Seth Stohs

What in his career would lead even him to think he would have gone to AAA? He wasn't even a Non-Roster Invite to spring training. What he is is a big, strong kid who is very athletic. Still just 25. But watching much of the Wind Surge games already this year, Cerda is not a good outfielder, and there is a ton of swing and miss. In spring games, we saw some power, and he certainly is strong. But, all that said, I like the minor-league signing. Looks like he must have been hurt the last couple of years. Not many ABs, so while it's been a rough start in Wichita, it's possible he's just getting his feet back under him... and maybe, just maybe, it all comes together for him.

I believe that would be accurate.

I was pretty frustrated with yesterday's game, but I'll still watch. I'll always watch. Where am I going? It's just so nice to have the minor league teams to watch too. Can always find some positives there.

Nope, just saying that it isn't at all an "Effort" issue.

I get that, and I get that if the Twins don't turn things around within (potentially) weeks, firing Baldelli will just happen because that's what teams do. Who makes the lineup? Who comes up with substitutions, etc? That is all the manager, but 1.) the manager doesn't determine the roster, and who those bench options are. The manager also isn't the one not hitting. He's not the one pitching. He's not the one fielding. Priorities and strategies? That'd be the front office, GMs, POB, managers, coaches, advisors. Who decides if batting practice or infield is taken. The game time, the weather the training staff, players, manager, Jogging down the bases on GB or FO... Trainers in conjunction with the manager, front office, etc. Yes, the manager is the one who pretty much always takes the blame and gets fired, but we all know that it's so much more than that. We also know that it's largely on the players... or on the front office for the players on the roster that are responsible.

It was a wild and wacky, transaction-filled day in the Twins minor leagues. Tomorrow might be even more strange. Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge There was another day of games, and another injury to worry about. CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 4-11 St. Paul Saints: 5-6 Wichita Wind Surge: 5-3 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 5-3 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 3-4 TRANSACTIONS The DFA carousel continued on Saturday morning when RHP Scott Blewett was Designated for Assignment. As he has each time he has been called up to the Twins, he pitched well. He pitched 4 2/3 innings over two outings and gave up just one run, four hits, no walks, and he had five strikeouts. The Twins then called up lefty Kody Funderburk from St. Paul. He’s pitched 5 2/3 innings over four games and given up one hit, walked two, and had seven strikeouts. RHP Jarret Whorff was promoted from Wichita to St. Paul. LHP Gabriel Yanez was transferred from Cedar Rapids to St. Paul on Friday. On Saturday, he returned to the Kernels. And then just before games started on Saturday, one more bit of news was announced. The Kernels announced the infielders Kaelen Culpepper and Rayne Doncon have been placed on the 7-Day IL. Culpepper has a right wrist sprain. He’s been played cautiously to this point in the season due to a hamstring strain he had in spring training. Doncon left Friday night’s game after one at-bat. He has a strained right oblique strain. Fort Myers placed RHP Michael Ross on the 7-Day IL with a neck strain. Following the Twins Saturday afternoon loss to the Tigers, we learned that infielder Jose Miranda has been optioned to St. Paul. What will the corresponding move before Sunday’s game? I looked at my grouping of Twins and minor league rosters and found this... data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 5, Omaha 7 Box Score Randy Dobnak was on the mound for the Saints on Saturday, and the team really needed him to be able to eat some innings. Consider Friday night’s scheduled Saints starter was David Festa who made the start in Minneapolis instead of St. Paul. Instead, Ryan Jenson started a bullpen game. Then remember that Sunday’s scheduled starter, Zebby Matthews, will be starting for the Twins on Monday. Darren McCaughan will make the start. He is a starter, but can they expect to get more than four innings from him after working in the Twins bullpen for a couple of weeks? Dobnak did his job. He clearly didn’t have his best stuff. He gave up five runs on seven hits and two walks, and had just two strikeouts, and he completed five innings on 96 pitches. Jarret Whorff came in after presumably making the drive from Cedar Rapids to St. Paul on Saturday morning. He gave the Saints three innings. He gave up two runs on two hits. He struck out five batters. Jacob Bosiokovic worked a scoreless ninth inning. The bullpen kept the team in the game, and the Saints were down by just two runs heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Could they come back? Well, I’ll tell you, but first, let's look at how the Saints scored their first five runs. The Saints took the first lead in the first inning. Mike Ford doubled to drive in Emmanuel Rodriguez and Yunior Severino and make it 2-0. In the second inning, Diego Cartaya came to the plate. The backstop was 0-for-13 on the season before the at-bat. After the at-bat, he was 1-for-14 and had his first Saints hit and home run. Down 5-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning, Ryan Fitzgerald hit a two-run hammer to tie the score at 5-5. OK, let’s jump back to the bottom of the ninth inning. A strikeout and a weak ground ball meant no one on base with two outs. Anthony Prato was putting together a good fight before the pitcher was called on a pitch-clock violation. Prato ran down to first. And that brought Emmanuel Rodriguez to the plate as the tying run. A pitching change brought #OldFriend Evan Sisk entered the game to create a lefty-lefty matchup. And Sisk won this matchup getting Rodriguez to strikeout on a 2-2 pitch. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 8, Midland 4 Box Score The story of the early portion of this game was Connor Prielipp. Then it became Aaron Rozek. And then the Wind Surge scored a combined seven runs in the fifth and sixth innings. And then the bullpen and defense held on to give the Wind Surge a nice win. Connor Prielipp made his second start of the season on Saturday. He struck out two in a 1-2-3 first inning. The final pitch of that inning was a 99 mph fastball for a swinging strikeout. In the second inning, Prielipp gave up a pop-up double that the wind pushed perfectly between the second baseman and right fielder, but Prielipp got out of the inning unscathed. In that inning, he showed a slider in the 86-88 mph range. Through two innings, he was at just 28 pitches. In the third inning, he got two outs, both on strikeouts, but he did get hit a bit. In the inning, he was charged with three runs (2 earned) on four hits. A couple of hits were solid, and a couple were just in the right spot. A throwing error occurred on the final play of Prielipp’s outing. Aaron Rozek came in and quickly got a lazy fly ball to end the inning. We are certainly going to get back to Rozek, but let’s talk offense for a little bit. In the bottom of the first inning, Tanner Schobel lined a home over the left field wall to give the Surge the lead. It was his second homer of the season. Then we need to jump ahead to the fifth inning. The Surge came to the plate down by a score of 3-1. Dalton Shuffield led off with a double. Ricardo Olivar singled him to third base. Schobel grounded out but it allowed Shuffield to score the team’s second run. Rubel Cespedes followed with a double but Olivar was only able to advance to third base. Ben Ross came up and grounded to third base. Olivar was off with contact and scored from third on a close play. Close enough that RockHounds manager and former Twins infielder Gregorio Petit. The call stood and the game was tied. Ross stole second, and then Kala’i Rosario drove in Cespedes with a sacrifice fly. Jorel Ortega doubles to drive in Ross and give the Surge a 5-3 lead. The RockHounds got a solo homer in the top of the sixth inning, but the Surge responded again. With one out, Shuffield singled. With two outs, Schobel singled him to third. Cespedes followed with his second homer of the season and gave the Surge an 8-4 lead. And now let’s get back to Aaron Rozek, the left-hander from Burnsville who pitched at Minnesota State, Mankato, and then was eventually signed by the Twins out of independent ball. He just continues to find success. He came in and got the final out of the third inning and then worked five more innings, giving up only the sixth-inning solo homer. He gave up four hits, walked none and had five strikeouts. John Stankiewicz struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning. Rubel Cespedes went 2-for-4 with his third doubles, second home run and three RBI. Tanner Schobel went 2-for-4 with a walk and his second home run. Jorel Ortega, Tyler Dearden, and Dalton Shuffield each went 2-for-4 with a double. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, Beloit 4 Box Score Alejandro Hidalgo made another start and was quite good other than a three-run homer in the second inning to Minnesota-born Eric Rataczak. The Kernels were slow and steady. They scored single runs in each of the first four innings, and then they had a three-run inning of their own and held on. Hidalgo looked good through his four innings. He gave up the three runs on two hits and three walks, but he also struck out eight batters. Then The Vulture entered. Spencer Bengard has been working in long relief in all three of his outings. Each time, he has come into a game his team was leading but the starter was unable to complete five innings (due to early-season pitch limitations). Bengard gave up one run on two hits over his four innings to earn his third win in as many outings. He had five strikeouts without issuing a walk. Paulshawn Pasqualotto earned his second save with a perfect ninth inning. The Kernels got contributions from most of their lineup in this game. In the first, Danny De Andrade lined a single off of the tip of the shortstop’s glove to drive in Kyle DeBarge. Misael Urbina is in his third season with the Kernels. He reached base on a single in the second inning and scored on a Caden Kendle double. In the third inning, the Kernels tied the game at three. Gabriel Gonzalez led off with a double. With two outs, he scored on a fielding error. The Kernels took the lead in the fourth inning. With one out, DeBarge singled and stole second. He scored on a line-drive single by Billy Amick. After one scoreless inning, Cedar Rapids put up three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. With one out, Kendle doubled again and scored when DeBarge tripled. He scored on a wild pitch. Brandon Winokur walked and went to third on a fielding error and then scored on a ground out. Kyle DeBarge went 3-for-5 with his first triple. He also had two stolen bases. Kendle hit his third and fourth doubles of the season over four at-bats. Gonzalez’s double was his fifth of the young season. With the announcement of Culpepper and Doncon going on the IL before this game, things got a little bit scary when Brandon Winokur took a riding fastball off of the wrist/hand. It looked painful, but he remained in the game and made some very nice defensive plays at shortstop later in the game. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 2, Tampa 1 Box Score The Mussels got the scoring going in the bottom of the first inning. With two outs, Jose Rodriguez doubles and Kevin Maitan followed with an infield single. Rodriguez scored on a wild pitch. Lefty Dasan Hill was on the mound to start for the Mussels. In total, he gave up one run on three hits. In 3 1/3 innings, he had two walks and six strikeouts. He primarily threw his sinker (45%) and slider (37%). His sinker averaged 95.4 mph with a max of 97.2 mph. His slider averaged 80.5 mph with a max of 83.3 mph. He also threw six curveballs and five changeups. Fellow 2024 draft pick Jason Doktorczyk came in and tossed 3 2/3 scoreless, two-hit innings. He had one walk and finished with four strikeouts. Kyle Bragg and Jason Stasiowski each worked a scoreless inning a piece. Six of the nine Mussels starters had at least one hit. Angel Del Rosario was the only one with two hits. That said Poncho Ruiz, Kevin Maitan, and Jay Thomasson each had a single and a walk. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Tanner Schobel (Wichita): 2-for-4, BB, HR(2), 2 R, 2 RBI Rubel Cespedes (Wichita): 2-for-4, 2B(3), HR(2), 2 R, 3 RBI Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-5, 3B(1), 3 R, RBI, 2-SB (5) Pitcher of the Day Aaron Rozek (Wichita): 5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K, 73 pitches, 52 strikes (71.2%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our recently-updated Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Saturday. #2 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, R, 3 K #3 - Luke Keaschall (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, BB, K #8 - Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-3, BB, HBP, R, SB #10 - Connor Prielipp (Wichita) - 2 2/3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 55 pitches, 37 strikes (67.3%) #11 - Dasan Hill (Fort Myers) - 3 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 60 pitches, 36 strikes (60%) #13 - Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-5, 3 R, RBI, 3B(1), 2-SB (5), #15 - Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4 #17 - Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, RBI, K #18 - Kala’i Rosario (Wichita) - 0-for-3, RBI, SF, 2 K #19 - Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2B(5), R, RBI #20 - Ricardo Olivar (Wichita) - 1-for-5, R SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Detroit @ Minnesota (12:10 PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (0-1, 5.59 ERA) Omaha @ St. Paul (2:07 PM CST) - RHP Darren McCaughan (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Midland @ Wichita (1:05 PM CST) - RHP Darren Bowen (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (1:05 PM CST) - RHP Tanner Hall (0-0, 9.00 ERA) Tampa @ Fort Myers (11:05 AM CST) - TBD (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the roster, and discuss Saturday’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! 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How is Baldelli influencing their performance?

Jose Miranda makes barely over the league minimum. Also, if mental errors or lack of concentration got a person fired, would any of us have jobs?

I don't see a lack of effort from anybody. Correa had a late double, and he's always alert on defense. I would hope no one is actually questioning the effort.

They've done that in every game that he's played.

And Ross Dunn and Jack Nobel being placed on the IL after pitching on Tuesday. On Thursday, it was Jakob Hall, along with Martin. They've being cautious with Jenkins and Culpepper.

DBo did toss 5 scoreless innings in his double-a debut on Tuesday night.

Fair question, but it seems to work for him. Each pitcher is different. The Twins would be wise to do a similar path with Prielipp. However, it's also noteable that there is value in having a reliever that can look really good for 3 innings at a time. Could be piggy backing. Could be long relief. Could be once through the order. As he continues to grow and mature, this can always change. By the end of last year, he was throwing 5.

He hits the ball so hard!

Might I recommend that you grab a cup of coffee and then come back and read this. It's long, but there are tons of notes on the Twins minor league action from Thursday night. Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (Kyler Fedko, John Klein) It became official following the Twins loss in Kansas City on Thursday afternoon. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli acknowledged the rumors that Pablo Lopez is going on the Injured List with his hamstring strain. David Festa, who was scheduled to start on Friday night in St. Paul, will instead start for the Twins at Target Field against the Tigers. The other Twins starters will be pushed back one day. While nothing official, there have been rumors that Zebby Matthews could make a start for the big league club within the next series or two. That is certainly one way to take advantage of the Twins perceived starting pitcher depth. It may be best for the Twins both long-term and short-term. There was another day of games, and another injury to worry about. CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 4-9 St. Paul Saints: 4-5 Wichita Wind Surge: 3-3 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 3-3 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 2-4 TRANSACTIONS On Thursday afternoon, the Cedar Rapids Kernels announced that RHP Jack Noble has been placed on the 7-Day IL with a right biceps strain. In addition, LHP Ross Dunn was placed on the 7-Day IL with a strained forearm. A couple of Wind Surge pitchers began their rehab assignments in Fort Myers. Lefty Christian MacLeod and right-hander Pierson Ohl each threw two innings for the Mighty Mussels. RHP Darren McCaughan cleared waivers on Thursday. He was outrighted to the Saints but elected to become a free agent. He can, of course, still re-sign with the Twins, but for a few days, he can chat with 29 other teams too. I was personally impressed with the movement he got on all of his pitches. Hopefully he comes back to the Twins. Friday morning update: SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 13, Omaha 4 Box Score The Saints had a six-run second inning and kept adding on as they scored a season-high 13 runs in the win. There were some strong performances, but it wasn’t all good news. Let’s start on the mound. Marco Raya started and gave up one run on three hits and two walks in two innings. He had four strikeouts. He likely would have started the third inning, but the combination of a very long bottom of the second inning and the fact that he was already at 50 pitches made a move make sense. Huascar Ynoa came out of the bullpen and tossed a 1-2-3 third inning. Travis Adams came in for the fourth and he took the team to the seventh inning. He gave up three runs on four hits (including a home run), but in a blowout, most importantly, he issued no walks. Anthony Misiewicz came on and issued a walk before ending the seventh frame with a strikeout. Kody Funderburk struck out two batters in a perfect eighth inning, and Jacob Bosiokovic duplicated that performance in the ninth. The Saints got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning. With one out, Austin Martin doubled and went to third base on an infield single by Emmanuel Rodriguez. Martin scored on a ground-rule double by Jeferson Morales. The Saints took advantage of some wildness in their big inning. Carson McCusker was hit by a pitch and went to second when Diego Cartaya walked. With one out, Luke Keaschall walked to load the bases. Martin came up and singled on a ball that Nick Gordon dove for but could only knock down. With two outs, Armando Alvarez walked to drive in Cartaya. Morales reached on an error that scored Keaschall and Martin. After a pitching change, Yunior Severino doubled to drive in Alvarez and Morales to make it 7-1 Saints. ith one out in the bottom of the third, Ryan Fitzgerald had an infield single and stole second base. With two outs, Martin lined a single to center to drive in the team’s eighth run. He followed with a stolen base. Singles by Morales and Severino started the fourth. The bases were loaded with nobody out after Carson McCusker walked. After a strikeout and a pitching change, Fitzgerald singled in a run and Keaschall hit a deep sacrifice fly to score the second run and put the Saints in double digits. Martin flew out to the warning track in center to end the inning. Here’s where there is some negative info to go with the position. At this point, Austin Martin was 3-for-4 with a double and several more at-bats. However, in the top of the fifth, Royals minor leaguer John Rave ripped a shot to the right-center field gap. Martin took off for it, but halfway there he grabbed at his right hamstring and went to the ground. It was a triple, which ultimately isn’t important. Martin left the game with help from the trainer and Toby Gardenhire. No word yet on severity, but it didn’t look real good. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The Saints scored two more runs in the bottom of the eighth on an Emmanuel Rodriguez RBI double and an Armando Alvarez RBI single. Along with Martin, Severino had three hits and a walk. Fitzgerald, McCusker, Morales, Rodriguez all had two hits. Rodriguez and Keaschall each had two walks. The Saints had 16 hits and nine walks in the game. Not that it matters when you score 13 runs, but the Saints were 10-for-28 with runners in scoring position. Yes, 28! They left 14 runners on base. Also of note, Brooks Lee did not play. It was a scheduled off day on his rehab schedule. Defensive Play of the Game comes from the Sire of Fort Myers, the versatile Jeferson Morales. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 3, Midland 2 Box Score Minor-league veteran Chase Chaney started for Wichita. He gave up two runs on five hits in three innings. (Actually both runs scored in the first inning.) He walked two and had three strikeouts. Fortunately the bullpen provided much-needed relief the rest of the game. Brooklyn Park’s John Klein came in and tossed three scoreless inningsIn fact, he gave up just one walk and had five strikeouts to earn his first Double-A win. “My mindset was just go out and attack every hitter and keep the game close for our offense,” noted the Iowa CC alum. “I was able to get ahead of guys early which opened up more pitch options with two strikes. My fastball had good life tonight, and that was my main focus this offseason… continuing to build velocity.” John Stankiewicz came on and struck out two batters over two perfect innings. Cody Laweryson earned his second save of the season. That’s eight shutout innings to earn the win. Wichita had opportunities to score more runs. They left two runners on base each of the first two innings. They had a runner thrown out at third base for the third out in the third inning. In the fifth inning, the Surge finally got on the scoreboard. Kyler Fedko led off with a double. Ricardo Olivar reached on a fielder’s choice that didn’t record an out. Tanner Schobel then grounded toward shortstop. The out was made at second base, but Fedko scored when the throw to first base was errant. With two outs, Ben Ross lined a single to right field to drive in Schobel with the second run, tying the game. In the sixth inning, Jake Rucker singled with one out. Fedko followed with a line-drive double down the third base line that drove in Rucker with the go-ahead run. Fedko led the offense from the nine-hole in the lineup. He went 3-for-4 with his first two doubles of the season. It was a great performance for Fedko, taking advantage of his opportunity in the lineup. Thursday was just his second start of the season. Following the game, the 25-year-old from UConn said, “(I’m) just so, so, so happy to be on the field. Trying to enjoy every second of it and get some swings off!” In his previous start, he was 0-for-1 but walked three times and scored three runs. Eighth-hitter Jake Rucker was 2-for-4. Ben Ross, who made the start in center field, went 2-for-4 with a double. The team did have some clutch moments in the fifth and sixth innings, but overall, the Surge were 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position and left nine on base. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, Beloit 8 Box Score It was a tale of two halves. In the first half of this game, Beloit hitters beat the Kernels pitchers. In the second half of the game, the Kernels hitters beat the Sky Carp pitchers. But, in baseball, there is only one winner, so which team’s half was a little better than the others? Were the Kernels able to complete the comeback? Iowa native, and University of Iowa alum, Ty Langenberg made his first start of the season for the Kernels. He had to work, but somehow managed to only give up three runs (2 earned) on five hits and two walks in 2 1/3 innings. He had three strikeouts. Jeremy Lee came on and was charged with five runs on four hits (including a homer) and three walks. Switch! Jose Mercedes came on and tossed two scoreless, hitless innings. Paulshawn Pasqualotto gave up one hit over two scoreless innings. He had three strikeouts. Believe it or not, the Kenrels actually grabbed the first lead of the game. Billy Amick singled in Brandon Winokur on a single up the middle in the bottom of the first inning. Then in the bottom of the second inning, Nate Baez hit a long home run through the wind which tied the game at 2-2. Beloit scored the next six runs and heading into the bottom of the fifth inning held an 8-2 lead. Switch! The Kernels started to claw back. In the fifth inning, Khadim Diaw scored on a Baez ground out. In the sixth inning, Gabriel Gonzalez doubled to drive in Amick. Then Diaw singled to score Gonzalez and make it 8-5. In the seventh inning, Brandon Winokur lined a single to right field to drive in Baez and make it 8-6 Sky Carp. Winokur excitedly ran down the first-base line, arms in the air. Not only had he cut the team’s deficit, but he ended a personal 0-for-21 streak at the plate. It got very interesting in the bottom of the ninth. Amick singled off the pitcher to drive in Baez to make it 8-7. A new pitcher came in and got the final out on a force out. Amick and Gonzalez, the team’s third and fourth place hitters, remain red hot. Amick was 3-for-4 with two walks and two RBI. Gonzalez went 3-for-5 with a walk and an RBI. Kyle DeBarge went 2-for-5 with a walk out of the leadoff spot. Diaw went 2-for-5. Baez went 1-for-3 with three walks and a homer. He scored three times. Still, the Kernels had chances. They went 5-for-19 (19!) with runners in scoring position and left 15 runners on base. My suggestion, keep getting that many on base! Good things will happen. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 1, Tampa 4 Box Score This was certainly a game of surprise and adjustments for Mussels manager Seth Feldman. First, the Twins had two Double-A pitchers work the first four scoreless innings. Lefty Christian MacLeod walked two and struck out four batters over two hitless innings. Pierson Ohl gave up one hit and one walk, and struck out two batters, in his two innings. That’s when 2024 draft pick Jakob Hall came in. He was expected to provide the bulk innings. Instead, he gave up one run on two hits and a walk before leaving the field with an unknown injury. Non-drafted 2024 signee Hunter Hoopes came on and did a nice job. He was able to eat the next 2 1/3 innings without giving up a base runner. Liam Rocha worked the eighth inning and gave up two runs on one hit (a homer) which put the Mussels down 3-1. With pitching somewhat limited and usually “designed” in advance, someone needed to take the ninth inning. Feldman turned to right-handed pitcher/outfielder Maddux Houghton. He came in and threw some nice 42-45 mph “sinkers”, but he gave up one run on a hit batter and a couple of singles. Offensively, the Mussels managed a not-so-mighty one run on five hits. They did walk five times as well but were unable to come up with a big hit. They went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base. Fort Myers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. Dameury Pena scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Aaron Sabato. Minor-league Rule 5 pick Miguel Briceno played shortstop. He went 2-for-4 with his first double. Byron Chourio, Dameury Pena each had a single and a walk in the game. Those two also combined on a great defensive play that kept the Tarpons off the scoreboard. Defensive Play of the Day (Part 2): With a runner on first base, the batter lined a ball off of the right field wall over Chourio’s head. He played it perfectly, fired the ball into Pena who turned and threw home. Poncho Ruiz made the catch, mini-dive, and tag to record the out. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Kyler Fedko (Wichita): 3-for-4, 2-2B(2), R, RBI Pitcher of the Day - John Klein (Wichita): 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 50 pitches, 31 strikes (62%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our recently-updated Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Thursday. #2 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 2-for-4, 2 BB, 2B(2), 2 R, RBI, 2 K, SB(1) #3 - Luke Keaschall (St. Paul) - 0-for-2, 2 BB, R, SF, RBI, K #6 - Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 50 pitches, 28 strikes (56%) #8 - Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-5, BB, R, RBI, 2 K, E, played SS. #13 - Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, BB, K, played LF. #15 - Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4, 2 K #17 - Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-4, 2 BB, R, 2 RBI #18 - Kala’i Rosario (Wichita) - 0-for-4, 3 K #19 - Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-5, BB, 2B(4), R, RBI, #20 - Ricardo Olivar (Wichita) - 1-for-4 FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Omaha @ St. Paul (6:37 PM CST) – TBD (Festa was the probable, but he’s starting for the Twins on Friday night instead.) Midland @ Wichita (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Trent Baker (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Charlee Soto (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Tampa @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CST) - Eli Jones (0-1, 6.23 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the roster, and discuss Thursday’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

I'm a Jomboy fan, I admit. Fun stuff. Here, an analysis of Simeon Woods Richardson's most recent start in Kansas City. Also includes MJ Melendez and Kyle Isbel. This is fun... love this stuff! Here is the full 9+ minute video which includes manager Rocco Baldelli's ejection. Hilarious!

A veteran deserves more than 2-3 starts to turn things around. Also, if he can be good for a month, maybe they can get an A-ball prospect for him. Jenkins injury at this point sounds like it's just a nagging issue as opposed to anything serious or structural. And Winokur and Doncon have played 4 or 5 games. Zero reason for concern.

Hill and Carpenter should have absolutely nothing to do with what they decide on Prielipp. Those two are 3-5 years from the big leagues if they get there. Prielipp is an option for 2025 (later in the year). I'd like to see them come up with a multi-year plan... Have him make 10-12 starts (about half the season), throwing 50-60 pitches each time out. If things are going well, move him to the bullpen in mid-June. At that point, have him pitch twice a week, two days rest in between, 30 pitches. Now you're to mid-July, assuming things are going well, move him up to St. Paul with the same pattern for 2 weeks. If things are going well, try every other day. Call him up around mid-August if the Twins are still in contention. If they're not, go back to the twice a week pattern. In 2026, have him go to St. Paul with an opportunity to start. Start with a month of 50 pitch limits. Then do a month of 65-70 pitches. Evaluate and prep to call him up in the bullpen. By 2027, could he be ready to start without the limitations? He would have an option left to build up. OR - just do the 2025 plan, and then have him in the bullpen going forward (probably the best plan and probably the most likely).

Martin's fine. Just game 2 off. E-Rod just played the 2nd game. Toby's got a tough job of keeping everyone happy while still meeting the organization's expectations. For more on Spencer Bengard, check here. He was the Twins Daily MILB Reliever of the Year in 2024.

The Saints managed to get two games completed in between rain storms in Ohio. The Wind Surge were in Missouri and weren't as lucky. The Kernels were in Appleton, and despite the cold, played a really good, hard-fought game. The Mighty Mussels saw a couple of people make their professional debuts. Image courtesy of Wisconsin Timber Rattlers/Abby Haling The Saints and Twins opened their seasons a week ago. Friday was Opening Day for the three other Twins affiliates. Unfortunately, rain pushed one game back a day. As always, we encourage you to check back every day for the best Minnesota Twins minor-league coverage. See how the teams are doing, but more important, see how the players are doing. CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 2-5 St. Paul Saints: 2-3 Wichita Wind Surge: 0-0 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 1-0 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 0-1 TRANSACTIONS No transactions on Friday that hadn't already been announced. Several players officially placed on the Injured List by Fort Myers (Rafael Escalante, Christian Becerra, Logan Whitaker) and Wichita (Christian MacLeod, Kyle Jones, CJ Culpepper, Aaron Sabato, Pierson Ohl), and Wichita also put Tyler Dearden. SAINTS SENTINEL Game 1: St. Paul 2, Columbus 3 Box Score These teams were rained out on Thursday night, so the plan was to play two games on Friday. There was more rain in Ohio during the day so instead of starting Game 1 at 4:05 pm, it started at 5:40 pm. The game started well for the Saints. Austin Martin led off with a single to center. Luke Keaschall followed with a lined single to left off of the third baseman’s glove. Mike Ford singled to center field to drive in the game’s first run. Cleanup man Armando Alvarez singled to left which drove in Keaschall from second base to give the team a 2-0 lead. That was it for the Saints scoring in this game. In their first three games, the starting pitcher provided five scoreless innings. Could Marco Raya repeat the feat? Knowing that the pitchers all start the year with limits, it wasn’t likely. Raya threw 48 pitches. He gave up five hits and a walk, and he had five strikeouts. However, he also gave up no runs. Kody Funderburk came into the game with the bases loaded and just one out in the bottom of the third inning. He got Dom Nunez to ground into an inning-ending double play. Funderburk followed with two more scoreless innings. So, the combination of Marco Raya and Kody Funderburk gave the Saints their fourth straight game that started with five shutout frames. Ryan Jensen struck out two batters in a scoreless sixth innings. It wasn’t easy. He got the first two batters out before giving up a triple and a walk. A stolen base put the tying run on second base, but Jensen got a strikeout to end the threat. Manager Toby Gardenhire turned things over to Scott Blewett for the bottom of the seventh inning, looking for three outs to end the ballgame. It started out well, with a strikeout. However, a walk and a double put runners on second and third with one out. Angel Martinez singled to center which scored both runs and made the score 2-2. Will Wilson followed with a double to end the game. Austin Martin and Mike Ford each went 2-for-3 with a walk. Carson McCusker had the lone extra-base hit, his second double of the season. Game 2: St. Paul 1, Columbus 11 (6 innings) Box Score Game 1 started way late. Game 2 was over not long after it started. And when it rains it pours. The final innings were played in wet, miserable conditions. David Festa made his second start of the year, and it was a struggle. He gave up an unearned run in the first inning. He gave up an earned run in the second, two more in the third, and two more in the fourth inning before a home run ended his night. In total, he gave up six runs (5 earned) on 10 hits and two walks. He struck out four batters. Huascar Ynoa came on. He was charged with four runs (2 earned) on two hits and walked two batters. Kyle Bischoff came on and got two outs to complete the fifth inning but not before he gave up an unearned run. Luke Keaschall had two of the team’s four hits in this game. He had a double. Jair Camargo’s third double drove in the team’s lone run. Not sure it mattered in a blowout like this, but the Saints were also 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita, Springfield Box Score The rains came to the middle of Missouri on Friday which unfortunately meant that the Wind Surge will need to wait another day to play their season-opening game. It is expected that Connor Prielipp will make the start. He was scheduled to pitch on Friday night. The plan is to play the regularly-scheduled game on Saturday as the new Opening Day. Then they will make up Friday night’s game as part of a doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Wisconsin 0 Box Score You look at the score and think, that must have been a nice, easy win for the Kernels in the Timber Rattlers’ home opener. But it was anything but easy. Let’s start with the starting pitcher, Charlee Soto. His final line shows four shutout innings, two hits, three walks and five strikeouts. But he really had to work out of tough situation in each of the first two innings. The bases were loaded with one out in the bottom of the first, but he got a ground ball the ended up about an inch in front of home plate. Khadim Diaw picked it up, stepped on home plate and threw to first base to end the threat. After getting the first two batters out in the second inning, Soto walked two straight batters (although I would argue one of them should have been a strikeout on a check swing). But Soto got a strikeout to end that threat. Soto followed with two quick frames in which he added three more strikeouts and ended his outing with a soft groundball to the mound. Soto was showing a good fastball that touched triple digits several times. He showed the makings of a good breaking ball, although I’m sure the 46-degree temps made that a bit more difficult to throw. He got a couple of strikeouts on a changeup. He didn’t throw many, but they were good when he threw it. Manuel Rodriguez was the Wisconsin starter, and he was tough. In 4 1/3 innings, he gave up only an unearned run on three hits. He walked one and had 11 strikeouts. Through the first three innings, he faced 10 batters and had eight strikeouts. Fans in attendance got free Frosty’s thanks to his efforts. Kyle DeBarge led off the fourth inning with a solid single up the middle. He stroke second base. Brandon Winokur walked. Billy Amick then blooped a single to right field to score DeBarge. The right fielder may have had a play at the plate but dropped the ball. The Kernels doubled their lead in the sixth inning. With one out, DeBarge walked. Winokur lined a double down the third base line to drive him in. They doubled that lead with two more runs in the seventh inning. Khadim Diaw singled and went to second on a throwing error. Then Danny De Andrade reached on a throwing error. Gabriel Gonzalez lined a single to right to load the bases. Caden Kendle drove in two runs with his first double of the season. Spencer Bengard came in and calmed things down for four innings. He gave up no runs, no hits. He walked one and had six strikeouts. Jacob Wosinski came in for the ninth. Of course it wasn’t going to be easy. The first two batters singled. However, Wosinski got a fly out and a strikeout. But Tayden Hall (son of former MLB catcher Toby Hall) lined a single to left that drove in a run. But that was it. Wosinski got another strikeout to end the game. Gonzalez went 2-for-4 with a double. Winokur was 1-for-3 with a walk and was hit by a pitch. It was a nice hard-fought Opening Night win for the Kernels. The Kernels struck out 17 times in the game but their pitchers were able to get 13 strikeouts as well. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 2, Palm Beach 8 Box Score Overall, the Mighty Mussels’ season opener was a bit of a clunker. Of course, it’s OK to let the home team and their fans enjoy their home opener. Just go out and beat them the next two days. OK, maybe not, but not a lot went right for the Mussels. Eli Jones, the Twins seventh-round pick last summer out of South Carolina, made his professional debut on Thursday night. The right-hander gave up four runs (3 earned) on seven hits and a walk over 4 1/3 innings. He had one strikeout. Kade Bragg came in with a runner on and one out in the fifth inning. He got two batters out, both on strikeouts. Jakob Hall was the Twins eighth-round pick last year out of Oral Roberts. This was also his professional debut. He worked the final three innings. He was charged with four runs on six hits (one homer) and two walks. (Side Note: On Saturday, the projected Mussels starter is a really exciting, intriguing prospect who is also making his professional debut.) If you’re looking for one positive offensive performance from this game, look to right field. Byron Chourio came to the Twins before the 2023 season with Pablo Lopez and Jose Salas in exchange for Luis Arraez. I was surprised to see him with the Mussels to start this season. For whatever reason, I feel like he’s been around a long time. However, he spent 2023 in the FCL and played in just 84 games last season for the Mussels. The other thing? He’s only 19! He won’t turn 20 for another six weeks. In this game, Chourio led off. He went 1-for-2 and walked three times. He also stole a base. Last season, Chourio was a bit overwhelmed, but prior to that, he has always shown a good eye at the plate and had big on-base percentages. A year ago, he had 104 strikeouts to 29 walks. In his two pro seasons before that, he had 45 walks and 46 strikeouts. That will be the way to determine his readiness for the Florida State League, and potentially for the Midwest League late in the season. The Mussels had just five hits. Veteran Kevin Maitan went 2-for-4 in the game. Minor League Rule 5 pick, catcher Jefferson Valladares, had a single and the team’s lone RBI. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day - Byron Chourio (Fort Myers) - 1-for-2, 3 BB, SB(1). Pitcher of the Day - Spencer Bengard (Cedar Rapids) - 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K, 56 pitches, 40 strikes (71.4%). PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our recently-updated Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Friday. #1– Walker Jenkins (Wichita) – Rained out. #2 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - Game 2 (0-for-2, BB, R, K) #3 - Luke Keaschall (St. Paul) – Game 1 (1-for-3, R, K, played 2B), Game 2 (2-for-3, 2B(1). #4 - Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) – 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K, 62 pitches, 40 strikes (64.5%) #5 - Andrew Morris (St. Paul) - DNP #6 - Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 2.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 48 pitches, 29 strikes (60.4%) #7 - Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-3, BB, 2 K, played SS. #8 - Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, BB, HBP, 2B(1), RBI, 2 K (7 innings in CF, 2 innings at SS) #9 - Cory Lewis (St. Paul) – DNP #10 - Connor Prielipp (Wichita) – Rained out. #11 - Dasan Hill (Fort Myers) - pro debut on Saturday. #12 - C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - Injured List #13 - Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, BB, 2 R, K, SB(1), E(1), played 2B. #14 - Eduardo Beltre (FCL Twins) - No games yet. #15 - Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4, E. #16 - Rayne Doncon (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, 2 K. #17 - Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-5, 3 K. #18 - Kala’i Rosario (Wichita) - Rained out. #19 - Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, 2B(1) #20 - Ricardo Olivar (Wichita) - Rained out. SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Columbus (3:05 PM CST) – RHP Randy Dobnak (0-0, -.-- ERA) Wichita @ Springfield (6:05 PM CST) - RHP Trent Baker (0-0, -.-- ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (1:10 PM CST) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo (0-0, -.-- ERA) Fort Myers @ Palm Beach (5:00 PM CST) - LHP Dasan Hill (0-0, -.-- ERA) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the roster, and discuss Friday’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

Oh geez, two Wisconsin guys on this roster for ya, Roger!! Questad really struggled in the FCL last year (his pro debut). But I would agree that Carpenter is probably the bigger prospect today. The Twins were very excited to go get him to start Day 3 in the draft. The Twins gave him $508,500 for a signing bonus (anything over $150K on Day 3 goes against the team's overall draft allotment).

We all will learn a lot about them this year, hopefully. While individually none of them stands out as a top prospect today, we've seen that pattern. Which Day 2 or Day 3 pitcher will step up this year and jump into the top ten prospects? Will be fun to watch.