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The Twins former top pitching prospect is returning to his old form. Plus, Wichita explodes offensively and Marco Raya stays hot. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints TRANSACTIONS - Jake Jewell, who was DFAd when the Twins added Louie Varland to the 40-man roster on Wednesday, cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Saints. - The Cedar Rapids Kernels also announced the 2B/LF Alerick Soularie has been placed on the Suspended List. SAINTS SENTINEL Toledo 3, St. Paul 2 (F/10) Box Score Runs were hard to come by as the Saints fell to the Mud Hens in extra innings on Friday night. Jordan Balazovic put together yet another fine start, striking out nine and not allowing an earned run in five innings of work. Although the 2022 campaign has been a lost one for the former top pitching prospect, Balazovic has thrown nine innings in September and surrendered only one earned run while picking up 15 strikeouts. For comparison, the most strikeouts he had accumulated in a single month this season prior to September was way back in May when K’d 17 in 16 1/3 innings. (He posted an 8.82 ERA.) Matt Wallner led the Saints offensively, going 2-for-5 with a double and triple. Elliot Soto also contributed two hits, including his 18th double of the summer. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 13, Northwest Arkansas 7 Box Score The Wind Surge resisted a late Naturals rally to overcome Northwest Arkansas on Friday evening. The Naturals’ five runs in the top of the eighth inning were offset by two innings of three runs and one of five by the Wind Surge. Wichita added two more in the bottom of the eighth for good measure. Brent Headrick started on the hill for the Wind Surge and struck out six in 3 2/3 innings. He surrendered one run on a solo home run. Jordan Brink was awarded the win after tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings in relief, striking out three and keeping his Double-A ERA at 0.00 (through two outings and 2 1/3 innings).. Wichita had a great day at the plate, tallying 16 hits, six of which went for extra bases. All Wind Surge players reached base at least one time. Will Holland (3-for-4, 3 RBI), Anthony Prato (3-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI), Yunior Severino (2-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI), Edouard Julien (2-for-4, 2B, RBI, BB), and Leobaldo Cabrera (2-for-4) all contributed multiple hits. KERNELS NUGGETS South Bend 4, Cedar Rapids 1 Box Score The Kernels’ bats went silent against the Cubs while the pitching staff underwent a bullpen day as Cedar Rapids dropped their game to South Bend. No Kernel contributed multiple hits. Jeferson Morales (1-for-3, 2B, RBI, BB) drove in the team’s only run and hit their lone extra-base hit. Righty Ryan Shreve tossed a succinct two innings, striking out three and allowing only two runners to reach base on 25 pitches, 19 of which were strikes. He lowered his ERA to 3.08 on the season. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 4, St. Lucie 0 Box Score The Mighty Mussels and Mets were slated for two games Friday evening, but Mother Nature struck once again, pushing the second contest to Saturday. However, the inclement weather didn’t stop Marco Raya from feasting on the mound. The 20-year-old continued his hot summer by striking out seven in four shutout innings of work. He has now struck out 76 batters in 65 innings with the Mussels and owns a 3.05 ERA. Keoni Cavaco (1-for-2, RBI) and Ben Ross (2-for-3, RBI) each clobbered solo home runs while Tanner Schobel (1-for-2, 2 BB) added a double. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul): 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 9 K Hitter of the Day – Yunior Severino (Wichita): 2-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #2 - Brooks Lee (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4 #4 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 1-for-5 #7 - Noah Miller (Fort Myers) - 1-for-4 #8 - Marco Raya (Fort Myers) - 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R/ER, 1 BB, 7 K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 2-for-5, 2B, 3B #11 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 9 K #14 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 2-for-4, 2B, RBI, BB #18 - Tanner Schobel (Fort Myers) - 1-for-2, 2B, 2 BB #20 - Kala’i Rosario (Fort Myers) - 1-for-3, RBI SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Toledo (4:05 CST) - RHP Josh Winder (0-0, 3.38 ERA) Wichita vs. Northwest Arkansas (6:05 CST) - RHP Daniel Gossett (2-1, 2.34 ERA) Cedar Rapids vs. South Bend (6:35 CST) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin (1-1, 4.40 ERA) Fort Myers vs. St. Lucie (3:30 CST) - TBD Fort Myers vs. St. Lucie (TBD CST) - TBD View full article

Minnesota expected Randy Dobnak to provide rotational depth this season, but his lingering finger issues led him to the 60-day IL. What will be the roster repercussions from Dobnak’s injury? Minnesota already decided to move Griffin Jax and Lewis Thorpe to bullpen roles, which makes sense when looking at their pitching flaws. Last season, Jax was excellent the first time through the order, and he may be a strong candidate to serve in an opener role. Thorpe is out of minor league options, and the team needs to see if he can find success as a reliever. Either pitcher may shift to starting games as part of bullpen games in Dobnak’s absence. Signing a different back-end starting pitcher is also on the table. Rumors surrounding Johnny Cueto coming to the Twins circulated earlier in the week, and he’d be a natural Dobnak replacement. Cueto is coming off a 2021 season where he posted a 4.08 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP in 114 2/3 innings, but he hadn’t pitched more than 65 innings in three prior seasons. Cueto doesn’t seem to offer a ton of upside, and maybe the Twins are rethinking their back of the rotation options. Another option is to allow other young pitchers to start. Many of the team’s top pitching prospects missed time last season due to injury. Pitchers will be on an innings limit, so when and where do the Twins want those innings? If players start in the minors, those are innings that don’t help the 2022 Twins. Someone like Jhoan Duran can help bolster the team’s bullpen, but Minnesota may not be ready to shift him from starting. Jordan Balazovic is on the 40-man roster, and he pitched nearly 100 innings at Double-A last season. As a 23-year-old, would the Twins start him in the big-league rotation? Nothing stops the team from moving him up and down from Triple-A throughout the 2022 season. Other prospects on the 40-man roster include Josh Winder and Drew Strotman. Winder, like Balazovic, is projected to debut in 2022, but he dealt with a right shoulder impingement that limited him to 72 innings. Winder may be ahead of Balazovic on the depth chart because he made multiple Triple-A starts and is a couple of years older. Last summer, Strotman was acquired as part of the Nelson Cruz trade, and scouts view him as big-league ready. This year, he will start games for the Twins, and Dobnak’s injury may push him into the team’s Opening Day plans. Veteran players like Jharel Cotton, Chi Chi Gonzalez, and Dereck Rodriguez have been brought in this winter to provide organizational depth. Cotton projects to be part of the bullpen, but he can bounce back in 2022, including shifting back to being a starter. Gonzalez started 18 games for the Rockies last season but posted a 6.46 ERA with a 1.53 WHIP. There’s a chance that leaving Coors Field will help some of his numbers. Rodriguez also provides rotational depth as he looks to get back to the pitcher he was in 2018. After signing his extension last winter, Dobnak’s career has undoubtedly followed a challenging path. Minnesota tried him as a reliever last season, and it didn’t work. From there, his finger injury started bothering him, and he is still dealing with the issue. Over the next three seasons, he is guaranteed $7.75 million, so Minnesota wants him to solve his finger issue and get back on the field. What path do you think the Twins will follow because of Dobnak’s injury? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. 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