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As the prospect crew at Twins Daily is rolling out their top prospects, there are two who I think are flying under the radar. After wildly successful 2022 seasons, keep an eye on them to repeat and improve their prospect status in 2023. View full video

Pitching Wins, right? and the Twins have put a lot of time, money, technology and analytics into developing a strong pitcher development system. They have had several late-round picks that have impressed and added big velocity. Check out which starting pitchers had the top showings in August. The 2022 season has two full weeks left before the playoffs begin, but first, let's look back at the month of August. Yesterday, we announced the August Hitter of the Month. Today, we write about the top starting pitchers. HONORABLE MENTION RHP Orlando Rodriguez - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 5 G, 4 GS, 19.2 IP, 0-0, 2.75 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 16 H, 4 BB, 31 K RHP David Festa - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 GS, 15.2 IP, 1-1, 1.15 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 15 H, 8 BB, 14 K. LHP Brent Headrick - Wichita Wind Surge - 5 G, 4 GS, 24.0 IP, 2-1, 3.00 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 20 H, 6 BB, 35 K. THE TOP FOUR STARTING PITCHERS #4 - RHP Cody Laweryson - Wichita Wind Surge - 7 G, 4 GS, 1-0, 1.57 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 18 H, 6 BB, 29 K Laweryson (pronounced Lor-ih-sun) was the Twins 14th round pick in 2019 out of the University of Maine. That summer, he was named the Twins Daily short-season Minor League Pitcher of the Year. After the missed 2020 season, he reported to Cedar Rapids for the 2021 season. He went 2-5 with a 4.91 ERA in 15 games (14 starts). In 58 2/3 innings, he walked 19 and struck out 73 batters. After the season, he went to the Arizona Fall League where he struck out 18 batters in 14 innings. He began the 2022 season with the Kernels again, this time working primarily out of the bullpen. He posted a 2.57 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP in 16 games. In 35 innings, he walked 12 and struck out 42 batters. At that point he was promoted to Double-A Wichita. In 16 games, he is 4-0 with a 1.03 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. In August, he made four starts out of his seven appearances. As you can see, he was dominant. He continued to rack up strikeouts while not handing out free passes. The right-hander has a unique delivery and hides the ball well. (For more Twins Daily content on Cody Laweryson, click here.) #3 - RHP Pierson Ohl - Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels - 4 G, 3 GS, 2-1, 1.33 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 27.0 IP, 21 H, 1 BB, 26 K Ohl continued his strong professional debut. Not only did he not give up runs, but he also kept runners off of the base paths. Nearly a strikeout per inning, but just one walk in 27 innings is remarkable. He was the Twins 14th round pick a year ago from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. After the draft, he pitched in just one game in the FCL. This season, he has pitched in 20 games and made 18 starts. With the Mighty Mussels, he is 6-7 with a 3.53 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. In 91 2/3 innings, he has walked just 13 batters and struck out 101 batters. For more Pierson Ohl content on Twins Daily, click here. #2- LHP Jaylen Nowlin - Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 GS, 2-1, 2.14 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 21.0 IP, 13 H, 7 BB, 33 K The Twins selected Nowlin with their 19th-round pick in the 2021 draft out of Chipola College in Florida. Following the draft, he pitched in just one game for the FCL Twins. In 2022, the southpaw began the season with the Mighty Mussels, pitching primarily out of their bullpen. As the season progressed, and Nowlin began putting up strong numbers, he began making starts. In 19 games (11 starts) with the Mussels, he went 4-3 with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. In 56 2/3 innings, he walked 29 (too many) but also struck out 89 batters (14.1 K/9). After two August starts, he was promoted to the Kernels where he made two more starts. As you can see above, he really improved his control in August and became even more dominant. In his final two Mighty Mussel starts, he walked three and struck out 16 batters in 10 innings. In his first start at High-A Cedar Rapids, he struck out 11 batters in six innings. He struck out six batters in five innings in his second start with the Kernels. Nowlin is young and still developing into what he can become. However, he currently can hit 96-97 mph with his fastball and is able to mix a couple of breaking balls in as well. (Click here to read more Twins Daily content on Jaylen Nowlin.) And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is: Wichita Wind Surge - RHP Louie Varland - 5 GS, 1-1, 1.32 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 27.2 IP, 22 H, 5 BB, 30 K While Varland is certainly a candidate the repeat as the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year, it is almost surprising that he has not won a Starting Pitcher of the Month award this season… until now. The Saints Paul native was the Twins 14th round pick in 2019 out of Concordia University in St. Paul. He was the Twins Pitcher of the Year in 2021 and began 2022 at Double-A Wichita. In 20 games (19 starts), he went 7-4 with a 3.34 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. In 105 innings, he walked 39 and struck out 119 batters. He made one August start in Wichita, but earned his promotion to his hometown St. Paul Saints, one step away from Target Field and the big leagues. In his four starts for the Saints, he went 1-1 with a 1.69 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. In 21 1/3 innings, he walked just three and struck out 27 batters. In his Triple-A debut against the Columbus Clippers, he started with five no-hit innings. In his third start, he tossed six innings with nine strikeouts. His 146 strikeouts ranks 8th among all minor league pitchers this season. His 126 1/3 innings ranks #18. Varland continues to sit 94-96 with his fastball and touches 97 at times. He has a slider that can be devastating at times. And, he has made strides with his changeup and its consistency. He will be added to the 40-man roster after the season and could compete for an Opening Day roster spot during spring training. Congratulations to our Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month of August, St. Paul native and Saints starter Louie Varland. There has been a lot of Louie Varland content on Twins Daily since he was drafted. Click here to read more on him. Previous 2022 Starting Pitchers of the Month April: RHP John Stankiewicz, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels May: LHP Steve Hajjar, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels June: LHP Aaron Rozek, Cedar Rapids Kernels July: RHP Mike Paredes, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like. It wasn’t as easy a decision as you might think. There were several solid starters in August. View full article

It's not every day that one seriously debates whether a player who went 4-4 with a walk was deserving of the hitter of the day award, but today was that kind of day. Read all about that and more in this edition of the minor league report. TRANSACTIONS LHP Samuel Perez promoted to Cedar Rapids RHP Tomas Cleto promoted to Fort Myers Saints Sentinel St. Paul 6, Columbus 5 Box Score Devin Smeltzer: 4 ⅓ IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K HR: Matt Wallner (3), John Andreoli (11) Multi-hit games: Matt Wallner (2-for-3, HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB) The Saints escaped by a slim margin on Saturday. On a day when the team retired Kevin Millar’s #15 jersey, Matt Wallner guided the lineup to victory. The powerful lefty smoked a two-run homer and added a double for good measure; he also walked. It’s been a rough first go at AAA for Wallner, so an oasis day like this was perfect for him. It appears that Devin Smeltzer has lost his early-season magic; the lefty allowed seven hits in 4 ⅓ innings of work with a single strikeout to his name. Hopefully, this start is a blip on his radar, not a sign of things to come. John Andreoli didn’t let Wallner have all the fun; facing off against old friend Ian Hamilton, he unloaded a momentous blast to left field to tie the game. Jovani Moran, inexplicably not wearing a Twins uniform, struck out a pair of batters in a clean 8th inning. Brad Peacock nearly matched his effort but punched out just a lone batter. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 7, Corpus Christi 6 Box Score Daniel Gossett: 2 ⅓ IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 2 K HR: Edouard Julien (15) Multi-hit games: Edouard Julien (4-for-4, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, BB), Cole Sturgeon (2-for-4, 2B) Wichita won a thriller on Saturday. Daniel Gossett, always wanting to be startin’ somethin’, received the opening nod. His performance lagged; the well-traveled righty struggled with control as the Hooks mostly allowed him to dig himself into a hole. Gossett will find better days ahead of him. If Edouard Julien sets the standard, it’s almost impossible for any other hitter to beat it. The on-base machine added to his legend, reaching base in all five plate appearances with a lead-off home run to boot. Oh, he also stole a base. The lefty infielder is probably the purest hitter active in the system at the moment; he should be a major league force shortly. Julien wasn’t the only extra-base force on Saturday; Ernie Yake, Leobaldo Cabrera, Cole Sturgeon, and Anthony Prato added doubles to the 12-hit effort; Prato also walked three times. It appears that having your 1-2 combo reach base nine times is conducive to winning ballgames. More at 11. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 6, Quad Cities 2 Box Score Luis Rijo: 4 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K HR: Seth Gray (12), Kyler Fedko (8) Multi-hit games: Alerick Soularie (2-for-2, 2B, 3 R, 2 BB), Seth Gray (2-for-5, HR, R, 4 RBI, Jake Rucker (2-for-3, 2B, BB), Kyler Fedko (2-for-5, HR, 2 R, RBI), Dylan Neuse (2-for-5, RBI) Cedar Rapids never lost control of Saturday’s game. Luis Rijo—the non-bicepy individual acquired in the Lance Lynn trade four years ago—shutout the River Bandits for four frames. It wasn’t the cleanest outing; the righty allowed five hits while striking out two, perhaps revealing that his defense should receive credit for their work as well. A few core batters carried the torch; Alerick Soularie set the table, Seth Gray cleaned it off, and Jake Rucker started the process all over again. The three batters combined for six hits, nine bases reached, and a mirror four runs and RBIs. Kyler Fedko scored two runs and knocked another one in. The team stole five bases. Bobby Milacki whittled the game to its finishing out, falling one out shy of an auto-save with 2 ⅔ innings of work. He struck out two and didn’t allow a hit. Mussel Matters Fort Myers 4, Jupiter 1 Box Score Pierson Ohl: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K HR: Rubel Cespedes (4) Multi-hit games: Kala’i Rosario (2-for-4, R) The Mighty Mussels won a nondescript game on Saturday. Pierson Ohl stood out from the crowd, however; the under-appreciated righty pitched six clean, scoreless innings with five strikeouts and three base-runners allowed. He needed just 77 pitches. Ohl may not be a big prospect name, but his 3.81 season ERA speaks for itself. While Ohl silenced Jupiter’s bats, Fort Myers’ hitters couldn’t find much more luck. The team scrapped together six hits—three for extra bases—but bunched their effort together in the 5th inning, gaining four runs despite their general offensive malaise. Misael Urbina crushed again; the outfielder smoked an RBI double and worked a walk for one of the more fruitful batting lines for either team. Kyle Barrington—the owner of a 2.96 ERA—worked two scoreless relief innings; Niklas Rimmel—the owner of a 2.08 ERA—ended the game with a clean 9th inning. Complex Chronicles FCL Twins 16, FCL Red Sox 10 Box Score Ryan Horstman: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K HR: Dalton Shuffield (1) Multi-hit games: Austin Martin (2-for-5, 2B, R, 3 RBI, BB), Danny De Andrade (2-for-6, 2B, 2 R, RBI), Dalton Shuffield (2-for-5, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, BB), Wilfri Castro (2-for-5, 2 R, RBI, BB), Ismael Perez (2-for-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB) The FCL Twins won a barn-burner on Saturday. It was a classic low-minors game; the FCL Red Sox committed five errors, FCL Twins pitchers walked more batters than they struck out, and there was just one homer. If you don’t like that, then you don’t like minor league baseball. Austin Martin emerged from the shadows of the IL, starting at shortstop while dropping in two hits: a double and a single. He also stole a base and committed an error. Brayan Medina shouldered a plurality of the earned runs on Saturday; the young forgotten member of the Taylor Rogers trade couldn’t find the strike zone, walking three batters while netting two outs. The FCL Red Sox knocked him for five earned runs. Dominican Dailies DSL Twins 4, DSL KC Glass 1 Box Score Cesar Lares: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Daniel Pena (2-for-3, R, RBI), Harold Grant (2-for-3, 2B, R, RBI), Isaac Pena (2-for-4) The DSL Twins easily beat the DSL KC Glass. Yes, there’s a team named “DSL KC Glass.” Welcome to the minors. Cesar Lares continues to be unshakable; the young southpaw walked away from Saturday with a deflated ERA and an inflated strikeout total. Lares has now punched 66 tickets in 41 innings. Julio Bonilla and Jose Ojo combined for four shutout frames in relief; the Royals netted a single hit in the entire game. No one player dominated the offensive side of the ball, as each starter earned a hit; Junior Marino—probably unrelated to Dan—collected two RBIs with a 6th-inning single. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Pierson Ohl Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Edouard Julien PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #4 - Austin Martin (Rehab) - 2-for-5, 2B, R, 3 RBI, BB, K #7 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 1-4, RBI, K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 2-for-3, HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB #14 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 4-for-4, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, BB #19 - Alerick Soularie (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-2, 2B, 3 R, 2 BB #20 - Kala’i Rosario (Ft. Myers) - 2-5, RBI SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Columbus @ St. Paul (2:07 PM) - RHP Aaron Sanchez Corpus Christi @ Wichita (1:05 PM) - LHP Kody Funderburk Cedar Rapids @ Quad Cities (1:00 PM) - TBD Fort Myers @ Jupiter (11:00 AM) - TBD View full article

It was the MLB trade deadline on Tuesday, and the Minnesota Twins were one of the most aggressive buyers throughout the day. They acquired three MLB pitchers and a depth catcher, and in doing so parted with the #6, #10, #16, #19, and #20 prospects in their system per our own rankings—which will be receiving an update with a lot of changes tomorrow—as well as several other minor leaguers. TRANSACTIONS By acquiring MLB talent and giving up nothing but prospects, there was a lot to follow when it comes to transactions in the minors. Try to keep up… Trade #1: Twins acquire RHP Jorge Lopez from the Baltimore Orioles, sending off Cedar Rapids’ LHP Cade Povich (#10 TD prospect), RHP Yennier Cano (St. Paul), RHP Juan Nunez (DSL), and LHP Juan Rojas (FCL) in the deal. Trade #2: Twins acquire RHP Tyler Mahle from the Cincinnati Reds, trading away St. Paul IF Spencer Steer (#6 TD Prospect), Wichita slugger Christian Encarnacion-Strand (#16 TD Prospect), and Fort Myers LHP Steve Hajjar (#19 TD prospect) in the swap. Trade #3: In a depth trade between division rivals, the Twins sent RHP Ian Hamilton to the Cleveland Guardians for C Sandy Leon. Leon was assigned to triple-A after the move. Trade #4: Twins acquire RHP Michael Fulmer from the Detroit Tigers, parting with Wichita RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (#20 TD prospect) to get Fulmer to swap clubhouses at Target Field. To cover the exiting players and corresponding moves with the Twins (IL: Miguel Sano (60 Day), Alex Kirilloff (10 Day); Paternity: Gilberto Celestino; DFA: Jharel Cotton, Aaron Sanchez), the St. Paul Saints received RHP Ben Heller and C Frank Nigro from the Florida Complex, as well as IF Mikey Perez from Fort Myers. OF Jake Cave also had his contract selected by the Twins. In Double-A, the Wind Surge transferred C Dennis Ortega from the IL to the Development List. For the Mighty Mussels, RHP Zaquiel Puentes was assigned from the FCL, and RHP Regi Grace was activated from the injured list. Did I miss any?! Probably… SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 13, Omaha 4 Box Score If you were worried that the St. Paul Saints would lose some firepower sending off their top-hitting prospect earlier in the day, you would have been wrong. Very Wrong. Saints starter Devin Smeltzer was spotted a big lead before he ever took the mound, and his lineup continued to provide him breathing room as the game went on. The first three hitters of the game reached base for St. Paul, with Matt Wallner’s double scoring two before John Andreoli clubbed the team’s first home run of the game, making it 4-0 after a half-inning. Smeltzer was able to battle through five innings, surrendering four runs of his own on five hits and a walk, but also struck out six Storm Chasers. Of his 79 pitches, 54 went for strikes (68%) including 12 swinging. The Saints used the long ball to extend their lead throughout the rest of the game, with Michael Helman blasting a pair of homers, including a two-run blast in the fourth and solo shot in the eighth, with David Banuelos adding another two-run dinger in the sixth. Helman, in fact, was electric in every at-bat, becoming the second player in affiliated franchise history to ever collect five hits in a game, joining Jose Miranda who did the same in his triple-A debut last year on his 23rd birthday. Relievers Juan Minaya and Drew Strotman combined to hold the Storm Chasers scoreless over the final four innings. Minaya was nearly perfect, hitting the first batter he faced with a pitch but retiring the next six in a row, including one strikeout. Strotman worked around one hit allowed and three walks in the final two frames by inducing two inning-ending double play balls. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 3, San Antonio 4 Box Score The Missions jumped on Wichita starter Casey Legumina in the first two innings, and Wichita needed to claw their way back the rest of the game. Legumina got the first two hitters of the game, but a single and a walk were followed by a two-run triple and an RBI double that put them ahead 3-0 early. An error against the leadoff man in the second led to their fourth run a few batters later. In all, Legumina finished four innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits and a walk. He struck out two. The Wind Surge got their first run of the game in the top of third after DaShawn Keirsey Jr. led off the inning with a single. He advanced to second on a groundout, then third on a balk, before scoring on another groundout off the bat of Ernie Yake. The bullpen trio of Bryan Sammons (2 IP, H, 3 K), Steven Cruz (1 IP, 2 K), and Denny Bentley (1 IP, BB, K) kept the Missions off the board and gave Wichita a chance the rest of the way. In the eighth, the Wind Surge had the bases loaded with no outs, but a sac fly and RBI groundout were all they could muster after a pitching change, getting within one heading to the ninth. They went down one-two-three and fall to 51-45 on the season, but still lead the North division with a 16-12 record in the second half. Julien (2-for-4, R, K) and Nash Knight (2-for-4, K) had multiple hits. The Wind Surge did not have an RBI come from a hit in the scorebook, were 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base for the game. KERNELS NUGGETS Beloit 11, Cedar Rapids 6 Box Score Luis Rijo took the mound for the Kernels and his outing was predictive of how it would go for their pitchers as a whole, and not in a good way. In his 3 2/3 innings, Rijo ended up surrendering four earned runs on six hits and a pair of walks, while only picking up one strikeout. Bradley Hanner got them through the fourth, allowing one inherited runner to score, but allowed four straight hits to open the fifth, culminated by a grand slam that put the Sky Carp in front 8-3. Matt Mullenbach finished the fifth and added a scoreless sixth before he too, ran into some trouble in the seventh. While both his runs allowed were unearned due to an error, it was 10-3 after seven. Jon Olsen (1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 K) and Ryan Shreve (1 IP) finished off the game for the Cedar Rapids pitching staff. The Kernels did have a lead after the third inning, thanks to an RBI single from Yunior Severino in the first that he followed up with a two-run homer in the third that made it 3-2. This continues a scorching hot start to the second half of the season for the infielder. While they did rack up 13 hits as a team, they were just 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position, compared to 15 hits and a 6-for-16 effort from Beloit to account for the scoring discrepancy. Kyler Fedko (3-for-5, 2 R, 2B), Rucker (2-for-5, R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, K), Severino (2-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, K), Gray (2-for-5, RBI, K), and Will Holland (2-for-4) all had multiple hits in the loss. MUSSEL MATTERS Bradenton 2, Fort Myers 1 (7 innings) Box Score After a two-hour delayed start, the Mighty Mussels game on Tuesday would only go seven innings. Fort Myers probably would have liked to have those two more. Right-hander Pierson Ohl took the bump and was fantastic over his five innings. He allowed no runs, scattered five hits, and struck out seven Marauders, including all three in the fourth inning. He left the game with a 1-0 lead, but it could have been more, as the Mighty Mussels managed to only scratch one run across the plate in the second inning after having the bases loaded with no outs. That run came in the form of a sac fly from Daniel Ozoria to score Dillon Tatum, who had drawn a walk to lead off the frame. They loaded the bases again in the third but were unable this time to score any runs, as hits were hard to come by for the home team. They had just three singles in the game, were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position, and left only five men on base. After Ohl’s game was done, Malik Barrington came on for the sixth and Bradenton took advantage of two consecutive walks and a wild pitch to start the inning. Barrington would record just two outs, allowing the go-ahead runs on a flyout and single before being replaced by Zaquiel Puentes. Puentes finished the final 1 1/3 innings, striking out two in his first Mighty Mussels game of the season. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Orioles 1, FCL Twins 7 (7 innings) Box Score The Twins used a five-run fifth inning to pull away from the Orioles, and kept them in check the rest of the way to secure the victory. Veteran Ryan Horstman started on the mound and struck out all three hitters he faced in the first. Develson Aria then went the next three innings, allowing one run on four hits while striking out six. Leyner Ponce (1 IP, 2 BB, K), Cole Bellair (1 IP, H, K), and Ricardo Velez (1 IP, K) each tacked on a scoreless inning. With the bases loaded in the fifth, the Twins got a 2-run single from Andres Centeno, which was followed by a two-run double off the bat of Gregory Duran that made the score 6-1. Willie Joe Garry Jr. tacked on an RBI single to cap the scoring. Garry Jr. (2-for-4, RBI) and Duran (2-for-3, 2 R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB) each had two hits, and Jefferson De La Cruz added a 2-RBI triple in the fourth. DOMINICAN DAILIES DSL Twins 4, DSL Miami 0 (7+ innings) Box Score The Twins pitching staff held Miami to just four hits in the game, which was called official in the bottom of the seventh inning. DSL standout Miguel Olivares picked up his first win of the year by finishing five innings. He allowed three hits, walked one, and punched out five, lowering his ERA in 39 total innings to just 1.15. Leonardo Lugo picked up his first save by going 1+ innings, allowing one hit, one walk, and striking out one. The offense was led by two hits from Brayan Acuna (2-for-4, RBI) and Anderson Nova (2-for-3), and got a triple from Yasser Mercedes, and two-run homer from Ricardo Pena. Mercedes also stole two bases, giving him 20 on the season in 30 games. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Pierson Ohl, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (5 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 7 K) Hitter of the Day - Michael Helman, St. Paul Saints (5-for-5, 4 R, 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY #8 - Noah Miller (Fort Myers) - 0-for-3 #12 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K #15 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 2-for-4, R, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Omaha (7:05 PM CDT) - RHP Ronny Henriquez (1-4, 5.71 ERA) Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05 PM CDT) - TBD (Sawyer Gipson-Long had been scheduled) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (12:05 PM CDT) - LHP Aaron Rozek (7-4, 4.35 ERA) Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM CDT) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin (3-3, 4.24 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! View full article

Miguel Sano hit the first two home runs of his rehab assignment. Marco Raya was on the bump again. Will Holland made one of the best catches you may see in the Twins system all year. St. Paul and Wichita each played extra-inning games. Read about all of this and more in Saturday’s Minor League Report! Let’s see what happened this Saturday in the Twins organization. TRANSACTIONS 2B Nash Knight was assigned to Wichita from Round Rock Express (Rangers organization) RHP Luis Rijo was assigned to FCL from Cedar Rapids, after being removed from the 60-Day IL. OF Misael Urbina was assigned to Fort Myers from FCL Twins SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 9, Louisville 10 Box Score The Saints lost a heartbreaker on Saturday night. This game had so many lead changes; it was unfortunate to see St. Paul come out on the losing end. Aaron Sanchez took the hill for the Saints in this one. He threw six innings, allowing three runs while striking out four, keeping the Saints in the game and giving them a chance to win. Sanchez allowed three early runs to Louisville, so the Saints were in an early hole. Michael Helman singled in a run to give the Saints their first run of the night and cut the deficit to two. A few innings later, John Andreoli hit a solo shot, his seventh of the year, to cut the deficit down to just one run heading into the bottom of the sixth. The Saints brought in recently DFA’d reliever Juan Minaya to try to keep it a one-run game heading into the eighth inning. Unfortunately, he allowed four runs in the bottom of the seventh to put the Saints down by five runs, seeming like an insurmountable deficit. With six outs to go and needing five runs, the Saints started a comeback. Tim Beckham, Mark Contreras, and Jermaine Palacios all had two-out RBI singles in the top of the eighth, and Caleb Hamilton hit an RBI double to close the gap to just one run. After Drew Strotman threw a scoreless top of the eighth, the Saints tied the game in the top of the ninth when Jake Cave hit a sac-fly to score Andreoli. Evan Sisk continued to have an outstanding season when he threw a scoreless ninth to bring his season ERA down to 1.01 in 35 innings. The Saints took advantage of the runner on second base rule in the tenth when Curtis Terry doubled in the go-ahead run, and Roy Morales scored a run with a single to give the Saints a two-run lead with three outs to go. Ian Hamilton came on for the tenth and got two quick outs before an RBI single brought the game to 9-8. Louisville brought on a pinch hitter who quickly got to two strikes but hit a walk-off homer to give Louisville the come-from-behind victory. Helman, Terry, and Andreoli all had multi-hit performances to lead the offense in this game as the Saints fall to 40-42 on the season. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 3, Amarillo 6 Box Score In another extra-inning affair, the Wichita Wind Surge fell in a heartbreaker to the Amarillo Sod Poodles, 6-3. Kody Funderburk took the ball for Wichita, and he was excellent once again, throwing five innings without allowing an earned run. He now has a 2.78 ERA in 55 innings in 2022. Andrew Bechtold started the scoring in the bottom of the fourth when he singled to score Edouard Julien. The RBI was Bechtold’s 30th of the year. After Funderburk committed an error, the Sod Poodles capitalized with a sac-fly to tie the game at one in the top of the fifth. However, the game didn’t stay like that for long, as Wind Surge newcomer Nash Knight blasted a homer into the left-center field bullpen just one half-inning later. In the top of the seventh, Cody Laweryson allowed his first home run of the year in 45 innings to former Twin catcher Juan Centeno. The game remained deadlocked at two through the ninth inning, thanks to two scoreless innings of relief from Alex Scherff. In extra innings, the Wind Surge did not fare well as Melvi Acosta allowed three hits and two walks, which led to the Sod Poodles scoring four runs to take a four-run lead with three outs to play. Julien hit an RBI single in the bottom of the tenth, but it wasn’t enough to take down the Sod Poodles (great name, by the way) as Wichita fell 6-3 to bring their record to 40-39. KERNELS NUGGETS GAME 1 Cedar Rapids 5, Quad Cities 1 Box Score The Kernels were in control in game one of this doubleheader as they cruised to an easy 5-1 victory. Sean Mooney started on the hill for Cedar Rapids, going three innings, allowing one unearned run while striking out three. Alerick Soularie and Yunior Severino homered in their first at-bats to give the Kernels an early 2-0 lead. The homers were Soularie’s ninth and Severino’s fourth of the season. In the top of the fourth, Will Holland made one of the year's best catches. Rubendy Jaquez hit a scorching line drive to center, and Holland initially didn’t get a good jump but made up for it with incredible speed and a great diving catch to prevent extra bases. The Kernels tacked on three insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a two-run double from Seth Gray and an RBI single from Wander Javier to increase the lead to four. Orlando Rodriguez got the win for the Kernels, throwing 2 2/3 innings of hitless relief while striking out three batters. The win was Rodriguez’s first of the year. Soularie and Gray each had multi-hit games to lead the offense to an easy win to at least guarantee a doubleheader split. GAME 2 Cedar Rapids 2, Quad Cities 5 Box Score The Kernels had a rough go of things in the second game of this double-header, as they couldn’t get much going offensively after a tough start. The Twins Daily June Minor League Pitcher of the Month Aaron Rozek made a start for Cedar Rapids in game two. He had a rough start to the game, allowing five first-inning runs before eventually settling down. He went three innings, allowing five runs on seven hits while striking out three. This first-inning deficit was too much for the Kernels to overcome, as they could only muster up two runs on three hits in seven innings for the loss. Wander Javier, Kyler Fedko, and Jeferson Morales picked up the lone hits for Cedar Rapids in a pretty uneventful game. Bradley Hanner, Tyler Palm, and Matt Mullenbach were great out of the bullpen for Cedar Rapids, combining for four scoreless innings with ten strikeouts as they looked dominant. The Kernels had to settle for a doubleheader split on the day, and their record fell to a very impressive 48-32. MIGHTY MUSSELS MATTERS Fort Myers 8, Tampa 3 Box Score The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels continued their winning ways Saturday, picking up a sizable victory over Tampa by a score of 8-3. Twins Daily’s #9 prospect Marco Raya made a start on the mound for the Mighty Mussels, and he had his usual strikeout stuff, going four innings while allowing two runs and striking out six. Raya has 52 strikeouts in 43 innings at Fort Myers this year and has yet to turn 20 years old. The Mighty Mussels needed a response, with Raya giving up two early runs. They got a big one in the top of the fourth when Keoni Cavaco hit a solo shot, and Carlos Aguiar hit a two-run shot to give them the lead. After taking the lead, the Mighty Mussels never looked back, outscoring Tampa 5-1 the rest of the game to coast to an 8-3 win. Aguiar added his second homer of the game in the top of the eighth inning to add a little extra insurance. Pierson Ohl got the win in relief of Raya, throwing five innings of one-run ball with ten strikeouts as he completely baffled Tampa. Aguiar went 3-for-4 with a pair of homers to lead the offense in this one. Cavaco, Mikey Perez, and Rubel Cespedes all had two-hit performances to add to the Fort Myers offensive show. Fort Myers improves to 44-32 on the year with the win. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Twins 12, FCL Red Sox 9 Box Score Rehabbing first baseman Miguel Sano played his fifth game with the FCL Twins and had his best performance, going 2-for-4 with two homers and not striking out. This is excellent progress for Sano, who the Twins hope can significantly impact the lineup after the all-star break. Ricardo Olivar added three hits to lead the offense, while Breilin Ramirez and Danny De Andrade each added two hits. DOMINICAN DAILIES DSL Twins 4, DSL Cubs Red 0 Box Score Cesar Lares was dominant on the mound for the DSL Twins, throwing five scoreless innings while striking out six batters to pick up the first win of his professional career. On the offensive side, Yasser Mercedes hit his first professional homer in the first inning of this game, while Rafael Cruz continued his offensive tear by hitting his fourth homer of the year. Cruz is now hitting .333/.441/.613 (1.054) with four homers in 75 at-bats this year. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Pierson Ohl (Fort Myers) - 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 10 K Hitter of the Day – Carlos Aguiar (Fort Myers) - 3-for-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR 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: #8 - Noah Miller (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4, R, BB #9 - Marco Raya (Fort Myers) - 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K #12 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 1-for-3, 2 BB #15 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1-for-3, R, RBI, 2 BB #16 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, R, BB NEXT DAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (12:05 PM CST) - RHP Dereck Rodriguez (5-2, 4.98 ERA) Amarillo @ Wichita (1:05 PM CST) - RHP Daniel Gossett (1-1, 1.96 ERA) Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 PM CST) - RHP John Stankiewicz (2-4, 6.32 ERA) Fort Myers @ Tampa (11:00 AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Saturday’s games! Thank you for reading, and Go Twins! View full article

From stellar pitching from the Mighty Mussels to Matt Wallner's three-homer series for the Wind Surge, there was a myriad of action across the Twins Minor League system over the past week. Catch up on all the details and get prepared for the final set of series' before the Fourth of July! TRANSACTIONS Minnesota Twins recalled LHP Jovani Moran from St. Paul Saints. OF Mark Contreras recalled by the Minnesota Twins RHP Josh Winder optioned to the St. Paul Saints after being activated from IL RHP Jake Faria released by the Minnesota Twins organization RHP Cody Laweryson promoted from Cedar Rapids to Wichita. RHP Hunter McMahon promoted from Ft. Myers to Cedar Rapids. RHP Jonathan Lavallee joined the Mighty Mussels from the Complex. RESULTS Previous: Week in Review (6/14-6/20): Wallner Continues to Rake Tuesday, June 21: Matt Wallner is Surging Wednesday, June 22: Gray Goes Deep, Winder Continues Return Thursday, June 23: Saints Roll While Others Play Close Friday, June 24: Nary A Win To Be Found Saturday, June 25: Christian Encarnacion-Strand Blasts a Walk-Off Homer Sunday, June 26: Quiet Bats, Stellar Arms, and Jake Cave Dominates Again MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Identifying Prospects the Twins Could Move at the Trade Deadline Are the Twins Brewing up Steals in the Minors? Twins Daily Draft Coverage: A Lot of Mocks, A Lot of Directions Royce Lewis Had ACL Surgery With a Twist MONDAY'S SHORT SEASON RESULTS FCL Twins 4, FCL Pirates 2 (10 Innings) Box Score Runs count, regardless of how you get them. The FCL Twins relied on crafty baserunning and an excellent outing from the pitching staff to secure an extra-innings win against the FCL Pirates on Monday afternoon. The FCL Twins got on the board in a unique fashion in their opening frame at the plate. After drawing an opening walk, Misael Urbina advanced to second on a balk and eventually stole third base. With two outs and Yonardy Soto at the plate, FCL Pirates pitcher Alessandro Ercolani balked again, allowing Urbina to score and put the Twins on the board. Urbina would strike again. With Ismael Perez on base, Urbina squeaked an RBI double to left field to tie the game at two. And with the game tied at two in the tenth, Urbina would put the nail in the coffee with his speedy baserunning. Starting the inning on second, Urbina advanced to third on a ground ball and would later score on a wild pitch to give the FCL Twins a 3-2 lead. Moments later, Danny De Andrade scored on another wild pitch to add an insurance run. The real winner of the day was the Twins' pitching staff. Starter Develson Aria pitched a near-perfect two innings, striking out for batters and allowing just one hit. Fellow LHP Juan Rojas followed suit with four innings of one-run, two-hit ball while striking out six. Miguelangel Boadas took the next three innings, allowing just one run on two hits while striking out two. Boadas earned the rare win (2-0) and blown save (1) combo on the day. With a two-run lead, Isaiah Rivera closed the door in the tenth by striking out three of the four batters he faced. The FCL Twins are now 9-7 on the season. DSL Mariners 7, DSL Twins 5 Box Score Bullpen blunders and ducks left on the pond plagued the DSL Twins in a 7-5 loss to the Mariners' Dominican Summer League team on Monday. The Twins left nine runners on base and were 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position on the day. The Twins went with 'Johnny Wholestaff' on the bump, utilizing five different pitchers in incrementing amounts through seven innings. RHP Jeferson Lopez started the game strong by mowing down all three batters with strikeouts in the first. Juan Mercedes followed suit with a perfect second inning. Oscar Parades allowed one run on two hits in the third inning but did record all three outs with strikeouts. The trouble began in the fourth. Orlando Rubio (L, 1-2) allowed four runs (three of which came in the fourth) on four hits and a walk through two innings. Leonardo Lugo surrendered a run in the sixth and seventh inning to cap off the rocky day for the bullpen. Daniel Pena was the only Twins player with multiple hits. Pena led off the sixth inning with a single and eventually scored on a fielding error. Pena singled again in the seventh inning but was thrown out at home to end the game. The loss puts the DSL Twins at 7-10 on the year. WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Week: 2-4, on the road against Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays affiliate) Season: 35-36 overall After entering the week one game over the .500 mark (33-32), the Saints roll back into St. Paul one game below the mark. Runs were scored against the streaking Buffalo Bisons (41-30); in fact, the Saints outscored the Bisons 28-23 in the six-game series in upstate New York. Sometimes in life, the cards just don't swing your way. That was the case for the Saints last week, falling short by just one run in each of their four losses. The trend wasn't unfamiliar. Two weeks ago against Columbus, five of six games were decided by one run with St. Paul losing two of those games en route to going 3-3 on the week (their third loss was a 10-1 blowout). The Saints were on the right side of a blowout this past, crunching the Bisons 7-1 on Wednesday thanks to a pair of homers from Spencer Steer and Caleb Hamilton and a total team effort from the St. Paul pitching staff. St. Paul won their other game of the week on Saturday by a score of 7-4 thanks to a two-homer rodeo by Michael Helman and a one-run, four-hit masterpiece from the Saints' bullpen. The four one-run losses weren't anyone's fault in particular. Late run innings plagued the Saints on Tuesday and Wednesday, and Friday, and the Saints' bats simply ran dry on Sunday in a 2-1 defeat. There was a boatload of highlights for the Saints throughout the week. Michael Helman hit safely in three of six games and tallied six hits on the series, including a three-hit clinic with two homers on Saturday. Helman is now slashing .305/.394/.500 in the month of June and .284/.372/.350 on the season. Despite his rocky 6.93 ERA, Jordan Balazovic pitched a stellar three innings of two-hit, scoreless ball while striking out three in Thursday's 7-1 victory. The bullpen was even more impressive, specifically, Derek Rodríguez. D-Rod pitched four innings of scoreless relief while allowing just one hit and striking out three en route to his fifth win of the season. Jake Cave hit safely in all five games that he played in the series against Buffalo. Tallying multi-hit games on Friday and Saturday, Cave mashed his fourth triple of the year on Thursday and notched a single in all five games. Cave struck his seventh homer of the year in Sunday's 2-1 loss. The former Twin is now slashing an impressive .312/.418/.584 through the month of June. Shortstop Jermaine Palacios hit .357/.444/.643 over the past week with a homer, double, and four RBI What’s Next? The Saints head home to CHS Field with a six-game series against the Omaha Storm Chasers (34-36). The Saints went 1-5 on a road series against the Storm Chasers in May. All six scheduled pitchers for the series are righties. Probable Pitchers: TBD, RHP Cole Sands, RHP Jordan Balazovic, RHP Ronny Henriquez, RHP Aaron Sanchez, RHP Ariel Jurado Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Week: 2-4, hosting San Antonio (San Diego Padres affiliate) Season: 35-33 overall After going 1-6 the prior week against Tulsa, the Surge notched two wins in a tough series against the Padres Double-A affiliate. Despite getting blown out in two of the team's four losses, there was a myriad of positives from the week. Most notably, Matt Wallner was named Texas League Player of the Week after knocking nine hits, three homers, and six RBI over the past week. The Minnesota native slashed .429/.556/.952 over the past week and is hitting an incredible .285/.422/.992 on the season. Wallner was also named Minor League Player of the Week by the Twins organization. Here are some other highlights from the week for the Wind Surge. Shortstop Kevin Merrell slashed an incredible .400/.526/.533 on the week with six hits (two doubles) in 15 at-bats Sawyer Gipson-Long pitched ten innings throughout the course of the week, going 1-1 with eight strikeouts while allowing four runs on nine hits. Minnesota-made pitcher Louie Varland had one of his poorer outings of the season (and it still wasn't that bad). Through five innings on Saturday, Varland allowed three runs on five hits while striking out four and walking three in a loss. Varland still touts a 3.42 ERA and 1.24 WHIP through 12 starts. The St. Paul native is 6-2 on the season. Outfielder Cole Sturgeon racked up two homers and seven RBI on the week while slashing .296/.296/.511 on the week in 27 at-bats. What's Next? The Surge head to Illinois to take on Springfield Cardinals (St. Louis' Double-A affiliate). The Cardinals are 31-38 on the season and the Surge went 4-2 against the Cardinals in a series back in May. Probable Pitchers: RHP Daniel Gossett, RHP Casey Legumina, RHP Louie Varland, RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long, RHP Blayne Enlow, LHP Kody Funderburk High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Week: 3-3, hosting Western Michigan (Detroit Tigers affiliate) Season: 44-25 overall A trio of tight victories led the Kernels to a solid week against the Whitecaps at home. Christian Encarnacion-Strand was certainly the highlight of the week, knocking an RBI double to spark Cedar Rapids' come-from-behind victory in the series opener last Tuesday. Encarnacion-Strand's biggest impact of the week came on Saturday when he launched a solo homer in the ninth to walk off the Kernels to a 6-5 victory. That wasn't the only big homer of the week. Wednesday's matchup was a pitching duel that saw Brent Headrick (W, 7-2) pitch beautifully. Yet the win wouldn't have happened without a monster two-run second-inning homer from Seth Gray that provided Headrick and the pitching staff the buffer that they needed. Headrick's masterpiece on Wednesday wasn't the only pitching clinic of the week. RHP John Stankiewicz allowed just one run on three hits while striking out three through six innings in his Sunday afternoon start. Unfortunately for the Kernels, the bats stayed dry throughout the course of the game and the Whitecaps were able to scrap enough runs off of the Cedar Rapids bullpen to pull off a 4-3 victory in ten innings. Some other notable performances from the week: Outfielder Kennie Taylor slashed an impressive .500/.538/.500 through 12 at-bats in four games, striking out just once. All six of Taylor's hits were singles. Talented shortstop Wander Javier had his struggles, striking out eight times in 17 at-bats. However, Javier did notch a double, triple, and home run on the week. Talented prospect and recent draft pick Cade Povich had a rough start in Friday's shootout, allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits through 4 2/3 innings. Catcher Pat Winkel blasted his first homer since June 15 in Sunday's 4-3 extra-innings loss. The two-run shot tied the game in the eighth and allowed the Kernels the chance to compete in extras. With a playoff birth already secured, the Kernels still hold a commanding 4.5-game lead in the West division of the Midwest League. What's Next? The Kernels head to the Badger State to take on the Wisconsin Rattlers (Brewers affiliate), their biggest competition in the division. Wisconsin is sitting at 39-29 and the two teams split a six-game series in Cedar Rapids back in May. Probable Pitchers: Cedar Rapids has yet to release their starting pitchers for the upcoming series. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Week: 3-2, at Lakeland (Detroit Tigers affiliate) Season: 42-24 overall Beaches, Jimmy Buffett, and Mighty Mussels baseball...oh, and rain. Florida's identity was on true display for the Mussels' series in Lakeland this past week. After getting through the first three games of the series, rain blanketed the Sunshine State skies on Friday and Saturday, resulting in the Mussels playing a double-header on Sunday afternoon and only getting five games in on the series. Yet the inclement weather didn't muddy the waters for the Fort Myers pitching staff throughout the course of the week. Fort Myers' starting pitching staff allowed just five earned runs and tallied a whopping 25 strikeouts through the course of the week. Perhaps the finest outing of the week came in game one of Sunday's double-header courtesy of reliever Mike Paredes. After top prospect, Marco Raya exited the game (for unknown reasons) after striking out the first two batters, Paredes pitched 4 1/3 innings of perfect baseball, striking out two hitters in the process. There were glimpses of stellar moments at the plate for the Mussels. Outfielder Nelson Roberto cranked a 10th-inning two-run homer to propel Fort Myers to an extra-innings victory on Thursday. Keoni Cavaco hit his first triple since May 25 in the series opener, scoring the game's first run and one that would prove to be the difference in a 3-2 win. A team that is certainly grounded in outstanding pitching, the Mussels have begun to flex their muscles at the plate in important situations. The fire at the plate and ice on the mound certainly shows in the results; on pace to tout a top seed in the playoffs, the Mussels hold a dominant seven-game lead in the West division of the Florida State League. Some more notable observations from the past week: Dillon Tatum may have only played in two of the five games, but he made them count. In seven plate appearances, Tatum noticed a single, double, and two walks; a .571 OBP for the week? Not too shabby. Talented prospect Noah Miller slashed .250/.286/.300 through 21 plate appearances on the week. RHP Pierson Ohl arguably had the most dominant start of the series. Ohl cruised to eight strikeouts while allowing just one run and one walk through six innings en route to the team's 6-4 win. Ohl now has a 4.70 ERA and 1.39 WHIP on the season. LHP Jaylen Nowlin got the most bang for his buck on the bump amongst Fort Myers starters. Nowlin struck out seven batters and kept the Flying Tigers from scoring through 3 2/3 innings in Sunday's second game. What's Next? The Mighty Mussels head home to Hammond Stadium to host Dunedin (Blue Jays affiliate) in a six-game series. The two teams split a six-game series in Dunedin back in April. Probable Pitchers: RHP Travis Adams, RHP Pierson Ohl, TBD, TBD, TBD PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Hitter of the Week: Matt Wallner, Wichita Wind Surge He may have won this last week but it's tough not to award a guy who slashed .426/.556/.952 (1.508) over his last six games. Wallner has emerged as one of the organization's elite offensive prospects and the Forest Lake native hit safely in all six games against San Antonio, including two multi-hit games. Wallner's three home runs against San Antonio are the most he's hit in one series in his professional baseball career. Leading the Wind Surge with his .286 batting average, the 2022 season looks as if be Wallner's breakout year (despite being pretty darn good last year). There's certainly validity in keeping Wallner where he's at but if continues to hit the way he is, the only way forward is up. Pitcher of the Week: RHP Pierson Ohl, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels There's no shortage of depth on the Fort Myers pitching staff. Yet amongst a flurry of talented prospects, Pierson Ohl's name can sometimes be forgotten. Not this week. Ohl tossed a beauty of a game for the Mussels last Thursday, striking out eight while allowing just one run on three hits and a walk. A 14th-round pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, Ohl has a 3-3 record along with a 4.70 ERA and 1.39 WHIP in his first full season. In his past three starts, the Grand Canyon University alum has decreased the number of hits he's given up while increasing the length of each start. Things look like they're headed in the right direction for this talented arm that could serve as a 'sleeper prospect' in a talented farm system. PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week and this season. The Prospect Tracker will be updated on the first of each month throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. #1 - Royce Lewis (St. Paul) - Out for Season (ACL) #1 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - Out of Season (ACL) #2 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 6 G, 6-for-14 (.316), 0-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K (Season: 51 G, .242/.366/.309 (.675), 8-2B, 2-3B, 1-HR, 42 R, 15 RBI, 28 BB, 39 K, 22 SB, 3 CS) #3 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - (Season: 40 G, .229/.268/.492 (.551), 9-2B, 4-HR, 10 R, 16 RBI, 6 BB, 31 K) #4 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K (Season: 7 GS, 22.0 IP, 22 R, 17 ER, 33 H, 12 BB, 21 K, 0-2, 6.93 ERA, 1.99 WHIP, 5.11 BB/9, 8.03 K/9) #5 - Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - Injured list (Season: 11 GS, 53.0 IP, 21 R, 20 ER, 41 H, 19 BB, 53 K, 2-3, 3.40 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3.2 BB/9, 9.0 K/9) #6 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - Injured List (Season: 11 G, 10 GS, 34.1 IP, 8 R, 7 ER, 17 H, 22 BB, 50 K, 0-1, 1.83 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 5.8 BB/9, 13.1 K/9) #7 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - (Season: 35 G, .307/.385/.591 (.976), 13-2B, 1-3B, 8-HR, 27 R, 30 RBI, 14 BB, 23 K) #7 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 6 G, 5-for-23 (.217), 1-2B, 2-HR, 5 RBI, 5 BB, 4 K, SB (Season: 28 G, .244/.336/.571 (.907), 6-2B, 0-3B, 11-HR, 25 R, 28 RBI, 14 BB, 27 K) #8 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) - Injured List (Season: 47 G, .272/.493/.552 (1.044), 5-2B, 3-3B, 9-HR, 35 R, 25 RBI, 57 BB, 52 K) #9 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 5 G, 5-for-20 (.250), 1-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 1 RBI, BB, 7 K, SB (Season: 59 G, .240/.370/.323 (.693), 8-2B, 2-3B, 2 HR, 38 R, 14 RBI, 43 BB, 68 K) #10 - Marco Raya (Ft. Myers) - 1 GS, 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K (Season: 10 G, 9 GS, 36 IP, 15 R, 12 ER, 26 H, 13 BB, 42 K, 3-1, 3.00 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 3.25 BB/9, 10.5 K/9) #11 - Cade Povich (Cedar Rapids) - 1 GS, 4.2 IP, 7 R, 5 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 5 K (Season: 11 GS, 52.2 IP, 29 R, 23 ER, 45 H, 19 BB, 73 K, 5-4, 3.93 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 3.25 BB/9, 12.47 K/9) #12 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 4 K (Season: 13 G, 12 GS, 68.1 IP, 29 R, 26 ER, 57 H, 28 BB, 79 K, 6-2, 3.42 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 3.7 BB/9, 10.4 K/9) #13 - Ronny Henriquez (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 5 K (Season: 11 G, 8 GS, 44.0 IP, 34 R, 51 H, 18 BB, 46 K, 0-3, 6.95 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 3.68 BB/9, 9.41 K/9) #14 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 1 G, 3.2 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 3 K (Season: 7 G, 6 GS, 24 IP, 17 R, 14 ER, 24 H, 13 BB, 28 K, 0-2, 5.25 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, 4.9 BB/9, 10.5 K/9) #15 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 6 G, 9-for-21 (.429), 2-2B, 0-3B, 3-HR, 6 RBI, 6 BB, 7 K (Season: 65 G, .285/.422/.570 (.922), 13-2B, 1-3B, 16-HR, 48 R, 49 RBI, 50 BB, 92 K) #16 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 5 G, 5-for-18 (.278), 1-2B, 0-HR, 2 R, 6 RBI, 5 BB, 5 K (Season: 47 G, .273/.421/.409 (.830), 7-2B, 1-3B, 4-HR, 24 R, 20 RBI, 41 BB, 53 K) #17 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 3 R, 0 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 6 K (Season: 8 G, 7 GS, 27.2 IP, 19 R, 31 H, 8 BB, 30 K, 0-4, 5.20 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 2.6 BB/9, 9.76 K/9) #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 6 G, 6-for-24 (.250), 2-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 8 K (Season: 66 G, .291/.357/.567 (.924), 20-2B, 3-3B, 16-HR, 43 R, 58 RBI, 25 BB, 78 K) #19 - Steve Hajjar (Ft. Myers) - On Injured List (Season: 9 GS, 35.1 IP, 10 R, 8 ER, 17 H, 19 BB, 59 K, 2-1, 2.04 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 4.8 BB/9, 15.0 K/9) #20 - David Festa (Ft. Myers) - (Season: 2 G, 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 K, (Season: 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 0.0 BB/9, 13.5 K/9) #20 - David Festa (Cedar Rapids) - 1 GS, 6 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 4 BB, 3 K (Season: 6 G, 4 GS, 30.2 IP, 7 ER, 22 H, 8 BB, 30 K, 3-0, 2.05 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 2.35 BB/9, 8.8 K/9) What's your takeaway from the past week across the farm? Be sure to comment and discuss below! View full article

The St. Paul Saints won in convincing fashion today thanks to a rebound performance from star prospect Spencer Steer. The Cedar Rapids Kernels and Fort Myers Mighty Mussels both played tight contests on the farm. Pierson Ohl and Aaron Rozek looked great on the bump. Take a look at the other Twins Territory happenings. Transactions: None to report SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 7, Buffalo 1 Box Score Top pitching prospect Jordan Balazovic got the start today for the Saints and worked three scoreless innings. He has put together shorter outings of late, but this one was a good one. He allowed just two hits and struck out three while walking none. Balazovic was lifted after 39 pitches. Roy Morales started the scoring for St. Paul when he singled in Spencer Steer in the top of the 3rd inning. After allowing Buffalo to knot things up in the 4th inning, the Saints came marching in during the 7th inning. A night after going 0-for-4, Steer blasted his 10th homer at Triple-A, a three run shot, to score both Michael Helman and Braden Bishop. Caleb Hamilton then lifted a dinger of his own to plate Jermaine Palacios and Morales, making it a 7-1 game. Steer and Morales were the lone Saints with multi-hit games on the evening. WIND SURGE WISDOM San Antonio 11, Wichita 4 (Resumption of Wednesday’s game) Box Score The Wind Surge resumed the first game tonight following a postponement in the 4th inning on Wednesday. It was played as a nine inning game with the originally schedule tilt being a seven-inning affair afterwards. Wichita 7, San Antonio 4 (F/7) Box Score Southpaw Blayne Enlow was on the bump for the shortened regularly scheduled game and he went 3 2/3 innings. Enlow gave up two runs on four hits while walking two and striking out three. The only damage against Enlow came on a 2nd inning homer. It took a few innings for Wichita to push a run across despite leading in the hit column, but Kevin Merrell tallied the first Wind Surge run when he singled in Cole Sturgeon during the bottom of the 4th inning. Just an inning later, Wichita got their first lead when Sturgeon singled in both Matt Wallner and Austin Martin. After seeing the lead evaporate in the 6th inning, Wichita buckled down and got back to work. With the bases loaded, Martin got plunked and drove in a run the hard way. Edouard Julien singled driving in both Daniel Ozoria and Wallner before a Sturgeon ground out brought in Martin. Pulling away and putting some distance behind them, Wichita was able to ride the three-run lead to a victory. KERNELS NUGGETS West Michigan 3, Cedar Rapids 2 Box Score Tonight was Aaron Rozek's turn on the bump for Cedar Rapids and he twirled a good one. Throwing five innings of one hit ball, Rozek kept West Michigan scoreless while allowing just two walks and punching out four. He lowered his ERA to 3.35 on the year. Runs were tough to come by, and that made Will Holland's double in the 4th inning that much more impactful. Scoring both Seth Gray and Yunior Severino, the two runs were enough to fend off a comeback from the Whitecaps. Cedar Rapids tallied just six hits on the evening. The lack of production bit the Kernels when West Michigan pushed two across in the top of the 9th inning. With Cedar Rapids trailing for the first time, Aaron Sabato doubled to lead off their last at bat. Stranded at third base though, that's as close as the comeback attempt came. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 6, Lakeland 4 Box Score Pierson Ohl took the ball tonight for the Mighty Mussels. He pitched six innings of one-run ball allowing just three hits and a walk. Ohl struck out eight and lowered his ERA to 4.70 on the season. Noah Cardenas started the scoring early with a 1st inning single allowing Noah Miller to cross the plate. Miller then followed suit in the 3rd inning when his single drove home Jake Rucker. After giving back a run on a 4th inning wild pitch, Fort Myers grabbed an insurance run in the 8th inning on a Rubel Cespedes single to score Cardenas. With the bases loaded, LaRon Smith drew a walk to score Cespedes, but that's where the scoring ended for the Mighty Mussels. Unfortunately Fort Myers watched their lead evaporate in the bottom of the 8th inning, and no team could push a run across in the 9th inning. Going to extras, Nelson Roberto launched his second homer of the season and gave the Mighty Mussels a two run lead as Cespedes began the inning on second. Things got dicey in the bottom half with Lakeland having runners on 2nd and 3rd and only one out but Matt Mullenbach came on to relieve Malik Barrington and slammed the door. Miller, Cespedes, Cardenas, and Smith all picked up two-hit nights. Smith recorded doubles for both of his. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Twins 6, FCL Pirates 5 Box Score Elpidio Perez pitched 2 1/3 innings of relief work to end this game and got the win. He allowed two hits, no runs, and punched out four. Gregory Duran and Andres Centeno both had two hits for the Twins. Centeno launched his first homer of the season and Alex Rodriguez hit his first dinger as a professional. DOMINICAN DAILIES DSL Twins 8, DSL Cubs Blue 3 Box Score Roger Duran got the win, improving to 3-0. He worked four innings of relief allowing just a single run. Harold Grant had a 2-for-3 night with a double after coming off the bench and taking over as the designated hitter. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Pierson Ohl (Ft. Myers) - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K Hitter of the Day – Spencer Steer - (St. Paul) - 2-4, 2B, HR(10), 2 R, 3 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 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 2-3, R, K #3 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - 0-2, BB, K #4 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K #7 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 2-4, 2B, HR(10), 2 R, 3 RBI #9 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 2-5, R , RBI #14 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 3.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K #15 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 1-1, 2 R, 3 BB #16 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1-4, 2 RBI, K #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 2 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Buffalo (6:05PM CST) - RHP Cole Sands San Antonio @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - RHP Casey Legumina West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - RHP Cade Povich Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games! It sure is exciting to have all four Twins full-season affiliates and the two Complex Season affiliates back and playing. View full article

The Kernels pitched a shutout on Friday, while the Wind Surge were shutout, and the Saints blasted four homers. Read all about that and more in this edition of the minor league report. TRANSACTIONS C Kyle Schmidt transferred to AA Wichita C Frank Nigro transferred to A+ Cedar Rapids OF Alex Kirilloff recalled by Twins INF Elliot Soto outrighted to AAA St. Paul C David Bañuelos placed on 7-day IL (Dislocated right finger) C Roy Morales reinstated from 7-day IL (Back spasms) RHP Daniel Gossett transferred to AA Wichita Saints Sentinel St. Paul 6, Columbus 5 Box Score Ariel Jurado: 3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, BB, 4 K HR: John Andreoli (4), Mark Contreras (7), Curtis Terry (6), Michael Helman (2) Multi-hit games: Michael Helman (3-for-5, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI), Curtis Terry (2-for-4, HR, R, RBI) St. Paul won a stressful game on Friday. The Saints took a democratic approach to hitting; every batter reached base at least once, and their four homers all came from a different source. John Andreoli hit the first bomb, while Mark Contreras followed suit with a two-run shot. Both home runs came in the 3rd inning. The Clippers did respond, though. The double Wills of Brenson and Brennan (sounds like a law firm) brought home enough runs to tie the game at three; Curtis Terry broke that tie with a solo home run in the 4th. The game entered a pure Cold War stalemate for a handful of innings before Michael Helman Tore Down That Wall with a crucial two-run homer in the top of the 9th inning. Columbus punched through Dereck Rodriguez’s Star Wars defense in the bottom of the inning, but the Saints held strong and walked away victorious. Rodriguez netted the final 15 outs in the game, allowing just two runs in support of Jurado and Hunter Wood. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 0, Tulsa 5 Box Score Blayne Enlow: 3 2/3 IP, H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None Wichita was shut out on Friday. The famous Dodgers minor league system quieted the Wind Surge bats, striking out 15 with an assortment of arms that would make any team jealous. Tulsa pitchers have given the Wind Surge fits since their inception, and this series has been no different. Bobby Miller did it the other day; Clayton Beeter did it on Friday. Austin Martin was not in the lineup, and perhaps Wichita lost important vibes because of it. Blayne Enlow continued his attempt at finding his footing again after losing crucial development time to injury. He was admirable, working 3 2/3 innings with two earned runs and four strikeouts for good measure. It’s clear that his command isn’t crisp like he would hope, but this is one step in a marathon for him. Alex Scherff was the only pitcher to walk away with an unharmed ERA on Friday, as he allowed no runs in his one inning of work. Matt Wallner hit lead-off, which reminded this author of the time Logan Morrison did the same; what a time that was, huh? Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 3, Dayton 0 Box Score Aaron Rozek: 5 2/3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None The Kernels won a shutout on Friday. Aaron Rozek was the man of the hour. The lefty held the Dragons to five baserunners over 5 2/3 IP with four strikeouts and, of course, no earned runs. The Dragons are no push-over, as they came into the game with a 38-21 record on the year. Cody Laweryson and Bradley Hanner slammed the door shut, netting the final 10 outs with a single hit allowed and six strikeouts. All three pitchers deserved a nice night out to celebrate their success on Friday; shutouts don't happen every day, after all. The Kernels’ bats did their job as well. They only needed one run, but they plated three off of a fielding error, a ground-rule double, and a wild pitch. In a form so ironic that Alanis Morissette would appreciate it, neither team allowed an earned run on Friday. This author cannot recall the last time they saw that occur in a baseball game. Despite the lack of runs, Cedar Rapids hitters took seven walks on top of their six hits; luck was their enemy in this game. Mussel Matters Fort Myers 8, Bradenton 3 Box Score Pierson Ohl: 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, BB, 5 K HR: Rubel Cespedes (1), Carlos Aguiar (2) Multi-hit games: Mikey Perez (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI), Kala’i Rosario (3-for-4, R), Luis Baez (2-for-4, RBI) Fort Myers cruised on Friday. The Mighty Mussels jumped out early in the 2nd inning thanks to the “ez” brothers—Mikey Perez doubled home a run, and Luis Baez singled home another. Those two represented an effective back-end of the lineup for Fort Myers on Friday; three of the bottom four hitters netted multiple hits. Bradenton ambushed Pierson Ohl in the 3rd, plating three runs off some piranha-like magic, including an RBI groundout and a two-run single. The 3rd inning proved to be the only one Ohl was not dominant in, and he settled in outside of that inning to not allow a run the rest of the way. While Ohl did his job, Malik Barrington and Juan Mendez ensured that the Marauders had no shot to return in the game. The two relievers combined for four effective innings with one hit allowed and an impressive eight strikeouts. Fort Myers pitchers struck out 13 hitters in total. The Mighty Mussels embodied the Earl Weaver approach to baseball and blasted a pair of three-run homers to bury Bradenton. Rubel Cespedes hit the first one, while Carlos Aguiar blasted one in the 8th inning for good measure. Complex Chronicles FCL Twins 2, FCL Red Sox 4 Box Score Brayan Medina: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Alexander Pena (2-for-4, 2 RBI) The FCL Twins took a loss six days in the making. The FCL Twins and FCL Red Sox were supposed to play on June 11th, but rain washed away any hope of playing that game beyond the 1st inning. Rehabbing starter and forgotten piece from the Lance Lynn trade, Luis Rijo, picked up where Bryana Medina left off, tossing two scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts. Former big-leaguer Daniel Robertson was also on a rehab assignment; he picked up a pair of walks. Alexander Pena provided all the runs for the FCL Twins, with his 1st inning single bringing home two baserunners. The two teams were supposed to play a second game, but it was canceled due to COVID. Dominican Dailies DSL Twins 2, DSL Giants Black 6 Box Score Oscar Paredes: ⅔ IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, K HR: Jose Rodriguez (2) Multi-hit games: None Jose Rodriguez provided all the offense for the DSL Twins with a 4th inning solo homer and an RBI groundout in the 6th. Cristian Jimenez struck out five over three innings of work. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Aaron Rozek, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Michael Helman, St. Paul Saints PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #3 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - In Progress. #7 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 1-5, K #9 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 0-3, R, 2 BB #14 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 3 ⅔ IP, H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K #15 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 1-2, BB, K #16 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1-3, BB, 2 K #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 1-2, 2 BB, K SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Columbus (4:05 PM) - RHP Jake Faria Wichita @ Tulsa (7:05 PM) - RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long Dayton @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM) - LHP Cade Povich Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM) - RHP Marco Raya View full article

The Twins have started the season well, but the injuries are piling up, and the organization’s depth is being tested. The Saints won a series at home last week, but the team of the week has to be the Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels who went 5-1 and thoroughly dominated their opponent. All teams sign minor-league veterans each offseason, hoping they help the Triple-A team, but knowing more of them than they would have guessed will have to come up to the big leagues. The Twins are currently in a position to have to do that again this week with all the injuries, Covid, and a trip to Canada creating issues. On the positive side of that, we get stories like Jermaine Palacios who signed with the Twins way back in 2013. He made himself into a quality prospect and was traded to the Rays before the 2018 season in the Jake Odorizzi deal. He became a minor-league free agent after the 2020 season. Despite offers from other organizations, Palacios returned to the Twins. He spent 2021 in Wichita. He has been solid in a utility role in St. Paul this year. And on Tuesday, he is making his MLB debut at shortstop for the Twins in Detroit. What a story! If you missed it, read Nick's Twins Week in Review after you've read about the minor league week. TRANSACTIONS With no Monday Minor League Report, here are the transactions from later on Sunday and on Monday. Royce Lewis was placed on the IL. Jose Miranda was recalled from St. Paul. LHP Denny Bentley and C Jair Camargo were promoted from Cedar Rapids to Wichita. OF Kennie Taylor was sent back to the Kernels. Cole Sands is the 27th man for the Twins today. Jermaine Palacios called up to the Twins. The Twins have signed John Andreoli and assigned him to the Saints. With Alex Kirilloff and Mark Contreras with the Twins on the taxi squad, the Saints need outfield help. Andreoli has MLB time with the Orioles and Mariners in 2018 and with the Padres in 2021. He was recently released by the Phillies organization. You may recall, the UConn alum played for the Rochester Red Wings in 2019. Michael Helman was also promoted from Wichita to St. Paul RESULTS Previous Week in Review (5/17-5/23):Steer Navigates Wichita, Sent to Saints Tuesday: Offenses Explode in Series Openers Wednesday: Cavaco Carries Mussels to Big Win Thursday: Stars Shine in St. Paul, Schmidt Goes Off in Florida Friday: Saints Walk it Off Saturday: Tons of Offense Sunday: Saints Walk Off, Wind Surge Split Series in Corpus Christi MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Spencer Steer Closing in on the Twins Twins Prospects Being Slept On One Twins Pitching Prospect on the Rise All Arms on Deck: Should the Twins Accelerate Matt Canterino? Royce Lewis vs. Alex Kirilloff: Who’s Next in Line? Royce Lewis is Grateful to be Playing Again Everyday After Missing Two Seasons Royce Lewis Suffers a Bone Bruise in his Knee Schulfer Finally Promoted to St. Paul WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Week: 4-3, hosting Indianapolis Season: 20-27 overall, 9th place out of ten teams in the International League West. They are 12 1/2 games behind Nashville. It was a rough couple of weeks on the road for the Saints. They came into last week having lost 11 games on their 12-game road trip. They returned to CHS Field for a seven-game series against the Pirates Triple-A affiliate. They actually lost the first two games of the series. But they won the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader and then their next two as well. A winning week is a good thing and hopefully can propel them going forward. The challenge is the big-league club has been decimated by injuries, Covid, and a trip to Canada this weekend which tears up the Saints’ roster. The Saints’ bats put up 49 runs in the seven games. The pitchers gave up 50 runs. Spencer Steer made a strong first impression in his first week in Triple-A. He played all seven games and went 7-for-25, hitting .280/.400/.550 (.950) with a double and two home runs. He walked four times (even once intentionally), and struck out just three times. Jermaine Palacios played in six games. He went 8-for-23 and hit .348/.400/.609 (1.009) with three doubles, a homer, and seven RBI. He walked twice and stole a base. Jake Cave played in six games. He went 8-for-27 and hit .296/.296/.630 (.926) with a double, a triple, two home runs, and eight RBI. He ended the week by providing a walk-off hit for the Saints. Ian Hamilton pitched in three games. He tossed 3 1/3 scoreless innings and gave up just one hit. He hit one batter, walked none and struck out three batters. Jordan Gore worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings over three appearances. He gave up three hits and walked three batters, but was able to work out of it. Mario Sanchez gave up one run on four hits in six innings during his start last week. He struck out five batters without a walk. Cole Sands came off the IL last Tuesday and tossed three scoreless, one-hit innings. He was scheduled to start again on Sunday, but he was pulled from that start so that he can start Game 2 for the Twins in their doubleheader on Tuesday in Detroit. What’s Next? The Saints head down to Des Moines to take on the Iowa Cubs (23-24). Pitching Probables (RHP Jordan Balazovic, RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez, RHP Mario Sanchez, RHP Ronny Henriquez, RHP Dereck Rodriguez, TBD) Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Week: 3-3, at Corpus Christi Season: 26-17 overall, 2nd place in the Texas League North Division. They remain just 1/2 game behind Tulsa (27-17). The Wind Surge made the long trek south to Corpus Christi and split the six-game series. Wichita scored 44 runs in the six games and gave up 42 runs. Two of their losses came in one-run games while just one of their wins did. They also had a two-run win. Here are some of the top performances for the Wind Surge this past week: Evan Sisk provided some great work out of the bullpen. Over three appearances, he threw five scoreless innings. He gave up two hits, walked one and struck out seven batters. He had a Win and two Holds. Austin Schulfer made two more appearances for the Wind Surge. He gave up two hits over 2 1/3 scoreless innings before being promoted to St. Paul finally. But not before posting a 0.39 ERA for Wichita this season. Matt Canterino’s start this past week was a bit of a microcosm of his season to this point. He showed dominant stuff, striking out six batters over 2 1/3 innings. He gave up only an unearned run. He is wisely being limited with pitches and up-downs. This week, he fought his control with four walks. Kody Funderburk worked 4 2/3 innings out of the bullpen. He gave up one run on two hits. He walked two and struck out three batters. Chris Williams ended the week on a 12-game hitting streak. In four games last week, the catcher went 5-for-15 and hit .333/.444/.857 (1.311) with two doubles, two homers, and six RBI. He added three walks. Another week, another Matt Wallner sighting. The Forest Lake alum played in all six games. He went 7-for-22 and hit .318/.464/.773 (1.237 with a double, three home runs, and nine RBI. He also walked five times and had a stolen base for good measure. Leobaldo Cabrera played all six games. He went 6-for-23 and hit .261/.346/.522 (.868) with two homers and nine RBI. What’s Next? The Wind Surge return home for six games against Frisco. . . Pitching Probables (RHP Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP Blayne Enlow, RHP Matt Canterino, RHP Casey Legumina, RHP Louie Varland, RHP Simeon Woods Richardson) High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Week: 3-3, hosting Wisconsin Season: 29-16 overall, 1st place in the Midwest League West Division, 1.0 games ahead of Wisconsin (28-17). They are two games ahead of South Bend (27-18) It was a highly competitive week of games between the top two teams in the division. The two teams split the six-game series. Only one of the games was decided by less than four runs. The Kernels had wins of 13-2 and 9-0 among the first three games. Cedar Rapids would win a game and take a two-game division lead, but the Rattlers followed with a win to bring it back to a one-game difference. The Kernels outscored Wisconsin 38-23. He is playing all over the diamond, but that is certainly not hurting Anthony Prato at the plate. In six games last week, he went 10-for-25 and hit .400/.483/.720 (1.203) with a double, two triples, and a home run. The table-setter at the top of the order walked four times and scored nine runs in the six-game series. Aaron Sabato brought back a bit of a leg kick and closed his stance a little, and the results were positive last week. In six games, he went 8-for-25 and hit .320/.393/.640 (1.033) with two doubles, two homers and eight RBI. Will Holland has had a very solid May. In five games last week, he went 6-for-18 and hit .333/.429/.500 (.929) with a double, a triple, and three RBI. He also went 3-for-3 in stolen base attempts. Aaron Rozek got the Kernels off to a good start for the week. The lefty tossed five shutout innings in his start. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out two batters. Sawyer Gipson-Long had a strong start on Thursday. He gave up just two hits over six scoreless innings. While he walked four, he also struck out seven batters. David Festa pitched four innings, piggybacking after Brent Headrick, on Saturday. He gave up just one run on a solo homer. Seven Kernels relievers pitched without allowing a run. Miguel Rodriguez and Andrew Cabezas tossed three scoreless, hitless innings. Bradley Hanner, Derek Molina, and Ryan Shreve each tossed two scoreless innings. What’s Next? The Kernels will travel to Lansing for six games this week. . Pitching Probables (LHP Cade Povich, RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long, RHP John Stankiewicz, RHPDavid Festa, LHP Brent Headrick, RHP Sean Mooney/LHP Aaron Rozek) Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Week: 5-1, @ Bradenton Season: 30-14 overall, 1st place in the Florida State League West, 7.0 games ahead of Clearwater (23-21). Ft. Myers certainly flexed their Mussels last week on the road in Bradenton. They won the first five games of the series before a 4-2 loss on Sunday. They outscored the Marauders 45-15 during the week with their five wins being by an average of more than six runs. They scored nine or more runs four times, and there were some impressive performances from the hitters, and the pitchers too. For the second straight week, 2021 second-round pick Steve Hajjar did not allow a run. He gave up two hits and walked a batter over 5 2/3 scoreless innings. He had one walk and ten strikeouts. Pierson Ohl has improved each time he’s pitched this season. Last week, he gave up only one hit over five shutout innings. He walked one and struck out seven batters. Marco Raya gave up two runs (1 earned) over five innings. He walked one and struck out seven. Mike Paredes gave up two runs on three hits in five innings. He struck out seven batters without issuing a walk. Seven Mussels relievers did not allow an earned run last week. Matt Mullenbach returned to the roster. He gave up only an unearned run over four innings in two outings. Kyle Schmidt continues to do a nice job with the young, talented pitching staff, and he’s provided some pop every now and then too. In three games last week, he went 4-for-12 (.333) with a double, two homers and five RBI. Emmanuel Rodriguez played in five games. He went 6-for-18 and hit .333/.500/.667 (1.167) with two home runs and five RBI. He also walked six times. Keoni Cavaco had another strong week. The 20-year-old played in all six games. He went 8-for-24 and hit .333/.407/.625 (1.032) with two doubles, a triple, a homer, and seven RBI. Noah Miller played in five games. He went 6-for-20 and hit .400/.478/.600 (.978) with two doubles. He walked three times, and he stole three more bases. Kala’i Rosario went 6-for-19 and hit .316/.381/.579 (.960) with two doubles, a homer and five RBI. What’s Next? The Mighty Mussels will return home to take on Tampa. Never too early to start beating the Yankees! Pitching Probables (RHP Mike Paredes, LHP Steve Hajjar, RHP Marco Raya, LHP Jaylen Nowlin,, RHP Travis Adams, RHP Pierson Ohl) PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated on the first of each month throughout the season. #1 - Royce Lewis (St. Paul) - 6 G, 8-for-28 (.286), 0-2B, 1-HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 7 K (Season: 34 G, .313/.405/.534 (.940), 12-2B, 1-3B, 5-HR, 30 R, 14 RBI, 18 BB, 32 K) #1 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 1 G, 0-for-1 (.000), 0-2B, 0-HR, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (Season: 12 G, .300/.317/.550 (.867), 4-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K) #2 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 5 G, 6-for-23 (.261), 1-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K (Season: 40 G, .258/.377/.333 (.710), 7-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 31 R, 14 RBI, 22 BB, 25 K, 20 SB, 2 CS) #3 - Joe Ryan (Minnesota) - Covid IL (Season: 8 GS, 43.1 IP, 11 R, 29 H, 14 BB, 42 K, 5-2, 2.28 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 8.7 K/9) #4 - Jose Miranda (St. Paul) - In MLB (Season: 21 G, .256/.295/.442 (.737), 10-2B, 2-HR, 10 R, 12 RBI, 5 BB, 14 K) #4 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - Week: 4 G, 6-for-11 (.545), 2-2B, 1-HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K (Season: 20 G, .183/.216/.338 (.554), 5-2B, 2-HR, 5 R, 7 RBI, 2 BB, 14 K) #5 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 3.1 IP, 5 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 3 K (Season: 4 GS, 13.0 IP, 18 R, 14 ER, 22 H, 8 BB, 12 K, 0-2, 9.69 ERA, 2.31 WHIP, 5.5 BB/9, 8.3 K/9) #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - 1 GS, 4.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 6 K (Season: 8 GS, 41.2 IP, 15 R, 14 ER, 29 H, 14 BB, 42 K, 2-2, 3.02 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9, 9.1 K/9) #7 - Josh Winder (Minnesota) - Covid IL (Season: 7 G, 3 GS, 29.1 IP, 14 R, 12 ER, 27 H, 9 BB, 23 K, 2-2, 3.68 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9, 7.1 K/9) #8 - Jhoan Duran (Minnesota) - 2 G, 2.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K (Season: 17 G, 22.1 IP, 6 R, 14 H, 4 BB, 32 K, 0-1, 4 Saves, 2.42 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 1.6 BB/9, 12.9 K/9) #9 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - 1 GS, 2.1 IP, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 H, 4 BB, 6 K (Season: 10 G, 9 GS, 30.2 IP, 8 R, 7 ER, 14 H, 18 BB, 46 K, 0-1, 2.05 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 5.3 BB/9, 13.5 K/9) #10 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) - 5 G, 6-for-18 (.333), 0-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 RBI, 6 BB, 8 K (Season: 40 G, .250/.471/.475 (.946), 4-2B, 1-3B, 7-HR, 30 R, 19 RBI, 47 BB, 49 K) #11 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 5 G, 8-for-20 (.400), 2-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 3 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K (Season: 39 G, .288/.419/.397 (.816), 6-2B, 2-3B, 2 HR, 31 R, 11 RBI, 31 BB, 44 K) #12 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 2 GS, 9.2 IP, 4 ER, 8 H, 9 BB, 10 K (Season: 9 G, 8 GS, 47.1 IP, 22 R, 19 ER, 38 H, 22 BB, 53 K, 4-1, 3.61 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 4.2 BB/9, 10.1 K/9) #13 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 3.0 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K (Season: 6 G, 5 GS, 18.2 IP, 15 R, 23 H, 6 BB, 21 K, 0-4, 7.23 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 10.1 K/9) #13 - Cole Sands (Minnesota) - (Season: 2 G, 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 K, 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 0.0 BB/9, 13.5 K/9) #14 - Ronny Henriquez (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 4.2 IP, 5 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 8 K (Season: 7 G, 5 GS, 24.2 IP, 21 R, 27 H, 12 BB, 25 K, 0-2, 7.66 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, 4.4 BB/9, 9.1 K/9) #15 - Marco Raya (Ft. Myers) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K (Season: 7 G, 6 GS, 29.0 IP, 11 R, 8 ER, 23 H, 9 BB, 31 K, 3-1, 2.48 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9, 9.6 K/9) #16 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - (Season: 35 G, .307/.385/.558 (.976), 13-2B, 1-3B, 8-HR, 27 R, 30 RBI, 14 BB, 23 K) #16 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 7 G, 7-for-25 (.280), 1-2B, 2-HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB, 3 K (Season: 7 G, .280/.400/.560 (.960), 1-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 R, 4 RBI, 14 BB, 23 K) #17 - Cade Povich (Cedar Rapids) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 3 R, 3 H, 2 BB, 9 K (Season: 7 GS, 32.2 IP, 17 R, 13 ER, 27 H, 9 BB, 46 K, 3-3, 3.58 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 12.9 K/9) #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 6 G, 5-for-24 (.208), 0-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K (Season: 43 G, .304/.365/.526 (.891), 8-2B, 3-3B, 8-HR, 26 R, 39 RBI, 16 BB, 48 K) #19 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1 G, 0-for-1 (.000), 0-2B, 0-HR, 0 BB, 0 K (Season: 24 G, .270/.434/.392 (.826), 4-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 14 R, 10 RBI, 23 BB, 21 K) #20 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 1 GS, 3.0 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 4 BB, 3 K (Season: 3 GS, 10.2 IP, 10 R, 9 ER, 13 H, 4 BB, 15 K, 0-0, 7.59 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, 5.4 BB/9, 5.4 K/9) PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Hitter of the Week: Outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels This is the second player of the week honor for Rodriguez. He was the choice for Hitter of the Month in April, and he’s been solid again in May. A week ago he went 0-for-12 for the week, but he walked 10 times, continuing to show a much better strike zone management. And, the Florida State Leagues is typically not beneficial for hitters, but he has performed and shown his immense power. Rodriguez played in five games last week in Bradenton. He went 6-for-18 and hit .333/.500/.667 (1.167) for the week. In 40 games this season, he is hitting .250/.471/.475 (.946) with four doubles, a triple, and seven home runs. He has 49 strikeouts, but he also has 47 walks. And for good measure, he’s got ten stole bases. Rodriguez signed with the Twins in July 2019 for $2.5 million out of Santiago. He was unable to make his debut until 2021. Last year, in 37 FCL Twins games, he hit .214/346/.524 (.870) with five doubles, two triples, and 10 home runs. He also stole nine bases. Pitcher of the Week: RHP Pierson Ohl, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Pierson Ohl was the Twins 14th round draft pick in 2021 out of Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. He had gone to a small high school in Simi Valley, California, and decided to join his brother Carson in college. As a junior last year, he went 10-2 with a 2.60 ERA over 16 games (15 starts). He had 103 strikeouts to go with just 12 walks in 100 1/3 innings. After signing, he pitched in one game in the FCL. He made his full-season debut in 2022 on the Mighty Mussels Opening Day roster. He has experienced ups and downs already. Twice In three of his seven starts, he has given up four or five runs. In his four other starts, he’s given up one run or less. Last Tuesday, he had the best start of the season. He tossed five scoreless innings. He gave up one hit, walked one and struck out seven batters. Overall, Ohl is 2-2 with a 5.33 ERA. In 27 innings, he has walked just six and struck out 25 batters. Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the players and the teams in the COMMENTS below. View full article

There were runs in bunches for Minnesota Twins affiliates on Tuesday, led by an unforgiving onslaught in Cedar Rapids. While one team wasn’t quite able to hold on, falling in extra innings, they combined to outhit their opponents 45-25 on a night filled with big hitting performances. TRANSACTIONS The St. Paul Saints received LHP Danny Coulombe to continue his rehab assignment, and also activated RHP Cole Sands, who made the start on Tuesday. SAINTS SENTINEL Indianapolis 8, St. Paul 5 (11 innings) Box Score The Saints struck first in their series opener with Indianapolis, taking a 3-0 lead after two innings when Roy Morales cleared the bases with a two-out double, his first of the season. Curtis Terry made it 4-0 after three with a sac fly that scored Alex Kirilloff, who had singled to lead off the inning. Right-hander Cole Sands was activated before the game and kept Indianapolis off the scoreboard for the first three innings. He allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out three in his return from the injured list. Danny Coulombe followed to start the fourth and continue his rehab assignment in triple-A. With two outs, he surrendered a solo home run that made it 4-1 and then a double, but escaped any further damage with a strikeout to end the inning. In the bottom of the fifth St. Paul added another run when Royce Lewis started the inning by reaching on an error, moved to third on a Kirilloff single, then scampered home on a double-play grounder from Spencer Steer. In his first game with the Saints, Steer was batting third in the lineup playing second base, and reached base multiple times. He would finish his triple-A debut 1-for-4 with a walk. The top of the sixth is where fortunes started to change for the home team. Jake Faria came on to start the fifth and delivered a scoreless inning, but couldn’t overcome a leadoff double, walk, and throwing error on a double-steal in the sixth that made it 5-3. In the seventh Faria got two outs around a walk, but was lifted for Jovani Moran, who promptly gave up a game-tying home run. Moran would stay in the game and delivered a scoreless eighth, but the lineup wasn’t able to mount any rallies, sending it to extra innings. Juan Minaya got the ball for the ninth and tenth innings, keeping the game tied in the first extra inning, but after getting two outs in the eleventh, a walk brought in JC Ramirez from the bullpen. Three walks and a single later Indianapolis had an 8-5 lead the Saints weren’t able to come back from. Kirilloff led the way for the lineup with a pair of hits in five at-bats, while Steer and Terry each reached base multiple times. Despite the good start, they finished 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position and had only one extra-base-hit on the game, and thus were unable to put it out of reach after the early lead. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 8, Corpus Christi 3 Box Score The Wind Surge were also able to jump on the Hooks early, scoring runs in each of the first three innings to go ahead 5-1 after three. Austin Martin and Michael Helman started the game by drawing walks, and would score on an Alex Isola single and double-play ground ball off the bat of Matt Wallner. In the second it was Leobaldo Cabrera’s third home run of the season that added two more, then in the third an RBI double from Wallner made it 5-1. Louie Varland took the mound for Wichita, and was unceremoniously greeted by a solo home run on his second pitch of the game. He would go on to fight through a couple of threats, finishing 4 2/3 innings, being charged with two earned runs on four hits, four walks, and striking out six. They tried really hard to get him through the fifth to be in line for his fifth win of the season, but a pair of walks leading to a run in his final frame had him up to 97 pitches, prompting his exit. Kody Funderburk came on and got the Wind Surge through the next six outs. He allowed one run of his own on two hits and two walks, while striking out two to get credited with the win. Evan Sisk went 1 1/3 scoreless after him, allowing one hit and striking out two. Austin Schulfer got the final three outs, striking out two in a scoreless ninth. Wichita added single runs in each of the sixth, eighth, and ninth innings to keep the game out of reach for Corpus Christi. Martin and Cabrera had RBI singles, while Helman launched his fifth home run of the season to account for those runs. Helman finished the day 1-for-3 with three runs scored and two walks, in addition to the home run. Wallner (2-for-5, 2B, RBI) and Cabrera (2-for-4, R, HR, 3 RBI) each had multiple hits in the win. KERNELS NUGGETS Wisconsin 2, Cedar Rapids 13 Box Score While they didn’t score in the opening frame, the Kernels put this one out of reach early as well, with crooked numbers in four consecutive innings to go up 11-0 before the Timber Rattlers could respond. Kyler Fedko got it started with an RBI single in the second, which was followed by a two-RBI triple from Anthony Prato. A Jair Camargo two-run homer and Fedko sac fly brought in three more in the third. In the fourth frame, Aaron Sabato and Camargo each notched RBI singles, before a two-RBI triple from Christian Encarnacion-Strand and another single from Sabato capped the 11 run explosion in the fifth. The Timber Rattlers were held scoreless until the seventh inning, as the Kernels got a solid outing from starter Aaron Rozek to pick up his fifth win of the season. He went five innings, allowing no runs on three hits and three walks while striking out two. Derek Molina pitched a scoreless sixth inning before a pair of doubles against Denny Bentley in the seventh finally got the visitors on the scoreboard. Bentley would record four outs, allowing one run on two hits and a walk, along with striking out two. Melvi Acosta finished off the final 1 2/3 innings, allowing an unearned run on a hit and walk. He struck out one. Encarnacion-Strand put an exclamation point on the game with his eighth home run of the season in the eighth inning, making the final score of 13-2 in favor of the good guys. All nine hitters in the Cedar Rapids lineup reached base in the game, with Prato (4-for-5, 3 R, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, BB) falling a home run short of the cycle to lead the way. Encarnacion-Strand (2-for-6, 3 R, 3B, HR, 3 RBI), Sabato (2-for-5, R, 2 RBI, BB), and Camargo (3-for-5, R, HR, 2 RBI, BB) all finished with multiple hits in the blowout effort as well. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 9, Bradenton 3 Box Score In a continuing theme for the night, the Mighty Mussels jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in this one, but they never looked back, tacking on four more runs late to keep the Marauders at bay. Mikey Perez got them on the board in the top of the first with a run-scoring double, his ninth of the season. They tacked on four more in the second after Keoni Cavaco led off the frame with a triple. He would score on a wild pitch, then a couple more walks loaded the bases and scored another before Emmanuel Rodriguez delivered a two-run single. Right-hander Pierson Ohl took the bump and was fantastic for the first five innings. He allowed just one hit and one walk while punching out seven. He faced the minimum until his two-out walk in the fifth inning, as left fielder Dylan Neuse cut down a runner trying to stretch a single into a double in the third. Ohl was efficient as well, throwing just 65 pitches (39 for strikes, 13 swinging) in his five frames to pick up his second win of the season. Juan Mendez gave up a pair of runs to Bradenton in the sixth thanks to three walks and a hit, but also struck out two. Matt Mullenbach allowed an unearned run on two hits in two innings of relief, striking out three. Hunter McMahon finished the game with a scoreless ninth, striking out one. Fort Myers broke the game open in the eighth, thanks to a two-run home run from Kala'i Rosario, and a two-run single from Noah Miller. Rodriguez (2-for-2, 2 RBI, 3 BB), Perez (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI), Cavaco (2-for-5, 2 R, 3B), Rosario (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB) and Miller (2-for-4, R, 3 RBI, BB) all collected two hits on the game in a 12 hit effort. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Pierson Ohl, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (W, 5 IP, H, BB, 7 K) Hitter of the Day - Anthony Prato, Cedar Rapids Kernels (4-for-5, 3 R, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY #1 - Royce Lewis (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, R, 3 K (played SS) #2 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 1-for-4, R, RBI, BB #4 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - 2-for-3, 2B #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - #8 - Jhoan Duran (Minnesota) - Save (4), IP, H #10 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Fort Myers) - 2-for-2, 2 RBI, 3 BB #11 - Noah Miller (Fort Myers) - 2-for-4, R, 3 RBI, BB, K #12 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 4 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 4 BB, 6 K #13 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - 3 IP, H, BB, 3 K #16 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, K #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-6, 2 R, 3B, HR, 3 RBI WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Indianapolis @ St. Paul (5:07 PM CDT), Game 1 - RHP Jordan Balazovic (0-1, 8.38 ERA) Indianapolis @ St. Paul, Game 2 - RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-2, 3.45 ERA) Wichita @ Corpus Christi (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (2-1, 2.39 ERA) Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (12:05 PM CDT) - LHP Cade Povich (3-2, 3.25 ERA) Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 PM CDT) - RHP Mike Paredes (0-1, 2.66 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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The Minnesota Twins won their sixth-straight game Tuesday, beating the Tigers 2-0. Sonny Gray was marvelous, delivering seven shutout innings while striking out 10 batters. Tonight’s system recap includes highlights from that Twins victory plus an overview of some of the top performers in the minor leagues, including Evan Sisk, Austin Schulfer, Michael Helman and Anthony Prato. View full video

A bevy of promotions this week have left the St. Paul Saints offense without many of their key bats. Wichita and Fort Myers crush, Cedar Rapids gets popped. TRANSACTIONS SS Royce Lewis promoted to Minnesota Twins 1B/OF Alex Kirilloff activated from IL, promoted to Minnesota Twins RHP Cole Sands promoted to Minnesota Twins LHP Jovani Moran optioned to Triple-A St. Paul INF Kevin Merrell promoted to Triple-A St. Paul from Double-A Wichita SS Daniel Robertson placed on IL (concussion) SAINTS SENTINEL Iowa 6, St. Paul 2 Box Score The Saints suddenly found themselves without multiple key members of their offense on Friday as Royce Lewis and Alex Kirilloff were sent across town to join José Miranda, Trevor Larnach and Gilberto Celestino with the parent squad. As such, St. Paul struggled to drive home runs despite registering eight hits against the Cubs. Caleb Hamilton hit his first home run of the spring—on the same night Miranda hit his first MLB dinger; I guess you could say that neither athlete was going to miss their shot—and drove in the team’s only runs. Cole Sturgeon and Curtis Terry each contributed two hits, with all four being singles. Jake Faria tossed the first four innings for the Saints but struggled to keep the ball in the park. He surrendered two home runs and four earned runs in the loss. Juan Minaya, Jordan Gore, Trevor Megill, and Jharel Cotton struckout six and allowed only one earned run in five innings of relief. WIND SURGE WISDOM Game 1: Wichita 7, Tulsa 2 Game 2: Wichita 10, Tulsa 0 Game 1 Box Score Game 2 Box Score It finally stopped raining long enough in Kansas on Friday for the Wind Surge and Drillers to fit in two contests, with the Twins’ Double-A affiliate coming out on top in both. Game one featured brothers and Minnesota natives Louie and Gus Varland facing off against one another on the mound. Louie pitched five innings and struck out six, though he did give up two runs. Gus didn’t fare quite as well, allowing six earned runs in only three innings. Still, it was a night that neither brother nor the entire family will forget. Matt Wallner (1-for-2, 3 RBI) and Spencer Steer (2-for-4, 2 RBI) each went deep in the first contest while Edouard Julien (2-for-3, BB) drove in the Wind Surge’s other two runs. Alex Scherff and Evan Sisk each threw a scoreless inning in relief. Wallner topped his performance in the first game with an even more dominant showing in the second. He finished the game 4-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, and four RBI, raising his batting average to a respectable .243 and OPS to .896. He has now hit 14-for-29 with three doubles and five home runs since beginning the season 3-for-41. Andrew Bechtold clobbered his third home run of the season while Julien contributed another 2-for-3 game with two RBI and a walk. Matt Canterino pitched four scoreless innings with four strikeouts for Wichita. Ben Gross was credited with the win following 1 ⅔ scoreless innings in relief. Austin Schulfer pitched the final 1 ⅓ and picked up three strikeouts. KERNELS NUGGETS Quad Cities 6, Cedar Rapids 2 Box Score The Kernels mustered only three hits against the River Bandits, though two of them went for extra bases. Anthony Prato hit a solo home run—his third of the spring—and Jeferson Morales’ double drove in the team’s only other score. Aaron Rozek’s string of rough outings continued on Friday as the lefty served up two more home runs and surrendered five earned runs in four innings. Bradley Hanner and Melvi Acosta each pitched two innings in relief, striking out four and allowing one more run. Tyler Palm pitched a scoreless ninth. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 9, Lakeland 1 Box Score The Might Mussel’s bats exploded for nine runs on 15 hits on Friday to pick up the win. Noah Miller had himself a particularly good game, going 3-for-5 at the plate with a double, home run, and three RBI. Kyler Fedko (2-for-3, 2 BB, 2 R), Keoni Cavaco (2-for-5, RBI), Jake Rucker (2-for-5, 2 2B, RBI), and Daniel Ozoria (3-for-5) also put forth multi-hit efforts. The Fort Myers pitching staff—led by starter Pierson Ohl, who earned the win—pitched a gem, striking out five and allowing only six Flying Tigers to reach base. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – RHP Matt Canterino (Wichita): 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K Hitter of the Day – RF Matt Wallner (Wichita): 5-for-6, 2 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #1 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 2-for-6, SB #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 1-for-4 #3 - Jose Miranda (Minnesotal) - 1-for-3, HR, RBI, BB #6 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K #9 - Josh Winder (Minnesota) - 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 8 K #10 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 3-for-5, 2B, HR, 3 RBI #11 - Gilberto Celestino (Minnesota) - 1-for-4 #12 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 5-for-6, 2 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI #14 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K #15 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) -1-for-4, BB, R #18 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - 3-for-8, HR, 2 RBI #19 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 4-for-6, 4 RBI, 2 BB SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul vs. Iowa( 2:07 PM CST) - RHP Mario Sanchez (1-0, 2.92 ERA) Wichita vs. Tulsa (6:05 PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (2-0, 0.00 ERA) Cedar Rapids vs. Quad Cities (6:35 PM CST) - LHP Cade Povich (1-1, 4.50 ERA) Fort Myers vs. Clearwater (5:00 PM CST) - TBD View full article