Twins Minor League Report (8/12): Adrian Bohorquez Dazzles in Cedar Rapids, While Kyler Fedko Smashes For St. Paul

TRANSACTIONS

• OF Carson McCusker and C Jhonny Pereda were optioned back to St. Paul from the Twins. RHP Cole Percival was moved from the 7-day injured list to the 60-day.
• Down in the Midwest League, top pitching prospect LHP Dasan Hill was promoted to the Kernels from Fort Myers. RHP Xander Hamilton and UT Jay Thomason were placed on the 7-day injured list. C Luis Hernandez was also promoted from the Mighty Mussels on Tuesday, and LHP Samuel Perez was placed on the IL.
• In Fort Myers, OF Angel Del Rosario was released.

SAINTS SENTINEL
St. Paul 7, Omaha 8
Box Score
The Saints, or more specifically Kyler Fedko, wasted little time getting the scoring started in this one. Fedko batted second in the lineup and sent the third pitch of the game out of the stadium on a solo home run to center field.

Taking the bump for the Saints for the second time in the Twins organization, was right-hander Taj Bradley. He gave up a pair of singles in the first, but struck out the other three hitters he faced. In the second he allowed another single, but struck out two more for five K’s out of his six outs. Unfortunately in the third, that contact got a bit louder. A leadoff double, single, and three-run homer put the Storm Chasers in front 3-1.

In the top of the fight the Saints retook the lead behind a two-run homer from DaShawn Keirsey Jr., and solo shot from Jose Miranda two batters later to make it 4-3 good guys.

Bradley was back out for the fifth after a one-two-three fourth inning, but allowed Omaha to tie it back up while responsible for two more runners before his night was done. John Klein came on in relief and allowed both those runners to score to put the Storm Chasers up by two. Bradley finished with a final line of 4 2/3 IP and six earned runs on eleven hits, while striking out six.

Klein would go on to finish 3 1/3 innings, allowing just one hit (that scored the two runs charged to Bradley) and two walks, while punching out six of his own.

In the top of the sixth after Omaha had taken the lead, the top of the Saints lineup again came through. Payton Eeles led off with a walk, and Fedko followed with his second home run of the game, and 23rd of the season to tie it at six.

Still tied in the top of the eighth, the first three St. Paul hitters drew a walk to load the bases with nobody out, but they only managed one run on a James Outman grounder before a hot liner from Gabriel Gonzalez turned into a double-play ball to end the threat.

Jarret Whorff came on for the save opportunity and despite showing a very good instinct for challenging pitches, getting three ball calls overturned to strikes that probably caught less than a half-inch in total of the strike zone, he wasn’t able to get those turned into enough outs. A leadoff double followed by a single tied the game at seven, and with two outs another single walked it off for the Storm Chasers. 

In addition to Fedko’s power outburst, the Saints got two hits from Miranda (2-for-5, R, HR, RBI) and doubles from Gonzalez and Patrick Winkel. Four of the nine hitters in the lineup also drew two walks, but as a team they finished just 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base.

WIND SURGE WISDOM
Wichita 2, Springfield 4
Box Score
The teams combined for just nine hits on the game to open their series at Hammons Field in Springfield, Missouri on Tuesday, a place that is one of my personal favorite MiLB stadiums that I’ve had the pleasure to visit.

The Wind Surge sent C.J. Culpepper to the bump and he had a mix of good and bad against the Cardinals lineup. He finished four innings, and allowed just two earned runs on two hits, but also walked three and struck out only one. Of his 73 pitches, just 39 went for strikes (53%) but still exited the game in a no-decision situation thanks to his lineup.

Down 2-0 in the top of the third, Ben Ross delivered a leadoff double, and thanks to a wildly overthrown ball on a popout in foul territory behind first, was sent home for Wichita’s first run of the game. In the fourth a Kala’i Rosario walk was followed by a double from Jose Salas, before a Nate Baez groundout tied the game at two. Unfortunately, that would be all the Wind Surge could muster as their big bats were kept silent the rest of the way by Springfield pitching.

Relievers Michael Martinez (1 IP, 2 BB), Darren Bowen (2 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, K), and Hunter Hoopes (1 IP, H, ER, 2 BB, K) kept the game close, but Wind Surge bats found only two hits from the fifth inning on. They finished 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position as a team, and left five men on base.

Kaelen Culpepper finished 0-for-4 with a pair of K’s, while Walker Jenkins managed a single in four at-bats, striking out once.

KERNELS NUGGETS
Quad Cities 2, Cedar Rapids 5
Box Score
Right-hander and rising prospect Adrian Bohorquez made his second start with the Cedar Rapids Kernels since being promoted from Fort Myers on Tuesday. While he was good in his first turn, he was close to excellent in his second.

A one-two-three first, including a strikeout, paved the way for fellow new Kernels recruit Eduardo Tait to give the home team an early lead in the bottom half. Tait sent an 0-2 offering on a line at 108 MPH to leave the yard.

Bohorquez cruised from there. Through the first five innings he sent seven River Bandits back to the dugout from the batters box, including erasing a leadoff triple in the second by retiring the next three hitters without a ball leaving the infield.

The Cedar Rapids offense gave him more support in the bottom of the fourth thanks to a two-run Danny De Andrade homer, and an RBI triple from Maddux Houghton to score Kyle Hess who had doubled in front of him.

The River Bandits finally got to Bohorquez in the sixth, scoring one after a leadoff single, one-out double, and a sac fly that made it 4-1. After the sac fly Bohorquez’s night was done. He finished 5 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run on four hits, no walks, and striking out seven in total. He picked up 15 swings and misses and threw 87 pitches, with 60 going for strikes (69%). 

The Kernes added another insurance run in the bottom of the seventh after Houghton led off with a walk, and Jefferson Valladares brought him in with a double.

The bullpen locked it down enough after that as Nick Trabacchi (1 1/3 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 2 K) and Ruddy Gomez (2 IP, H, K) closed it out from there.

Tait (2-for-4, R, HR, RBI, 2 K) and Kyle DeBarge (2-for-4, K, SB) each had multiple hits. DeBarge stole his 60th base of the season to hit an unheard of milestone for Twins prospects.

MUSSEL MATTERS
Fort Myers 6, Daytona 7
Box Score
The Mighty Mussels got a fantastic effort from starting pitcher Jason Doktorczyk who completed the first six innings, but what happened after that wasted everything he gave them.

Fort Myers wasted no time getting this one going as Marek Houston led off the game with a single and Dameury Pena followed with one of his own, before Yasser Mercedes clubbed his 10th home run of the season to put them out front 3-0 early.

It stayed that way until the bottom of the fifth inning, as Doktorczyk cruised through the first four innings, allowing only a single hit while striking out seven of the first 13 hitters he faced. He retired nine in a row to start the game, before giving up a double to lead off the bottom of the fourth. The Tortugas got on the board with a solo home run in the fifth, but that was all they would manage against the Mighty Mussels starter. He finished six innings, giving up one earned run on three hits and one walk, while striking out eight in total.

In the top of the sixth the Fort Myers offense added three more runs to their total to take a 6-1 lead thanks to an RBI double from Houston and two-run single from Pena.

But as soon as Doktorczyk left the game, the Tortugas came alive. Dylan Questad came on to start the seventh, but he would record only one out. Daytona got him for four earned runs on two hits and three walks before Zander Sechrist came on to stop the bleeding. Unfortunately for him, he also allowed two earned runs of his own in the eighth to take the loss. He gave up two hits, walked two, and struck out one.

Houston (2-for-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI, K) and Pena (2-for-5, R, 2 RBI) each had multiple hits in the loss.

DOMINICAN DAILIES
Monday: DSL Twins 1, DSL Phillies Red 3
Box Score
The Phillies scored two runs in the first inning against Twins starter Omar Montano, and that ended up being all they would need in the game.

Montano finished four innings and fell to 0-6 on the season. He was charged with three runs (one earned) on four hits, while striking out three. His defense let him down a bit in the first and fourth innings where those runs were scored, as they committed three errors in the game.

Relievers Juan Figaro (1 IP, H, 2 K) and Agustin Campusano (3 IP, H, 4 K) held the Phillies in check the rest of the way, but their lineup wasn’t able to muster much offense themselves.

The Twins matched the Phillies six hits in the game, but finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base. Catcher Aaron Salazar scored their lone run of the game in the top of the eighth inning after leading off with a walk and stealing second base. Yovanny Duran then singled into center to get them on the scoreboard. Jhomnardo Reyes added his sixth double of the season to the effort.

Tuesday: DSL NYY Yankees 0, DSL Twins 9
Box Score
While the major league Twins might have a problem with the team who may not be named, it doesn’t appear their curse stretches down into the Dominican Republic.

Jhomnardo Reyes certainly didn’t have any issues. He finished 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles and five RBI in this one. He also scored a run and stole his eighth base of the season. Santiago Leon (2-for-3, 4 R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB) and Joyner Perez (2-for-3, 2 RBI, BB, K) also had multiple hit days to lead the effort. Yovanny Duran also added a double, and Aaron Salazar finished 0-for-0 with three runs scored and four walks out of the nine-spot in the lineup.

The Twins outhit the Yankees 10-3 as the Twins pitching staff dominated the Yankees, racking up 12 K’s while also allowing just three walks. Rey Pacheco got the start and the first three innings, allowing just one hit, walking two, and striking out four. Nestor Cafe allowed one hit and struck out one in his lone inning. Jeicol Surumay then took the bulk of the work to pick up his second win of the season. He walked one and struck out six in his four innings. Yordi Jose finished it out with a scoreless inning, allowing one hit and striking out one.

TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY
Pitcher of the Day – Adrian Bohorquez, Cedar Rapids Kernels (W, 5 2/3 IP, 4 H, ER, 7 K)
Hitter of the Day – Kyler Fedko, St. Paul Saints (2-for-4, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, BB, K)

PROSPECT SUMMARY
Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they performed on Tuesday.

#1 – Walker Jenkins (Wichita): 1-for-4, K
#2 – Luke Keaschall (Minnesota): 0-for-4, K
#3 – Kaelen Culpepper (Wichita): 0-for-4, 2 K
#5 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-4, R, HR (2), RBI, 2 K
#11 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 1-for-5, 2B
#13 – Marek Houston (Fort Myers): 2-for-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI, K
#14 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-4, 2 K
#17 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-4, K, SB (60)
#18 – C.J. Culpepper (Wichita): 4 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, K
#20 – Hendry Mendez (Wichita): 0-for-1 (was pinch hit for in the 4th)

WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS
St. Paul @ Omaha (6:35 PM CDT) - LHP Kendry Rojas (1-1, 5.40 ERA)
Wichita @ Springfield (7:05 PM CDT) - LHP Connor Prielipp (0-5, 3.39 ERA)
Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids, Game 1 (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (3-5, 4.81 ERA)
Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids, Game 2 (30 min after Game 1) - RHP Chase Chaney (6-3, 3.89 ERA)
Fort Myers @ Dayton (5:35 PM CDT) - TBD

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’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!