Seth Stohs

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey (photo of Ben Ross) With the holiday weekend, it appears that some of the leagues gave their teams the option to play Thursday through Saturday this weekend instead of Friday through Sunday. Three of four Twins affiliates were supposed to play, but to no one’s surprise in early April, weather became the winner. Just one of the three games were played. But hey, the Twins won in Kansas City and just down the road from them, the Wichita Wind Surge were victorious in their home opener. TRANSACTIONS Following their Thursday afternoon win in Kansas City, the Twins announced that they had acquired RHP Garrett Acton from the Miami Marlins in exchange for RHP Logan Whitaker (who was on the Wind Surge roster). Click here for more. Earlier in the week, the Twins sent their initial opening day rosters. On Thursday’s Opening Day, the teams updated their rosters to include more players listed on the Injured List. St. Paul catcher Ian Daugherty was sent back to the Mighty Mussels. He spent about four days with the Saints. Daugherty signed with the Twins shortly after last year’s draft. He had spent four seasons at Oklahoma State. Wichita placed three players on the 7-Day Injured List, RHPs Jose Olivares and Kyle Bischoff, and infielder Jorel Ortega. Now I see where there were 44 total players including 26 pitchers on the Mussels’ opening day roster. On Thursday, their official roster indicated 16 players on the Injured List. Previously, they had announced players on the 60-Day IL or the Full-Season IL. The following players were placed on the 7-Day Injured List: RHP Billy Oldham (right UCL sprain), RHP Justin Mitrovich (right lat strain), RHP Dylan Questad (left oblique strain), RHP Jason Reitz (left ankle sprain), IF Bruin Agbayani (right thumb strain), C Enrique Jimenez (right finger fracture), OF Yasser Mercedes (right oblique strain). Here are the players placed officially on the 60 Day IL: RHP Matt Barr (right elbow fracture), RHP Callan Fang (right elbow sprain), RHP Jake Hunter (right shoulder impingement), LHP Jace Kaminska (right elbow surgery), LHP Cesar Lares (left elbow surgery), LHP Cleiber Maldonado (left elbow surgery), catcher Carlos Silva (right forearm strain). Two players were placed on the Full-Season IL: RHP Jack Dougherty (right shoulder surgery) and IF Shai Robinson (left shoulder surgery). SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul, Worcester (PPD Rain) In 2025, the Saints led all of the baseball world with 17 games postponed. It actually is impressive that the Saints completed five games before having their first postponement. The Twins and Worcester are not scheduled to play again throughout the 2026 season after Sunday. They have not yet scheduled a doubleheader but would certainly love to get it completed (even though the odds are low) this weekend. The two teams will attempt to play their third game of the series on Friday night. Connor Prielipp is scheduled to make his second Saints start of the season. Baseball America named the Saints as the most talented team in all of minor league baseball coming into this season. It’s hard to disagree. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 10, NW Arkansas 6 Box Score With 73-degree temperatures when the game started in Wichita on Thursday night, Ryan Gallagher got the Opening Night nod for the Surge. He may have been a little nervous, but the game started with him walking the first two batters on eight pitches. There is no ABS system in the Texas League, which is inexplicable, but no fewer than three of those pitches could have been reviewed. However, we know that walks will haunt, and with one out, Brett Squires doubled to score both walkers. Gallagher ended that first inning with back-to-back strikeouts. He followed with a 1-2-3 second inning. In the third frame, he gave up a two-out single but that’s it. The fourth inning was another 1-2-3 inning for Gallagher, who came to the Twins at last year’s trade deadline from the Cubs for Willi Castro. Gallagher came out to start the top of the fifth inning. Unfortunately, the leadoff man reached on an error and went to third base on a single to center. Gallagher got a strikeout, but that marked the end of his night. Mike Paredes came on and after a steal, a sacrifice fly and a soft single to give the Naturals a 5-3 lead in the fifth inning. Both runs were charged to Gallagher, and both were unearned. Gallagher went the first 4 1/3 innings. He gave up four runs (2 earned) on three hits and two walks. He struck out four batters. Paredes went 3 2/3 innings and gave up two runs on four hits. He had five strikeouts and issued no walks. Both runs scored on a Dustin Dickerson two-run homer in the top of the sixth inning. Reclaim the Lead The Wind Surge responded in a big way in the bottom half of the inning. Hendry Mendez was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Billy Amick and Garrett Spain followed with walks to load the bases for Ben Ross. I don’t even know how that would possibly happen, but here is what really happened. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Ross drilled a ball to the opposite field and hit off of the top of the fence for a double. Mendez scored. Amick followed and could have been out, but the ball got away from the catcher which allowed Span to score the third run. Ross advanced all the way to third. After a pitching change, Ross scored on a sacrifice fly by Ricardo Olivar. Adding On… and Closing the Door Kyle DeBarge led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a long, long home run well onto the berm in left field. In the bottom of the eighth, Spain led off with a walk. Ross stepped to the plate and crushed a homer well beyond the top of the left field fence. Alejandro Hidalgo came on for the ninth. He gave up a hit and walked one, but he struck out two batters to end a scoreless inning. Ben Ross went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer, a stolen base, two runs and four RBI. Kyle DeBarge was 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, and a home run. He drove in two runs and scored two runs. Maddux Houghton was 2-for-4 with a triple and made a diving catch in center field. That was Quick! In 2025, Kyle DeBarge began his season by being called safe on his first 27 stolen base attempts. The 22-year-old went on to steal 66 bases in 74 attempts for the Kernels. DeBarge led off the first inning with a walk. Travelers catcher Canyon Brown had a good pitch to throw, had a very quick release, and threw a bullet (or a cannon?) just above second base to throw out DeBarge. DeBarge had a very nice Double-A debut. He had a line drive double down the left field line for an RBI and then crushed a long home run. If Ross can Rake, then Make no Mistake, he Can Be a Big Leaguer. Ross came from a Division II school and was initially known for his bat, but he struggled some early and kept finding himself in the lineup because of his great defense, mostly at shortstop but also at third and second base. I’m trying to think about Twins shortstop prospects over the past two decades. I’m sure I’m missing someone, but I think Ross is, at worst, one of the best defensive shortstops I can remember. I think that Wander Javier was a really good defensive shortstop, though inconsistent. Jordan Gore was really good before he made the move to the mound. I think AJ Pettersen would be near the top of this list. Others who have been following this for a couple of decades, who am I missing? Double-A Win #1 Congratulations to Wind Surge Manager Nico Giarratano on winning his first game as a Double A manager. Giarratano was born and grew up in San Francisco. After graduating from St. Ignatius College Preparatory school in San Francisco. He stayed home and went to the University of San Francisco where he played 218 games at shortstop over his four seasons there. In the 24th round of the 2017 draft, he was selected by the - you guessed it - San Francisco Giants. KERNELS CHRONICLE The Kernels begin their 2026 season on Friday. They will host Peoria for three games. MIGHTY MATTERS After being rained out on Thursday, Fort Myers will also begin their season with a doubleheader on Friday and another game on Saturday. They will host the Clearwater Threshers. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Ben Ross (Wichita): 3-for-4, 2B(1), HR(1), 2 R, 4 RBI, SB(1). Pitcher of the Day Mike Paredes (Wichita): 3 2/3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 45 pitches, 33 strikes (73.3%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - DNP #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - DNP #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - DNP #4 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - DNP #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St. Paul) - Starting Friday #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - Starting Friday #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - DNP #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Injured List (hamstring) #9 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - DNP #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (Ft. Myers) - DNP #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - DNP #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - DNP #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - DNP #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - DNP #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 1-for-3, HBP, R, RBI #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 2-for-4, BB, 2B(1), HR(1), 2 R, 2 RBI, K, CS, E (led off, played 2B) #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - scheduled to start Saturday #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - DNP #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - scheduled to make his pro debut on Saturday. FRIDAY PROBABLES Worcester @ St. Paul (6:37 pm CT) - LHP Connor Prielipp NW Arkansas @ Wichita (6:35 pm CT) - RHP Ty Langenberg Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:05 pm CT) - LHP Dasan Hill Clearwater @ Ft. Myers (DH @ 3:30 CT) - Joel Garcia, James Ellwanger CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 2-4 St. Paul Saints: 3-2 Wichita Wind Surge: 1-0 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 0-0 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 0-0 Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

Image courtesy of © Jim Rassol-Imagn Images Shortly after the Twins left Kansas City following a 5-1 win over the Royals on Thursday afternoon, the team announced that they have acquired right-handed pitcher Garrett Acton from the Miami Marlins in exchange for minor league righty Logan Whitaker. Acton will report to St. Paul this weekend. This might just be another case of an arm that the Twins can use their five options per season on as they need pitchers to move up and down throughout the season. The 28-year-old has a combined 31 days of MLB service time, and he's got two years of minor-league options remaining. There may be some value in that information. Acton is a native of Illinois and was the 35th round pick of the White Sox way back in 2016. He decided not to sign and instead went to the University of St. Louis. After missing the 2018 season, he transferred home to pitch two seasons at the University of Illinois. Of course, in that 2020 season, he only pitched in six games before the season ended abruptly. In those six innings, he tossed 6 2/3 innings and recorded six saves. Late that summer, he signed as a non-drafted free agent with the Oakland A's. In 2021, e combined for 34 games between the two Class A levels. In 2022, he split the season between Double-A and Triple-A. In 2023, he went 5-2 with a 5.59 ERA over 29 innings with Triple-A Las Vegas and posted an ERA of 12.71 in 5 2/3 inning of big-league action. He missed the entire 2024 season due to Tommy John surgery. In December of 2023, the Rays signed him to a two-year minor-league deal. In 2025, he made 45 appearances for the Rays Triple-A ballclub and went 5-1 with a 3.68 ERA over 58 2/3 innings. He pitched one inning for the big-league club. The Rays DFAd him after the 2025 season completed and the Rockies claimed him. In early February, the Rockies DFAd him and the Marlins claimed him. He made two appearances this weekend for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. and had four strikeouts in 2 1/3 scoreless innings. Acton's average fastball is about 95 mph, and he also throws a changeup 8-10 mph slower, as well as a slider. Logan Whitaker is a 25-year-old right-handed pitcher. The Twins made him their 19th round pick in 2025 out of North Carolina State. He pitched in two games for the Mighty Mussels in 2024, and last year, he combined for 25 games between Cedar Rapids and Wichita. He went 4-0 with a 2.11 ERA. In 38 1/3 innings, he had 33 strikeouts and 10 walks. He was set to begin his 2026 season with the Wind Surge. To make room on the Twins 40-man roster, David Festa was transferred to the 60-Day Injured List. View full article

Image courtesy of © Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images TRANSACTIONS Wrote about the Twins signing Drew Smith to a minor-league deal. Sunday he was added to the Saints roster. Catcher David Banuelos was placed on the development list to make roster room. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 4, Indianapolis 1 Box Score Saints Complete 3-Game Sweep Jenkins Returns The plan for Walker Jenkins’ playing time has been laid out through next weekend. He played seven innings on Friday night. He didn’t play on Saturday. On Sunday, he played seven innings. In the top of the eighth frame, his spot in the lineup came up with two outs in the top of the eighth inning. Kyler Fedko pinch hit for him and took over in center field. Jenkins led off the game with a double off of the wall just to the left of dead center field. A couple of batters later, his hamstring was tested. Kaelen Culpepper lined a single to left. Jenkins rounded third and sprinted home. He dove in but was easily out. More importantly, Jenkins was just fine. He walked in his next plate appearance and lined an RBI single. He flew out to right field in his final at-bat. Morris Makes 2026 Saints Debut The goal when the game started was for Morris to go about four innings, and then John Klein would come in and hopefully go three innings. Well, Morris went 3 2/3 innings and gave up one run on three hits. He had one walk and one strikeout. He was at 57 pitches, likely within a handful of his Start #1 limit. Certainly Morris was not in mid-season form. No one would expect him to be. But he only had three whiffs over those 57 pitches. Per StatCast, Morris threw 23 four-seam fastball (40%). He averaged 95.7 mph with the pitch and got nine called strikes. He maxed out at 97.3 mph. So velocity-wise, he’s where he needs to be and has been. He also threw 10 curveballs (18%), eight sinkers (14%), six changeups (11%) and five cutters and five sweepers (9%). Saints Score First Again, Take Early Lead Noah Cardenas led off the top of the second by being hit by a pitch. Tanner Schobel walked. With one out, Jenkins walked to load the bases. Gabriel Gonzelz grounded toward second. Jenkins was out at second, but Gonzalez beat the throw to first and the Saints had their first run. With one out in the third inning, Ryan Kreidler doubled to left. With two outs, Schobel walked again. Aaron Sabato followed with a single to left to drive in the second run. Jenkins followed with an RBI single to make it 3-0. Klein Time Indications and some quotes indicate that Minnesotan John Klein will be used in the three-to-four inning, twice per week role for the Saints this year. The goal for this game, his first outing of the season, was to go about three innings. He went 2 1/3 scoreless innings. He gave up one hit, walked two, and had four strikeouts. He threw 48 pitches and 31 of them were strikes (64.6%). Half of his 48 pitches were four-seam fastballs. He averaged 95.6 mph with a max of 96.9 mph. He threw 14 curveballs (29%). That pitch averaged just under 81 mph, a really nice velocity drop. Same thing with his seven changeups (15%). It averaged 86.8 mph, about nine mph less than his fastball. Finally, he added three cutters. However, he was only able to record four whiffs. I Can Hit Too, Really! We’ve all seen Ryan Kreidler’s career number in MLB. Simply, he hasn’t hit. He has a .138 batting average and .208 on-base percentage over his 188 big-league at-bats. However, it doesn’t take watching him play all over the diamond that you appreciate just how terrific he is defensively. And (Alert: Small Sample Size Warning), Kreidler hit his first double and first home run of the season. Through the first three games, Kreidler is 5-for-10, hitting .500/583/.900 (1.483). The 28-year-old from UCLA has good size. He’s 6-4 and about 210 pounds. New Vets Get Their First Chance When the Twins bring in a new veteran on a minor-league contract, they get them in the game right away! John Brebbia came in for the sixth inning. He got two outs relatively quickly. Then came Dominic Fletcher. 15 pitches later, Brebbia won that mini-battle and ultimately tossed a 1-2-3 inning. He threw eight four-seam fastballs and eight sliders. StatCast said that he threw two cutters and one sinker, one changeup, and one sweeper. Drew Smith came in and pitched the eighth inning. He faced just three batters, but he definitely used his defense. Konnor Griffin led off the inning with a double to the gap in right-center field, but with a perfect relay from Fedko to Culpepper to Kreidler to nail Griffin at third base. A huge play in a three-run game. Smith followed it up by walking a batter, but he followed by getting a double play to end the inning. Grant Hartwig got a strikeout to end the eighth inning on Friday. He came and despite two walks tossed a scoreless inning to record the save. Defensive Alignment It’s only been three games, and the lineup may look different starting Tuesday at CHS Field when the Saints take on the Woo Sox for six games. Here’s a quick look (again, just three games): Saints Players 3/27 3/28 3/29 Walker Jenkins CF DNP CF Kaelen Culpepper SS 3B SS Gabriel Gonzalez DH LF RF Emmanuel Rodriguez RF CF DH Alan Roden LF RF LF Orlando Arcia 2B SS DNP Eric Wagaman 1B 1B DNP Ryan Kreidler 3B 2B 3B Alex Jackson C DNP DNP Kyler Fedko DNS (CF) DH DNS (CF) Noah Cardenas DNP C C Tanner Schobel DNP DNP 2B David Banuelos DNP DNP Dev List Aaron Sabato DNP DNP 1B WIND SURGE WISDOM The Wind Surge season begins on Friday, April 3rd, when they play host to the NW Arkansas Travelers for three games. KERNELS CHRONICLE The Kernels also begin their 2026 season on Friday. They will host Peoria for three games. MIGHTY MATTERS Fort Myers will also begin their season with a three-game home series. They will host the Clearwater Threshers. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Ryan Kreidler (St. Paul): 2-for-4, 2B(1), HR(1), 2 R, RBI, 2 K. Pitcher of the Day John Klein (St. Paul): 2 1/3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 48 pitches, 31 strikes (65.6%%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 2-for-3, BB, 2B(1), RBI (played CF, batted 1st) #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, K (played SS, batted 4th) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, 2 K (DHd, batted 5th) #4 - C Eduardo Tait (TBD) - DNP #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St.Paul) - DNP #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (TBD) - DNP #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, RBI (played RF, batted 2nd) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Injured List (hamstring) #9 - SS Marek Houston (TBD) - DNP #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (TBD) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (TBD) - DNP #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - 3 2/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 57 pitches, 36 strikes (63.2%) #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (TBD) - DNP #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (TBD) - DNP #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - DNP #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (TBD) - DNP #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (TBD) - DNP #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (TBD) - DNP #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (TBD) - DNP #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (TBD) - DNP UPCOMING PROBABLES Tuesday: Worcester @ St. Paul (6:37 pm CT) - LHP Christian MacLeod CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 1-2 St. Paul Saints: 3-0 Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

I did have a note on my list. Buxton is the only player that was around when the Twins hired Derek Falvey.

Image courtesy of Indianapolis Indians The Saints played their second game of the 2026 season on Saturday. It was a game with several lead changes, clutch hits, and more firsts. In a game with 16 total runs scored, there were some very good pitching performances. Check out what happened throughout this game. TRANSACTIONS Yesterday, we pointed out the interesting pathway to St. Paul that Matt Bowman and John Brebbia took. Dan Altavilla had a similar path; it just involved a stint with Team Italy in the WBC. On Saturday, the Twins announced that they had signed 32-year-old veteran Drew Smith to a minor league deal and assigned him to the Saints. A 2015 third-round pick, he pitched for the Mets each season back to 2018 (with the exception of missing 2019 due to injury). SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 9, Indianapolis 7 Box Score Fast Start in the Second On Friday, the Saints jumped ahead with three runs in the top of the first. On Saturday, they went 1-2-3. However, in the second inning, Eric Wagaman led off with a single and stole second. After a ground out, Orlando Arcia walked. Ryan Kreidler and Kyler Fedko followed with RBI singles to give the Saints the 2-0 lead. Zebby Struggles in 2026 Saints Debut Zebby Matthews made his first start, and things started OK. Sure, he walked Konnor Griffin and Ronny Simon singled, but he got a fly out and a double play to end that threat. He followed with a 1-2-3 second inning. The third inning was a rough one. It started with a solo home run by Dominic Fletcher. With one out, Griffin hit an infield single and stole second. He scored on another Simon single which tied the score. In the fourth inning, he began by walking Enmanuel Valdez. Following a sacrifice bunt, Esmerlyn Valdez singled. Fletcher drove in a run on a double. Nine-hitter Alika Williams drove in two more runs to make it 5-2 Indianapolis. However, Matthews responded by striking out Griffin and getting Simon to ground out. That concluded his day. He gave up five earned runs on seven hits and two walks. He had just two strikeouts. According to Baseball Savant, Matthews threw six different pitches: four-seam fastball (27%), slider (29%), cutter (19%), Splitter (10%), curveball (8%), sinker (7%). His average velocity on the four-seamer was 95.3 (95.7 on the sinker), and his max velo was 96.6. He got just one whiff on his 15 four seamer strikes. Likely, he’s being tasked with finding and being more consistent with those other pitches on another cool, Indiana afternoon. Comeback Adults A 2-0 lead became a 5-2 deficit after four innings, but this team, through two games, has shown a spark, and it’s not just the Top Prospects coming up with big hits. Kyler Fedko led off the top of the fifth inning with a single which was followed by another single by nine-hitter Noah Cardenas. That brought Kaelen Culpepper to the plate, and he didn’t waste any time. On the first pitch he can from Nick Dombkowski, he hit a mammoth home run to the berm beyond the wall in left field to tie the game at five a piece. Then in the top of the sixth, Emmanuel Rodriguez and Orlando Arcia got things started with back-to-back singles. A third consecutive single, this one by Kreidler, drove in the sixth run, and Fedko followed with a sacrifice fly to give the Saints a 7-5 lead. The Bullpen Got the Job Done Andrew Bash came in to start the fifth inning for the Saints. He went 2 1/3 innings and gave up no runs on three hits and a walk. Bash was the 30th round pick of the Angels in 2019 out of California Baptist. The Angels released him in May of 2020. When minor league baseball started up again in 2021, Bash was with the Blue Jays. He pitched in their organization through the 2025 season. He made his Triple-A debut for Buffalo back in 2022 with seven games. In 2023, he went 4-1 with a 2.22 ERA over 13 games (9 starts) and 48 2/3 innings. In 2024, he pitched in 27 games (16 starts) and 78 2/3 innings. He was 4-0 with a 2.97 ERA. In 2025, he pitched in 40 games (5 starts) and in 84 innings, he went 6-2 with a 2.57 ERA. As a free agent, he signed with the Twins quickly. Dan Altavilla came in on back-to-back days. In this game, he faced two batters and got them both out. Trent Baker made his first appearance of the season. He came into the eighth inning with a two-run lead. Things can happen quickly in baseball. The inning started with back-to-back-to-back singles which loaded the bases and brought Konnor Griffin to the plate. Maybe luckily, Baker walked him to make it 7-6, but still no outs. Ronny Simon came up and hit a sacrifice fly to left field to tie the game. However, he really responded well. He struck out The Password (Jhostynxon Garcia) and got a ground out to end the inning with the game still tied. We’ll Play Hero, Again In the top of the ninth, Culpepper worked a one-out walk. Gabriel Gonzalez lined a double to right field. It would appear that the ball was lost in the sun, but if you’re a Twins/Saints fan, that’s OK. Culpepper advanced to third base. In the season opener on Friday night, Alan Roden went 1-1 with four walks. He drove in two runs with a first-inning single. Fast-forward to Saturday, and this was definitely a big spot. Roden calmly drilled a double to the gap in left-center field to put the Saints back up by two runs. Marco…. Raya. Marco… Raya… Marco Raya was set up for the ninth inning save situation. His spring training performance wasn’t terribly encouraging as he had some bouts of wildness. However, you could see the immense potential, a big fastball and a sharp slider. On Saturday afternoon, Raya was really strong and mixed his pitches well. He threw 19 total pitches and mixed in five different pitches. He threw just three four-seam fastballs including one at 97.0 mph. His most-used pitch was his sweeper. He threw six sweepers, two were called strikes and he got whiffs on three of the other four sweepers. He also threw five curveballs. One was a called strike and two were whiffs. He added one more whiff on one of the two cutters he threw. He gave up a double to left-handed Termarr Johnson. Raya got ahead of him 0-2 on a couple of cutters on the inside corner. He then threw him a fastball on the outer part of the plate. Johnson reached his bat out and lined a double down the left-field line. You just tip your cap to the hitter on that one. Raya struck out the other three batters. Jenkins Sits, Kyler Fedko pinch hit for Walker Jenkins in the eighth inning of Friday night’s season opener. That was as planned. On Saturday, he did not play. Also, part of the plan. As a reminder, he injured his hamstring, so they have a plan for how much playing time he will get early in the season. It is likely that he will play on Sunday, maybe even as the DH, and certainly depending upon the weather. Multi-Hit Games The Saints had 12 hits in this game. All nine starters had at least one hit. Alan Roden had two hits and two RBI. Ryan Kreidler was 2-for-3, a walk, and two RBI. Kyler Fedko was 2-for-3 with a sacrifice fly, two RBI, and a stolen base. Challenges Can Be Good Through the first two games, the Saints have been successful on just one of four challenges (25%). BC: Ball Confirmed Saints Player 3/27 3/28 BOS: Ball Overturned to Strike Alex Jackson C 2 (1-1, BOS-BC) SC: Strike Confirmed Noah Cardenas C 1 (0-1, BC) SOB: Strike Overturned to Ball Em. Rodriguez 1 (0-1, SC) Versatility is Good The goal of a Triple-A team is to prepare a player to be ready for the big leagues. That means many things from approach to skill development, to self-confidence, to fundamentals and more things. One of those things is having players ready to play a couple of different positions. Sometimes prospects get called up and take over a position. Maybe that’s ideal in some cases. But I would think that most of the time players are promoted to fill a need. So, giving players actual playing time at a variety of positions is important. It’s only been two games, and the lineup will look different again on Sunday, but we have already seen players playing multiple positions. Here’s a quick look (again, just two games): Saints Players 3/27 3/28 3/29 Walker Jenkins CF DNP Kaelen Culpepper SS 3B Gabriel Gonzalez DH LF Emmanuel Rodriguez RF CF Alan Roden LF RF Orlando Arcia 2B SS Eric Wagaman 1B 1B Ryan Kreidler 3B 2B Alex Jackson CF DNP Kyler Fedko DNS (CF) DH Noah Cardenas DNP CF Tanner Schobel DNP DNP David Banuelos DNP DNP Aaron Sabato DNP DNP WIND SURGE WISDOM The Wind Surge season begins on Friday, April 3rd, when they play host to the NW Arkansas Travelers for three games. KERNELS CHRONICLE The Kernels also begin their 2026 season on Friday. They will host Peoria for three games. MIGHTY MATTERS Fort Myers will also begin their season with a three-game home series. They will host the Clearwater Threshers. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Alan Roden (St. Paul): 2-for-5, 2B (1), 2 RBI, K (GW RBI). Pitcher of the Day Marco Raya (St. Paul): 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, Save (1), 19 pitches, 14 strikes (73.7%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - DNP (planned day off) #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, HR (1), 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 K (played 3B, batted 1st) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, R, K (played CF, batted 5th) #4 - C Eduardo Tait (TBD) - DNP #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St. Paul) - DNP #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (TBD) - DNP #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, 2B(1), R, K (played LF, batted 2nd) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Injured List (hamstring) #9 - SS Marek Houston (TBD) - DNP #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (TBD) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (TBD) - DNP #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (TBD) - DNP #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (TBD) - DNP #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, Save (1), 19 pitches, 14 strikes (73.7%) #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (TBD) - DNP #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (TBD) - DNP #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (TBD) - DNP #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (TBD) - DNP #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (TBD) - DNP UPCOMING PROBABLES Sunday: St. Paul @ Indianapolis (12:35 pm CT) - RHP Andrew Morris CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 1-1 St. Paul Saints: 2-0 Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

I watched it on Twins TV and milb.com. To be fair, most of the game recaps will probably be a little less since they'll cover four or six games. We'll want to stick to multi-hit games, extra base hits, homers, key plays, highlights and pitching performances. Hopefully we can get occasional quotes, and our authors will find some unique angle to write about.

Thanks for the kind words. The game was in Indianapolis, so nope, I didn't go there. I have gone to a couple of Saints games in the press box. They provide some press box food. The few times I have been there, it's been "real" food (as opposed to ballpark fare). Salad and some sort of pasta is one I can remember. I haven't been there for a couple of years.

I watched it on Twins TV last night.

Image courtesy of William Parmeter Since the Saints are the only affiliate playing until next week, we’ll treat the minor league report as if it was a Twins Game Recap. We’ll include notes on the other affiliates as news breaks. In other words, this will be a bit more than just a regular summary and hopefully more detailed to give you more information. As you know, the daily minor-league reports are a staple at Twins Daily. You’ve come to expect it and we sure enjoy writing it, even in the middle of the summer when all six affiliates have a game and a couple of them are doubleheaders. There is a great group of commenters who read the report daily, discuss fun topics (or not-so-fun topics), and ask questions. We really do appreciate you, and your input. Here’s to another fun-filled, exciting 2026 season! If you have any questions or comments, let us know in the comments or DM me. What are your favorite parts of it, and are there parts that seem unnecessary? We welcome your suggestions and look to continue making it a Must Read for fans. TRANSACTIONS On Thursday, the Saints announced their Opening Day roster. That included playing Kendry Rojas, Julian Merryweather and Cory Lewis on the Injured List. Catcher Patrick Winkel, who has played with the Saints the past two seasons, has been released. A plus-defensive backstop, he could be a successful coach or manager if he chooses that direction when his playing career is done. At just 26, he could continue to play for several yeas with his knowledge of the game and defensive chops. RHPs Matt Bowman and John Brebbia have been added to the Saints roster. Bowman was a non-roster invite to big-league spring training. When told he wasn’t going to make the Opening Day roster, he elected free agency, likely hoping for a big-league opportunity. Not seeing one, he re-signed with the Twins. Brebbia has spent big-league time with five organizations over parts of eight seasons going back to his debut in 2017. After the 2025 season, he became a free agent and quickly signed with the Colorado Rockies on a minor-league contract. He remained in their spring camp until the last day. Like Bowman, he looked around and after not seeing a big-league job, chose to sign with the Twins. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 4, Indianapolis 2 Box Score Fast Start in the First The Saints started the season with a strong first inning off of former Twins and Saints pitcher Noah Davis. Right 28-year-old right-hander pitched five innings over four appearances with the Twins last year and posted a 16.20 ERA. He posted a 3.78 ERA over 14 games and 16 2/3 innings. To be fair, he also earned a World Series ring because he pitched in five games for the Dodgers earlier in the season and in six innings posted a 19.50 ERA. After Walker Jenkins led off with a pop out, Gabriel Gonzalez was hit by a pitch. Kaelen Culpepper singled to left in his first Triple-A at-bat. Emmanuel Rodriguez followed with a walk to load the bases. Alan Roden came to the plate and lined a single to center that drove in the game’s and season’s first two runs. After Orlando Arcia struck out, Eric Wagaman singled to right field to drive in Rodriguez with the third run of the inning. Slow Start, Quick Turnaround Connor Prielipp was given the Opening Day nod for the Saints. In a game that started at 42 degrees and after a long top of the first, it took the lefty a little while to find himself. In Connor vs Konnor: Part 1, the game’s top prospect (Konnor Griffin) walked. Prielipp followed with a strikeout, and Griffin stole second. The Password (Jhostynxon Garcia) followed with a walk, and Endy Rodriguez singled to drive in Griffin to make it a 3-1 game. At that point, Saints pitching coach Carlos Hernandez came to the mound to chat with his starter. Whatever the former big-league southpaw said, Prielipp listened. He recorded a strikeout and got a ground out to end the first inning. The Saints co-pitching coach, Ryan Ricci, said after the game, “We both just emphasized how efficiency is important for him, and how his stuff is too good to fall behind guys and let them run up his pitch count.” In the second frame, Prielipp got a ground out and two pop outs in the infield. In Connor vs Konnor: Part 2, the game’s top prospect checked his swing on a pitch, but too late. He made contact with the ball and it went out to second base for the ground out. Kind of a nice, easy out, except Griffin’s speed made it very close. The next two batters struck out. In the fourth inning, he got a grounder back to the mound, a ground out to third base, and followed it up with a strikeout. So again, after the Hernandez mound visit, Prielipp bore down and retired the next 11 batters he faced. Staying true to their plan with the talented lefty the past couple of years, his day was done after four innings, at 61 pitches. Ricci added, “He did a great job of adjusting the last three innings and thought it was awesome to see him get through four (innings) on his pitch count after being at 27 after the first.” Looking at his pitch-mix in the season opener, Prielipp threw 25 four-seam fastballs (41%), 18 sliders (30%), and 10 curveballs (16%). He added five changeups and three sinkers as well. His fastball averaged 95.4 mph and topped out at 97.0 mph. He averaged 95.6 mph in the first inning and 93.6 mph in the fourth inning. It’s also interesting to note that in 31 pitches against left-handers, he threw 16 fastballs (52%) while in 30 pitches against right-handers, he threw just nine fastballs (30%). Ricci noted, “His key to success was the command of his fastball and slider in the later innings, to get ahead, and getting back in the zone. I think he was able to execute some change ups late that also kept hitters off balance and kept them guessing.” Another Twins Tally Thanks to Top Picks The Saints had more opportunities, but their only other run came in the top of the fifth inning when Kaelen Culpepper lined a single to right field to drive in Walker Jenkins to make it 4-1 Saints. The Bullpen Got the Job Done Brian Dinkelman turned to the Twins minor-league veterans to close out the rest of the game. It started with Raul Brito who tossed two scoreless innings before giving up a run in the seventh inning when he gave up three hits including one to Griffin who scored Indianapolis’s second run. He walked the leadoff man in the bottom of the seventh, but Hernandez made another mound visit. Brito got an infield pop out and a strikeout. Grant Hartwig came on to face Griffin (representing the game-tying run) and struck him out to end the inning. Hartwig threw Griffin six pitches. One was a 94 mph sinker. He mixed that with five sweepers including the final pitch, his lone whiff. Dan Altavilla came on for the eighth inning. Many Twins fans were surprised one of the stars for Team Italy in the WBC did not make the team’s Opening Day roster. Instead, he is with the Saints. He struck out the first two batters he faced before a fly out ended the inning. He threw just 14 pitches. Nine were fastballs and averaged 96.4 mph. He hit 97.8 mph with one pitch. His primary pitch is his changeup, which he only threw four of them. He also threw one slider. He had just two whiffs, both by blowing fastballs past hitters. Still clinging to a 4-2 lead going to the bottom of the ninth, Dinkelman turned to another veteran, Matt Bowman, to close the door. Bowman got a ground out to second base, a fly out to center, and ended the game with a knee-buckling called third strike. Of those veterans, Ricci noted, "(It's) always good to have veterans like those guys around. Great for some young bullpen arms like (Marco) Raya and (Trent) Baker among others to learn from them and their experiences. They go about their business the right way, and it feeds off on the other guys for sure." Jenkins Replaced in the 8th Inning With two on and two outs in the top of the eighth inning, Jenkins was due up to face former Twins minor leaguer, lefty Evan Sisk. Dinkelman called on Kyler Fedko to pinch hit for Jenkins. Normally that move is going to raise some eyebrows. However, when you consider that Jenkins’ spring training was shortened by a hamstring injury, and that he’s had similar injuries in the past, it may be wise to start him on this type of program for the first few weeks. They did that with Kaelen Culpepper in Cedar Rapids at the start of last season when he began his season after injuring his hamstring last spring. In addition, the game-time temperature was just 42 degrees, so certainly it was much cooler than that later in the game. New Role, but Dinkelman Wins His Second Triple-A debut For those of you who don't remember, Brian Dinkelman was drafted by the Twins in the eighth round of the 2006 draft out of McKendree University in his home state of Illinois. He steadily climbed up the Twins organizational ladder. On Opening Day in 2010, Dinkelman played his first Triple-A game. Of course, the Twins Triple-A affiliate back then was the Rochester Red Wings. He batted ninth and played right field. Take a look at the box score and all the fun names from Twins 2000s History to make you smile, including on the Red Sox affiliate on the other side of the diamond. Dinkelman went 1-for-4 in the game. In the second inning, he flew out to left fielder Daniel Nava off of #OldFriend Boof Bonser. With two outs in the fourth inning and Danny Valencia on first base, Dinkelman singled to right field. Valencia advanced to third. The crowd rejoiced! The Sox brought lefty Alan Embree into start the top of the sixth inning. Embree won that matchup by coaxing a ground out. In his final at-bat of his playing-days Triple-A debut, Dinkelman came to the plate with no one on base and two outs. He grounded out to MLB Network Radio's Kevin Frandsen who tossed the ball across the diamond to Los Angeles Dodgers hitting coach Aaron Bates for the out. So, I'm sure, in some small, quiet way, Brian Dinkelman is excited to get his first Triple-A win as a manager in his first Triple-A game as a manager. If we are talking about revenge, which we're not, but research is fun. 11 days later, The Woo Sox were in Rochester. In the fifth inning, Dinkelman hit his first Triple-A home run. It came against Chad Paronto. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Alan Roden (St. Paul): 1-for-1, 4 BB, 2 RBI. Pitcher of the Day Connor Prielipp (St. Paul): 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 61 pitches, 36 strikes (59.0%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, R, K (played CF, batted 1st) #2 - SS Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 3-for-5, R, RBI, 2 K (played SS, batted 3rd) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, 2 K, (played RF, batted 4th) #4 - C Eduardo Tait (TBD) - DNP #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St.Paul) - 4 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. 61 pitches, 36 strikes (59.0%) #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (TBD) - DNP #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-for-3, R, BB, K (DHd, batted 2nd) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Injured List (hamstring) #9 - SS Marek Houston (TBD) - DNP #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (TBD) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (TBD) - DNP #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - DNP #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (TBD) - DNP #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (TBD) - DNP #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - DNP #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (TBD) - DNP #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (TBD) - DNP #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (TBD) - DNP #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (TBD) - DNP #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (TBD) - DNP WEEKEND PROBABLES Saturday: St. Paul @ Indianapolis (3:05 pm CT) - RHP Zebby Matthews Sunday: St. Paul @ Indianapolis (12:35 pm CT) - RHP Andrew Morris CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 0-1 St. Paul Saints: 1-0 Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

Image courtesy of William Parmeter (Kody Funderburk, Cole Sands) Often when a publication talks about "longest-tenured" players, they are referring to big-league service time. I like to look at it a bit differently. How long has a player been in the Minnesota Twins organization? When did that player sign with the Twins, whether they were drafted, an international signing, a Rule 5 pick, and MLB free agent, etc.? I include the word "consecutively" because if a player leaves the organization for any time and then comes back. When Torii Hunter came back to the Twins for his final season in 2015, he had been away for seven seasons. Similarly, there are two interesting cases on the 2026 roster. First, Taylor Rogers is back. He was drafted by the Twins in 2012 out of the University of Kentucky and remained in the organization until Opening Day 2022 when he was traded to the Padres. After six big-league seasons with the Twins, he played for five organizations over the past four seasons. He's back, but he's not near the top of the list. The second example is much more difficult to decide. Cody Laweryson was the Twins 14th round draft pick in 2019 out of the University of Maine. He remained with the Twins through the 2025 season. It was great to see him get called up to the big leagues with the Twins, even if it was just for the final two weeks of the season. He pitched well in that small sample size. However, following the season, the Twins DFAd the tall, right-hander with the deceptive delivery. I wasn't surprised that the Los Angeles Angels claimed him on November 6. I also wasn't surprised that he remained on the Angels 40-man roster throughout the entire offseason. However, just as spring training was to start, the Angels DFAd and released him. A week later, Laweryson was in Fort Myers, signing at minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training. Six weeks later, many may have been surprised to learn that he had earned his spot on the Twins Opening Day roster. Tremendous story! Should he be on this list? This list has always included the word "consecutive," but he was with another organization for four months. He probably never got a paycheck from the Angels. He never played in a game with the Angels. But the word consecutive is pretty definitive. So, while Laweryson would otherwise be inside the Top 10 longest-tenured Twins, he isn't on the list. So that's why I just wrote a big paragraph about him. Without further ado, have you jotted down your guesses for which 12 (or 25) players have been in the Twins organization the longest. I feel like, of the Top 12, most Twins fans will be able to name nine or 10 of the players. Let us know how you did. Honorable Mentions Before we get to the 12 players who have been in the organization the longest consecutively, here are the next 13 on the list of Top 25 longest-tenured Twins players. #25 - Joe Ryan - Trade - 7/22/21 #20 - Travis Adams - Draft - 7/21/21 #20 - David Festa - Draft - 7/21/21 #20 - Jaylen Nowlin - Draft - 7/21/21 #20 - Jake Rucker - Draft - 7/21/21 #20 - Kyler Fedko - Draft - 7/21/21 #16 - Cleiber Maldonado - IFA - 1/15/21 #16 - Jose Olivares - IFA - 1/15/21 #16 - Yasser Mercedes - IFA - 1/15/21 #16 - Danny De Andrade - IFA - 1/15/21 #15 - Kala’i Rosario - 2020 draft - 7/1/20 #14 - Aaron Sabato - 2020 draft - 6/23/20 #13 - Marco Raya - 2020 draft - 6/18/20 THE TOP 12 LONGEST-TENURED TWINS #10T - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez - July 2, 2019 I’ll lump these three players together for this exercise. Before Covid, the international signing period started on July 2nd (changed to January 15th in 2021). The players would sign, but they would not play in DSL games that season. They would make their professional debut the next summer. However, with Covid, there wasn’t a 2020 minor league season. So, this group really had to wait from July 2nd, 2019, until May of 2021 to make their professional debuts. Emmanuel Rodriguez was the big signing that year from the Twins, $2.5 million. Once he started playing and showing his skill set, he flew up the Twins prospect ranking showing power and the ability to get on base at a very high percentage. He swings and misses a lot, but he is an electric ballplayer who gets on base, hits the ball hard, runs the bases, and plays good defense. He really just needs to stay healthy and then… an opportunity. #10T - C/OF Ricardo Olivar - July 2, 2019 Olivar signed that same day but for a $20,000 bonus from Venezuela. Obviously he came in with a lot less fanfare than Rodriguez, but once he got to play, he showed big-league potential. He began in the FCL in 2021 and hit .204 but got on base 34% He repeated the level in 2022 and this time hit .349/.442/.605 (1.05 WHIP) with 12 homers, three triples, and five home runs. He moved up to the Mighty Mussels in 2023, and in 100 games, he hit .285/.403/.452 (.855) with 28 doubles and 10 homers. He was also 12-for-13 in steal attempts. In 2024, he played 81 games in Cedar Rapids and hit .275/.381/.441 (.822) with 19 doubles, three triples, and 12 home runs. He ended the season with 19 games in Wichita. That’s where he spent the 2025 season. In 93 games, he hit .264/.356/.412 (.768) with 13 doubles and 13 home runs, and 13 stolen bases. #10T - RHP Miguelangel Boadas - July 2, 2019 Boadas also signed out of Venezuela to an undisclosed signing bonus. Boadas is the least known of this group, but that is because he has missed time due to injury most years. He debuted in 2021 in the DL. In 12 games and 34 2/3 innings, he posted a 3.63 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. He came to the States in 2012 and pitched 12 games out of the FCL Twins bullpen. He posted a 5.53 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP. In 2023, he made 11 starts for Fort Myers and went 0-2 with a 7.75 ERA in 36 innings. He moved up to Cedar Rapids where he started eight games of the 11 he pitched in. However, in early June, he was placed on the injured list. In July, he was moved to the 60-Day Injured list and underwent Tommy John surgery. He missed the rest of the season and all of the 2025 season. The Twins sent him to the Arizona Fall League after the season. He pitched in four games and posted a 1.54 ERA in 11 2/3 innings. He also pitched in the Fall Stars game and the league’s championship game. He was hitting 97 mph with the fastball and showing a sharp slider. #9 - RHP Matt Canterino - June 23, 2019 This name might surprise you. Matt Canterino was the Twins 2nd round pick in 2019 out of Rice University. That summer, he made seven short starts between the GCL and Cedar Rapids. He didn't pitch in 2020. In 2021, he began the season in now-High-A Cedar Rapids. He made five starts and posted a 0.86 ERA over 21 innings with 43 strikeouts and four walks. But then he was hurt and didn’t pitch for the Kernels the rest of the season. In 2022, he moved up to Wichita and pitched in 11 games (10 starts). He had a 1.83 ERA. In 34 1/3 innings, he had 50 strikeouts. With his immense talent and stuff, the Twins added him to the 40-man roster. He came to spring trainings and looked great, but each year, he had an issue with his elbow, forearm, or shoulder. He hasn’t pitched in a regular-season game since 2022. After spring training in 2025, the Twins removed him from the 40-man roster. He had surgery, and the Twins signed him to a new two-year, minor-league deal. He will start the 2026 season on the 60-Day Injured List for St. Paul. And he’s a really good guy that so many people want to see have an extended period of health and an opportunity to get some big-league time. #8 - OF Matt Wallner - June 17, 2019 Wallner went to Forest Lake High School and was named Mr. Minnesota as the state’s top high school senior baseball player. Big leaguers Michael Busch and Isaac Collins were also finalists that season. The Twins drafted him, as a pitcher, in 2016. He wisely went the college route. . He had previously committed to play at the University of North Dakota where he was going to pitch. However, UND cancelled their baseball program. Wallner found his way down to Southern Mississippi. He pitched as a closer the first couple of seasons. But ultimately, he was a three-time All American thanks to his powerful draft. The Twins drafted him again in 2019, this time with the 39th overall pick. Like most minor leaguers, Wallner didn’t play at all in 2020 which makes it even more impressive that he made his MLB debut late in the 2022 season. He split both 2023 and 2024 between St. Paul and the big leagues. He would struggle, mash in Triple-A and then come up and play well including the power. He was worth 2.2 bWAR both of those years despite playing in just 76 and 75, respectively. His OPS’s were .877 and .894 In 2025, Wallner played in 104 games. He hit .202/.311/.464 (.776). He hit 16 doubles and 22 homers. However, it came in at just 0.6 bWAR. Few hitters in the game hit the ball harder than Wallner when he does make contact. After a slow start this spring, Wallner hit .333/.439/.604 (1.043) with four doubles and three homers. We know that there is little connection between spring training stats and regular season stats, but it would be amazing to see what numbers Wallner could put up if he’s healthy and maintains that 1.000 OPS! #6T - RHP Cole Sands - June 18, 2018 Sands was well known in baseball circles in his high school years and was drafted in 2015. Instead of signing, he went to Florida State. Three years later, the Twins made him their fifth round draft pick. He made his pro debut in 2019 and pitched for Cedar Rapids and Fort Myers before ending the season with one start for Double-A Pensacola. After not pitching in 2020, he posted a 2.46 ERA over 19 games and 80 1/3 innings. He had 96 strikeouts. He moved up to St. Paul in 2022. He had 72 strikeouts over 61 2/3 innings. He also made his big-league debut that season. He pitched in 11 games (3 starters) and went 0-3 with a 5.87 ERA over 30 2/3 innings. In 2023, he transitioned fully to the bullpen. In 19 games in St. Paul, he posted a 1.47 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. He had 41 strikeouts and just 10 walks in 30 2/3 innings. In 15 relief appearances with the Twins, he posted a 3.74 ERA over 21 2/3 innings. Sands had a breakout season of sorts for the Twins in 2024. He went 9-1 with a 3.28 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. In 71 1/3 innings over 62 outings, he had 85 strikeouts to just 12 walks. He took a small step backwards in 2025. In 72 innings over 69 games, he posted a 4.50 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP and had 64 strikeouts and 19 walks. With most of his teammates traded at the trade deadline last year, he will need to be reliable in 2026 if the Twins want to have a chance. He’s fully capable, when healthy. #6T - OF Trevor Larnach - June 18, 2018 Larnach led an impressive ensemble cast at Oregon State to the 2018 College World Series championship. That year, his junior season, he hit .348/.463/.652 (1.116) with 19 doubles and 19 homers. That summer, the Twins made him the 20th overall pick in the draft. He spent a few weeks at Elizabethton and a month in Cedar Rapids that year. He split the 2019 season between Fort Myers and Pensacola and hit .309/.384/.458 (.842). Larnach spent the 2020 Covid season in St. Paul. Then very early in the 2021 season, he received his first promotion to the big leagues. He played in 51 big-league games in 2022 and hit .231/.306/.406 (.712) with 13 doubles and five homers. That was worth 1.4 bWAR which is the highest mark of his career. In 2024, he hit .259/.338/.434 (.771) with 17 doubles and 15 home runs. That was worth 1.3 bWAR. Last season, Larnach played in a career-high 142 games. He hit .250/.323/.404 (.727) with 24 doubles and 17 home runs. That produced an OPS+ of 99, and his bWAR was just 0.1. Since he primarily DHd in 2025, there were a lot of questions about bringing him back or even tendering him a contract for the season. They did, and he hasn’t been traded. Now it is incumbent upon him to produce. He is under team control through the 2027 season. #4T - LHP Kody Funderburk - June 13, 2018 An All-American first baseman at Mesa Community College and then Dallas Baptist, the Twins drafted him in the 15th round as a pitcher. He had pitched in college, but the majority (big majority) of his college success was with the bat. The southpaw was given the opportunity to start for several years of development. Midway through the 2022 season, he made the transition to the bullpen. He started the 2023 season at Double-A but quickly moved up to Triple-A St. Paul. He ended the season with 11 games in the big leagues. He gave up just one run on six hits over 12 innings in 11 games. He struggled in 2024 in the big league and in St. Paul. He came back in 2025 and was quite solid, especially in the season’s second half. The Twins have three lefties in their Opening Day bullpen but being able to work with and learn from Taylor Rogers and Anthony Banda while sitting out in the bullpen with LaTroy Hawkins, 2026 should be a big season for Funderburk. He has another four seasons of team control before becoming a free agent. #4T - C Ryan Jeffers - June 13, 2018 After three seasons with an OPS over 1.000 at UNC Wilmington, the Twins made Jeffers their second-round pick. The choice surprised many in the “Draft Expert” industry. Many questioned his defense, but the Twins scouts saw a guy with strong defensive potential with some development and techniques. After the draft, he played for Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids (then Low-A). In 2019, he split time between High-A Fort Myers and Double-A Pensacola. Combined, he hit .264 with 16 doubles and 14 homers. It was enough for him to be included on the Twins developmental squad in 2020. Because of injury, he was called up to the Twins and played in 26 out of the 60 games and more than held his own, posting a .791 OPS with three homers. The next two seasons saw ups but also plenty of downs including some time back in the minors. Both years, he posted a batting average under .210 and an OPS under .675.The past three seasons, he has split backstop duties with Christian Vazquez. In 2023, he had his best season to date, hitting .276 (.858) with 15 doubles and 14 homers. In 2024, he hit just .226, but had 22 doubles and 21 homers. He continued to basically split time behind the plate, but he also got quite a bit of time as the Twins DH. In 2025, he had some really strong peripherals but less home runs (9). As we hit Opening Day, Jeffers can become a free agent at the end of the 2026 World Series. Should the Twins attempt to extend him so that he can remain on this list next year? #3 - RHP Bailey Ober - June 22, 2017 The Twins selected Bailey Ober out of the College of Charleston with their 12th round pick in 2017. He had been an All American as a freshman but needed Tommy John surgery and missed his sophomore season. While his star had less shine, he came back, pitched and helped his team win. In college, he went 24-9. In the minor leagues, he had a record of 20-5 with a 2.41 ERA (rookie league through AAA). The Twins were also very patient with him because of the injury concerns. But when he pitched, he was great. He didn’t pitch at all in 2020. So it was somewhat surprising that he was called up to the Twins early in the 2021 season and made 20 starts as a rookie. He made just 11 starts in 2022 due to a leg injury. He took off in 2023. He was 8-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 26 starts. He had 146 strikeouts in 144 1/3 innings. In 2024, he had 191 strikeouts in 178 2/3 innings over 31 starts. Both seasons were worth 3.0 bWAR. He struggled in 2025 and went 6-9 with a 5.10 ERA. In 146 1/3 innings, he had 120 strikeouts. He enters the 2026 season as the Twins #2 starter. There are certainly concerns entering the season about his reduced velocity. That will certainly be worth watching. #2 - 3B Royce Lewis - June 17, 2017 For just the second time in Twins history, and the first time in 34 years, the Twins lost over 100 games. It was an organization-worst 103 losses. Because of that, the Twins earned the #1 overall pick in the 2017 draft. The Twins were thrilled to select Royce Lewis with the top pick out of JSerra Catholic High School in California. He quickly signed and then homered in his first professional at-bat in the GCL. Lewis’s career has been filled with ups and downs. He was a Top 10 prospect in 2018 and 2019. The Twins had him working at their alternate site (CHS Field) in 2020, and then he missed the 2021 season with a torn ACL. He returned in 2022 and even hit .300 over a dozen games in the big leagues. Unfortunately, he tore the ACL again and missed another year of playing time. In 58 games in 2023, he hit .309 with 15 homers. In 2024, he homered in his first at-bat, but then he got hurt running out a double in his second at-bat and missed about two months. He played 82 games in 2024, and 106 games in 2025. Combined, he hit .235/.288/.416 (.705) with 34 doubles and 29 homers. 2026 marks his second of four arbitration seasons, so he can’t become a free agent until after the 2028 season. #1 - OF Byron Buxton - June 13, 2012 After nearly a decade of competitive teams, the 2011 Twins were not a good baseball team. They finished 63-99. The only positive of that season was that they truly earned the second overall pick in the 2012 draft. The Astros took Carlos Correa with the first pick. The Twins selected prep outfielder Byron Buxton with the next pick and signed him on June 13, 2012. In the minors, he was once a minor-league player of the year, and twice the #1 overall prospect in the game. He debuted in June of 2015, at just 21. He wasn’t ready, but he filled a need. In 2017, Buxton not only won the Gold Glove award, but he was named the Platinum Glove winner. You all know the story. Injuries cut into his playing time. After playing 140 games in 2017, he didn’t play in 100 or more games until he played 102 games in 2024. In 2025, he put together, arguably, the best season of his career. He played in 126 games and hit .264/.327/.551 (.878) with 21 doubles, seven triples, and 35 home runs. He earned his first career Silver Slugger. He was also 24-for-24 in stolen base attempts, and despite the Twins rough season, he finished 11th in MVP voting. If you look at his total numbers since the beginning of the 2019 season, he has hit .256/.318/.534 (.852) with 134 doubles and 140 homers while 71-for-78. He has played in two All Star games. This spring, he was able to represent Team USA in the WBC. His contract continues through the 2018 season. So, there you have it, the players in the Twins organization who have been in the system the longest, consecutively. I’ll guess that at least a couple of the names may not surprise you. I’m certain that you wouldn’t have guessed all 12 on this list. I wouldn’t have. View full article

He opted out of his deal. Tells me that the team told him he wasn't going to make the opening day roster. He'll have other MLB options, I'd think. The thing with Chafin and Bowman, and maybe even Hendriks, is they're going to look around for other teams and a huge piece of what they certainly are considering is a path to the big leagues. There are several paths to the big leagues in the Twins bullpen.

I guess I never really thought that Urshela was brought in as anything other than a favor, to get him some ABs and time at 3B in preparation for the WBC... and then for the "just in case" scenario. Chafin? I just didn't see them with four lefties. Rogers and Banda were givens and Funderburk is certainly way better than Chafin. As @Vanimal46pointed out above, he would have been a fun character to have around.

After Team USA clinched a spot in the Quarterfinals round of the World Baseball Classic, speculation was that Joe Ryan would replace Clayton Kershaw on the Team USA roster. Following their quarterfinal win over Team Canada on Friday night, Kershaw officially said that he was retiring. It was quickly announced that Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman was replacing Kershaw. But it was possible there could still be more moves. On Saturday afternoon, we got confirmation that Joe Ryan will be sticking with the Twins rather than joining Team USA in Miami. Selfishly from the Twins perspective, I think it's a good decision. Since he was slowed to start spring training and is still working his way to be ready near Opening Day, it doesn't make a lot of sense to have him push himself to max effort. Paul Skenes is making the start for the USA in Sunday night's semi-final game against the Dominican Republic. The four pitchers added to the USA roster since pool play have all been relievers. Presumably, Ryan could be lined up to make the start for Team USA in the championship game (if the US gets past the DR). Logan Webb has been tremendous for Team USA this year. In two starts, he has thrown 8 2/3 scoreless innings. He was in a similar situation during the last WBC. He wasn't quite 100% and he was about to make some money, so he didn't pitch. Likewise, with a strong, healthy 2026 season, Ryan would line himself up for a lucrative extension with the Twins or with another team. Selfishly as a baseball fan, it would have been fun to watch him pitch for Team USA. Think about it. When the Twins traded Nelson Cruz to the Rays in 2021, Ryan (and Simeon Woods Richardson) was in Tokyo, pitching for Team USA in the Olympics. So had he made the decision to go pitch for Team USA, one really couldn't fault him at all. This is one of those scenarios that doesn't necessarily have one right and/or wrong answer. My hope is simply that Joe Ryan is happy with the choice and then has another All-Star caliber season. View full rumor

Dan Gladden has been a fixture on Twins radio broadcasts since 2000. Recently, he was named a 2026 inductee into the Minnesota Broadcasters Hall of Fame. Gladden came to the Twins organization just before the 1987 season began. He is often referred to as the sparkplug that helped the Twins to World Series championships in 1987 and 1991. His final play with the Twins came in the bottom of the 10th inning of Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. He hit a hustle double, advanced to third on a bunt, and scored on Gene Larkin's "single" to give the Twins the 1-0 win. He continued to play for a few more years, including time in Japan. In 2000, he began his time in the Twins radio broadcast booth. He became the full-time analyst in 203. He has worked in the booth with Herb Carneal, John Gordon, Cory Provus and now Kris Atteberry. In fact, it was Provus who was able to tell Gladden about his latest career honor. The honor clearly means a lot to Gladden who got emotional responding to Provus. He thanked Dave St. Peter for giving him an opportunity. He said, "I didn't even cry when Rod Carew called me (to tell him he'd made the Twins Hall of Fame)." Gladden joined the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame in 2022. Join us in congratulating Dan Gladden on this terrific honor. View full rumor

Byron Buxton came to the plate for Team USA in the bottom of the fourth inning. The bases were loaded. Team USA led 3-1 but had struggled with runners on base since Aaron Judge's first inning, two-run homer. It felt like a key moment in the game. Gabriel Barbosa, a 24-year-old right-hander who pitched at three levels for the Phillies in 2025 came to the mound, having replaced Thyago Vieira who left with injury. Barbosa walked Roman Anthony to lead the bases. Buxton came to the plate, and Barbosa got ahead quickly with two sharp sliders just off the outside corner. After Buxton took another slider and swung out of his shows at a hanging slider (foul ball), Barbosa came inside with a running fastball. It just kept running in on Buxton and when it hit him, you could hear an audible moan. At first, it appeared he was hit in the hand, something that Twins fans certainly did not want to think about. We've seen that. Replay in slow motion showed that it hit him in the elbow, likely near the funny bone. Buxton stayed in the game having driven in the team's fourth run "the tough way." The next batter was Brewers second baseman Brice Turang who cleared the bases with a double off of the wall in left field. The USA team led 7-1. While it doesn't look serious, it only makes sense that manager Mark Derosa pulled Buxton and replaced him with Pete Crow-Armstrong. Buxton came to the plate three times in four innings. He was 0-for-2. He was hit by a pitch, scored a run, drove in a run and stole a base. UPDATE: A seventh inning Ken Rosenthal report tells us that Byron Buxton is just fine, taken out for precautionary purposes, but also because they wanted to get "PCA" some at bats too. I enjoy the WBC. For many, it's about national pride, especially that is visible with the fans and players from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico. I want to see good baseball, and I want to hear about fun stories. Team Brazil had some that I enjoyed. A couple of fun baseball stories from the Brazil team. After the USA team took a 2-0 lead to start the team, 20-year-old Lucas Ramirez led off the bottom of the first inning with a home run off of Logan Webb. In the bottom of the eighth, Ramirez came to the plate against left Gabe Speier and hit a lefty-lefty homer. Ramirez is the son of long-time big leaguer Manny Ramirez. The youngster was the 17th round pick of the Angels in the 2024 draft out of high school in Florida. He ended the 2025 season with 11 games above complex league ball. He also went 5-for-13 for Brazil in the WBC Qualifier last year. Bloodlines are always fun. In the top of the second inning, Brazil turned to 17-year-old Joseph Contreras. He is the son of another long-time major leaguer, Jose Contreras. The son stands 6-4 and is a lanky 190 pounds. He is currently a high school senior at Blessed Trinity Catholic High School in Alpharetta, Georgia. Baseball America ranks him currently as the #15 high school pitcher available in the 2026 MLB Draft. He is committed to Vanderbilt. Beyond quality genetics, Joseph has some impressive stuff. His first pitch was a 97-mph fastball just above the zone that Byron Buxton swung through. He also has the makings of a really good low-to-mid-80s slider. He also throws a vulcan-gripped pitch that generally acts like a changeup but can move significantly too. He got Buxton to fly out. With the bases loaded and one out, he broke Aaron Judge's bat and coaxed a double play ball to end the inning. In total, he went 1 1/3 innings and gave up one run on two hits and three walks. So, the stat line isn't terribly impressive. But considering his age, experience level, and that he was pitching against Team USA's lineup as a United States citizen. What a cool, scary opportunity! Also, I now want the Twins to draft him and team him with Charlee Soto and Dasan Hill in the 2031 Twins starting rotation. From the Twins perspective, there were a couple of former Twins minor leaguers on the Brazilian roster. 35-year-old Leonardo Reginatto is completing his playing career with the WBC. He is set to join the Tampa Bay Rays player development staff. He signed with the Rays way back in 2009. His last season with an affiliated organization was back in 2018. That was his third season in the Twins organization. He spent most of 2016 with Chattanooga, He pitched for the Red Wings all three seasons. He has played winter ball in Mexico and Venezuela since then and most of his summer ball was played in Mexico. Gabriel Maciel batted ninth and played in center field. You may remember that he came to the Twins from the Diamondbacks with Ernie de la Trinidad and Jhoan Duran in the Eduardo Escobar trade in 2018. He played in Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids between 2018 and 2021. He was 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in this game, but his speed and defense in center field keeps him in the lineup. He's played for Brazil in the 2016, 2022 and now 2026. Team USA is going to play Great Britain on Saturday night. Twins fans will want to check out the lineup when it becomes available. Seth Level of Concern right now: 2 on a scale of 1-10. (Subject to change) View full rumor