Twins Minor League Report (7/13): Charlee Soto Notches Best Start of the Season

CURRENT W-L Records
Minnesota Twins: 54-41
St. Paul Saints: 44-47
Wichita Wind Surge: 36-50
Cedar Rapids Kernels: 50-34
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 43-40
FCL Twins: 25-26
DSL Twins: 15-13

The MLB All Star break begins on Monday. The full-season affiliates also get a break. Like the big leaguers, the Saints, Wind Surge, Kernels and Mighty Mussels will play on Sunday and then not again until Friday. 

TRANSACTIONS
     The Saints activated LHP Caleb Baragar from the 7-day, IL.
     The Wind Surge activated IF Dalton Shuffield from the IL. 
     The Kernels placed OF Agustin Ruiz on the 7-Day IL with a right hip strain. 
     Looks like Diego A. Castillo is coming up to the Twins for Sunday's game. He'll likely have to play as well. Jose Miranda appears headed to the IL (though may not miss much game time). Did you know that Castillo spent most of the 2022 season with Derek Shelton and the Pittsburgh Pirates? He played 96 games and hit .206/.251/.382 (.633) with 13 doubles and 11 homers. He played shortstop, second base, right field, first base, third base, and even pitched twice (ERA of 36.00, in case you were wondering). 

FUTURES GAME
Wind Surge infielder Luke Keaschall represented the Minnesota Twins in the 2024 MLB Futures Game. The Twins second-round pick in 2023 has quickly risen to Double-A, and he has quickly risen in prospect rankings. He is now a consensus Top 100 prospect in the game.  

Brooks Lee was supposed to be the Twins representative. I’m sure he would have enjoyed the opportunity, but I’m guessing that he’s just fine with playing in the big leagues instead.  

Keaschall entered the game at second base in the fifth inning (of a seven-inning game). He made the plays hit toward him, and he went 0-for-1 with a strikeout. 

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 4, Louisville 5 (10 innings)
Box Score
Randy Dobnak was on the mound for another start down in Louisville, Kentucky, on Saturday. He went five innings and gave up three runs (1 earned) on five hits. He walked two and struck out six batters. 

Matt Bowman pitched the sixth inning and gave up only a solo home run. Josh Winder pitched a perfect seventh inning. Jeff Brigham struck out five batters over two scoreless, one-hit innings. That gets us through nine innings. 

Let’s back up to the top of the fourth inning. The Saints were down 1-0. Chris Williams led off with a walk. With one out, Anthony Prato also walked. Patrick Winkel hit a ground ball to second, but a fielding error allowed Williams to score and Prato to advance to third. Alex Isola followed with a single to center to score Prato and give the Saints a 2-1 lead. 

Louisville scored single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. The Saints entered the eighth inning down by a score of 4-2. With one out, Williams walked. He moved up to second on a ground out. Former Twins reliever Alan Busenitz came in for Louisville. Prato welcomed him with an RBI single to center. After a Winkel walk, Isola lined a single to center to drive in Prato and tie the game at four.  

That was the score heading to the 10th inning. The Saints were unable to advance their Manfred Man beyond second base. Diego Castillo came in for the bottom of the 10th inning. They made the decision to intentionally walk Jacob Hurtubise. After a sacrifice bunt advanced runners to second and third, Livan Soto was intentionally walked to load the bases in hopes of an inning-ending double play. Instead, on a 1-2 pitch, a 97-mph sinker found its way to the backstop and the Saints lost on the Wild Pitch.

The Saints had six hits and walked eight times. They were 3-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left 11 on base. Isola went 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI. Prato went 1-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. Williams walked twice.  

Speaking of Diego Castillo... the Saints had a late lineup change before this game got started. Diego A. Castillo was removed from the lineup and now we know why.  

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 2, Springfield 10
Box Score
Not a great game for the Surge on Saturday. Through four innings, they were behind 8-0. Through eight innings, they were behind 10-0. 

Cory Lewis was back on the mound. He went the first 3 1/3 innings. He gave up seven runs on nine hits (including two home runs). He had one walk with four strikeouts. Cody Laweryson gave up one run on two hits and a walk and recorded five outs. Ricardo Velez gave up one run over two innings. Jared Solomon pitched the eighth inning and gave up one run on one hit, two walks, and a hit batter. 

In the top of the ninth, Carson McCusker hit a two-run homer for the Wind Surge’s only runs. He went 2-for-4 in the game. The homer was his eighth of the season. Jeferson Morales went 1-for-3 with a walk. He scored ahead of the McCusker homer. Tanner Schobel went 1-for-3 with a walk. 

KERNELS NUGGETS
Cedar Rapids 3, Beloit 2 (11 innings)
Box Score
The Kernels fell behind early. They were down 2-0 after four innings. They worked their way back and ended up winning in 11 innings. 

Lefty Christian MacLeod gave up two runs on five hits over 5 2/3 innings. He had one walk and a career-high 11 strikeouts. 

Juan Mendez had three strikeouts among the four outs he recorded. He gave up just one hit and no runs. Jarret Whorff tossed two scoreless innings. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out three batters. Kyle Bischolff faced just six batters and worked two scoreless, extra-inning frames. 

Down 2-0, Nate Baez led off the top of the seventh by being hit by a pitch. With one out, Misael Urbina singled. Jose Salas grounded out to third but the runners advanced to second and third. Kyle Hess was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Ricardo Olivar then walked in a run. 

Still down 2-1 going to the ninth inning, Jay Harry led off the inning with his eighth home run of the season. The game was tied at two. 

Fast-forward to the 11th inning. Kevin Maitan began the inning as the Manfred Man on second base. Rubel Cespedes led off with a single to third base. Maitan moved up to third while Cespedes advanced to second base on a throwing error. With one out, Harry singled to center to drive in Maitan. Cespedes was thrown out at home. Bischoff got three quick outs in the bottom of the 11th, and the Kernels had their win.

Harry went 2-for-5 with a home run and the game-winning single. Maitan went 2-for-5 with his seventh and eighth double. Olivar went 2-for-4 with a walk. Jose Salas added his ninth double.  

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 4, Daytona 3 
Box Score
Charlee Soto put together his best and longest start of his professional career. The 2023 draft pick tossed five shutout innings. He gave up just two hits, walked one and struck out six batters. He threw a career-high 78 pitches, and 54 of them were strikes.  

It may be even more impressive when you consider that the Mussels were supposed to play a double header on Saturday. But there was a rain delay of nearly four-and-a-half hours. They just played one game and postponed the other. 

Tanner Hall came on and worked the next three innings. He gave up three runs on four hits. He walked two and struck out three batters. Xavier Hamilton recorded his sixth save with three strikeouts in a scoreless ninth. 

The lineup got off to a fast start in the first inning. Walker Jenkins led off with a walk. He advanced to third base on a Byron Chourio single. Brandon Winokur followed with an RBI single to center.  

In the fourth inning, the Mussels scored a painful run. With the bases loaded, Chourio was hit by a pitch to score Yohander Martinez and make it 2-0. 

Daytona tied the score at 2-2 in the top of the sixth. However, Fort Myers reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the inning. Martinez, Angel Del Rosario, and Ryan McCarthy all walked to load the bases. Jenkins came to the plate and grounded a single to center to drive in two runs. 

Jenkins went 1-for-3 with two walks and two RBI. Chourio went 2-for-4. Ryan McCarthy went 2-for-3 with a walk.  

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
FCL Twins 3, FCL Red Sox 1
Box Score
Through three innings, there was little offense on display on Bill Smith Field. Liam Rocha started and had two strikeouts over two scoreless innings. Kyle Bloor came on and tossed a scoreless third frame.  

Ezequiel Ventura came on for the fourth inning and struck out the side. In the bottom of the fourth, the Twins put a “2” on the scoreboard. Jayson Bass reached on an error and moved to second on a ground out. Hendry Chivilli reached on an error. Next, a double-steal put runners on second and third. Amilcar Vasquez drove in both runs with a double. 

In the bottom of the sixth, Bass led off with a single. He stole second. With two outs, Vasquez drove him in with a solid single to center to make it 3-0. 

Ventura had a really nice game. After striking out the side in the fourth, he got three groundouts in the fifth inning. His sixth inning. The sixth inning began with a single and a walk. With one out, there were runners on second and third, but Ventura was able to coax a fielder’s choice and an infield pop up. In the seventh inning, he gave up a leadoff homer, but that was it. In four innings, he gave up one run on three hits. He walked one and had four strikeouts. 

Amilcar Vasquez went 2-for-3 with his third double. He drove in all three runs and did a terrific job behind the plate with the pitchers. Dameury Pena went 2-for-2 with a walk and his fourth double. Jayson Bass had the only other hit for the Twins. He was 1-for-3 with his seventh and eighth stolen bases. 

DOMINICAN DAILIES
DSL Twins 2, DSL Yankees 6
Box Score
The Yankees had three straight, two-run innings in the middle of the game and that was enough to give them the win. 

Cristian Hernandez started for the Twins and gave up four runs on five hits. Over 3 1/3 innings, he walked two and struck out six batters. Jose Vasquez worked the final 2 2/3 innings. He gave up two runs on two hits. He walked three and struck out one batter.  

The Twins got on the scoreboard in the fourth inning. With one out, Eduardo Beltre singled to center. He stole second, advanced to third on a throwing error, and he scored on a ground out. 

Then, with two outs in the top of the seventh inning, Luis Rodriguez walked. He stole second base, and the he stole third base. He scored on a Daiber De Los Santos single. 

Beltre led the offense. He had two of the team’s four hits in the game. He stole the first two games of his season. Luis Rodriguez’s back-to-back steals  were his fifth and sixth of the season.                                                            

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Charlie Soto (Fort Myers) - 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K, 78 pitches, 54 strikes (69.2%) 
Hitter of the Day – Jay Harry (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, HR(8), R, 2 RBI, 2 K. 

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Saturday.
#1– Walker Jenkins (Fort Myers) – 1-for-3, 2 BB, R, 2 RBI, 2 K. 
#2 – Brooks Lee (Minnesota) – 0-for-4, BB, SB(1) (played 2B, batted 4th)
#5 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) – 0-for-4, BB. 
#7 – Charlee Soto (Fort Myers) – 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K, 78 pitches, 54 strikes (69.2%) 
#9 – Luke Keaschall (Wichita) –  2-for-4, BB, R, 2 RBI
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) – 1-for-4, BB, RBI, 2 K.
#11 – Simeon Woods Richardson (Minnesota) – 4.1 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, WP, 86 pitches, 61 strikes (70.9%)
#13 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 1-for-3, BB. 
#15 – Cory Lewis (Wichita) – 3.1 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 74 pitches, 53 strikes (71.6%)
#18 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) – 0-for-4, BB, K. 
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 2-for-4, BB, RBI, K

SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Louisville (12:05 PM CST) – RHP Caleb Boushley (8-3, 4.30 ERA)
Wichita @ Springfield (1:05 PM CST) – RHP Andrew Morris (4-1, 1.17 ERA)
Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (1:05 PM CST) – RHP Jeremy Lee (1-3, 3.90 ERA)
Daytona @ Ft. Myers (11:05 AM CST) – RHP Spencer Bengard (6-1, 1.32 ERA)

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Saturday’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!