Seth Stohs

I can guarantee that I didnt use 2-outs, RISP data in my rankings...

That's my reasoning... the lowest number of games played that I voted for on this list was 95, ,and that was Taylor Grzelakowski who played a bit of catcher.

Over the last week or so, Twins Daily has handed out our 2018 minor league awards. Today we continue the series by looking at the top hitters in the Twins organization this season. There were a lot of strong performances, but at the end of the day, the vote was unanimous. Despite missing the entire 2017 season, Alex Kirilloff was our choice for 2018 Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year. Previous 2018 Awards Short-Season Minor League Pitcher of the Year: Andrew Cabezas Short-Season Minor League Hitter of the Year: Chris Williams Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year: Andrew Vasquez Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year: Tyler Wells Minor League Hitter of the Year: Alex Kirilloff Previous Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitchers of the Year: 2012 - Oswaldo Arcia 2013 - Miguel Sano 2014 - Mitch Garver 2015 - Max Kepler 2016 - Daniel Palka 2017 - Mitch Garver 2018 - Alex Kirilloff Image courtesy of Linwood Ferguson (graphics by Finn Pearson) Before we get to the Top Eight, we will take a look at others who received votes. While some of the top prospects finished near the top of this list, the Twins got quality hitting performances from many guys up and down the system. But when it came down to it, there was one Twins hitting prospect who stood out above the rest in 2018. Royce Lewis and Brent Rooker had really terrific seasons, but Alex Kirilloff had one of the best minor league seasons in recent Twins minor league history. Regarding Kirilloff, Lewis and Rooker, Twins minor league director Jeremy Zoll noted, “They’re three of the most exciting names in our system, and three guys that we pushed relatively aggressively, especially in the case of Rooker being his first full season in pro ball, and Royce and Alex too for that matter. And to see them meet those challenges, work through those challenges and compete and excel has been great.” Six Twins Daily Minor League writers were asked to vote for the various awards. For the hitter of the year, we each voted for eight players. The player who was voted as #1 received eight points, #2 received seven points and so on with the #8 vote receiving one point. Results were tabulated and can be found below. Short profiles of our top eight are to follow, but first, some players worthy of honorable mention. These players also received votes. Honorable Mention Ryan Jeffers - Elizabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 64 games, 83-241, .344/.444/.502 (.946), 17-2B, 7-HR, 48 R, 33 RBI. Jose Miranda - Cedar Rapids Kernels/Ft. Myers Miracle - 131 games, 133-503, .264/.319/.417 (.736), 27-2B, 1-3B, 16-HR, 61 R, 82 RBI. Willians Astudillo - Rochester Red Wings - 78 games, 79-286, .276/.314/.469 (.782), 17-2B, 1-3B, 12-HR, 30 R, 38 RBI. LaMonte Wade - Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings, 120 games, 109-424, .257/.360/.380 (.739), 11-2B, 4-3B, 11-HR, 54 R, 48 RBI. Michael Davis - Elizabethton Twins/Cedar Rapids Kernels, 45 games, 48-157, .306/.343/.567 (.910), 9-2B, 1-3B, 10-HR, 29 R, 32 RBI. Minor League Hitter of the Year Here are the top eight vote-getters for Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year: 8. Luis Arraez – Ft. Myers Miracle/Chattanooga Lookouts – 108 games, 126-406, .310/.361/.397 (.758), 20-2B, 3-3B, 3-HR, 52 R, 36 RBI. Arraez hit .347 for Cedar Rapids in 2016 to win the Midwest League batting title as a 19 year old. Three games into his 2017 season in Ft. Myers, Arraez tore up his knee and needed surgery which cost him the remainder of the season. He came back to the Miracle in mid-April and had just two hits in his first 29 at-bats (.069). Over his next 53 games, he hit .357. He was the Twins Daily Hitter of the Month in June when he hit .449 with 13 extra base hits and an OPS over 1.100. He played 26 games that month and had multi-hit games in 16 of them including five three-hit games, two four-hit games and a five-hit game. On July 4th, he was promoted to Chattanooga where he hit .298 over the final 48 games. 7. Akil Baddoo – Cedar Rapids Kernels – 113 games, 106-437, .243/.351/.419 (.770), 22-2B, 11-3B, 11-HR, 83 R, 40 RBI. When looking at Baddoo’s stats, it is important to look past the batting average. Sure, that’s an area of improvement that he’ll want to make in his development. However, when he consider his on-base percentage and the extra-base hit power and you can understand why the organization is so excited about the talented 20-year-old. In fact, he didn’t turn 20 until mid-August. Baddoo does a nice job at the top of the order. Considering how many walks he takes, Baddoo is not a passive hitter. As you would guess from the extra-base hits, he’s got a strong, powerful swing. He’s got very good speed and stole 24 bases. He also profiles as a very solid center fielder whose arm strength has improved since the draft. 6. Jaylin Davis – Fort Myers Miracle/Chattanooga Lookouts – 120 games, 120-439, .273/.347/.412 (.759), 24-2B, 2-3B, 11-HR, 53 R, 53 RBI. The former 24th-round pick from Appalachian State put together a solid season in 2018. Since signing, he has shown good power, but he’s also had a lot of swing and miss in his game. While he still did in 2018, it is important to note that his strikeout rate dropped while his walk rate increased significantly. Davis spent the second half of 2017 in Ft. Myers and that is where he began the 2018 season. At about mid-season, Davis received his promotion to Chattanooga where he put up very similar numbers. Davis will look to continue his improvements in the Arizona Fall League. 5. Taylor Grzelakowski – Fort Myers Miracle – 95 games, 99-332, .298/.370/.458 (.828), 23-2B, 3-3B, 8-HR, 46 R, 40 RBI Grzelakowski was one of the better stories in the Twins minor league system in 2018. Signed late in 2017 as a non-drafted free agent from the United Shores Professional Baseball League after a career at Madonna University. He got a handful of at-bats in the GCL after signing last year. He came to spring training this year, and when the season started, he had skipped Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids and made the Ft. Myers roster. He caught, played first base, and played some left field while making a lot of starts at DH too. And it didn’t take long for him to hit near the top of the Miracle lineup. He hit well and was very consistent throughout the season. So, it may have started out as a fun story, but “Gelly” made himself a prospect to watch with his strong bat. 4. Zander Wiel – Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings – 116 games, 130-437, .297/.367/.442 (.809), 27-2B, 3-3B, 10-HR, 58 R, 65 RBI Since the Twins made Zander Wiel their 12th-round draft pick in 2015 out of Vanderbilt, he has been consistent and moved up one level each year. 2018 was the first season in which he received a late-season promotion, playing 16 games at the end of the year in Rochester. Drafted as a first baseman, Wiel and Brent Rooker split time between first base and left field throughout 2018. Wiel takes generally professional at-bats. He has a lot of doubles power and can sometimes hit some long home runs. He had a walkoff homer in a game for the Red Wings. 3. Brent Rooker - Chattanooga Lookouts – 130 games, 128-503, .254/.333/.465 (.798), 32-2B, 4-3B, 22-HR, 72 R, 79 RBI. The Twins liked Brent Rooker enough that they drafted him twice. He was the team’s 38th-round pick in 2016 but chose to go back to Mississippi State. He won the SEC Triple Crown in 2017 and the Twins made him a supplemental first-round pick after the season. The Twins pushed him to Ft. Myers to end last year, and he spent his first full minor league season in Double-A Chattanooga. Things started out pretty slow for Rooker. Through his first 42 games, he hit just .233/.278/.374 (.653) with four home runs. Over his next 60 games, he hit .312/.389/.624 (1.013) with 20 doubles and 16 home runs. He struggled again late, but again, we can see what Rooker’s potential is. A lot of strikeouts (150!) and a lot of power and extra-base hits. 2. Royce Lewis - Cedar Rapids Kernels/Ft. Myers Miracle – 121 games, 141-483, .292/.352/.451 (.803), 29-2B, 3-3B, 14-HR, 83 R, 74 RBI. The top pick in the 2017 draft had a strong first full season in pro baseball. He began the season in Cedar Rapids, where he finished the 2017 season, and did well. In 75 games for the Kernels, he hit .315/.368/.485 (.853) with 23 doubles and nine home runs. Many of those extra-base hits came in his final 40 games with the Kernels. He made the Midwest League all-star team and a few weeks later, he was promoted to Ft. Myers. In his 46 games with the Miracle, he hit .255/.327/.399 (.726) with six doubles, three triples and five home runs. Lewis impressed at shortstop, and he led the organization with 28 stolen bases. In the Florida State League championship series, he hit three homers to help the Miracle to the championship. There is a lot of reason for excitement in Lewis’s future. Hitter of the Year Alex Kirilloff – Cedar Rapids Kernels/Ft. Myers Miracle – 130 games, 178-512, .348/.392/.578 (.970), 44-2B, 7-3B, 20-HR, 75 R, 101 RBI. I mean, it was probably the easiest choice of all of our 2018 Twins Minor League award votes. All six of our voters chose outfielder Alex Kirilloff as the 2018 Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year. Kirilloff’s 2018 season was as impressive as we have seen in the Twins system in a number or years. Twins Minor League Director Jeremy Zoll summed it up pretty nicely. “Just a phenomenal season for Alex. To see what he’s done after missing a whole year last year. Start to finish. Wire to wire really just continue to take amazing at-bats and do damage to the baseball has been extremely fun to watch.” It almost makes one forget that Kirilloff missed the entire 2017 season after having Tommy John surgery last March. He was cleared for all baseball activities by about Thanksgiving last year, and he was a full-go in spring training. He began the season in the cold of Cedar Rapids. In his first three games, he went 1-for-12. And from that point forward, he was remarkably consistent. In 65 games in Cedar Rapids, he hit .333/.391/.607 (.999). Then in Ft. Myers, he played 65 games and hit .362/.393/.550 (.943). Kirilloff said, “Cold weather was a factor for the beginning of the MWL season, after that I adjusted well and enjoyed that league in general playing wise. FSL air is a lot thicker, not a hitter-friendly league.” He enjoyed the opportunity to play in the Midwest League All-Star Game. “The Midwest League All-Star Game was a blast. Having a bunch of my family there from Michigan was really special for me. Sharing the time with Royce (Lewis) and Jared (Finkel) made it even better.” Following the All-Star Game, Kirilloff went directly to the Ft. Myers Miracle. In his second game, he had four hits and followed it up with a three-hit game. A few weeks later, Kirilloff represented the Twins on Team USA at the Futures Game. His manager was Torii Hunter. LaTroy Hawkins was the team’s pitching coach. Matthew Lecroy was on the coaching staff. Miracle hitting coach Steve Singleton was the Team USA hitting coach for the game. Singleton said recently that he and the other coaches knew the Kirilloff would have a great showing. “Torii, LaTroy and I joked in the staff meeting at the Futures Game that our guy would get two hits, then he did.” Kirilloff went 2-for-2 in the game and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. “The Futures Game was an incredible experience. Have to say it tops the Midwest League All Star Game a little bit. Just being a part of All-Star week, playing in D.C., and playing in a big league stadium in front of that crowd was fun. On top of that being around the caliber of players that were there made that whole thing awesome as well.” Kirilloff was excited to share the two All-Star game experiences. “Best part about both of them was just the opportunity to be there, and to share it with my wife and family. Both weren’t something I was really thinking about or on my radar at the beginning of the year.” When he returned to the Miracle lineup, he had multi-hit games in eight of his next nine games. He had hits in 27 of his next 28 games. Singleton discussed working with Kirilloff in Ft. Myers and the talent that he possesses. “It was an absolute pleasure having AK this year. Obviously, the talent is special, but the person is even better. He is very mature for his age, stays even- keeled, goes about his work the right way and is a great teammate. He was a leader on the team without ever asserting himself that way. He handled himself like a veteran in a tough league and dominated it in his first full season. Offensively, he is ahead of anyone I have ever been around at 20 years old.” The consistency that Kirilloff showed throughout the season can be illustrated by the below tweet showing where his line drives and fly balls went in 2018. Kirilloff uses the whole field as well as anyone. So, it is fair to ask Mr. Zoll how much he considered pushing Kirilloff up to Double-A Chattanooga. His response: “When you perform like that, that consistently, that long, it definitely is a thought that crosses people’s minds, and showed up in discussions internally. Ultimately just trying to make sure we’re doing what’s best for Alex’s long-term development here. Also very excited that he gets to play in the Florida State League championship, meaningful games in August to get into the playoffs. And with Royce, with (Brusdar) Graterol, with a nice little core there with the Miracle. ” That trio played in the Florida State League championship series, and that trio helped the Miracle to their second Florida State League championship in the last five years. Kirilloff said, “Being a part of any playoff run is always exciting. The group of guys we had, our coaching staff, and front office really made this one special. Was really happy and pleased that we started clicking and playing really good baseball as a team down the stretch. Then we’re fortunate enough to continue that into the playoffs and do what we did. Incredible year!” While this is a hitting award, it was important to ask Jeremy Zoll about Kirilloff’s defense and specifically his arm. “Alex is really technically sound out there. He’ll be the first to tell you that he’s not a burner by any stretch, but he makes the plays that everyone expects him too. The arm has really good carry on it still, and no lingering effects from the surgery and missing all that time.” Singleton said, “He has committed himself to his speed and athleticism this offseason and I expect him to improve from this season to next...as crazy as that sounds.” Jeremy Zoll said, “It’s been cool for him, and on top of being a great player, he’s a great person and a great representative for the organization.” What a year 2018 was for Alex Kirilloff. And, as voters, we appreciate him making the voting quite easy this year! The Ballots In an attempt to be transparent, here are the votes from our Twins Daily minor league writers: Seth Stohs – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Royce Lewis, 3) Brent Rooker, 4) Taylor Grzelakowski, 5) Zander Wiel, 6) Luis Arraez, 7) Jose Miranda, 8) Akil Baddoo Jeremy Nygaard – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Royce Lewis, 3) Zander Wiel, 4) Brent Rooker, 5) Jaylin Davis, 6) Luis Arraez, 7) Akil Baddoo, 8) Michael Davis Cody Christie – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Brent Rooker, 3) Royce Lewis, 4) Jaylin Davis, 5) Taylor Grzelakowski, 6) Akil Baddoo, 7) Willians Astudillo, 8) Zander Wiel Tom Froemming – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Royce Lewis, 3) Brent Rooker, 4) Taylor Grzelakowski, 5) Zander Wiel, 6) Akil Baddoo, 7) Jaylin Davis, 8) LaMonte Wade Steve Lein – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Royce Lewis, 3) Brent Rooker, 4) Ryan Jeffers, 5) Zander Wiel 6) Taylor Grzelakowski, 7) Luis Arraez, 8) Jose Miranda Ted Schwerzler – 1) Alex Kirilloff, 2) Royce Lewis, 3) Brent Rooker, 4) Zander Wiel, 5) Taylor Grzelakowski, 6) Jaylin Davis, 7) Akil Baddoo, 8) Jose Miranda Feel free to discuss. What do you think? Do you agree with our rankings? How would your ballot look? View full article

I just assume most pitches wont' be top end of the rotation guys. There arent very many of them in the game. If you're talking about the Top 20 in a league, well, that means one per team, and we know the Astros have like 4, etc. Berrios can be an upper level starter, and they had him come up when he was like 21-22. College guys come into pro ball at 21-22, so again, unless theyre like Verlander, Cole, Price, etc., it's' going to take them til 24-25 to get to the big leagues.

No inside information. Stewart and Mejia likely factor into 2019 as well. I was trying to be brief and missed a couple of obvious candidates.

Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew is generally considered the greatest Twins player in their 58-year history in Minnesota. He was an imposing figure on the field, capable of altering a game with one swing of his mighty bat. Off the field, Killebrew was said to be one of the most genuinely compassionate men, respectful and helpful. Following the Hall of Famer’s death in 2011, the Twins announced the initiation of the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service. One player from each of the four Twins full-season affiliates would be presented with the award in recognition of their work in their community. Over the coming days, we’ll share with you the four 2018 recipients of the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service.The 2018 Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service recipient for the Rochester Red Wings is right-handed relief pitcher Jake Reed. On the field, it was a real solid season for the hard-throwing right-hander. His overall numbers were terrific. He posted a 1.89 ERA with a 1.15 WHIP. In 47 2/3 innings, he walked 21, but he struck out 50 batters. He missed some time early in the season, but since June 1, he was tremendous. Over the season’s final three months, his ERA was just 1.43 and opponents hit just .167 off of him. It is difficult to understand why he did not receive a September call up based on his statistical line, especially late in the season. As impressive as he was on the mound for the Red Wings, he made a strong impression in the Rochester community as well. Red Wings General Manager Dan Mason nominated Reed saying, “Jake has been a phenomenal representative for the Red Wings and the Twins in our community this season volunteering at a variety of both corporate partner events as well as community events.” The list of activities that Reed helped with in the community was quite lengthy. Mason continued, “Some of the community events he participated in include: delivering meals with Meals on Wheels. Speaking engagement for Rochester Regional Hospital, Foodlink Summer kickoff, USSSA clinic, School of the Holy Childhood ( for mentally challenged kids) clinic, Challenger Baseball World Series here at Frontier Field, Red Wings Baseball camp, and another Challenger baseball camp. ” Reed truly appreciated the opportunities he had to work in and for the community thanks to the Red Wings. He said, “The Red Wings have been one of the best organizations I have ever seen as far as the opportunities they give us players to get out into the community and serve. We have done everything from visiting hospitals and running baseball camps, to delivering meals to less fortunate families and working alongside the Challenger baseball league in Rochester, which has been my favorite.” But, according to Mason, Reed went above and beyond the team-sponsored activities. “On his own time, without anyone in our office asking him, Jake visited a Challenger baseball field on his own on a Saturday morning in June. He also can often be seen before games chatting with fans and signing autographs, doing his best to provide lifelong memories for our fans. He truly understands his responsibilities as a professional baseball player on and off the field.” Reed deserved a September call up because of his work on the field for the Red Wings in 2018. However, he fully understands his role in society and the opportunities and the platform he’s been given and chooses to use it for good. He noted recently that he really appreciates receiving the honor and having his name associated with someone like Harmon Killebrew. He said, “This award actually means a lot. I will be honest. Not getting the call at the end of the season was disappointing. But getting this reward definitely reminded me of why God actually has me playing this game. It’s not about baseball. It really isn’t. It’s about loving and serving the people that you come into contact with, and the great thing about baseball is it gives us players plenty of opportunity to do so. I think men like Harmon Killebrew have set the example for us as far as what it looks like to be more than a baseball player.” Reed joined Episode 7 of Seth’s Twins On Deck Podcastlast offseason to talk about the work he’s done on the field, but also to discuss his faith as it is a very important an instrumental part of his life. Previous Red Wings Killebrew Award winners: 2011 - Kyle Gibson 2012 - JR Towles 2013 - Brian Dinkelman 2014 - Logan Darnell 2015 - Logan Darnell 2016 - Logan Darnell 2017 - DJ Baxendale 2018 - Jake Reed Congratulations to Jake Reed on earning the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service for the Rochester Red Wings. Over the coming days, we will share the stories of the Killebrew Award winners for the Chattanooga Lookouts, Ft. Myers Miracle and Cedar Rapids Kernels (in which there is an interesting tie to Killebrew himself). Click here to view the article

I haven't seen a ton of him, a start in Cedar Rapids and a few spring training appearances. But what I saw was a guy with a fastball 92-93 (which is plenty) and the changeup/curveball combo is solid. What I've seen is a want to be aggressive and a willingness and ability to adjust quickly.

People worry so much about age and level and age to reach the big leagues... How about we worry more about them just being ready when they get there, or soon after? That's more important. College guys, maybe other than the first few still take 3-4 years to get to the big leagues, and that's OK. Wells is from a D2 school. Taking a little longer to get to the big leagues can be a good thing. He may have been more raw when signed, needed time to develop a 3rd or 4th pitch, etc. If that means he gets to the big leagues at 26, oh well.

My thoughts: Colina - Definitely Ft. Myers. Thorpe - Definitely Rochester Gonsalves - Definitely Rochester. Command is the issue. I can't imagine that even if he works 20+ innings without a walk in spring training, they're going to want him to prove it for a bit in AAA. Graterol - Probably Ft. Myers, some chance he could start in AA. Wells - Probably AA. More regarding Gonsalves: If he had come up and struggled mid-season, he could have been sent down with the list of things to work on. The minor league seasons are over, so he's just go to keep working in the big leagues and in the bullpen. Now he's got the offseason to make adjustments and two more options to make adjustments (obviously the hope is that he doesn't need them). Clearly some adjustments are needed, but he'll put in the work. So the idea of giving up on him at this point is just kind of crazy to me (not saying you're doing that, just others are).

I should have noted that I asked voters to vote for or rank their top 5 2018 performers. Well, Graterol and Gonsalves appeared on all six 'ballots' so there were only two more spots. If I had asked for people to vote for up to 8 pitchers, obviously there would have been more "receiving votes." What does Gonsalves need to do? Throw strikes. He's got the pitches and enough stuff and moxie and stuff to big OK, but as we've seen, without command (and really even control), it can't work against big leaguers. The Twins need to figure out over the next 12ish months to see what they may have in Gonsalves, Littell, De Jong, Romero, and then next year Thorpe enters the equation too. Wells could force his way into the conversation in 2019.

The Twins, and probably every organization in baseball, need and want more pitching. Even with the “opener” concept starting to take root in the game, development of starting pitchers will always be a top priority for baseball executives and coaches. Today, we announce the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year. There were some good choices again in 2018. Previous 2018 Awards Short-Season Minor League Pitcher of the Year: Andrew Cabezas Short-Season Minor League Hitter of the Year: Chris Williams Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year: Andrew Vasquez Today: Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year: Tyler Wells Coming Soon: Minor League Hitter of the Year: Previous Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitchers of the Year: 2012 - BJ Hermsen 2013 - Taylor Rogers 2014 - Jose Berrios 2015 - Jose Berrios 2016 - Stephen Gonsalves 2017 - Stephen Gonsalves 2018 - Keep ReadingBefore we get to the Top Five, and the eventual winner, it's worth noting a few honorable mentions. While Rochester and Chattanooga struggled in 2018, Cedar Rapids made the playoffs and Ft. Myers and Elizabethton won championships, largely on their pitching. Here are some of those candidates that also received votes: Honorable Mention Sean Poppen - Ft. Myers Miracle/Chattanooga Lookouts - 26 G, 20 GS, 6-9, 3.45 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 127.2 IP, 2.7 BB/9, 8.7 K/9Randy Dobnak - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 24 G, 20 GS, 10-5, 3.14 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 129.0 IP, 1.7 BB/9, 5.9 K/9Bailey Ober - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 14 GS, 7-1, 3.84 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 75.0 IP, 1.1 BB/9, 10.6 K/9Starting Pitcher of the Year Here are the top five picks for the 2018 Minnesota Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year. #5- Edwar Colina - Cedar Rapids Kernels/Ft. Myers Miracle - 21 G, 20 GS, 7-5, 2.63 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 109.1 IP, 4.4 BB/9, 8.7 K/9 Colina signed with the Twins in September of 2015. He pitched in the Dominican Summer League in 2016. Last year in Elizabethton, he was the Appalachian League Pitcher of the Year. While his walk total was high, Colina was often able to work out of situations with strikeouts. Colina is stocky and strong. While he isn’t tall, he uses has legs to drive the ball. He sits 93 to 94 mph, but he can hit 96 regularly. He’s got good secondary pitches as well. He spent the majority of the season in Cedar Rapids, where he started a no-hitter. He ended the season with a start for the Miracle and then was the winning pitcher in the Miracle’s championship game. #4- Lewis Thorpe - Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings - 26 G, 25 GS, 8-7, 3.54 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 129.2 iP, 2.5 BB/9, 10.9 K/9 Thorpe was added to the Twins 40-man roster last November. After missing two full seasons with Tommy John surgery (and mono), Thorpe showed enough in Ft. Myers to earn the roster spot. This year, he began in Chattanooga where he struggled early. But he started pitching well and was named to the Future Game where he represented the Twins and Australia. He took off from there, throwing more and more strikes and getting a lot of strikeouts. He ended the season with four starts in Rochester. #3- Stephen Gonsalves - Chattanooga Lookouts/Rochester Red Wings - 23 G, 22 GS, 12-3, 2.76 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 120.2 IP, 4.8 BB/9, 9.0 K/9 Gonsalves was the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year in 2016 and 2017. He was the runner up to Jose Berrios in 2015. After being added to the 40-man roster last November, Gonsalves came to his second big league spring training. He struggled early and was sent to Chattanooga where he issued too many walks but dominated in four starts. He was promoted to Rochester where he went 9-3 with a 2.96 ERA. When you consider he has starts in which he gave up six runs in 1 2/3 innings, five runs in 2/3 inning, and nine earned runs in four innings, he was incredible in the rest of his innings. He followed the nine-run outing with a stretch of seven starts in which he gave up just two runs over 40 1/3 innings. In mid-August, the 24-year-old received the call to the big leagues. #2- Brusdar Graterol - Cedar Rapids Kernels/Fort Myers Miracle - 19 GS, 8-4, 2.74 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 102.0 IP, 2.5 BB/9, 9.4 K/9 The Twins signed Graterol way back in late August of 2014. The Venezuelan right-hander pitched just 11 innings in the Dominican Summer League in 2015 before coming to the Twin Cities and having Tommy John surgery. He continued to rehab until early in the 2017 season when he returned to pitching, this time for the GCL Twins. He split 2018 between the GCL and Elizabethton. He began the 2018 season in extended spring training, though he got to Cedar Rapids before the end of April. With the Kernels, he went 3-2 with a 2.18 ERA in 41 1/3 innings (9 BB, 51 K) before being promoted to the Miracle shortly after the Midwest League All-Star Game. With the Miracle, he went 5-2 with a 3.12 ERA in 11 starts and 60 2/3 innings (19 BB, 56 K). Blessed with a fastball that sits in the upper 90s and frequently hits triple digits, Graterol also has the makings of a quality slider and changeup. #1- Tyler Wells - Ft. Myers Miracle/Chattanooga Lookouts - 22 G, 21 GS, 10-6, 2.49 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 119.1 IP, 2.3 BB/9, 9.2 K/9 The Twins used their 15th-round draft pick in the 2016 draft to select a tall, right-hander from Cal State-San Bernadino. He was an interesting draft story. Recently Senior Advisor to Scouting, Deron Johnson, who was the Twins Scouting Director in 2016, told Twins Daily that he had traveled with Twins area scout and now West Coast Supervisor Elliot Strankman. “Elliot and I were going to see a junior college kid at another college. He said, ‘Hey, I like this reliever at Sonoma State. Let’s go see him on the way there.’ So we go there and they’re playing Cal State-San Bernadino. We see this big giant on the mound throwing up to 94 with a nice breaking ball. John Leavitt, our area scout had him in, but he wasn’t a guy for me to see. We just stopped in there on a whim. John had seen him, but he hadn’t seen him throwing that hard. We just kind of had him on our radar after that. We didn’t hide him out, but we didn’t show a lot of interest. We knew there were two other clubs that had interest in him. We targeted him in the draft and thought, let’s not lose this guy.” Johnson noted that Wells reminded him of a former Twins pitching prospect (and former minor league pitcher of the year) who reached Triple-A Rochester. “Remember David Bromberg? (Wells) was a lot like David. When we draft-and-followed David, he weighed 290 pounds out of high school. He went to junior college and lost a ton of weight.” That was the carrying story for Wells as he came into the 2018 season. This past offseason, Wells worked really hard at Performance Fitness for Athletes as well as greatly improved his diet. It was noticed, and it paid off. Since being drafted, he has lost about 50 pounds. Twins minor league director Jeremy Zoll noted, “Tyler does seem to fly under the radar a little bit for whatever reason. We’ve been really proud of him this year. He came into spring training and had really transformed his body, lost about 25 pounds. Really changed his diet working with his mom and a few other people in California. To dial that in this offseason. Felt it was the area he needed to improve the most. Thought it would help him sustain success through a long, full season. He did just that. He stayed committed to that all year.” Wells acknowledged that it was very important to him, but not only did he lose the weight, but he got results on the mound. He said, “It was extremely fulfilling knowing that the hard work I’ve put in is showing out on the field. It helped me gain confidence in myself and my ability to go out there every day and compete.” The weight loss is part of Tyler Wells’ 2018 story, but at the end of the day, he is the choice for Twins Daily Starting Pitcher of the Year because of the numbers and because of the results, and frankly, because he is a really good pitcher. For his part, Wells likes to just keep it simple. “I don’t really try to follow my stats too much. I like to keep it simple and just try to put up as many zeroes as possible every time I go out there. If anything, I was extremely blessed and thankful to have a completely healthy season.” His pitching coach at Ft. Myers, Henry Bonilla, noted that staying healthy was part of the key for Wells. “One of the main things for Tyler was staying healthy. He always had good numbers, but seemed to find little injuries that kept him off the field. He also learned how to use his pitches better, what works well off each other and so forth.” Jeremy Zoll credits that pitching coaches working with Wells, but also Wells himself for working on things. “I know he was working with both pitching coaches, Henry Bonilla, Ivan Arteaga and JP Martinez, our assistant pitching coordinator, throughout the season with various grips on his curveball. He tried an adjustment early that ultimately didn’t go the way he wanted it to. He made some tweaks in the middle of the year and it seemed like from there, it started to really help. It played off his fastball well. Increased comfort with the slider and ability to use it early in the count, late in the count, and just continue to be comfortable pitching inside. So a lot of it is just continued innings, continued reps, continued development, and some minor tweaks along the way.” From Johnson, “Tyler’s got that good fastball carry. He’s got a nice down-action curveball. He can pitch. He’s got a changeup too. He’s got good makeup. He’s turned himself into a good prospect.” According to Zoll, “He’s got four pitches. He continued to hone ways to use all four and have them play off each other. He fills up the strike zone and generates weak contact. All those things put together equal a pretty good starting pitcher. It helped him earn his promotion to AA and he just step on the gas pedal from there. ” Wells made 16 starts for Ft. Myers to start the season and was named a Florida State League All Star. He went 8-4 with a 2.80 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. In 86 2/3 innings, he walked 17 and struck out 82 batters. He was the Twins Daily Starting Pitcher of the Month in June. He was promoted to Chattanooga where he made six more starts and went 2-2 with a 1.65 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. In 32 2/3 innings, he walked 14 but struck out 39 batters. Asked about the continued success upon his promotion to Double-A, Wells said, “Honestly, my transitions were very easy for one reason. It’s the same game all the way through. I have to go out and throw strikes, execute pitches, and give my team a chance to win every single time.” The makeup and the mental aspect of the game is often forgotten, but Tyler Wells has it in spades. “I cannot say that there was one pitch or sequence (that led to his success) because every hitter is different. My success, I believe, came from my mental side of the game. I was able to learn how to use my pitches, read hitters’ swings, and keep my approach to pitching simple and aggressive.” Deron Johnson says it well when he says of Wells. “He was a pleasant surprise. You’ve got to get lucky and get guys down there in the draft. You never know what’s going to happen with your top picks, so it’s always a pleasant surprise to get a guy or two, like Hildenberger, down there. You’ve got to get lucky.” Who knows? The Twins just may have got lucky in the 2016 15th round with Tyler Wells. The Ballots Votes came in from the Twins Daily minor league writers, making six ballots in total. Striving for transparency, here is how each individual voted: Seth Stohs - 1) Tyler Wells, 2) Brusdar Graterol, 3) Stephen Gonsalves, 4) Edwar Colina, 5) Sean PoppenJeremy Nygaard - 1) Tyler Wells, 2) Stephen Gonsalves, 3) Lewis Thorpe, 4) Brusdar Graterol, 5) Bailey OberCody Christie - 1) Stephen Gonsalves, 2) Tyler Wells, 3) Brusdar Graterol, 4) Edwar Colina, 5) Sean PoppenTed Schwerzler - 1) Tyler Wells, 2) Brusdar Graterol, 3) Stephen Gonsalves, 4) Edwar Colina, 5) Randy DobnakTom Froemming - 1) Tyler Wells, 2) Lewis Thorpe, 3) Brusdar Graterol, 4) Sean Poppen, 5) Stephen GonsalvesSteve Lein - 1) Tyler Wells, 2) Brusdar Graterol, 3) Lewis Thorpe, 4) Stephen Gonsalves, 5) Randy DobnakFeel free to discuss below in the comments. Share your ballot! Click here to view the article

Why would they have called up Burdi last September? He was only like 3 months post Tommy John surgery. While I agree with Reed (should have been called up), if he's added to the 40-man roster in November, it really isn't a big deal.

It's pretty minor and he got to the big leagues, making it even more minor. Every year, teams bring in new players, free agents, minor league free agents, etc., so the dominoes fall because no one wants to lose more players than they have to. So it becomes a numbers game. It takes care of itself. Vasquez kept putting up numbers. The Twins traded lefty Anthony McIver. Mason Melotakis asked for his release. Injuries happen. And again, it all works itself out.

Miller is upper-90s. Vasquez tops out at 91, maybe 92. But he can be a really good lefty reliever. The 40-man givens are Wade and Gordon. I'd like to think Reed and Anderson might be too. With Roger and Moya and now Vasquez, I wouldd think that Jay would be left unprotected.

It's also important to note where these people are in their careers. GCL is in noon games in the July and August heat of southwest Florida. Many in their first pro experiences. Many not getting real consistent playing time. Or, for top prospects, they're playing most every day for the first time ever. There are just so many factors in these leagues. That said, I do agree that these numbers are lower than many years... But also important to note... Check out what Jeffers, Larnach, Helman and Davis did in Cedar Rapids after short stints in E-Town. What could they have done with another month of games in E-Town?

At one point, he missed about 3 weeks with a quad injury.

To be fair, the questions that there were on draft day with Jeffers and Williams are still there. Both could hit (And this is a hitting award) The question marks for both were more on defense and specifically at catcher. Jeffers did fine defensively and maybe was even better than expected. Williams played 1B, in large part because of the shoulder.

Along with Kirilloff and Lewis, Cedar Rapids also lost Jose Miranda fairly late, and Edwar Colina right at the end.

Sometimes these short-season awards can be difficult to vote for. Yesterday, Andrew Cabezas was named the short-season Pitcher of the Year. Today we discuss the short-season Hitters of the Year. Over the coming days, we’ll also announce our choices for the full season Hitter, Starting Pitcher and Relief Pitcher of the Year. It is important to note that voters were encouraged to only look at the stats from the GCL Twins and the Elizabethton Twins. That’s probably unfair to the likes of Michael Davis and Michael Helman who played very little in Elizabethton before being promoted to Cedar Rapids where they continued to play well. Ryan Jeffers and Trevor Larnach each stayed in E-Town a little longer. Previous winners: 2016: Lewin Diaz 2017: Akil Baddoo With fewer games than full season leagues, players have less time to make their mark. A smaller sample size can skew a player's overall numbers. However, each of these players are trying to make the organization take notice of their performance. Which hitters performed well for Elizabethton Twins and the GCL Twins? Let's dive in... Image courtesy of Mike Gallagher (graphics by Finn Pearson) Yesterday, Twins Daily announced the Short Season Pitcher of the Year. Throughout the rest of the week, the other minor league awards will be announced. There were some strong performances throughout the minors and some of these players may be part of the next wave of players heading for Target Field. Short profiles of our top five are to follow, but first, some players worthy of honorable mention. These players also received votes. Others Receiving Votes: Janigson Villalobos, GCL Twins: 26-84, .310/.363/.393 (.755), 3-2B, 2-3B, 15 RBI Yeltsin Encarnacion, GCL Twins/Elizabethton Twins: 50-167, .299/.350/.377 (.727), 8-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 22 RBI DaShawn Keirsey, Elizabethton Twins: 31-103, .301/.371/.427 (.798), 7-2B, 3-3B, 13 RBI Michael Helman, Elizabethton Twins: 15-40, .375/.435/.575 (1.010), 1-3B, 2-HR, 7 RBI (does not include stats from Cedar Rapids) Alex Robles, Elizabethton Twins: 66-244, .297/.357/.378 (.735), 12-2B, 2-HR, 35 RBI Trevor Larnach, Elizabethton Twins: 19-61, .311/.413/.492 (.905), 5-2B, 2-HR, 16 RBI (does not include stats from Cedar Rapids) Tyler Webb, GCL Twins/Elizabethton Twins: 41-143, .287/.373/.336 (.709), 4-2B, 1-HR, 16 RBI Short-Season Hitter of the Year Here are the top five players for the Twins Daily Short-Season Hitter of the Year 5. Yunior Severino, Elizabethton Twins: 52-198, .263/.321/.424 (.745), 8-2B, 8-HR, 28 RBI Severino split the 2017 season between the Dominican Summer League and the Braves Gulf Coast League teams. Following the season, he was ruled a free agent by Major League Baseball and the Twins quickly signed him for $2.5 million. The 18-year-old is a really good athlete with good speed, but he’s also got real good bat speed from both sides of the plate which could lead to some power. While he could play shortstop, he is already primarily playing second base. 4. Colton Burns, Elizabethton Twins: 23-93, .247/.375/.505 (.880), 6-2B, 6-HR, 14 RBI Burns was the Twins 18th-round pick in 2017 out of UC-Santa Barbara. He’s fought some injuries in his time as a professional, including about a month due to a knee injury this season. When he did play, he displayed some raw power that made him intriguing to the organization. T2. Ryan Jeffers, Elizabethton Twins: 43-102, .422/.543/.578 (1.121), 7-2B, 3-HR, 17 RBI If we’re being honest, Jeffers was clearly on his way to this award, but it was clear that the Twins 2nd-round pick was ready to be pushed to the Midwest League. Jeffers hit for average, he took walks and got on base, and he showed plenty of power. Those things continued after he joined the Cedar Rapids Kernels. T2. Trevor Casanova, Elizabethton Twins: 48-145, .331/.389/.490 (.879), 14-2B, 3-HR, 16 RBI Casanova played just one year of high school baseball and then went to three junior colleges before spending a year at El Camino College. He was drafted in 2017 in the 14th round by Seattle, but he chose to go to Cal State-Northridge. The Twins made him their 13th-round pick and sent him as one of four catchers to Elizabethton. He played a little more than half of the time and earned the playing time with his high batting average and doubles power. As he continues to work on his defense, he will be one to watch in Cedar Rapids in 2019. Get to know more about Casanova from his Q&A for Twins Daily. 1. Chris Williams, Elizabethton Twins: 54-214, .252/.372/.500 (.872), 6-2B, 1-3B, 15-HR, 51 RBI Williams grew up in Southern California and after a strong high school career, he did not have a single Division 1 offer. So, he went to an area junior college and after one year, he moved across the country to play at Clemson University. In an interview with Twins Daily in late July, Williams discussed the decision to go to Clemson. “Clemson gave me a call and asked if I was interested in leaving California and going to South Carolina to play baseball. All I can remember was being dumbfounded and thinking, What does South Carolina even look like? I had never left home for more than three weeks. But I took a leap of faith, and it was the best three years of my life.” Over the next three years, Williams played in 211 games for Clemson and hit a combined .276 (.883) with 48 doubles and 44 home runs. He was drafted in the 31st round of the 2017 draft by the Rays but went back for his senior season. This June, the Twins called his name in the eighth round. Twins minor league director Jeremy Zoll mentioned the Twins scouts finding his potential game-changing tool and took a shot on him. “I think our amateur group identified that there was real power in Chris’s bat and to be able to snag that at that point in the draft was intriguing.” Since the only defensive position Williams played for Elizabethton was first base, it may surprise many to know that the Twins drafted him as a catcher, and that may be something he gets an opportunity to do starting next month. According to Zoll, “He’s dealt with some shoulder injuries in college, and he seems to be all squared away now and coming into our fall program, we’re going to explore getting him back behind the dish. That’s only going to help his value long-term.” Williams reported to Elizabethton where manager Ray Smith took a look at him and inserted him into the middle of the lineup. Smith noted, “ We had situated him into a ‘run producing’ slot early after seeing him a few times and reading the scouting reports. He had shown success (with power) at a good college program, had driven in some runs, hit some long balls for us and we ended up leaving him there for the duration of the year.” Williams’ 15 home runs led the Appalachian League, and his 51 RBI put him in fourth in the league. Despite the low batting average, he finished in the Top 10 in the league in slugging percentage and OPS. The numbers match the scouting reports. Zoll adds, “Chris has got crazy raw power. He does a good job when pitches end up in his zone of not missing them, and he showed that from wire to wire in the Appy League. To end up with 15 bombs in short season is pretty cool and speaks to the threat he is in the middle of the order. We saw teams starting to pitch around him at times which only helped that walk total there.” While he struck out just under 20% of his plate appearances, he walked over 15% of the time too. His manager noticed. “A lot of that comes from development and application of a hit plan, knowing the strike zone, showing balance and alignment, control of your weight shift, et cetera. Allows you to make adjustments to velocity, spin and location and not get yourself out so much.” Zoll added, “You can have all the power in the world, but if you don’t find the right place to harness it or get too eager to show it off, it becomes a detriment.” E-Twins manager Ray Smith discussed how Williams fit into the ideal lineup. “Ideally, you hope to stack your line-up with speed, consistency & some power. Chris supplied us with that power threat in the middle of our lineup. He was especially effective when we had Jeffers and Larnach here for awhile. Got pitched around some late.” All that being said, Williams had a very nice professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins and was very deserving as the choice for Twins Daily Short-Season Hitter of the Year. The Ballots In an attempt to be transparent, here are the votes from our Twins Daily minor league writers: Seth Stohs- 1) Chris Williams, 2) Ryan Jeffers, 3) Yunior Severino, 4) Trevor Casanova, 5) Yeltsin Encarnacion Jeremy Nygaard- 1) Ryan Jeffers, 2) Chris Williams, 3) Michael Helman, 4) Trevor Larnach, 5) Trevor Casanova Cody Christie- 1) Chris Williams, 2) Ryan Jeffers, 3) Trevor Casanova, 4) Colton Burns, 5) Yunior Severino Tom Froemming- 1) Chris Williams, 2) Ryan Jeffers, 3) Colton Burns, 4) Trevor Casanova, 5) Alex Robles Steve Lein- 1) Chris Williams, 2) Trevor Casanova, 3) Colton Burns, 4) Yunior Severino, 5) DaShawn Keirsey Ted Schwerzler- 1) Trevor Casanova, 2) Janigson Villalobos, 3) Yeltsin Encarnacion, 4) DeShawn Keirsey, 5) Tyler Webb Feel free to discuss. What do you think of our rankings? How would you rank them? How would your ballot look? View full article

It doesn't help (and shouldn't hurt) any sort of prospect status. It just kind of is what it is. Hildenberger and Vasquez both spent their draft seasons in the GCL. They can only have so many pitchers at each level, and only so many in Elizabethton, so the rest of them go to the GCL. They're usually the guys drafted in the later rounds.

Alex Phillips signed from Evansville. I chatted a bit with Travis Harrison about him (Travis is with Evansville this year). Said he's 91-94 with a lot of strikes. Good slider and curveball. Attacks the zone.