Minor League Report (7/29): Bats Explode in Potent Night on the Farm

[Matt Braun]

Aka: will Yunior Severino ever stop hitting homers?

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey (Image is of Yunior Severino)

 

TRANSACTIONS
INF Jose Salas reinstated from development list, transferred to FCL Twins
RHP John Klein transferred from FCL Twins to Low-A Fort Myers
INF Kamron Willman placed on development list (Fort Myers)
RHP Cole Sands reported and active (St. Paul)
C Mark Kolozsvary transferred to development list (St. Paul)
OF Ryan LaMarre released 

Saints Sentinel
St. Paul 3, Toledo 7
Box Score
Randy Dobnak: 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Anthony Prato (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R, BB, K), Trevor Larnach (2-for-3, R, BB)

The Saints were pummeled on Saturday.

Randy Dobnak was cromulent; the former major-leaguer finished off five innings, but not before surrendering three runs—two coming from a 4th inning homer. He avoided the brunt of the offensive focus, though, as Blayne Enlow was battered even harder, allowing four earned runs over 2 ⅔ frames before mercifully exiting the game in favor of Kody Funderburk. 

It’s a shame, because St. Paul once led this game, if for just a short while. Gilberto Celestino beckoned two home in the 1st on a single, and Kyle Garlick brought home a third score off a third inning sacrifice fly. The scoring ended, though. Balls found gloves, and the Saints couldn’t take full advantage of six free passes, as their rallies were curt and fruitless.

There were still some notable performances: Anthony Prato continued to rake with two hits and a walk, improving his AAA OPS to 1.122, while Jair Camargo walked three times—the first time he had done so in a game since April 6th.

Colt Keith, ranked as the 38th-best prospect in MLB, struck out twice in five trips to the plate.

Wind Surge Wisdom
Wichita 7, Frisco 6
Box Score
Travis Adams: 4 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 1 K
HR: Yunior Severino (23, 24)
Multi-hit games: Yunior Severino (2-for-3, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, BB)

The Wind Surge won on a walk-off on Saturday.

Yunior Severino is in the spotlight, and no one else can possibly take it from him. After setting Wichita’s season home run record the other day, Severino evidently felt unsatisfied, hungry; he blasted a pair of homers to give him even more records to claim. The first bomb—a 413 foot blast in the fifth—made it his fifth straight game with a homer; his second gave him his fifth multi-homer game of the season. That’s also a Wichita record. It’s July.

Severino’s power was well-needed, because Travis Adams had nothing. Frisco jumped on him for inning-starting extra-base hits three times, eventually bouncing him from the game in the fourth when he walked the bases loaded following a double. Denny Bentley nearly escaped the mess, but he ended up allowing all three inherited baserunners to score. 

Aaron Rozek shut things down, though. Utilized as a reliever after struggling as a starter, the Burnsville lefty established the law, holding Frisco scoreless over three dominant innings, giving Wichita’s bats the support they needed to come back. He struck out five. 

The Wind Surge pushed forward in the ninth, as not one, but two hit by pitches sent a man to second base. Will Holland placed the sac bunt, but the RoughRiders’ pitcher—perhaps wanting to be the hero—tried to nail Seth Gray at third. He didn’t. Firing wildly, the ball rattled around in left field’s foul territory long enough to plate the winning run.

Texas’ best prospect—the sixth-finest in MLB, outfielder Owen Carter—walked once in five plate appearances.

The RoughRiders are named after the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, notable for their effort in the Spanish-American war of 1898. They were more notable, though, for their commander, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt’s bravery in the war turned him into a political icon in the states—and he would become President just three years following the war.

Kernels Nuggets
Game One: Cedar Rapids 3, Wisconsin 4 (10 Innings)
Box Score
Kyle Jones: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Andrew Cossetti (2-for-4, RBI)

The Kernels lost their first game on Saturday, a match paused yesterday for dangerous weather.

It went quickly; after finishing eight-and-a-half innings on Friday, the two teams were close to figuring out the winner. The Kernels threatened in the 10th—loading the bases off a pair of walks—but Jorel Ortega struck out, leaving the game in the hand of A.J. Labas. He issued two intentional walks in the frame, finally coaxing a matchup against Eduardo Garcia. A fielder’s choice won it. 

Game Two: Cedar Rapids 11, Wisconsin 3
Box Score
Christian MacLeod: 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
HR: Kala’i Rosario (15)
Multi-hit games: Noah Miller (2-for-5, R, RBI, BB), Kala’i Rosario (2-for-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, 4 RBI, BB), Jorel Ortega (2-for-3, 2 B, R, 2 RBI, BB)

The Kernels pounded the Timber Rattlers in game two.

It started early and never fell off; Jorel Ortega doubled home a run with Ben Ross singling home another one to kick off the first. Ortega may have been thrown out at home to halt the scoring at two, but that didn’t stop the Kernels, as they went on to have three more multi-run innings before the game ended.

It was a sweet harmony, with Noah Miller and Emmanuel Rodriguez setting up Kala’i Rosario and Ortega with chances to score runs, and the sluggers doing exactly that. Rosario even left six men on base and still ended up with four RBIs—that’s a fruitful offensive explosion.

And it was more than Christian MacLeod needed; the lefty coughed up three runs in the first, but settled down immediately, shutting down the Timber Rattlers four for innings following his gaff. 

Wisconsin lead-off man Robert Moore is Milwaukee’s eighth-best prospect; he singled and walked twice.

Mussel Matters
Ft. Myers 2, Palm Beach 9
Box Score
John Klein: 2 2/3 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Ricardo Olivar (2-for-4, 2 2B, R), Gregory Duran (2-for-4, K)

The Mighty Mussels were blown out on Saturday.

Starter John Klein didn’t have it. The Brooklyn Park native made his first Low-A outing since a brief start on July 9th, and he probably wishes it were briefer; the Cardinals jumped all over him in the second and third, eventually totaling seven earned runs on his watch. 

The runs were more than Fort Myers’ hitters could handle; they put together two runs in the fourth, but that was all they could do, as the team could only get one hit with a runner in scoring position. Ricardo Olivar had an impressive individual performance, though, doubling twice to give him 20 on the season.

Fort Myers’ bullpen—Wilker Reyes, Jackson Hicks, and Ricardo Velez—pieced together an excellent effort to support their starter; they combined for eight punchouts and just one earned run over 6 1/3 innings.

Catcher Leonardo Bernal—going 2-for-4 with a walk—is the Cardinals’ seventh-best prospect. 

Complex Chronicles
FCL Twins 2, FCL Red Sox 8
Box Score
Carlos Gutierrez: 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Daniel Pena (2-for-4, R)

The FCL Twins also lost a resumed game on Saturday. 

Pitchers Matt Gabbert and Julio Bonilla were effective, perhaps both a little lucky and unlucky following the rain. They allowed just one combined earned run, but also allowed 10 hits over five frames, striking out eight to deliver the game to its conclusion.

Recent draft picks Luke Keaschall and Brandon Winokur covered the middle infield on Saturday; they went hitless with three strikeouts in seven at-bats. 

Rehabbing former big leaguers Bradley Zimmer and Dan Altavilla appeared for the FCL Red Sox. Zimmer—once a top prospect for Cleveland—collected three hits, while Altavilla earned the win with 1 1/3 scoreless innings. 

Dominican Dailies
The DSL Twins did not play on Saturday.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Aaron Rozek
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Yunior Severino

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:

#3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, 3B, 3 R, RBI, 2 BB
#5 - Matt Wallner (Minnesota) - 0-3, BB, K
#8 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-4, K
#10 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 0-3, BB, 2 K
#12 - Luke Keaschall (FCL Twins) - 0-3, BB, K
#13 - Brandon Winokur (FCL Twins) - 0-4, 2 K
#15 - Jordan Balazovic (Minnesota) - 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
#16 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 2-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, 4 RBI, BB, K
#17 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 2-3, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, BB
#20 - Jose Rodriguez (FCL Twins) - 1-3, 2B, R, BB, K

SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Toledo @ St. Paul (2:07 PM) - RHP Louie Varland
Frisco @ Wichita (1:05 PM) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin
Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (1:10 PM) - RHP Andrew Morris
Palm Beach @ Fort Myers (11:00 AM) - RHP Jack Noble

 

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[mikelink45]

I am thinking that Yunior is ready to climb the prospect list.  Great season he is having.  Now it is also time to climb the minor league ladder too. AAA?

[Major League Ready]

Severino and Prato have been impressive in July.

Severino ...  .347 / .434 / .778 /  1.212

Prato ...  .328 / .474 / .707 / 1.181    

Perhaps they should be giving Severino time in the OF.

[Cory Engelhardt]

Always love a Teddy Roosevelt anecdote. :)

[khal149]

Keirsey, Lee, and Severino all need to be in St. Paul this week...or part of a trade (excluding Lee).

[Mike Sixel]

4 hours ago, Major League Ready said:

Severino and Prato have been impressive in July.

Severino ...  .347 / .434 / .778 /  1.212

Prato ...  .328 / .474 / .707 / 1.181    

Perhaps they should be giving Severino time in the OF.

Perhaps one of them should be the third baseman in Minnesota

[roger]

Severino is certainly rewarding the Twins for giving him a second +$2M check after the Atlanta fiasco.  His numbers weren't all that special, until this year.  Is going to have to be added to the 40-man this year.  But as a second and third baseman, where will he play?  The Twins should be set with Lee and Lewis at those spots for much of the next decade. 

Can he go to the outfield?  Or first base?  Or is now the time to get the biggest bang for their buck before Tuesday's deadline?

[Einstein]

How good is Yunior Severino in the field?  

[Dman]

Man Prato is hot.  If you look at his betting line with almost as many walks as K's he looks a lot like Spencer Steer except faster and he can play the outfield for added flexibility.  Still only a months worth of at bat's for AAA but if he qualified he would be a league leader.  I think the Twins might have something in Prato.

Rosario still number one in OPS for his league. Hopefully after the deadline some guys will be moving up.

[gman]

Prato is a 25yo right handed hitter, with about 90 games at the outfield corner spots. Maybe he could be the right handed platoon side in the outfield. Not all players have to be left in the minors until they are considered too old to try at the majors.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Dobnek was "cromulent". To save the rest of you from having to look up what that means, I will tell you that it means "average".  Thanks Matt. You never cease to amaze me with your excellent writing.

[Major League Ready]

3 hours ago, Dman said:

Man Prato is hot.  If you look at his betting line with almost as many walks as K's he looks a lot like Spencer Steer except faster and he can play the outfield for added flexibility.  Still only a months worth of at bat's for AAA but if he qualified he would be a league leader.  I think the Twins might have something in Prato.

Rosario still number one in OPS for his league. Hopefully after the deadline some guys will be moving up.

His first AAA game was 6/10.  He has had 147 PA.  Not enough to be overly confident in what we are seeing but enough to be pretty excited about his potential.  I love it when these guys make a leap of this nature.  Ideally, they move Royce to the OF but I would not mind them giving Prato a shot after the deadline.

[Major League Ready]

Just now, Major League Ready said:

Duplicate post.

 

[Dman]

12 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

His first AAA game was 6/10.  He has had 147 PA.  Not enough to be overly confident in what we are seeing but enough to be pretty excited about his potential.  I love it when these guys make a leap of this nature.  Ideally, they move Royce to the OF but I would not mind them giving Prato a shot after the deadline.

After todays game in AAA he has 28 walks and 28 K's.  That is impressive plate presence.  Very Arraez like in that he generally makes contact and can take a walk.  You are right though only just over a month at AAA and guys go on hot streaks all the time.  Still he generally only K's about 20% of the time throughout his minor league career except 2022 in High A where I assume he was working on adding more power he K'd 28% there.  Then went to AA still had a solid slugging percentage but dropped the K rate down in arguably a much tougher pitcher environment.

The one knock or question about him right now is his brutal start to the year at AA where he had a .553 OPS which is brutal especially since he had been there for half a year already.  I mean his slugging at AAA is .623 so to have that low of an OPS in AA it makes you want to give it more time to see who he really is.

It is just watching him from time to time he is generally a really tough out.  He also seems to be hitting off-speed stuff really well at AAA.  If this really is who he is it makes me wonder if this a Witt Merrifield type player.  Get's there a little late but really has a well rounded skillset at the plate.  I also mentioned Steer before mainly because the knock on Prato was the lack of power but like Steer he seems to have found it and like Steer he has great plate discipline.

Probably out over my ski's on Prato and will have to see how the rest of the season plays out but he could earn himself a 40 man spot on this team or another one if the Twins aren't believers.

[Fred]

On 7/30/2023 at 6:02 PM, Dman said:

After todays game in AAA he has 28 walks and 28 K's.  That is impressive plate presence.  Very Arraez like in that he generally makes contact and can take a walk.  You are right though only just over a month at AAA and guys go on hot streaks all the time.  Still he generally only K's about 20% of the time throughout his minor league career except 2022 in High A where I assume he was working on adding more power he K'd 28% there.  Then went to AA still had a solid slugging percentage but dropped the K rate down in arguably a much tougher pitcher environment.

The one knock or question about him right now is his brutal start to the year at AA where he had a .553 OPS which is brutal especially since he had been there for half a year already.  I mean his slugging at AAA is .623 so to have that low of an OPS in AA it makes you want to give it more time to see who he really is.

It is just watching him from time to time he is generally a really tough out.  He also seems to be hitting off-speed stuff really well at AAA.  If this really is who he is it makes me wonder if this a Witt Merrifield type player.  Get's there a little late but really has a well rounded skillset at the plate.  I also mentioned Steer before mainly because the knock on Prato was the lack of power but like Steer he seems to have found it and like Steer he has great plate discipline.

Probably out over my ski's on Prato and will have to see how the rest of the season plays out but he could earn himself a 40 man spot on this team or another one if the Twins aren't believers.

So, Prato was drafted in 2019, where does that put him in time of service? Do they have another year before they have to worry about rule 5?

[Dman]

40 minutes ago, Fred said:

So, Prato was drafted in 2019, where does that put him in time of service? Do they have another year before they have to worry about rule 5?

He was Rule V eligible last year but it is a big jump from performing well for half a season of AA ball to the majors so no need to add him.  It might still be questionable this year depending on how he performs the next two months.  If he hadn't had that horrible first two months I would say he is a must add but bats get hot and bats go cold and teams want Rule V's to stick or they wouldn't take them.

The thing is his batting line is so solid right now it is as good or better than Brooks Lee.  If this is who he is the Twins might have developed another Spencer Steer.  So the next two months will tell the tale but given his ability to be selective at the plate and make contact my money is on Prato making it to MLB ball one way or another.