Twins Minor League Report (4/22): Grand Slams, A Walk-Off, and a Gong Show

[Steve Lein]

Zebby Matthews was on the bump again at CHS Field on Tuesday, but his blazing fastball was just a blip on the craziness that happened in the system. There were grand slams (three of ‘em), a walk-off homer, and a cameo from Benny Hill in Wichita.

Image courtesy of Jean Pfiefer (Go4twinkies on Instagram) - photo Kyle DeBarge and Kaelen Culpepper

TRANSACTIONS

• In Triple-A with the Saints, the Minnesota Twins sent RHP Michael Tonkin on a rehab assignment to CHS Field, while LHP Brady Feigl was activated from the 7-day injured list.
• The Wichita Wind Surge activated LHP Christian MacLeod from the injured list, making room by sending RHP Chase Chaney to the Kernels.
• In addition to receiving Chaney from Double-A, Cedar Rapids activated SS Kaelen Culpepper from the 7-day injured list and he played shortstop and batted leadoff for the Kernels on Tuesday.
• Down in the Florida State League, UT Jose Salas began a rehab assignment with Fort Myers from Cedar Rapids.

SAINTS SENTINEL
Indianapolis 4, St. Paul 16
Box Score
Zebby Matthews again kicked off a series at CHS Field on Tuesday afternoon, but it was the Saints lineup jumping all over former major leaguer and 8th overall draft pick, Carson Fulmer that provided the headlines in this one.

Matthews allowed an unearned run in the top of the first as three singles combined with a fielding error on Armando Alvarez gave Indianapolis a 1-0 lead. It didn’t take long for St. Paul to get that run, and more, back in the bottom half.

Ryan Fitzgerald led off with a single and Mickey Gasper drew a walk. With one out, Jeferson Morales delivered a single to load the bases before Yunior Severino drew a walk to tie the game at one. After Mike Ford went down on strikes, big Carson McCusker stepped in, and did this:

With a 5-1 lead the Saints never looked back, but that was far from it when it came to scoring runs. Alvarez added a two-run homer in the third. Mickey Gasper a solo shot in the sixth. Then to top it all off Fitzgerald hit the Saints second grand slam of the game in the eighth as Indianapolis waved the white flag and brought in position player Alika Williams to pitch.

Five St. Paul hitters collected multiple knocks on the day, with Morales (4-for-4, R, RBI, BB) and Fitzgerald (3-for-5, 3 R, GS HR, 5 RBI, BB) leading the way. Fitzgerald, Gasper, and Alvarez each scored three runs. As a team they went 9-for-18 with runners in scoring position, leaving only 8 of 25 overall runners on base for the game.

As for Zebby, he wasn’t nearly as efficient as he had been in his prior three starts, but despite allowing seven singles and one walk in his 3 2/3 innings, did not allow an earned run and punched out four. His fastball topped out at 97.4 MPH and he picked up seven swings and misses between his cutter and slider. Of his 80 pitches, 55 of them went for strikes (nice…).

Kyle Bischoff finished off the fourth inning with a strikeout and picked up his first win of the season. Michael Tonkin allowed three runs on three hits, including two home runs, in his lone inning of rehab work. Travis Adams then finished off the final four innings to pick up his second save. He allowed three hits and struck out four to lower his ERA to 2.08 on the season.

Indianapolis and St. Paul square off with a double-header tomorrow, starting at 5:00 PM. Andrew Morris and Cory Lewis are the scheduled starters. Game 2 is a makeup of one of their postponements from opening weekend back on March 29th. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Springfield 1, Wichita 12
Box Score
The Wind Surge sent right-hander Ricky Castro to the mound, and he took advantage of an aggressive Cardinals lineup, needing just 57 pitches to get through his five innings. 42 of those went for strikes (74%) and he was charged with just one earned run on five hits, while striking out five. Five straight hitters from the end of the third into the fourth saw just one pitch each, and over those final three innings Springfield hitters made him throw just 29 pitches. This is an even more remarkable number as in that time they had four of their five hits against him.

Kala’i Rosario tied the game at one in the bottom of the fourth by hitting his third home run of the season.

Despite the low pitch count, Mike Paredes came out of the bullpen to start the sixth inning. He gave up one hit, walked one, and struck out one over the next three innings to keep the visitors off the scoreboard. Michael Martinez finished off the ninth with a scoreless appearance, allowing one hit.

This game became a bit of a laugher in the eighth inning, as the Wind Surge sent nine runners across the plate, culminating with a Jorel Ortega grand slam. In case you were wondering, Ortega was not in the lineup to start this game. He only entered because Aaron Sabato was ejected earlier in this inning because of…I don’t actually know what. Well, I do, that being Sabato went down on strikes due to an automatic strike call, but all I can say is the umpire decided he was going to be the stereotype of an umpire in this instance. Then he rewarded himself by having to stand behind the catcher for ten more batters as the Cardinals pitchers couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn if they were standing next to it (also much of the reason why Sabato had an issue with a call the umpire made).

There were three singles, five walks, a balk, three wild pitches, and a throwing error from the two pitchers in this inning (as well as a second play, that ended with the pitcher falling on his face, that could have had an error tacked on as well). They combined to throw 53 pitches in the inning, with just 21 of them landing for strikes (40%). I can’t stress enough how much of a gong-show this inning was, but I digress. When it finally ended it was 12-1 Wind Surge.

Tanner Schobel (2-for-5, R), Ricardo Olivar (3-for-4, R, BB, K), and Rosario (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, BB, 2 K) each had multiple hits in the win.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Wisconsin 2, Cedar Rapids 4
Box Score
The Kernels struck first in the bottom of the opening frame, thanks in large part to Kyle DeBarge clubbing a triple into right field. Two batters later Billy Amick sent a single into center to bring him home for an early 1-0 lead.

It remained that way until the top of the fifth inning, as Cedar Rapids starter Jose Olivares kept the Timber Rattlers off the scoreboard for his three innings. He allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out five.

Spencer Bengard came out of the bullpen to begin the fourth inning and went the next four. He did get tagged for a two-run home run in the fifth that put Wisconsin out front, but otherwise put up zeroes. He was charged with those two earned runs on four hits, and struck out three. 

Gabriel Yanez (IP, K) and Paulshawn Pasqualotto (IP, H) kept the game close for the final two innings, giving the home team a chance in the bottom of the ninth.

Kevin Maitan delivered a one-out double to put the tying run in scoring position. Two-batters later Kaelen Culpepper drew a two-out walk and brought DeBarge to the plate as their last hope.

He didn’t waste it.

DeBarge belted a 2-1 pitcher over the wall in left for a three-run, walk-off blast in Cedar Rapids.

He finished the game a single shy of the cycle, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored, a double, triple, and the walk-off homer. 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 8, Clearwater 3
Box Score
Fresh off of shutting out the Bradenton Marauders in three games last week, the Mighty Mussels traveled up the gulf coast to face the Clearwater Threshers in this one.

In his last appearance Dylan Questad contributed three innings to one of those efforts, a 1-0 victory on Wednesday in which he picked up a three-inning save. Getting the start in this one, Questad went the first five innings. The only real trouble he had came in the first inning, as he walked the leadoff man and allowed a two-run homer two batters later. After that blast he did not allow another hit, walked only one the rest of the way, and faced the minimum thanks to a double-play ball. He retired the last seven hitters he faced and finished with two earned runs on one hit and two walks, while striking out six.

The game stayed 2-0 until the top of the fourth inning, when the rehabbing Jose Salas got their first hit in the game with a double. Yasser Mercedes followed with his first home run of the season to tie the game at two. Poncho Ruiz kept it going with a single, and Jose Rodriguez punctuated it all with the second two-run blast of the frame to make it 4-2 Fort Myers.

They added on in the top of the sixth thanks to four walks, a two-run double from Daniel Pena, and a two-run single from Yohander Martinez to take an 8-2 lead.

From there the bullpen trio of Hunter Hoopes (IP, H, BB, 3 K), Liam Rocha (2 IP, 2 H, ER, 3 K), and Tyler Stasiowski (IP, 2 H, K) kept the Threshers at bay. 

There were no hitters in the lineup who had multiple knocks, but Ruiz (1-for-3, 2 R, BB, K) and Rodriguez (1-for-3, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K) each scored two runs. The team was 4-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left only four men on base in the game. 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Travis Adams, St. Paul Saints (S, 4 IP, 3 H, 4 K)
Hitter of the Day – Kyle DeBarge, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, walk-off HR, 3 RBI, K)

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

#2 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 2-for-6, 2 RBI, 2 K, SB (2)
#3 – Luke Keaschall (Minnesota): 1-for-2, 2 R, 2 BB
#7 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, BB
#8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2 K
#13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, HR (2), 3 RBI, K
#15 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 1-for-5, R, HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 K
#17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-3, RBI
#18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 2-for-4, 2 R, HR (3), RBI, BB, 2 K
#19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, K
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 3-for-4, R, BB, K

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Indianapolis @ St. Paul (Game 1 - 5:00 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (0-1, 4.61 ERA)
Indianapolis @ St. Paul (Game 2) - RHP Cory Lewis (1-0, 9.82 ERA)
Springfield @ Wichita (11:05 AM CDT) - TBD
Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (0-1, 7.50 ERA)
Fort Myers @ Clearwater (11:00 AM CDT) RHP Eli Jones (1-1, 3.14 ERA)

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

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[ryan189]

adams sure seems to be putting up good outing after good outing dosen't seem to get the attention in st paul

[Doctor Gast]

Twins' MiLB teams did well. The Saints finally got an easy team to clobber.

Austin Martin was on the 7-day IL.  He should have been back last weekend, What's up?

[FlyingFinn]

2 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Austin Martin was on the 7-day IL.  He should have been back last weekend, What's up?

That hamstring is going to take far more than 7 days. The 7 day IL doesn't mean they come back after a short period of time.

[FlyingFinn]

Matthews 80 pitches didn't get him through 4 innings so probably not his best outing, but not bad.

Seems like many on TD don't like DeBarge but he keeps producing. Big clutch walk off HR last night.

SSS but Questad seems to be dominating this year.

[rdehring]

Amick has caught my eye to start this season.  Looking at his physical stats, seems like he is built like a power hitting third baseman.  Being a second round pick out of UT, was a good prospect coming into the draft.  Sure is off to a great start with his bat this year.  My question, what is his defense like?  Can he stick at third and be a better than average defender?  If so, could be someone to help the Twins beginning two or three years from now.

[Doctor Gast]

47 minutes ago, FlyingFinn said:

That hamstring is going to take far more than 7 days. The 7 day IL doesn't mean they come back after a short period of time.

Understood, still would like to know what's going on. After 10 days, there's still no update.

[Linus]

15 minutes ago, rdehring said:

Amick has caught my eye to start this season.  Looking at his physical stats, seems like he is built like a power hitting third baseman.  Being a second round pick out of UT, was a good prospect coming into the draft.  Sure is off to a great start with his bat this year.  My question, what is his defense like?  Can he stick at third and be a better than average defender?  If so, could be someone to help the Twins beginning two or three years from now.

Most scouting reports on his defense are not good - lacks the quickness and lateral movement to excel at third. But a slugging first baseman is just fine. Like all defensively limited players the bat will determine where they end up. So far so good for him. 

[chpettit19]

23 minutes ago, rdehring said:

Amick has caught my eye to start this season.  Looking at his physical stats, seems like he is built like a power hitting third baseman.  Being a second round pick out of UT, was a good prospect coming into the draft.  Sure is off to a great start with his bat this year.  My question, what is his defense like?  Can he stick at third and be a better than average defender?  If so, could be someone to help the Twins beginning two or three years from now.

Not a good defender. Certainly not better than average. Never say never when it comes to a guy improving as you never know what kind of work a guy will put in, but he doesn't look like a guy who's ever going to have defensive value over there. His bat is going to have to carry him. In my opinion. And most of his scouting reports have pretty negative opinions about his defense as well. But the Twins believe he can stick at third and be at least average there. Take that as you will.

[Dman]

So nice to see one of our affiliates with a walk off as it seems they have been walked off a fair bit to start this season. Bengard one of my favorite pitchers got dinged with a HR that barely made it out and coughed up the lead. The pitching was really good for both teams and I figured it would be another loss headed into the ninth, but DeBarge came through with the HR for the comeback win.  Was great to see.

i know it is only high A but most all of the hitters the Twins took in the top five of the 2024 draft have OPS’s of 900 or better and several with batting averages around 300 or better.  Ferrer being the one in the top six guys not  to be in that grouping. If the pitching holds there, they are going to be a really tough team to beat. Currently Amick is the top bat as he is second in the Midwest league in OPS and I think third in batting average.

[LambchoP]

What more does Mccusker have to do to get a call up? I realize a 40 man spot makes it a bit more difficult, but with Larnach, Bader and Keirsey not producing much, the Twins need to find some offensive help somewhere and Mccusker's on an absolute tear. Give him a chance to see if he can keep it up in the majors. At first it seemed like Keaschal was getting called up prematurely but so far he has been one of our better players since he got here. 

[DJL44]

Quote

Michael Tonkin allowed three runs on three hits, including two home runs, in his lone inning of rehab work.

Ouch

[DJL44]

18 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

What more does Mccusker have to do to get a call up?

I'm going to guess it will take Larnach injuring himself more than he appears to be injured currently.

18 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

with Larnach, Bader and Keirsey not producing much

Bader has a 104 OPS+ and plays great defense. McCusker is not stealing any of his playing time. Keirsey is a defensive replacement and pinch runner. He doesn't get much playing time.

[D.C Twins]

3 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

Ouch

Shocking! I have no idea what-so-ever why the Twins are wasting a 40 man slot on him

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

1 hour ago, rdehring said:

Amick has caught my eye to start this season.  Looking at his physical stats, seems like he is built like a power hitting third baseman.  Being a second round pick out of UT, was a good prospect coming into the draft.  Sure is off to a great start with his bat this year.  My question, what is his defense like?  Can he stick at third and be a better than average defender?  If so, could be someone to help the Twins beginning two or three years from now.

The defense is improving,  he was mediocre to poor for several seasons,  then in 2024 had a significant upgrade in his defensive metrics and was a net positive on defense last year for the Vols.  Amick has a ton of power the biggest question with him was whether his hit tool would be good enough and that he was slow (I think a 40 grade) .  In the past he has had lots of swing and miss.  The early returns are very very good on Amick so far.  The swing and miss is down,  in some aspects the power is actually down a bit this year as well.  I will take this version though.   

Edit:  Looks like Twins have been splitting Amick between 3rd and 1st so far this year.  He does have 2 errors at 3rd.   I remember last year there was 1 analyst who absolutely hated Amick.  I tried to find the report, it was rather scathing - but so far no luck LOL.  So far he is looking like a very solid pick.  

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

Right now Questad will be the biggest mover in the prospect standings.  Not even in the top 50 prospects on this list.  

https://www.prospects1500.com/top-50-lists/minnesota-twins-top-50-prospects-2025/

So far he is looking dominant.  Yes he gave up a home run,  but he is getting a lot of swing and miss and efficiently getting through innings.  I would say he jumps easily into the top 25 prospects and possibly top 20.  

We are starting to see some of the teams starting to get healthy.  I fully expect all the minors to do very well this year.  Pitching should be very good at each level.   

[Steve Lein]

55 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

What more does Mccusker have to do to get a call up? I realize a 40 man spot makes it a bit more difficult, but with Larnach, Bader and Keirsey not producing much, the Twins need to find some offensive help somewhere and Mccusker's on an absolute tear. Give him a chance to see if he can keep it up in the majors. At first it seemed like Keaschal was getting called up prematurely but so far he has been one of our better players since he got here. 

Tough to find a spot for McCusker with the OF and DH spots covered. I'd love to see it though. When he hit his home run yesterday it tied him for the International League lead.

[Dman]

40 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Right now Questad will be the biggest mover in the prospect standings.  Not even in the top 50 prospects on this list.  

https://www.prospects1500.com/top-50-lists/minnesota-twins-top-50-prospects-2025/

So far he is looking dominant.  Yes he gave up a home run,  but he is getting a lot of swing and miss and efficiently getting through innings.  I would say he jumps easily into the top 25 prospects and possibly top 20.  

We are starting to see some of the teams starting to get healthy.  I fully expect all the minors to do very well this year.  Pitching should be very good at each level.   

Totally agree on Questad.  He isn’t walking as many and is challenging hitters in the. Zone more.  Definitely a top 30 guy for me.  He has good movement on his pitches I think he keeps this up. Bummer on giving up the HR, but it happens. I have been very impressed at how far he has come from last year to this year.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

3 minutes ago, Dman said:

Totally agree on Questad.  He isn’t walking as many and is challenging hitters in the. Zone more.  Definitely a top 30 guy for me.  He has good movement on his pitches I think he keeps this up. Bummer on giving up the HR, but it happens. I have been very impressed at how far he has come from last year to this year.

I think he has improved a ton,  but I also think they were truly just working on continuing to develop his mechanics and pitch repertoire, and the stats weren't showing the progress he was making.  They obviously had a lot of confidence moving him up to A ball this year.   I think they definitely knew they had something this offseason and moved him up and so far he is performing at an exceptional level.  

 

[jmlease1]

Come on DeBarge! you skipped the easy part of the cycle?!? LOL

but seriously: he's doing well to start the season, seems to be getting pretty comfortable in High A. lot of good in those stats

 

[Doctor Wu]

20 hours ago, DJL44 said:

Ouch

I got to admit that I forgot Tonkin was still with the organization. Hey, it's a rehab outing, but not very encouraging. 

[rdehring]

22 hours ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

The defense is improving,  he was mediocre to poor for several seasons,  then in 2024 had a significant upgrade in his defensive metrics and was a net positive on defense last year for the Vols.  Amick has a ton of power the biggest question with him was whether his hit tool would be good enough and that he was slow (I think a 40 grade) .  In the past he has had lots of swing and miss.  The early returns are very very good on Amick so far.  The swing and miss is down,  in some aspects the power is actually down a bit this year as well.  I will take this version though.   

Edit:  Looks like Twins have been splitting Amick between 3rd and 1st so far this year.  He does have 2 errors at 3rd.   I remember last year there was 1 analyst who absolutely hated Amick.  I tried to find the report, it was rather scathing - but so far no luck LOL.  So far he is looking like a very solid pick.  

Interesting considering the Twins have a huge need at first base.  Hopefully!