Twins Minor League Report (8/11): Saints Take to Field of Dreams

[Steve Lein]

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of Ben Ross after home run in the Field of Dream Game, Dyersville, IA)

 

TRANSACTIONS

• With the Saints playing among the corn in Iowa, the only move down on the farm on Tuesday came from the Dominican Summer League, where 17-year-old RHP Abraham Martinez was assigned.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 3, Iowa 6
Box Score
While the Minnesota Twins are scheduled to highlight the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa, against the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, the St. Paul Saints got to take their talents there a few days earlier to break in the new field and stadium.

Ben Ross wasted little time getting the baseball familiar with the corn beyond the fences.

Kendry Rojas got the high-profile starting nod and delivered a solid outing, finishing the first four innings. He went one-two-three in the first, including a strikeout. Faced the minimum in the second by inducing a double-play ball that included a nifty pick by Ross at third to start. A solo home run leading off the third was his only blemish. He topped out at 97.5 MPH with his fastball, and threw 37 of his 57 total pitches for strikes (65%). He gave up three hits, walked one, and struck out one.

In the top of the fifth the Saints took advantage of a pair of errors to take a 2-1 lead. Gabriel Gonzalez reached on a throwing error from pitcher Jordan Wicks of the Cubs. Another throwing error on the shortstop allowed him to score, but hitter David Banuelos got a little ahead of himself breaking for second base when the carom off the wall came right back to the first baseman, allowing him to be thrown out at second pretty easily to end the inning.

Alejandro Hidalgo came on in the bottom of the fifth and struck out the first hitter of the inning. Five batters later his outing was over and he had surrendered three home runs, allowing the Cubs to take a 6-2 lead they would not relinquish.

Relievers Matt Bowman (1 2/3 IP, H, 3 K) and Jack Anderson (2 IP, K) did their best to give the Saints lineup a chance, locking down the final three innings, but Cubs pitchers were also up to the task.

The Saints did get a two-out rally going in the seventh, with Tristan Grey, Cody Morissette, and Banuelos hitting back-to-back singles to make it 6-3 and bring up Walker Jenkins as the tying run. He hit a solid liner into right on a 2-0 pitch, but right to the fielder to end the inning. They would not get another chance the final two innings.

Jenkins finished 1-for-3 with a walk and stole a pair of bases, including a bit of a delayed steal where he kind of caught the catcher napping. Ross had multiple standout defensive plays at third base in addition to the early homer. The middle of the lineup including Matt Wallner, Aaron Sabato, and the return of Emmanuel Rodriguez, combined to finish 0-for-10 with five strikeouts. The Saints had eight opportunities with runners in scoring position compared to the Cubs two, but the three homers in the fifth proved the difference.

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Corpus Christi 3, Wichita 2
Box Score
Cory Lewis took the mound for the Wind Surge hosting the Hooks this week and completed the first four innings. Both of the runs charged to him were of the unearned variety thanks to a leadoff error in the second inning that led to a 2-0 deficit. Lewis allowed three hits, walked nobody, and struck out six. He struck out two in each of the first, third, and fourth innings, including five of them swinging.

The Wichita offense took until the sixth inning to get on the scoreboard, despite having chances in the first, third, and fourth frames. Andrew Cossetti led off the sixth by reaching base on an error, and Caden Kendle followed with his fifth home run of the season and third consecutive game leaving the yard.

Down 3-2 at that point, the Wind Surge continued to have chances the rest of the way thanks largely to eight total walks but continued to come up empty. They finished 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 13 men on base. In comparison the Hooks went 1-for-5 and left only five men on base.

Relievers William Fleming (IP, ER, BB), Jacob Webb (2 IP, H, 3 K), and Paulshawn Pasqualotto (2 IP, BB, 3 K) gave them a chance over the final five innings, but the lineup wasn’t able to get that clutch hit.

Marek Houston was 0-for-5 with a pair of strikeouts out of the leadoff spot. Jaime Ferrer pinch hit for Khadim Diaw in the fifth inning and chipped in a double. Cossetti (0-for-3, R, 2 BB) and Jake Rucker (0-for-1, 2 BB) each drew two walks.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Wisconsin 3, Cedar Rapids 6
Box Score
The Kernels jumped on Timber Rattlers pitching and didn’t look back at home in Cedar Rapids about an hour southwest of their St. Paul Saints brethren.

Jose Salas got the scoring started in the bottom of the first after Jacob McCombs led off the game being hit by a pitch, and Eduardo Tait followed with a single. Salas’ big swing made it 3-0 with his sixth home run of the season.

In the bottom of the second Danny De Andrade led off with a single, and trotted home on the next pitch to Jayson Bass, who sent it deep to right-center for a 5-0 lead.

Lefty Michael Carpenter made his second start for the Kernels, going the first two innings and throwing 35 pitches (20 for strikes). He allowed just one hit and struck out two. Ivran Romero was the first reliever summoned and went the next 2 2/3 innings. He was charged with all three Wisconsin runs on five hits and a pair of walks. He struck out one and gave up two homers. Ross Dunn stabilized the middle innings and picked up the win for his efforts. He allowed one hit, one walk, and struck out three in 1 1/3 innings. Cole Peschl picked up the good old fashioned three-inning save to finish out the game. He walked two and struck out one.

Tait added his 20th home run of the season leading off the fifth to account for the Kernel’s sixth run.

He finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored batting third in the lineup. The only other hitter with multiple knocks was De Andrade, who also finished 2-for-4 and scored a run. Quinn McDaniel added his sixth double.

MUSSEL MATTERS
Clearwater 1, Fort Myers 2
Box Score
Outfielder Yovanny Duran led off this game with a walk, stole second base, and advanced to third on a throwing error. A sacrifice fly from Vahn Lackey made it 1-0 after two batters. Ramiro Dominguez hit a one-out single and scored the second run of the inning on a double from Luis Fragoza before most fans had reached their seats.

That was all the offense Fort Myers would put together on the night, but it was also all they needed.

Right-hander Matthew Dalquist made the start at Hammond Stadium and completed the first three innings. He was charged with the Threshers lone run on three hits and three walks, while striking out two. The Mighty Mussels bullpen locked it down from there, but the Threshers pitching staff also matched them.

From the bottom of the fourth until the bottom of the eighth, 24 straight hitters on both sides went down without reaching base.

After Dalquist, Brent Francisco went the next three innings and picked up his eighth win of the season. He allowed just one hit and struck out three. Brad Rudis pitched the seventh and eighth innings, setting all six Clearwater batters down, including four on strikeouts. Adam Falinski got the ninth inning and picked up his fourth save, allowing one hit and striking out one.

The Threshers outhit the Mighty Mussels 5-4 in the game. The teams combined to go just 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left only nine men on base. The game was completed in just over two hours.

Fragoza had the lone extra-base hit for the home team and finished 2-for-3 with an RBI to lead the way. Lackey was 0-for-3 with the RBI.

DOMINICAN DAILY
DSL Twins 13, DSL Miami 3 (6 innings)
Box Score
The Twins wasted little time getting on the scoreboard in this one, scoring three runs in the top of the first for an early lead. Daiyer Barboza led off with a single, Jendy Martinez followed with a double, and two outs later Enmanuel Merlo brought them and himself in with a three-run homer.

As a team the Twins scored in five of the six innings, with the biggest outburst coming in the fifth by sending every hitter in the lineup up to bat. The first run of the frame scored on a bases loaded walk, the next two on an error, and the final two on a Jhon Gonzalez double that made it 11-2 Twins.

Fernando Hernandez made the start and went the first two innings. He struck out the side in the first and gave up an infield single in the second before picking up his fourth strikeout to end his outing. Enmanuel Mena went the next two innings and was charged with two earned runs on three hits and a walk. He struck out two. Herkyn Taveras got credit for the win with a scoreless fifth inning, where he worked around a pair of errors and struck out one. Jesus Moreno pitched the final inning before rain cut it short, allowing an unearned run on two hits while striking out two.

The Twins collected 11 hits and seven walks as a team. Barboza went 1-for-3 with a pair of walks, scored three runs, and stole his 15th base. Martinez (2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, K, SB) Gonzalez (2-for-4, R, 2B, 3 RBI), Jeferson Abreu (2-for-3, 2 R, 2B, BB, 2 SB) and Misael Rodriguez (2-for-3, R, RBI, BB, K) each had multiple hits in the win.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Brad Rudis, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (2 IP, 4 K)
Hitter of the Day – Jose Salas, Cedar Rapids Kernels (1-for-3, R, HR, 3 RBI)

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

#1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul): 1-for-3, BB, 2 SB (13)
#2 - C Vahn Lackey (Fort Myers): 0-for-3, RBI
#3 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (Minnesota): 1-for-4, K
#4 - SS Marek Houston (Wichita): 0-for-5, 2 K
#6 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
#7 - OF Hendry Mendez (St. Paul): 0-for-2
#8 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-4, 2 R, HR (20), RBI, K
#9 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 0-for-2, R
#11 - C Carson Tinney (Fort Myers): 0-for-3, 3 K
#12 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Wichita): 1-for-4, BB, 2 K
#13 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Wichita): 1-for-1, SB (11)
#18 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Fort Myers): 0-for-3, 2 K
#19 - OF Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2 K

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Iowa (6:38 PM CDT) - RHP Ryan Gallagher (5-5, 5.99 ERA)
Corpus Christi @ Wichita (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Preston Johnson (0-3, 4.45 ERA)
Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP Reed Moring (1-1, 9.00 ERA)
Clearwater @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Eric Hammond (1-4, 4.86 ERA)

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

 

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[Bangkok Twins Fan]

I am still puzzled by the way the Twins are handling Rojas. Up and down from the majors to AAA and back again. and back and forth again. Is he a starter or will they end up putting him in the bullpen? I think it would help his development if there was a consistent plan for him. 

[DJL44]

Caden Kendle just keeps hitting 

[tony&rodney]

Kendry Rojas looked good. He was working on his breaking stuff. Ross put a good swing on a pitch that was labeled hit me. Sounds simple but others missed. Jenkins was smooth in center and had good plate appearances. Walker also stole two bases against a catcher with a big arm.

Houston and Winokur are slumping; they look tired.

[jmlease1]

1 hour ago, tony&rodney said:

Houston and Winokur are slumping; they look tired.

I'm not that surprised that Houston has hit the wall in his first full professional season. It's a little more surprising from Winokur, who has been through this grind already. But it's been a pretty rough August for Houston. Hopefully they can find a few days off for him and he can get his second (or third) wind. Not panicking; this happened to Culpepper too.

Tait is doing pretty well. Still a huge upside for him and he's been hitting well for the last month. Be great if he finishes the season strong. He's got really ugly splits, so it'll be interesting to see if he learns to hit LHP or if he's a platoon bat going forward.

[rdehring]

12 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

I'm not that surprised that Houston has hit the wall in his first full professional season. It's a little more surprising from Winokur, who has been through this grind already. But it's been a pretty rough August for Houston. Hopefully they can find a few days off for him and he can get his second (or third) wind. Not panicking; this happened to Culpepper too.

Tait is doing pretty well. Still a huge upside for him and he's been hitting well for the last month. Be great if he finishes the season strong. He's got really ugly splits, so it'll be interesting to see if he learns to hit LHP or if he's a platoon bat going forward.

I know Houston has missed a few games of late.  Is he battling an injury?  Or just worn down?

[Permanent Twins Fan]

16 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

Tait is doing pretty well. Still a huge upside for him and he's been hitting well for the last month. Be great if he finishes the season strong. He's got really ugly splits, so it'll be interesting to see if he learns to hit LHP or if he's a platoon bat going forward.

I don't really understand why everybody is so down on Tait. I know his batting average isn't great, but his 162 game pace would have him hitting 33 home runs. His batting average isn't great, but he is only 19 years old at High-A. Vahn Lackey has been slow out of the gates, but if he is promoted to Cedar Rapids I think Tait has a small chance to move up to AA pushing Diaw up to AAA. 

[Danchat]

3 hours ago, Bangkok Twins Fan said:

I am still puzzled by the way the Twins are handling Rojas. Up and down from the majors to AAA and back again. and back and forth again. Is he a starter or will they end up putting him in the bullpen? I think it would help his development if there was a consistent plan for him. 

Given he went 3 innings last time and 4 innings yesterday, seems like they are working on him as a starter. Just getting a bit late in the season to be ramping up...

[DJL44]

23 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

Tait is doing pretty well. Still a huge upside for him and he's been hitting well for the last month. Be great if he finishes the season strong. He's got really ugly splits, so it'll be interesting to see if he learns to hit LHP or if he's a platoon bat going forward.

If he can stay at catcher it will be easy to hide him against LHP.

[Taildragger8791]

I only now realized we have only 6 pitchers in the top 20 prospects, with only 2 in the top 13?  And only 2 above A ball? Yikes.

[Cris E]

1 hour ago, Danchat said:

Given he went 3 innings last time and 4 innings yesterday, seems like they are working on him as a starter. Just getting a bit late in the season to be ramping up...

Between Ryan's butt, Preilipp's innings totals and Matthew's blister they may just be trying to patch together some contingency playoff innings. I mean they always dreamed of Rojas with maybe a year or two of pen work to learn the ropes and then becoming an awesome starter eventually, but they may need to speed him up if the MLB bats heat up and the rotation gets thin. 

[bean5302]

3 hours ago, Permanent Twins Fan said:

I don't really understand why everybody is so down on Tait. I know his batting average isn't great, but his 162 game pace would have him hitting 33 home runs. His batting average isn't great, but he is only 19 years old at High-A. Vahn Lackey has been slow out of the gates, but if he is promoted to Cedar Rapids I think Tait has a small chance to move up to AA pushing Diaw up to AAA. 

Tait was struggling hard at the plate coming into the All Star break and he was very rough defensively. Occasionally putting a mistake meatball into the seats was more than offset by rough results in pretty much every other area of the game.

From 8/9 - Tait had opponents steal SIX bases on him without catching a single one. He's seen 123 stolen bases against him this year. Other teams see him as an automatic to run on.
SB Cepeda 2 (10, 2nd base off Lares/Tait, 3rd base off Lares/Tait); Hartshorn (6, 2nd base off Lares/Tait); Lumpuy 2 (2, 3rd base off Lares/Tait, 2nd base off Becerra/Tait); Hallquist (11, 2nd base off Lares/Tait).

He's substantially better results at the plate over the past 20 games since the All Star Break. Not sure about how the peripherals have looked, but he's got 4 errors in the past 7 games he's played C.