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During a short season, it can be challenging for hitters to separate themselves from other players at their level. In one of this season's closest voting results, each of the top three candidates was considered for the Twins Daily Short-Season Hitter of the Year. Image courtesy of Instagram (graphics by Thieres Rabelo) Minnesota signed Jose Rodriguez as part of the 2022 international signing period. At the time, the Twins were signing other players for higher signing bonuses, which may have helped Rodriguez fly under the radar. As a 17-year-old, Minnesota had him spend the entire season in the Dominican Summer League, where he showed why he might be a prospect to keep an eye on in the years to come. The DSL Twins started their season in June, and Rodriguez slowly started to see his bat warm up. In his first 18 games, he went 17-for-61 (.279 BA) with three doubles, two triples, and two home runs. For the month, he had three games with three or more hits. It was an impressive start to the season, especially since he faced older pitchers in all but 12 of his plate appearances this year. July was Rodriguez's most impressive month as he hit .333/.414/.747 (1.161) with eight doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. He added on three stolen bases and a 19-to-10 strikeout to walk ratio. Rodriguez had a 14-game on-base streak that saw him go 22-for-52 (.423 BA) with 14 extra-base hits. In August, he posted a .919 OPS with nine extra-base hits in 15 games. To end the season on a strong note, Rodriguez went 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBI on August 18th. Ranking teenage prospects before they sign can be challenging for evaluators, but Rodriguez showed he might have been a steal from last year's signing class. Runner-Up: Ricardo Olivar, C/OF Rookie League Stats (40 G): .349/.442/.605 (1.046), 12 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 23 RBI Olivar has a unique skill set as the Twins use him as a catcher and an outfielder. His bat is so good that there is no wonder the team wants him in the lineup as much as possible. Last season, he struggled in his professional debut with a .686 OPS in 34 games for the FCL Twins. In July and August this season, he combined to hit .344/.446/.677 (1.123) with 18 extra-base hits in 27 games. His performance earned him a September promotion to Fort Myers, where he played three games, including a 2-for-4 effort in his final appearance. Second Runner-Up: Yasser Mercedes, OF DSL Stats (41 G): .355/.421/.555 (.975), 13 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 20 RBI, 30 SB Mercedes ranked as one of the best international prospects in this year's signing class, and he showcased all of his tools in his professional debut. He hit for average and power, played terrific outfield defense, and stole 30 bases in 41 games. Mercedes had multiple hits in 16 games, and he saw his OPS increase each month of the season. He's one of the team's top prospects, and he should rise on prospect rankings this winter based on his professional debut. Honorable Mentions: Rafael Cruz, 1B/3B (FCL/DSL): .297/.398/.558 (.956), 8 2B, 4 3B, 9 HR Cruz saw his OPS jump over 370 points in his second professional season. Alexander Pena, 1B/3B (FCL): .317/.374/.537 (.910), 7 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR Pena repeated the FCL as a 20-year-old but saw a significant increase in his power production this season. Bryan Acuna, SS (DSL): .310/.409/.393 (.803) 12 2B, 0 HR, 9 SB, 20 BB Acuna showed he can hit for average and draw walks, and his power will develop as he adds to his frame. Anderson Nova, OF (DSL): .355/.465/.476 (.932) 8 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR Nova drew 21 walks in 40 games to help boost his OBP, which is good to see from a 17-year-old. Which players will most likely impact the Twins down the road? Who would you vote as the short-season hitter of the year? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. PREVIOUS WINNERS: 2016 - Lewin Diaz 2017 - Akil Baddoo 2018 - Chris Williams 2019 - Matt Wallner 2021 - Kala’i Rosario View full article

Just the short-season affiliates were in action today, but only one of them was able to make the contest much of a game. The Dominican Summer League team played something like a football game, and the score leaves plenty to be desired. TRANSACTIONS RHP Aaron Sanchez contract selected by Minnesota Twins from Triple-A St. Paul OF Mark Contreras recalled from Triple-A St. Paul RHP Yennier Cano optioned to Triple-A St. Paul C Jose Godoy DFA'd by Minnesota Twins COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Twins 11, FCL Orioles 7 Box Score Former New York Yankees pitcher Ben Heller continues to build back up in the minors. Having not pitched since 2020, he remains with the FCL club. Today he worked two innings giving up an earned run on no hits while walking four and striking out three. Down 1-0 after the first inning, Malfrin Sosa put the Twins in the lead in the third with a two-run blast, his first of the year. Allowing the Orioles to take back the lead in the bottom half, the Twins broke out in a big way during the 4th inning. With the bases loaded Breilin Ramirez walked and pushed Wilfri Castro across the plate. Malfrin Sosa then grounded out but drove in Rafael Cruz to retake the lead 4-3. Willie Joe Garry Jr. lifted a single to left, scoring Yonardy Soto and a Ricardo Olivar single then brought Sosa across the plate. After the Orioles cut the lead back down to one, 6-5 through six innings, Castro singled home Olivar and Danny De Andrade to again provide some breathing room. In the 8th inning, Olivar crushed his fourth homer of the year, a three-run shot, to make it 11-5 and hopefully put things out of reach. Unfortunately the Orioles had other plans and added two in the 8th inning and two in the 9th inning making it 11-9. Another update on the card market similar to Carlos Aguiar's Bowman's from a couple of weeks ago. Although he's been quite lackluster thus far this season, a hot streak could help out the desirability for Sosa. He's repeating the FCL again this year, and put up a .683 OPS in 18 games last season. Ideally Minnesota would've liked to see a step forward, but he's still quite young and should get a look at Fort Myers next season. DOMINICAN DAILIES DSL Rockies 22, DSL Twins 13 Box Score Only in the Dominican Summer League do you see scores like this (unless you remember that Toronto Blue Jays bludgeoning of the Boston Red Sox recently). The Twins starter Oscar Paredes only recorded two outs while giving up six runs (three earned) on four hits and two walks. It’s impressive that the Twins were able to generate 13 runs on fourteen hits while taking only four walks. Infielder Harold Grant stood out as the lone batter to record three hits on the day. He did blast his third homer of his career in the process. Both Isaac Pena and Junior Del Valle had two hits. The inning that did the Twins in was an 11-run outburst during the top of the 5th inning. The Rockies recorded 19 hits on the day and drew another seven walks. This likely isn’t one these prospects will want to remember for long. Most of today's starters were lifted as this one got out of hand. Yasser Mercedes continues his strong year and had one hit. He owns a .921 OPS. Jose Rodriguez was hitless today, but his OPS remains at .999 on the year. Grant is just 17 and the .925 OPS he owns benefitted from the nice outing today. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Ben Heller (FCL Twins) - 2.0 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 3 K Hitter of the Day – Ricardo Olivar (FCL Twins) - 3-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, HR(4), BB, K TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Omaha (7:05PM CST) - TBD Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05PM CST) - TBD Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Monday’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