Twins Minor League Report (6/17): Marek Houston Can't Stop Hitting

[Matt Braun]

Image courtesy of Malamut Photography (photo of Marek Houston)

TRANSACTIONS
LHP Kendry Rojas sent to AAA St. Paul on rehab.

Saints Sentinel
The 1952 film with Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds taught us that one can sing in the rain; however, the movie mentions nothing about the impossibility of playing baseball in it. Indeed, the Saints learned this the hard way, and will play a doubleheader on Thursday because of the precipitation. 

Wind Surge Wisdom
Wichita 10, Springfield 9
Box Score
SP: Cory Lewis: 4 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
HR: Kala’i Rosario (11)
Multi-hit games: Andrew Cossetti (3-for-4, 3B, R, 3 RBI, BB), Kala’i Rosario (2-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB), Khadim Diaw (2-for-4, 2 R, BB)

The Wind Surge won a thriller on Wednesday.

The typical wasn’t cutting it, so why not try the atypical? Cory Lewis dabbled in effectively wild territory, walking three while allowing four hits. That’s almost a 2.00 WHIP—deadly endeavors for any pitcher. Yet, Lewis walked away without an earned run to his name and given the season he was having coming into the game, he’ll certainly take it. 

The “zero-earned runs” thing befalls a terrible truth of this game: the Wind Surge couldn’t field for squat. They committed four errors. A particularly brutal stretch occurred in the fifth when a Quinn McDaniel mishap added a second runner to the bases, a Jaime Ferrer botch scored a run and put men on the corners, and an Andrew Cossetti throwing error turned a double steal attempt into a run. That’s how poor Ruddy Gomez could only be credited with one earned run while five scored in the inning.

Fortunately, the bats were ready to make up for what the gloves couldn’t do. Wichita was in a hitting mood. Shoot, they were in a walking mood, too. They collected 10 knocks and nine free passes; everyone outside Garrett Spain reached base at least once. 

Two touched home in the third off an Andrew Cossetti triple. A third arrived in the fifth when McDaniel cleverly dashed home on the front-end of a strikeout/double-steal attempt. Then the point became moot when Kala’i Rosario clobbered a homer one batter later. At least McDaniel has bragging rights.

Springfield swapped pitchers and did nothing to stop the run avalanche started by the Wind Surge in the fifth. A lineup-wide flurry—the kind of piranha production that would make Ron Gardenhire smile—ambushed the new hurler for three more runs. RBIs went to McDaniel, Billy Amick, and Rosario.

Unsatisfied and ravenous proved to be a Wichita lineup dead-set on swooning ERAs and bludgeoning pitcher egos: they once-again loaded the bases in the seventh and pushed a pair of runs across thanks to a hit by pitch and a walk. A good day indeed when a lineup plates a run four separate times without needing a hit. 

Khadim Diaw singled twice and walked in his AA debut.   

Springfield’s unique “switch-pitcher” started on Wednesday. Jurrangelo Cijntje, ranked as the 84th-best prospect in baseball, according to MLB.com, tossed 4 2/3 innings, allowing five earned runs. He only pitched right-handed. Life is often boring. 

Kernels Nuggets
Cedar Rapids 4, Beloit 8
Box Score
Riley Quick: 4 2/3 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
HR: Miguel Briceno (5)
Multi-hit games: Marek Houston (2-for-3, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 BB), Miguel Briceno (2-for-4, HR, R, RBI)

The Kernels were solidly bested on Wednesday.

Riley Quick’s regal dominance at Fort Myers has dissipated into an ordinary muck. The righty who once appeared incapable of allowing runs has not only surrendered them at consistent rate, but he’s also allowed free passes far more often than one would expect given his raw ability. These are the common traits of a player figuring things out, learning more about himself as an athlete. He’s less than 40 innings into his professional career, after all. It seems inevitable he’ll figure it out.

Marek Houston has commanded his level. It’s too easy for him now. The 2025 first round pick is slashing an unbelievable .442/.561/.651 since June started with 13 walks to six strikeouts. That’s dominance. He also stole two bases. That’s dominance. He should be driving to Wichita soon.

Miguel Briceno provided the lone big blast for Cedar Rapids, homering in the fourth. The infielder was a Minor League Rule-5 pick before the 2025 season, a fact you may need to know as he’s now slashing .324/.380/.577 with the Kernels.

OF Brandon Compton slots in as the 12th-best prospect in the Marlins system, and he collected three hits, including two homers. Perhaps he’s ranked too low. 

Mussel Matters
Fort Myers 9, Tampa 7
Box Score
Justin Mitrovich: 4 1/3 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 6 K
HR: Quentin Young (7)
Multi-hit games: Quentin Young (2-for-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, RBI), Byron Chourio (2-for-4, 3B, 2R, RBI)

The Mighty Mussels hit their way to a win on Wednesday.

“It’s about scoring them in bunches,” espoused Fort Myers, probably. They only scored in three frames, but made them worth their while, plating a trio in the fifth thanks to a rally started by a Jayson Bass hit by pitch turned not-pickoff when the second baseman dropped the ball that should have nabbed the running Bass. So it goes. And so it be, sometimes. Byron Chourio and Ryan Sprock reaped the rewards with RBI knocks later in the inning.

We do it again. This time in the seventh. Chourio tripled. Ricardo Pena walked. Dameury Pena singled. Two outs nearly neutered the rally. Then, an error on a Quentin Young batted ball. Floodgates and such. The error, a wild pitch, and oncoming singles by Luis Fragoza and Merphy Hernandez put a five-run capitalization on the matter.

And, for good measure, Young returned in the ninth to pop an opposite-field moonball that may have punctured a cloud before returning to land.

Callan Fang—which sounds like the name of a horror movie villain from the 90s—debuted for the Mighty Mussels, tossing 2 2/3 effective innings with zero earned runs and three strikeouts. He looks to join the fraternity of the 35 Harvard men who have become big leaguers. 

The Tarpons are an affiliate of the nefarious—yet undeniably awesome—Yankees farm system. They sent forward their ninth-ranked prospect, starter Thatcher Hurd, who racked up eight strikeouts across 4 1/3 innings while allowing just one earned run.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Quentin Young

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#5 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, 3 K
#7 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 2-3, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 BB
#8 – Riley Quick (Cedar Rapids) - 4 2/3 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
#10 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-3, 2 RBI
#14 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers) - 2-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, RBI, 2 K
#15 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, R, RBI, 2 BB, K
#19 – Khadim Diaw (Wichita) - 2-4, 2 R, BB

MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Omaha @ St. Paul (5:07 PM) - RHP Ricky Castro
Omaha @ St. Paul (Game Two) - TBD
Springfield @ Wichita (6:35 PM) - RHP Preston Johnon
Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM) - LHP Cesar Lares
Fort Myers @ Tampa (10:00 AM) - RHP Charlee Soto
FCL Twins @ FCL Rays (11:00 AM) - TBD
DSL Arizona Red @ DSL Twins (10:00 AM) - TBD

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[Eris]

“He also stole two bases. That’s dominance.”  
 

There is probably a typo here unless you mean stole 2 bases on one pitch or perhaps during one at bat. FanGraphs has Houston with 7 SB since June 1, and 20 for the season. He has stolen 2 bases during a game 3 times this season. 
 

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/marek-houston/sa3034152/game-log?position=NP

[stringer bell]

Houston had nice numbers at Fort Myers and then struggled at the next level. He's dominated that same level this year, but will he struggle at AA? His numbers are maybe enough to skip AA altogether. I hope he gets out of Cedar Rapids soon.

[Matt Braun]

2 minutes ago, Eris said:

“He also stole two bases. That’s dominance.”  
 

There is probably a typo here unless you mean stole 2 bases on one pitch or perhaps during one at bat. FanGraphs has Houston with 7 SB since June 1, and 20 for the season. He has stolen 2 bases during a game 3 times this season. 
 

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/marek-houston/sa3034152/game-log?position=NP

Nope, he stole two bases in the game. Fangraphs doesn't update box score stuff until the next day so don't rely on that. Houston stole third in the first inning then swiped second in the seventh. 

[Cory Engelhardt]

2 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

Houston had nice numbers at Fort Myers and then struggled at the next level. He's dominated that same level this year, but will he struggle at AA? His numbers are maybe enough to skip AA altogether. I hope he gets out of Cedar Rapids soon.

Agreed here, it's time to move him up in some capacity.

[Old Twins Hat]

Twins need a shortstop who can field well and hit well.

Seems like they have two of them in their system, one at AAA and one at A.

I know it's complicated, but shouldn't they advance the two in their system and let the chips fall where they may?

Isn't that why the minor leagues exist in the first place, to bring forward prospects to MLB?

[DataNerd]

Houston seems to have figured A+ ball out.  23 BB%/11 K% in June.  With the glove and being a solid hitter in college, I don't see the argument against Houston being a Top 100 guy.

Quick hasn't been as dominant in A+, but he's still striking a bunch of guys out.  With the lack of college innings, it might be more reasonable for timeline to be late 27/early 28 for his debut.

Mitrovich had a rough inning, but continues to get whiffs on the changeup and has the fastball velocity not losing too much later on.  Slider needs work, but it's a good base to start from.

[jaimedude]

Is Diaw a candidate to skip AAA and jump from AA to MLB? This is assuming Twins don't extend Ryan Jeffers, and trade him at the deadline, and that they would try and flip one of Caratinni or Alex Jackson. That is probably the only scenario I would see Diaw skipping AAA. Well that and the AAa catcher that was raking is hurt. Polanco is the last Twin I can remember that skipped a  level. Catcher is a premium position. Seems l8ke Diaw should be on our radar as a rising prospect for the Twins. I think teams will be looking for catching at trade deadline, as a premium, hopefully Jeffers is healthy by then. I wanted to keep Jeffers, but he may be in strong demand at deadline, decent catcher, good hitter. 

[Bangkok Twins Fan]

Callan Fang —which sounds like the name of a horror movie villain from the 90s—debuted for the Mighty Mussels, tossing 2 2/3 effective innings with zero earned runs and three strikeouts. He looks to join the fraternity of the 35 Harvard men who have become big leaguers. 

The Tarpons are an affiliate of the nefarious—yet undeniably awesome—Yankees farm system. They sent forward their ninth-ranked prospect, starter Thatcher Hurd ... .

They both sound like villains!

[Bangkok Twins Fan]

2 hours ago, jaimedude said:

Is Diaw a candidate to skip AAA and jump from AA to MLB? This is assuming Twins don't extend Ryan Jeffers, and trade him at the deadline, and that they would try and flip one of Caratinni or Alex Jackson. That is probably the only scenario I would see Diaw skipping AAA. Well that and the AAa catcher that was raking is hurt. Polanco is the last Twin I can remember that skipped a  level. Catcher is a premium position. Seems l8ke Diaw should be on our radar as a rising prospect for the Twins. I think teams will be looking for catching at trade deadline, as a premium, hopefully Jeffers is healthy by then. I wanted to keep Jeffers, but he may be in strong demand at deadline, decent catcher, good hitter. 

I think Diaw is on the radar for sure, but I'm not sure the Twins would rush him by skipping a level. The biggest question seems to be where he ultimately plays. I had assumed he would get more playing time at catcher, but he still plays a lot in the outfield and that catch he made in center (see video in this article) was pretty darn impressive. 

[FlyingFinn]

17 minutes ago, Bangkok Twins Fan said:

I think Diaw is on the radar for sure, but I'm not sure the Twins would rush him by skipping a level. The biggest question seems to be where he ultimately plays. I had assumed he would get more playing time at catcher,

Correct, he won't skip AAA. Not many catchers do. His issue is how he plays defense at catcher. Lot easier to make it to the majors if that's good. I think he still has a lot of work to do.

[Jeff K]

Marek Houston to AA...ahora!

[TopGunn#22]

Please Twins, just promote him already.  He's earned the chance to see how he does at another level.  You could also make a case that they could just skip AA and move him right up to St. Paul.  The kid has mastered A ball.  Challenge him.  

[Dman]

I am pretty sure they move Houston to AA at the end of this week as last year they moved Culpepper up to AA on June 21st.  For those worried about Houston's bat Culpepper hit .293/.385/.479 for an OPS of .864 at High A in 2025 and Houston is currently hitting .329/.405/.468 for an OPS of .873.  Culpepper had the better slugging, but Houston the better batting average.  So at least at High A they look like pretty similar bats.  We'll see how things look when he moves up to AA.  At any rate He will be at AA soon.

[Trov]

I am sure Houston gets moved soon, he has nothing left to show at High A.  Hopefully he adjusts quickly to AA and earns himself a spring training invite next year.  

[jmlease1]

Add me to the chorus of people clamoring for Houston to get moved up. I think we've seen enough of him against A-ball pitchers; time for a new challenge! Really impressed with how he's done so far this year, was worried that he could be another Noah Miller: all glove, no bat. Now, he's 22 and had 3 seasons of college ball so he should be able to hit A-ball pitching. But should doesn't mean will. He's done the job. Looking forward to seeing if he can keep hitting in AA.

Diaw had a very nice debut. Glad to see him in AA.

I'm not worried about Quick; he's pitched so little in his career that just seeing him navigate his way through a full season of pro ball with decent success and strong peripherals is enough for me. I think he'll be fine and this is a good place for him to build up endurance and refine his pitches.

Good news that Rojas is starting a rehab assignment; nice to be seeing some decent health news for once!

[rdehring]

Add me to the list of those excited with how well Houston has been playing.  What is most interesting to me were the 2 stolen bases and 2 doubles.  Granted defense in A ball is often questionable, but 20 steals tell us he has reasonable speed and is somewhat a good base runner/stealer.  Love the doubles, which tells me he will have some extra base power when he arrives at Target Field.  Add his superb defense and you have someone who should anchor the Twins infield for many years beginning a couple years down the road.

Will find it interesting who the catcher is at Cedar Rapids every day now that Tait and Jiminez are both at Cedar Rapids.

[Senior Softball Guy]

Remember that the Twins won two World Series Crowns with Greg Gagne at SS. You want a solid glove first guy at that position. Hitting is a bonus.

[ashbury]

3 hours ago, Bangkok Twins Fan said:

Callan Fang —which sounds like the name of a horror movie villain from the 90s—

The Tarpons are an affiliate of the nefarious—yet undeniably awesome—Yankees farm system. They sent forward their ninth-ranked prospect, starter Thatcher Hurd ... .

They both sound like villains!

"No, Mister Bond.  I expect you to strike out."

[Steve Lein]

6 hours ago, jaimedude said:

Is Diaw a candidate to skip AAA and jump from AA to MLB? This is assuming Twins don't extend Ryan Jeffers, and trade him at the deadline, and that they would try and flip one of Caratinni or Alex Jackson. That is probably the only scenario I would see Diaw skipping AAA. Well that and the AAa catcher that was raking is hurt. Polanco is the last Twin I can remember that skipped a  level. Catcher is a premium position. Seems l8ke Diaw should be on our radar as a rising prospect for the Twins. I think teams will be looking for catching at trade deadline, as a premium, hopefully Jeffers is healthy by then. I wanted to keep Jeffers, but he may be in strong demand at deadline, decent catcher, good hitter. 

Diaw is a very exciting hitter and athlete. But opposing teams have basically been giving the green light to run on him when he's catching. He's only thrown out 4 of 65 base stealers in 21 games at catcher this year (6%). Allowing 3 steals per game is...not good. 

I think Houston's promotion is imminent. Wichita needs a SS, too.

[Fatbat]

370 pro AB’s and he is a 22 yo defensive wizard. Promote him to AA immediately! Wichita plays in a hitter friendly league so expect him to continue the .300+/.400/.450 slash line after the promotion. If he stays that hot, get him to the Saints in September. Stop screwing around and get aggressive with these young guys! Let them take a few lumps to make them men. 

[AlLagoon]

Got to watch Houston for a couple games earlier this month. He looks fantastic in the field, at the plate, and on the bases. Very athletic. Saw him hit a couple dingers in one of the games, and steal at least 1 base. His movement at shortstop is graceful and fluid. 

 

Very excited about his future.

 

Winokur also has some of the same game.

[Mike Sixel]

Culpeper to the twins, Houston to the saints. Do it !

They won't.....

[mikelink45]

I love seeing the prospects come up but I temper my expectations by the fact that many of the things now being said well Culpeper and Houston for being said about Lee and Lewis

[FlyingFinn]

4 hours ago, Dman said:

For those worried about Houston's bat Culpepper hit .293/.385/.479 for an OPS of .864 at High A in 2025 and Houston is currently hitting .329/.405/.468 for an OPS of .873.  Culpepper had the better slugging, but Houston the better batting average.  So at least at High A they look like pretty similar bats. 

I'd be curious about the comparison to Noah Miller at High A.

[saviking]

Houston, beem Marek up to Wichita 

[Chembry]

1 hour ago, FlyingFinn said:

I'd be curious about the comparison to Noah Miller at High A.

Noah Miller hit .223/.309 OBP/.340.648 OPS at Cedar Rapids in 120g.  

Miller's career A+ numbers are .236/.321/.336/.657 OPS in 221g

[Palindrome Bob]

What happened to JP Smith? I haven't seen him in the Fort Myers lineup in a while. He's still apparently on the roster and not injured -- just doesn't seem to be playing.

[BSLinPA]

1 hour ago, FlyingFinn said:

I'd be curious about the comparison to Noah Miller at High A.

If really curious why not visit this page and find out??  Scroll down first set of hitting stats to his combined A+ numbers over two years (one with Twins org and another with Dodgers): 

  Noah Miller Minor Leagues Statistics | Baseball-Reference.com

[jmlease1]

1 hour ago, FlyingFinn said:

I'd be curious about the comparison to Noah Miller at High A.

Houston is showing out as a much better hitter than Miller. 

Noah Miller had 2 stints in High A: Cedar Rapids, where he put up an OPS of .648 and Great Lakes with the Dodger org where he put up an OPS of .668. To be fair to Miller, he did that at 20 and 21, but Miller's bat has never been good at any level. He's currently putting up a .716 OPS in AAA, but for a little context the team as a whole has an OPS of .821 and the PCL is definitely something of a hitter's league.

So far Houston is showing up quite a bit better as a hitter, but again as an older player. I think it's part of why we'd like to see him at AA sooner rather than later...