Seth Stohs

My opinion is that Steer is pretty solid at 2B and 3B... He also is solid at shortstop, though I don't think that he would have great range.

So I just recently went through all of the Twins minor leaguers and added DSL players and 2021 draft picks. About 200 players. That is a challenge, to be sure. I actually had a living ranking of pitchers and of hitters separately, which I agree has value.

Thank you very much... in fact, we are currently putting together the Top 30 rankings from our minor league writers. We'll put them together and update the prospect rankings/summaries soon.

I just updated it... it's a bug we're working through when tweets are added... Thanks for pointing it out.

Woods-Richardson is on the Wind Surge's temporary inactive list, so yes, that is where the 20-year-old will go. I'm sure Balazovic is fine. I hope Winder gets one of those starts. That is worth watching. Not sure why they haven't announced those yet. Refsnyder won't keep his 40-man spot, but i'm guessing the Twins would be happy to sign him to another minor league contract, and it would seem to be a good match. I haven't looked at other FCL rosters, but I'm sure it's a number of things, primarily that their pitching isn't good.

The poor FCL Twins are just struggling to find wins this season, but all four full-season affiliates are over .500 on their season as they are about to cross 80 games played. See which players had a strong week, and how the top prospects are performing. Be sure to read Nick’s Twins Week in Review from yesterday, and then jump into the minor league week. Before we get started, let’s check out the FCL Twins game on Monday. There were no transactions announced on Monday. FCL Twins Talk FCL Twins 0, FCL Pirates Black 3 Box Score On Monday, the FCL Twins fell to 6-18 despite a nice start from a rehabbing Lewis Thorpe. The lefty from Australia tossed three scoreless, hitless innings. He walked one and struck out four batters. Danny Moreno came up a run in the fourth on a hit and two walks. Matt Mullenbach gave up two runs (1 earned) on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. Cole Bellair got the final four outs, two on strikeouts. The Twins managed just four hits in the game. Yonardy Soto’s double was the lone extra-base hit. With that, let’s look at Week 13 in the Twins minor leagues: RESULTS Triple-A: St. Paul Saints: Week (3-3, hosting Indianapolis), overall (40-37) Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge: Week (3-3, @ NW Arkansas), overall (44-34) High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels: Week (4-2, @ Wisconsin), overall (44-34) Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels: Week (1-2,@ Clearwater), overall (40-35) Complex League FCL Twins: Week (1-4), overall (6-18) IN CASE YOU MISSED IT Here are the week’s Twins minor league-related articles. Twins Minor League Week in Review: Second Half Success Scouting Twins Prospects: Jose Miranda Tuesday: Everybody Hits, Sometimes… Wednesday: Bombas Across the Board Thursday: Saints Hold Serve Twins Prospect Joe Ryan Excels in Olympic Debut Twins Acquire Austin Martin and Simeon Woods-Richardson Twins Acquire Evan Sisk Twins Claim Edgar Garcia off Waivers Twins Acquire Alex Scherff Friday: You Win Some, You Lose Some, Sometimes There’s COVID 5 Things to Know About Twins Deadline Centerpiece Austin Martin The Twins Have Got to Make Their Loaded Farm System Count 5 Things To Know About Twins Pitcher Simeon Woods-Richardson Saturday: A New Prospect Approaches Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month - July 2021 Sunday: Tyler Beck Dazzles for Kernels, Surge Win a Thriller Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month - July 2021 HIGHLIGHTS We will start with the Twins choices for the organizational hitter and pitcher of the week, and then mention several other Twins prospects who had good Week 13 performances Twins Player of the Week: Michael Helman, Cedar Rapids Kernels Helman played in six games last week for the Kernels and hit .435/.500/.652 (1.152) with a triple and a home run in 26 plate appearances. In 71 games this season, he has hit .237/.333/.420 (.754) with 13 doubles and ten home runs. At least twice this season, Helman has ended a game in walk-off fashion. Helman was the Twins 11th round pick in 2018 out of Texas A&M. Twins Pitcher of the Week: Louie Varland, Cedar Rapids Kernels It has been a breakout year for St. Paul native and Concordia University alum Louie Varland. He began the season dominating in Ft. Myers, and after throwing five shutout innings this week for the Kernels, he has begun his Cedar Rapids tenure with 16 scoreless innings. He was the Twins choice for Pitcher of the Week, and he was Twins Daily’s choice for Starting Pitcher of the Month for July. Click the link for more information on the hard-throwing right-hander. Other Strong Performances this Week St. Paul Saints Jimmy Kerrigan was named the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Month, and he ended it with a strong week. In six games, he hit .391/.423/.696 (1.119) with a double and two home runs. Rob Refsnyder played four rehab games. He hit .500/.600/1.063 (1.663) with three doubles and two homers. Keon Broxton played four games and hit .333/.412/.800 (1.212) with a double and two homers. Jose Miranda played five games and hit .409/.480/.636 (1.116) with two doubles and a homer. On the mound, Matt Shoemaker tossed seven shutout innings in his start. He gave up just two hits, walked two and struck out six batters. Rob Whalen returned and tossed two perfect innings over two games. In his start last Tuesday, Chandler Shepherd gave up two hits over seven scoreless innings. Wichita Wind Surge Spencer Steer had been struggling in Wichita since his promotion, other than home runs. In five games last week, he hit .444/.565/1.056 (1.621) with three doubles, a triple and two home runs. BJ Boyd played all six games and hit .429/.448/.679 (1.127) with a double and two home runs. DJ Burt played in four games and hit .357/.550/.500 (1.050) with two doubles. Chris Williams hit .357 and had a double and a home run. Chris Nunn made his Twins organizational debut this week. He struck out seven batters in 3 2/3 innings over two games. Cedar Rapids Kernels Yunior Severino was promoted to the Kernels and in his five games, he hit .412/.524/.647 (1.171) with four doubles and four walks. Matt Wallner played in five games. He hit .304/.304/.783 (1.087) with two doubles and three home runs. Edouard Julien hit just .217, but he posted a .976 OPS because his five hits included two doubles and three home runs. Tyler Beck tossed five scoreless innings in his start. He gave up two hits and two walks, but struck out five. Zach Featherstone continues to dominate. He pitched in three games and had a hold and two saves. In four innings, he struck out seven and didn’t allow a run. Tyler Watson gave up only an unearned run over his five innings in his start. Erik Manoah, Jr., struck out eight batters in 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Ft. Myers Might Mussels Obviously when the team played just three games, it’s hard to make too much out of anything. Charlie Mack played in one of the three games, and he went 3-for-4. Keoni Cavaco hit a home run in the game he played. Ruben Santana went 5-for-10 with a double and a walk (1.145 OPS). Sawyer Gipson-Long was the league’s pitcher of the week. In his start, he went seven innings and gave up just an unearned run on three hits and a walk. He struck out nine batters. Bobby Milaci tossed three perfect innings and struck out three batters. FCL Twins Emmanuel Rodriguez had just two hits in nine at bats, but both were home runs. LaRon Smith went 4-for-8 (.500) with his fourth homer of the season. Kala’i Rosario went 6-for-16 (.375) with three walks, a double and a triple. Samuel Perez tossed six innings of one-hit baseball this past week. He struck out eight batters. Ramon Pineda struck out four batters in four scoreless innings… and his brother didn’t get traded. Giovahniey German threw three innings and gave up just one hit while striking out three batters. Juan Mendez gave up just one hit over 3 2/3 scoreless innings. ; LOWLIGHTS Weekly Reminder: We are talking about very small samples for these six-game weeks, so it’s important not to make any big decisions or develop a full impression on a player from this small size. It’s just a reminder of the fact that baseball is hard, and all players have good and bad stretches. St. Paul Saints Damek Tomscha went 1-for-12 (.083) over four games. JT Riddle was 2-for-14 (.143). In his start on Sunday, Chandler Shepherd again took one for the team. In four innings, he gave up eight runs on 11 hits. Wichita Wind Surge Roy Morales went 3-for-17 (.176). Ernie De La Trinidad went 2-for-13 (.154) over four games. Trey Cabbage went 3-for-16 (.188) with ten strikeouts. Chris Vallimont had a tough two-start week. He gave up 11 runs (10 earned) on 10 hits and eight walks in 8 1/3 innings. Byran Sammons gave up seven earned runs on five hits and four walks in four innings in his start. Jordan Balazovic went 3 1/3 innings in his start and gave up seven runs (6 earned) on six hits and four walks. Cedar Rapids Kernels Seth Gray went 4-for-26 (.154) with 12 strikeouts. Tyler Palm gave up five runs on seven hits in 2 1/3 innings. He was replacing Cody Laweryson who gave up three runs in just 2/3 of an inning before leaving with an apparent injury. The good news is that he is on the schedule to make another start this week. Ft. Myers Might Mussels The lowlight was simply that the team played just three games up in Clearwater because of a COVID situation by their opponent. Games Friday through Sunday were canceled. TRENDING STORYLINE For this week, let’s use this section to ask our readers a couple of questions. Leave your responses or comments below. #1a. Who is the Twins top position player prospect? It would appear that it is a choice between Austin Martin and Royce Lewis, but has Jose Miranda done enough to put himself into that conversation? #1b. Who is the Twins top pitching prospect? This one is pretty challenging. In our preseason rankings, Jhoan Duran was ahead of Jordan Balazovic. Is it one of them? Does either Simeon Woods-Richardson or Joe Ryan enter the conversation? How about Matt Canterino? Maybe even Josh Winder? PROSPECT SUMMARY We have now updated this Prospect Summary to show our Midseason Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings… #1 - Royce Lewis (Wichita) - Out for Season (torn ACL) #2 - Jhoan Duran (St. Paul) – 5 G, 4 GS, 16.0 IP, 16 H, 13 BB, 22 K, 5.06 ERA, 1.81 WHIP (on IL with a right forearm strain) #3 - Jordan Balazovic (Wichita) – 11 GS, 52.2 IP, 47 H, 19 BB, 64 K, 3.59 ERA, 1.25 WHIP #4 - Matt Canterino (Cedar Rapids) – 4 GS, 18.0 IP, 10 H, 3 BB, 35 K, 1.00 ERA, 0.72 WHIP (went on the IL with right elbow strain) #5 - Jose Miranda (St. Paul) – 76 games, .347/.410/.612 (1.022) with 18 doubles, 22 homers, 62 RBI, 30 BB, 48 K #6 - Keoni Cavaco (Ft. Myers) – 43 games, .264/.344/.362 (.706) with 6 doubles, 2 triple, 2 homers, 20 RBI, 18 BB, 52 K, 6 SB #7 - Gilberto Celestino (St. Paul) – Wichita (21 games, .250/.344/.381 (.725) with 5 doubles, 2 homers. 11 BB, 24 K), St. Paul (1 game, .400/.400/1.000 (1.400) with 1 homer, 0 BB, 1 K), Minnesota (22 games, .140/.183/.298 (.482) with 3 BB, 13 K) #8 - Josh Winder (St. Paul) - 14 GS, 72.0 IP, 55 H, 13 BB, 80 K, 2.63 ERA, 0.94 WHIP #9 - Aaron Sabato (Ft. Myers) – 71 games, .185/.370/.290 (.660) with 13 doubles, 4 homers, 26 RBI, 66 BB, 97 K #10 - Matt Wallner (Cedar Rapids) – 26 games, .330/.381/.680 (1.060) with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 9 homers, 20 RBI, 7 BB, 41 K. #11 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) – 3 GS, 14.2 IP, 13 H, 6 BB, 23 K, 1.84 ERA, 1.30 WHIP (underwent Tommy John surgery on June 9th) #12 - Bailey Ober (Minnesota) – St. Paul (4 GS, 16.0 IP, 13 H, 5 BB, 21 K, 2.81 ERA, 1.13 WHIP), Minnesota (11 GS, 47.1 IP, 46 H, 14 BB, 51 K, 4.94 ERA, 1.27 WHIP) #13 - Cole Sands (Wichita) – 10 G, 9 GS, 39.2 IP, 27 H, 19 BB, 53 K, 2.72 ERA, 1.16 WHIP #14 - Brent Rooker (St. Paul) – St. Paul (58 games, .239/.368/.566 (.934) with 8 doubles, 1 triple, 19 homers, 37 BB, 74 K), Minnesota (16 games, .197/.258/.443 (700) with 3 doubles, 4 homers, 5 RBI, 4 BB, 20 K) #15 - Misael Urbina (Ft. Myers) – 67 games, .203/.303/.299 (602) with 7 doubles, 4 triples, 3 homer, 43 RBI, 35 BB, 56 K, 11 SB) #16 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - 73 games, .257/.371/.504 (.874) with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 18 homers, 44 RBI, 45 BB, 63 K) #17 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 71 games, .226/.279/.420 (.700) with 12 doubles, 8 triples, 9 homers, 38 RBI, 18 BB, 102 K) #18 - Alerick Soularie (Complex) – N/A (injured) #19 - Edwar Colina (Minnesota) - 60-Day IL (had surgery on his right elbow to remove bone chips) #20 - Chris Vallimont (Wichita) - 14 GS, 59.1 IP, 56 H, 36 BB, 94 K, 4.85 ERA, 1.55 WHIP LOOKING AHEAD Dunedin @ Ft. Myers (Casey Legumina, Sean Mooney, Landon Leach, Bobby Milacki, TBD, Sawyer Gipson-Long): Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids:(Jon Olsen, Tyler Watson, Ben Gross, Louie Varland, Tyler Beck Cody Laweryson) Midland @ Wichita: (Cole Sands, Bryan Sammons, Jordan Balazovic, Chris Vallimont, Austin Schulfer, Cole Sands) Louisville @ St. Paul: (Matt Shoemaker, Andrew Albers, Drew Strotman, TBD, TBD, Matt Shoemaker): Feel free to ask any questions you like. View full article

Lance Lynn is the exception. Sounds like Joe Ryan is close to that as well with so many fastballs. Depends on the movement, I'm sure.

Most minor leaguers drive Uber or have some sort of offseason job because they don't get paid. The Twins have signed more than a dozen players from independent leagues this year. Just a ton, plus a couple of weeks ago, they signed four guys from the USPBL. All that and I'm sure they would be absolutely thrilled if any of them gets to the big leagues.

After taking a look at the top hitters in the Twins minor leagues in July yesterday, let’s take a look at who the top starting pitchers in the organization were. There were certainly some strong candidates for the top spot. Before we share our choices for the Twins Minor League Top Four Starters for July, there were some other solid starting performers that just missed the cut. Let’s discuss the top starting pitchers in the organization in July. HONORABLE MENTION RHP Ben Gross - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 G, 3 GS, 21.0 IP, 2.14 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 14 H, 4 BB, 25 K RHP Jordan Balazovic - Wichita Wind Surge - 5 GS, 28.1 IP, 2.86 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 21 H, 11 BB, 31 K. THE TOP FOUR STARTING PITCHERS #4 - RHP Giovahniey German - FCL Twins - 5 GS, 16.2 IP, 1.62 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 9 H, 7 BB, 19 K German was born in Massachusetts but grew up in the Dominican Republic. The Twins signed him as a 16-year-old in 2017. He spent two seasons in the DSL. After missing the 2020 season, He came to the States this spring and was placed on the FCL Twins roster. His first start was June 28th and he gave up four earned runs in four innings. In his first start of July, he gave up three earned runs in 3 1/3 innings. Since then, he has tossed 13 1/3 innings and only allowed an unearned run. In his July 13th start, he tossed five no-hit innings and allowed two walks. #3 - LHP Aaron Rozek - FCL Twins/Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels/Wichita Wind Surge - 5 G, 2 GS, 22.0 IP, 1.64 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, 16 H, 2 BB, 29 K Rozek grew up a Twins fan in Burnsville. After high school, he went to Minnesota State-Mankato. He redshirted and then pitched four seasons for the Mavericks. He also played in the Northwoods League during his summers. He went undrafted in 2018 and has played independent baseball since. Until, that is, the Twins signed him in June. It’s been an interesting month. After two appearances in the FCL, including five shutout innings on July 3rd in which he struck out 11, he was moved to the Double-A Wichita Wind Surge. He pitched three scoreless innings in relief and recorded a Win. He was then sent to Ft. Myers where he has pitched three times. He tossed five scoreless innings in his first start there and ended the month with a two-inning scoreless outing. The lefty rarely, if ever, touches 90 on a radar gun, but he mixes things up well to keep hitters off balance. #2 - LHP Tyler Watson - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 G, 3 GS, 19.0 IP, 0.47 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 11 H, 7 BB, 17 K Watson spent most of the season’s first month in a piggybacking role, either starting and working three innings or coming on after the starting and working three innings. In June, he worked mostly as a more traditional relief pitcher, working two innings or less. His final appearance of June was a four-inning start, and his four outings in July were all either four or five innings. His non-start, he came into the game in the second inning and pitched until the seventh inning. On the month, he gave up just two earned runs. He limited base runners. He was very good. Overall this season, the former Nationals prospect is 2-1 with a 1.68 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is (Drumroll, please...) Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels - RHP Louie Varland - 5 GS, 27.0 IP, 1.00 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 20 H, 8 BB, 36 K Louie Varland was a star on the diamond and on the wrestling mat in his years at North St. Paul High School. He stayed home and pitched for three years at Concordia University in St. Paul, the first two years with his brother Gus. Gus was the 14th round pick of the Oakland A’s in 2018. He was traded to the Dodgers earlier this year. Louie was the 15th round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 2019. He pitched in just three games that summer for Elizabethton. He used the 2020 summer to get healthy, get stronger and gain velocity, and he did just that, hitting 100 mph on a radar gun before spring training. But for now, the intent for Varland is to be a starter, and he’s been fantastic. He began the season with Ft. Myers where he went 4-2 with a 2.09 ERA in 10 games. In 47 1/3 innings, he walked 16 and struck out 76 batters. He made two July starts in Ft. Myers, but mid-month, he was promoted to HIgh-A Cedar Rapids. He has made three starts for the Kernels so far and is yet to allow a run. In 16 innings, he has given up just eight hits, walked seven and struck out 17 batters. His best start was in Cedar Rapids against Beloit when he gave up one hit and struck out nine batters in five scoreless innings. Overall this season, the 23-year-old is 5-2 with a 1.56 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. In 63 1/3 innings, he has walked 23 and struck out 93 batters. Congratulations to our Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month of July, Cedar Rapids RHP Louie Varland. View full article

A large percentage of the scouting group is still around. Sean Johnson took over for Deron Johnson, but Deron and Mike Radcliff are still very involved. It's a lot of the same scouting leadership, cross-checkers and scouts. And yeah, when Kirilloff, Larnach and Jeffers are no longer "prospects" the system ratings will take a step backwards, even if nothing really changes.

For Winder, it was a plan to give him the week off from pitching in games. He hasn't really had a skipped start all year, and then the Futures Game and such. So, all indications are that it isn't injury-related. There were reports that Canterino is getting closer, hopefully will pitch in the coming weeks. No updates on Duran. We're getting to that point where he may start throwing and can be evaluated again.

He was released a couple of months ago. Last I saw, he signed with the Mets organization.

Guardian-Like... And I think that makes sense... 2nd and 3rd day pitchers are what make up the Cleveland staff... Twins have a lot of good options from Day 2 types, including Jax, Barnes, Winder, Sands, Balazovic... and even Day 3 types like Ober, Rogers, etc.

The trade deadline has passed, and so has the third month of the minor league season. Today, we start handing out awards by discussing the top hitters in the Twins minor leagues this month. Here are the top four hitters for the month of July, but first here are some players deserving of honorable mention. HONORABLE MENTION OF Keon Broxton - St. Paul Saints - 19-68, .279/.383/.618 (1.000) with 2 doubles, 7 home runs, 11 BB, 24 K. IF Andrew Bechtold - Wichita Wind Surge - 21-78, .269/.374/.577 (.951) with 6 doubles, 6 home runs, 12 BB, 31 K. OF Max Smith - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 16-65, .246/.398/.538 (.936) with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs, 17 BB, 30 K. C Charlie Mack - Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels - 19-55, .345/.419/.491 (.910) with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 7 BB, 11 K. OF Luis Baez - FCL Twins - 18-49, .367/.466/.551 (1.017) with 3 doubles, 3 triples, 5 BB, 11 K. C Alexander Pena - FCL Twins - 21-50, .420/.473/.520 (.993) with 5 doubles, 4 BB, 13 K. OF Kala’i Rosario - FCL Twins - 26-80, .325/.360/.563 (.923) with 5 doubles, 4 triples, 2 home runs, 5 BB, 20 K. THE TOP FOUR HITTERS Number 4 - Cedar Rapids Kernels - UT Michael Helman - 29-94, .309/.404/.521 (.925) with 6 doubles, 1 triples, 4 home runs, 14 BB, 20 K. Michael Helman was the Twins 11th round pick in 2018 after one season at Texas A&M. Previously, he had put up monster numbers at Hutchinson CC. His pro career started out well with 12 games in Elizabethton before playing 27 games at Cedar Rapids. Combined, he hit .361/.409/.510 with six doubles, two triples and four homers. He jumped to High-A Ft. Myers, but he hit just .197 in 82 before an injury ended his season. After a missed 2020 season, Helman began the season in Cedar Rapids, now the High-A affiliate. In 70 games, he is hitting .233/.332/.421 (.753) with 13 doubles and ten home runs. He’s also got 11 stolen bases. The increased power and his ability to play at least seven positions on the diamond have moved him back up prospect rankings. Number 3 – St. Paul Saints - IF Drew Maggi - 21-81, .259/.355/.667 (1.022) with 6 doubles, 9 homers, 8 BB, 27 K. 32-year-old Drew Maggi is in his third season in the Twins organization. His pro career began in 2010 when he was the 15th round pick of the Pirates. Since then, he also has played in the Dodgers and Cleveland’s system. After splitting 2019 between Pensacola and Rochester, he spent the 2020 season in St. Paul at the Twins alternate site. In 56 games with the Saints this year, he has hit .238/.336/.481 (.818) with ten doubles and 11 homers, nine of which came in July. He had homers in the first four Saints games of July and seven in the first 12 games. Number 2 - St. Paul Saints – IF Jose Miranda - 37-112, .330/.402/.571 (.973) with 9 doubles, 6 home runs, 13 BB. 22 K. Jose Miranda was the Twins Daily choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month in both May and June. This month, his first full month with the Saints, he drops to second on the list despite putting up another great performance in July. Miranda was the 73rd overall pick in the 2016 draft, one spot ahead of Akil Baddoo. Like Baddoo, Miranda was left exposed to the Rule 5 draft. Unlike Baddoo, Miranda was not selected. He spent two months in Double-A to start the season and was promoted to the Saints where he has played 29 games now. Combined, he is hitting .347/.410/.612 (1.022) with 18 doubles, 22 homers and 62 RBI. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: St. Paul Saints – OF Jimmy Kerrigan - 25-68, .368/.436/.735 (1.171), 4 doubles, 7 home runs, 9 BB, 23 K. A Philadelphia native, Kerrigan stayed home and went to Temple University where he played two seasons. Then the school dropped its baseball program. He went to Virginia Commonwealth where he played well for two years but went undrafted. He played in the independent Frontier League before the Twins signed him midway through the 2017 season and played in Cedar Rapids. In both 2018 and 2019, he spent most of the seasons in Double-A with some time in Triple-A. He began the 2021 season at Double-A Wichita, but after just two games, he was promoted to the Saints. In 62 games, he has hit .261/.353/.495 (.848) with eight doubles and 12 home runs. He also can play all three outfield positions well, and has a very strong arm. We would like to congratulate St. Paul outfielder Jimmy Kerrigan, Twins Daily’s choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month for July 2021. Feel free to share your thoughts and ask questions. View full article

I've been trying to find video that I thought I saw on twitter of a Baldelli press conference that I'd like to post here, but I think he explains it well. And it's nothing new... Dan Hayes tweeted why it makes so much sense too. It's not really difficult. 1.) Ober's career-high innings was 78.1 IP in 2019, when he missed half of the season with elbow issues, which he's had since his sophomore year of college. 2.) He pitched zero competitive innings in 2020. He wasn't in St. Paul at the alternate site. He wasn't at Instructional League in Ft. Myers in November. 3.) They need to keep him healthy through 10-11 more starts this year and probably try to keep him in the 110-120 innings range. Baldelli's comments (notice that he says this is an organizational theory, not just his and Wes's, but the front office, the medical team, etc.) Hayes tweets: Ober's comments:

After a long and emotional trade deadline day on Friday that ended in another Twins loss, the team came out hitting on Saturday and the pitching backed them up on the way to a nice 8-1 win in St. Louis. Box Score Bailey Ober: 4 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (64 pitches, 44 strikes (68.8%)) Home Runs: Jeffers (9), Top 3 WPA: Jorge Polanco (0.126), Bailey Ober (0.117), Miguel Sano (.109) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The Return of Arraez Before Saturday’s game, the Twins announced that Luis Arraez was being activated from the Injured List. Gilberto Celestino was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul (will he finally make his Saints debut?). He was put into the cleanup spot in the Twins lineup. It paid immediate dividends for the team. In the first inning, he came up with runners on second and third base. He gave the Twins a 1-0 lead with a sacrifice fly. He added another RBI his second time up. With runners on first and second, he hit a double down the right field line. He added a walk later in the game. Bailey’s Big Hit Bailey Ober had not had an at-bat in a baseball game in eight years, since he and Vikings center Garrett Bradbury were starring at Charlotte Christian High School in North Carolina. He stepped to the plate, and on an 0-1 pitch, lined a single to right field for his first big-league hit. OK, softly lined a single to right field. It doesn’t matter. Congratulations to Ober! The Twins' pitchers haven’t had a lot of hits of late. More importantly, Bailey Ober pitched well. He began with three scoreless innings, and then in the fourth, he gave up a run but was able to limit damage with a big double play ball. Despite a 7-1 lead, Ober was due to bat for the third time but Willians Astudillo pinch hit and grounded a single through the infield to give the Twins an 8-1 lead. Ober’s fastball sat between 92 and 93 mph, but he is able to get swings and misses with it up in the strike zone. Why? As important, the Twins bullpen combined for five shutout innings. Jorge Alcala worked two innings, and then Caleb Thielbar, Juan Minaya and Alexander Colome each pitched one inning. (see the bullpen usage chart below) Jeffers Jolts In the third inning, Ryan Jeffers came to the plate and hit a three-run homer to give the Twins a 7-0 lead. It was his ninth homer of the season, but it was his third in his past two starts. Remember, he had two homers in that crazy, 17-14 loss to the Tigers on Wednesday. In his past nine games, Jeffers is 9-for-29 (.310) with two doubles, three homers and an OPS north of 1.000). Since returning from the IL, Mitch Garver has played in five games and hit .278 (1.324 OPS) with two doubles, three homers and ten RBI. After both struggled mightily at the plate in April, Twins fans are now seeing what we thought we might from the Twins catching duo. It feels appropriate to talk about the performance of Twins catchers on a night when Hall of Fame catcher Ted Simmons' number was retired by the Cardinals and a statue of his likeness was unveiled outside the stadium. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Coulombe 0 10 0 0 23 0 33 Thielbar 13 16 0 0 0 14 43 Alcala 0 11 0 0 0 21 32 Gant 0 0 24 0 0 0 24 Colomé 16 0 0 0 0 16 32 Minaya 0 0 45 0 0 18 63 Duffey 11 7 0 0 32 0 50 Burrows 0 0 63 0 0 0 63 View full article

Miranda played more 2B earlier in this career. I think most think he's a good 3B and 1B, OK at 2B and limited at SS. So, Ryan Mason is moving up to Triple-A. Austin Martin will join Wichita on Tuesday. Evan Sisk is with Wichita today. Scherff was put in the IL. Obviously Woods-Richardson was placed on the temporarily inactive list.

They're all in the FCL... Unfortunately, Raya has yet to pitch due to an injury.

Right-handed reliever Hansel Robles has been traded to the Boston Red Sox for minor leaguer Alex Scherff. Struggling Twins reliever Hansel Robles was moved moments before the close of the 2021 MLB trade deadline for Red Sox minor leaguer Alex Scherff. Scherff, a 23 year old right-hander, was drafted by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the 2017 MLB draft. Register Pitching Year Age AgeDif Tm Lg Lev Aff W L W-L% ERA RA9 G GS GF CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB IBB SO HBP BK WP BF WHIP H9 HR9 BB9 SO9 SO/W 2021 23 2 Teams 2 Lgs A+-AA BOS 3 1 .750 2.45 3.07 23 0 15 0 0 4 29.1 22 10 8 1 13 0 46 2 0 3 127 1.193 6.8 0.3 4.0 14.1 3.54 2021 23 -1.8 Portland AANE AA BOS 1 0 1.000 1.35 2.70 6 0 3 0 0 1 6.2 5 2 1 0 2 0 9 0 0 0 28 1.050 6.8 0.0 2.7 12.2 4.50 2021 23 -0.4 Greenville HAE A+ BOS 2 1 .667 2.78 3.18 17 0 12 0 0 3 22.2 17 8 7 1 11 0 37 2 0 3 99 1.235 6.8 0.4 4.4 14.7 3.36 All Levels (3 Seasons) 10 18 .357 4.41 4.92 67 43 15 0 0 4 228.2 244 125 112 22 92 0 212 13 0 20 999 1.469 9.6 0.9 3.6 8.3 2.30 Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table Generated 7/30/2021. Robles signed with the Twins early last offseason as a free agent for just $2 million. He had a rough 2020, as many of us did. In 18 games with the Angels, Robles posted a 10.26 ERA and a 1.74 WHIP. In 2019, he had gone 5-1 with 23 saves, a 2.38 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. In 45 games with the Twins this year, he went 3-4 with ten saves, a 4.91 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. He had his moments of good success and big-moment saves, but he walked 24 batters in 44 innings and was very inconsistent. Robles will be a free agent at the end of the season making it an easy decision to trade him if they got any return. The Twins were unable to trade fellow impending free agents Andrelton Simmons, Alexander Colome, and Michael Pineda. Likely the Twins received no offers for Simmons and Colome. However, one would think that the Twins could have received something, maybe even something of quality, for Michael Pineda. Whereas Robles received late-inning opportunities with the Twins, he is more likely to be used in middle relief, maybe in the sixth or seventh innings, for the Red Sox. Scherff isn't going to appear on top prospect rankings. However, the former fifth-round pick has had a nice year at two levels. And 46 strikeouts in 29 1/3 innings is very impressive. What do you think of this deal? View full article

The Twins have an agreement to acquire St. Louis Cardinals pitcher John Gant and LHP prospect Evan Sisk in exchange for LHP J.A. Happ. The Twins are in St. Louis, and J.A. Happ will have to move from the road clubhouse to the home clubhouse. John Gant will turn 29 next week. He was originally the 21st round pick of the Mets out of high school in Florida. He began the season in the Cardinals starting rotation but moved to the bullpen. He is 4-6 with a 3.42 ERA. In 76 1/3 innings, he has walked 56 and struck out 56. Hence, his WHIP is at 1.57. Lefty Evan Sisk went to the College of Charleston with Bailey Ober. This season, he has split time between High-A and Double-A. Overall, he has pitched in 26 games. He has a 3.31 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. In 32 2/3 innings, he has 20 walks and 46 strikeouts. That is the type of player that can be acquired for the 38-year-old Happ. In his 15th MLB season, he is 5-6 with a 6.77 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. In 98 1/3 innings, he has given up 125 hits, walked 21 and struck out 77 batters. He had a near no-hitter early in the season, but has really struggled. He leads MLB in allowing barrels. While Gant isn't a prospect - he's been in the big leagues as far back as 2016 - this is a lottery ticket for the rest of the season. Clearly Gant has control and command issues, but he's got decent stuff. Dan Hayes reports that the Twins acquired John Gant from St. Louis in exchange for LHP J.A. Happ. How do you feel about this trade? View full article