Minor League Report (6/10): Kenta Maeda Crushes Rehab Assignment in Odd Day on the Farm

[Matt Braun]

Someone had a bunt triple, and it may have not even been the strangest thing to occur!

TRANSACTIONS
INF Anthony Prato transferred from AA Wichita to AAA St. Paul
INF Edouard Julien recalled by Minnesota (Jorge Polanco placed on IL)
LHP Jaylen Nowlin activated off Development List for Cedar Rapids
OF Armani Smith activated from Wichita Development List

Saints Sentinel
St. Paul 3, Iowa 9
Box Score
Kenta Maeda: 4 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
HR: Andrew Bechtold (6), Joey Gallo (1)
Multi-hit games: Andrew Stevenson (3-for-4, BB), Andrew Bechtold (2-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 R, RBI), Tony Wolters (2-for-4, RBI)

The Saints melted in the middle innings and fell to the Cubs on Saturday.

Kenta Maeda was on point. The crafty veteran righty spun hitters around in the box, favoring his slider in a four shutout inning performance in potential anticipation of re-joining the Twins. His fastball touched 91.5 MPH. 

Supporting him in his rehab assignment was his brother in big-league credit, Joey Gallo. The powerful outfielder obliterated a baseball, delivering it 445 feet away over the place called the “home run porch.” 

He wasn’t the first batter to go deep, though, as Andrew Bechtold sent a shot the other way to break the early silence.

Unfortunately, early smiles turned sour once Maeda exited the ballgame. Reliever Ronny Henriquez was greeted with six straight successful attempts at reaching base—including a trio of walks that brought the lead to a crumble and set up Cody Laweryson to allow the go-ahead knock.

The Cubs scored three more the following frame and all the Saints could do was plate one more run; they watched their outs dissipate as opportunities to score came up empty.

Chase Strumpf—the Cubs’ 23rd best prospect (and the guy who kept Royce Lewis off of shortstop until his senior season in high school)—went 1-for-5 at the plate, hitting a crucial two-run single but whiffing in his four other trips to the dish. 

Wind Surge Wisdom
Wichita 3, San Antonio 5
Box Score
David Festa: 4 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: DaShawn Keirsey Jr. (2-for-3, R, RBI, BB)

The Wind Surge lost a close game on Saturday.

It’s been quite the breakout season for DaShawn Keirsey Jr. The 26-year-old outfielder has improved his dynamic game, slicing off strikeouts, hitting for more power, and continuing his terror on the bases to become one mean lead-off hitter. Saturday was business as usual, with a pair of hits, a sacrifice fly, a walk, and a stolen base to help set up Wichita’s offense for success.

They couldn’t come through. While they walked more than they struck out, only Yunior Severino was able to provide extra-base thump; he doubled in the seventh but got too greedy, and found a glove waiting for him at third base.

David Festa was fine on the mound. The 23-year-old suffered some bouts of wildness—and a nasty two-run error by second baseman Jake Rucker—but still punched out four batters and exited with a lower ERA than he started the game with. 

The Missions—being an affiliate of the Padres—are prospect deficient at the moment, and their best product, pitcher Alek Jacob, is ranked 26th in the system. He pitched a scoreless inning with a strikeout.

Kernels Nuggets
Cedar Rapids 4, Dayton 9
Box Score
Zebby Matthews: 2/3 IP, 8 H, 8 ER, 0 BB, K
HR: Ernie Yake (2)
Multi-hit games: Ernie Yake (2-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI)

An eight-run first inning sank the Kernels on Saturday.

It took over two months, but Zebby Matthews finally appeared human. A brutal, back-breaking eight-run extravaganza sent him to the dugout before the frame could even end; each run came with two outs. Here’s how bad things went: lead-off hitter Edwin Arroyo hit a two-run homer off Matthews in the 1st inning. That’s never good. 

Oddly, the Dragons hit out of order during their carnage. Catcher Matheu Nelson hit before second baseman Tyler Callihan, despite Callihan being ahead of him in the lineup; the Dragons corrected this in later trips to the plate, but the umpires ruled that the protest occurred after the batters hit, and so they allowed the outcomes to stand. 

Credit goes to the Kernels bullpen for keeping the game about where Matthews left it. John Stankiewicz fired off 3 1/3 no-hit frames, coaxing six strikeouts along the way.

Designated barnstormer, Ernie Yake, inspired the offense as much as he could, blasting his second homer of the season on his way to an impressive three RBI night. 

But every other hitter’s bat was soggy and slow, leading to just six hits on the night; their eyes were great, though, as evidenced by their eight walks. Hopefully they find better fortune with runners on base in the future.

The aforementioned Arroyo is also Cincinnati's third-ranked prospect; he homered and singled in five trips to the plate.

Mussel Matters
Fort Myers 4, Clearwater 8
Box Score
Jose Olivares: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K
HR: Rubel Cespedes (5)
Multi-hit games: Dylan Neuse (2-for-5, 3B, R), Rubel Cespedes (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI)

The Mighty Mussels fell to the powerhouse Threshers on Saturday.

It’s never a good sign when four of your five pitchers allow runs in a game. Starter Jose Olivares did a solid job of holding back the onslaught, leaving the match with just two earned runs on his ledger, but all three of his subsequent pitching comrades felt the full force of Clearwater’s dynamic offense. Danny Moreno was the only safe arm; he acquired one out. 

The bats were a little better, but not enough to match the Threshers for the full nine. Buoyed by a rare two-triple day, the Mighty Mussels made the most of their six hits, sending four for extra-bases while walking five times. One of those triples was an alleged bunt by Maddux Houghton, which there absolutely must be footage of somewhere. The post-game writeup by John Vittas describes a soft fly ball eluding the reach of right fielder Gabriel Rincones.  

The Mighty Mussels allowed six steals on the day, including the 33rd of the season for center fielder Emaarion Boyd. 

Outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. is the Threshers’ best prospect. Ranked seventh in the Phillies system by MLB.com, Rincones walked twice and stole two bases. 

Complex Chronicles
FCL Twins 10, FCL Red Sox 5
Box Score
John Klein: 4 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 11 K
HR: Isaac Pena (1)
Multi-hit games: Jose Rodriguez (3-for-5, 2B, 3 R), Andres Centeno (2-for-3, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Isaac Pena (2-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB)

The FCL Twins scored early, often in win against the FCL Red Sox.

It started with a bang; Yasser Mercedes doubled, Jose Rodriguez singled, Andres Centeno tripled, and Harold Grant doubled, scoring a trio of runs for the Twins before an out could even be recorded.

Starter John Klein—an obscure Twins minor league signing in August of 2022 out of Iowa Central Community College (by way of Osseo High School)—was dominant, absurdly so. The only out he earned not by way of the strikeout was his last—a pop out to cap one of the more commanding outings you’ll see in the low minors. 

The lineup’s table setters did as they were supposed to, as they top three batters (Mercedes, Rodriguez, and Centeno) combined for six hits, three walks, and eight runs scored. That’ll fuel an overwhelming offensive explosion. 

Dominican Dailies
DSL Twins 3, DSL Giants Black 11
Box Score
Jose Vasquez: 3 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 4 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Dameury Pena (3-for-4), Denyerbe Gervis (2-for-3, BB)

The DSL Twins lost their fifth game of the season; they remain winless.

Dameury Pena—one of Minnesota’s Dominican signings in January—tried his best to stimulate offense, netting three hits while swiping a bag and reaching base via a hit by a pitch, but Denyerbe Gervis was the only other hitter to net multiple hits, leaving Pena often stranded alone on the bases. Moises Lopez netted the team’s sole extra-base hit with a 4th inning triple.

Jose Ojo was the lone pitcher to not surrender a run; he tossed a scoreless frame with a pair of strikeouts. 

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – John Klein
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Andrew Bechtold

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, 2 BB, K
#4 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 2-3, 2B, R, BB, K
#8 - David Festa (Wichita) - 4 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
#9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-5, 3 K
#10 - Yasser Mercedes (FCL Twins) - 1-4, 2B, 2 R, BB
#12 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2, 2 BB, K
#13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, BB, K
#18 - Jose Rodriguez (FCL Twins) - 3-5, 2B, 3 R
#19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 1-5, 2B, K

SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Iowa @ St. Paul (2:07 PM) - TBD
Wichita @ San Antonio (1:05 PM) - RHP Blayne Enlow
Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (12:05 PM) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin  
Clearwater @ Fort Myers (11:00 AM) - RHP Ben Ethridge

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[FlyingFinn]

Tough day for a bunch of hitters who have been hot this week other than Wichita. Keirsey probably deserves to be a July call up (2nd full year at Wichita) to St. Paul but with Gallo and Buxton coming back for the Twins and Celestino rehabbing, that is going to be a full OF, not to mention Contreras out there.

[twinstalker]

It's good to see that a guy we paid $11 million for can homer off the Cubs' #30 prospect.  I wasn't sure.

I am pretty sure the Cubs don't have any hitters left in AAA after promoting the ones doing well (some teams do that), but apparently Twins AAA pitching is even worse.

[twinstalker]

One other thing:

Wichita and St. Paul are bandboxes, so it's difficult to judge hitting.  But seriously, is there anyone at A or A+ who can hit?  I mean, anyone who isn't 2-3 years older than we need him to be?  What in the world is wrong with Emmanuel Rodriguez?  He's facing the same pitchers, except for the worst of them, that he faced last season.  And Cedar Rapids/MWL is an easier park/league to hit in than Fort Myers/FSL.

[Doctor Wu]

Tough day for Zebby. Ouch!

[Doctor Wu]

7 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

Tough day for a bunch of hitters who have been hot this week other than Wichita. Keirsey probably deserves to be a July call up (2nd full year at Wichita) to St. Paul but with Gallo and Buxton coming back for the Twins and Celestino rehabbing, that is going to be a full OF, not to mention Contreras out there.

Keirsey seems like the sort of player the Twins can use, at least in some role. He's definitely making a good impression this year. 

[Doctor Wu]

Very happy to see the impressive outing by Maeda. I continue to root for the guy. Hope he will be effective when he's called back up, whether that's as a starter or even in the bullpen. 

[LewFordLives]

Klein: 11 K's in four innings?!   Do we have any Osseo folks on this board that know anything about him? Is he legit?

[Blyleven2011]

Tough day for zebby , he got 2 outs and was pulled , he's been  solid so far this year so I expect he will be wll rested for his next start ...

I'll be paying attention to zebby and Lewis  and see if they could be useful  down the road ...

[gbg]

2 hours ago, LewFordLives said:

Klein: 11 K's in four innings?!   Do we have any Osseo folks on this board that know anything about him? Is he legit?

I'm an OHS grad, but that was (checks calendar...uses slide rule...) 37 years ago, so my intel may not be up to date.

[Dave Lemke]

7 hours ago, twinstalker said:

It's good to see that a guy we paid $11 million for can homer off the Cubs' #30 prospect.  I wasn't sure.

I am pretty sure the Cubs don't have any hitters left in AAA after promoting the ones doing well (some teams do that), but apparently Twins AAA pitching is even worse.

Try looking at the box score. I see at least 3 players that have played in the majors. Not to mention 6 of them are hitting over 250 at AAA at the moment.

[bird]

12 minutes ago, gbg said:

I'm an OHS grad, but that was (checks calendar...uses slide rule...) 37 years ago, so my intel may not be up to date.

Young man, I was (checks calendar...uses slide rule...) on my third job in my second career when you matriculated from OHS.

[D.C Twins]

I would be interested in an update about E Rod from someone in the know.

By box scores, he certainly seems to be struggling.....Is he working on something, nagging injury.....?

[Splash]

7 hours ago, twinstalker said:

One other thing:

Wichita and St. Paul are bandboxes, so it's difficult to judge hitting.  But seriously, is there anyone at A or A+ who can hit?  I mean, anyone who isn't 2-3 years older than we need him to be?  What in the world is wrong with Emmanuel Rodriguez?  He's facing the same pitchers, except for the worst of them, that he faced last season.  And Cedar Rapids/MWL is an easier park/league to hit in than Fort Myers/FSL.

There are a couple somewhat bright spots like Schobel, Rosario, De Andrade. But yeah a lot of guys who are/were prospects aren’t hitting well. Somehow both teams have winning records so I’m curious if their pitching has just been that good, or if offense is hard to come by in those leagues.

[Dman]

Jose Rodriguez is off to a good start in the FCL.  .381 BA and .893 OPS.  The rest of the young guys that did really well in the DSL last year seem to be struggling at least to start.  It is always a tough transition from DSL to FCL as the pitching is much. much better.  If Rodriguez can keep that line up all year there might be some star power there.

I have been looking for Hendry Chivilli but haven't seen his name since the first game. I assume he is hurt?  He started 2 for 4 so was hoping to see more.

Schobel still looking good at High A and he took a couple of walks which was nice to see.  I think he going to be the full package at the plate.  Just needs more experience.  Hopefully he moves to AA by July so they can see what he can do against better pitching.

Rosario in a mini slump after being hot for so long.  Will have to see if he gets his mojo back. Lot's of guys struggling at the plate.  Hopefully the second will be better for some players.

[Splash]

4 hours ago, Doctor Wu said:

Keirsey seems like the sort of player the Twins can use, at least in some role. He's definitely making a good impression this year. 

Gotta remember he’s already 26 still at AA. Maybe he can be a decent 4th outfielder, but I think he’s more likely he’s AAA depth similar to Mark Contreras

[FlyingFinn]

42 minutes ago, Splash said:

There are a couple somewhat bright spots like Schobel, Rosario, De Andrade. But yeah a lot of guys who are/were prospects aren’t hitting well. Somehow both teams have winning records so I’m curious if their pitching has just been that good, or if offense is hard to come by in those leagues.

The discussion was about Wichita and St. Paul and I think our prospects are hitting quite well - Wallner batting .300 with a .955 OPS, Julien .293 and .931 and Severino hitting .276 with a .888 OPS as a few examples. The biggest reason the Saints are winning is because they have tremendous hitting. led by some of our top prospects. Look at June or the past month and their numbers are even better.

If you are talking about high A ball, Seth has mentioned that we have one of the youngest high A ball teams in baseball. Some are doing better than others. Emma Rodriguez below the Mendoza line but does have 7 homers while missing half the season. 

[Doctor Wu]

17 hours ago, Splash said:

Gotta remember he’s already 26 still at AA. Maybe he can be a decent 4th outfielder, but I think he’s more likely he’s AAA depth similar to Mark Contreras

Thanks for the info. I didn't realize that he was that old. Yeah, maybe not gonna rank with the high-end prospects, but like you said, he might end up being a good backup in the outfield.