Twins Minor League Report (5/13): Quinn McDaniel Makes his Presence Known

TRANSACTIONS
RHP Sam Armstrong activated from 7-day IL (AA Wichita)

Saints Sentinel
St. Paul 3, Columbus 8
Box Score
Trent Baker: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Ryan Kre5dler (2-for-5, 2B, RBI), Orlando Arcia (2-for-4, R), Hendry Mendez (3-for-4, 2B, R, RBI)

The Saints let one slip by them on Wednesday.

Everything began wonderfully. Starter Trent Baker was in a deep groove, allowing just one hit in his three innings—a knock that was later erased by a double play. He struck out four.

St. Paul also found three runs. Hendry Mendrez drove a double to center to plate the game’s first run, and Aaron Sabato quickly singled in his friend to push the lead to two. A Ryan Kreidler screaming double in the following frame brought in a third score. 

Unfortunately, the Saints' bullpen struggled in the matchup, as the three hurlers following Baker all allowed multiple runs. That successive—or, rather, unsuccessful—streak turned what was a 3-0 advantage into an 8-3 deficit the Saints could never recover from. 

Daniel Espino pitched in relief for the Clippers on Wednesday. Some of you more avid prospect followers may remember Espino as Cleveland’s first-round pick in the 2019 draft. He was the One With the Golden Arm: the type of talented youngster apparently blessed by the gods with the ability to throw a baseball unlike anyone his age. He struck out 152 across 91 2/3 innings in 2021. That was his final remotely full season: Espino suffered chronic shoulder problems not long after 2022 started and missed all of 2023 and 2024. He’s back, but the magic is gone. A tragedy of the limitations of the human body.

Clippers shortstop Angel Genoa ranks as the 47th-best prospect in MLB. He singled once in four trips to the plate. 

Wind Surge Wisdom
Wichita 3, San Antonio 4
Box Score
Eli Jones: 5 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
HR: Billy Amick (10)
Multi-hit games: Maddux Houghton (2-for-4, 2B, R)

The Wind Surge were walked off on Wednesday.

Tough luck for Eli Jones. The righty was excellent, striking out four in a hyper-efficient outing. Yet, his catcher—someone he’s supposed to be in cahoots with—committed a throwing error on back-to-back plays in the third, turning what could have been a ho-hum frame into a two-run quagmire that soiled an otherwise outstanding start. 

Wichita matched the runs with a gargantuan blast off Billy Amick’s bat in the bottom of the third. Good luck trying to see where the ball lands.

Amick earned another RBI with a bases-loaded walk in the seventh, but San Antonio tied the game in the eighth. The ninth went no better. A walk begat a stolen base, which begat a sacrifice bunt, which begat a sacrifice fly to cap the rare no-hit run.

Once again, this author is urging the good readers of this report to take notice of Alejandro Hidalgo. Yes, his ERA on the season is 6.75. So what. He now has 33 strikeouts in just 18 2/3 innings. That’s Hader-ish. There’s something happening here. What it is ain’t exactly clear. But it sure is fascinating. 

Though the Missions are the team of uber-prospect Ethan Salas, the best youngster in this match was outfielder Braedon Karpathios, ranked 10th in the system. He walked once in four plate appearances.

Kernels Nuggets
Cedar Rapids 4, Fort Wayne 3
Box Score
Miguelangel Boadas: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: None

The Kernels inexplicably won on Wednesday.

Inexplicable in that the team was thoroughly outhit; struck out 11 times while taking just one walk; and only enjoyed six opportunities with runners in scoring position while their opponent had 19 such tries. In all likelihood, they should have lost. Yet, runs aren’t theoretical, and the nerds with their algorithms and abacuses sometimes suffer while watching the chaos of competition overrule the conceptual.

Cedar Rapids scored their first two runs off a Jay Thomason double in the second. Fort Wayne answered with a run in the fifth, then struck again in the eighth to plate a pair and take the lead.

Khadim Diaw reached on an error to start the ninth, which ushered in the frame that would win the game for the Kernels. Yasser Mercedes hit a mild grounder beyond the grasp of the TinCaps first baseman—an RBI single for all players, a two-bagger for the electric Mercedes. 

Then, a bizzarity. TinCaps pitcher Clay Edmonson, a sidewinder, fooled two people with his pitch: the batter, Rayne Doncon, who struck out looking; and his catcher, Lamar King Jr., who expected a different pitch, and whose attempt to adjust to the unexpected offering resulted in a ricochet into no man’s land. And that’s how a backwards K results in a man standing on first (Mercedes also advanced to third.) Miguel Briceno sent a sacrifice fly to right to win the game.

The aforementioned King Jr. ranks as the 14th-best prospect in the Padres system; he collected two hits in five at-bats, tripling once.

Mussel Matters
Fort Myers 10, Bradenton 6
Box Score
Merit Jones: 4 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
HR: Quentin Young (4), Quinn McDaniel (1)
Multi-hit games: Quinn McDaniel (3-for-5, HR, 2 3B, 3 R, 5 RBI), Jayson Bass (2-for-4, 2B, R, RBI, BB), Bryan Acuña (2-for-4, 2B, R, RBI, BB)

The Mighty Mussels smothered the Murauders on Wednesday.

The Twins added Quinn McDaniel to their organization on Sunday; on Wednesday, he authored one of the finest hitting performances we’re likely to see from a player this season. He tripled in the third off the wall (and the center fielder’s head). Then he tripled again in the sixth. And, finally, he homered in the ninth (albeit off a position player). That’s one way to make an impression on your new teammates.

Though McDaniel enjoyed the better night, perhaps the single best swing came from Quentin Young, who obliterated a 111 MPH liner off the beer stand in center field. You don’t see many 23-degree launch angle shots to that part of any ballpark. 

Fort Myers pitchers struck out 14 in the game. Merit Jones whiffed five, then Jake Murray K’d two, Mitch Mueller beguiled four, and Mike McKenna ended matters by mowing down the side in the ninth.

The Murauders are members of the Pirates system. Though Seth Hernandez sits one level higher, the team nonetheless offered their 17th-ranked prospect on Wednesday, third baseman Murf Gray. He singled once in five at-bats.

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Eli Jones
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Quinn McDaniel

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#2 – Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1-3, R, 2 BB, 2 K
#5 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, 2B, 3 K
#10 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-5, 3 K
#13 – Hendry Mendez (St. Paul) - 3-4, 2B, R, RBI
#14 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers) - 1-5, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 K
#15 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 3 K
#17 – C.J. Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
#18 – James Ellwanger (Fort Myers) - DNP
#19 – Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, R, K
#20 – Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 0-3, K

THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Columbus (6:37 PM) - LHP Aaron Rozek (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05 PM) - RHP Sam Armstrong
Fort Wayne @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM) - RHP Ivran Romero
Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 PM) - Ramiro Villanueva (0-0, 0.90 ERA)
FCL Rays @ FCL Twins (11:00 AM) - TBD

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!