Twins Minor League Report (4/29): David Festa Sinks the Clippers

[Steve Lein]

The St. Paul Saints were scheduled for a doubleheader on the road on Tuesday, but David Festa sent the Columbus Clippers to the seafloor in game one before rain cut their battle short.

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of David Festa)

 

TRANSACTIONS

• LHP Aaron Rozek was assigned to the Wichita Wind Surge from the St. Paul Saints.
• Also in the Texas League with Wichita, OF Allan Cerda was transferred to the development list.
• The Cedar Rapids Kernels placed top pitching prospect RHP Charlee Soto on the 7-day injured list with a right triceps strain. Soto did not make an appearance for the Kernels last week and so far on the season had made three starts with a 1.38 ERA, 15 K’s, and just four walks in 13 total innings.
• Down in Florida RHP Adrian Bohorquez was assigned to the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins roster.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 4, Columbus 2 (7 innings)
Box Score
The Saints and Clippers were meant to play a doubleheader today, but the same rain that delayed the Twins game in Cleveland hit Columbus a bit harder, so they only got in one.

In his first start after being sent back down to Triple-A right-hander David Festa was excellent. After striking out the first two hitters of the game, he allowed a bloop and a blast for an early 2-0 Columbus lead, but was locked in after that. He allowed just one other hit, and retired the last 11 hitters he faced. In total, he was charged with two earned runs on three hits, no walks, and punched out seven. He did so on just 68 pitches, with 49 going for strikes (72%), and included an astonishing 18 swings and misses. Pure dominance from the lanky righty.

It took until the fourth inning for the Saints to put a run on the scoreboard, and they did so thanks to Carson McCusker. He launched his seventh home run of the season down the line the opposite way. Anthony Prato joined him with a solo blast leading off the fifth inning to tie the game at two. It was Prato’s second home run of the season.

They took the lead for good in the sixth after a one-out single from McCusker put him on base for the big Mike Ford. He clubbed the team's third home run of the game to make it 4-2.

That would be the final score as Richard Lovelady closed out the seven-inning contest with a one-two-three frame for his first save of the season, striking out the final hitter of the game. Festa improved to 2-1 in his three starts with the Saints.

McCusker (2-for-3, 2 R, HR, RBI, K) and Prato (2-for-3, R, RBI) led the way with two hits apiece. Armando Alvarez added a double to the effort. Royce Lewis finished 0-for-3 as the designated hitter. The Saints were 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position and left only three men on base, but thanks to the long ball they were able to take the series opener on the road.

Per Sean Aronson of the Saints, Game 2 that was rained out will be made up later this week.

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 5, Frisco 4
Box Score
Southpaw starting pitcher Christian MacLeod had yet to give up a run on the season in two games of a rehab assignment with Fort Myers, and his first start with Wichita a week ago.

That is still a true statement after three shutout innings to start this one. 

MacLeod walked two consecutive batters in the second inning, but otherwise retired every other hitter he faced, going one-two-three in each of the first and third frames. He threw just 45 pitches as he’s still being eased in (26 for strikes), but also struck out two.

The Wind Surge struck first in the top of the fourth after Ricardo Olivar led off with a double. Rubel Cespedes moved him to third on a groundout, and Kala’i Rosario brought him home with a sacrifice fly for the 1-0 lead.

After MacLeod was done, Angel Macuare went the next two innings. He allowed one earned run on three hits and a walk in his two innings before giving way to Jarett Whorff to start the sixth. He went the next three innings, allowing a solo home run for his lone hit allowed, but also struck out three.

In the top of the seventh the offense loaded the bases for Olivar, who delivered a two-run single to put Wichita back out front 3-1. They tacked on two additional insurance runs in the eighth when Ben Ross delivered an RBI double and came around to score himself on an RBI single from Kyler Fedko to make it 5-1.

They needed each of those runs, as Whorff’s home run allowed came in the bottom of the eighth before Cody Laweryson had some trouble closing out the game in the ninth. A two-out two-run single brought the RoughRiders within one, but he clamped down to strike out the final hitter of the frame and pick up his third save of the season. Whorff picked up his first win to improve to 1-1 on the season.

Olivar (2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K) was the only Wind Surge hitter with multiple hits. As a team they went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.

KERNELS NUGGETS
South Bend 4, Cedar Rapids 10
Box Score
The Kernels struck early and late to take down the Cubs in Cedar Rapids on Tuesday night.

They took a 4-0 lead after one thanks to a barrage of hits, including a big blast, to set the tone. Kyle DeBarge started the rally with a single. Brandon Winokur and Billy Amick followed with doubles to score the first two runs, before Danny De Andrade hit a two-run homer, his second of the season.

Starter Ty Langenberg was solid for the first three scoreless innings, striking out four, but ran into trouble in the fourth. Before it was over he was out of the game and the scoreboard was tied at four. In all, Langenberg finished 3 2/3 innings and was charged with four earned runs on six hits and a walk. He struck out six.

Cedar Rapids went back out front in the bottom of the fifth when Gabriel Gonzalez led off with a single. Two batters later Khadim Diaw brought him in with a double to make it 5-4.

The offense tacked on five more runs in the seventh as they sent all nine hitters to the plate. Amick led off with a walk and trotted home on a Gonzalez homer.

De Andrade continued the hitting with a triple off the wall in right, and scored on a single from Kevin Maitan. After a pitching change Kyle DeBarge snuck one past the third baseman for a two-run double to cap the scoring.

After Langenberg’s exit the Bullpen trio of Gabriel Yanez (W, 1 1/3 IP, 2 BB, K), Logan Whitaker (2 IP, H, BB, 3 K), and Paulshawn Pasqualotto (2 IP, 2 H, BB) blanked the Cubs the rest of the way.

DeBarge (2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K), Gonzalez (3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB), and De Andrade (3-for-5, 2 R, 3B, HR, 2 RBI, K) had multiple hits to lead the onslaught. On defense the Kernels turned five double-plays on the night to end any South Bend rally’s before they started.

MUSSEL MATTERS
Jupiter 14, Fort Myers 1
Box Score
The Mighty Mussels scored their lone run of this one in the bottom of the second inning. It came from the bat of Jay Thomason, who launched his Florida State League leading sixth home run of the year.

Unfortunately, that was pretty much it for the Hammond Stadium faithful.

They had just two other hits as a team, which were singles from Jose Salas (1-for-3, 2 K, SB) and Daniel Pena (1-for-3, K). Byron Chourio and Thomason each drew a pair of walks. There were only two at-bats with runners in scoring position and five men left on base for the game.

Eli Jones made the start and pitched into the third inning. He was charged with three earned runs on four hits and three walks, while striking out two. Jacob Kisting stabilized it a bit into the sixth, allowing one earned run on three hits and striking out three in 2 2/3 innings. Hunter Hoopes got them through the seventh with 1 2/3 scoreless innings and the score 4-1 Hammerheads.

Then it went pear-shaped in the eighth, as Jupiter batted around and scored eight runs to make it 12-1. Tyler Stasiowski (1/3 IP, 2 H, 5 ER, BB, 2 HBP) and Liam Rocha (H, 3 ER, 2 BB) were only able to record one out before the Mighty Mussels went to the position-player-pitching well. Outfielder Maddux Houghton got the final five outs, but was also tagged for a home run to make the 14-1 final.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – David Festa, St. Paul Saints (W, 6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 7 K)
Hitter of the Day – Danny De Andrade, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, 2 R, 3B, HR, 2 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.

#7 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-5, 2 K
#8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, 2B, BB, K
#13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K
#17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2 R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
#18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 0-for-2, R, RBI, BB, K
#19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR (2), 2 RBI, BB
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Columbus (5:35 PM CDT) - RHP Cory Lewis (1-1, 9.00 ERA)
Wichita @ Frisco (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Trent Baker (0-2, 3.24 ERA)
South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Chase Chaney (0-0, 7.20 ERA)
Jupiter @ Fort Myers (11:05 AM CDT) - TBD

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

 

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[mikelink45]

Watching McCusker hit bombs in AAA reminds me of last year when we wasted so many Wallner hits before bringing him up.  Julien is not performing - let's give Carson a week or two of DH and see if he can make some noise with the Twins. 

[TwinsDr2021]

34 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

Watching McCusker hit bombs in AAA reminds me of last year when we wasted so many Wallner hits before bringing him up.  Julien is not performing - let's give Carson a week or two of DH and see if he can make some noise with the Twins. 

I didn't have much hope for him, but when somebody is hitting like this get them up and give them a chance.

[Dman]

Man what a difference a week makes.  Last week I was ready to pronounce DeAndrade as a failure.  He wasn't disciplined at the plate, swinging out of the zone.  It didn't look like he was tracking pitches well at all there was sooo much swing and miss. Sooo much weak contact.  The past week has seen a power surge and his OPS climb into the 800's. This is the bat I remember.  He still has a low batting average, but he dug himself a pretty big hole to start the season.  Happy to see him back on track.

[Mike Sixel]

3 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

Watching McCusker hit bombs in AAA reminds me of last year when we wasted so many Wallner hits before bringing him up.  Julien is not performing - let's give Carson a week or two of DH and see if he can make some noise with the Twins. 

Julien is a top twenty on base hitter....

[rdehring]

Great seeing Festa have a really good start.  Expect spending some time back with the Saints should give him the added experience to be ready to stay with the Twins permanently when he returns.

Also great seeing MacLeod do well back at Wichita.  As I recall, it was thought he fell in the draft due to some injury concerns.  Just might add him to the list of exciting lefties coming thru the system.

Will second Dman's comments above about DeAndrade.

[bean5302]

2 hours ago, Dman said:

Man what a difference a week makes.  Last week I was ready to pronounce DeAndrade as a failure.  He wasn't disciplined at the plate, swinging out of the zone.  It didn't look like he was tracking pitches well at all there was sooo much swing and miss. Sooo much weak contact.  The past week has seen a power surge and his OPS climb into the 800's. This is the bat I remember.  He still has a low batting average, but he dug himself a pretty big hole to start the season.  Happy to see him back on track.

Left him off my top 20 prospects partially due to how he was performing this year.

[Jeff K]

4 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

Watching McCusker hit bombs in AAA reminds me of last year when we wasted so many Wallner hits before bringing him up.  Julien is not performing - let's give Carson a week or two of DH and see if he can make some noise with the Twins. 

It's time to bring him up.  I would send Kiersey down even though his speed and defense will be missed.  

[Steve Lein]

45 minutes ago, rdehring said:

Great seeing Festa have a really good start.  Expect spending some time back with the Saints should give him the added experience to be ready to stay with the Twins permanently when he returns.

Also great seeing MacLeod do well back at Wichita.  As I recall, it was thought he fell in the draft due to some injury concerns.  Just might add him to the list of exciting lefties coming thru the system.

Will second Dman's comments above about DeAndrade.

MacLeod is a lot further under the radar than he should be, IMO. He pitched at three levels in the minors last season, just like Zebby and Morris did. While he only made a spot start in triple-A, he had a K-rate pretty much equal to Zebby on the year. I don't have him in my top 20 yet, but I really wanted to slot him in there in our current vote. If he continues to perform he will be.

[Doctor Wu]

21 hours ago, rdehring said:

Expect spending some time back with the Saints should give him the added experience to be ready to stay with the Twins permanently when he returns.

That will be key, Come back up ... and stay up.

[Doctor Wu]

21 hours ago, Jeff K said:

It's time to bring him up.  I would send Kiersey down even though his speed and defense will be missed.  

Yeah, it's nice having Kiersey for his defensive skills especially, but at some point in the near future it would be cool to give McCusker a chance with the Twins too. 

[bean5302]

23 hours ago, Steve Lein said:

MacLeod is a lot further under the radar than he should be, IMO. He pitched at three levels in the minors last season, just like Zebby and Morris did. While he only made a spot start in triple-A, he had a K-rate pretty much equal to Zebby on the year. I don't have him in my top 20 yet, but I really wanted to slot him in there in our current vote. If he continues to perform he will be.

He's old, drafted out of college after his Junior season in 2021, and he fell to the 5th round after he got destroyed down the stretch for Mississippi State. His last 5 starts in the SEC amounted to only 16.2 innings allowing 25 earned runs. Now it's 4 years later, he's age 25 and in AA so he won't present a large radar cross section. Most good prospect college pitchers generally reach MLB in 2-3 years. MacLeod was delayed by a torn UCL and surgery that followed in 2022, but he doesn't have much draft or scouting pedigree, and his success has been limited.

MacLeod's FIPs have been unimpressive in the minors.
2023 - a23 (A+) 4.45
2024 - a24 (A+) 4.33
2024 - a24 (AA) 4.11
2025 a25 (AA) 2.35 in 10.0 innings

He came into this season with no real prospect status as he wasn't even on the top 30 for MLB. Fangraphs had him at #31 in the org.

It's nice to see him getting some great results out of the gate, but it's a SSSS and the Twins chose to keep him in AA rather than AAA. It shows how he ranks organizationally.

[Steve Lein]

On 5/1/2025 at 10:49 AM, bean5302 said:

He's old, drafted out of college after his Junior season in 2021, and he fell to the 5th round after he got destroyed down the stretch for Mississippi State. His last 5 starts in the SEC amounted to only 16.2 innings allowing 25 earned runs. Now it's 4 years later, he's age 25 and in AA so he won't present a large radar cross section. Most good prospect college pitchers generally reach MLB in 2-3 years. MacLeod was delayed by a torn UCL and surgery that followed in 2022, but he doesn't have much draft or scouting pedigree, and his success has been limited.

MacLeod's FIPs have been unimpressive in the minors.
2023 - a23 (A+) 4.45
2024 - a24 (A+) 4.33
2024 - a24 (AA) 4.11
2025 a25 (AA) 2.35 in 10.0 innings

He came into this season with no real prospect status as he wasn't even on the top 30 for MLB. Fangraphs had him at #31 in the org.

It's nice to see him getting some great results out of the gate, but it's a SSSS and the Twins chose to keep him in AA rather than AAA. It shows how he ranks organizationally.

Nothing I don't already know. The WHIP is a good and basic comparison indicator to the guys I mentioned. However, when I say he'd be top 20, organizationally that isn't actually all that high for starting pitchers. It would be around 10th for me, so I read this as assuming quite a bit more than what I'm actually saying. 

He should be in such a conversation. He's not.