Seth Stohs

On Tuesday night, Cleveland finally traded All Star starting pitcher Trevor Bauer. Typically that move would be seen as the team selling, but in this case, I do believe that they got better. They have pitching, and seem to keep calling pitchers up who do well. Shane Bieber and Zach Plesac are two guys who fit into that mold. They also should be getting Corey Kluber back in the near future. Their need was offense, and they added two powerful outfielders in Yasiel Puig and Franmil Reyes in the three-team swap. They also added LHP Logan Allen, a Top 100 prospect, and two more minor leaguers. It was a very creative move for Cleveland. The Twins were very creative in their acquisition of Sergio Romo over the weekend. Not only did the Twins receive the veteran reliever, but they also received hard-throwing RHP Chris Vallimont and a Player to be Named Later for slugging first base prospect Lewin Diaz. On its own, the Twins made a really, creative, savvy move to improve their bullpen and improve the team. Twins fans have generally felt that the trade was good for the Twins, though that thought always comes with the “as long as it isn’t the only move they make by the deadline.” But what if it is? What if Sergio Romo is the only player that the Twins add? What will it mean? Here are my thoughts. DISAPPOINTMENT First and foremost, Twins fans will and rightfully should feel disappointment. On the basic level, it’s always fun to acquire talent. It doesn’t even have to be elite talent, but just make the team better. Let's just say, #TwinsTwitter will not handle it well, for sure! On another level, Derek Falvey and Thad Levine have consistently said that when the Twins window to compete for championships opens, they will pounce. Well, the window is wide open. This team has the talent to compete, not only for the American League Central title but also for a World Series. They have won two of six games against the Yankees this year, and probably should have won two more of those games. They won four of their seven matchups with the Astros this year. They currently have an edge on Cleveland this year too. Those are the top teams in the American League, and the team should absolutely feel like they can compete for an American League pennant. And hey, if you get to the World Series, you have a chance. So Twins fans will absolutely have every right to be disappointed and even upset if nothing is done. HOWEVER… This is a very good team as is, as shown by their performance so far this year against the top teams in the league. Their lineup can compete with anyone. They can slug with the best. Pitching has been the issue although even that hasn’t been as bad as we may think. The starters rank in the top the top third of the league in most statistics. Some of that is because their #4 (Perez) and #5 (Pineda) have been better than most 4s and 5s around the league. Jose Berrios is approaching Ace level. Jake Odorizzi was an All Star for his strong start, but he has been more inconsistent of late. Kyle Gibson’s been good at times but also a bit inconsistent. Not adding a starter would just mean that these guys would need to step it up down the stretch. But would the Twins have a top three or top four that you could feel good about going into the playoffs? And the bullpen has been better than expected, though a lot of that is because of Taylor Rogers. Sergio Romo stepped in as the 8th inning guy last night in his Twins debut. Tyler Duffey has returned to an intriguing bullpen option. Ryne Harper has been a big surprise. Trevor May was doing well until the 0-2 curveball in Cleveland, but he has the stuff to dominate and will need to find that again. And then some young guys. Cody Stashak had a moment in the Yankees series. Sean Poppen reeling off 96-97 mph fastballs with a strong slider could be great for the team down the stretch. And if Will Smith and Felipe Vasquez are unavailable, I don’t think there is an available left-handed reliever that I would feel better about than giving Lewis Thorpe an opportunity. And Devin Smeltzer is available as well. The concern with them is their lack of MLB experience, obviously. In addition, Fernando Romero has been much improved of late in Rochester. And as it appears the odds of Cody Allen helping the Twins down the stretch is waning, flamethrower Brusdar Graterol returned to the mound on Monday for his first rehab appearance. Maybe he and his 101-mph fastball can help. Jorge Alcala and his triple-digit fastball pitched out of the bullpen in his most-recent outing. SUMMARY So, while I still think it is very likely that the Twins make one or two moves before the trade deadline, and this article will be all for naught, it is important for Twins fans to stand by a team that has put themselves in this position. Absolutely, be disappointed that nothing was done, but hopefully you’ll be able to quickly shift your attention back to the fact that this team, as it is currently put together, can win the division. And, if you are under the opinion (as I mostly am) that the playoffs are mostly a crapshoot, then you should still believe that the Twins can win in the playoffs too. All that said… Come On, Twins… Make a Move!

Find out everything that happened happened in the Twins system on Thursday, starting with the transactions of the day. AWARDS RHP Randy Dobnak was named the Pitcher of the Week for the International League. Dobnak made two starts for the Red Wings and went 2-0 with a 1.46 ERA. In 12 1/3 innings, he gave up just seven hits, hit one batter, walked three and struck out ten batters. TRANSACTIONS Blake Parker elected to become a free agent after being outrighted. Brusdar Graterol began his rehab assignment in the GCL. Yunior Severino began his rehab assignment in the GCL. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 5, Buffalo 6 Box Score The game was tied at 3-3 heading into the bottom of the eighth. Cody Allen came on for the Red Wings. He gave up a single which was followed by a sacrifice bunt. After an error, a double put Buffalo ahead by one. Following a strikeout, Allen gave up a two-run single. The batter was thrown out at second by Alejandro de Aza to end the inning. Allen was charged with three runs (just one earned) on three hits. Drew Hutchison started and gave up three runs (2 earned) on three hits in the first five innings. He walked five and struck out four batters. Sam Clay struck out three over two scoreless, one-hit innings. He walked two. Down 6-3 going into the ninth inning, Jaylin Davis hit a two-run homer to cut the lead to one, but they were unable to score another. Nick Gordon went 2-for-4 with his 26th and 27th doubles. Jake Cave was 2-for-4 with his 16th double. Rochester hitters were hit by five pitches. BLUE WAHOOS BITES Pensacola 0, Jacksonville 1 Box Score The Blue Wahoos faced one of baseball’s best pitching prospects, Marlins RHP Sixto Sanchez. He came as advertised. He went six innings and gave up just two hits, including a double off the bat of Royce Lewis. The Wahoos ended the game with just three total hits. Mark Contreras walked twice. Lefty Bryan Sammons started. He gave up a run on three hits over the first 4 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out six batters. Anthony Vizcaya went the next 2 2/3 innings. He struck out four and gave up just one hit. Tom Hackimer came on and got the final two outs, though he did hit a batter. In case you were wondering, Lewin Diaz went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in his Jumbo Shrimp debut. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers Box Score No Game Scheduled. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, Clinton 9 Box Score The Kernels fell behind 6-1 after just a couple of innings. They clawed their way back and had the tying-run on base when the game ended in a loss. Tyler Palm started and gave up six runs (2 earned) in 4 2/3 innings. He gave up seven hits, walked none and struck out three. Carlos Suniaga gave up two runs on four hits over the next two innings. Ricky Ramirez gave up an unearned run over the final 2 1/3 innings. Trevor Casanova went 3-for-4 in the game and drove in two runs. Gilberto Celestino went 2-for-5 with his 20th double. Alex Isola hit his second Kernels home run, a two-run blast in the 7th inning. He drove in three runs. Jared Akins walked three times. E-TWINS E-NOTES E-Twins 1, Burlington 5 Box Score Elizabethton got behind early and were unable to muster enough offense to mount a comeback. Tyler Benninghoff started and gave up five runs on five hits over 4 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out four batters. Erik Cha worked the final 3 2/3 innings. He gave up one hit, walked three and struck out four batters. He also got a couple of double plays to help him pitch zeroes. Max Smith went 2-for-4 with his fourth and fifth doubles. Kidany Salva went 2-for-3. The Twins got their lone run on the first professional home run of first baseman Trevor Jenson. https://twitter.com/ETwinsBaseball/status/1155985338906505217 GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 4, GCL Rays 1 Box Score The big news is that Brusdar Graterol made his return to the mound in a rehab start. He threw the first inning and worked a perfect first inning with two strikeouts. The fastball was mostly at 100 mph per reports. Other big news is the performance of 18-year-old Anthony Escobar. On this day, he worked seven innings and gave up just one run on five hits. He walked two and struck out six batters. He is now 3-1 with a 2.10 ERA in 25 2/3 innings. Jose Guevara picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning. There were other rehabbing players. Taylor Grzelakowski (ankle) went 0-for-2 with two walks in the game. Also, Yunior Severino (thumb) returned and played second base. He went 1-for-3 with a first-inning double. Francisco Martinez led the offense by hitting his third and fourth double of the season. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day - Anthony Escobar, GCL Twins Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Nick Gordon, Rochester Red Wings PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Midseason Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Pensacola) - 1-4, 2B(2) #2 - Alex Kirilloff (Pensacola) - Did Not Play #3 - Brusdar Graterol (Pensacola) - Rehab in GCL, 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K #4 - Trevor Larnach (Pensacola) - 1-4, 3 K #5 - Wander Javier (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, 2 R, RBI, SB(2) #6 - Jordan Balazovic (Ft. Myers) - Temporary Inactive List (Pan Am Games) #7 - Keoni Cavaco (GCL Twins) - 0-4, 2 K #8 - Brent Rooker (Rochester) - Injured List (groin). #9 - Jhoan Duran (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch #10 - Blayne Enlow (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #11 - Lewis Thorpe (Minnesota) - No Game Scheduled #12 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - 2-4, 2-2B(27), HBP, R #13 - Ryan Jeffers (Pensacola) - 0-4 #14 - Luis Arraez (Minnesota) - Did Not Play #15 - Matt Wallner (Elizabethton) - 0-4, 2 K #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Pensacola) - Did Not Play #17 - Akil Baddoo (Ft. Myers) - Injured (Tommy John) #18 - Jorge Alcala (Pensacola) - Did Not Pitch #19 - Misael Urbina (DSL Twins) - 0-3, BB, K, CS #20 - Travis Blankenhorn (Pensacola) - Injured List TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Buffalo (1:05 CST) - LHP Devin Smeltzer (1-3, 3.02 ERA) Pensacola @ Jacksonville (6:05 CST) - RHP Edwar Colina (1-0, 1.64 ERA) Dunedin @ Ft. Myers (6:00 CST) - RHP Dakota Chalmers (1st Miracle start) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (6:30 CST) - TBD Elizabethton @ Burlington (5:30 CST) - RHP Ben Gross (3-1, 2 64 ERA) GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00 CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Monday games or any other minor league topics you would like.

It's been a busy few days for the Twins in terms of prospects. In the last couple of weeks, the Twins have had top prospects Trevor Larnach, Ryan Jeffers and Jhoan Duran promoted to Double-A Pensacola. Following the announcement of the Twins trade of Lewin Diaz, the Twins announced that top prospect Royce Lewis will join other Twins top prospect in Pensacola. It is quite unusual for the Twins PR staff to announce minor league promotions, but Royce Lewis is an obvious exception. Lewis, the #1 overall pick in the 2017 MLB Draft, turned 20 in early June. He ends his time with the Miracle hitting .238/.289/.376 (.665) with 17 doubles and 10 home runs. In 19 games this month, he has hit .288 with four doubles and four home runs.