Twins Minor League Report (7/24): Good Day to be a Fan of the Twins Organization!

[Seth Stohs]

Fun day in the Twins minor leagues. In fact, we've got lots of bonus content in today's minor-league report. You'll even enjoy reading through how our Top 20 Twins prospects did on Wednesday. Draft Talk. Business of minor-league baseball. And some great performances. Could the Mussels throw back-to-back No Hitters? Kernels got very strong pitching! Wind Surge made a late comeback attempt with the help of, well, you can probably guess. And the Saints had a couple of rehabbers and a great start. And, and the Twins welcomed 21 newly-signed players to Fort Myers and the Twins organization. Check it all out below. 

Image courtesy of William Parmeter

CURRENT W-L Records
Minnesota Twins: 55-45
St. Paul Saints: 48-49
Wichita Wind Surge: 38-54
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 53-37
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 48-41
FCL Twins: 27-31
DSL Twins: 18-17

BUSINESS OF MINOR-LEAGUE BASEBALL
Remember the limits on minor-leaguers in an organization changed again in 2024. Each MLB team fields five minor-league teams in the United States. There are four full-season affiliates and one “complex” affiliate. Just three years ago (2021), teams were limited to 180 players . This year, that number has been reduced to 165 active players on domestic minor-league rosters. This doesn’t include the Dominican Summer League. In addition, teams can have up to 15 players on the 60-Day (or Full-Season) Injured List. However, players on the 7-Day IL count toward the 165 player limit. 

So, what does this mean? Well, as players come off of the 60-Day IL, if the organization is at 165, someone would need to be released. Also, the Twins just drafted 22 players. As they sign and are placed on rosters, the organization needs to remain at 165 players or fewer. 

I bring this up because there are likely to be several tough releases over the coming weeks. Some of that started yesterday as the Twins released four players from the organization.

You can keep up with the 2024 Twins draft picks here. It was updated with a lot of player signings on Wednesday. Have they signed? How much? Under or over slot? Two signings worth looking at are Competitive Balance pick Dasan Hill and 11th round pick Michael Carpenter. 

PROSPECT RANKINGS
First, if you missed my updated Top 30 Twins prospects blog posted yesterday, please check it out and share your thoughts. 

Twins Daily is in the process of updating our Top 20 Twins Prospect rankings. You can participate in that ranking. Click here to rank your Top 20 Twins Prospects. 

TRANSACTIONS
With the Twins early-afternoon game, RHP Ronny Henriquez was optioned to St. Paul, and David Festa was recalled to be the “bulk” pitcher against the Phillies. In addition, RHP Brock Stewart was added back to the Twins roster. Infielder Diego A. Castillo was DFAd to make room for him. Castillo is likely to clear waivers and remain with the Saints. He had a couple of nice moments, highlights in his brief stint in the big leagues. 

Following the Twins game, Jair Camargo was optioned to Saint Paul. The Twins have an off day tomorrow, but there will certainly be at least one more move made on Friday to make room for the two players in the next paragraph. 

Royce Lewis played in his second rehab game for the Saints, and Jose Miranda played in his first rehab game. 

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 6, Omaha 2
Box Score
The Saints welcomed Bernie, well, Terry Kiser (of Weekend at Bernie's fame) out to toss the ceremonial first pitch. Also, how is that movie 35 years old!!?? What a classic! 

 

Caleb Boushley has had a very nice season with the Saints. He’s even been called up to the Twins a couple of times. He is currently off of the 40-man roster but continues to pitch well in St. Paul. On Wednesday, he gave up one run on four hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out three batters. He is now 9-4 this year with an ERA of 4.47. 

Nick Wittgren came on and gave up one run on one hit and one walk in his inning. Matt Bowman gave up two hits in the eighth inning, but no runs. Diego Castillo got the ninth inning and struck out two batters. 

The Saints scored in the first three innings of this game to give them a 4-0 lead. Omaha scored their two runs in the middle innings, but St. Paul scored two more in the eighth inning for the final runs on the game. 

The Twins had two of their players rehabbing at CHS Field on Wednesday. Royce Lewis batted second and was the DH. He went 1-for-3 with a walk, a double, and a strikeout. He doubled in the first inning and came around to score on a single by Yunior Severino. Jose Miranda batted third and played third base. He went 2-for-4 in the game. 

Severino went 3-for-4 with a walk and his 10th double. Wynton Bernard went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. Rylan Bannon went 1-for-3 with two walks. Payton Eeles went 1-for-3 with a walk and his sixth stolen base. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 3, Amarillo 7
Box Score
Let’s just jump right to the eighth inning because that’s where the action really started, at least if you’re a Wind Surge fan. 

The Surge were down 3-0 and had approximately an 11-percent chance of winning. To that point, they had just two hits in the game. However, Tanner Schobel led off the inning with a single, and Ben Ross walked. Suddenly their odds of winning jumped to nearly 18-percent. A wild pitch moved runners to second and third. However, the next two batters struck out without a run scoring, so the odds of winning were down to just under 8-percent. 

That brought Luke Keaschall to the plate. After watching two pitches come in just wide of the plate, he got a pitch right down the middle, and he did exactly what good hitters should do with pitches right down the middle. He launched a ball well beyond the fencing in left-center field to tie the game at 3-3.

While the majority of his home runs have come to lead off the game for his team, this has to be the most clutch to date. Wichita’s Win Probability surged from 8-percent to about 43-percent.  

And then the Sod Poodles scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to take a 7-3 lead and the Surge were unable to score in the ninth. 

Travis Adams made the start for the Surge and gave his team a Quality Start. In six innings, he gave up three runs on six hits. He walked three and had two strikeouts. Sure, he got a little help from his friends too.

Sometimes that friend can be your 5-8 catcher/outfielder. 

And sometimes it is really nice to have a 6-8 right fielder. 

Cody Laweryson pitched a scoreless seventh inning. However, he was charged with all four run in the eighth inning (three were earned). He exited a 4-3 game, and Miguel Rodriguez got the final two outs. However, that final out came after all three inherited runners scored. 

Keaschall provided the big, timely hit for Wichita, but the team had just five hits and two walks Schobel went 1-for-3 with a walk. Jake Rucker hit his 16th double. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 6, Quad Cities 2
Box Score
The Kernels spread out their runs. They scored right away, a couple of times in the middle, and maybe most important, they added insurance runs late to take the win down in Davenport.

Cedar Rapids scored the first run in the top of the first inning. With one out, Ricardo Olivar and Gabriel Gonzalez singled. Then with two outs, Rubel Cespedes singled to center to drive in Olivar, but he tried to make it a double and was thrown out. 

Quad Cities scored two runs in the bottom of the third frame to take the lead, but the Kernels responded quickly with a pair in the fourth. With two outs, Nate Baez walked. Misael Urbina followed with an RBI double. Jose Salas came up and singled to center to drive in Urbina with the team’s third run. 

The score remained 3-2 through seven innings thanks to some fantastic pitching from the two Kernels pitchers. 

Let’s jump to the pitching because the Kernels got two very strong performances on Wednesday night. Brooklyn Park’s John Klein improved to 7-2. He tossed the first six innings and gave up two runs on four hits. He walked three and struck out seven batters. 

Jarret Whorff came on and was perfect for the final three innings to record his first save of the year. Five of the nine outs came via the strikeout.  

Back to the batters. Where were we? Oh yeah, the score remained 3-2 through seven innings, but that’s when Cedar Rapids added some insurance which, I guess, makes a lot of sense now that I overthink it.

Cespedes led off the eighth with a walk. He advanced to third base on a double by Baez. A wild pitch allowed Cespedes to score the fourth run. Unfortunately, that was followed with two strikeouts and an infield pop up which left Baez stranded at third base. 

On to the ninth inning, with one out, Olivar doubled and moved to third on a ground out. Kevin Maitan wasn’t going to strand him. He (presumably) wanted to get a pitch he could drive into the outfield, deep enough to score Olivar. Instead, on the eighth pitch of the at-bat, Maitan got a pitch at the bottom of the zone and hit one far enough into the outfield that it went over the fence in right-center for a two-run homer. That gave the team a more-comfortable 6-2 lead, though on this night, Whorff didn’t necessarily need insurance. It’s still nice to have. 

Olivar led the Kernels offense. He went 4-for-5 with his 16th and 17th doubles. Gabriel Gonzalez went 3-for-5 with his 11th double. Urbina went 2-for-4 with his 12th double. Maitan’s home run was his sixth since joining the Kernels. 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 8, Dunedin 1 
Box Score
With three runs in the third and three more runs in the fourth inning, the Mussels got strong pitching and cruised to a nice win on Wednesday night in Dunedin. How did their pitching staff compare to the previous night’s no-hitter? I think we can say they did quite well!  

Maddux Houghton led off the top of the third inning with his third home run of the season. He found himself down in the count 0-2 but worked it back to full before launching a ball 355 feet onto the berm in left field. 

With one out, Yohander Martinez was hit by a pitch. Walker Jenkins followed with his third home run of the season to make it 3-0. It appears Jenkins might have been guessing slider (or at least something offspeed) as he hit the first pitch out of the yard. 

Dunedin scored one in the bottom of the third to make it 3-1. In the top of the fourth inning, Poncho Ruiz singled to right, and Rixon Wingrove singled to left to start the inning. Seeing both record opposite field hits had to make the Mussels coaching staff feel good. After one out, Houghton was able to reach on an error. Ruiz scored and the Mussels had runners on second and third with one out. After a line out for the second out, Martinez walked to load the bases. Following a pitching change, Jenkins went the opposite way for a two-run single that made it 6-1. 

That’s how the score remained until the top of the eighth when, with two outs, Houghton singled to drive in Ruiz. Then in the ninth, Martinez walked and advanced to second and then third on a couple of wild pitches. Jenkins walked. With one out, Brandon Winokur hit a sacrifice fly to center to drive in the team’s eighth run. 

Jenkins went 2-for-4 with a walk, a homer, and four RBI. Houghton was 2-for-4 with a home run. Martinez reached three times, twice on walks and once when he was hit by a pitch. 

No, No… I didn’t forget to mention the pitching staff that held Dunedin to just one run in nine innings on Wednesday. Sure, it wasn’t a six-inning no-hitter like the Mussels had on Tuesday, but this performance was fantastic. 

Paulshawn Pasqualotto gave up one run on just one hit, a solo homer, over the first four innings. He walked one and had six strikeouts. Tomas Cleto came on and struck out three batters in 1 2/3 scoreless, hitless innings. Jack Noble got the next four outs, two came on strikeouts. Sam Perez struck out two batters over two perfect innings to close out a very nice, all-around win. 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – John Klein (Kernels) - 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 7 K, or 
                                  Jarret Whorff (Kernels) - 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K. (9 up, 9 down) 
Hitter of the Day – Ricardo Olivar (Kernels) -  4-for-5, 2-2B(17), 2 R, or
                              Walker Jenkins (Mussels) - 2-for-4, BB, HR(3), R, 4 RBI 

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) – 2-for-4, BB, HR(3), R, 4 RBI   
#2 – Brooks Lee (Minnesota) – 1-for-4, K 
#4 – David Festa (Minnesota) – 4 1/3 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 73 pitches, 46 strikes (63.0%)
#5 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – 3-for-5, 2B(11), K   
#8 – Austin Martin (Minnesota) – 0-for-0, SH    
#9 – Luke Keaschall (Wichita) –  1-for-4, HR(5), R, 3 RBI, K  
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) – 0-for-4, SF, RBI, K .
#13 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 1-for-3, BB, R, K 
#18 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) – 3-for-4, BB, 2B(10), R, RBI, K 
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 4-for-5, 2-2B(17), 2 R

THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (8-5, 3.79 ERA)
Wichita @ Amarillo (7:05 PM CST) – LHP Christian MacLeod (first AA start)
Cedar Rapids @ Quad Cities (6:30 PM CST) – RHP Jeremy Lee (1-3, 3.90 ERA)
Ft. Myers @ Dunedin (5:30 PM CST) – RHP Spencer Bengard (6-2, 1.79 ERA) 
FCL Twins @ FCL Orioles (9:00 AM CT) - TBD
DSL Marlins @ DSL Twins (10:00 AM CST) - TBD

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!

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[FlyingFinn]

Draft signings - with Hill and Carpenter that much over slot, Culpepper has to be way under slot for the math to work out.

Edit: Thanks for the correction everyone as I should have actually done the math. All the small number savings do cover these two overslots.

[SaberNerd]

55 minutes ago, FlyingFinn said:

Draft signings - with Hill and Carpenter that much over slot, Culpepper has to be way under slot for the math to work out.

I did the math, and the Twins are $2,950 underslot with Culpepper unsigned.  Besides those 2 and Amick (who was exactly slot), every other pick in the top 10 rounds was underslot.

The Twins could sign Merit Jones (20th rounder) if Culpepper saves enough money.

[Major League Ready]

2 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

Draft signings - with Hill and Carpenter that much over slot, Culpepper has to be way under slot for the math to work out.

They are actually $361K under on their allocation which covered Carpenter.

Allocated   Actual   Diff                 1 Kaelen Culpepper   $3,934,400       $0 1C Kyle DeBarge SS 2,766,100       2,400,000   (366,100) 2 Billy Amick 3B 1,450,000       1,450,000   0 CB Dasan Hill P 1,168,000       2,000,000   832,000 3 Khadim Diaw C 759,700          597,500   (162,200) 4 Jaime Ferrer OF 567,400          425,550   (141,850) 5 Caden Kendle OF 411,000          150,000   (261,000) 6 Derek Bender C 320,800          297,500   (23,300) 7 Eli Jones P 251,500          212,500   (39,000) 8 Jakob Hall P 207,800          147,500   (60,300) 9 Jason Doktorczyk P 189,500          187,000   (2,500) 10 Peyton Carr 3B 179,700            42,500   (137,200)               (361,450)
							($271,650)

[wabene]

Feeling down after another depressing game thread asking yourself, why am I so depressed, they won? You slowly, almost by habit, click the Twins Daily unread button to see what's new. A minor league report, well those are always filled with hope, you reassure yourself. Then you notice it was penned by Seth "This kid looks like a star" Stohs. Yes! This is just what I need, you say, manna from heaven! 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

2 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

Draft signings - with Hill and Carpenter that much over slot, Culpepper has to be way under slot for the math to work out.

Actually no,  with Hill and Carpenter they overpaid,  1,190,000 million.   With Debarge, Diaw, Ferrar, Kendle, Bender, Jones, Hall, Doktorczyk, and Carr the Twins have saved  1,233,000.    Looks like will be pretty close to slot or slightly over for Culpepper unless will go over slot for a few more players that remained unsigned.  

[madtowntwin]

Wabene! There's therapy and medications for this.....Man cannot live on manna alone. Step off the ledge and keep posting please!!!

[Dman]

Would be nice if the Twins could sign the last three pitchers although they might have to pay more than they might want for Jones who shows as just 20 years old and could head back to school.  Still I can't believe Haugh and Peschl could want too much more than the 150,000 they can give as neither was ranked in the top 200 which would still only put them at around 250,000 for bonus money.  They would have even less leverage next year unless they have spectacular seasons.  I guess we'll see what happens in a few weeks.

If they do sign for slot then it looks like Culpepper will get slot value at 21. I was surprised that Ferrer got 400K since I don't see that he was rated inside the top 200 or even 300 anywhere that I could see.  I get those ratings are subjective and they don't get to see every player but I thought they would have squeezed a little more there especially since they really low balled Carr who likely would have been better off getting taken later or maybe senior signs just get abused in this system no matter what.  At any rate if they get those two college arms signed then this looks like a nice class.

[roger]

Elated to see that they have most of the recent draft picks signed, Seth.  Was concerned that they would be able to sign the high school kid from Texas and the lefty from Madison Tech.  I know nothing about any of these kids other than what I have read here.  But those two young kids were the most interesting to me.

Another great night from Jenkins.  Took a look at his splits and saw that after a slow/late start he is tearing the cover off the ball in July.  Do you see him moving up to Iowa in the near future?

Gonna be interesting to see the moves the Twins make over the next few weeks.  Both in getting the injured guys back and whether or not they make a deal for another starting pitcher.  Won't hold my breath cause five days is a bit long.  But maybe they will come thru with a pleasant surprise.  As for trading for another reliever, don't know if that is a big need with Stewart back yesterday and Topa starting his rehab stint.  Maybe a lefty to replace Okert who scares me every time out.

[Dman]

Jenkins OPS is slowly climbing toward elite territory.  If he qualified I think he would be in second place in OPS for his league behind only Mcgonnigle.  Having more walks than K's should serve him well as he moves up.  Hopefully he keeps those extra base hits coming.

Keaschal is a freak.  Very unusual for someone to handle AA this well in their first pro season.  It makes me wonder how long Martin has with the Twins If Keaschal is gonna end up in center.

Olivar had been slumping, but had a huge day at the plate.  His defense keeps him under rated as a prospect, but that hit tool is legit.

I went to a game and felt Cespedes wasn't taking good at bats and not squaring balls up.  I don't know if he changed something but he has been punishing the ball lately.  Really good to see him hitting more like the beginning of the season recently.  I hope he keeps it up as he is legit defensively at third base.

Some good things happening down on the farm.

[DJL44]

Hopefully this is Bengard's last start in Fort Myers.

[LambchoP]

Nice to see Jenkins bat finally waking up. Looks like now that he's fully healthy it's back to business as usual. Keaschal looks like one of our best hitting prospects and now that he's getting reps in the infield and the outfield, there's a real shot the Twins can find a place for him in the majors when he's ready. Severino started the year slow but has been smashing lately. Dudes got TONS of power. He's an infielder though, probably won't have a spot on the big league club with all of our infield depth. Being positionally blocked, I'd say he's one of our better trade chips. Severino, Gonzalez and maybe Raya. Those three should be able to get us the pitching help we need I would think...

[roger]

46 minutes ago, Dman said:

Jenkins OPS is slowly climbing toward elite territory.  If he qualified I think he would be in second place in OPS for his league behind only Mcgonnigle.  Having more walks than K's should serve him well as he moves up as well.  Hopefully he keeps those extra base hits coming.

Keaschal is a freak.  Very unusual for someone to handle AA this well in their first pro season.  It makes me wonder how long Martin has with the Twins If Keaschal is gonna end up in center.

Olivar had been slumping, but had a huge day at the plate.  His defense keeps him under rated as a prospect, but that hit tool is legit.

I went to a game and felt Cespedes wasn't taking good at bats and not squaring balls up.  I don't know if he changed something but he has been punishing the ball lately.  Really good to see him hitting more like the beginning of the season recently.  I hope he keeps it up as he is legit defensively at third base.

Some good things happening down on the farm.

I keep getting that nagging feeling that one of Martin or Julien won't be a Twin come next Thursday.

[Mike Sixel]

25 minutes ago, roger said:

I keep getting that nagging feeling that one of Martin or Julien won't be a Twin come next Thursday.

I'll be shocked if they deal Julien..... Because I think they are only adding a rental, and he's an over pay for a rental pitcher. 

[strumdatjag]

Whorff takes another step.   It’s exciting to know that the Twins have the first Klingon player in the history of pro ball.  Make it so!  

[jmlease1]

nice day on the farm for a bunch of guys.

It's going to be very interesting to see if Olivar can stick as a catcher. Obviously, it's his bat that's going to get him to MLB if he makes it, but if he can become a solid catcher, good enough to split time with someone there and not frighten the horses with his defense it's be a significant developmental win. He's having a very nice season in Cedar Rapids at the plate after an impressive season in Ft. Myers. Wouldn't be surprised if he gets a later season call up to AA.

Jenkins is rocking a 12-game hitting streak right now in which he's also collected 15 walks. I think this kid understands the strike zone! I'm assuming they're DHing him more right now since he missed a big chunk of time early and want to keep him healthy? No arguments from me. I suspect the lower power output has more to do with seeing fewer pitches to drive. Glad he's healthy and playing. The talent is massive and he seems to know what he's doing out there.

GG has been in a bit of a dry spell, so nice to see him have a big day at the plate. Hoping he can get back in a good groove in august after an unimpressive July. Real power outage for him since the injury put him on the shelf, so that's worth watching.

Severino is an interesting player to track. awful start to the season. Got on track a bit in May. Went nuclear in June. Real power outage in July overall. Hard to go to guys whose seasons are predicated on one great month; he needs to find more consistency, I think. August could be a very important month for him.

[stringer bell]

Perhaps off-topic, but what happened to Michael Helman? I see he's on the IL for over a month. I know his season started late because of an injury, but I never heard of another injury to him.

[roger]

3 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

I'll be shocked if they deal Julien..... Because I think they are only adding a rental, and he's an over pay for a rental pitcher. 

That seems to be what everyone is thinking.  Appears that adding $$$ is a problem, so the rental seems most likely.  But what about giving up more, say including one of the two with another decent asset(s), to bring in a young starter.  Someone like what Ryan was when we got him.  Or maybe what Lopez was a year before we got him.  Getting a good young arm sure fits the payroll restraints, both this year and next. 

[Mike Sixel]

5 minutes ago, roger said:

That seems to be what everyone is thinking.  Appears that adding $$$ is a problem, so the rental seems most likely.  But what about giving up more, say including one of the two with another decent asset(s), to bring in a young starter.  Someone like what Ryan was when we got him.  Or maybe what Lopez was a year before we got him.  Getting a good young arm sure fits the payroll restraints, both this year and next. 

So do Festa, Morris, and Matthews.....I'm thinking they think those three are the starters next year that get added to Lopez, Ryan, Ober, SWR.....not to mention Paddock. That's what I'd be thinking if I was them.....They might even think Varland will be available as a spot starter. I just can't see giving up assets for a SP beyond this year from a budget / asset allocation perspective. 

[Dman]

35 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

Perhaps off-topic, but what happened to Michael Helman? I see he's on the IL for over a month. I know his season started late because of an injury, but I never heard of another injury to him.

I forgot exactly what happened but I thought he was only going to be out about a month or so.  Seems the injury might be worse than thought otherwise I don't see them adding Bannon as they are very similar players.  He's had a fair number of hamstring issues I wonder if maybe they want to give it more time to heal to keep it heathly longer?

[stringer bell]

Just now, Dman said:

I forgot exactly what happened but I thought he was only going to be out about a month or so.  Seems the injury might be worse than thought otherwise I don't see them adding Bannon as they are very similar players.  He's had a fair number of hamstring issues I wonder if maybe they want to give it more time to heal to keep it heathly longer?

I think the clock is ticking for a guy like Helman. He's 28 and despite strong numbers at AAA hasn't gotten a sniff of "the show". Given the number of infielders and utility players the Twins have, I wonder if it won't be in his best interest to try another organization next year if he's eligible for minor league free agency.

[Dman]

Just now, stringer bell said:

I think the clock is ticking for a guy like Helman. He's 28 and despite strong numbers at AAA hasn't gotten a sniff of "the show". Given the number of infielders and utility players the Twins have, I wonder if it won't be in his best interest to try another organization next year if he's eligible for minor league free agency.

Totally agree.  I think the Twins were close to bringing him up a few times but he hasn't been able to stay healthy for an entire year most of his career.  Some good pop in his bat and good on base skills.  The Angels, Rockies or maybe Oakland would be better spots for him than the Twins who are loaded at the MLB level and minor league level. If the bat plays at the MLB level he would be a good get for some team. No MLB experience at 28 is gonna be tough to overcome.

[stringer bell]

3 minutes ago, Dman said:

Totally agree.  I think the Twins were close to bringing him up a few times but he hasn't been able to stay healthy for an entire year most of his career.  Some good pop in his bat and good on base skills.  The Angels, Rockies or maybe Oakland would be better spots for him than the Twins who are loaded at the MLB level and minor league level. If the bat plays at the MLB level he would be a good get for some team. No MLB experience at 28 is gonna be tough to overcome.

I think it's the same story for Keirsey Jr. He's got some skills, but hasn't seen MLB and when you're closer to 30 than 25, it's hard to be considered a prospect.

[Dman]

15 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

I think it's the same story for Keirsey Jr. He's got some skills, but hasn't seen MLB and when you're closer to 30 than 25, it's hard to be considered a prospect.

I really, really like Keirsey and I would love to have him back next year, but if I am DeShawn making a move might be in my best interest,

First you have Buxton in the way and while he can be injured at times the Twins have used Martin and Castro there.  Kiersey doesn't have Larnach or Wallner type pop for the corners but could play there and with Kepler in the way in right Keirsey seems wasted in left. If the Twins keep Kiriloff there is even less room in the corners.

Looking down the road to next year and you have both Rodriguez and now Keaschal age 21, looking like they will be the next man up for outfield spots. With Jenkins, Mercedes and others on the way and it kind of feels too little too late for Keirsey IMO.

I still think he would be a good 4th outfielder but I just can't see them making 40 man room for him with the other players they have and will have. Man being in that middle ground sucks, but that is what happens when there are only 40 spots.  I don't see him making it with the Twins unless there were a ton of injuries or moves to clear more space.

[FlyingFinn]

Great news! Yassar Mercedes just promoted to Fort Myers.