Twins Minor League Report (5/21): Matt Wallner's Rehab Halted by Rain

TRANSACTIONS
LHP Connor Prielipp transferred to development list (Wichita)
RHP Brent Francisco assigned to FCL Twins
OF Matt Wallner sent to AAA St. Paul for rehab assignment
Twins recall INF Mickey Gasper as 27th-man 
RHP Cole Peschl promoted from A Fort Myers to A+ Cedar Rapids

Saints Sentinel
The Saints were rained out for the 13th time this season. They will play doubleheaders on Thursday and Saturday.

Wind Surge Wisdom
Wichita 6, San Antonio 4
Box Score
Aaron Rozek: 4 ⅔ IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Kala’i Rosario (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R), Aaron Sabato (2-for-5, RBI), Andrew Cossetti (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI)

The Wind Surge eked out a win on Wednesday.

Wichita’s batters stole the story early, plating a pair of runs in the game’s opening frame before returning for two more in the third.

Andrew Cossetti was the catalyst: he doubled in a score in his first at-bat and singled home another runner in his second trip to the plate. He alone netted half of the team’s hits with runners in scoring position before the game was ⅓ over.

Aaron Rozek delivered an unusual outing; his 4 ⅔ frames with just one earned run was ideal, but he also surrendered seven hits and a walk, forcing the lefty to labor for his outs and sweat for his runs allowed. Still, it worked. And he lowered his Wichita ERA to 3.67. His three strikeouts were tied for a season-low.

Gabriel Gonzalez walked in the sixth to push across a fifth run, and a sixth and final run scored in the eighth off a wild pitch. 

Gonzalez was a force all night: the recently promoted outfielder walked twice, singled, stole a base, and scored two runs in a critical evening as the team’s cleanup hitter. 

Mike Paredes earned the win to push his record to a perfect 6-0 out of the bullpen. That’s one hell of a good luck charm. 

The Missions are an affiliate of the San Diego Padres. While their uber prospect Ethan Salas plays for them, he has been injured since the middle of April, leaving their 17th-ranked player, Romeo Sanabria, as their best prospect on Wednesday. He singled twice and drove in a run. 

Kernels Nuggets
Like their AAA counterparts, Cedar Rapids found the weather too hazardous for baseball; they will make up the match with a doubleheader on Friday.

Mussel Matters
Fort Myers 3, Lakeland 5
Box Score
Michael Carpenter: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
HR: None
Multi-hit games: Yasser Mercedes (2-for-3, R, RBI), Poncho Ruiz (2-for-4, 2B, RBI), Angel Del Rosario (2-for-2, 2B, R)

Fort Myers came up short on Wednesday.

Despite his team’s fortunes, starter Michael Carpenter likely walked away from the game relieved. May had been a sore sport; the lefty trudged through back-to-back stinkers that ballooned his numbers and flattened his ego. Yet—after four quality innings without a single earned run—he appears to have put the pain behind him, at least for one day. 

Unfortunately, Josh Bortka saw a different fate. Evidently drenched in nerves, the recent minor league signee made his Fort Myers debut, and walked four batters while netting just two outs. A run scored on a balk. Another via a sacrifice fly. A third and final run dashed home off an RBI groundout. One is reminded of Yennier Cano’s erratic Fort Myers debut six years ago; if he can recover, so can Bortka.

The bats never found chemistry. They cracked nine hits—including a trio of doubles—but almost always at inopportune times; the Mighty Mussels only scratched across three runs, all in single-score intervals. 

Rehabbing minor league Payton Eeles singled in three trips to the plate. 

Rehabbing big leaguer Matt Vierling played 3rd base for Lakeland, driving in a run and walking in four plate appearances. 

MLB.com’s 46th-ranked prospect, Bryce Rainer, played shortstop for the Flying Tigers. He singled and struck out in four at-bats. 

TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Michael Carpenter
Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Gabriel Gonzalez

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed:
#14 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Wichita) - 1-3, 2 R, RBI, BB
#17 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-4, BB, K
#18 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers) - 2-3, R, RBI
#19 – Carson McCusker (Twins) - 0-1, K

THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Norfolk @ St. Paul (5:07 PM) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson 
Norfolk @ St. Paul Game Two - RHP Marco Raya
Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05 PM) - RHP Ricky Castro
Cedar Rapids @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM) - RHP Jeremy Lee
Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30 PM) - RHP Dylan Questad
FCL Pirates @ 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!