Seth Stohs

Keep reading to find out more on the night in the Twins minor league system on Monday. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS Outfielder Ryan LaMarre was claimed by the Chicago White Sox. The Twins released Felix Jorge last week, but they announced Monday night that they have re-signed him to a minor league deal. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester Box Score The Red Wings are now on their All-Star break. Willians Astudillo was the one Red Wings player to make the International League All-Star team. Since Astudillo was called up to the big league club, Nick Anderson will represent the Red Wings. The International League will take on the Pacific Coast League All-Stars on Wednesday night in Columbus, Ohio. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Jacksonville 3 Box Score Sean Poppen probably deserves better, but part of the development process is getting your work. Through six innings, Poppen had yet to allow a run and had given up just two hits. But he went out for the seventh inning and gave up three runs on two homers. So, over his seven innings, he gave up three runs on five hits. He struck out seven without issuing a walk. It was a quality start, yet it doesn’t highlight just how well he pitched. Cody Stashak worked a scoreless inning in relief. The offense provided just two runs. Zander Wiel went 2-for-4 with his 19th double and first triple. Jaylin Davis also had two hits. Taylor Motter added his first double. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 2, Palm Beach 6 Box Score The Miracle got behind early and weren’t able to come back. Andro Cutura started and was charged with five runs on five hits and a walk in 1 2/3 innings. Colton Davis went the next 3 1/3 innings and did not allow a run. He gave up three hits and struck out four. Ryan Mason went the next 3 1/3 innings and also did not allow a run. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out two. Brady Anderson walked two, but he got the final two outs of the game without allowing a run. The Miracle had just five hits. Taylor Grzelakowski went 2-for-3 with a walk and his 11th and 12th doubles. Alex Kirilloff had two singles. Miguel Sano went 0-4 with a strikeout. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Kane County 3 Box Score Royce Lewis had a day off, but he was called on to pinch hit in the ninth inning. He came through with a single to center field which loaded the bases with one out. Unfortunately, the Kernels were not able to score the game-tying run and lost a close one. Randy Dobnak again provided the Kernels with exactly what they needed, quality innings. The right-hander gave up two runs on eight hits and a walk over the first seven innings. He struck out four and needed just 89 pitches. Melvi Acosta came in for the eighth inning and gave up a run on four hits. Jose Miranda led the offense. He went 3-for-5 with his 18th double. Jean Carlos Arias went 2-for-5 with his eighth triple. David Banuelos went 2-for-5 with his 11th double, and Jared Akins went 2-for-5 with his first Kernels double. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton 2, Danville 0 Box Score The story of this game was some terrific pitching for the Twins. 2018 draft pick Kody Funderburk gave up four hits and no runs over the first four innings. He walked two and struck one out. Moises Gomez worked the middle three innings. He gave up just one hit and walked one while striking out two. Derek Molina recorded his second save. He struck out four batters over two perfect innings. The E-Twins managed just three hits in the game but were able to score two runs. Chris Williams and Alex Robles had back-to-back bases-loaded RBI singles in the sixth inning to provide the run support. Ryan Jeffers went 1-for-2 with two walks in the game. On a side note, Zack Seipel, Atlanta’s 27th round pick in June, worked two scoreless innings. . He walked one and struck out two. He was drafted out of the University of Minnesota-Crookston. It was the fourth appearance of his professional career. GCL TWINS TALK GCL Twins 3, GCL Rays 6 Box Score Steven Cruz started for the Twins. He gave up four runs on two hits in 2 2/3 innings. He walked five and struck out four. Michael Montero came on and gave up one hit over 3 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck one out. Denny Bentley threw two scoreless innings. Erik Cha was charged with two unearned runs on one hit. Tyler Webb led the offense by going 4-for-5 in the game. Janigson Villalobos went 2-for-3 with his third double. Samuel Vasquez was 2-for-5. Side note: 2017 #4 overall pick Brendan McKay made a rehab appearance for the GCL Rays. He had not played for the last month due to oblique muscle tightness. He went 0-for-3 with a strikeout. Also, Jelfry Marte, who agreed to terms with the Twins a year ago but never signed after the Twins withdrew their offer after his physical. Marte went 1-for-4 and is now hitting .271. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Tyler Webb, GCL Twins (4-5) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Sean Poppen, Chattanooga Lookouts (7 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that we will be updating our Top Prospect rankings so this list will be updated soon. #1 - Royce Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 1-1 (used as pinch hitter) #2 - Fernando Romero (Rochester) - Did not pitch #3 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) - All Star break #4 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - All Star break #5 - Alex Kirilloff (Ft. Myers) - 2-4, K #6 - Wander Javier - out of for the season #7 - Brent Rooker (Chattanooga) - 1-4, K #8 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - Did not pitch #9 - Brusdar Graterol (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, BB, R, K, SB(16) #11 - Zack Littell (Minnesota) - Did not pitch #12 - Lewis Thorpe (Chattanooga) - Did not pitch #13 - Lewin Diaz (Ft. Myers) - 0-3, RBI, K #14 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - All Star break #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - Did not play #17 - Travis Blankenhorn (Ft. Myers) - 0-3, BB, K, R #18 - Yunior Severino (Elizabethton Twins) - 0-3, BB, R, K #19 - Tyler Jay (Chattanooga) - Did not pitch #20 - Felix Jorge (Chattanooga) - DFAd and Released and Re-signed on Monday. TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester - All Star break Chattanooga @ Jacksonville (6:05 CST) - TBD Palm Beach @ Ft. Myers (6:00 CST) - RHP Clark Beeker (3-6, 3.48 ERA) Cedar Rapids - No Game Scheduled Elizabethton @ Johnson City (6:00 CST) - TBD GCL Twins @ GCL Rays (11:00 am CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions about Monday’s games, or ask any questions you may have.

Keep reading to find out more on the night in the Twins minor league system on Friday. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS The Twins acquired minor league outfielder Jon Kemmer from the Astros. The 27-year-old has played in AAA the last three seasons. He is a left-handed hitting corner outfielder. The Twins activated utility man Taylor Motter and optioned him to AA Chattanooga. The decision to send him to Chattanooga rather than Rochester is because the Red Wings start their All-Star break on Monday and they want Motter to play. Gabriel Moya reported back to Rochester. Luke Bard was placed on the disabled list (calf). Ft. Myers activated OF Shane Carrier on Friday. And before we go further, a quick fireworks show for Tom Froemming, a huge fireworks enthusiast (or not really). https://twitter.com/SethTweets/status/1015450520755032064 RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 6, Lehigh Valley 7 (10 innings) Box Score The Red Wings got the offense, but not quite enough pitching or defense in this game. Kohl Stewart made his second Red Wings start of the season. He gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out five. Two of the hits left the ballpark, including one from former Red Wings outfielder Danny Ortiz. Trevor May walked one in an otherwise uneventful outing. Gabriel Moya struck out two batters over two scoreless innings. Alan Busenitz pitched a scoreless ninth inning, but he gave up two runs (both deemed unearned) in the 10th inning to take the loss. LaMonte Wade led the offense. He went 2-for-3 with two walks and his third home run of the season. Nick Gordon went 2-for-5 with his eighth double and his second Red Wing home run. Kennys Vargas went 2-for-5 with his tenth double. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 1, Birmingham 3 Box Score While the Lookouts were unable to garner much offense in this game, there were some interesting notes from the game. Luis Arraez made his first start for Chattanooga and recorded his first hit. Zander Wiel went 2-for-4. Jaylin Davis went 1-for-3 with a walk and drove in the lone run for the Lookouts. Lefty Anthony Marzi fell to 0-6 for Chattanooga, but he pitched better than he has of late. He was charged with three runs on seven hits and two walks in five innings. However, he also had 11 strikeouts. In his previous start, he went five innings without recording any strikeouts, and his 11 strikeouts on Friday night equaled his strikeout total over his previous four starts. Another lefty, Andrew Vasquez came on in relief. He walked one and struck out three over two hitless, scoreless innings. He has yet to give up an earned run over his first ten innings with the Lookouts this season, including 8 1/3 innings over his four appearance since returning following the Florida State League All Star game. A third lefty, Ryne Harper, struck out four batters over the final two innings. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 5, Bradenton 4 Box Score Things got a little feisty when the Miracle and Bradenton played on Friday night. Three members of the Miracle were ejected in the eighth inning. The Miracle took a 5-4 lead in the eighth frame when Lewin Diaz hit the go-ahead home run. The next batter was the red-hot Caleb Hamilton who was called out on strikes and was ejected. Soon after, his manager Ramon Borrego was tossed. Tom Hackimer was in the game for the bottom of the eighth inning. After getting the first out, he proceeded to hit the next three batters. After a force out at home and a fly out, the inning ended without the tying run scoring, Hackimer was ejected as he left the field. Tyler Wells was the story early in the game. He retired the first 16 batters that he faced. In total, he gave up two runs on three hits over six innings. He struck out eight without a walk. Colton Davis came on and gave up two runs on two hits and a walk before Hackimer was brought in. He got the final two outs of the seventh before his eighth inning. Alex Robinson came on for the ninth inning and pitched a perfect inning for the save. Lewin Diaz was the offensive hero. He went 3-for-4 with his 11th double and his sixth home run, which proved to be the game-winner. Caleb Hamilton was 2-for-4 in the game. Alex Kirilloff batted in the leadoff spot for the first time and went 1-for-5. Miguel Sano was 1-for-4 in the game. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, Kane County 1 Box Score Not much scoring in this game. In fact, the lone run in the game was unearned. Blayne Enlow worked a career-high six shutout innings. He worked out of some jams as he gave up six hits, walked three and hit one. He struck out three. Melvi Acosta worked the final two innings. He was charged with the unearned run on three hits. He struck out two. The Kernels managed just five hits in the game. Jacob Pearson moved into the leadoff spot when Akil Baddoo was a late scratch from the lineup. Pearson went 2-for-3 with a walk. Andrew Bechtold hit his 13th double. Trey Cabbage had a single and walked once. E-TWINS E-TALK Elizabethton, Kingsport Box Score This game was been postponed by rain as the weather affected several games in the Appalachian League on Friday night. GCL TWINS TALK GCL Twins 4, GCL Red Sox 2 Box Score The GCL Twins got a little hitting and a little pitching, enough to come out of this game with a little win. Landon Leach started for the Twins. The 2017 draft pick went two scoreless innings. He didn’t give up a hit, but he did walk three and struck out two. Donny Breek came on and also threw two scoreless innings. He walked two, hit one and struck out two. Frandy Torres gave up one run on two hits, a walk and a hit batter over 1 2/3 innings. He struck out three. Amilcar Cruz gave up one run on one hit, one walk and two hit batters. He struck out one. Tanner Howell came in and got the final seven outs to record the save. He gave up one hit, walked one and struck out two. STARS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Hitter of the Day: Lewin Diaz, Ft. Myers Miracle (3-4, 2B(11), HR(6), R, 2 RBI) Twins Daily Pitcher of the Day: Blayne Enlow, Cedar Rapids Kernels (6 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 1 HBP, 3 K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed. Please note that we will be updating our Top Prospect rankings so this list will be updated soon. #1 - Royce Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4 #2 - Fernando Romero (Rochester) - Did not pitch #3 - Nick Gordon (Rochester) -2-5, 2B(8), HR(2), 2 R, RBI, K #4 - Stephen Gonsalves (Rochester) - Did not pitch #5 - Alex Kirilloff (Ft. Myers) - 1-5, 2K #6 - Wander Javier - out of for the season #7 - Brent Rooker (Chattanooga) - 0-3, BB, 2 K #8 - Blayne Enlow (Cedar Rapids) - 6 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 1 HBP, 3 K #9 - Brusdar Graterol (Ft. Myers) - Did not pitch #10 - Akil Baddoo (Cedar Rapids) - Did not play #11 - Zack Littell (Minnesota) - Did not pitch #12 - Lewis Thorpe (Chattanooga) - Did not pitch #13 - Lewin Diaz (Ft. Myers) - 3-4, 2B(11), HR(6), R, 2 RBI #14 - LaMonte Wade (Rochester) - 2-3, 2 BB, HR(3), 2 R, RBI #16 - Ben Rortvedt (Ft. Myers) - 0-0 #17 - Travis Blankenhorn (Ft. Myers) - 0-4, 3K #18 - Yunior Severino (Elizabethton Twins) - Did not play #19 - Tyler Jay (Chattanooga) - Did not pitch #20 - Felix Jorge (Chattanooga) - DFAd and Released (though he did become a father on Friday, so congratulations to him. SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Lehigh Valley(5:35 CST) - RHP Zack Littell (1-3, 3.00 ERA) Birmingham @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) - LHP Lewis Thorpe (4-4, 4.04 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 CST) - RHP Griffin Jax (1-0, 3.26 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (6:30 CST) - RHP Jordan Balazovic (3-1, 2.36 ERA) Danville @ Elizabethton (5:00 CST) - RHP Josh Winder (0-0, -.00 ERA) GCL Twins @ GCL Red Sox(9:00 am CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions about Friday’s games, or ask any questions you may have.

30. John Curtiss – RH RP Age: 25 ETA: 2017 2018 Stats (AAA): 31.2 IP, 2.56 ERA, 1.1 WHIP, 11.7 K/9, 4.5 BB/9, 2.56 K:BB 2018 Ranking: NR | 2017 Ranking: NR Seth: 32 | Tom: 31 | Cody: 28 John Curtiss was called up to the Twins right before September last season. After a couple of rough games, he ended the season strong. This year, he began the season in Rochester but got another call up early in the season. He had two outings, and neither was good. He was sent back down, but he has pitched quite well in late innings for the Red Wings. Curtiss began his career with an opportunity to start, but he was moved to the bullpen and he flew up the organization, pitching at each level from Cedar Rapids to the big leagues between 2016 and 2017. He’s blessed with a mid-90s fastball and a couple of breaking pitches. He has the ability and the mentality to be a quality late-inning reliever for years. 29. Zack Granite – OF Age: 25 ETA: 2017 2018 Stats (Rk): .211/.291/.240 (.531 OPS), 6 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 22 K, 25 BB 2018 Ranking: NR | 2017 Ranking: 16 Seth: 34 | Tom: 32 | Cody: 24 Zack Granite came up midway through the 2017 season and showed glimpses of what he can be on the baseball field. For most of his career, he has exemplified what a team might want from a leadoff hitter. He takes pitches, walks more than he strikes out, steals bases and has a little extra base pop at times. Granite was one of the last players optioned at the end of spring training this offseason, a surprise for many. Unfortunately, he soon hurt his non-throwing shoulder and had to miss about six weeks. He’s struggled to get things going since he’s been back, but that doesn’t take away what Granite can be and the role that he can play on the big league club as a fourth outfielder who will play quality defense at three outfield positions and put together quality plate appearances. 28. Jake Cave – OF Age: 25 ETA: 2018 2018 Stats (AAA): .265/.349/.386 (.735 OPS), 9 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 26 K, 55 BB 2018 Stats (MLB): .233/.267/.488 (.755 OPS), 2 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 2 K, 14 BB 2018 Ranking: NR | 2017 Ranking: NR Seth: 25 | Tom: 23 | Cody: 39 The Twins acquired Cave in a late spring training trade with the New York Yankees. After missing some time in the early part of his career with injury, Cave really took off after being selected by the Reds in the Rule 5 draft. While he was one of their final spring training cuts, he returned to the Yankees with renewed confidence and his career took off. A year ago, Cave hit .324 with a .921 OPS at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre. The Yankees added him to their 40-man roster. Of course, they have a pretty strong outfield and Cave was DFAd which allowed the Twins to acquire him. The Twins have called him up three times already this season and he is now getting an opportunity to play every day, at least until Byron Buxton is ready. At 25, he’s still got some upside. 27. Tyler Wells – RHP Age: 23 ETA: 2020 2018 Stats (A): 63.2 IP, 2.54 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 7.6 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 3.86 K:BB 2018 Ranking: NR | 2017 Ranking: NR Seth: 18 | Tom: 37 | Cody: 31 The Twins drafted Wells in the 15th round of the 2016 draft out of Cal State San Bernadino. He’s experienced a lot of success during his first two seasons as a professional, pitching in Elizabethton in 2016 and Cedar Rapids in 2017. In the past offseason, Wells went to work and lost 30 pounds from his 6-8 frame. That has really helped him in the Florida State League. While his strikeouts have been down, his control and command of pitches has become much better. Wells has the ability to reach into the 94 mph range with a fastball. His best pitches may be his breaking balls. He throws a 12-6 curveball, but he also has a sharp slider that can get strikeouts. He was the Twins Daily choice for Starting Pitcher of the Month in June. 26. Griffin Jax – RHP Age: 23 ETA: 2020 2018 Stats (A): 30.1 IP, 3.26 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 4.7 K/9, 0.9 BB/9, 5.33 K/BB 2018 Ranking: NR | 2017 Ranking: NR Seth: 26 | Tom: 21 | Cody: 37 When the Twins used their third-round draft pick in 2016 on Griffin Jax, he became the highest-drafted player from a military academy. There have been some challenges associated with that, but in mid-April, Jax learned that he would be able to serve the remainder of his active duty while pitching in the Twins system (more specifics here). In 2017, Jax was limited to just five games before returning to duty. He has made five appearances this season. The first four were starts. His most recent appearance came after Ervin Santana’s rehab start went three innings. Jax finished the remaining six innings. He has worked at least six innings in all but his first appearance of the year. Jax profiles as a starter with three good pitches. The strikeouts are low so far, but the walks are very low. PREVIOUS INSTALLMENTS: 2018 Twins Midseason Top Prospects: 36-40 2018 Twins Midseason Top Prospects: 31-35