Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month - April 2024

[Seth Stohs]

Today we conclude our series of April minor league awards by recognizing the top relief pitchers in the Twins minor leagues during the month. 

Image courtesy of David Malamut (@MWLArchives on X)

Being a minor league relief pitcher can be a very difficult job. Often, the role is different from day to day. At the same time, most relievers only pitch twice per week, so it can be hard to get into a routine. One day, a reliever could be used to get three outs in the ninth. Two days later, he could be asked to go 2 1/3 innings after a starter only got four outs in the game. Three days later, they could work the sixth and seventh innings. There isn't always a ton of glory for relief pitchers, and their names only get referenced when they have a bad outing. That's why it is important to recognize when relievers have a strong extended run of success. Today we celebrate the top relievers in the Twins organization during the season's first month. 

To begin, let's take a look at a couple of honorable mentions.

• RHP Diego Castillo - St. Paul Saints - 9 G, 2.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 9.0 IP, 4 H, 6 BB, 9 K
• LHP Kade Bragg - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels - 6 G, 1.08 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 8.1 IP, 5 H, 5 BB, 9 K

Top Five Relief Pitchers for April 2024
#5. RHP Jacob Wosinski - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 6 G, 4.91 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 11.0 IP, 11 H, 4 BB, 11 K
A quick look at his numbers for the month of April, and you have to be wondering why I included him in this ranking. In all honesty, he is on this list because he is a good illustration of the volatility of this list. One bad outing can alter the perception of how the pitcher did. 

Through his first five outings, Wosinski had pitched in 10 1/3 innings and had not allowed an earned run. In fact, he had given up just six hits and three walks. There is a decent chance that he could have been #1 on this list with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. However, he came into an extra-inning game last weekend. He got two outs but was charged with seven runs (6 earned) on five hits and a walk. He gave up a double, a triple, and two, three-run homers.  

After going undrafted out of Oakland (MI) University, Wosinski headed to the USPBL. In May of 2023, he signed with the Twins and spent the summer in Fort Myers. The 25-year-old skipped Low-A and jumped to the Kernels to start this season. At 6-8, Wosinski has a really good fastball and a sharp slider. 

#4. RHP Nolan Santos - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels - 7 G, 1.64 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 11 IP, 9 H, 4 BB, 15 K
Nolan Santos was the Twins seventh-round draft pick in 2023 out of Bethune-Cookman University. As a junior, he made 16 starts. In 97 1/3 innings, he had 138 strikeouts and just 35 walks. He had another 21 strikeouts (to just four walks) in 20 innings in the MLB Draft League. 

After signing last year, he pitched in two games in the FCL before finishing the season with three games with the Mighty Mussels. That is where he began this 2023 season. In this first month, he was often used to come into a tough spot during the middle of an inning, get out of it, and then work another inning or so. 

With his past as a starter, Santos throws as many as five pitches. He throws a four-seam fastball, a changeup, a slow curveball, and then a cutter and slider. The four-seam fastball is currently thrown between 91 and 94 mph and gets a few inches of ride in on a right-handed batter.. The cutter and slider are both between 85 and 88 mph. There isn’t a lot of differentiation between those pitches at this point. When it is good, his changeup is in the low-to-mid 80s and often gets good fade. Then he throws his curveball anywhere from 70 to 77 mph. He often throws his curveball from a higher release point than his other pitchers. It is basically a 12-6 curveball, or maybe like 11:15-5:15, if you like.  

3. RHP Scott Blewett - St. Paul Saints - 11 G, 0.69 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 13.0 IP, 11 H, 3 BB, 18 K
Each team signs a bunch of minor-league free agents each offseason to provide organizational depth at positions of need. The Twins are no exception. The Twins actually signed far fewer minor-league free agents than normal, focusing on relief pitchers. Most we hear about, but the first signal that the Twins had signed the 28-year-old was when he was jogging into one of the early spring training games. 

Blewett spent parts of the 2020 and 2021 seasons with the Kansas City Royals. He was in the White Sox organization in 2022. Last year, he began the season in the Braves system before joining Uni-President in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.  

Blewett has been quite reliable out of the Saints bullpen during the seasons’ first month. He is working one or two innings at a time. He’s limiting runs, and the 18 to 3 strikeout to walk ratio has played a big part of it. The Twins have an incredibly deep bullpen this season. There are several pitchers in the Saints ‘pen that could be up with the Twins but there isn’t room. While Blewett is down the list a bit in terms of a potential promotion, he has certainly seen his name be added to the list of those to be considered.  

2. John Stankiewicz - Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge - 7 G, 1.54 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 11.2 IP, 8 H, 3 BB, 11 K
Stankiewicz has seen his name in the Twins Daily monthly reliever awards articles frequently since signing with the Twins as a free agent after the Covid-shortened, five-round 2020 draft. Between 2019 and 2020 at Fordham, he had 123 strikeouts and just 26 walks over 113 innings. He spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons as a starter before transitioning to the bullpen before the 2023 season. 

Last year in Cedar Rapids, he went 7-1 with a 3.11 ERA and a 0.99 WHIP. In 66 2/3 innings, he walked 15 and struck out 66 batters. He was a vital part at the backend of the Midwest League champion Kernels’ bullpen. He began the 2024 season in Cedar Rapids, but after just one appearance, he moved up to Wichita where he has continued to pitch well. He’s been used late in games, and he’s been used for multiple innings.  

1. RHP Ricardo Velez - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 8 G, 1.80 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, 10.0 IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 12 K
Ricardo Velez grew up in Lajas, Puerto Rico. For college, he headed to the States and played in Chickasha, Oklahoma, at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. It isn’t exactly a baseball hotbed, but Velez thrived in his time there. He was a reliever his first three seasons at the NAIA school. However, before his 2021 senior season, injuries gave him a chance to join the Drovers rotation. He went 8-3 with a 2.38 ERA. He had 128 strikeouts in 79 1/3 innings. He even recorded a 15-strikeout, no-hitter that season. 

As you would expect, Velez went undrafted. However, he got an opportunity to play for the Eastside Diamond Hoppers in the United Shores Professional Baseball League. In mid-July of 2021, the Twins signed Velez to a minor-league contract. He signed the same day as fellow Kernels reliever Jordan Carr. He spent that summer and the 2022 season in the FCL. Last year, he pitched in 19 games for Fort Myers. He went 4-1 with a 3.81 ERA. In 28 1/3 innings, he had 12 walks and 36 strikeouts.  He has also competed in the Puerto Rico Winter League each offseason as well as the Caribbean Series. This offseason for Caguas, he went 5-0 with a 1.52 ERA in 23 2/3 innings. 

Maybe that has helped him get off to a fast start this season. Already 25 years old, the Twins can afford to be patient with him and let him continue to develop. That said, if he’s putting up numbers, there’s no reason to slow-play him either. So far with the Kernels, he has been very good. Earlier in the season, he was working in the seventh and eighth innings, in a setup role. However, over the past two weeks, he has pitched in five games. He is 4-for-4 in save opportunities. In his fifth outing, he struck out three batters over two perfect innings.  (He also recorded the Save for Cedar Rapids on Wednesday, May 1st, which isn't included in his April stats, of course.)

Co-Pitching Coach Jonas Lovin said, "The biggest reason we trust Ricardo late in games is because he's done it. He's pitched in big games, in front of big crowds in Winter Ball and the Caribbean Series. No moment seems too big for him." 

Along with good stuff, including a mid-90s four-seam fastball, he has become a strike-throwing machine. Of 124 pitches this month, 68.5% of them have been strikes. He had just one walk to go with 12 strikeouts. Opponents hit just .171/.216/257 (.473) off of him in April. Velez also throws a sinker, a cutter, a sweeper and a change-up. The cutter and the sweeper are improving but still a work in progress. 

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Congratulations to Ricardo Velez, the Twins Daily choice for Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month. Feel free to discuss Velez and the others in the comments below. 

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[ashbury]

If Scott Blewett has a chance of being actually, you know, good in his new relief role, can we petition for his last name to be changed in anticipation of him getting into games to protect a late lead?  😀

He's doing great, and at the moment is the poster child for the advice "walks will haunt," because he ain't hardly walkin' nobody.

[bean5302]

Nice article on Velez. Hopefully, he learned his lesson with the PED violation. The writer pegs Velez's fastball at more like 90mph vs. mid-90s, but I don't have any actual data to reference.

https://www.thegazette.com/minor-league-sports/ricardo-velez-finds-himself-closing-out-games-for-the-cedar-rapids-kernels/

[FlyingFinn]

This is always the monthly award where I don't have a clue who is going to get it. I don't realize that someone has strung together a bunch of good relief outings (though I should as we had plenty of bad ones in the minors in April!).

Thanks for posting this article.

[DocBauer]

So there actually ARE some decent relievers in the minors this year.  LOL

Blewett looks interesting. Another late bloomer project that's been uncovered perhaps? But he's obviously got to keep it going, but even then, he's a ways down the pecking order for promotion.

Any recent reports on Diego Castillo's velocity? I thought he was a smart flier signing to see if he could get back to his previous form, which was good even in 2023. But I want to say he's been throwing in the low 90's last I heard?

Blewett  and Castillo are nice adds to St Paul, and possible depth options down the road. But behind Alcala, Funderburk, and possibly Staumont if he can make it at least 90% back, they've got a fairly long road ahead of them.

Thanks for the report!

[roger]

Thanks for the report, Seth.  To be honest, I knew nothing or almost nothing about the entire lot.  Your #1 guy looks interesting, very interesting.

Thanks again!