Twins Minor League Report (5/7): Blowouts, Big Blasts, and a Grand Finale

TRANSACTIONS

• The Minnesota Twins sent RHP Josh Winder to continue his rehab assignment with the St. Paul Saints.
• On Monday, RHP Zebby Matthews was promoted to Wichita from Cedar Rapids, and RHP Hunter McMahon was released. On Tuesday, 1B Aaron Sabato was activated from the injured list.
• In a corresponding move in the Midwest League with Matthews’ promotion, RHP C.J. Culpepper was activated from the temporary inactive list.
• Down in Florida, LHP Wilker Reyes was sent to the FCL roster from Fort Myers, RF Gregory Duran was placed on the 7-day injured list, and 2B Payton Eeles was assigned to the Mighty Mussels.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 5, Toledo 7
Box Score
Starting pitcher Joe Gunkel was knocked out of this one early, as the Mud Hens jumped all over him in the first two innings. Consecutive doubles scored three runs, and a later single scored another in the first that put the Saints down 4-0 before their first at-bat. In the second a leadoff double and an RBI single chased Gunkel after 42 pitches. He was charged with five earned runs on six hits and a walk in his 1 1/3 innings.

The Saints got on the scoreboard in the top of the second thanks to the fourth home run of the season from 2023 minor league home run king, Yunior Severino. In the top of the third, it was DaShawn Keirsey Jr.’s fifth home run of the season that cut the early lead to three.

The pitching staff got a solid effort from the bullpen for the rest of the game, with Austin Schulfer (2 2/3 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 3 K), Michael Boyle (2 IP, H, BB, K), and Hobie Harris (2 IP, H, ER, 3 K) combining to allow just two more runs over the final six-plus innings.

In the top of the sixth a double from Patrick Winkel made it 6-3, and in the ninth Keirsey Jr. hit his second home run of the game, a two-run shot, to make the final of 7-5.

Keirsey Jr. (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI, BB, K) and Winkel (2-for-4, 2 2B, RBI) had multiple hits in the loss. Anthony Prato added a double to the effort.

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Arkansas 2, Wichita 16
Box Score
Wichita took the lead early in this one and kept the pedal to the floor throughout the game to blow past the Travelers on Tuesday night.

6-foot 8-inch tall outfielder Carson McCusker got the party started in the bottom of the second with his second home run of the season, a two-run blast to score Kala’i Rosario who had doubled to lead off the inning.

Starting pitcher Travis Adams delivered a quality start to make this one even easier for his lineup. In six innings, he allowed just two earned runs on five hits and a walk, while punching out six.

The Wind Surge put more crooked numbers on the scoreboard in each of the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings to turn this one into a laugher. There were doubles from McCusker and Jorel Ortega in the fifth. A parade of singles in the sixth. Jeferson Morales led off the seventh with a homer, and McCusker added his second bomb of the game later in the frame.

In the eighth, they finally triggered their finale after the first two outs were recorded on just four pitches. Morales and Rosario clubbed back-to-back Wichitas. After an infield single from Noah Cardenas, Aaron Sabato blasted his first home of the year to drive in three. Not to go out quietly, McCusker then boomed his third home run of the game in back-to-back fashion for the final score of 16-2. Hard to put a bigger exclamation point on such a game than a 504-foot blast.

The bullpen put up zeroes over their three innings, with John Stankiewicz (1 IP, BB, K) and Taylor Floyd (2 IP, H, K) putting Arkansas out of their misery in quick fashion.

Spoiler Alert: Carson McCusker is your hitter of the day (though he actually did have some stiff competition…). He finished 5-for-5 with three home runs, a double, five runs scored, and six RBI. Morales, Rosarios, Cardenas, and Sabato all had multiple hits and multiple runs scored on the day as well. All but one hitter reached base in the game, and only one other did not have multiple hits, which was Emmanuel Rodriguez of all people, who struck out three times.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 16, South Bend 6
Box Score
Six Kernels hitters picked up multiple knocks on the day, leading to a thrashing of the Cubs in South Bend, Indiana, that matched their double-A brother’s output.

The Cubs took the first lead of the game in the bottom of the second, stringing together three singles and three walks against Kernels starter John Klein to go ahead 3-0 and chase him from the game. A.J. Labas picked up the pieces and went the next 2 1/3 innings, allowing two hits, no runs of his own, and striking out two.

Cedar Rapids got those first three runs back, and one more, in the top of the third inning. With two runners on, Rubel Cespedes launched his fifth home run of the season to tie the game at three. Danny De Andrade followed that with a single and came around to score on a Jay Harry double as they took the lead and never looked back.

They added two more in the fourth with a sac fly from Cespedes and a bases-loaded walk from Harry. Then in the fifth, they put up another four-spot to take a 10-3 lead. The big hit in that inning came from De Andrade, which was a double that cleared the bases.

Relievers Sheldon Reed (2 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 earned), BB, 4 K), Juan Mercedes (2 IP, H, BB, 2 K), and Juan Mendez (IP, H, ER, 2 K) finished off the final five innings for the Kernels in the win.

With the score 10-6 heading into the final furlong of the game, the Kernels pulled away by batting around in their last at-bat. The first seven hitters of the ninth reached base, and the final push was a two-RBI single from Agustin Ruiz.

Rubel Cespedes was the standout in a game with several of them. He finished 2-for-4 with three runs scored, a walk, a homer, and six RBI. De Andrade (3), Harry (2) and Ruiz (2) all had multiple runs batted in. Ruiz also reached base five times in six plate appearances and scored a pair of runs. Luke Keaschall, Ricardo Olivar, Nate Baez, and Willie Joe Garry Jr. also scored multiple runs.

MUSSEL MATTERS
Dunedin 7, Fort Myers 8
Box Score
Not to be outdone by their fellow upper-level affiliates, the Mighty Mussels also put together a dramatic late effort on Tuesday to pull out a win in grand fashion.

The score in this one remained nil-nil until the bottom of the fourth inning, when first baseman Poncho Ruiz launched his first home run of the season, a solo shot, for a 1-0 Mighty Mussels lead.

It was still scoreless until then as starting pitcher Spencer Bengard delivered a fantastic outing, allowing just a single unearned run on five hits in six innings, while striking out five Blue Jays hitters.

The Mighty Mussels took the lead back in the sixth as an error extended their at-bat to Ruiz, who blasted another home run that made it 3-1 Fort Myers after six.

Unfortunately for Bengard, he wouldn’t factor into the decision for his efforts, as the bullpen duo of Ben Ethridge (1 IP, 2 H, 4 R (1 earned), 2 BB, 2 ) and Nolan Santos (2 IP, H, 2 ER, BB, 4 K) coughed up six runs after Bengard’s exit, putting the home team down 7-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth.

The first two outs of their last at-bat were sandwiched around a hit by pitch and single, putting the home team on the ropes, but a single from Rayne Doncon kept their hopes alive by loading the bases for Brandon Winokur, down by a convenient four runs. In a five-pitch at-bat…he drew a walk (sike!) to score one and bring up the go-ahead run in the form of 18-year-old Jose Rodriguez.

He went Super-Saiyan and walked it off with a grand slam the opposite way, sending the Mighty Mussels and their fans into pandemonium and ending a four-game losing streak.

Ruiz finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored, his two home runs, and three RBI. Rodriguez scored two runs and drew a walk in addition to his walk-off grand slam. Winokur finished 1-for-4 with a run scored, a double, and a walk.

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
FCL Twins 2, FCL Pirates 0
Box Score
The Pirates outhit the Twins 4-3 on the day, but while the Pirates had just four at-bats with runners in scoring position, the Twins had twelve. Never mind that they were a combined 0-for-16 in those situations, but the Twins just had far more opportunities and were able to take advantage. 

In the third inning after a Dameury Pena single and Bryan Acuna walk, consecutive groundouts to the right side moved the runners up and brought home their first run of the game. In the fifth Pena led off with a walk, and scored from first on Acuna’s second double of the young complex league season.

In addition to that double, Acuna drew two walks to lead his offense. Ricardo Pena added two walks of his own, while Yasser Mercedes chipped in their other hit.

Twins pitchers Anthony Narvaez and Adrian Bohorquez kept the Pirates in check all game. In the first inning, Narvaez gave up a triple but stranded the runner there. In the second, he again worked around a one-out double to keep them off the board. In his four innings, Narvaez was charged with all four hits and two walks, but no runs, while striking out six. Bohorquez held them hitless over the final three innings, walking one and striking out three.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day - Spencer Bengard, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (6 IP, 5 H, 1 R (0 earned), 5 K)
Hitter of the Day - Carson McCusker, Wichita Wind Surge (5-for-5, 5 R, 2B, 3 HR (4), 6 RBI)

PROSPECT SUMMARY
#3 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (Wichita) – 1-for-5, 3 K
#7 – Austin Martin (Minnesota) – Pinch hit, 1-for-1
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) – 1-for-4, R, 2B, BB, 2 K
#11 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 2-for-5, 2 RBI
#12 – Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) – 0-for-2, 3 R, BB, 2 K
#13 – Kala’I Rosario (Wichita) – 3-for-5, 3 R, 2 2B, RBI, K
#15 – Danny De Andrade (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-4, R, 2B, 3 RBI, BB
#16 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) – 1-for-3, R, HR (4), RBI, BB, K
#19 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-4, 2 R, 2 BB

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Toledo (10:05 AM CDT) - RHP Caleb Boushley (3-1, 3.98 ERA)
Arkansas @ Wichita (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP Pierson Ohl (1-2, 4.50 ERA)
Cedar Rapids @ South Bend (10:05 AM CDT) - RHP Miguelangel Boadas (1-2, 3.86 ERA)
Dunedin @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Charlee Soto (0-2, 4.96 ERA)

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

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