Minor Leagues

Now that the 2019 MLB Draft is behind us, it is time to sit back and wait for news on when each of the 41 picks will either sign or decided to forgo their opportunity to play with the Twins. As the signings start coming in, this page will consistently be updated, so be sure to check back to keep up to date with all of the signings.

Every day at Twins Daily, prospects take center stage every in our Minor League Reports. However, Sunday’s MLB Futures Game allows some of the top talent in the organization to get recognized on the national stage. For some, Royce Lewis was one of the most impressive bats during batting practice. He was also wore a microphone during the game so that provided some additional entertainment. Lewis went 1-for-2 in the game and had a shot to win it in the seventh.

Jordan Balazovic might not be as well known as Lewis, but he is rising on prospect lists. The right-handed pitcher out of Canada is quickly moving up prospect lists. Even MilB.com did a story on his journey. In his first appearance in any All-Star Game, he pitched a perfect frame.

We almost had another full slate of games played but some East Coast rain decided to be annoying and so we had to settle for just five teams covered, boo. But, in the games that were played, there was a dominating pitching performance, a huge day at the plate, and a lot of pitching strikeouts deep down in the system. All that and more in this edition of the minor league report.

P.S. Don’t forget that the Futures Game starring Royce Lewis and Jordan Balazovic is tomorrow at 7 P.M. Eastern.

In the last couple of days, we have announced our choices for Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month for June and Twins Relief Pitcher of the Month for June. Today, we will look at an extensive group of starting pitchers who were really good in June. The rankings were not easy at all, so be sure to add your rankings as well. As impressive as the top five were this month, there were another eight starters that received strong consideration and are listed among the honorable mentions.

Previous 2019 Starting Pitchers of the Month:
April - Devin Smeltzer - Pensacola Blue Wahoos
May - Jordan Balazovic - Ft. Myers Miracle

We certainly hope you had a fantastic Fourth of July, and maybe you were even able to catch a ball game. It was a busy game day in the Twins farm system. Not as busy as Friday night will be (due to two doubleheaders) but busy nonetheless. Luis Rijo and Sean Poppen were really good on the mound. The Red Wings offense all showed up. There were extra innings for Pensacola. Jared Akins powered the Kernels to a win. A couple of transactions. And, a partridge in a pear tree. Enjoy tonight’s Minor League Report.

Over the weekend, we handed out our choices for the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Month (Lewin Diaz) and Starting Pitcher of the Month (Jordan Balazovic). Today, we will discuss the relief pitchers. Which bullpen arms had a strong June?

Previous 2019 Relief Pitchers of the Month:

April: Ryan Mason, Pensacola Blue Wahoos
May: Hector Lujan, Ft. Myers Miracle

Edwar Colina dominated, there were eight home runs hit and some epic comebacks. Cedar Rapids was down to their final out but came back in the ninth inning to win, Pensacola overcame a seven-run deficit and Rochester came back in the seventh. Come see what else happened across the system Wednesday.

June is always an interesting month in the minor leagues. The short-season teams get started. Three affiliates play in half-season leagues, so playoff spots are up for grab. Those same affiliates also were well represented in their league All-Star games. And, there are a lot of players that received promotions during the month of June. So, there can be transitions. But there were still some great hitting performances in the Twins system in June!

Previous 2019 Hitters of the Month:

April - Trey Cabbage
May - Lewin Diaz
June - Keep Reading (or just look at the graphic of this article…)

We know you were waiting for it, but the timing had to be right. This week, we completed our Midseason Top 40 Twins Prospect rankings, and so now our Prospect Summary below has also been updated.

Another terrific pitching performance for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos on Tuesday, led by Charlie Barnes. Another three-hit game for Tomas Telis for the Red Wings who faced an old friend. But the story of the Twins minor league day happened in the afternoon in Ft. Myers. A 2019 draft pick recorded six hits and completed the cycle. Find out more below.

While the first half of the season has gone swimmingly for Minnesota's big-league club, things were less rosy in the minors. The highest end of the prospect pool has been plagued by injuries, stagnation, and regression.

How much do you weigh these developments, spanning only a few months? And conversely, how much do you let impressive short-term showings from some players lower on the list bolster their rankings?

There was significant dissent around these matters on the ol' Twins Daily prospect editorial board, which manifested in our midseason rankings over the past couple weeks. But the aggregated list you'll find below is, I think, a reasonable snapshot of where things stand heading into the second half.

It was a busy day in the Minnesota Twins minor league system. Rochester took on Tim Tebow and the Syracuse Mets. It was a big offensive game. Pensacola got an incredible pitching performance and carried it to a 1-0 win. The Miracle also posted a shutout behind Cole Sands. The Kernels got a strong start and a late, big inning to secure a win. A couple of E-Twins hit their first professional home runs .Was it enough? And, the GCL Twins tossed the first of the Twins three minor league shutouts of the day.

Minnesota has one of baseball’s strongest farm systems and the five players below are only part of the equation. With the trade deadline less than a month away, at least one of these players could find themselves in another organization. Some of these names seem like they would be untouchable in a trade, but Minnesota hasn’t had a big-league team this good in quite some time. If the deal is right, it could make sense to trade a top-5 prospect.