Matt Braun

Image courtesy of Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Box Score Pablo López: 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Cole Sands (-.385), Brooks Lee (-.153), Byron Buxton (-.101) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) I find Springsteen’s “Nebraska” album to be strangely attractive. It’s certainly dower in tone, but the Boss has always excelled at bringing to life tales of the downtrodden and troubled; sometimes the aesthetics of such songs begat a darker, brooding spirit. Shoot, the first half of “Born in the U.S.A.” is arguably just as dark in lyrical content. He just dresses it up with high-powered synths and an upbeat backing band. Yet, the tales of the unsuccessful are critical. Not every narrative should be about triumph. Sometimes, we need to sit in and wallow with the deeply flawed to learn more about ourselves. That was Bruce’s unique talent: he spoke about the average—and, frankly, below average—American in uncompromising terms. These are the intros you get for a team 20 games below .500. Friday continued the extended procession for our Ship of Theseus Twins. Their recent tangle with the Yankees resulted in exactly what you would expect, though Simeon Woods Richardson’s dominant start proved a nice respite from the same-old same-old. Today, they greet Cleveland, a team red-hot and nearing a playoff spot. Could Minnesota play spoiler to their old foe? Pablo López took the mound. Though not for long. The righty pounced on a grounder that ricocheted off his person and tossed the ball to first to net the out. It was a hell of a play. It also forced him out of the game two innings later with right forearm tightness. So it goes. Parker Messick commanded the ball for the Guardians. Yet another in the long line of Cleveland’s factory-assembled pitching competence, the anxious lefty baffled the Twins. He commanded a five-pitch mix like he had pitched since birth. He threw breakers when Minnesota expected the heat, and stole strikes with fastballs when Twins’ hitters were convinced something looping was coming. The end result was nine strikeouts—a total made more impressive considering the southpaw only went 5 ⅓ frames. Well, that seems like a low total for a start that the author painted as dominant. It is. Messick looked unbeatable until the sixth, when Austin Martin shot a grounder back at him, which portended a horrific overthrow of the first baseman as Martin strode into second. Luke Keaschall then dumped a double into right as Martin advanced to third. He then scored off a wild pitch. Messick netted one more out before being replaced by Matt Festa, who believed a chest-high fastball was an acceptable out pitch against Royce Lewis. He was wrong. The excitement of a tied game died off as Cody Laweryson gave way to the other Kody, Funderburk, who gave way to Cole Sands. Sands’ troubles remained… troubling. The righty surrendered a pair of runs in the eighth, even as Funderburk gifted him the first out of the inning. Perhaps sensing his teammate needed company, Michael Tonkin then matched the appearance by allowing two more runs to push Cleveland’s advantage to four. Such a lead doesn't require a Cade Smith ninth-inning appearance, but the righty was warm anyway, so Stephen Vogt decided he shall appear. The half-inning took about three minutes, and the Twins dropped yet another game. Notes: Royce Lewis stole his ninth base of the month, the most in MLB. Luke Keaschall holds the fifth-highest batting average for a rookie in Twins history. The record is .334 set by Luis Arraez in 2019. Byron Buxton is near a career-high in plate appearances; his current total of 508 is three behind his 2017 mark of 511. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and Guardians play a doubleheader on Saturday, with Game One set to start at 12:10 PM, and Game Two slated for a 5:10 PM first pitch. Joe Ryan will start first, as Bailey Ober takes the night game. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of Emmanuel Rodriguez) TRANSACTIONS No moves were made on Wednesday. Saints Sentinel Box Score John Klein: 4 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Emmanuel Rodriguez (2-for-3, 2 BB), Aaron Sabato (2-for-4, R), Tanner Schobel (2-for-4, R) The Saints never had a chance on Wednesday. Starter John Klein has found the St. Paul confines oppressive and rude. Though he crushed Wichita with a 3.12 ERA, his mark with the Saints sits at 6.66—a far cry from his AA success. The Redbirds simply found him hittable; they drummed him for seven hits and five earned runs, with all the scores arriving in the game’s initial two frames. St. Paul responded with some small ball in the fourth, churning in runs off an RBI groundout from Walker Jenkins and a sacrifice fly by Gabriel Gonzalez. Gonzalez returned to smack an RBI double in the sixth. That pushed the score to 3-5. It never got closer. Memphis answered with a run in the same frame before tacking on two more in the seventh to place what would become the cemented final score. MLB’s 6th overall prospect J.J. Wetherholt played for the Redbirds on Wednesday. He went 1-4, with a walk. Wind Surge Wisdom The Wind Surge season concluded on Sunday. Check back in 2026. Kernels Nuggets The Kernels fell on Tuesday, losing the Midwest League championship to the West Michigan Whitecaps. They will return in 2026. Mussel Matters The Mighty Mussels season has ended. We’ll see them again in 2026. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Trent Baker Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Emmanuel Rodriguez PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 0-4, RBI, BB, K #4 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 2-3, 2 BB #9 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K #14 – Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K #18 – Kyler Fedko (St. Paul) - 0-4, BB, K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Memphis (11:05 AM) - RHP Mick Abel View full article

Three pitchers, three different lessons. This week, we take a look at Bailey Ober, Simeon Woods Richardson, and Pablo Lopez to learn how they each earn outs at the major league level. View full video

Image courtesy of Matt Blewett-Imagn Images Box Score Pablo López: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 6 K Home Runs: Kody Clemens 3 (17, 18, 19) Top 3 WPA: Kody Clemens (.445), Byron Buxton (.198), Austin Martin (.167) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) We’re in the final act. Arguably, this has been the case since the infamous mid-summer fire sale set into motion that which became inevitable; that the Twins would play forgettable baseball; that what used to bring a modicum of joy would only serve as a monument to discarded potential; that pretentious nerds like this author would dictate such terms in purple prose. What were we talking about again? Oh, yes, a baseball game. Pablo López—a vestige of the before times—started for the Twins, his second appearance since his three-month injury absence. Brandon Pfaadt climbed the hill for Arizona. Early returns looked to portend the usual slop often put forth by Minnesota; Geraldo Perdomo walked, stole second, and extended his trip to third base off a Jhonny Pereda throw that the word “errant” finds egregious. A Corbin Carroll knock drove him home. Yes, there will be eight more innings of this. Two shutout frames by Pfaadt exacerbated the struggle. Then, leading off the third, Kody Clemens worked the count full and smoked a solo homer to right. And Friday would be the day of Kody Clemens. The Twins came back in the fourth with a beautiful chance to score a crooked number. The bases were loaded with no one out. Brooks Lee hit a fly ball deep enough to score the runner. The throw was cut off, and a lethargic Matt Wallner was nabbed at second. A run scored, but at a terrible cost. A crooked number seemed out of reach… until Clemens stepped to the plate to hit his second homer of the game. Skirmishes in the fifth added runs to the total, while López still didn’t have an earned run. Luke Keaschall was the offender this time, as he successfully slid to stop a grounder from bleeding into the outfield, then overthrew first base by such a margin that had a second Kody Clemens stood on the shoulders of the first one, the clone still likely would have missed the ball. In the sixth, Clemens cracked another RBI hit—this one a measly double—to earn his tenth base of the game. Minnesota’s 6-2 lead lasted all of three combined batters, as Geraldo Perdomo rudely greeted Michael Tonkin with a massive blast to cut the advantage in half. So the game stood until the ninth. Three measly outs. That's all they need. Even bad pitchers can often get those. Unfortunately, Cole Sands was a ticking time bomb. Or the wrong wire to cut. It's unclear how this metaphor works. He allowed one run to push the game state uncomfortably close before Gabriel Moreno unloaded a brutal gut punch: a three-run WPA swinger of a homer to catapult Arizona into the lead. Yet, the Twins weren't done. With no respect for writers who need to juggle pacing with timeliness in posting, Minnesota's batters went back to work. Clemens hit his third homer of the game, and the Twins followed his blast by loading the bases with no one out. It went smoother this time. Trevor Larnach worked a walk to tie the game, setting the stage for Keaschall with a chance to win the game. He didn't get a hit. But he didn't need a hit. A simple medium-deep fly ball ushered in Byron Buxton, as Minnesota walked off one of the craziest games of the season. Notes: Kody Clemens' three-homer game was the 14th in team history and the first for a Twin since Miguel Sanó on May 18th, 2021. Pablo López reached the five-inning plateau for the 12th time in 13 starts this year. Austin Martin is slashing .372/.509/.465 across his last 15 games. Jhonny Pereda is slashing .417/.462/.583 in 13 plate appearances as a Twin. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins and Diamondbacks meet once for a Saturday melee, as Joe Ryan takes the mound opposite Ryne Nelson. First pitch is at 6:10 PM. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

Image courtesy of Thiéres Rabelo TRANSACTIONS RHP Cory Lewis activated (St. Paul) LHP Aaron Rozek placed on Development List (St. Paul) Saints Sentinel St. Paul 1, Columbus 7 Box Score John Klein: 4 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, 4 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None Little went right for the Saints on Wednesday. Our friends in St. Paul continued a dreary season, falling by six in an uncompetitive game. Starter John Klein had a rough go of it. Control eluded him, as the righty walked five, which portended a 12-walk game authored by Saints pitching. His first two innings were excellent, though, as he whiffed three and didn’t allow a base runner. The Saints scored their lone run of the day off a Walker Jenkins RBI double in the third. 2024 first overall pick and 15th-ranked MLB prospect, Travis Bazzana, took three walks in five plate appearances. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 2, Corpus Christi 1 Box Score C.J. Culpepper: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 2 K HR: Harry Genth (2) Multi-hit games: Kala’i Rosario (2-for-4), Maddux Houghton (2-for-4) The Wind Surge scored two in the ninth to win on Wednesday. Perhaps inspired by J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings on Monday, Wichita turned what once looked like a hopeless endeavor into a sweet reality. They had nothing going. Nothing. They were whiffing at an unthinkable rate. Only twice did a Wind Surge runner even touch third. Bringing in one of those guys? Ushering them home safely? What, are you crazy? Jose Salas struck out and Maddux Houghton grounded out to start the ninth. Hooks pitcher Anderson Bido was already thinking about his celebratory dinner. Harry Genth walked to the plate. A recent indy-ball signee. OPS’d over 1.500 for Haverford this year. Stands 5’8.” “No problem”, thought Bido, who decided to bend in a first-pitch slider to Genth. The righty walloped the pitch, sending the ball flying deep into the night as the game shockingly moved to a tie. Wichita wasn’t finished. Fired up by Genth’s shot, Hendry Mendez took a walk, Kala’i Rosario singled, and Ricardo Olivar punched a liner to center to score Mendez and take the lead outright. Kade Bragg held on in the ninth to secure the win. Hooks center fielder Joseph Sullivan is the sixth-ranked prospect in the Houston Astros system. He went hitless in four at-bats. Kernels Nuggets The Kernels did not play on Wednesday, but will be back on Thursday for the second game of their playoff series. Mussel Matters The Mighty Mussels season has ended. We’ll see them again in 2026. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – C.J. Culpepper Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Hendry Mendez PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 1-4, 2B, RBI, 2 K #2 – Luke Keaschall (Twins) - 1-4, 2B, BB, K #4 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-3, BB, K #11 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-3, BB, 2 K #18 – C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 2 K #20 – Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 1-2, R, 2 BB THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Columbus @ St. Paul (6:37 PM) - RHP Darren McCaughan Wichita @ Corpus Christi (6:35 PM) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM) - LHP Dasan Hill View full article

Matt Braun breaks down the most notable starts of the past week. This time, we look at Joe Ryan's dominant outing against the Padres, as well as Taj Bradley's two starts, which flashed promise and swing-and-miss potential. View full video

Image courtesy of © Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Byron Buxton tripled the other day. That’s hardly an unusual feat. This one was his sixth of the year, and the 30th of his career. But there’s something odd about the play. Can you spot it? ZFh6M2pfWGw0TUFRPT1fVWxCUlYxZFFWUW9BVzFzRFZnQUhBQUpmQUFBQ0Ixa0FCVklCQmdzSFYxZFNBMUJX.mp4 This is no longer a Byron Buxton article. Sorry, Buck. This is a Brooks Baldwin article. There’s something about alliterative “B’s,” I guess. I mean, look at him! Baldwin never even dares to approach the warning track; as if a curse will befall him and his family and his teammates if he touches the outer dirt. He even takes a few steps backwards after his initial attack in anticipation of a violent ricochet. The chyron obscures the ball’s landing spot, but a violent ricochet that is not. Based on how the ball spins, I don’t think it hit the wall first; it landed in the dirt, before back-spinning off the wall, finally registering to Baldwin that he’s safe to retrieve the object. In the meantime, Buxton is running like a maniac. It’s just Baldwin’s luck that Byron was the batter to smack this ball. Had basically any other Twin done it, they would have just safely strode into second, made some sort of celebratory hand signal to the dugout, and remained pleased with their improved OPS. Buxton, however, makes hay with his speed and decisive baserunning. He smelled a three-bagger. So he bolted as if this was “The Short Sprint” (a re-imagining of Stephen King’s "The Long Walk"). Yet, even Buxton knows something is up. Look at this frame: He wisely checks to see if the cutoff man offers a threat to his adventure to third base. He does not. The infield hasn’t even received the ball yet. So he lets down his guard, unleashes an exaltation, and saunters into the base, perhaps a little confused that he didn’t need to dirty his jersey in the process. This was likely the easiest triple of Buxton’s career, and it didn’t involve an odd bounce or a fielding mishap during a catch attempt. Though we’re most familiar with Baldwin as an infielder, he has years of experience in the outfield from his time at UNC-Wilmington and through the minor leagues. This isn’t a case of a green youngster finding his footing at a new position; this is a man scared to death of Minnesota’s right field. That’s probably rational. We’ve seen some strange outcomes from balls in play entangling with the overhang. And Baldwin had yet to field a flyball that encroached on right field’s menacing overhang. I’m convinced he made up his mind that any ball hit with authority over his head was the fielding equivalent of no man’s land, and that he would keep his distance (and his dignity). It’s just that this level of authority was that of a Lieutenant, not a Chief of Police. I’m not sure everyone noticed exactly what happened here. I asked my baseball-watching girlfriend if something seemed odd and she said no. Cory Provus did: he read Baldwin’s actions and the flight of the ball, and concluded that it was not only a threat to bludgeon the wall, but maybe even to land in the overhang. “In the air to right,” he says casually. “And deep,” he adds with sudden raised tenor. “Back it goes,” the first line of his signature home run call. “And that is in play and off the wall,” uttered with confusion. He had been had, tricked by the behaviour of a fielder trying his best. This wasn’t a disaster. It’s not like the Miguel Sanó walk-off against Detroit a few years ago in which multiple fielders committed atrocious mistakes while attempting to perform athletic feats at the highest level. Arguably, the outcome would have been the same had he tried to catch the ball and simply bungled it, something that even elite fielders sometimes do at the wall. Maybe Baldwin’s only sin was that his conservatism looked aesthetically strange. Oh, and this is what happened two plays later. ZFh6M2pfWGw0TUFRPT1fQXdBSFZWMEFVRmNBV2xVRVVnQUhWd1ZUQUFBRFVsQUFCVnhSVVFwVUFBb0dCMUZW.mp4 Ball don’t lie? View full article

Image courtesy of © Peter Aiken-Imagn Images Box Score Pablo López: 6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Matt Wallner (-.164), Byron Buxton (-.144), Austin Martin (-.117) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) So the wagon continues to move. “Lethargic” doesn’t quite cover it; this is a team with dead, calcified innards only playing baseball because everyone involved is contractually obligated to do so. The power of the American dollar. At least Pablo López is back. And he looked good. Mostly good. He wasn’t quite Sean Connery, but, rather, served as a solid Roger Moore, providing undeniable quality while lacking in the certain something that pushes his play to the top of the heap. The swing and miss—his bread and butter—wasn’t quite back, necessitating a reliance on fly balls. It mostly worked. Until he hung a sweeper to Maikel Garcia in the third. So it goes. Unfortunately for the Twins, Michael Wacha was starting for the Royals. The bastard. His endless supply of tricks typically befuddles Minnesota’s batters, and Friday was no exception; his floating changeup and looping breaking stuff portended five strikeouts and a lone earned run across 5 ⅔ innings. The veteran knows how to tangle up his opponent. It’s like watching hitters swing at an invisible ball. Or swing underwater. Or swing blindfolded. You get it. But they did get him once. The culprit? Jhonny Pereda, who bled a 68.5 MPH double down the first base line to drive in Brooks Lee. Typically, this would be the paragraph that transitions us from the middle stages to the late stages; describes minor events; recounts reliever entrances; describes any changes in the game state. Not today. The Twins felt no need to alter their position: their suffocating mediocrity fell to the side of bland inaction. No hero journeyed forth. No great lesson was learned. Nothing was risked. Instead, a group of ballplayers strode to the batter’s box, accomplished little of note, and trudged back with indistinction. It would drive one to be upset if there was anything in this team worth finding emotion for. A runner reached against Carlos Estévez in the ninth. Mickey Gasper pinch-hit as the go-ahead run. He hit the ball hard, to his credit. Right at Kyle Isbel in center field. It's futile, everything about this team. Notes: Trevor Larnach is on a 16-game on-base streak. Pablo López's four strikeouts give him 497 in his Twins career, the 29th-most in team history. He's seven away from tying Dean Chance. Royce Lewis has tied a single-season career-high with six stolen bases. The Twins have stolen 30 bases since the start of August, the sixth-most in MLB. They stole 65 in 2024 overall. Post-Game Interview: What’s Next? The Twins play the Royals again on Saturday, as Joe Ryan is set to start opposite Stephen Kolek. First pitch is at 6:15 PM. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet View full article

For better or for worse, it seems that the Twins under this regime are rigid with their internal evaluations and don’t tend to give chances to a hot bat unless they’re a legit prospect. I’d be shocked if Sabato came up this year unless injuries start to pile up.

Gave the Beatles White Album a play while writing this one. Not my favorite from them, but it’s definitely incomparable and diverse, even if it does run a little long.

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson (photo of Aaron Sabato) TRANSACTIONS RHP David Festa returned to Minnesota Twins (and subsequently likely ruled out for 2025) Saints Sentinel St. Paul 5, Louisville 6 (10 Innings) Box Score SP: Andrew Morris: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K HR: Jonah Bride (3), Aaron Sabato 2 (11, 12) Multi-hit games: Gabriel Gonzalez (2-for-5, R), Aaron Sabato (3-for-5, 2 HR, 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI) The Saints fell in extras on Wednesday. Andrew Morris continues to excel in his return to the pitching mound. Across his last 16 frames, the righty has allowed five earned runs and just nine hits while striking out 21. The recent run starting on August 9th lowered his season ERA from 4.41 to 4.08, and his WHIP has fallen similarly; down to 1.41 from the heights of 1.61. Wednesday was more of the same—and his five-inning start was the longest since the injury. The “Marco Raya in relief” experiment reached its zenith, as the 23-year-old dominated, tossing three shutout innings with five strikeouts. The secret? A sweeper that earned nine swings-and-misses across 18 offerings. Now that’s dastardly. Aaron Sabato provided the thump. Lots of it. The first of his blasts was the most majestic: a 435-foot shot to dead center that could have busted the batter’s eye. The second was a more humble 383-footer sent the other way. He also doubled. Big leaguer rehabber, Tyler Stephenson, caught and homered for the Bats. Outfielder Héctor Rodríguez is ranked as the ninth-best prospect in the Reds’ system. He singled twice in two at-bats for Louisville. Wind Surge Wisdom The Wind Surge were postponed due to inclement weather. They will play a doubleheader on September 4th. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 0, Quad Cities 4 Box Score SP: Garrett Horn: 1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None The Kernels were shut out on Wednesday. Frankly, this was a dull game for our protagonists. They collected three hits—the full extent of their offensive potency—and allowed a cromulent but unnotable amount of runs. Spencer Bengard was the player of the game with four shutout innings out of the bullpen, striking out five. That’s about it. MLB’s 48th overall prospect, catcher Blake Mitchell, went 1-for-3 with a double and a walk. Mussel Matters Fort Myers 3, St. Lucie 2 Box Score SP: Eli Jones: 5 ⅔ IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K HR: None Multi-hit games: None The Mighty Mussels won on a walk-off on Wednesday. Eli Jones stole the show. The 2024 seventh-rounder out of South Carolina put forth one of his best starts of the year, holding the Mets scoreless for 94 pitches across 5 2/3 innings. It wasn’t easy; St. Lucie knocked him for five hits and stole just as many bases. The righty hunkered down. Wasn’t shaken. Remained like iron in his will. And he walked off the mound with a clean slate. The Mighty Mussels attacked when they could, scoring one in the first on a Quentin Young sacrifice fly, and another in the third with a Dameury Pena RBI single. Speeding up to the ninth, Fort Myers loaded the bases for Young to potentially send his team home happy. The youngster hit a soft line drive the drawn-in second baseman could not corral, necessitating Ryan Sprock to suddenly begin dashing home. The throw beat him. The catcher’s foot? Perhaps an inch off the plate. The home plate umpire saw it all the way and called the surprised Sprock safe, ushering in a celebration as confused and tepid as the walk-off itself. The Mighty Mussels Twitter account didn’t post the play, but if you have access to minor league streaming, do look it up. It’s bizarre. Rehabbing big leaguer Emmanuel Rodriguez played center field for seven innings, reached base twice, and stole a base. The Mets claim a great variety of talent in their farm system, and their best prospect in this game was second baseman Mitch Voit, ranked as their ninth-best prospect. He singled twice in five at-bats. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Eli Jones Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Aaron Sabato PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 1-4, 2B, RBI, BB, K #2 – Luke Keaschall (Twins) - 1-4, 2B, R, RBI, BB #4 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (Fort Myers) - 1-3, 2 R, BB, K #5 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 2 K #11 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 2-5, R, 2 K #12 – Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K #13 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2 #14 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, BB, 2 K #15 – Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K #17 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (5:35 PM) - RHP John Klein Tulsa @ Wichita (7:05 PM) - RHP C.J. Culpepper Cedar Rapids @ Quad Cities (6:30 PM) - RHP Adrian Bohorquez St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM) - RHP Christian Becerra View full article

Walker JenkinsLuke KeaschallKaelen CulpepperEmmanuel RodriguezEduardo TaitMick AbelKendry RojasConnor PrielippGabriel GonzalezDasan HillMarek HoustonCharlee SotoBrandon WinokurRiley QuickMarco RayaKala'i RosarioAndrew MorrisKhadim DiawKyle DeBargeHendry Mendez

Which of these two similar players should we prefer? Neither dominated in the majors during their short stints, and they may be on the outskirts of the starting rotation, as new talent injects into the organization. Yet, they could still become useful pieces for a team hosting open tryouts for future bullpen roles. View full video

oin me in an analysis of Minnesota's recent starting pitcher performance using the power of Baseball Savant. We'll break down their play using stats that isolate specific pitch effectiveness, while also viewing their scatterplot as a whole to understand what worked, and, perhaps, what did not work. View full video