Twins Minor League Report (5/10): Rayne Doncon Delivers Two Mother's Day Gifts

[Matt Braun]

Image courtesy of Malamut Photography (photo of Rayne Doncon)

TRANSACTIONS
LHP Kody Funderburk optioned to AAA St. Paul
LHP Kendry Rojas recalled
INF Quinn McDaniel signed*

Another Indy Ball Star?

On Sunday, news broke that the Twins plucked Quinn McDaniel from the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. A 5th-round 2023 draftee, McDaniel spent two forgettable seasons in Eugene, Oregon, for the Giants' A+ ball squad before striking a path to indy ball. He obliterated the competition. McDaniel was hitting the days in the year, .365 in 14 games before the Twins handed him a minor-league contract.

Saints Sentinel
St. Paul 4, Las Vegas 2
Box Score
Ryan Gallagher: 3 ⅔ IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
HR: David Bañuelos (1)
Multi-hit games: Kaelen Culpepper (2-for-5, 3 RBI), Ryan Kreidler (2-for-3, 2B, BB), Ben Ross (2-for-4, 2B, R)

“This is bat country.” Perhaps, Mr. Thompson, but the bats of this series aren’t from the hallucinations of a drug-fueled madman: rather, the Saints’ wooden cylinders were as real and potent as the mescaline favored by Raoul Duke and his associate. And no one made a beast of himself (except for maybe Aaron Sabato on Tuesday.)

Ryan Gallagher earned the start for the Saints. Though the high-flying ways of the PCL clipped the wings of others before him, the UC Santa Barbara product proved to possess a steeled mettle: he overcame a minor kerfuffle in the first to give his team 3 ⅔ effective frames, punching out six. He threw 74 pitches.

St. Paul supported their hurler early, scoring three in the second inning. Every run came off a rare bases-clearing single from Kaelen Culpepper. Credit goes to Harry Genth for busting it from first with a speed and vigor unseen outside a Mint 400 Motorcycle race. 

Because no Saints game can exist without a blast these days, David Bañuelos shot one over the left-center wall in the ninth off former Twin Who Got Away, Nick Anderson. It’s a mystery what Brian Schales is up to these days.

The Aviators are an affiliate of the Team Formerly Known as the Oakland Athletics. Their fifth-ranked prospect, Henry Bolte, singled once in four at-bats, a notable outcome given he entered the day 12 for his last 12 with nine extra-base-hits, five of them homers.

Wind Surge Wisdom

Unending rain canceled the Wichita game on Sunday.

Kernels Nuggets
Cedar Rapids 10, Quad Cities 5
Box Score
Dasan Hill: 3 ⅔ IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
HR: Rayne Doncon 2 (4, 5), Jay Thomason (4), Jaime Ferrer (9), Brandon Winokur (3)
Multi-hit games: Brandon Winokur (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB), Miguel Briceno (2-for-4, R), Rayne Doncon (2-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI)

The Kernels bashed their way to victory on Sunday.

Rayne Doncon started matters with a second-inning blast, soon followed by Jay Thomason, whose homer was so powerful it emitted an “outfielder stopper” 15 feet away from the track. A confused fisherman will find the ball in the coming days.

 

 

Jaime Ferrer’s three-run blast in the third gave Cedar Rapids a 5-0 advantage.

 

 

The Kernels allowed the River Bandits to tie the game—how generous of them—before unleashing a second barrage upon their pitchers. Brandon Winokur joined the fun with his third homer of the season, before Doncon gave the left-field children another souvenir. 

 

 

Christman-born starter Dasan Hill put forth his best start of the season. The talented lefty suffered a dreadful April, allowing 15 runs in 16 innings, but evidently remained sanguine. On Sunday, he earned seven of his 11 outs on whiffs in his first scoreless outing of the year, though control remained an issue, as he walked three. The start was nonetheless a positive outcome for the youngster from Grapevine. 

Catcher Blake Mitchell is ranked as the 58th-best prospect in MLB, according to the league’s website. He went 0-3, with three strikeouts, a sacrifice fly, and a walk. 

Mussel Matters
Fort Myers 5, Tampa 3
Box Score
Matthew Dalquist: 4 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Dameury Pena (2-for-4, R, 2 RBI), Jayson Bass (2-for-3, R, RBI), Byron Chourio (2-for-4)

The Mighty Mussels took an early lead and never looked back on Sunday.

Has Matthew Dalquist turned a corner? The 18th-round righty found April cold, chilly, and unforgiving; his ERA in the month sat at 5.40, and his WHIP neared 2.00. Through two May starts, though, he has allowed just two runs across nine frames, pushing his ERA down to a serviceable 4.03 mark. That’ll do just fine.

Fort Myers’ offense started immediately. Dameury Pena—after taking a strike on a pitch timer violation—chopped an infield single, and Bruin Agbayani walked. A Ramiro Dominguez flyout did nothing to stop the momentum: Hungry Kusiak shot a single into left field to draw Pena home. Agbayani then scored on a wild pitch.

 

 

Pena proved to be a magnet for scoring runs, as he singled in another score the following frame. Spoiler: Pena earned a second RBI on a fielder’s choice in the fourth. Even Rickey Henderson would have been impressed by his leadoff production (he also stole a base!)

A middle-innings Tampa skirmish brought the score within one, yet Fort Myers plated an insurance run in the eighth off a Jayson Bass sacrifice fly. The Tarpons never scored again.

The Tarpons are a part of the Great Yankees Talent Machine, the development system that pumps out major leaguers with brutal efficiency. On Sunday, they sent forth lefty Henry Lalane, their 14th-ranked prospect. He surrendered four earned runs in 3 ⅓ innings.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Dasan Hill
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Rayne Doncon

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#2 – Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 2-5, 3 RBI
#4 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2, K
#6 – Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - 3 ⅔ IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
#7 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-4
#8 – Kendry Rojas (Twins) - 3 ⅓ IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
#9 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, R, K
#12 – Andrew Morris (Twins) - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
#13 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
#14 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers) - 0-4, 2 K
#18 – C.J. Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
#19 – Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 0-0
#20 – James Ellwanger (Fort Myers) - IL

MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
FCL Twins @ FCL Orioles (11:00 AM) - TBD

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[weitz41]

Nice bounce back for Gallagher and Hill. The move up in the minors can be tough on pitchers and position players.