Matt Braun

Geography was never a strength of mine

Image courtesy of Matt Marton, IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect Box Score Zebby Matthews: 5 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Home Runs: Josh Bell (18) Bottom 3 WPA: Zebby Matthews (-.180), Luke Keaschall (-.110), Ryan Jeffers (-.090) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Good and bad. Yin and yang. However you like to interpret the internal battle in all of us, the concept is never more apparent than in a Zebby Matthew start. One day, excellence; another, the ugly flipside of a hurler with a penchant for homers. Seemingly a preference for punishment. His last start against the White Sox nearly resulted in a complete game shutout, while Friday’s affair resulted in turned heads, exalted cheers from the home crowd, and roaring music accompanying a plethora of home run trots. First, the first: an initial blast by Miguel Vargas in the game’s opening frame, a tone setter. Then, a Braden Montgomery shot in the second. Chicago skipped the third - how kind of them - just to return in the fourth with a two-run long ball off the bat of Colson Montgomery, who’s already developing a Twin-killing reputation early in his young career. The 4-0 deficit was already a tough endeavor, and it was made worse by the Big Bad Wolf standing on the mound for the White Sox: Erick Fedde. The monster. A 6’4” 205-pound terror of finesse pitching that no lineup bearing a Twins insignia can figure out, no matter their makeup. He would shut out the 1927 Yankees, if they bore Minnesota jerseys. And he worked his magic once more, surrendering a scattering of baserunners across five innings, but holding the team scoreless as they once more struggled to find the big hit against him. Or against anyone, for that matter. The lively, young offense that pulverized the Tigers, and necessitated an unchanged lineup for nearly a week, showed little vigor. Fedde begat Hagen Smith, who begat Bryan Hudson, all of whom were anathema to Minnesota on Friday. Their collection of singles and walks proved impotent, contrasted with Chicago’s three mighty dingers. Finally, some action arrived in the ninth against the best White Sox pitcher of the night. Go figure. Josh Bell launched a thunderous solo home run, and Royce Lewis doubled after a Gabriel Gonzalez ground out. Another worm-burner by Kaelen Culpepper gave the Twins one final out. Walker Jenkins walked, and Luke Keaschall hit an ordinary fly ball to right to end Minnesota's tepid rally. Notes: Kody Clemens is slashing .292/.400/.667 in his last seven games. Josh Bell's 84 RBIs are his fourth-most in a single-season. Taylor Rogers tied Jesse Crain and Jim Perry for the ninth-most games pitched in a Twins uniform at 376. Kaelen Culpepper stole his first MLB base on Friday. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and White Sox meet at Guaranteed Rate Field for a Saturday brouhaha, with Taj Bradley scheduled to start opposite left-hander Anthony Kay. First pitch is at 6:10 PM. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet MON TUE WED THUR FRI TOT Nance 26 0 33 0 0 59 Acton 0 39 0 0 18 57 Morris 0 29 0 0 0 29 Funderburk 0 0 29 0 0 29 Rogers 0 0 7 0 19 26 Minter 0 0 17 0 0 17 Gomez 0 0 15 0 0 15 Hoffman 0 0 13 0 0 13 Adams 0 9 3 0 0 12 View full article

Image courtesy of milb.tv (South Bend production) TRANSACTIONS RHP Jui-Chieh Lin transferred to Development List (A Fort Myers) Saints Sentinel St. Paul 9, Omaha 7 (10 Innings) Box Score Ricky Castro: 3 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K HR: Cody Morissette (14), Jake Rucker (1) Multi-hit games: Alan Roden (2-for-3, 2B, 2 R, RBI, 3 BB), Kala’i Rosario (2-for-6, 3 RBI), Cody Morissette (2-for-5, HR, R, 2 RBI), Jake Rucker (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB) The Saints won in extras on Wednesday. Tuesday was an active day for Emmanuel Rodriguez—what with the cycling and what not—so he spent Wednesday walking. Four times, in fact. It was a day of free passes for the Saints as a whole; they took 11 safe saunters to first base, outnumbering their hits on the day by one. Eric Orze, Marco Raya, and Julian Merryweather combined 5 2/4 shutout innings during the game’s most critical juncture. Battered by seven earned runs and a deluge of hits, the three relievers entered, and it was as if a faucet was turned off: one hit off Orze proved to be the only non-rule sanctioned baserunner the Storm Chasers could muster. Cody Morissette continued to swing a molten bat, homering for the third straight game. On the topic of homers, Jake Rucker hit a notable one. As the incoming tweet will say, his blast with the Saints was his first with the team in nearly 1,500 days. That’s an odyssey. Walker Jenkins hadn’t even been drafted by the Twins at that point, and he’s now their starting center fielder. Every batter in the Saints lineup reached base safely outside Tanner Schobel. Emmanuel Rodriguez is slashing .270/.432/.560 with the Saints in 2026. Center fielder Carson Roccaforte ranks as the 17th-best prospect in the Royals’ system; he went 0-5 with three strikeouts on Wednesday. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 4, Tulsa 5 Box Score Chris Vallimont: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Marek Houston (2-for-4, 2B, R, RBI), Khadim Diaw (2-for-5), Graham Brown (2-for-3, R, RBI, BB) The Wind Surge lost a tight match on Wednesday. Like a well-lit beacon, Chris Vallimont’s pitching line sparkles and shines, illuminating an excellent day on the mound for the 29-year-old. He punched out six without allowing an earned run, surrendering just two hits without walking a batter. That pesky “earned run” notion proved especially troublesome on Wednesday. Two scored in the third thanks to a pair of errors, one by second baseman Danny De Andrade, and one from the hurler himself. Though ERA looks the other way, those runs matter—and they came into play in the late innings, as Wichita looked to separate themselves from Tulsa. The Wind Surge already had two runs when their errors occurred, thanks to a run-scoring groundout by Jaime Ferrer, and a single from Graham Brown. They sat silent for three frames before a walk and a single placed a man in scoring position for Marek Houston, who stroked a single into center to break the tie. The Drillers responded with a sacrifice fly in the seventh and a two-run homer in the eighth. A final Brandon Winokur sacrifice fly couldn’t spark more, and Wichita fell one run short of tying the game. The Drillers, as you probably know, are an affiliate of the regal Dodgers farm system, a group typically bursting with young talent. This team is no different: Josue De Paula—strapping and intimidating—is the sixth overall prospect in MLB, and he went 0-2 with a sacrifice fly on Wednesday. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 3, South Bend 4 Box Score Cesar Lares: 4 2/3 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None A late Kernels rally came up short on Wednesday. Down 4-0 in the eighth, Cedar Rapids netted their first run on a groundout by Eduardo Tait, scoring Vahn Lackey. With a sudden taste for scoring, they returned for a pair in the ninth, as an Andy Lugo triple begat a sacrifice fly. Then, Yasser Mercedes walked, stole second, and reached third on a wild pitch. Lackey walked. With a speeding mad man 90 feet away from scoring, the Kernels pulled off a double steal, with Mercedes safely arriving home as Lackey took second. That was all. The next two batters struck out to leave the tying run stranded in scoring position. Matt Canterino! He’s alive! His last professional game of baseball was on July 30th, 2022, as he pitched for the FCL Twins. And on Wednesday, he rose from the ashes and pitched for the Kernels, striking out one, and walking one in a scoreless inning. Cesar Lares was effective once more, culling his ERA as it descends from the mountaintops to… a place still pretty close to the top, yet lower. Nonetheless, that’s back-to-back starts of allowing just one earned run for the lefty. Yasser Mercedes stole three bases, pushing his Kernels total to 41, and his season total to 52. MLB’s 39th overall prospect played for the Cubs on Wednesday. First baseman Josiah Hartshorn walked once in three plate appearances. Mussel Matters You’ll never believe it, but the Mighty Mussels were forced to postpone their game on Wednesday due to inclement weather. Mother Nature is mighty—and she is no baseball fan, apparently. They will try to make the game up tomorrow, but you guys already know that is no guarantee. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Chris Vallimont Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jake Rucker PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #2 – Vahn Lackey (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, R, 2 BB, K #4 – Marek Houston (Wichita) - 2-4, 2B, R, RBI #6 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-2, 2 R, 4 BB #7 – Hendry Mendez (St. Paul) - 1-5, R, BB #8 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, 2B, RBI, K #12 – Brandon Winokur (Wichita) - 0-2, RBI, 2 BB #13 – Khadim Diaw (Wichita) - 2-5 #19 – Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, R, BB THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Omaha (6:35 PM) - RHP Germán Márquez Wichita @ Tulsa (7:00 PM) - RHP Cory Lewis Cedar Rapids @ South Bend (6:05 PM) - RHP Reed Moring Fort Myers @ Clearwater (5:30 PM) - RHP Matthew Dalquist View full article

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey (photo of Preston Johnson) Welcome to the August edition of our minor-league pitcher of the month series. Things are a little different this year. As an acknowledgement of patterns in minor-league pitcher usage, we’ve collapsed the “reliever” into the “starter” article. Because teams are in a constant struggle to get players work, they often become “out-getters,” entering whenever the manager deems the situation acceptable, regardless of the typical roles accepted in our shared baseball understanding. This puts short-inning hurlers at a disadvantage for a list like this, but if one was especially efficient in a month, they’ll receive consideration. This author had to make some pretty serious cuts this month. The top five was straightforward enough, but there were a handful of guys who could have—and in other months, would have—made the honorable mention list. Because this article gets bloated enough already, they had to be nixed. With all that being said, let’s get to the list. Honorable Mentions: Matt Bowman, AAA St. Paul - 2.25 ERA, 16 IP, 4.14 FIP, 25.8 K% Bowman gobbled up an impressive volume of innings in relief, earning more than three outs in seven outings in August with solid efficiency. A poor appearance on the 13th limits him to the honorable mention list. Nick McAuliffe, A Fort Myers - 2.13 ERA, 12 ⅔ IP, 2.19 FIP, 40.7 K% McAuliffe put forth an extreme “effectively wild” month of relief for the Mighty Mussels, striking out the world, while walking eight and uncorking five wild pitches. Crazy stuff. The whiffs were enough to net him a placement here. It was the kind of fun you can only have in Class A—and probably wouldn't want to have at any other level, anyway. Kendry Rojas, AAA St. Paul - 0.75 ERA, 12 IP, 3.35 FIP, 26.7 K% Rojas was well on his way to placing on the list proper, before an oblique strain cut his August 21 start short and curtailed his season. The improved command was good to see; he walked just three batters in the month. Eric Hammond, A Fort Myers - 2.41 ERA, 18 ⅔ IP, 3.99 FIP, 23.7 K% Hammond went undrafted after pitching for USC and Georgia, and has found mild success as a swing man for the Mighty Mussels in 2026. The six walks and three hit-by-pitches tinge a month that wasn’t quite as sparkling as his ERA suggests, but it was still solid. Julian Merryweather, AAA St. Paul - 1.74 ERA, 10 ⅓ IP, 1.38 FIP, 41.5 K% This might be the fewest innings thrown by any hurler to be mentioned in one of these articles, but Merryweather’s efficiency was impossible to ignore. A 41.5% strikeout rate! If this were the majors, only Mason Miller would have a higher one. It’s good to be in any sentence that contains the phrase “only Mason Miller”. 5. Trent Baker, AAA St. Paul - 3.00 ERA, 18 IP, 4.29 FIP, 32.5 K% A former minor-league Rule 5 pick, Baker has established himself as a consistent presence on the CHS Field mound. He’s spent most of the year pitching wherever manager Brian Dinkelman needs him—whether it be at the end, in the middle, or at the beginning of games—but has been essentially a traditional starter since the end of July, albeit in outings that never go beyond 70 pitches or so. The strategy has worked. Since July 25, the righty has a 2.62 ERA while punching out a third of the batters he's faced. His mid-90s heat paired with his screwball changeup has proved to be an effective combination, keeping hitters off-balance as they only see the hurler once or twice a game. At 27 years old and in his sixth season of professional baseball, Baker has never brewed much prospect hype, but if he continues to pitch the way he did in August, the Texan could force his way onto a major-league roster. He kicks off the countdown in earnest. 4. Michael Ross, A+ Cedar Rapids - 2.33 ERA, 19 ⅓ IP, 3.37 FIP, 23.0 K% Dreadful though Michael Ross’s season had been entering August, he shook that misery off and pitched his finest ball of the season. The 24-year-old who went 13-0 with Samford in 2024 enjoyed a great year with the Mighty Mussels in 2025, holding a 3.18 ERA across 82 innings. Given that all highlights of him found on Twitter are from that season, you can probably guess how his 2026 with the Kernels has gone. The righty entered the month with a 7.85 ERA, an impossibly high number. That’ll happen when you have six outings with at least six earned runs. August snapped something into place, though. Ross pitched back-to-back shutout starts to start the month, totaling 8 ⅓ frames between the games. Though he allowed five runs in his next 11 innings, the month began strongly enough to carry his overall performance and land him a spot on our list. 3. Ty Langenberg, AA Wichita - 1.00 ERA, 27 IP, 3.48 FIP, 22.1 K% The prodigal son? Sort of. Depends on how you feel about Iowa. Anyway, it’s been a tough two seasons for Langenberg since his promising 2024 campaign. The righty saw his numbers turn for the worse in his second go-around with the Kernels in 2025, and his time spent in St. Paul this year was mostly as an observer, watching opposing batters dash around the bases as his ERA crept higher. That earned him a trip back to Wichita, where he has pitched much better. Three earned runs in 27 innings says it all. The 24-year-old dominated. He allowed just 10 hits the entire month, and no more than three in any one appearance. The peripherals weren’t as convinced by Langenberg’s play, meaning he has to settle for a third-place finish in this month’s honors. 2. Adrian Bohorquez, A+ Cedar Rapids/AA Wichita - 0.45 ERA, 20 IP, 3.75 FIP, 32.4 K% What a return to play for the 21-year-old! Bohorquez missed nearly two months of action, spent some time building up, and locked into an overwhelming groove, smothering hitters with such acumen that he earned a promotion to Double-A. And wouldn’t you know it, the promotion didn’t slow him down one bit. Bohorquez donned a Wind Surge jersey and immediately went to work: he punched out seven over five innings without an earned run (though with four unearned). That’s good stuff. Given how awesome his month was, this author isn’t absolutely convinced he doesn’t deserve the top spot. A well-earned silver medal should weigh and dangle with sparkling achievement, anyways. 1. Preston Johnson, AA Wichita - 1.44 ERA, 25 IP, 3.87 FIP, 35.6 K% The man of the hour is also a man who may need some introduction. Born in Jackson, Mississippi (hotter than a pepper sprout), Johnson spent two years at Mississippi State, four in the Orioles’ system, and 11 innings with the independent Mississippi Mud Monsters, before joining the Twins organization earlier this year. The results have been fabulous: a 3.94 ERA and 95 strikeouts across 77 ⅔ innings at Double-A. Langenberg is the only Wind Surge hurler with at least 70 innings and a better ERA. A tall Southern man with a dastardly curve, Johnson found some extra giddy-up on his heater, which now sits in the mid-90s. Perhaps the real secret to his success is quite simple: he’s the father of twins. Consistency was the driving force for the righty in August, as he never allowed more than two runs in an appearance and walked away scoreless on four occasions. Johnson’s monumental strikeout rate and impressive volume of innings gave him the edge over Bohorquez, whose month also waded in murky unearned-run waters, the nature of which makes his numbers harder to judge. So, Johnson will be the one to take home Twins Daily’s August Minor League Pitcher of the Month honors. Tell him to save some space on his digital mantel. View full article

Because the focus of these reports is the play in the minor leagues, and Gabriel Gonzalez being recalled means he is no longer a minor leaguer, at least for a moment. Typically, call-ups and notable recalls get their own piece.

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (photo of Jake Rucker) TRANSACTIONS OF Gabriel Gonzalez recalled by Twins RHP Woo-Suk Go outrighted to AAA St. Paul Saints Sentinel St. Paul 6, Toledo 10 Box Score Aaron Rozek: 3 2/3 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K HR: Aaron Sabato (22), Kala’i Rosario 2 (6, 7), Cody Morissette (12) Multi-hit games: Emmanuel Rodriguez (2-for-4, RBI, BB), Alan Roden (2-for-5, 2B), Aaron Sabato (2-for-5, HR, 2B, R, RBI), Kala’i Rosario (3-for-5, 2 HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI) Middle-inning madness sunk the Saints on Sunday. All that starts well… cannot be predicted the rest of the way. But at least it felt good, just for a time. Aaron Sabato mashed a solo homer in the first and Aaron Rozek tossed three shutout innings with the aid of two double plays. The first, an unusual back pick from Matt Wallner, who tracked down a flyball and caught Josue Briceño drifting halfway to Mordor before he realized his mistake, and was cut down trying to return to the bag. The second, a traditional 6-4-3. Then, the fourth. Five runs. So it goes. Then, the fifth. Five more runs. The game, in essence, decided. Despite the rough stretch, the Saints still had much to celebrate (at least on the other side of the game). Kala’i Rosario—who already homered twice on Saturday—deposited an 0-2 offering on the other side of the wall in the fourth, and returned in the seventh with a screaming liner that barely left play. Fortunately, it all counts the same. The homer gave the Saints 231 round-trippers on the year, tying the International League record. That’s no small feat: the IL can trace its roots back to 1884, though the name and identity didn’t stick until 1912. That’s over 100 years of baseball history flattened by the slugging acumen of this 2026 squad. Oh, and Cody Morissette set the record two batters later. Eric Orze, Julian Merryweather, and Alejandro Hidalgo combined to pitch four scoreless innings out of the bullpen, striking out six. Rehabbing big leaguer Riley Greene singled and worked two walks for the Mud Hens. The aforementioned Briceño is the 69th overall prospect in MLB. He walked once but was pulled following his base running gaffe. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 8, Arkansas 9 Box Score Riley Quick: 3 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K HR: Jake Rucker 2 (9, 10), Luis Hernandez (1), Brandon Winokur (10) Multi-hit games: Jake Rucker (4-for-4, 2 HR, 4 R, 2 RBI, BB), Garrett Spain (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI) The Wind Surge lost a back-and-forther on Sunday. There’s character to be had in getting decimated, though at some point, Riley Quick might opine for a break from it all. His time in Wichita hasn’t been pleasant. A 4.87 ERA entering the day ballooned to 5.79 after being drummed for four earned runs across just three innings of work. He surrendered a pair of homers and found only one clean frame: a 1-2-3 third capped with a strikeout. Still, one must remember context, as the 72 2/3 innings the first-year pro has now pitched in 2026 bests the 62-inning career-high he set with Alabama in 2025. Growing pains exist for pitchers, too. Garrett Spain spanked an RBI double down the right field line to start the scoring in the first, and Jake Rucker smashed his first homer of the day in the fourth, setting the franchise record for blasts hit by a Wind Surge team in a single season (172). Wichita saw run-scoring knocks in the sixth by Spain and Andrew Cossetti, but their deficit had grown even more unruly. Darren Bowen had been bludgeoned by a homer in the fourth. Preston Johnson took a wart in the sixth. Arkansas’ barrage gave them six runs by the end of the sixth, rendering the efforts by Spain and Cossetti mere claws towards the lead, which sat at 6-4 as the seventh entered into view. Then, a flurry. Three long balls to slingshot ahead. First, Luis Hernandez for one, then, Brandon Winokur for two, and, finally, Rucker exploded for the second time in the game. Holding an advantage for the first time, Wichita’s pitchers folded, allowing three runs across the eighth and ninth to let what could have been an epic comeback fall by the wayside. 10 home runs were hit in the game, with four players going deep twice. Travelers’ outfielder Jonny Farmelo is ranked as the 73rd-best prospect in MLB, according to Pipeline. He walked once in five plate appearances. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 5, Lake County 2 Box Score Christian Becerra: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K HR: Yasser Mercedes (11), Danny De Andrade (15) Multi-hit games: Irvin Nunez (4-for-4, 2 RBI) The Kernels won an all-around game on Sunday. With relievers like these, who needs starters? Cedar Rapids needed a group effort on Sunday, and they received a great one: five hurlers combined to pitch all nine innings, with Christian Becerra, Ross Dunn, Michael Hilker, Brent Francisco, and Yehizon Sanchez working in beautiful harmony, allowing two earned runs with seven scattered hits and one walk. They struck out seven. Yasser Mercedes started the scoring for the Kernels with a first inning laser, which knotted the game as action remained cool for two innings. Cedar Rapids returned in the fourth, plating a pair off a Danny De Andrade shot, and the second of Irvin Nunez’s four singles on the day. Luis Fragoza drove in a seventh inning run, while Nunez completed the quadruple showing in the eighth, netting his second RBI knock, an immaculate showing from the bottom of the Cedar Rapids lineup. JP Smith II walked thrice, bumping his Kernels OBP to .441. Lake County second baseman, Welbyn Francisca, is the 21st-ranked prospect in the Cleveland Guardians system. He went 0-4 with two strikeouts. Mussel Matters No matter how Fort Myers attempted to outwit Mother Nature—first by doubleheader; then by canceled second game yet continued first game—the result ended up the same as Friday and Saturday: a full match was not played. Sunday’s attempt was quickly quelled. No games from the day will be made up at a later date. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Alejandro Hidalgo Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jake Rucker PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (Twins) - 0-3 #2 – Vahn Lackey (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, 2B, K #3 – Kaelen Culpepper (Twins) - 1-3, K #4 – Marek Houston (Wichita) - 1-5, R, 2 K #5 – Riley Quick (Wichita) - 3 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K #6 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 2-4, RBI, BB, K #12 – Brandon Winokur (Wichita) - 1-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI #19 – Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, HR, R, RBI, K MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS No games in the Twins’ system are scheduled for Monday. View full article

Well, his Twins ERA now sits at 4.39 and his career ERA is... 4.38. So he's right where he should be expected to be.

Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson - IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect Box Score Dean Kremer: 4+ IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 3 K Home Runs: Brooks Lee (22), Kody Clemens (22) Top 3 WPA: Dean Kremer (-.420), Ryan Jeffers (-.200), Luke Keaschall (-.140) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Arduous and consternation-filled it may have been, Walker Jenkins’ journey has finally reached the majors. The former first round pick has taken a heroic mythos, fueled by a Bondsian August and the fanbase's general contempt for the stale play featured by the major league team in recent weeks. Surely, a change was in order. A burst of energy. A youthful resurgence. A mold-breaking decision. And so, the Twins made the call, and Jenkins took the 20-minute sojourn to Target Field and now looks to see if he can help right Minnesota’s sinking ship. First innings portend much, with initial impressions and tone-setting and such. Dean Kremer coaxed two outs. A simple hanging cutter lashed into center gave Chicago a knock. An errant pitch advanced the runner to second. Andrew Benintendi singled barely beyond Kaelen Culpepper’s diving grasp? Unsurprising given his dominance in Target Field. Another single and a three-run homer? Well, now we’ve reached disaster territory on the 21st pitch of the game. Fortunately, the Twins were in a responding mood, immediately attacking Luis Castillo with vigor and excitement. Luke Keaschall singled and Brooks Lee saw a middle-middle heater and smacked one of his trademark “just barely” homers to halve the deficit. Two batters later, Kody Clemens swatted a solo homer for his first longball since the 16th, complete with a fanciful, accidentally well-coordinated bat flip. That concluded the first’s action—a tame thing to say about a frame that oversaw seven total runs—yet the Twins weren’t done with pummeling Castillo. Trevor Larnach served a double into right field and two flyouts and a Keaschall HBP placed men on the corners with two outs. Lee pushed forth his third RBI of the game with a single poked beyond the shortstop’s lunging grasp. Equaled matters soon untied. Kremer could not rest. White Sox hitters advanced with an appetite for hits. In the third, pairs; two doubles scored a go-ahead run. In the fourth, a sampler platter that ended with Tristan Peters on third, eventually dashing home on a passed ball. Walker Jenkins earning his first major league hit marked a lone bright spot in this period. Indeed, his knock, a beautifully stroked line drive that landed in front of the right fielder, placed two on with no one out, but none scored. Then Castillo gave way to Hagen Smith, who found trouble in the sixth, but exited in favor of Grant Taylor, who elicited an unusual 3-2 double play, as Larnach skidded helplessly short of home plate. Another run in the eighth buried the Twins even further—and they suddenly entered the ninth with six consecutive empty frames in their rearview mirror. And little changed in the final inning. Singles by Kaelen Culpepper and Keaschall placed two on, and Minnesota left them where they were, with Lee lining out and Jeffers grounding out to end the game with a soft whimper. Notes: Ryan Jeffers was the only batter to not earn a hit. He's slashing .221/.326/.299 in August. With his 22nd homer of the season, Kody Clemens is four blasts away from tying his father's season-high in long balls allowed, set in his 2000 season with the Yankees. Brooks Lee's 73 RBIs are good for 17th in the AL. Clemens and Josh Bell were the only two players in the lineup not drafted by the Twins. The other seven players were drafted in either the first or second round by the franchise. Taylor Rogers appeared in his 374th game as a Twin, the 11th-most in team history. He's two games away from tying Jim Perry and Jesse Crain, and he passed his coach, LaTroy Hawkins, earlier in the season. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and White Sox play again Saturday, as Erick Fedde is set to start opposite Bailey Ober. Prose will turn purple with how each hurler simply “knows how to pitch.” First pitch is at 1:10 PM. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet MON TUE WED THUR FRI TOT Rogers 0 0 0 0 38 38 Funderburk 0 0 18 0 18 36 Adams 0 0 0 0 26 26 Minter 0 23 0 0 0 23 Gomez 20 0 0 0 0 20 Morris 1 0 16 0 0 17 Nance 16 0 0 0 0 16 Hoffman 0 0 6 0 0 6 View full article

Image courtesy of Lathe Cobb (photo of Adrian Bohorquez) TRANSACTIONS RHP Luis Quiñones sent to A Fort Myers on MiLB Rehab Saints Sentinel St. Paul 2, Toledo 4 Box Score Aaron Rozek: 4 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K HR: Walker Jenkins (12) Multi-hit games: Walker Jenkins (2-for-4, HR, R, RBI), Gabriel Gonzalez (3-for-4, RBI) The Saints couldn’t find enough offense on Wednesday. Don’t blame Walker Jenkins. For anything, really. The 21-year-old remained a hitting leviathan, a one-man force in the batter’s box capable of blending power and contact in artistic harmony. He blasted an opposite field homer off a lefty, singled, and stole his 17th base of the season. He’s slashing .411/.488/.795 in August. A fourth inning Gabriel Gonzalez single drove in the other run for the Saints. Gonzalez ended with three singles, his third three-hit game of the month. C.J. Culpepper, Matt Bowman, Garrett Acton, and Woo-Suk Go combined for five innings of relief with one earned run. They struck out eight. Toledo second baseman Max Anderson is the 11th overall prospect in the Tigers’ system. He collected two hits, including a homer, and walked. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 3, Arkansas 4 Box Score Adrian Bohorquez: 5 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K HR: Brandon Winokur (8) Multi-hit games: Khadim Diaw (2-for-4, RBI), Caden Kendle (2-for-3, R, RBI) The Wind Surge flirted with a comeback on Wednesday. It was an impressive first impression for Adrian Bohorquez. The righty donned a AA jersey for the first time Wednesday and pitched with the wit and acumen of a hurler years his senior, punching out seven while allowing no earned runs. He threw 79 pitches. The only trouble he encountered was in the fifth, when a ball Marek Houston will tell you he should have, ate up the shortstop, causing his throw to first to be a hair late. In return, the Travelers swarmed for four runs, none of them earned. A run-scoring wild pitch got the Wind Surge on the board in the sixth, and Brandon Winokur lasered a homer in the eighth to cut the deficit. Khadim Diaw lifted a sacrifice fly in the ninth, yet Winokur popped out into foul territory to end the game. The tying run was on third. Caden Kendle is slashing .382/.453/.676 in 36 games with the Wind Surge. The 24-year-old 2024 5th-rounder out of UC-Irvine has eight home runs in August, the same amount he totaled in 97 games with the Kernels in 2025. Like how the Yardbirds collected legendary guitar players, the Travelers have been a gathering space for incredible prospect talent in 2026. Kade Anderson is in the majors, yet they still enjoy two top 100 prospects in Felnin Celesten and Jonny Farmelo (plus overall top 10-er Ryan Sloan though he didn’t pitch Wednesday). Celesten went 1-4, while Farmelo went 1-for-3 with a walk. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 7, Lake County 8 Box Score Reed Moring: 3 2/3 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 3 K HR: Vahn Lackey (2), Danny De Andrade (13) Multi-hit games: Vahn Lackey (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB), Danny De Andrade (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB), Irvin Nunez (2-for-4, R, RBI) The Kernels nearly mounted an improbable comeback on Wednesday. Vahn Lackey homered in the first. Then the trouble started. Reed Moring navigated two nondescript frames before surrendering a run in the third. After netting two outs to start the fourth, he—and Lake County, for that matter—could not have imagined the carnage that was soon to greet him. A double, a single, a walk, a double, and another double knocked Moring from the game, yet his ERA was still not safe; the incoming Ivran Romero allowed a two-run homer to fully actualize the brutal rally. And the Captains scored once more the following frame. Down 8-1, the grimness of the situation was overwhelming. The game, in practice, was over. In reality? Cedar Rapids proved to be more a nuisance than one could have expected. Three arrived in the seventh thanks to solo homers by Danny De Andrade and Jose Salas; Lackey later drove in Irvin Nunez with a single. The Kernels returned to score two in the eighth, leveraging a hit by pitch and two walks with a run-scoring groundout and an RBI knock by Nunez. The fight continued. The vigor never waned. Cedar Rapids loaded the bases in the ninth and pushed across a run on a Yasser Mercedes walk. Primed with an opportunity to at least tie, if not win the game, the Kernels… fell short. The sweltering rally squashed. De Andrade struck out, Jayson Bass flew out, and Salas’ liner found an outfield glove to wrap things up. The splendidly named Juneiker Caceres ranks as the 82nd-best prospect in MLB. The Cleveland youngster went 1-for-5 with a strikeout. Mussel Matters Game One: Fort Myers 3, Bradenton 10 (7 Innings) Box Score Jui-Chieh Lin: 0 IP, 2 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 1 HBP, 0 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Colby Turner (2-for-4, RBI), Ramiro Dominguez (2-for-3, RBI) The Mighty Mussels were thoroughly bested on Wednesday. Jui-Chieh Lin? A mysterious character, indeed. The Twins signed the Taiwan product some six weeks ago, and earmarked Wednesday as his debut in the system. The righty had 22 innings of stateside ball this year with the Aberdeen Ironbirds (Maryland, not Cobain’s hometown) yet has otherwise only pitched in his home nation. BR Bullpen claims he went undrafted thrice there. Lin experienced one of the worst debuts a pitcher could suffer. He plunked the leadoff batter with his inaugural pitch—and it only got worse from there. Two singles—one aided by a throwing error from Lin—and four consecutive uncompetitive walks ended his day out-less. Eight of his 28 pitches went for strikes. If he wants some comfort, he can know that Yennier Cano debuted for the FCL Twins in 2019 with a four-walk no-out stinker before eventually becoming an every day MLB reliever. There’s only up from here. The start smothered this game in the cradle for the Mighty Mussels, as a small three-run fifth inning scramble was the only lipstick they could apply to this swine. Colby Turner and Ramiro Dominguez both earned RBI singles; the third run scored via a wild pitch. Bradenton third baseman Tre Phelps ranks as the 23rd-best prospect in the Pirates system, and he went 1-for-4 in four at-bats. Game Two: Fort Myers 1, Bradenton 0 (7 Innings) Box Score Luis Quiñones: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None The Mighty Mussels breezed to a shutout win in game two. Melvin Rodriguez allowed a double in the second, starting, and ending the hitting evening for the Marauders. They collected four walks and only twice reached second base. Rodriguez was the bulk arm, collecting 3 2/3 innings while whiffing seven. Sandwiched around him was Luis Quiñones—the starter who threw a lone shutout inning—and Brian Strange, and who totaled 2 1/3 innings to end the game. A fifth inning wild pitch scored Quentin Young for the only run of the game. No member of Pittsburgh’s top 30 prospects played in the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Adrian Bohorquez Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Vahn Lackey PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 2-4, HR, R, RBI, K #2 – Vahn Lackey (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB #3 – Kaelen Culpepper (Twins) - 1-3, HR, R, RBI, BB #4 – Marek Houston (Wichita) - 1-5, K #6 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-3, R, BB #8 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, 2 BB #9 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 3-4, RBI #11 – Carson Tinney (Fort Myers) - 0-2, R, 2 BB #12 – Brandon Winokur (Wichita) - 1-5, HR, R, RBI #13 – Khadim Diaw (Wichita) - 2-4, RBI #18 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers) - 1-2, K #19 – Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, RBI, BB, K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Toledo @ St. Paul (7:07 PM) - RHP Ricky Castro Arkansas @ Wichita (6:35 PM) - RHP Ty Langenberg Lake County @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM) - RHP Merit Jones Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM) - TBD View full article