Twins Minor League Report (7/29): Jenkins Flirts With Cycle, FCL Twins Fight for Title

[Steve Lein]

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (photo of Walker Jenkins)

TRANSACTIONS
There was significant roster shuffling in the system on Monday and Tuesday. For the sake of brevity here, they’re coming at you rapid fire, but you can also take a look at the full list here:

• With the Saints, RHP Michael Tonkin had his contract selected by the Twins while optioning RHP Pierson Ohl, and RHP Cole Percival and LHP Aaron Rozek were assigned to St. Paul from Wichita.
• The Wind Surge received RHP Hunter Hoopes and RHP Alejandro Hidalgo from the Kernels.
• In Cedar Rapids OF Justin Connell and RHP Jeremy Lee were released, while LHP Brennen Oxford, RHP Matt Gabbert, and RHP Ruddy Gomez were assigned from the Mighty Mussels. In addition RHP Xander Hamilton was activated from the 60-day injured list, and 3B Jay Thomason and 3B Rayne Doncon were activated from the 7-day.
• Down in Florida with the FCL season coming to a close, there was some player swapping between the two leagues. SS Yohander Martinez and OF Jose Rodriguez were released from the Mighty Mussels. OF Angel Del Rosario was placed on the full-season injured list. Coming to the Florida State League from the FCL are OF Eduardo Beltre and SS Harry Genth. The Mighty Mussels also activated the just acquired in trade C Enrique Jimenez.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 5, Toledo 6
Box Score

Trent Baker got the starting nod for the Saints in Toledo and scattered three hits and three walks in his three innings. He was charged with one earned run and struck out four.

The Saints' offense, on the other hand, ambushed Mud Hens starter and #OldFriend Devin Smeltzer. Three straight singles from Austin Martin, Luke Keaschall, and Edouard Julien preceded a double from Carson McCusker to put them up early 2-1. Payton Eeles then added an RBI single, and an error off the bat of Ryan Fitzgerald made it 4-1. Smeltzer left the game in the second after taking a liner from McCusker off his elbow, and then the Saints bats went quiet for the next six innings.

 

 

Jarret Whorff came on to start the fourth inning and delivered a scoreless frame, but allowed three runs in the fifth to tie the game at four. He finished 1 2/3, allowing two hits and four walks, while striking out two. Kyle Bischoff came on to finish the fifth and completed two more innings with no runs allowed. He gave up two hits and two walks, and struck out one. 

In the top of the eighth, Fitzgerald gave the Saints some spark with a leadoff double. Jose Miranda then drew a walk and Martin a one-out single to load the bases. Keaschall gave them the lead 5-4 with a sac fly, but that would be all the insurance they could get.

It wouldn’t be enough.

Newcomer Cole Percival came on for the bottom of the eighth inning and retired the Mud Hens one-two-three, but a leadoff single and walk to start the ninth spelled doom. A one-out double tied the game at five and was followed by a walk-off single to give Toledo the win in the series opener.

The Saints got multiple hits from Martin (2-for-5, R, K), Julien (3-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB, SB), and McCusker (2-for-5, R, 2B, RBI, 2 K). Keaschall was 1-for-4 with a run scored and RBI, playing second base. Aaron Sabato had a rough night with a golden sombrero out of the ninth spot in the lineup.

 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 8, Amarillo 10
Box Score

This game was all about Walker Jenkins, until it wasn’t…

Big lefty Christian MacLeod got the starting nod and was effectively wild for most of his outing. In four innings he was charged with two earned runs on three hits and four walks, while striking out three. Of his 70 pitches, just 38 went for strikes (54%), but 11 of those were swings and misses.

But back to Jenkins. In the top of the first, he smoked a liner to dead center that burned the outfielder and hit off the wall for a double. In his second at-bat, he opened the scoring with his third home run of the season with Wichita. Gabriel Gonzalez followed with a blast of his own and Witchita took a 2-0 lead.

 

 

Up for the third time in the fifth, he sent a solid line drive into center field for a single to put himself a triple shy of the cycle. It’s always the most difficult to get that one out of the way, but oddly enough the Sod Poodles home stadium is specifically dimensioned for that…

In his fourth at-bat in the sixth, he sent another well-hit ball toward the “triple-triangle” of Hodgetown Stadium, an odd cutout in center field exactly like that of Fenway Park. Ten feet to the left, it would have bounced on the warning track, and I’m certain Jenkins would have gotten that triple. Ten feet to the right and it was likely his second home run of the game. Instead, the right fielder made a running catch in that triangle cutout to end the inning. Jenkins would get a few more chances, but it wasn’t meant to be on this night.

The Wind Surge, however, came out the next inning and turned a tie game into an 8-3 lead. Five singles and a big two-run double from Kaelen Culpepper seemingly swung the momentum started by Jenkins fully in their favor. But just like those chances for a cycle…

Ricky Castro had came on in relief of MacLeod to start the fifth and struck out three hitters in a row. A solo home run in the sixth tied the game at three, but Castro was only able to record just one out in the bottom half after the Wind Surge’s outburst, and allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits and two walks in his 2 1/3 total innings. He struck out four. Jacob Wosinski recorded one out before leaving the game with an injury. Kade Bragg got the final out of the seventh and added a scoreless eighth, but it was now a one-run game.

Still up by one heading into the bottom of the ninth, the Wind Surge summoned Joel Cesar to try and close it out. A leadoff walk and two-wild pitches put the tying run on third base with just one out. Then a double brought him in and put the game-winning run in scoring position. 

While the Wind Surge boasts the Texas League’s home run leader in Kyler Fedko, the man who ranks second in that category belongs to the Sod Poodles, and Ivan Melendez is that man who next stepped into the batter's box. He sent the first pitch he saw deep into the night sky, and well over the fence to walk it off for the home team.

The Wind Surge got multiple hits from Jenkins (3-for-5, 2B, HR, RBI, BB), Gonzalez (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, BB, K), and Ricardo Olivar (2-for-5, K), and had plenty of opportunities with 17 at-bats with runners in scoring position. The Sod Poodles just got the last one and didn’t waste it.

 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 2, Lansing 6
Box Score

The Kernels offense was only able to muster two runs on five hits in the game, while the Lugnuts were able to manufacture six of their own on seven hits.

Brandon Winokur got the scoring started in this one by blasting his 13th home run of the season in the top of the second, but that would be it for Cedar Rapids until the ninth.

Right-hander Jacob Kisting took the mound for the Kernels and went the first three innings. He gave up two runs in the third, and in total allowed two hits and walked one. He struck out three.

All three relievers the Lugnuts faced also got hit for at least one earned run. Wilker Reyes allowed one run on one hit in two innings, striking out one. Nick Trabacchi pitched one inning and allowed one run on one hit and two walks, while striking out two. Xander Hamilton finished the final two innings, and gave up two earned runs on three hits and one walk, striking out one.

The Kernels were able to score one run in the top of the ninth, but left some more on the basepaths as well. Billy Amick, Andy Lugo, and Jay Thomason hit back-to-back singles to load the bases with nobody out, but a double-play ball killed the momentum despite scoring that run.

In addition to his single, Thomason drew two walks. Winokur added a walk to his early home run. The team finished just 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position, and left only four men on base.

 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 6, Bradenton 4 (10 innings)
Box Score

The Mighty Mussels got a solid effort from starting pitcher Chris Becerra, who threw five scoreless innings. He allowed just two hits and two walks, though he didn’t strike out any Marauders.

Fort Myers took a lead before Becerra ever toed the rubber, after Dameury Pena led off the game with a single, and was promptly brought in on a double from Yasser Mercedes. In the top of the third Peyton Carr delivered a one-out single, and two batters later Caleb McNeely sent his fourth home run of the season over the wall in left to make it 3-0. They would add one more run in the seventh after Daniel Pena drew a leadoff walk, and Blaze O’Saben added a out single in front of a sac fly from Jefferson Valladeres.

Dylan Questad took over for Becerra in the sixth, but wouldn’t get through the seventh. Before it was over, he was charged with four earned runs on three hits and a walk. He struck out one and was responsible for two additional runners on base. Ivran Romero came on and, although he wouldn’t get charged with any of the runs, did give up the two-run single to tie the game at four. That gave him a blown save, but he would go on to add two more scoreless frames to get it into extras. He allowed three hits and struck out six in his 2 2/3 innings.

In the top of the tenth, O’Saben promptly scored the Manfred-Man with an RBI single and advanced to second on the throw home. He moved up another base on a fly ball to center field, before Harry Genth scored him to make it 6-4 good guys.

Julio Bonilla was called upon to shut down the Marauders in the bottom half, and did so in spectacular fashion. Immaculate even.

 

Those nine pitches gave Romero his fourth win of the season, and it was Bonilla’s first save with the Mighty Mussels.

The offense got multi-hit efforts from Carr (2-for-5, R, K) and O’Saben (2-for-5, R, RBI, SB).

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
Monday - FCL Championship Series: FCL Blue Jays 7, FCL Twins 5
Box Score

Down 1-0 in their best-of-three championship series with the Blue Jays, the Twins needed a victory to keep their hopes alive on Monday.

In order to do so, they sent out arguably their best regular season starting pitcher in right-hander Joel Garcia who finished the year with a 3.35 ERA in his 11 starts. He held the Blue Jays scoreless for the first three innings, working around a baserunner in each frame. In the top of the fourth, the visitors finally made him work a bit harder. A leadoff single and pair of walks around a pair of outs led to him being pulled with the bases loaded. Andrew Huffman came on and promptly surrendered a bases-clearing double to put the Blue Jays up 3-0.

Garcia finished 3 2/3 innings and was charged with those three earned runs on two hits and four walks. He struck out three.

The Twins' lineup answered in the bottom of the fourth after Ricardo Paez and Ramiro Dominguez delivered back-to-back singles to lead it off. Jayson Bass followed with a walk to load the bases before an error led to their first run. A bases-loaded walk to Isaac Pena brought them within one, and the guaranteed-Twingo winning “sacrifice-fly-double-play” entry tied the game at three before Irvin Nunez was doubled-up rounding third base.

Huffman delivered a scoreless fifth and finished with 1 2/3 innings, allowing two hits, walking one, and striking out one. Brent Francisco delivered a scoreless sixth but got into trouble with two outs in the seventh. A single, hit batter, double steal, and two-run single put the Blue Jays back in front 5-3. Francisco was charged with two earned runs on two hits, a walk, and struck out two. Xavier Kolhosser got the final out of the seventh, but had trouble of his own in the eighth as well. He recorded just two outs, and was charged with two earned runs of his own on one hit. Anderson Ramos finished off the final 1 2/3, allowing two inherited runners to score, but none of his own. He gave up one hit, walked two, and struck out three.

Down 7-3 in the bottom of the ninth, the Twins needed a miracle to keep their season alive. Irvin Nunez delivered a one-out single, and Pena drew a two-out walk to put some runners on base. A pair of wild pitches made it 7-5 and the tying run did reach base, but Eduardo Beltre’s fly ball into right field fell short of the wall, and the Twins went down in the series 2-0.

Beltre led off for the Twins and finished 1-for-5 with the Twins' only extra-base hit of the game, a double. Isaac Pena drew three walks. As a team, the Twins went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.

 

DOMINICAN DAILIES
Monday: DSL Nationals 5, DSL Twins 0 (6 innings)
Box Score

The Twins lineup was only able to muster a single baserunner in the game, and Nationals pitchers faced the minimum number of hitters as that baserunner was erased by a double-play ball.

After the first 12 hitters of the game had been retired, Joyner Perez led off the bottom of the fifth with a single to break up the perfect game attempt. It was a good thing as well, as this one didn’t last another half-inning, being called in the top of the sixth with the Nationals comfortably in front.

Omar Montano made the start and took the loss. He completed 1 2/3 innings and was charged with four earned runs on two hits, a walk, and a pair of hit batters. He struck out three.

Relievers Juan Quinones (1 1/3 IP, H, K), Eli Urena (2 IP, H, ER, 2 BB, K), and Agustin Campusano (2/3 IP, H, K) finished out the rest of the game.

 

Tuesday: DSL Twins 10, DSL NYY Yankees 11 (10 innings)
Box Score

A back-and-forth affair with the Yankees on Tuesday went to extra innings.

The Twins jumped out to a 3-0 in the top of the first thanks to a pair of errors to score the first two, and a Yovanny Duran RBI single. In the bottom half, which would be an omen for the rest of the game, the Yankees answered with three of their own.

Starter Jeicol Surumay wasn’t able to get out of the first inning. He gave up three earned runs on two hits and three walks, striking out one in 2/3 of an inning. Yordi Jose went the next 2 1/3, giving up his lone run on a solo homer. Rey Pacheco then delivered three scoreless innings, scattering four hits and striking out three. Brandy Ceballos added a scoreless seventh (H, BB, 2 K).

By that time, the Twins had pulled ahead 7-4. A double from Haritzon Castillo in the third led to him scoring on a wild pitch. Teilon Serrano hit his fourth home run of the season in the fourth. Then Dencer Diaz delivered a two-out, two-run single in the fifth to put the Twins up by three.

It would stay that way until the bottom of the eighth, with Marlon Mirabal coming into the game. Like Surumay before him, he was only able to get two outs, and gave up four runs (two earned) in doing so on four hits.

The Twins weren’t about to lay down, however. Down one in the top of the ninth, Duran led off with a double to put the tying run in scoring position. Two batters later Jose Barrios added a double of his own to score Duran. A throwing error on a pickoff play then allowed Barrios to scamper home and put the Twins up by one.

Jensi Infante recorded the final out of the eighth, and was back out for the ninth. Unfortunately, he was greeted with a leadoff triple, and a one-out single tied the game at nine. After an intentional walk to load the bases, Infante struck out the final two hitters he faced to send it to extras.

The extra-base runner scored for the Twins in the top half with little effort, as a wild pitch and throwing error combo allowed the runner to score before any ball was put in play. But that would be it.

Juan Figaro came out from the bullpen for the bottom half but two walks and a single led to the game being tied yet again, before a hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded sent the game winner strolling home.

Castillo (2-for-5, 2 R, 2B, BB), Duran (2-for-3, R, 2B, RBI, 2 BB, K), and Diaz (2-for-5, 2 RBI) led the way with multiple hits. Teilon Serrano scored three runs, drew two walks, and stole three bases in addition to his home run.

 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Ivran Romero, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (2 2/3 IP, 3 H, 6 K)
Hitter of the Day – Walker Jenkins, Wichita Wind Surge (3-for-5, R, 2B, HR, RBI, BB)

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

#1 – Walker Jenkins (Wichita): 3-for-5, R, 2B, HR (3), RBI, BB
#2 – Luke Keaschall (Rehab w/St. Paul): 1-for-4, R, RBI
#3 – Kaelen Culpepper (Wichita): 1-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI, BB
#8 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Wichita): 2-for-4, 2 R, HR (4), RBI, BB, K
#11 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-3, R, HR (13), RBI, BB
#14 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-4
#16 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, K
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 2-for-5, K

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Toledo (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Darren McCaughan (5-4, 5.40 ERA)
Wichita @ Amarillo (7:05 PM CDT) - RHP C.J. Culpepper (0-0, 1.83 ERA)
Cedar Rapids @ Lansing (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP Chase Chaney (6-3, 3.44 ERA)
Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 PM CDT) - RHP Adrian Bohorquez (2-3, 4.67 ERA)

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

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[tony&rodney]

Right fielder ran a long way to catch that ball by Jenkins; impressive. Jenkins swung the bat well.

[SF Twins Fan]

I'm assuming they will get through the trade deadline before moving some players around, but Gonzalez should be in AAA now, and a case could be made for both Jenkins and Culpepper to be promoted to AAA as well.

[Vanimal46]

So I went to the St Paul Saints site to check out the pitching stats. The promo on the front page is a Joe Mauer bobble head giveaway on August 9th. Which seems odd because he never played for the Saints. 

[bunsen82]

7 minutes ago, SF Twins Fan said:

I'm assuming they will get through the trade deadline before moving some players around, but Gonzalez should be in AAA now, and a case could be made for both Jenkins and Culpepper to be promoted to AAA as well.

I wouldn't rush Jenkins.  Culpepper and Gonzalez have crushed AA though.   I am ready for some of the prospects to be moved up and we will have opportunities.   I am glad to see a lot of our hitters doing really well this year, especially later in the season.   

I did realize how well Austin Martin has hit in AAA.  If the defense is decent bring him back up along with Julien and McCusker.   I would be fine with Wallner being on the bench or going back to AAA.   

[Connor Gould]

Nice games from Julien and Martin, I would definitely like to see those 2 get another look in the MLB, maybe after some spots clear after the deadline. Julien especially, in his short time in the MLB this year he got his hard hit rates back to being good but a bad launch angle meant he didn't get results. But his AAA numbers make me think that 2023 Julien is still in there.

[Steve Lein]

33 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Right fielder ran a long way to catch that ball by Jenkins; impressive. Jenkins swung the bat well.

Definitely. As the center-fielder was nowhere to be found I think they were shifting him quite a bit the opposite way, but that's still is a long run!

[Road trip]

11 minutes ago, bunsen82 said:

I wouldn't rush Jenkins.  Culpepper and Gonzalez have crushed AA though.   I am ready for some of the prospects to be moved up and we will have opportunities.   I am glad to see a lot of our hitters doing really well this year, especially later in the season.   

I did realize how well Austin Martin has hit in AAA.  If the defense is decent bring him back up along with Julien and McCusker.   I would be fine with Wallner being on the bench or going back to AAA.   

Agree on the AA guys.  Jenkins gets headlines but his stats are merely "good", not screaming "promote me".  And don't look at his splits unless your stomach is strong, btw... not much doubt Rocco will platoon Jenkins if he is still in charge.

My hope for any of Martin, Julien, and McCusker is limited.  Great that Martin is hitting...he probably comes up as the next utility guy if/when Castro gets traded, but it may not translate to MLB and his defense will be mediocre at best.

[The_No_Lifer]

4 hours ago, Road trip said:

And don't look at his splits unless your stomach is strong, btw... 

 

Like every LHH, he will likely hit better against RHP, but his splits aren't that bad.  20K% against LHP vs 19% for RHP, and there hasn't been much power but 44AB isn't enough of a sample size for power.