Twins Minor League Report (4/20): Doncon, Winokur Lead Mussels; Boushley and the Bats Lead Saints

[Seth Stohs]

Lots of runs scored. Lots of runs given up. Several multi-hit games. A couple of really strong pitching performances mixed in too. Check out how the Twins minor-league affiliates did on Saturday, and how some of the top prospects performed on the field. 

Image courtesy of William Parmeter (photo of Rayne Doncon)

We are three weeks into the season already, and it's fun to see which players have stepped up and which are off to slow starts.  On Saturday, there was an intriguing pitching matchup in Fort Myers, pitting two top pitching prospects from the 2023 draft. Cedar Rapids offense showed up, but the pitching and defense had some rough innings. Wichita had a nice, clean win. The Saints got help up and down the order on their way to an easy win. 

Current W-L Records 
Minnesota Twins: 7-12 
St. Paul Saints: 8-11
Wichita Wind Surge: 3-11 
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 6-7
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 6-8   

Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. 

TRANSACTIONS
OF Carlos Aguiar was placed on the Mussels injured list with a strained intercostal. Taking his spot on the Fort Myers roster was Omari Daniel. 

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 12, Indianapolis 1
Box Score
Through three innings, the Saints were down 1-0 in Indianapolis. Then over the next five innings, they scored two, two, five, zero, and three runs. Alfonso, Virginia, in case you were wondering.    

In the fourth inning, Yoyner Fajardo singled to score two runs and give the Saints  the lead. Tony Kemp came up in the top of the fifth inning with the bases loaded. He lined a single to right field that scored Max Kepler and DaShawn Keirsey. The Saints loaded the bases again in the sixth frame. Chris Williams and Alex Isola each walked in a run. Then Will Holland doubled to clear the bases just missing a grand slam by thismuch!.  

 

 

The Saints concluded their scoring in the eighth inning. Kemp scored on a Wild Pitch. Then Yoyner Fajardo’s third home of the year scored the final two runs. 

 

Kepler went 3-for-5 with a walk. Fajardo went 2-for-5 with a homer and drove in three runs. Alex Isola was 2-for-3 with two walks and three RBI. Anthony Prato went 2-for 4 with a walk and a triple. He was also hit by a pitch. 

Caleb Boushley was the recipient of all of the run support, though he probably would have been OK if they spread it out over a couple of his starts. In this game, he gave up only an unearned run on three hits over six innings. He walked two and struck out eight batters. Josh Staumont struck out three in a scoreless seventh. Ryan Jensen pitched a scoreless eighth inning before giving up three meaningless runs in the ninth. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 7, Tulsa 3                                                                                                                                                                                          Box Score
The Wind Surge took a 3-1 lead after one inning. Slowly, the Drillers fought back and in the top of the sixth frame they tied it 3-3. The Surge responded well by reclaiming the lead with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. After a couple of zeroes, Wichita added two more in the bottom of the eighth inning to give them the 7-3 lead. 

AJ Alexy made the start. The right-hander tossed four innings. He was charged with two runs (1 earned) on two hits in four innings. He walked three and struck out two batters. Hunter McMahon came on and gave up one run on three hits over two innings. Scott Engler gave up two hits and struck two batters out over two scoreless innings. Miguel Rodriguez struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning. 

Emmanuel Rodriguez got things started with a leadoff double. He stole second base and scored when Tanner Schobel singled. Jeferson Morales doubled in Schobel. Carson McCusker drove in Morales with a single, the third run of the first inning. 

With the game tied in the bottom of the sixth inning, Jake Rucker singled in Alerick Soularie and Rodriguez. Then the team added on in the bottom of the eighth. McCusker singled in Noah Cardenas and Morales took third base. Soon after, McCusker was caught stealing second, but not before Morales stole home. 

Rodriguez was 1-for-3 with two walks and his fourth double. He also stole his seventh and eighth bases. Schobel went 2-for-3 with two walks. Morales was 2-for-5. McCusker was 2-for-4 with a walk. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 8, Wisconsin 14  
Box Score
C.J. Culpepper was on the mound to start on Saturday in Appleton. He put two zeroes on the board, and then…

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Dahlonega is the country seat of Lumpkin County, Georgia. A town of approximately 7,500 citizens, it was originally named Talonega. However, after a gold rush in about 1830, the Georgia General Assembly changed the name. Dalonige is a Cherokee-language word that means “yellow” or “gold.” The area is known as “the heart of North Georgia Wine Country.” There are many vineyards and five licensed wineries. So, if you’re looking for a vacation spot, Dahlonega is approximately 65 miles north of Atlanta. While there you can spend time in the Amicalola Falls State Park. You could go way down yonder on the Chattahoochee River and do some hiking on the Crown Mountain.  

 

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The zip code of Dahlonega, Georgia is 30533, and that is what the Wisconsin line of the scoreboard looked like between the second and sixth innings. They scored three runs in the second, fifth and sixth innings, and a five-spot in the fourth inning. 

Culpepper gave up five runs (just two earned) on five hits over 3 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out three batters. He left the game with two runners on and Juan Mercedes came in and allowed both inherited runners to score. He then was charged with six runs (5 earned) on seven hits and a walk in 1 2/3 innings. Kyle Bischoff gave up three runs in the sixth inning. Ricardo Velez came on and struck out three batters over two perfect innings. 

The Kernels scored eight runs in the game, usually enough to put a tally in the Win column, but not on this day. They had a big, five-run third inning. Rubel Cespedes singled to score Agustin Ruiz with the first run. Danny De Andrade came up with the bases loaded and drilled a double to clear the bases and give the Kernels the 4-3 lead. Jay Harry followed with a single to score De Andrade. 

Down 11-6 through five innings, the Kernels kept putting pressure on the T-Rats. Gabriel Gonzalez doubled to score Luke Keaschall, and he then scored on a Cespedes single to cut the deficit to 11-8, but that’s as close as it got. 

De Andrade led the offense. He had two doubles in five at-bats. He also stole a base. Ricardo Olivar went 2-for-4 with a walk and two doubles. Cespedes had two RBI singles in five at-bats. 

Luke Keaschall went 1-for-3 with two walks and a double. He is now hitting .318 with a 1.019 OPS this season.  

 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 5, Jupiter 3
Box Score
The pitching matchup was certainly intriguing. Two of the top prep pitchers from the 2023 draft met in Fort Myers. Jupiter starter Noble Meyer was the Marlins’ first-round pick, 10th overall, out of Portland’s Jesuit High School. In this game, his third start of the season, he went 4 2/3 innings. He gave up three runs on five hits. He had two walks and three strikeouts. 53 of his 85 pitches were strikes. 

The Twins used their Competitive Balance-A pick, 34th overall, to select Charlee Soto out of Reborn Christian Academy in Kissimmee, Florida. Soto was charged with two runs (1 earned) on four hits over three innings. He walked three and struck out five batters. He threw 36 of his 62 pitches for strikes. 

Meyer’s average fastball sat at 94.1 mph. For Soto, his average was 94.5. The max velocity for Soto was 97.1 mph and 96.6 mph for Meyer. 

Danny Moreno came in and gave up one run on two hits and two walks in 2 2/3 innings. He struck out three batters. Nolan Santos came on and got out all seven batters he faced to earn a Win. Julio Bonilla worked a perfect ninth frame for the save. 

Rayne Doncon led the offense on Saturday. He went 3-for-4 with his seventh double. He is hitting .362 with an OPS at 1.015. Brandon Winokur went 2-for-4 and drove in two runs. His seventh-inning double scored Doncon to give the Mussels the lead. Gregory Duran followed by knocking in Winokur with a single, his second RBI of the day. Maddux Houghton went 1-for-3 with a walk. He’s hitting .500 with a 1.396 OPS. 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Hitter of the Day – Rayne Doncon (Fort Myers) - 3-for-4, 2B(7), 2 R.  
Pitcher of the Day – Caleb Boushley (St. Paul) - 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, 61 strikes, 91 pitches.  

 

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Wednesday. 

#1 - Walker Jenkins (Fort Myers) - IL
#2 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - IL
#3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Wichita) - 1-for-3, 2 BB, 2B(4), 2-2B(8), R, K.
#4 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-5, 2B(4), R, RBI 
#5 - Marco Raya (Wichita) -
#6 - David Festa (St. Paul) -
#7 – Austin Martin (Minnesota) - 2-for-4, 2B(4), 2 R,
#8 - Cory Lewis (Wichita) - IL
#9 - Charlee Soto (Fort Myers) - 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 36 strikes, 62 strikes.
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) –  2-for-4, 2B(3), R, 2 RBI,
#11 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 2-for-3, 2 BB, 2B(2), R, RBI, K
#12 – Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) – 1-3, 2 BB, 2B(4), R, K
#13 - Kala’i Rosario (Wichita) -  
#14 - C.J. Culpepper (Cedar Rapids) - 3 1/3 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, HBP, 35 strikes, 65 pitches,
#15 – Danny De Andrade (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-5, 2-2B(4), 2 R, 3 RBI, K, SB(2).
#16 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) –
#17 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - IL
#18 - Connor Prielipp (Cedar Rapids) - IL
#19 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-4, BB, 2-2B(4), R, K
#20 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - DNP

SUNDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES
St. Pau @ Indianapolis (12:35 PM CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak (1-1, 3.65 ERA)
Tulsa @ Wichita (1:05 PM CST) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin (0-1, 5.40 ERA)
Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (1:10 PM CST) - RHP Darren Bowen (0-0, 19.29 ERA)
Jupiter @ Fort Myers (11:05 AM CST) - Paulshawn Pasqualotto (0-0, 2.00 ERA) 

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Saturday’s games or any other Twins minor league topics! 

 

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[FlyingFinn]

Olivar - can he stick at catcher? I think he threw out at least one runner today. Great player if he can.

[Doctor Gast]

8 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

Olivar - can he stick at catcher? I think he threw out at least one runner today. Great player if he can.

Olivar has all the raw tools to become a great defensive catcher if only the Twins can develop him. So far they haven't done much. IMO the Twins don't put a lot of stock on defense & are hoping he can figure things out on his own if not they can put him in the crowded OF & hope his bat will excel enough to make it to MLB. I've been following him since rookie ball.

[Major League Ready]

47 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Olivar has all the raw tools to become a great defensive catcher if only the Twins can develop him. So far they haven't done much. IMO the Twins don't put a lot of stock on defense & are hoping he can figure things out on his own if not they can put him in the crowded OF & hope his bat will excel enough to make it to MLB. I've been following him since rookie ball.

Where are you getting this assessment of his "raw tools".  Have you seen him play on Milb TV often or have you seen scouting reports you can share?  I have been looking for scouting reports on his ability to stick at catcher and have not found anything.  I would guess he will get some attention if he continues to produce an OPS around 1.000.  With that attention will come some opinions on his ability to stick behind the plate.

[jmlease1]

Doncon is really raking to start the season. While I don't expect him to stick at SS, if he keeps this up that bat will play wherever he lands in the infield. 

Good to see Schobel and Winokur getting going. 

Keaschall is having a terrific start to the season. He looks really good so far. I'm really impressed with the 12-9 walk to strikeout ratio. He's also doing making good contact and doing damage when he swings. Not bad at all. He stays on this track and he'll be in Wichita this year for sure.

[Doctor Gast]

1 hour ago, Major League Ready said:

Where are you getting this assessment of his "raw tools".  Have you seen him play on Milb TV often or have you seen scouting reports you can share?  I have been looking for scouting reports on his ability to stick at catcher and have not found anything.  I would guess he will get some attention if he continues to produce an OPS around 1.000.  With that attention will come some opinions on his ability to stick behind the plate.

Both. 1st he has an above arm which is a must, next is his quickness these are his physical raw tools that are what catchers need to have to be good. Because he chose to be a catcher IMO he has the heart to be a catcher. Most everything else can be developed.

Independent of what he does defensively, he'll stick at catching for the Twins if he continues to hit the way he is.

By a TD article, Carmargo is our top catching prospect. Yet his defense is never discussed (although he has a pretty good arm) & they were afraid to test his defense when they brought him up.

[Guest]

Jenkins and Lee still on IL.  Any rumblings on when they return to the field, or are they going to take 2024 off?

[roger]

Thanks for the report, Seth, although seeing not a single winning record in the organization is a downer.

Looks like Keps will be returning to the Twins early next week.  What is the other half of that move?  Camargo back to St. Paul?

Getting Keps back in right field should help their outfield D.  Sure hope that doesn't mean that Martin is relagated to a permanent bench spot.  That young man is an exciting player who needs to play, nearly every day.  Martin should be playing a lot more than Margot.  Tough day for Wallner, 0-6 with four K's.

Curious, Seth, why you would know some unknown zip code from Georgia?

[wabene]

1 minute ago, roger said:

Curious, Seth, why you would know some unknown zip code from Georgia

Seth listed the score for five consecutive innings, then looked up the zip code for those numbers. Probably did this while keeping score. Multi tasking.

[terrydactyls]

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

Both. 1st he has an above arm which is a must, next is his quickness these are his physical raw tools that are what catchers need to have to be good. Because he chose to be a catcher IMO he has the heart to be a catcher. Most everything else can be developed.

Independent of what he does defensively, he'll stick at catching for the Twins if he continues to hit the way he is.

Major League Ready asked you to share the scouting reports to which you refer.  What are they, please?

[D.C Twins]

Cespedes needs a new challenge in AA.... I hope they don't wait until mid-season to give it to him...

[Seth Stohs]

4 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Olivar has all the raw tools to become a great defensive catcher if only the Twins can develop him. So far they haven't done much. IMO the Twins don't put a lot of stock on defense & are hoping he can figure things out on his own if not they can put him in the crowded OF & hope his bat will excel enough to make it to MLB. I've been following him since rookie ball.

What is this based on? They have a minor-league catching coordinator. They have two pitching coaches at each level and three catchers. And most of the affiliates have a former catcher on staff. 

[Seth Stohs]

3 hours ago, jmlease1 said:

Doncon is really raking to start the season. While I don't expect him to stick at SS, if he keeps this up that bat will play wherever he lands in the infield. 

Good to see Schobel and Winokur getting going. 

Keaschall is having a terrific start to the season. He looks really good so far. I'm really impressed with the 12-9 walk to strikeout ratio. He's also doing making good contact and doing damage when he swings. Not bad at all. He stays on this track and he'll be in Wichita this year for sure.

Winokur has been playing most of the innings at short. Doncon has been at thired base much of the time. But they're all going to play a few positions just because that's smart. 

[Seth Stohs]

2 hours ago, roger said:

Thanks for the report, Seth, although seeing not a single winning record in the organization is a downer.

Looks like Keps will be returning to the Twins early next week.  What is the other half of that move?  Camargo back to St. Paul?

Getting Keps back in right field should help their outfield D.  Sure hope that doesn't mean that Martin is relagated to a permanent bench spot.  That young man is an exciting player who needs to play, nearly every day.  Martin should be playing a lot more than Margot.  Tough day for Wallner, 0-6 with four K's.

Curious, Seth, why you would know some unknown zip code from Georgia?

Yeah, I would think that Camargo would be the other half of the move. The unfortunate thing about that would be if Jeffers loses DH ABs.  Kepler in RF. Larnach/Martin in LF. Martin in CF twice a week. 

And yes, the internet can provide all kinds of fun knowledge and lead us down rabbit holes.

[Seth Stohs]

56 minutes ago, D.C Twins said:

Cespedes needs a new challenge in AA.... I hope they don't wait until mid-season to give it to him...

If that's still the case in 6 weeks, absolutely. It's been two weeks. . I'm sure they'd love to get him a half-season in Double A before the end of the season. He (and Olivar) were R5 eligible last offseason and with strong seasons this year could be must-adds after this season. 

[Matt Braun]

I am officially fascinated by Rayne Doncon. His damage is coming with a walk rate higher than his strikeout rate, which you don't see every day. Let's see if he keeps it up. 

[Doctor Gast]

1 hour ago, Seth Stohs said:

What is this based on? They have a minor-league catching coordinator. They have two pitching coaches at each level and three catchers. And most of the affiliates have a former catcher on staff. 

I guess I look at the bi-product Seth. If a team is serious about defense at a premium position you'd see that they'd draft it & then develop it and I don't see it in the Twins organization. You'd have to stretch it to find an average-defensive-rated catcher in the system.

BTW- I heard once on a podcast that Olivar had an above-average arm & a player that have played CF in pro ball has to have above-average speed & fielding. Even though is ranked MN #22  prospect by MLB yet he scored 50 HIT- 40 POWER- 45 RUN- 45 FIELD- 45 ARM- 40 OVERALL . With a scouting grade like that I don't think he'd stick anywhere much less as catcher. Is this scouting grade that far off?

https://www.mlb.com/prospects/twins/ricardo-olivar-691627

[Seth Stohs]

11 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

I guess I look at the bi-product Seth. If a team is serious about defense at a premium position you'd see that they'd draft it & then develop it and I don't see it in the Twins organization. You'd have to stretch it to find an average-defensive-rated catcher in the system.

BTW- I heard once on a podcast that Olivar had an above-average arm & a player that have played CF in pro ball has to have above-average speed & fielding. Even though is ranked MN #22  prospect by MLB yet he scored 50 HIT- 40 POWER- 45 RUN- 45 FIELD- 45 ARM- 40 OVERALL . With a scouting grade like that I don't think he'd stick anywhere much less as catcher. Is this scouting grade that far off?

https://www.mlb.com/prospects/twins/ricardo-olivar-691627

I think defensively they are really high on Patrick Winkel, and he's doing most of the catching at AAA now that Camargo is up. I've heard really good things about Noah Cardenas behind the plate. 

Olivar is a decent catcher. I wouldn't say he's a plus catcher at this point by any means, but he's improving. I do think he's a good athlete, but I wouldn't he's got a lot of speed. He's built similar to Camargo. He's a stocky dude, very strong. 

I fully admit, I hadn't seen him in person until last week in Cedar Rapids. There is reading scouting reports and watching box scores and seeing stuff like him playing in CF... Then you see him in person and realize... no, he's not a CF option in the big leagues, except in an emergency. He's OK in left. I saw him make a great play, but he's out there to keep his bat in the lineup. 

Offensively, from watching three games, I think he's got a very good approach at the plate. Knows the zone pretty well. Took four walks in three games, puts the ball in play, and there is definitely some power potential there. 

[Doctor Gast]

2 hours ago, Seth Stohs said:

I think defensively they are really high on Patrick Winkel, and he's doing most of the catching at AAA now that Camargo is up. I've heard really good things about Noah Cardenas behind the plate. 

Olivar is a decent catcher. I wouldn't say he's a plus catcher at this point by any means, but he's improving. I do think he's a good athlete, but I wouldn't he's got a lot of speed. He's built similar to Camargo. He's a stocky dude, very strong. 

I fully admit, I hadn't seen him in person until last week in Cedar Rapids. There is reading scouting reports and watching box scores and seeing stuff like him playing in CF... Then you see him in person and realize... no, he's not a CF option in the big leagues, except in an emergency. He's OK in left. I saw him make a great play, but he's out there to keep his bat in the lineup. 

Offensively, from watching three games, I think he's got a very good approach at the plate. Knows the zone pretty well. Took four walks in three games, puts the ball in play, and there is definitely some power potential there. 

Thanks Seth, IMO Cardenas is the best that we have but how does he rank defensively compared to other top-catching prospects out there? My guess is that he's not very high. I know that Olivar will never make it as a MLB CFer & probably shouldn't be in the minors. I just wanted to make the point that he's more athletic & faster than the normal catcher which normally plays only 1B or DH to keep their bat in the line-up. You saw Olivar, how would you rank his arm?

[Mike Sixel]

23 hours ago, Seth Stohs said:

What is this based on? They have a minor-league catching coordinator. They have two pitching coaches at each level and three catchers. And most of the affiliates have a former catcher on staff. 

It's based on nothing. 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

Early sample size, even though I was against it, that Doncon for Miller swap is looking pretty good right now.  

Overall, I like where the system and even the major league roster is looking.   I know rough start over all and injuries, but I think once players get back, which they are starting to with Kepler, then things will start to improve across the board.  You remove the injured players and really overall for early in the season, most players are performing pretty well.   

I continue to like Winokur,  I think he will be a really solid player down the road.  He seems to be settling in.  He does have 3 errors early in the season,  may be showing SS is a little bit outside his range, but will continue to monitor.