Twins Minor League Report (4/17): Duran Shows off Mussels; Gonzalez Leads Kernels to Split

The Twins aren't hitting. The Saints aren't hitting. The Wind Surge aren't hitting. Injuries have certainly hurt the Twins, and that trickles down. The Saints have already had to add several players via trade to attempt to field a competitive lineup. It has been a frustrating start to the season for many. 

Also of note... The Twins have played 17 of 162 games on the schedule. The Saints have been able to stay near .500. The Wind Surge have lost nine in a row, but there is a lot of season left. It's way too early to panic at any of these levels, especially not the big leagues. 

Current Win-Loss Records 
Minnesota Twins: 6-11 
St. Paul Saints: 7-9
Wichita Wind Surge: 1-10 
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 5-5
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 4-7  

Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. 

TRANSACTIONS
RHP Jack Noble was returned to Cedar Rapids from Wichita. He had spent about a week with the Wind Surge. 

RHP Ty Langenberg was placed on the Fort Myers Development List. 

Following their Wednesday afternoon game, the Saints announced the Twins signing of veteran utility man Tony Kemp. Read more about that move here.  

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 0, Indianapolis 1
Box Score
You can call this game what you want. The options include, but are not limited to: a.) a fantastic pitchers duel, b.) a game of missed opportunities and bad offense?

The latter probably is correct from the Saints perspective. St. Paul had just three hits in the game, one each for Diego A. Castillo, Alex Isola and Dalton Shuffield. Shuffield hit a double, the lone extra base hit. Anthony Prato reached base three times on walks. When they got on base, the team stole four bases. Yet, they went scoreless because they were 0-for-11 with Runners in Scoring Position and left eight on base. 

Yet, the Saints pitchers did well. David Festa made the start and struck out five batters over four scoreless innings. He gave up just two hits and walked two batters. Diego Castillo came in and got four outs. He gave up one hit in the sixth inning and was replaced by Scott Blewett who got the final two outs of that inning. Jorge Alcala struck out four batters over two scoreless innings. He gave up one hit and walked two batters. Ryan Jenson came in for the ninth inning and gave up the game’s lone run on two hits and a walk. 

The game itself lasted 2 hours, 23 minutes… Before it began, the teams had to wait out a 62-minute rain delay. 

And the good news? On Thursday, they get to face Pirates top pitching prospect and the #2 overall pick in the 2023 draft, Paul Skenes.   

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 1, Tulsa 2 (11 innings)                                                                                                                                                                                                      Box Score
Despite playing two bonus innings, there was another low scoring game in Wichita on Wednesday afternoon. Down 1-0, the Wind Surge scored in the bottom of the fifth inning when Kyler Fedko singled to score Kala’i Rosario to tie the game. 

The game remained scoreless until the top of the 11th inning when Tulsa took the 2-1 lead and then held on in the bottom of the inning to win the game. 

Solid pitching for the Wind Surge in this one. Jarret Whorff started and gave up one run on two hits over four innings. He had just one strikeout to go with five walks and two hit batters. Effectively wild, right? Hunter McMahon came on and settled things down. He tossed three scoreless innings and allowed only a walk. Jared Solomon struck out three batters over two innings of scoreless, hitless ball. John Stankiewicz was given the unenviable task of working in extra innings. He got out of the 10th inning without the Manfred Man scoring, but gave up the unearned run in the 11th. The pitchers got themselves into trouble with the walks and hit batters, but Tulsa went just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base. Not good, but wait until you read the next paragraph. 

The Wind Surge found their way on base throughout this game. They had eight hits and walked another six times. However, they went just 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position and left 13 runners on base. 

Kala’i Rosario went 1-for-2 and walked three times. Jorel Ortega was 1-for-3 and walked twice. Ben Ross was the lone Surge hitter with two hits. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Game 1: Cedar Rapids 3, Wisconsin 5  
Box Score
Rain pushed the start of this week’s six game series between the Twins and Brewers’ Triple-A squads back a day. Weather was a bit better on Wednesday. An afternoon game was on the schedule, so they turned it into a doubleheader. 

The Kernels got on the scoreboard first in the top of the third. Nate Baez scored on a balk for the first run. Then Willie Joe Garry Jr scored on a groundout. The TimberRattlers scored twice in the bottom of the inning to tie it at two. 

A Jay Harry double in the top of the fourth inning scored Danny De Andrade to put Cedar Rapids in the lead. However, a Luis Lara RBI single was soon followed by a two-run Luke Adams home run, and Wisconsin was in the lead at 5-3. That was about it for the offenses and the game ended after seven innings at that same score. 

Andrew Morris made the start and was charged with five runs on 10 hits and two walks over 3 2/3 innings. He struck out four batters. Jacob Wosinski got the final out of the fourth and pitched a scoreless fifth frame. Juan Mendez pitched a scoreless sixth. 

A highlight of the game was Gabriel Gonzalez showing off his arm and throwing out a runner at the plate. 

Game 2: Cedar Rapids 8, Wisconsin 2
Box Score
The Kernels bats did arrive later in the afternoon. In the second inning of the second game, they scored three runs. Keoni Cavaco put them on the scoreboard with an RBI double scoring Agustin Ruiz. Gabriel Gonzalez came through with a two-run double to give them a three-spot in the inning. 

Jump ahead to the fourth inning. With the bases loaded. Rubel Cespedes hit a double that scored Dillon Tatum and Luke Keaschall. A Jose Salas single drove in Gonzalez from third base. Cespedes scored on a ground out by Misael Urbina. At that point, the Kernels had a fairly comfortable 7-2 lead. 

Cespedes add another RBI double in the sixth inning to drive in Gonzalez with the team’s eighth and final run. 

Zebby Matthews was on the mound and worked the first five innings. He gave up two runs on five hits. He struck out four batters and walked his usual… zero. Kyle Bischoff came on and struck out three batters over two one-hit innings.  

Gonzalez went 3-for-3 with a walk and two doubles in this game, pretty much his breakout game with his new organization. Cespedes went 2-for-3 with a walk and his two doubles. With three RBI, he is already at 14 for the season. Agustin Ruiz had a double and a walk in the game. Dillon Tatum went 2-for-3 with a walk. 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 3, Jupiter 4
Box Score
Gregory Duran attempted to power the Mussels to a win. Angel Del Rosario attempted to use his speed to help his team. Unfortunately on this night, it wasn’t quite enough as Fort Myers lost a one-run decision at Hammond Stadium. 

Ross Dunn made the start for Fort Myers on Wednesday night. He gave up three runs on four hits and a walk over five innings. He had two strikeouts. Nolan Santos came on and gave up an unearned run on two hits and a walk over two innings. Julio Bonilla struck out two batters over two innings in his Mussel debut. He was a hit batter from two perfect innings. 

Duran went 2-for-4 with a triple, and a three-run home run. Angel Del Rosario went 1-for-3 with a walk and four stolen bases. He already has nine on the season. Rayne Doncon went 2-for-5 with his fourth double. 

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Hitter of the Day – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-6, BB, 2-2B, 
Pitcher of the Day – David Festa (St. Paul) - 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K 

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

#3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Wichita) - 0-for-4, IBB, 2 K
#4 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – Game 1: 0-for-3, RBI, Game 2: 3-for-3, BB, 2-2B(3), 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 SB.
#6 - David Festa (St. Paul) - 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 KJ, 57 pitches, 39 strikes (68.4%)
#7 – Austin Martin (Minnesota) - 1-for-4, R, RBI, great catch! (played CF)
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) – 1-for-4, R, 2K.
#11 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-for-5, 2 K
#12 – Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) – Game 1: 1-for-4, SB(6), Game 2: 1-for-3, BB, R, K 
#13 - Kala’i Rosario (Wichita) - 1-for-2, 3 BB, R, 
#15 – Danny De Andrade (Cedar Rapids) – Game 1: 1-for-2, HBP, 2B(2), R, Game 2: 0-for-4, 2 K
#16 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) – 0-for-3, BB, K, SB(1)
#19 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – Game 1: 0-for-3 (catcher), Game 2: DNP.

THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES
Iowa @ St. Paul (5:35 PM CST) - RHP Joe Gunkel (0-1, 7.27 ERA) vs Paul Skenes!!
Tulsa @ Wichita (7:05 PM CST) - RHP Travis Adams (1-1, 7.04 ERA)
Cedar Rapids @ Cedar Rapids (6:40 PM CST) - RHP John Klein (0-0, 1.13 ERA)
Jupiter @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CST) - Jeremy Lee (1-1, 2.08 ERA) 

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games or any other Twins minor league topics! 

Interested in learning more about the Minnesota Twins' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!