Twins Minor League Week in Review (6/10-17): Saints Go Streaking, First Round Pick Released

TRANSACTIONS:

• IF Keoni Cavaco released by Twins
• RHP Miguelangel Boadas placed on IL with a forearm strain by Cedar Rapids.
• IF Payton Eeles promoted to Cedar Rapids from Fort Myers

COMPLEX CHRONICLES
FCL Orioles 4, FCL Twins 3
Box Score

Juan Cota got the start and gave up a first inning run across his 1 1/3 innings of work. The Twins hurler allowed a pair of hits, three walks, and recorded a strikeout. Tying things up in the fourth inning, Ariel Castro’s groundout scored Daniel Pena.

Gregory Duran gave the Twins their first lead with a sixth inning single that scored Pena. The Orioles answered with three in the seventh inning to go up 4-2, and Yilber Herrera’s solo shot in the bottom half wasn’t enough to bring the Twins back.

Herrera had a pair of hits while Mercedes drew two walks. Anthony Narvaez struck out four while allowing a single hit across 3 2/3 of relief. Ezequiel Ventura took the loss.

DOMINICAN DAILIES
DSL Rockies 7, DSL Twins 4
Box Score

Anderson Chacon took the ball for the Twins and allowed a run on two hits while striking out one. He gave up another in the second and then a four spot in the third inning. Chacon exited allowing six runs on eight hits over three innings.

The Twins scored their first run in the third inning when Irvin Nunez came home on a passed ball. Guillermo Sosa then scored on an errant throw down to second base. Down 6-2 after three innings, the Twins played their third run on a Ruben Velazquez sacrifice fly that scored Victor Leal.

Irvin Nunez drove home Velazquez on a seventh inning single, but the 7-4 score held. Nunez was the only hitter to post a pair of hits. Eudy Garcia worked three innings of relief allowing only a single run.

WEEK IN REVIEW
Triple-A: St. Paul Saints

• Overall: 33-35 (6-0 last week) Seventh place in the IL West
• Overview: Handed a couple more big leagues returning to the farm, the Saints swept the top affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds on the road.
• Matt Wallner was ridiculous batting .519 (14-for-27), he had five homers and a crazy 1.700 OPS in six games.
• Yunior Severino and Michael Helman both batted over .400 (as did Tony Kemp). Severino launched three home runs while Helman had two. Severino took eight walks.
• Brooks Lee settled in to the tune of a .333 average going 8-for-24 with a double and a home run.
• Will Holland had a pair of doubles while batting .308, but it was the highlight-reel catch worthy of a watch that should be noted.
• Randy Dobnak shoved, throwing six shutout innings with ten strikeouts and just a single walk. He allowed a pair of hits.
• Scott Blewett, Ronny Henriquez, Ryan Jensen, and Josh Winder combined to go scoreless in their relief appearances. Blewett struck out five.
• What’s Next: Home at CHS Field this week, the Saints will look to dodge raindrops as they take on the Toledo Mud Hens

Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge

• Overall: 27-36 (4-2 last week) Fifth place in the Texas League North
• Overview: Back to a six-game week, Wichita took a series victory over Midland at home.
• Luke Keaschall doesn’t care where he plays, he’s going to hit anyways. 10-for-27 this week, he had three doubles and a home run while stealing a pair of bases.
• Aaron Sabato had another good week, batting .316 (6-for-19). He blasted three home runs and his seven RBI led the team.
• Scott Engler struck out five in three perfect innings of relief across two appearances.
• Andrew Morris made a scoreless five inning start with four strikeouts.
• Jaylen Nowlin pitched eight scoreless innings giving up just a single hit and striking out four.
• Zebby Matthews continues to avoid walks, making a start with seven strikeouts and no walks in six innings.
• Cory Lewis made his Double-A debut and worked four innings allowing two runs (one earned) in four innings of work.
• What’s Next: Going out to Arkansas, the Wind Surge face the Texas League North’s top team.

High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels

• Overall: 36-26 (4-2 last week) Second place in the Midwest League West
• Overview: Back to their winning ways, the Kernels grabbed a series win against Lansing on the road.
• Nate Baez led the squad with a 1.224 OPS thanks to three home runs and a double.
• Agustin Ruiz tied Baez for a team-high eight RBI this week.
• Both Ricardo Olivar and Kevin Maitan posted an OPS north of 1.000 while batting .400. The paid both had 13 total bases with the former hitting a home run and the latter recording three doubles.
• Jay Harry hit .304 with a double, triple, and home run to his credit across five games.
• Ty Langenberg’s seven strikeouts were a team-high this week.
• Jacob Wosinski acted as both a starter and reliever combining to throw four shutout innings.
• What’s Next: Welcoming Peoria to Cedar Rapids, the Kernels have a chance to pad the win column facing the Midwest League West’s worst team.

Low-A: Fort Myers Mighty Mussels

• Overall: 30-32 (2-3 last week) Fourth place in Florida State League West
• Overview: Fort Myers had the same amount of games played as they did games canceled this week. Lakeland came to town and did a lot of waiting.
• Rixon Wingrove hit .467 across five games going 7-for-15 with three home runs. His six RBI were a team high.
• Poncho Ruiz went 4-for-10 with a pair of doubles.
• Spencer Bengard, Charlee Soto, and Jose Olivares each had five strikeouts this week in their one appearance.
• Tanner Hall worked a scoreless four innings with a pair of strikeouts during his start.
• What’s Next: Going to St. Lucie, the Mighty Mussels face the worst team in the Florida State League East.

Complex League: FCL Twins

• Overall: 15-14 (1-2 last week) Third place in Florida Complex League South
• Yasser Mercedes played in all three games for the Twins this week as rain wreaked havoc on their schedule. He had a pair of doubles.
• Jayson Bass hit the only home run for the club.
• Every single pitcher that threw at least one inning this week struck out exactly three batters.

Dominican Summer League: DSL Twins

• Overall: 5-5 (4-2 last week) Seventh place in Dominican Summer League South
• Daiber De Los Santos was 6-for-18 with a pair of doubles and hit the club’s only home run.
• Luis Fragoza played in five games and hit .357 with a double and a team-high five RBI.
• Fabian Herrera and Christian Hernandez each had seven strikeouts on the bump.
• Yoel Roque threw four scoreless innings during his start.

PROSPECT SUMMARY

#1– Walker Jenkins (Fort Myers) – 2-10, 2B, 4 RBI, BB, 2 K
#2 – Brooks Lee (St. Paul) – 8-24, 5 R, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, BB, 3 K
#4 – David Festa (St. Paul) – 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K
#6 – Marco Raya (Wichita) – 4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
#7 – Charlee Soto (Fort Myers) – 4.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
#8 – Austin Martin (St. Paul/Minnesota) – 6-16, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K, SB
#9 – Luke Keaschall (Wichita) – 10-23, 7 R, 3 2B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 BB, 5 K, 2 SB
#10 – Brandon Winokur (Fort Myers) – 2-6, 2 R, RBI, 2 K
#11 – Simeon Woods Richardson (Minnesota) – 4.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 4 K
#13 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita) – 1-8, RBI, BB, 3 K
#14 – Zebby Matthews (Wichita) – 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K
#15 – Cory Lewis (Wichita) – 4.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
#18 – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) – 10-21, 8 R, 2B, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 8 BB, 5 K
#20 – Ricardo Olivar (Cedar Rapids) – 10-24, 7 R, HR, 2 RBI, 5 BB, 5 K

Hitter of the Week - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 14-27, 11 R, 2 2B, 5 HR, 11 RBI, 2 B, 4 K

Pitcher of the Week - Randy Dobnak (St. Paul) - 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 10 K

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!