Twins Minor League Report (6/21): Saints Find Way to Win 10th Straight, Kernels Win in Walkoff, Bengard and Matthews Dominate Again

CURRENT W-L Records
Minnesota Twins: 41-35
St. Paul Saints: 37-35
Wichita Wind Surge: 29-38
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 38-27
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 32-34
FCL Twins: 16-17
DSL Twins: 6-8

TRANSACTIONS
LHP Kody Funderburk was officially recalled from the Saints after RHP Jay Jackson was DFAd on Thursday. 
Infielder Angel Del Rosario was activated from the Fort Myers Injured List.  

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 4, Toledo 2
Box Score
The Saints have found a variety ways to post wins of late. A lot has been due to the offense and power, but on Friday night at CHS, it was the pitching that got the job done and pushed them to their 10th straight win. In a bend-but-don't-break way. Kind of.  

Randy Dobnak made the start. He went five innings and despite five walks and three hits, he gave up just one run. He had four strikeouts. Ryan Jensen came in and in 1 2/3 innings, he gave up one run on zero hits. He had four walks and two strikeouts. Hobie Harris got four outs, gave up no runs and no hits, but he walked two. Ronny Henriquez came on to protect the lead in the ninth inning and earned his third save with a scoreless frame. 

So, yes, the Saints pitchers gave up just two runs on four hits, but they issued 12 walks and were able to get away with it in this game. They came through when needed. Toledo went just 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 12 on base. 

Frankly, the Saints weren’t a whole lot better in the clutch. In fact, they were just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base. 

They certainly had chances. Down 1-0 in the bottom of the second inning, Diego A. Castillo and Patrick Winkel walked. Then Will Holland reached on a bunt single to load the bases. Anthony Prato walked to tie the game at 1-1. The Saints had bases loaded, nobody out and the top of the lineup coming up. However, Edouard Julien and Brooks Lee struck out and Matt Wallner flew out to end the inning. 

The Saints got a big hit in the fifth. With one out, Lee singled and then Matt Wallner hit his 18th homer to make it 3-1 Saints. 

Toledo scored one to cut the lead to 3-2, but the Saints added a run in the bottom of the eighth when Will Holland scored on a stolen base with a throwing error to make it 4-2. 

Castillo went 2-for-3 with a walk and his 10th double. Lee was 2-for-5. Holland went 2-for-4 with his 12th stolen base. 

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 3, Arkansas 2 
Box Score
It was a Zebby Day for the Surge, but not in his normal role. Marco Raya made the start for Wichita. As per usual, he went three innings. He gave up two runs on three hits and two walks. He had four strikeouts. Cody Laweryson pitched a perfect fourth inning with three strikeouts. All 11 of his pitches were strikes. 

Then it was Zebby Time! The right-hander was fantastic. In five innings, he gave up no runs and just one hit. He did walk a batter, but he had six strikes as well. He improved to 2-1 while dropping his Double-A ERA to just 1.55. He struck out two batters in the ninth inning. The final batter of the game was ejected for his excessive disagreement. The Saints are watching... 

The Surge fell behind 1-0 after two innings. Wichita tied it up in the top of the third. Ben Ross walked with one out and stole second base. With two outs, Luke Keaschall grounded to shortstop, but a throwing error allowed Keaschall to reach and Ross to score. 

The Travels reclaimed the lead with a single run in the bottom of the third. Then came a bunch of zeroes. In the top of the seventh, Carson McCusker singled with one out. He advanced to second on a Dalton Shuffield walk. Ben Ross then drove him in with a single to left field that tied the game at two. Jorel Ortega drove a single to left that scored Shuffield and put the Surge ahead.  

The Surge had seven hits and four walks. Tanner Schobel had the lone extra base hit, his 10th double of the season. Shuffield went 2-for-3 with a walk. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 6, Peoria 5
Box Score
Down a run heading into the bottom of the ninth, who played hero to help the Kernels to another win? 

Jeremy Lee made the start for the Kernels. He was charged with two runs on seven hits and two walks. He had five strikeouts. Both runs scored in the first inning. 

The Kernels responded with single runs in the second, third and fourth innings. In the second frame, Kevin Maitan’s third home run put the team on the scoreboard. In the third, it was a Rayne Doncon single that drove in Ricaro Olivar. In the fourth inning, it was Jay Harry’s turn. He launched his sixth home run of the season to put the Kenres ahead 3-2. 

Left Jordan Carr gave up three runs (2 earned) on two hits and two walks. He left with two runners on base. AJ Labas came in and allowed one of the two runners to score. He worked a scoreless seventh inning, but when the 7th Inning Stretch signing took place, the Kernels found themselves down by a score of 5-4. 

Then came Payton Eeles, and the legend continues. He knocked his first High-A homer to cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the seventh inning. 

Ricardo Velez has been fantastic all season. He worked two perfect innings and struck out three batters to send the game to the bottom of the ninth. 

Olivar led off with a walk. After one out, Doncon walked. After a pitching change, Nate Baez pinch hit for Agustin Ruiz. He singled to load the bases. Jay Harry came up and drove in Olivar with a sacrifice fly to tie the game. One batter later, Maitan reached on an error that allowed Doncon to score the walk-off, winning run.

Maitan went 2-for-3 wth a walk and his third homer of the season. Doncon went 1-for-3 with two walks. 

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 8, St. Lucie 0
Box Score
The Mussels showed their muscle offensively on their way to eight runs on 13 hits. However, when you throw a shutout, you guarantee a win and that we will write about you first! 

Spencer Bengard was the Twins 15th round pick in 2023 out of California Baptist. The 6-4, 220 pound right-hander has been nothing short of impressive this season with Fort Myers. In this one, he gave up just two singles over six scoreless innings. He hit a batter but walked none and struck out seven batters. He improves to 4-1 with a 1.23 ERA on the season. 

Paulshawn Pasqualotto, the team’s 12th round pick in 2023 out of California (Berkeley), came on and recorded the three-inning save. He gave up just one hit over those three innings, walked none and struck out six batters. 

Bengard threw 75 pitches. 55 were strikes. That’s 73.3%
Pasqualotto threw strikes on 29 of 37 pitches. That’s 78.4%
In total, of the 112 pitches thrown, 84 of them were strikes. That is 75.0%
That is remarkable! 

OK, now to the offense. The Mussels got on the board in the top of the third inning. With two outs, Walker Jenkins and Poncho Ruiz singled. Rixon Wingrove followed with a ground-rule double to drive in Jenkins. 

In the fourth, they used some extra base hits to add to their lead. Carlos Aguiar led off with a double. With one out, Yohander Martinez’s first home of the season. Later, Ryan McCarthy and Jenkins scored on a Ruiz double. 

Just off the IL, Angel Del Rosario had a Little League homer. OK, it was a triple, but a throwing error allowed Del Rosario to race home with the sixth run of the game. 

In the eighth inning, Del Rosario and Jenkins each had an RBI single to make it 8-0. 

Poncho Ruiz was 2-for-4 with a walk and his 14th double. Walker Jenkins was 2-for-4 with a walk. Rixon Wingrove was 2-for-5 with his fifth and sixth doubles. Carlos Aguiar was 2-for-5 with his fifth double. Del Rosario was 2-for-4 with his first triple. Ryan McCarthy went 1-for-2 with two walks and his second double.  

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
FCL Twins 3, FCL Red Sox 4 (10 innings)
Box Score
The Twins needed a big play to send the game to extra innings but then lost the game in the 10th inning. 

The key story from this game is that RHP Kyle Jones continued his rehab and looked really good. Scheduled to go to Wichita when deemed ready, Jones retired all nine batters he faced to cover three perfect innings. He had four strikeouts. 

Miguel Cordero came on and was charged with three runs on four hits and a walk over three innings. Yency De Jesus gave up three hits but no runs over two innings. Ezequiel Ventura pitched a scoreless ninth inning but allowed the Manfred Man to score in the top of the 10th inning to take a loss. He gave up zero hits and walked none. 

Down 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth, Yasser Mercedes hit a one-out single. After the second out, Hendry Chivilli walks. Jayson Bass followed with a single to score Mercedes. After a pitching change, Chivilli scored on a Wild Pitch. 

Down 3-2 going to the bottom of the ninth inning, Bass singled to lead off the inning. Next, Ricardo Pena drove him in with a double to tie the score. After an intentional walk, a single loaded the bases. Unfortunately a short fly out and a double play ended the threat. 

DOMINICAN DAILIES
DSL Twins 9, DSL Diamondbacks Black 6
Box Score
The Twins scored five runs in the fourth inning and single runs in four other innings and held on for the win. The big blow in the big inning came off of the bat of Daiber De Los Santos whose third home run of the season drove in three runs. 

Ricardo Paez went 2-for-3 in the game with a walk. He notched both his first double and his first professional home run in this one. Luis Fragoza went 2-for-3 with his first triple. He was also hit by a pitch and stole a base. Ruben Velazquez was 2-for-3 with a walk and his first two doubles. Eduardo Beltre walked three times. 

Christian Hernandez started the game for the Twins with four no-hit innings. He was charged with two runs (1 earned) on four walks and four strikeouts. Ramiro Villanueva pitched the fifth inning. He gave up three runs on four hits. Nestor Cafe recorded just two outs. He gave up a run as he walked four and struck out one. Fabian Herrera got a strikeout for the final out to earn the save in this rain-shortened game.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Spencer Bengard (Fort Myers) - 6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K; 75 pitches, 55 strikes (73.3%)
Hitter of the Day – Ricardo Paez (DSL Twins) - 2-for-3, 2B(1), HR(1), 3 R, RBI.

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Thursday.
#1– Walker Jenkins (Fort Myers) – 2-for-4, BB, 2R, RBI, K 
#2 – Brooks Lee (St. Paul) – 2-for-5, R, K
#5 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-5, CS (rehab FCL, DH)
#6 – Marco Raya (Wichita) – 3 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K; 58 pitches, 37 strikes (63.8%)
#8 – Austin Martin (Minnesota) – 2-for-3, BB, R (played CF)
#9 – Luke Keaschall (Wichita) – 1-for-4, BB, 2K
#13 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 1-for-5, 2B(10), K 
#14 – Zebby Matthews (Wichita) – 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K; 69 pitches, 49 strikes (71.0%)
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 1-for-4, BB, 2B(10), 2 R, K 

SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
Toledo @ St. Paul (6:37 PM CST) – RHP Caleb Boushley (7-1, 3.90 ERA)
Wichita @ Arkansas (6:05 PM CST) – LHP Jaylen Nowlin (4-3, 3.44 ERA)
Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) – RHP Ty Langenberg (1-0, 5.40 ERA)
Fort Myers @ St. Lucie (5:10 PM CST) – RHP Charlee Soto (0-2, 6.68 ERA)
FCL Twins @ FCL Red Sox (9:00 AM CT) - TBD
DSL Phillies White @ DSL Twins (9:00 AM CST) - TBD 

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

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!