Wichita) – Did not pitch #4 – Matt Canterino (Cedar Rapids) – Injured List (right elbow strain) #5 – Jose Miranda (St. Paul) - 1-5, R, K #6 – Keoni Cavaco (Fort Myers) – 0-4 #7 – Gilberto Celestino (Minnesota) – 0-3, 3 K #8 – Josh Winder (St. Paul) – Did not pitch #9 – Aaron Sabato (Fort Myers) – 0-3, BB, 3 K #10 – Matt Wallner (Cedar Rapids) – 3-5, HR, 2 R, RBI #11 – Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) – Out for Season (Tommy John surgery) #12 – Bailey Ober (Minnesota) – Did not pitch #13 – Cole Sands (Wichita) – Did not pitch #14 – Brent Rooker (Minnesota) – 1-4, 3 K #15 – Misael Urbina (Fort Myers) – 0-4, 4 K #16 – Spencer Steer (Wichita) – 0-1, K #17 – Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) – Did not play #18 – Alerick Soularie (Complex) – N/A (foot injury) #19 – Edwar Colina (Rehab) – Injured List (elbow) #20 – Chris Vallimont (Wichita) – Did not pitch SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Daytona @ Fort Myers (10:00 AM) LHP Zarion Sharpe Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (1:05 PM) RHP Cody Laweryson Wichita @ Arkansas (1:10 PM) RHP Jordan Balazovic St. Paul @ Omaha (4:05 PM) RHP Griffin Jax View full article

On Wednesday afternoon, Jhoan Duran added another key achievement in his life. He was one of eight Twins minor leaguers to graduate and receive their high school diploma through the club’s Dominican Baseball Academy in Boca Chica. Get to know a little more about one of the Twins top pitching prospects.Duran signed with the Diamondbacks in February of 2015, shortly after his 17th birthday. That summer in the Dominican Summer League, he went 4-1 with a 3.25 ERA in 12 starts. The next year, he came to the States and pitched at two rookie-league levels. The Diamondbacks kept moving him slowly. In 2017, he played for Hillsboro in the advanced short-season Northwest League. He went 6-3 with a 4.24 ERA in 11 starts. The Diamondbacks didn’t move him up real quickly, and for good reason. Last month, the Twins announced that they had hired Mike Bell to be their new Bench Coach, replacing Derek Shelton who had been named the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bell has spent the past 27 years in professional baseball. He was a player who got a brief cup of coffee in the big leagues. He became a coach and a manager in the minor leagues upon his retirement as a player. However, he has spent the last eight seasons as the Vice President of Player Development for the Arizona Diamondbacks. In other words, he was their Minor League Director. Mike Bell was ultimately in charge of the development of each of the Diamondbacks minor leaguers, including Jhoan Duran. Bell said, “When we saw him, he had a real heavy sinker. We took some baby steps with him. We knew the kind of talent he was, so we were playing it pretty safe with him in rookie ball. We saw a fastball up to 99 with heavy sink, and he is around the strike zone with command.” He began 2018 with Kane County in the Midwest League. He was 5-4 with a 4.73 ERA in 15 starts. Then came July 27th, 2018. He found out that afternoon that he had been traded, along with outfielders Gabriel Maciel and Ernie de la Trinidad, in exchange for infielder Eduardo Escobar. Regarding the trade, Bell noted, “It was a painful trade, being on that side of it, watching him go.” He continued, “I was definitely in the room. I think it was a good trade for both teams. Escy’s a very good player, and a good teammate. I’ll tell you what, Duran is an incredible talent. I think he’s going to do a lot of good things here in the organization. I’m super-excited to reconnect with him.” From Duran’s perspective, it was something new. He had obviously never been traded before then. He said he knew no one in the Twins organization at the time of the trade. But he took it as a positive. He said (through Twins translator Elvis Martinez), “It was actually a good experience. I got to meet new people, new staff.” And he made a nice first impression in the new organization. In his first Kernels start, he threw seven no-hit, one-walk innings and struck out seven batters. He faced the minimum, 21 batters. In his fourth Kernels start, he struck out nine batters and gave up just one run over seven innings. The next start, he faced his old teammates from the Kane County Cougars. He gave up just one hit and struck out ten batters over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. In his six Kernels starts, he went 2-1 with a 2.00 ERA and had 44 strikeouts in 36 innings. Duran spoke of it being nice to get off to a good start in his new organization, “It was a learning process. I think it was more mental than physical. I was just trying to get better every outing.” Duran began the 2019 season in Ft. Myers. With the Miracle, he went just 2-9 despite an impressive 3.23 ERA. He also had 95 strikeouts (and 31 walks) over his 78 innings in the Florida State League. He never gave up more than three earned runs in any of his 16 outings. He moved up to Double-A Pensacola and made seven more starts. He went 3-3 with a 4.86 ERA. He struck out 41 batters, and walked just nine, over his 37 innings there. In his penultimate start of the season, he struck out 11 batters (and walked just one) over eight innings of two-hit, shutout baseball against the Jackson Generals. The soft-spoken Duran said of his 2019 season, “I felt really good overall, however, I feel I can do better.” The Twins obviously believe there is much more in there as well. In November, he was an easy choice to add to the team’s 40-man roster. Of course, it wasn’t as obvious to him. “Actually, it was something that took me by surprise, but I was really happy. I was not expecting it, but it was one of my goals.” Duran stands 6-5 and while he is lean, he is strong, weighing in at about 230 pounds. He has always been projectable. That 99 mph he was showing in rookie ball and now crept into the triple-digits often. His fastball averaged 97 mph in 2019. Duran briefly spoke about his best pitch and the pitches that he feels most comfortable with right now. “Obviously I feel most comfortable with my fastball, but I also have another pitch that I really like to use and feel really comfortable with, and that’s my sinker.” He also has a pretty good breaking ball or two that he continues to work on and hopes to make more consistent. Jhoan Duran is on the 40-man roster. He’s been to Twins Fest. He now has his Dominican high school diploma. And to top things off, he is on the cover of the 2020 Twins Prospect Handbook. As he looks toward 2020, Duran has a couple of goals in mind. “My main goal is to go out there and keep working, to get better and to try to make the team.” And being on the roster means he is just one phone call away from reaching a lifelong dream, the big leagues. He notes, “It will mean a lot. It will be a dream come true.” His former farm director Mike Bell could become his bench coach with that big-league promotion, and I think his final comments on Duran echo those of Twins fans. “I’m excited to see what he can do here.” No, I won't be giving away the whole book, but here is the Jhoan Duran profile page to show you what you will find in the pages of the 2020 Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook. It is available in paperback or PDF(for immediate download). Order your copies today! Click here to view the article

Two different Minnesota Twins affiliates had doubleheaders scheduled on Tuesday as rain wreaked havoc on the Florida panhandle on Monday. Rain continued to affect the schedule in the Florida State and Gulf Coast Leagues on Tuesday, but both teams managed to get both games official when all was said and done. Pitching lines owned the box scores on the night, but there were also multiple walk-off games, and a couple that may have gone that way if not for being completed early.To find out everything that happened with all your favorite Minnesota Twins prospects on the day, keep reading! TRANSACTIONS There were a few transactions in the upper levels of the minor leagues with RHP Sam Dyson’s activation from the injured list into for the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday: The Rochester Red Wings activated C Wynston Sawyer from the seven-day injured list while placing RHP Sean Poppen on it with a right elbow contusion. RHP Cody Stashak was also optioned to AAA in a corresponding move with Dyson’s activation.C Caleb Hamilton was assigned to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos from AAA with the placement of SS Jordan Gore on the seven-day injured list.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 3, Indianapolis 6 Box Score The Red Wings plated single runs in third, seventh, and eighth innings but that was all they could muster as the Indians doubled them up with two crooked innings on the scoreboard. Rochester got their runs in the form of a balk after Zander Wiel led off the third with a triple, an RBI single from Mike Miller in the seventh, and Brandon Barnes’ 26home run on the year in the International League in the eighth. Each of Wiel (2-for-4, 2 R, 3B), Ronald Torreyes (2-for-4), and Barnes (2-for-4, R, HR, RBI) had two hits on the game while Tomas Telis added a double. Lefty Lewis Thorpe got the start in this one and in what one might consider major league roster strategic fashion, went just three innings. This despite throwing only 42 pitches (29 for strikes) and allowing only one earned run on a solo homer and striking out four hitters. Adam Bray came on for the fourth and went the next two innings, giving up one hit and one walk with two strikeouts. Fernando Romero got the sixth and was charged with three unearned runs after an infield error was followed by a two-out bases-clearing triple. He walked one, allowed two hits, and struck out two. Jeremy Bleich finished out the final two innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out four. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Chattanooga 6, Pensacola 3 Box Score The Twins former Southern League affiliate used a big third inning to take it to the Blue Wahoos on Tuesday, while also doubling them up on the hit tally, twelve to six. Top prospect Jhoan Duran took the mound for Pensacola but ran into trouble in multiple frames as the Lookouts had his number early and often. In just 2+ innings Duran was charged with six earned runs on seven hits and two walks. He struck out two and left the game in the third after loading the bases with a hit-by-pitch and two walks, a wild pitch, then allowing two run-scoring singles before being lifted in favor of Jovani Moran. Moran went 1 1/3, allowing a hit and walk along with striking out one. Andrew Vasquez went the next 1 2/3 scoreless, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out three. Jonathan Cheshire and Alex Phillips combined for four scoreless innings to close the game. Cheshire struck out two and Phillips K'd four. Big-name prospects got it started on the right foot with two runs in the bottom of the first when Alex Kirilloff led off with a double and scored on a Royce Lewis single before Trevor Larnach brought Lewis around with a double. From there the next fourteen Blue Wahoos hitters were retired and a Lewis sac fly in the eight was all the offense they could muster on the game. Ryan Jeffers and Jimmy Kerrigan also added doubles to the effort. MIRACLE MATTERS Game 1: St. Lucie 7, Fort Myers 4 (7 innings) Box Score After their rainout yesterday, the Miracle had a doubleheader on Tuesday that also got started a bit late due to the weather. This one went back and forth until the Mets broke it open with a three-run sixth inning to take the lead for good, 6-4. Cole Sands made the start and left in line for the win after five innings. He allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out four. Melvi Acosta was summoned in for the sixth when things went south. He allowed three runs (two earned) on two hits and a walk in his inning, striking out one. Cuban signee Yennier Cano allowed an insurance run for the Mets in the seventh when he gave up a solo home run. He walked one and struck out one otherwise to finish the game. The lineup responded to the Mets in the second inning thanks to a two-RBI single from David Banuelos to tie it, then took their first lead in the fourth when he brought in another runner with a double. Tied at three going into the bottom of the fifth, the Miracle took their last lead of the game on an RBI-double from Trey Cabbage before the Mets' rally in the sixth. Game 2: St. Lucie 2, Fort Myers 3 (9 innings) Box Score The Miracle got back at the Mets in game 2, but it took extra innings as part of their shortened game doubleheader. Starter Dakota Chalmers was brilliant for the first six innings, allowing just one run (unearned) on three hits and a walk, while punching out nine St. Lucie hitters. Of his 88 pitches, 59 went for strikes (67%) and he racked up 15 swinging strikes. Zach Neff came on and took Fort Myers into extra innings, picking up his third win for his efforts. He allowed an unearned run on two hits and a walk, notching three K’s in three innings pitched. The Miracle got on the scoreboard first in the second inning when Taylor Grezalowski drove in Jacob Pearson with a single. The score remained tied until the top of the ninth when St. Lucie went up 2-1, but the home team answered in the bottom half with a two-out rally. Yeltsin Encarnacion brought in the tying run with a single, then Gabriel Maciel followed with an RBI single of his own to walk it off in Hammond Stadium. Grezalakowski was the only batter with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 with an RBI and a double. They drew six walks as a team and in the end took advantage when they needed to by finishing 4-13 with runners in scoring position compared to 1-for-7 for the Mets. KERNELS NUGGETS Scheduled Day Off The Kernels just finished off the start of August by winning eight games in a row and will look to extend that perfect month against the Los Angeles Dodgers-affiliated Great Lake Loons on Wednesday at home. Lefthander Kody Funderbunk is scheduled to start the game. E-TWINS E-NOTES Pulaski 1, Elizabethton 0 (8+ innings) Box Score Hits were at a premium in this one as the teams combined for just five hits on the game. The only run of the game scored when Twins catcher Jonigson Villalobos’ attempted to pick a runner off third base and his throw got into the outfield in the fourth inning. Elizabethton left nine men on base compared to Pulaski’s three. As the leadoff man Willie Joe Garry Jr. finished 1-for-3 with a walk. He ended up stranded on third in the first inning when the Twins were unable to capitalize on loading the bases with two-outs. That was their best threat of the game despite four walks and three hit-by-pitches. Parker Phillips and Max Smith picked up the other singles while Seth Gray drew two of those four walks. 2019 fourth-round draft pick Cody Laweryson got he start for Elizabethton and was brilliant four five innings. His only run allowed was unearned, surrendering only two hits and a walk while striking out five. It was his fourth appearance (three starts) in a row without allowing an earned run, and seventh of nine appearances in his professional career. As a professional he’s pitched 35 innings with a 1.29 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and 40 strikeouts to just nine walks. Unfortunately, this game was made official after two-outs were recorded in the top of the ninth inning thanks to rain, so Elizabethon never got their final chance at pulling out a victory. GCL TWINS TAKES Game 1: GCL Rays 2, GCL Twins 3 (8 innings) Box Score In the early morning game of their doubleheader, the Rays and Twins needed an “extra” inning to close it out, with the Twins coming out on top in walk-off fashion. Making his second rehab appearance since hitting the injured list all the way back on May 25th, left-hander Stephen Gonsalves got the first inning in this one and set the Rays down in order, including striking out the first two hitters of the game. Another rehabber followed him for the second in the form of Trevor Hildenberger, who gave up a run on two hits while striking out one. From there, primary pitcher Miguel Rodriguez shouldered the rest of the game's load. In six bulldog innings, he allowed just one run on four hits and a walk along with striking out five to pick up his second win in the Gulf Coast League. The Twins scored first in this one thanks to an error by the Rays to the leadoff man in the bottom of the opening frame. Victor Heredia drove him in with a single two batters later. Down 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth Jesus Feliz tied the game with his third home run of the season. In the extra frame it was a two-out RBI single from Wander Valdez that brought in the walk-off run for the Twins. The home team collected just five hits on the game but made them count by finishing 2-for-5 with runners in scoring position. Alec Craig scored two runs out of the leadoff spot and nine-man Jake Hirabayashi drew two walks. Game 2: GCL Twins 3, GCL Rays 0 (6+ innings) Box Score The teams made up for that extra inning in game one by finishing only six innings in game two thanks to the rain that also delayed the Miracle’s start. The teams combined for just seven hits in this one, but the advantage went to the Twins by finishing 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position while the Rays went 0-for-5. The Twins scored all three of their runs in the second inning, with Luis Milla driving in one with a single through the right side, and Erick Rivera following later with a two-RBI single to center. Francisco Martinez finished his day 1-for-1 with a run scored and a pair of walks. On the bump in this one was right-hander Niklas Rimmel and he took it to the Rays hitters. In five innings he scattered four hits and allowed zero runs while striking out four. Steve Theetge came out for the sixth inning but before he could record an out the rains came and the contest was ruled official. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Dakota Chalmers, Fort Myers Miracle (6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, BB, 9 K) Honorable Mention: Miguel Rodriguez, GCL Twins (W, 6.0 IP, ER, 4 H, BB, 5 K) Niklas Rimmel, GCL Twins (W, 5.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 4 K) Cody Laweryson, Elizabethton Twins (L, 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, BB, 5 K) Hitter of the Day – Gabriel Maciel, Fort Myers Miracle (1-for-4, RBI, BB, walk-off single in extra innings) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI, SF #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, R, 2B #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, 2B, K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - No game #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL) - Did not play #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - 2.0+ IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 2 K #10 - Blayne Enlow (Fort Myers) - Did not pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 4 K #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (leg contusion) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - 1-for-3, 2B, BB #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Game in progress #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 0-for-3, K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did not play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Fort Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not pitch #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL) - No game #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - 0-for-4 WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Indianapolis (12:35PM CST) - RHP Griffin Jax (1-0, 6.00 ERA) Chattanooga @ Pensacola (6:35PM CST) - LHP Bryan Sammons (4-5, 4.60 ERA) St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - LHP Tyler Watson (1-5, 3.87 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (7:05PM CST) - LHP Kody Funderburk (0-2, 4.45 ERA) GCL Braves @ GCL Twins (11:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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The Twins most certainly have been willing to go to their Triple-A players throughout the year, and few have performed as well as Devin Smeltzer. And he did it again on Sunday. Trevor Larnach led the potent Pensacola lineup on Sunday with a perfect day at the plate. Wilin Rosario is pushing for another opportunity in the big leagues. Gabriel Maciel and Bailey Ober were great for the Miracle.Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Sunday, starting with the awards of the week and the transactions of the day. AWARDS Hitter of the Week: Gilberto Celestino, OF, Cedar Rapids Kernels - Celestino is the choice for the second straight week. In his six games this week, he hit .458 with a double, a homer and an OPS of 1.144. He came to the Twins a year ago with Jorge Alcala in the Ryan Pressly trade.Pitcher of the Week: Bailey Ober, RHP, Ft. Myers Miracle - He went 1-0 on the week and gave up only an unearned run on six hits over 6 1/3 innings. He was the 12th-round pick of the Twins in 2017 out of the College of Charleston.TRANSACTIONS Devin Smeltzer was called up to the Twins (And he had a terrific game!). Sam Dyson to the injured list.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 3, Pawtucket 7 Box Score With Devin Smeltzer getting called up to start for the Twins, it was a bullpen game for the Red Wings. Adam Bray started. He went three innings and gave up four hits and a walk. He gave up four runs in the second inning. Fernando Romero walked one and struck out three over two scoreless, no-hit innings. Jake Reed got the sixth inning and gave up three runs on three hits and a walk. Sam Clay and Jeremy Bleich each worked a scoreless in relief. Wilin Rosario continues to mash. He went 3-for-5 with his 16th home run. Ronald Torreyes went 2-or-4. Zander Wiel hit his 32nd double. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Pensacola 10, Birmingham 1 Box Score The lineup powered the Blue Wahoos to another win, but the pitching was really good too. Edwar Colina started and improved to 3-0 with a 1.25 ERA since his promotion to Pensacola last month. He gave up one run on two hits over five innings. He walked three and struck out five. Jovan Moran struck out two over two scoreless innings. Jorge Alcala gave up two hits over two scoreless innings to end the game. Trevor Larnach was perfect on the game. He went 3-for-3 and walked twice. Royce Lewis went 1-for-3 with two walks. He also stole a base. Alex Kirilloff hit his sixth Wahoos homer. Jordan Gore was 2-for-4 with his third home run. Ryan Costello provided some late-inning insurance with his fourth homer. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 7, Lakeland 8 Box Score The Miracle jumped out to a 7-1 lead after six innings, but Lakeland scored one in the seventh, three in the eighth and three more in the ninth to walk off the Miracle. Bailey Ober continued his fantastic-when-healthy season for the Miracle. He gave up one run on four hits over six innings. He struck out eight batters without issuing a walk. Moises Gomez came on and gave up four runs on five hits in 1 1/3 innings Three of the hits were home runs. Joe Record got three outs. He gave up three runs on four hits and a walk. With one out and runners on second and third in the bottom of the ninth, Melvi Acosta came in with the game tied. He intentionally walked a batter to load the bases. It is a fine strategy to try to set up an inning-ending (and game-continuing) double play. Unfortunately, Acosta also walked the next batter which ended the game. Gabriel Maciel was terrific out of the leadoff spot. He went 4-for-5 with his third homer. He also stole his 13th base. Andrew Bechtold and Jacob Pearson each went 2-for-4 with their fifth doubles. Jose Miranda was also 2-for-4. Trey Cabbage hit his sixth home run, and Chris Williams hit his first Miracle home run since his promotion last week. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 12, Burlington 4 Box Score The Kernels used big innings to help them in this one. They had a three-run inning, a four-run innings and a five-run bottom of the eighth to put this one away. In the second inning, Gilberto Celestino cleared the bases with his 21st double. In the fifth inning, Albee Weiss hit a three-run homer. In the eighth inning, Tyler Webb homered and Wander Javier had a two-run double. Weiss led the offense. He went 2-for-3 with his sixth double and third home run. Tyler Webb was also 2-for-3 with his second Kernels homer. Javier had a walk in addition to his fifth double. Leadoff man, Spencer Steer, got on base three times. He walked twice and was hit by a pitch. E-TWINS E-NOTES E-Twins 1, Bristol 4 Box Score Tyler Benninghoff put together a strong, quality start. The right-hander gave up three runs on seven this and a walk over six innings. He struck out four. Ryan Shreve came on and gave up one run over two innings. Steven Cruz struck out two in a one-hit inning. Max Smith led the offense. He went 2-for-4 with his seventh double. Seth Gray and Matt Wallner each added a double. DaShawn Keirsey and Trevor Jenson each went 1-for-3 with a walk. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins Box Score No Game Scheduled. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Bailey Ober, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Trevor Larnach, Pensacola Blue Wahoos PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-3, 2 BB, 2 R, K, SB(2) #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 1-4, BB, HR(6), R, 2 RBI #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Rehabbing in GCL #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 3-3, 2 BB, 2 R, 2 RBI #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, BB, HBP, 2B(5), R, 3 RBI. #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Ft. Myers) - Temporary Inactive List (Pan Am Games) #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL Twins) - No Game Scheduled #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin). #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch #10 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch. #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch. #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Did Not Play. #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - Did Not Play. #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - 2-3, BB, 2 R #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 1-4, 2B(15), K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 1-5, R, 2 K #17 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured (Tommy John) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - 2 IP #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL Twins) - No Game Scheduled #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - Injured List MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester - No Game Scheduled. Birmingham @ Pensacola (6:35 CST) - TBD Ft. Myers @ St. Lucie (5:30 CST) - LHP Lachlan Wells (1-2, 5.25 ERA) Burlington @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - RHP Andrew Cabezas (4-6, 3.93 ERA) Elizabethton @ Kingsport (5:30 CST) - RHP Ben Gross (3-1, 3.98 ERA) GCL Twins @ GCL Pirates (DH @ 9:00 CST) - TBD, TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games or any other minor league topics you would like. Click here to view the article

There were only close games and blowouts throughout the Twins’ system on Saturday as for some reason no one wanted to win a game by a nice four run margin or something like that. Whatever, more for me to write about I guess. The offense took hold today as each squad had multiple hitters with multi-hit games and quite a few dingers were launched. All that and more in today’s edition of the minor league report.TRANSACTIONS RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Lehigh Valley 16 Box Score Kohl Stewart: 2 ⅔ IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 63.1% strikes (53 of 84 pitches) HR: Jaylin Davis (9), Brian Schales (2) Multi-hit games: Drew Maggi (2-for-5), Ronald Torreyes (3-for-5, 2 2B, R), Wilin Rosario (2-for-5, 2 RBI) The Rochester Red Wings were down early and could not recover against Lehigh Valley. Kohl Stewart’s line looks ugly, but he did not get much support from his defense as the Red Wings had five errors in the game. Much of the mess could have been avoided in the first had a double play been turned, but the old saying that “you can’t assume a double play” was at play there and the four runs scored in the first were all earned. Brent Rooker left the game early after he took an awkward slide while diving for a ball and the ball appeared to hit him in a place that you do not want baseballs to hit. I hope for his sake that it was just MiLB.tv’s quality that made it look that way because I would not wish that on anyone. Jaylin Davis blasted his ninth home run with the Red Wings and his 19th homer of the year between AA and AAA. The oppo taco helped push his AAA OPS to a tasty 1.066 through 25 games. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 5, Montgomery 3 Box Score Charlie Barnes: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 63.0% strikes (58 of 92 pitches) HR: None Multi-hit games: Alex Kirilloff (3-for-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI), Iván De Jesús Jr. (2-for-4, 2B, R), Lewin Diaz (2-for-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI), Caleb Hamilton (2-for-4, RBI), Mark Contreras (2-for-4, 2B, R) The Blue Wahoos won a fairly straightforward game this Saturday against the Montgomery Biscuits. I saw straightforward because starter Charlie Barnes only gave up a single run over his six innings of work while the offense gave him five runs to work with. Generally, it is a good sign when your 2-6 hitters all have a multi-hit game and well, I would have to say it worked out well for the Blue Wahoos. Along with that, the Blue Wahoos had six extra-base hits and twelve hits total while only striking out three times. Alex Kirilloff continued his recent stretch of Alex Kirilloff-like hitting as he had yet another multi-hit game, a good sign as the young outfielder appears to have figured it out at AA. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 5, Bradenton 6 (11 innings) Box Score Lachlan Wells: 5 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 68.6% strikes (59 of 86 pitches) HR: Andrew Bechtold (1) Multi-hit games: Gabriel Maciel (3-for-6, 3 R), Trevor Larnach (4-for-6, 3 RBI), Jose Miranda (2-for-6, RBI), Andrew Bechtold (3-for-5, HR, R, RBI) The Miracle lost an absolute heartbreaker that doubled as one of the wildest games that was played all year. Lachlan Wells and Tyler Watson imitated when Yoda rode on Luke’s back for training as Wells started the game (and went five innings) and Watson then went four innings afterwards. This was Watson’s first relief outing of the year. The Miracle dropped fourteen hits over the eleven innings they played yet Andrew Bechtold’s first A+ home run was the only hit that went for extra bases. In both the ninth and the 11th, the Miracle scored in the top half to take the lead but gave up run(s) in the bottom half. In the ninth it was one to tie the game and in the 11th it was two to lose it via a walk-off. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 12, Lansing 4 Box Score Andrew Cabezas: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 72.8% strikes (67 of 92 pitches) HR: Gabe Snyder (8) Multi-hit games: Gabe Snyder (3-for-5, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI), Trevor Casanova (2-for-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB) Wins that are close and full of thrills are fun and all, but nothing beats just destroying another team which is what the Kernels did this Saturday. Andrew Cabezas followed up his outstanding outing last week with a solid five inning showing. All three pitchers for the Kernels struck out three batters each which is some pretty cool symmetry. You might be scratching your head when you realize the Kernels scored twelve runs but only had nine hits, but they also walked eight times which gave their offense plenty of chances to knock in runs. Only two hitters failed to reach base. Gabe Snyder launched his eighth homer of the year and is now holding an OPS of .807 on the year at Cedar Rapids. I don’t know what is going on in the Twins’ system, but it seems like they have first basemen at every level who are absolutely destroying the ball... that’s good to see. E-Town E-Notes Elizabethton 3, Johnson City 2 Box Score Sawyer Gipson: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Ruben Santana (2-for-4, 2 2B, R, RBI), Willie Joe Garry Jr. (2-for-3, RBI) Recent draft pick Sawyer Gipson made his debut in professional baseball with the Elizabethton Twins on Saturday. He tossed a pair of scoreless innings that came with three strikeouts. Ryan Shreve relieved Gipson and threw five scoreless innings of his own while striking out an impressive nine hitters. Shreve’s K/9 coming into the game was an astounding 16.03 so he has settled in nicely with Elizabethton. The offense only put up four hits but two of those were doubles (both by Ruben Santana) and their six walks helped clog up the base paths. The final Ruben Santana double in the ninth proved to be the walk-off and the E-Town Twins squeaked out a win. GCL Twins Takes GCL Twins 1, GCL Red Sox 2 Box Score Matt Canterino: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR: None Multi-hit games: Jesus Feliz (2-for-4), Erick Rivera (2-for-3, BB), Bryson Gandy (2-for-3, BB) Matt Canterino made his professional baseball debut on Saturday as he allowed one run over his two innings of work. Keoni Cavaco was the DH and took a walk and hit a single. He also swiped a base. Jeferson Morales had the lone extra-base hit for the GCL Twins with his triple in the third. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Charlie Barnes Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Trevor Larnach PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-5, BB, K #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 3-for-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured list #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 4-for-6, 3 RBI #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - Did not play #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL Twins) - 1-for-4, BB, 2 K #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - 0-for-1 (left early with an injury) #9 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #10 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Did not pitch #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 1-for-4, 2B #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-5, BB, 2 K #14 - Luis Arraez (Twins) - 2-for-5, R #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 0-for-2, 2 BB, 2 K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did not play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Out for year with Tommy John surgery #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did not play #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL Twins) - No game #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - 1-for-4, 3B, R SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Lehigh Valley @ Rochester (12:05 A.M.) - RHP Drew Hutchison Montgomery @ Pensacola (5:05 P.M.) - RHP Jorge Alcala Fort Myers @ Bradenton (12:00 P.M.) - RHP Bailey Ober Lansing @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 P.M.) - RHP Kai-Wei Teng Johnson City @ Elizabethton (4:00 P.M.) - RHP Prelander Berroa Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games. Click here to view the article

Yes, it is that time again!! It’s time to revisit our top Minnesota Twins prospect rankings. (Be sure to look back at the preseason 2019 Top 20 Prospects.) Sure, it’s a lot more fun to follow the Minnesota Twins big league club this year than it has been much of the decade, but it’s still important to know the minor leaguers as well. Already this season we have seen several prospects make their major-league debuts. Some are top prospects, but the Twins farm system is deep and several players that many hadn’t even heard of are getting an opportunity.Over the next two weeks, Twins Daily will be revealing the Twins Daily Midseason Top 40 Prospects rankings. Our preseason Top Prospect rankings go 20 deep. Our midseason rankings double that output and give some recognition to twice as many players. Several of our minor league writers provided player rankings. They were consolidated Continue reading, and then discussing, the Twins Daily choices for 36th through 40th prospects of the Minnesota Twins below. 40. Sean Poppen – RHP Age: 25 ETA: 2019 2019 Stats MLB: 4.0 IP, 6.75 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 4.5 K/9, 9.0 BB/9, 0.50 K/BB MILB (AA/AAA): 57.2 IP, 2.97 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 11.4 K/9, 4.5 BB/9, 2.52 K/BB 2019 Preseason Ranking: NR Seth: 23 | Tom: NR | Cody: NR | Ted: NR | Steve: NR From a timing standpoint, we couldn’t ask for anything more. If you watched Poppen in his Major League debut on Wednesday night, you saw why he has impressed coaches and decision-makers in the organization over the last couple of months. The fastball is consistently 95 to 97 mph with movement. His mid-80s slider is sharp. He showed a few changeups as well, which is his clear third pitch. He struggled with control, something that he has done the last year or two, but if he can relax and throw more strikes with his stuff, he can be successful. Look at his strikeout numbers. They have increased dramatically the last year or so. The changeup may determine whether his future is in the bullpen or as a starter. Poppen was the Twins 19th-round pick in 2016 out of Harvard. 39. Zander Wiel - LF Age: 26 ETA: 2019 2019 Stats (AAA): .252/335/.472 (.807 OPS), 13 2B, 2 3B, 10 HR, 76 K, 23 BB 2019 Ranking: NR Seth: 42 | Tom: 35 | Cody: 47 | Ted: NR | Steve: NR Wiel was the Twins 12th-round draft pick in 2015 out of Vanderbilt University. He has gradually worked his way up the ladder, approximately one year at a time and continuing to be productive. He leads the 2019 Red Wings in home runs this season with ten. Wiel isn’t afraid to work a count, though he does strike out quite a bit. He has mostly played first base in 2019 after splitting his time in left field the past couple of seasons. Wiel is big and strong, but he has made himself a little more athletic in the last year or two and he runs well. He finds himself in a tough spot with CJ Cron as the primary first baseman but with the likes of Marwin Gonzalez and Ehire Adrianza and Willians Astudillo also getting time at first base. The Twins also have strong depth in the corner outfield positions. 38. Bailey Ober - RHP Age: 23 ETA: 2022 2019 Stats (High-A): 24.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 9.8 K/9, 1.1 BB/9, 8.67 K/BB 2019 Ranking: NR Seth: 30 | Tom: 39 | Cody: 44 | Ted: NR | Steve: NR Ober was the Twins 12th-round draft pick in 2017 out of the College of Charleston. He was the national freshman of the year his first year of college. Unfortunately injuries cost him much of the next two seasons, but the Twins saw enough to draft him. When the 6-9 right-hander has been healthy, he’s been really good. In 2018 in Cedar Rapids, he went 7-1 with a 3.84 ERA in 75 innings. His season began late and then ended early. His numbers (above) are from April when he was the runner-up in Starting Pitcher of the Month voting. But when the month ended, Ober went back on the IL with an elbow injury. 37. Kohl Stewart - RHP Age: 24 ETA: 2021 2019 Stats: MLB: 12.0 IP, 6.00 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, 2.3 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 0.60 K/BB MILB (AAA): 51.1 IP, 4.56 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 8.6 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, 1.88 K/BB 2019 Preseason Ranking: HM Seth: 44 | Tom: 37 | Cody: 30 | Ted: NR | Steve: NR The fourth overall pick in the 2014 draft out of high school, Stewart worked his way up the ladder. It was a surprise when he was called up last August, he showed some glimpses, and the same can be said with his two MLB starts so far in 2019. In late April, he gave up five runs over six innings at Houston. In mid-May, he earned a win with a quality start (6 IP, 3 ER) against Detroit. Stewart is approaching a career crossroads of sorts now. He could be a back-of-the-rotation MLB starter for some teams, or he could move to the bullpen and see what he can do in shorter stints. 36. Gabriel Maciel - OF ETA: 2018 Age: 20 2019 Stats (Low-A): ..309/.395/.377 (.771 OPS), 3 2B, 4 3B, 0 HR, 31 K, 23 BB. 2019 Ranking: HM Seth: 46 | Tom: 40 | Cody: 24 | Ted: 30 | Steve: 27 The Twins acquired Gabriel Maciel from the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Eduardo Escobar trade last July. He joined the Cedar Rapids Kernels and hit .263 (.683) with four doubles, two triples and two homers in 30 games. He began this season on the injured list. He returned to the Kernels and he has taken a step forward. He is not a big guy, but the Brazilian has a real solid approach at the plate and terrific speed. He has primarily played in center field this year but has seen quite a bit of time in right field too. That's it for now. Feel free to ask questions and leave comments below. Learn about another five pack of Twins prospects tomorrow. Click here to view the article

It was an interesting day in the Twins minor league system. Sure, there was the seemingly mandatory rainout of the day (Rochester), but there were some impressive performances. Lewin Diaz continued his historic month. A couple of sluggers crushed two homers each for the Blue Wahoos. Another starter made his first start for the Kernels, and it went well. Sure, the Twins game wasn’t fun, but the minor leaguers made up for itFind out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Thursday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS Pensacola placed RHP Ryan Mason on the 7-day injured list.RHP Anthony Vizcaya was promoted from the Miracle to the Blue Wahoos.RED WINGS REPORTRochester, Scranton/Wilkes Barre Box Score The Red Wings game in Scranton was rained out. It will be made up in July. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 4, Mississippi 6 Box Score They say that solo home runs don’t hurt you too much, and on this night, that was true for Mississippi. The Blue Wahoos scored four runs on four solo homers but it wasn’t enough. Jaylin Davis and Ben Rortvedt each hit two home runs for the Wahoos. Rortvedt has now played in ten games for Pensacola. He is hitting .382/.488/.647 (1.135). Jose Miranda went 2-for-4, and Aaron Whitefield went 2-for-5 in the game. Whitefield stole his 13th base of the season. Michael Helman added a double. Lefty Tyler Watson had a really nice start. He gave up just two runs on seven hits over 6 1/3 innings. He struck out just one batter, but he didn’t issue any walks. Alex Phillips came on and went the final 2 2/3 innings. He gave up just one hit and struck out six opponents. KERNELS NUGGETS Game 1 - Cedar Rapids 5, Burlington 7 Box Score The Kernels have been trying to get a doubleheader in the last couple of days in Burlington. On Wednesday, they got their first game in but the second was suspended in the bottom of the first inning. This is the continuation of that game. Austin Schulfer began the game for the Kernels. Because just half an inning was played on Wednesday, he started in the bottom of the first inning, as he was supposed to on Wednesday. He gave up three runs on six hits in just three innings. He walked one and struck out six. Carlos Suniaga came on and gave up three runs on four hits in just 2/3 of an inning. He walked one and struck one out. Brian Rapp worked the final 2 1/3 innings. He gave up one run on two hits and two walks. Estamy Urena had a strong game in a losing effort. He went 2-for-4 in the game. He had a two-run double (his third with the Kernels) in the third inning. He then added his first Kernels homer in the sixth inning. MIchael Davis went 2-for-3 and stole a bag. Gabriel Maciel went 0-for-1 but walked three times. Game 2 - Cedar Rapids 4, Burlington 0 Box Score Lefty Kody Funderburk, a 2018 draftee, made his Kernels debut tonight. He gave up just one hit over four scoreless innings. He walked one and struck out four batters. Derek Molina came on and threw three scoreless innings to complete the shutout. He gave up two hits, walked one and struck out six batters. The offense was more spread out. Yeltsin Encarnacion was 2-for-3 with a walk. He stole his sixth base. Jacob Pearson went 2-for-4 with his seventh double and his ninth stolen base. Gabriel Maciel went 2-for-3 and stole his seventh base. Wander Javier went 1-for-3 with a walk. Jared Akins provided a little insurance in the ninth with his fifth home run since joining the team. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Kody Funderburk, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Ben Rortvedt, Pensacola Blue Wahoos PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 0-4 #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Injured List (shoulder) #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play. #5 - Wander Javier (CR) - Game 1 (1-4, RBI, 2 K), Game 2 (1-3, BB) #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured (wrist) #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - Rained Out. #9 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch. #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured List (Tommy John surgery) #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Rained Out. #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List (elbow) #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 0-4 #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 3-3, BB, 2-HR(3), 2 R, 2 RBI #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List (thumb) #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - Game 1 (1-3, BB), Game 2 (0-3, BB, K, SB(8) #17 - Zack Littell (Minnesota) - Don’t Ask… OK, fine. 4.1 IP, 10 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (77 pitches, 50 strikes) #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - Rained Out. #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - 5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 K (87 pitches, 52 strikes) #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 2-4 FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Buffalo @ Rochester (6:05 CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe (3-0, 6.31 ERA) Mississippi @ Pensacola (6:35 CST) - RHP Andro Cutura (0-2, 6.87 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Lakeland (5:30 CST) - RHP Jordan Balazovic (3-0, 2.25 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (6:30 CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Thursday games or any other minor league topics you would like. Click here to view the article

With two months gone in the season, the Minnesota Twins big league club has the best record in baseball. In the minors, unfortunately, many big prospects are injured, some for a long period including Brusdar Graterol, Akil Baddoo, Stephen Gonsalves, Tyler Wells and Yunior Severino. However, there have been a number of bright spots in the minor league system. Many players have deservedly been already promoted this season. This list is for the players who should be moved up, and likely will be sometime relatively soon. In this list, I avoided putting players in their first year with the level. Because of that, I did not put either Austin Schulfer or Gabe Snyder on this list, even though they have dominated at Low-A Cedar Rapids. Maybe they’ll make my August edition, if they are still with the Kernels at that time. Honorable Mentions: Michael Davis, SS, Cedar Rapids Jared Akins, RF, Cedar Rapids 5. Gabriel Maciel, CF, Cedar Rapids Maciel arrived in a July trade last season that sent Eduardo Escobar to Arizona. The 20-year-old is in the midst of his best year of full-season baseball. In his 30 games with the Kernels after the trade last season, he hit .263 and had an OPS of .683. He isn’t a power hitter, so his OPS will never be super high, but his OBP is .389, which is the best of his pro career, and his .728 OPS is the second-highest of his career. As a matter of fact, his OBP is the among the best in the Twins system, just behind Luis Arraez and Kernels teammate Gabe Snyder. Part of that strong OBP is his ability to draw walks, having coaxed 17 already this season. If Maciel keeps it up, I see him in Fort Myers sooner rather than later. 4. Jaylin Davis, RF, Pensacola Davis is having one of his best seasons of pro ball. Not only is he hitting for power, his OBP is by far the best of his pro career at .386. That is helped by him cutting down on his strikeouts a bit and walking a lot more this season. In Fort Myers and Chattanooga last season, he combined to walk 44 times in 439 at-bats. However, in 142 at-bats this season, he already has 22 walks. Not only that, but his .430 slugging percentage is the best since he put up a .486 slugging percentage in 66 games with Cedar Rapids in the first half of 2017. He has a good batting average of .282 as well. Last year, in those 439 ABs, he had 11 homers, and he already has five this season. His numbers are up across the board, and should make an appearance in Rochester this season. However, Rochester is loaded at OF, so he might be blocked for the time being with Brent Rooker, LaMonte Wade, Luke Raley, Zander Wiel and Jake Cave all in New York. 3. Bryan Sammons, LHP, Fort Myers Sammons has pitched extremely well in his first full season with the Miracle. Last year, he started the year in Cedar Rapids and dominated, going 5-5 with a 2.32 ERA, before being promoted to Fort Myers. In his first stint with the Miracle, he struggled, going 1-2 with an 8.49 ERA. He got a start with the Chattanooga Lookouts, but was knocked around there as well. He returned to Fort Myers to start 2019, and has been virtually unhittable. In his eight starts, he has given up four runs.....total. Sammons is 4-0 with a sparkling 0.94 ERA. He keeps the ball in the yard, having allowed just nine in his minor league career in 201.1 innings, and has given up just one in 38.1 innings this season. His strikeouts per nine innings is really good, as well, with 46 strikeouts in those 38.1 frames (10.8 K/9). Sammons’ .227 opposing batting average is impressive, and it is only a matter of time before he takes his talents to Pensacola to join the Blue Wahoos. 2. Hector Lujan, RHP, Fort Myers Lujan got off to a slow start in 2019, as he allowed three runs in three innings in his first appearance of the season, and he allowed five in his first eight innings. Since then, he has been lights out. In his last 11 outings (21.1 innings), he has allowed just one earned run (0.43 ERA). Last season, he had a solid showing for the Miracle, going 5-5 with a 2.64 ERA. Although his numbers were solid across the board last year, he has improved significantly upon those numbers. He has a 1.84 ERA in 14 appearances. His strikeouts per nine innings rate has improved from 8.5 to nearly nine strikeouts per nine and from a 3.09/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio to 4.14/1. His batting average against has gone down significantly, from .248 in 2018 to .198 in 2019, and his WHIP has improved from 1.26 in 2018 to 0.95 in 2019. It is time for a challenge for Lujan, and I expect him to get that sometime in June. 1. Lewin Diaz, 1B, Fort Myers Diaz was a big International Free Agent signing, and has had an up-and-down career so far with the Twins. He is just 22 years old, and doesn’t turn 23 until November. After a down season with the Miracle in 2018, he has turned the Florida State League into his personal launching pad. Diaz hasn’t put up numbers like this since his time in Rookie ball with Elizabethton. He already has more homers this year (9) than he had all 2018 (6) in half the at-bats. Diaz is still strikeout prone, but he has drawn more walks this season (8) and he drew 10 in all of 2018. I don’t know what has clicked, but numbers are so much better than 2018, even in a pitcher-friendly league. His OPS was just .598 last season, but that has sky-rocketed to an outstanding .911 this season. Diaz has shown he can be dominant, and he should move up to Pensacola relatively soon, especially with Taylor Grzelakowski struggling at first.

The Red Wings had the day off and announced that one of the Twins top pitching prospects will be making his first start of the season on Tuesday. The Blue Wahoos got another solid start and some key hits. A Miracle slugger continued to blast baseballs, though rain suspended their game in the fourth inning. Cedar Rapids had a well-played game with some strong pitching after getting an early lead.Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Monday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS While not officially making the transaction (that will come on Tuesday), Rochester announced that LHP Stephen Gonsalves will make the start for the Red Wings on Tuesday.After his one game for the Red Wings, infielder Victor Tademo was sent back to extended spring training.RHP Griffin Jax was placed on the injured list for Pensacola, and RHP Williams Ramirez was activated.1B Gabe Snyder was activated from Cedar Rapids’ temporary inactive list with 1B Albee Weiss sent back to EST.RED WINGS REPORTRochester Box Score Stephen Gonsalves will make his first start of the season on Tuesday for the Red Wings. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 4, Mobile 2 Box Score The Blue Wahoos got some nice pitching and some big hits and pulled out a 4-2 win. Randy Dobnak started and threw the first five innings. He gave up two runs on five hits. He struck out seven without walking a batter. Tyler Jay got the win. He threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Williams Ramirez, fresh off the IL, struck out three batters in 1 2/3 innings of work. Cody Stashak came on for the ninth and recorded his fourth save. He gave up one hit, but he struck out two batters. Mitchell Kranson got Pensacola on the board first. He singled in Travis Blankenhorn in the first inning. Mobile got on the board with a solo homer in the top of the second inning, but Ernie De La Trinidad responded in the bottom of the inning with his second of the season to reclaim the lead. In the fourth inning, another solo homer off of Dobnak tied the score at two. In the sixth inning, Joe Cronin gave the team a lead with an RBI single. It was followed directly by another RBI single from De La Trinidad. Cronin and De La Trinidad were each 2-for-3. Kranson went 2-for-4. MIRACLE MATTERS (Game suspended in 4th inning) Ft. Myers, Bradenton Box Score This game was suspended in the fourth inning with the Miracle down 3-1. Much more will be written about this game when it concludes on Tuesday morning as part of a doubleheader. Here are two or three quick notes: First, Jhoan Duran started and gave up three runs on five hits and two walks in 3 2/3 innings. When the game was suspended, there were still two runners on base. Second, Lewin Diaz stayed hot. He hit a first-inning home run, his eighth of the season. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Burlington 0 Box Score The Kernels scored four runs in the first inning. Gilberto Celestino doubled in a run then scored on a Gabe Snyder single. Gabriel Maciel then drove in two more runs with another single. Celestino drove in another run with a single in the second inning. Luis Rijo was the beneficiary of the early offense and did a nice job of holding that lead. Rijo, who came to the Twins from the Yankees in the Lance Lynn deal, threw five scoreless innings. He gave up just one hit, walked three and struck out six. Moises Gomez and Carlos Suniaga each threw two scoreless innings out of the bullpen. They both struck out four batters. Yeltsin Encarnacion went 2-for-5 in the game. He had an RBI triple in the eighth inning to round out the Kernels scoring. Celestino went 2-for-4 with a walk and his fifth double. Gabriel Maciel went 2-for-3 with a walk. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Luis Rijo, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Ernie De La Trinidad, Pensacola Blue Wahoos PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - Game Suspended in 4th. #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 0-4, 2 K #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch. #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - Game Suspended in 4th. #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Injured (quad), return...unknown #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured (wrist) #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Game Suspended in 4th (his line incomplete, will update tomorrow) #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - No Game Scheduled #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch. #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured List #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (adductor) #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - making first start on Tuesday #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - 0-3, BB, R #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, BB, 2B(5), R, 2 RBI, 2 K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - No Game Scheduled #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - No Game Scheduled #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Buffalo @ Rochester (6:05 CST) - LHP Stephen Gonsalves (season debut) Pensacola - No Game Scheduled. Bradenton @ Ft. Myers (DH @ 10:00 a.m. CST) - RHP Edwar Colina (1-1, 5.91 ERA) Burlington @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - RHP Andrew Cabezas (1-3, 3.31 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Monday’s games. Click here to view the article

The Twins scored 18 runs. The two Twins minor league affiliates that have been very good this year both got shut out. The Red Wings got a good start. But most surprising, the Kernels had an offensive outburst, scoring eight runs. As impressive, three Kernels pitchers struck out 20 batters in nine innings. And, frequent Minor League Report star Luis Arraez made his major league debut late in the Twins game and recorded his first big-league hit, a double.Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Saturday, starting with the transactions of the day. TRANSACTIONS Rochester announced the outfielder Brent Rooker has been placed on the injured list with a wrist injury. Taking his spot on the Red Wings roster is infielder Victor Tademo from extended spring training.As a non-transaction, but an interesting note, LHP Stephen Gonsalves joined the Red Wings in Durham on Sunday.RED WINGS REPORTRochester 3, Durham 4 Box Score The Red Wings took a 3-0 lead after scoring two runs in the top of the fifth inning. However, the Durham Bulls scored one run in each of their final four innings to take the win and push the Red Wings to 14-24 overall. Lewis Thorpe started and was good. He gave up one run on five hits and a walk over the first five innings. He struck out eight. Ryan Eades came on and gave up a solo home run in the sixth and seventh innings. Fernando Romero pitched the bottom of the eighth frame and gave up a run on one hit and two walks. Luke Raley went 2-for-3 and added his fourth stolen base. Tomas Telis went 2-for-4. LaMonte Wade was 1-or-3 with two walks. BLUE WAHOO BITES Pensacola 0, Mobile 3 Box Score The Southern League is unique among minor leagues in that it only has five-game series. Through their first eight series, the Blue Wahoos had yet to lose one. However, with their loss on Saturday, it assured their first losing series of the season. They fall to 26-17. Minnesotan Adam Bray was used as an opener for the second straight time. He gave up one run on two hits over two innings. He struck out three without issuing a walk. Jorge Alcala came on as the primary pitcher. He was charged with two runs over 4 2/3 innings. He gave up four hits and uncharacteristically walked four batters. He also struck out nine batters. Jeff Ames struck out three over two scoreless innings to end the game. The Wahoos, with partial owner Bubba Watson watching, managed just two hits in this game. Mitchell Kranson had a single, and Travis Blankenhorn went 1-for-3 with a walk. However, on the field things did not go well for the Miracle as they were shut out. Jose Miranda went 2-for-4. Ryan Jeffers had a single and a walk. Trevor Larnach walked twice. Aaron Whitefield walked three times. Melvi Acosta made another spot start. In 4 2/3 innings, he was charged with seven runs (just three earned) on seven hits, a walk and a hit batter. He struck out four. Kody Funderburk made his first Miracle appearance since being promoted from extended spring training on Friday. He threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and a walk while striking out two. Ricky Ramirez was charged with two runs on four hits in the final inning. The Miracle fell to 25-16 on their season. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, Clinton 2 Box Score In what has been a pretty rare occurrence, the Kernels had a big day offensively. Jared Akins kept hitting. He went 3-for-5, scored three runs and stole two bags. Gabriel Maciel went 3-for-5 with two RBI and his fifth stolen base. Andrew Bechtold hit his seventh double and his first triple. Albee Weiss went 2-for-4 with a walk. Cole Sands started and struck out ten batters in five innings. He gave up only one run despite eight hits. But he didn’t hurt himself with any walks. Austin Schulfer kept the theme going with eight strikeouts in three scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and walked one. Jose Martinez gave up a run on two hits in the ninth inning. He struck out two more batters, giving Kernels pitchers 20 strikeouts in the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Cole Sands, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jared Akins, Cedar Rapids Kernels PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Ft. Myers) - 0-3, BB #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - 0-4, K #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch. #4 - Trevor Larnach (Ft. Myers) - 0-2, 2 BB #5 - Wander Javier (EST) - Injured (quad), return...unknown #6 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured (wrist) #7 - Jhoan Duran (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch. #8 - Lewis Thorpe (Rochester) - 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K (90 pitches, 60 strikes) #9 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured List #11 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - Injured List (adductor) #12 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Injured List, late-May return possible #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Ft. Myers) - 1-3, BB #14 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did Not Play. #15 - Yunior Severino (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #16 - Gilberto Celestino (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, RBI, 2 K #17 - Zack Littell (Rochester) - Did Not Pitch. #18 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 1-3, 2 BB, R, K #19 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - 4.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 9 K (89 pitches, 53 strikes) #20 - Jose Miranda (Ft. Myers) - 2-4 SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Durham (4:05 CST) - RHP Zack Littell (2-2, 4.50 ERA) Mobile @ Pensacola (1:05 CST) - RHP Brusdar Graterol (5-0, 1.69 ERA) St. Lucie @ Ft. Myers (12:00 CST) - LHP Tyler Watson (1-4, 5.46 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Clinton (2:00 CST) - RHP Josh Winder (2-1, 2.97 ERA) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday’s games. Click here to view the article