Twins Minor League Week in Review (6/26-7/2)

[Jeremy Nygaard]

It's been an eventful week in the Twins organization. Minor league teams are playing their first full week in the second half of their seasons and the major league team is providing a better rollercoaster ride than anything Valleyfair offers.

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson (photos of Jair Camargo)

Don’t forget to read Nick’s Week in Review to catch up on the Twins week.

Please check out all the upcoming draft content here!

TRANSACTIONS 

• RHP Marco Raya - arguably the top pitching prospect in the system - has been promoted from Cedar Rapids to Wichita.
• RHP Jose Bravo was placed on Wichita's Development List.

RESULTS

• Monday (6/26): David Festa Named to Futures Game
• Tuesday (6/27): Complex Pirates Take Care of Complex Twins
• Wednesday (6/28): Camargo Walkoff Highlights Huge Offensive Day for Twins... Minor Leaguers
• Thursday (6/29): Wallner Stays Hot for Saints
• Friday (6/30): Saints Lose No-Hit Bid In 7th Inning, Wallner Keeps Mashing
• Saturday (7/1): Saints March On, Ross Powers Another Kernels Win
• Sunday (7/2): Minnesota Farm Provides Some Early Fireworks

MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT 

• Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month: June 2023
• Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month: June 2023
• Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month: June 2023
• Marco Raya Is Refining His Repertoire in Cedar Rapids
• Top Twins Minor League Performers in Season's First Half

WEEK IN REVIEW 

Triple-A: St. Paul Saints

• Overall: 48-31 (5-0 last week)
• Overview: A great week for the Saints, going for the sweep against Gwinnett on Monday night.
• 🔥: It's time for the Twins to get Matt Wallner back in their lineup. Nine hits in 20 at-bats over the last seven days including two home runs. He scored six runs but struck out five times (with zero walks).
• 🔥: Randy Dobnak was great in his lone start. He pitched five innings and allowed only a hit and a walk resulting in an impressive 0.67 WHIP. He struck out six. A return to the Randy of old would be a huge boost.
• 🔥: Jair Camargo drove in a team-leading 10 runs for the Saints and tied Wallner for a team-high with nine hits (including four doubles). The Twins might just have a legitimate catching prospect on their hands. He also hit a walk-off grand slam and the pictures (included) were awesome!
• 🔥: Blayne Enlow threw five innings in his start and allowed no hits (!), but walked five (!). He struck out three.
• 🔥: Dallas Keuchel allowed three hits and four walks, but struck out three and allowed three hits in 4 1/3 innings.
• 🥶: Jose Miranda earned that promotion by posting a team-low .696 OPS over the last week. 🤨
• 🥶: Louie Varland pitched 4 2/3 innings and issued five walks and allowed six hits (including two home runs) and six earned runs.
  What's Next: The Saints will pay a visit to the Iowa Cubs beginning on Tuesday.

Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge

• Overall: 32-41 (4-1 last week)
• Overview: The Wind Surge saw a four-game winning streak end on Sunday and will finish their series on Monday evening.
• 🔥: Aaron Sabato hit two home runs among his six hits. He had a 1.170 OPS though he needs to cut down on the strikeouts (seven in 19 at-bats). 
• 🔥: Travis Adams threw five two-hit, one-run innings while striking out seven.
• 🔥: Yunior Severino hit three home runs. (He also needs to cut down on his strikeouts - nine in 20 at-bats.)
• 🔥: Brooks Lee led the team with seven RBI. 
• 🥶: Regi Grace allowed two home runs in his 4 2/3 innings. He did strike out six but also allowed five hits, a walk, and four runs.
• 🥶: Both Will Holland and Seth Gray got only two hits in their ten or more at-bats.
• What's Next: Wichita heads to Tulsa before the All-Star Break.

High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels

• Overall: 5-3 in the second half. (3-2 last week)
• Overview: The Kernels got a late start to their week, getting three days off before a doubleheader on Thursday. They'll finish their Peoria series on Monday night.
• 🔥: Tanner Schobel has done everything he can to deserve a promotion. In the last seven days, he led the team with eight hits, two home runs, eight RBI, and four runs. 
• 🔥: Kyle Jones struck out five in 5 1/3 shutout innings. He allowed two hits and two walks. 
• 🔥: C.J. Culpepper only struck out two in six innings. But he allowed no runs on three hits and a walk.
• 🥶: Marco Raya looked human - allowing four hits and two walks - in 2 2/3 innings. He struck out four... and got promoted.
• 🥶: Emmanuel Rodriguez is quite something. He'll do some unbelievable things... both good and bad. This week, it was bad. He went 0-for-14 while striking out nine times. But he did draw eight walks... which resulted in a .364 OBP. 
• 🥶: Noah Miller (4-19), Kala'i Rosario (1-17), Jose Salas (3-15), and Misael Urbina (1-11) all would deserve their own line, but collectively... woof.
• What's Next: Cedar Rapids will host Quad Cities beginning on Tuesday.

Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels

• Overall: 3-5 in the second half. (2-3 last week)
• Overview: After taking the first two from Lakeland, Fort Myers has lost three straight and finish the series Monday night.
• 🔥: Dylan Neuse went 5-11 and scored seven runs. He drew nine walks (which is the same amount as the second- and third-place walkers on the team combined). His on-base percentage was a freakish .727.
• 🔥: Ben Ethridge picked up the torch for all the recently-promoted starters by throwing five shutout innings. He struck out five and allowed only one hit and two walks.
• 🥶: Rubel Cespedes finished the week 2-for-22 with five strikeouts.
• 🥶: Miguelangel Boadas allowed five runs on five hits and four walks in two innings.
• What's Next: Fort Myers will head to Jupiter.

Rookie: FCL Twins

• Overall: 10-11 (1-6 last week), 5.0 games behind the FCL Pirates in the FCL South. 
• 🔥: Jose Rodriguez and Andres Centeno tied for the team lead with five hits each. But also had seven and eight strikeouts, respectively, which paced the team as well.
• 🔥: Six different players hit home runs, including Rodriguez.
• 🔥: Brayan Medina allowed no earned runs in six innings, while striking out four.
• 🤔: Bryan Acuna went 4-for-15 with a home run. I'm just waiting for him to immediately turn into his brother at any time.
• 🤔: Kyle Bischoff struck out eight in four innings, but also allowed five earned runs and two home runs.
• 🥶: Matt Gabbert pitched four innings and allowed 11 hits and six runs.

Rookie: DSL Twins 

• Overall: 6-15 (1-5 last week), 9 games back in the DSL South. 
• 🔥: Jayson Bass had a team-high seven hits (in 17 at-bats). He also stole two bases.
• 🔥: Adrian Bohorquez and Eduardo Soriano paced the team with six strikeouts each. 
• 🔥: Yilber Herrera and Moises Lopez hit home runs. 
• 🥶: Jesus Peraza only managed one hit in 14 at-bats.
• 🥶: Jose Vasquez allowed eight runs on five hits and four walks while only recording five outs.

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. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. Season-long stats will be in parenthesis. Fielding stats are since the last update three weeks ago.

• 20. Michael Helman, UTIL, St. Paul: On the 60-day Injured List with a dislocated shoulder. (.333/.434/.711. 1.145 OPS)
• 19. Yunior Severino, 3B, Wichita: 5-20, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 3 R, BB, 9 K, CS. (.274/.345/.517. .862 OPS).
• 18. Jose Rodriguez, OF, FCL Twins: 5-21, 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 4 R, 3 BB, 7 K. (.289/.351/.422. .773 OPS)
• 17. Blayne Enlow, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 5 IP, 0 H, 5 BB, 3 K. (AAA/AA combined 1.19 WHIP, .230 BAA)
• 16. Matt Canterino, RHP: Still recovering from Tommy John surgery.
• 15. Brent Headrick, RHP, Minnesota. St. Paul: (1.30 WHIP, .270 BAA); currently pitching out of the Twins bullpen.
• 14. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, Minnesota. St. Paul: (1.60 WHIP, .261 BAA); currently pitching out of the Twins bullpen.
• 13. Noah Miller, SS, Cedar Rapids: 4-19, RBI, R, BB, 5 K. (.208/.278/.275. .553 OPS), played shortstop in 14 games (59 total) and committed one error in 74 chances (six errors in 253 total chances); played no games (six total) at second base (no errors in 16 total chances).
• 12. Jose Salas, INF, Cedar Rapids: 3-15, 3 K, SB, 2 CS. (.168/.263/.236. .499 OPS), played no games at shortstop (11 total; three errors in 36 chances total), played three games (13 total) at third base and committed no errors in nine chances (three errors in 31 total chances). He played 10 games (35 total) at second base with one error in 45 chances (three errors in 145 total chances).
• 11. Austin Martin, SS, St. Paul: Debuting Monday. Had been rehabbing with the FCL Twins and Fort Myers up to this point.
• 10. Yasser Mercedes, OF, FCL Twins: hasn't played since June 19, but isn't on the injured list. (.143/.240/.190. .430 OPS)
• 9.  Matt Wallner, OF, St. Paul: 9-20, 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R, 5 K. (.309/.416/.570. .986 OPS); Minnesota: (.368/.520/.579. 1.099 OPS)
• 8. David Festa, RHP, Wichita: 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 4 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, HRA, 4 K. (1.42 WHIP, .262 BAA)
• 7. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: 1-0, 5.40 ERA, 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, K (1.88 WHIP, .311 BAA); Minnesota: (1.85 WHIP, .313 BAA)
• 6. Marco Raya, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 2.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 4 K. (0.92 WHIP, .192 BAA)
• 5. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: On a rehab assignment with the FCL Twins, but hasn't thrown since June 9. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA)
• 4. Edouard Julien, 2B, Minnesota. St. Paul: (.293/.435/.496. .931 OPS), has played all 34 games at second base and has committed three errors in 158 chances; currently up with the Twins.
• 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: 0-14, R, 8 BB, 9 K. (.211/.376/.422. .798 OPS)
• 2. Royce Lewis, SS: Minnesota. Currently on the injured list and expected to miss six weeks.
• 1. Brooks Lee, SS, Wichita: 5-19, 2 2B, HR, 7 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB, 3 K. (.265/.342/.428. .770 OPS), played 15 games (63 total) at shortstop and committed five errors in 70 chances (10 errors in 267 total chances). Lee has committed one error in three chances in one game at third base this season.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK will return next week when we can vote on a day when there are no games.

Ask questions and discuss the Twins prospects in the COMMENTS below. 

 

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[Mike Sixel]

I'd like to see Severino or Lee in St Paul given Miranda isn't going to be there for some time, with schoebel moved up. 

[FlyingFinn]

Not a surprise that one of the great starters in Cedar Rapids was promoted. Being Raya averages three innings I'm a bit surprised it's him. Obviously he is doing exactly what the Twins want him to do. Wichita has been playing better lately and it will be nice for the fans to have a top prospect to watch in Raya.

[DocBauer]

Great work as always! But I actually prefer the monthly awards as some of the "cold" performers for the week were actually part of the top choices for the month of June, LOL.

I've always believed, and stated, I thought Wichita was going to have the toughest season this year. Despite some very good players there, there was a talent gap between AAA and A ball to begin the year. Unfortunately for them, both Keirsey and Severino are ready for AAA and should be there soon, if not tomorrow. There's room for Severino, but less room for Keirsey, but he shouldn't be held back or penalized. Room CAN BE MADE for him, and should be, in a variety of ways, but I'm not going down that path yet again right now.

But the Kernals have got to have one of the youngest teams in all of A+ ball. Schobel might be ready, but almost everyone else needs time. Might be a rough 2nd half for Wichita. 

I'm surprised by Raya moving up this soon. Borderline shocked. I thought he'd finish at CR and slowly increase his IP there the rest of the season. Other than his last last start, he's been dominate. Very young still, and not even allowed to throw in 2020, when drafted, a couple mild shoulder twinges, they've been cautious with his development.  At 6' 1" and a listed 170lbs, I'm sure he's growing in to his body and much bigger than that at this time. Milb tends to display "signing size" for some time, seldom if ever updating such. 

Clearly, the Twins believe his stuff is ready for AA and they can continue to monitor his IP while challenging him at the higher level. I think the idea remains the same, however, 3-4 IP at a time with the idea of reaching 4-5 IP per turn at some point, building him up without burning him out.

Surprised as hell, but loving it.

Also heard Martin has been promoted to the Saints, building on his 2yrs at AA and his 2022 AFL, having concluded his initial "low A rehab" assignment. Who he replaces I haven't heard. And where does this leave room for a Keirsey promotion? Is the FO going to consider getting serious about change soon?

[Dman]

Like most a bit surprised Raya got the promotion to AA and yet maybe I shouldn't be since he has a ton of movement.  I assume they  keep at the same pitch count and just see how well his stuff plays at AA.  Seems like the Twins have been more aggressive when they can be with the promotions this year and I think that is good.

That Cedar Rapids team has three players tied for second in the Midwest league with 12 HR's in Rosario, Schobel and Ross.  Cossetti isn't too far behind and hits the ball hard but he started at A ball and hasn't been quite as dominant at High A.  With Ortega up and doing pretty well himself most all of the Twins top 10 2022 hitters from the draft are really doing well. If there was room I think all 5 could be at AA by the end of their first full pro year.  AA is generally a tough test for hitters although the Texas league seems to be a bit hitters league.  At any rate hoping those guys just stay dominant all the way up.

 

[DocBauer]

Even with talent traded away, the Twins had a very good 2019 draft. And while I still have serious concerns Sabato will ever amount to anything, Raya and Rosario are looking like keepers. Is Soularie actually starting to look like an actual prospect? The 2020 class might turn out very good with Raya and Rosario, even better if Soularie gets his act together being healthy now.

Despite trading away 4 of their top 5 draft choices from the 2021 draft... for ML talent options yet to be determined, though it doesn't look good except for adding Gray...it was a good draft it seems. The Twins still have Miller at SS, Festa, a couple of interesting catchers in Winkel and Cardenas, and a handful of INF and P options that MIGHT turn out, including Adams at AA, Ohl, Macleod...just getting healthy...and the 19th pick Nowlin who could be a surprising rotation piece if he could put it all together, but is probably destined to be a hard throwing LH bullpen option who could be WICKED if he just keeps the BB under control.

I am only semi hijacking the thread to state that with the draft coming up in a few days, we are going to have to address the 2022 draft at the same time. It only makes sense to me. Maybe the wrong OP to do so? 

With the exception of Priellip, who is being nursed along with hope he will pitch again this year and be 100% in 2024, how much more could you ask for in a draft than we've seen from 2022?

Lee is just fine in his first full season. Schobel is looking great. Ortega looks like a stud. So does Ross. Cossetti has a ways to go, but what a debut. And besides Lewis, and Culpepper, almost very other arm has flashed, including Veen as a LHRP who MIGHT turn in to something as a control LH who can get RH out.

As good as Cossetti has looked, Nate Baez might be even better with health and some time. He's the same kind of athlete and POTENTIAL bat as prospect Teel, with less experience behind the plate. 

We are going to have to examine the 2022 draft either after THIS upcoming draft, or at the end of the milb season. And I don't mean to hijack the OP, but I have just been so impressed with what I've seen so far from most of last year's draft that I felt I needed to comment.