Twins Minor League Report (8/22): DaShawn Keirsey Continues to Make his Case, Jeferson Morales Does It All for Wichita

[Seth Stohs]

DaShawn Keirsey continues to fill out a box score in a big way, showing he deserves an opportunity in the big leagues whether it's with the Twins or elsewhere. Jeferson Morales came up big at the plate and with the defensive play of the day in helping the Wind Surge to an extra-inning win. The Twins top picks from the past two drafts are both in Cedar Rapids and scored some big runs in the Kernels comeback attempt. 

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson (photos of DaShawn Keirsey, Jr.)

Just three games, but a ton of action in the Twins minor leagues on Wednesday night. 

CURRENT W-L Records
Minnesota Twins: 71-56
St. Paul Saints: 58-64
Wichita Wind Surge: 50-67
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 61-54
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 61-51
FCL Twins: 27-31 (season complete)
DSL Twins: 30-25 (season complete) 

TRANSACTIONS
RHP Jacob King was removed from the IL and assigned to the FCL Twins from the Mighty Mussels. 

Wichita placed RHP Miguel Rodriguez on the 7-Day Injured List and activated RHP Cody Laweryson from the Development List. 

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 8, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 7 
Box Score
Last night, the Saints ended their 10-game losing streak. On Thursday night, they won their second straight one-run game. 

It didn’t look great early when Scranton put up four runs in the top of the first inning. But the Saints came back with two in the bottom half of the inning. Caleb Boushley made the start for the Saints. He gave up five runs in the first two innings. Overall, he went 5 2/3 innings and gave up six runs on eight hits and four walks. He struck out three batters. 

Zack Weiss came on and allowed an inherited runner to score. He gave up three hits in 1 1/3 innings. He had two strikeouts. Giovanny Gallegos gave up a hit and issued a walk in a scoreless eighth inning. Scott Blewett gave up a ninth-inning run on two hits but earned his first Save of the season.

After the rough top of the first inning, it was nice for the Saints to grab two runs in the bottom of the first. With one out, Diego A. Castillo walked. DaShawn Keirsey followed with his 14th home run of the season. (Keirsey also stole his 30th base of the season.) 

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Jair Camargo led off with his 10th homer of the season. 

Castillo walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning. Keirsey followed with a single. Yunior Severino then launched his 19th homer of the season to turn a two-run deficit into a one-run lead, 6-5. 

The RailRiders tied the game in the top of the sixth inning. With two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Payton Eeles singled and stole second base. Castillo drove him in with a single to center to put the Saints back ahead, 7-6. 

The bottom of the seventh inning started with a Keirsey triple, his sixth. With one out, Michael Helman drove him in with a sacrifice fly to make it 8-6. 

Scranton had runners on second and third with one out in the eighth and didn’t score. They scored one in the ninth on a pair of doubles, and a hit batter put two runners on, but Blewett got a strikeout to end the game. 

DaShawn Keirsey went 4-for-4 with two singles, his sixth triple, his 14th home run, and his 30th stolen bases. The speedy center fielder just continues to fill out a box score and a stat line fully. 

Diego A. Castillo went 1-for-2 with two walks. Anthony Prato had a single and a walk.     

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 4, Midland 3 (11 innings)
Box Score
A night after being walked off in the 11th inning, the Wind Surge played another 11 innings. This time, they left the field with a one-run win. If you’re going to play a game in 103 degree-weather, you might as well get a win!  

The game was scoreless until the top of the fourth when the Surge got on the board first. Jeferson Morales hit his ninth home run of the season. 

Morales led off the top of the sixth inning with a single. Carson McCusker drove him in with his 14th home run of the season to give the Surge a 3-0 lead. 

Travis Adams was absolutely brilliant in this game. The starter worked the first six innings. He gave up no runs on one hit. He had just one walk, hit two batters, and struck out 10 batters. It is the second time in his pro career that he has reached double digit strikeouts. On August 23, 2022, he tossed five innings for the Kernels and had 11 strikeouts with just one walk. 

Mason Fox came in for the seventh inning and gave up two runs on three hits. John Stankiewicz gave up the tying run on three hits in his two innings. 

The game was tied 3-3 going to extra innings. Both teams went scoreless in the 10th inning. 

The 11th inning began with Morales on second base. Two outs later, he was still standing in the same spot. A wild pitch moved him to third base, and Andrew Cossetti came through with the big two-out RBI single to make it 4-3. 

Ricardo Velez worked both extra frames. In the 10th inning, he threw two wild pitches and somehow got three outs without giving up a run. In the 11th, a fielding error put runners on first and third with nobody out. However, a line drive to left was caught by Morales, the former catcher, who came up with a strong, accurate throw home to get the second out and maintain the lead. It was a huge play because it was followed by a single. But Velez got a strikeout to end the game and earn his first Double-A win. 

Morales played hero in the field and went 3-for-5 with his ninth home run and three runs scored. McCusker went 2-for-4 with a walk and his 14th homer. Dalton Shuffield went 2-for-5 and stole his fifth base. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 4, Dayton 5 
Box Score
Ty Langenberg pitched a scoreless first inning for the Kernels on Thursday night. He then had to do a bit of work. He gave up one run in each of the next four innings. But overall, he gave up four runs on seven hits (2 solo homers) in five innings. He had five strikeouts without issuing a walk. 

The Kernels on the other hand were kept scoreless through five innings, but they got on the board in the top of the sixth inning. Misael Urbina led off with a walk. Agustin Ruiz singled to right. He and Urbina each moved up an extra base on an error. Two outs later, they were still standing in scoring position. Walker Jenkins came up and drilled a hard single to right, off the first baseman’s glove, that drove in both runs.  

Rafael Marcano came in and struck out three batters over two scoreless, one-hit innings. 

In the top of the eighth inning, Kaelen Culpepper reached on a one-out single. Jenkins followed with a single. After a pitching change, Gabriel Gonzalez’s 17th double drove in the Twins two most-recent top draft picks and tied the game at 4-4.

Nolan Santos came in for the eighth inning and gave up two hits but no runs. The Kernels went scoreless in the top of the ninth. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Santos issued a walk. A sacrifice bunt advanced the runner to second, and a wild pitch moved him to third. Hector Rodriguez followed with a single, and the Kernels lost another one-run game.  

Cedar Rapids had just six hits, and Walker Jenkins had two of them. Gonzalez had the lone extra base hits. 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers, Tampa (Rained Out)
Box Score
Fort Myers game in Tampa was canceled due to bad weather. It will not be made up. They had an already-scheduled day off on Friday and a doubleheader on Saturday. 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Travis Adams (Wichita) - 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 HBP, 10 K, 91 pitches, 62 strikes (68.1%).
Hitter of the Day – DaShawn Keirsey (St. Paul) - 4-for-4, 3B(6), HR(14), 3 R, 2 RBI, SB(30).  

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our recently-updated Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Thursday.

#1– Walker Jenkins (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI, K. 
#7 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-4, 2B(17), 2 RBI, 2 K.   
#9 - Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, R. 
#17 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 0-for-5, K.

FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Scranton/Wilkes Barre @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (9-6, 3.56 ERA)
Wichita @ Midland (7:00 PM CST) – RHP Marco Raya (1-3, 4.76 ERA) 
Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (6:05 PM CST) – RHP John Klein (8-2, 4.41 ERA)
Ft. Myers @ Tampa – No Game Friday, Doubleheader on Saturday.

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

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[Blyleven2011]

If there is one person that has been standing out in the minors the past few season  , it has been keirsey Jr  ...

The reason he has stood out is because he has been healthy  , he started his professional career slow because of multiple injuries  ...

I don't care how old he might be , I think he could be an asset to the twins , if they don't protect him in the rule 5 draft or if he elects free agency  , the FO  are completely inept  ....

He passed through the rule 5 draft  last year , no way he passes through this year   ....

[FlyingFinn]

59 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

He passed through the rule 5 draft  last year , no way he passes through this year   ....

I agree that he should get a shot at MLB. But it is actually rare for any team to pick someone in the Rule 5 draft at his "advanced" age.

[MMMordabito]

1 hour ago, Blyleven2011 said:

I don't care how old he might be , I think he could be an asset to the twins , if they don't protect him in the rule 5 draft or if he elects free agency  , the FO  are completely inept  ....

He needs to go 0-28 as a pinch hitter and play much worse defensively before being considered for a role on the big club. The bar has been set.

[ryan189]

impressive night for adams with wichita we don't hear much about him but his numbers are looking good. twins seemed to of pushed him quick with festa last year took him some time to adjust but good fastball and great control can't have to many of those guys.

[chpettit19]

I am still hoping Keirsey gets a shot in September. I actually am interested to see if he's added to the 40-man before September to make him postseason eligible. Teams typically cut down their pitching staff and add a base stealer type, or other position player, to their roster for the playoffs. Keirsey is an interesting guy there. Wouldn't likely play much, but as a base stealing threat off the bench and a defensive replacement late he's intriguing. Especially in the games where Margot comes in for a lefty in the 5th and then has to hit against a righty later. Keirsey is a guy at the end of the bench who could be there as the Margot replacement for both defense and to hit a righty late.

[Trov]

2 hours ago, Blyleven2011 said:

If there is one person that has been standing out in the minors the past few season  , it has been keirsey Jr  ...

The reason he has stood out is because he has been healthy  , he started his professional career slow because of multiple injuries  ...

I don't care how old he might be , I think he could be an asset to the twins , if they don't protect him in the rule 5 draft or if he elects free agency  , the FO  are completely inept  ....

He passed through the rule 5 draft  last year , no way he passes through this year   ....

He has a few things working against him.  One, he hits left handed just like many other OF we have in our system that are considered better than him. He has held his own this year against lefties in AAA but the assumption is still that he will fail against lefties at MLB level. Take Julien he held his own against lefties in AAA over last 2 years, but is unplayable at MLB level, same with Wallner. Being Kepler will be gone next year, that may open a spot for Keirsey but at the same time we have other possible prospects to fill that hole in near future, specifically E-Rod next year could earn some time. 

The second is his age working against him. He will be 28 next year.  He is not a prospect anymore.  Could he get a call and help the team as a 4th OF next year, possible, but is he that big of a loss if he goes somewhere else?  Most likely not.  Unless his defense is very good to great at CF, which I am guessing it is not, there will be plenty of options out there.  You need to remember the league St. Paul is in is considered an offense league.  He is not lighting it up overall, just doing above average, and we have seen how much drop off some guys have even when they do light up AAA. 

He could add some value to the team, but my guess he passes through rule 5 again and may elect FA and some team will sign him to minor league deal but no major league deal. 

[Dman]

Adams has had a sneaky good year.  I believe I underestimated his abilities after last years numbers. He got his WHIP back down to about 1 and his K9 a tick higher than last year, but he hasn't been dominant like Mathews and Morris this year. HIs FIP and xFIP say he has been unlucky and that his ERA should look better.  He has been the only Windsurge arm at AA that still qualifies for season stats as he has taken the ball every time it was his turn this year. So the mechanics must be good.

I still like him better as a pen arm, but given his improvement this year I can see Keeping him as a starter.  He's never been on a top 30 list yet so far as his stuff is pretty average except for his plus slider. Still he's got to be pretty happy with the year he has had and last nights game really speaks to what he can do when he is on.

[ryan189]

just looked at morris numbers to adams numbers are very similar except morris is very lucky with his era compared to fip and xfip adams is the opposite bad luck. zebby numbers are in a different level lol

[DJL44]

2 hours ago, Trov said:

He has a few things working against him.  One, he hits left handed just like many other OF we have in our system that are considered better than him. He has held his own this year against lefties in AAA but the assumption is still that he will fail against lefties at MLB level. Take Julien he held his own against lefties in AAA over last 2 years, but is unplayable at MLB level, same with Wallner. Being Kepler will be gone next year, that may open a spot for Keirsey but at the same time we have other possible prospects to fill that hole in near future, specifically E-Rod next year could earn some time. 

The second is his age working against him. He will be 28 next year.  He is not a prospect anymore.  Could he get a call and help the team as a 4th OF next year, possible, but is he that big of a loss if he goes somewhere else?  Most likely not.  Unless his defense is very good to great at CF, which I am guessing it is not, there will be plenty of options out there.  You need to remember the league St. Paul is in is considered an offense league.  He is not lighting it up overall, just doing above average, and we have seen how much drop off some guys have even when they do light up AAA. 

He could add some value to the team, but my guess he passes through rule 5 again and may elect FA and some team will sign him to minor league deal but no major league deal. 

I hope he finds a spot somewhere. He deserves a shot to see what he can do. Worse players than him have made it to the big leagues. I remember Casey Blake never got a real shot until he was 29 and he put together a nice career.

[LambchoP]

I haven't heard much about Adams, but looking at this years stats he has been really good in AA. Another promising young pitcher that could prove valuable down the road. I've been begging for Keirsey to get his chance all year. If the Twins for whatever reason are never going to give him a chance, then this years deadline would have been the perfect time to trade him while his values the highest. Of course that didn't happen either. We need to add him to the 40 man anyway this year or I'm guessing he'll get picked by a bad team with starts available. I think he could be valuable to us as a speedy, base stealing threat 4rth outfielder type. He plays all three oF positions, can be a menace on the base paths, plus he can hold his own with a bat. .300 AVG and 15 HR in AAA is nothing to sneeze at. You can't tell me Margot is a better option out there in CF lol....

[mikelink45]

Quote

He continues to have an incredible season. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. with this 2-run blast, his 14th homer of the season, one shy of his career high. He now has 68 RBI, 7 shy of the franchise record of 75. Hitting .300/.394/.483/.877 in the month of August

We are wasting his season.  A year of Margot and Farmer cannot be justified for me.  What is the flaw that the FO sees?

[ashbury]

11 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

We are wasting his season.  A year of Margot and Farmer cannot be justified for me.  What is the flaw that the FO sees?

Fourth best lefty bat among their outfielders, and the 26-man really has room for at most three, maybe?

[Doctor Gast]

When especially at AAA you have a player that shows he deserves to be called up at the start of the season, & you have a need, you rewards that player. Keirsey has been that player & 2/3 into the season still Twins refuse to call to call him up. That has to be very disappointing. Even he's not on the 40 man, a serious team would find a way to bring a player out of the lurch. He has nothing else to prove in AAA

[Blyleven2011]

2 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

When especially at AAA you have a player that shows he deserves to be called up at the start of the season, & you have a need, you rewards that player. Keirsey has been that player & 2/3 into the season still Twins refuse to call to call him up. That has to be very disappointing. Even he's not on the 40 man, a serious team would find a way to bring a player out of the lurch. He has nothing else to prove in AAA

Have keirsey prove he belongs in the show only to increase his value for a trade , the kid deserves an opportunity   somewhere  , if not here in twins Territory  ...

If we had a manager like gardenhire or Kelly , they would certainly be asking for a look at keirsey  in the show ...