Seth Stohs

I believe he got sent back down this morning too. Not sure what the White Sox were thinking with him, or what they're thinking with Zach Burdi either.

Some have mentioned Wade and AJ Murray, good choices... I avoided 2015 draft picks just because we don't have an real track record to determine a good level of expectation. I went with guys who have been in the system longer... I guess an exception would be Arraez who just came to the States last year in the GCL.

They protected Kepler and Polanco after their year in Cedar Rapids... and back in the day, they protected Deibinson Romero after a year in Beloit.

Correct, and that was before the rule changed and teams got one more year to evaluate their players.

That, and the fact that he was made a pitcher at like 17 or 18, so he's had a lot of growth to do since signing. But yes, he's a bit old for the level.

I might have been slow-playing it when I said he should be in everyone's top five Twins prospects this year...

All good picks... Wimmers was alright in the bullpen in Chattanooga, but he's been better than expected in Rochester. In fact, he's been pretty good. Ramirez was our pick for TD Short-Season pitcher of the year, so I'm not surprised he's succeeded, though I didn't know as much about him as I do now. He's impressive. Rodriguez was the Appy League Pitcher of the Year. HE was really bad for two months, but he's been tremendous for the last two months. IF this was a list of overcoming poor 2016 starts, Rodriguez would be at the top of my list.

Strong list, and I really like the Matt Lawton comp for LaMonte Wade. Lawton was an on-base machine before that became cool. Some of my list was more about surprise, but you make a good case for your guys too. I expected Ynoa to come over and be solid. I expected Palka to hit for a bunch of power. Both have been better than I expected, but not surprisingly so.

One of the fun things about following the minor league season each year and over several years is to see which players take the biggest strides forward from year to year. That can mean different things to different people, of course. It not only can mean jumping up prospect rankings, but it could mean guys who needed to play well to remain in the organization for another year. For instance, a guy like Lachlan Wells was ranked in the high 30s or low 40s in many Top 50 Twins prospect lists. Now, he should be in most people’s Top 25 Twins prospects after pitching very well since his promotion to Cedar Rapids as a 19 year old.My focus is going to be on eight guys, four hitters and four pitchers, who have gone from relative unknowns before the season to guys who may find themselves in the Twins future. Please feel free to add other names to this list, guys who have taken a big step forward in 2016. FOUR HITTERS LUIS ARRAEZ - 19 - 2B As an 18 year old in the GCL last year, Arraez hit .306/.377/.388 (.765) with 15 doubles. It was a solid season and MiLB.com listed him as the second baseman on their Twins post-season all-star team. He played in the Venezuelan Winter League. My assumption was that he would spend the 2016 season in extended spring training before going to Elizabethton. Instead, he began the season in Cedar Rapids. He began the season playing one in three games. It took about a week for him to be in the lineup almost every day. He has just kept hitting. In fact, now he’s hitting third or fourth in the Kernels lineup every game. He hasn’t stopped hitting. He’s now hitting .344/.383/.450 (.833) with 27 doubles, three triples and three home runs. He doesn’t walk a lot, but he also doesn’t strike out often. Before the season, he would have ranked in the 40s in my prospect lists, and now he’s easily in the Top 25 prospects or so. ZACH GRANITE - 23 - OF Granite has always been thought of as a professional, top-of-the-order type of hitter. He had a difficult, injury-plagued 2014 season in Cedar Rapids and played in just 21 games. That’s where he started 2015, but he moved up to Ft. Myers on May 1st because he had a great month. He did all right at Ft. Myers, but he hit .249/.328/.304 (.632) with ten doubles, four triples and a home run. He began 2016 in AA Chattanooga, maybe due to injury to others, but he has been the team’s leadoff hitter from day one. He has hit .295/.351/.385 (.736) with 14 doubles, seven triples and four home runs. He leads the Southern League in stolen bases with 42. He has as many walks as strikeouts. He has put himself into consideration for a 40-man roster spot this offseason. NELSON MOLINA - 21 - IF Molina was the Twins 11th round pick in 2013 draft out of high school in Puerto Rico. He spent two years in the Gulf Coast League where he hit .110 and .243.Last year in Elizabethton, he hit .207. There are rules that say an organization can only have so many players in the rookie leagues for a fourth year, so this was an important year for Molina. He began the season in extended spring training, but the Kernels needed an infielder in late April so he was summoned to Iowa. I’ve always said, at 6-3 and 175 pounds, he looks the part. Molina looks like what you would envision a professional shortstop to look like. At the plate, he has a balanced stance with a nice swing. It just didn’t come together offensively for him in the rookie leagues. However, he has grown both in terms of strength and maturity, and he is seeing the benefits on the field. In 74 games with the Kernels, he is hitting .304/.378/.375 (.754) with 11 doubles, two triples and a home run. He’s still got room to grow, but experiencing the success has to be a huge boost in confidence. RYAN WALKER - 23 - IF He was the Twins 18th round pick in 2013 out of Texas-Arlington. He spent most of that year in E-Town, though he moved up to Cedar Rapids for a week or so at the end of the season. In 76 games in 2014 in Cedar Rapids, he hit .239/.296/.299 (.595). In 2015, he played 83 games in Ft. Myers and hit .269/.311/.312 (.623). He began this year in Ft. Myers and hit just .262 in 24 games before being promoted to AA Chattanooga. He’s played all three infield positions and hit .287/.357/.368 (.725). In talking to him before the season, he pointed out that he worked really hard to add a lot of weight in the offseason. He got up to 185 and hoped to maintain it throughout the season, something players struggle to do. He has always been above average defensively in the infield, but he has improved offensively as he has moved up to AA this year. FOUR PITCHERS DJ BAXENDALE - 25 - RHP Baxendale was the Twins 12th round pick in 2012 out of Arkansas. He’s primarily been a starter. He moved quickly from the Midwest League to the Florida State League. He moved quickly to AA, but he experienced a lot of struggles in AA the last coupele of seasons. This year, he made 14 starts for the Lookouts and went 6-7 with a 3.44 ERA and made the All-Star team. Immediately following the game, he moved up to AAA Rochester. He was put into the bullpen and has been very good since. He has a 1.61 ERA in 17 appearances for the Red Wings. His pitches work very well out of the bullpen. He can add a couple of ticks to his fastball, and his slider can be devastating. He can be a decent starter, but he has a chance to be a quality relief pitcher. SAM CLAY - 23 - LHP Clay was the Twins 4th round pick in 2014 out of Georgia Tech. He began last season in Cedar Rapids, but he really struggled. Through nine games and 18 innings pitched, he had 19 strikeouts but 18 walks. He was sent back to EST where he worked on his control as a starter. He ended the season with three appearances in Cedar Rapids. Clay was much improved when the 2016 season started. In 14 starts for the Kernels, he went 5-4 with a 3.39 ERA. He still is walking too many, but he is striking out over a batter per inning. After starting the All-Star Game in the Midwest League, he was promoted to Ft. Myers where he’s had some ups and downs, some good starts and some bad starts but he continues to get strikeouts. FERNANDO ROMERO - 21 - RHP Romero became a prospect in 2013 when he posted a 1.60 ERA in the Gulf Coast League as an 18-year-old. Reports had him throwing a fastball in the mid-90s. In 2014, he began in EST, but he was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he made three starts. Unfortunately, he experienced elbow pain and needed Tommy John. He had the surgery in 2014, and during his rehab in 2015, he needed knee surgery which cost him more time. This spring, he was hitting 94 and 95 consistently. In mid-May, he was sent back to Cedar Rapids. He needed just five starts before he was promoted to Ft. Myers where he posted a 2.39 ERA in nine starts (49 innings). His fastball is touching 97 and 98 mph with regularity. He’s got three quality pitches that have a chance to be plus pitches. He gets strikeouts. He has really good control. He was a Top 30 prospect coming into the season. He was my #7 Twins prospect at midseason, and he will most likely be a Top 5 Twins prospect following the season. JASON WHEELER - 25 - LHP Wheeler was the Twins eighth-round pick in 2011 out of Loyola-Marymount. He worked up the system, one year at a time. Following the 2014 season, the left-hander was added to the Twins 40 man roster. He began 2015 in Rochester, but when he was 1-7 with a 6.58 ERA in 15 starts before being sent back to Chattanooga. He went 4-3 with a 3.92 ERA with the Lookouts and was removed from the 40-man roster. After that, he was really good. In fact, he was the MVP of the Southern League Championship series. He began this season in AA, but after posting a 1.88 ERA in four starts, he moved up to Rochester. He has gone 9-4 with a 3.44 ERA and was the International League’s Starting Pitcher in the AAA All-Star Game. As frustrating as 2015 was for Wheeler, 2016 puts him back on the radar. He’s warranted consideration for a September call up. So there are eight players who have made the most out of their 2016 season and have taken a step forward in their careers. Not all of these guys will show up on Top 30 prospect lists, but they have had very strong seasons. Which prospects make your list? Click here to view the article

Why Dean? Because they needed someone who could pitch 3+ innings if necessary. O'Rourke pitched 3.2 innings once this year. Other than that, completed two innings just twice. Dean made sense. Now, I too would like to see Wimmers and Baxendale, but for those 3 days, they played it how they had to.

He definitely got a talking to after that.

Maybe it would have been easier if Hawkins had just done this:

Agreed... don't want to make too much out of it. Obviously learn from it and secure the ball a little better, but weird stuff happens in this game.

No, I don't think he moves up this year. He'll start at AA to begin 2017 regardless.

He was drafted in 2011, so he can become a 6-year minor league free agent after the 2017 season. He's been Rule 5 eligible the last couple of years, but since he hadn't pitched in a full season team yet he wasn't a risk to be taken. They may need to consider adding him this year... but they would have to add him before the World Series ends next year when he would become a free agent.

Not sure there's much incentive to doing so, unless the Lookouts have a chance to be in the playoffs.

He's had two stints on the disabled list. That could be a big part of it.

I think it's very possible, especially if the Kernels end up in the playoffs.

To be determined... My guess is Albers will be back in Rochester and on their roster by Monday night. I'd guess Bencomo will go back to Chattanooga. But it would be good for a Van Steensel or Anderson or Westphal or something to move up to Chattanooga.

While the Twins focused their draft and signings on pitching in recent years, it’s clear that the focus has again been put on hitting and we’re seeing that in the lowest levels. The organization’s top pitching prospects (still in the minors) are in Ft. Myers and Chattanooga. However, there are certainly some intriguing bats on the rookie league rosters. On this night, the Twins got some nice starts from some of their second-tier pitching prospects, showing that they continue to add depth in terms of pitching prospects. There were a couple of transactions of note on Saturday as well: On Friday night, we learned that Andrew Albers had been designated for assignment by the Twins. On Saturday afternoon, we learned that fellow-lefty Ryan O’Rourke had been added to the 40-man roster and the 24-man roster.The Red Wings roster was down to just 22, so they needed help. As we noted yesterday, lefty David Hurlbut was promoted from Chattanooga and was supposed to start for the Red Wings on Saturday. Jake Reed and Omar Bencomo were also promoted from the Lookouts to Rochester.With that, let’s get to the Minor League Report for Saturday. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester, Scranton/Wilkes Barre Box Score This game was rained out. The two teams will play a doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 1, Birmingham 3 Box Score Kohl Stewart struggled with control again, and fell to 6-6 with a 3.25 ERA with the loss. The right-hander gave up three runs on four hits and five walks in 4.2 innings on the mound. He also hit two batters. He struck out three. Alan Busenitz came into the game with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth and allowed two of the three runners to core. He gave up two hits and struck out one in 1.1 innings. Mason Melotakis struck out three in a scoreless seventh inning. Raul Fernandez worked a perfect eight inning. The Lookouts managed just five hits in the game. Ryan Walker hit his third triple. Jairo Rodriguez hit his first double. Zach Granite had a single and added to his league-leading stolen base total with this 41st steal. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 7, Charlotte 1 Box Score It’s hard to remember that Dereck Rodriguez had a 7.71 ERA through his first seven starts in Cedar Rapids. Over his final nine starts in Iowa, he posted a 3.02 ERA. After throwing 6.2 innings of one-run ball on Saturday night, Rodriguez has a 1.98 ERA through his first two starts with the Miracle. He earned his first Florida State League win. The right-hander gave up four hits, walked none and struck out seven in this game. Todd Van Steensel gave up a single before he got the final out of the seventh inning. He then threw a perfect eighth frame. Nick Anderson struck out two in a one-hit, scoreless ninth. The Miracle scored seven runs despite having just four hits in the game. They were assisted by ten walks. Infielder Chris Ibarra went 2-4 with a walk and his first Florida State League double, well, and his first Florida State League single, his first two hits since joining the Miracle last week. Joe Maloney and Tanner English each walked twice. AJ Murray and Daniel Kihle both had a walk and went 1-3. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Kane County 1 Box Score Through six innings, the game was tied at one. However, the Kernels scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning to take the lead. They added two insurance runs in the ninth to complete their seventh straight win over Kane County this season. Lachlan Wells started the game with five scoreless innings. He gave up an unearned run in the sixth, but that was it. He gave up four hits, walked two and struck out five to improve to 4-3 with a 2.36 ERA. Max Cordy gave up a hit and walked two, but he didn’t give up a run in his inning. Tom Hackimer worked the final two innings without allowing a run for his third save. Sean Miller had hits in his first three at bats. His sacrifice fly in the seventh inning gave the Kernels a lead they didn’t relinquish. He ended the game 3-4 with two RBI. Luis Arraez with another multi-hit game. He weas 3-5. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Bluefield 9 Box Score It was a rough game for the Twins pitching and defense in this one. Five errors certainly didn’t help the cause. Jose Martinez gave up seven runs (five earned) on nine hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out three. Alex Robinson came on and gave up a run on one hit, three walks and a hit batter over two innings. Johan Quezada walked a batter and hit a batter in a one-run eighth inning. Alex Kiriloff went 2-5 and hit his sixth home run. Ariel Montesino went 3-5. Shane Carrier went 2-5. Lewin Diaz added his 13th double. For Bluefield, Vlad Guerrero, Jr. went 3-5, his second straight three-hit game. The 17-year-old is hitting .277 on the season. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 6, GCL Red Sox 1 Box Score For the second straight day, the Twins topped the Red Sox. Huascar Ynoa set the tone with another strong start. The right-hander gave up one run over five innings. He surrendered four hits, walked one and struck out six. He improved to 3-4 and dropped his ERA to 2.13. Matz Schutte allowed two hits over 1.1 scoreless innings. Zach Strecker struck out three over 2.2 perfect innings to record his fourth save. The Twins had nice offensive performances from several players on Saturday. Zach Featherstone went 2-3. He was hit by a pitch and hit his third and fourth homers. Aaron Whitefield went 2-4 with a walk, his fifth double and his 25th stolen base. Akil Baddoo went 1-2 with two walks and his second home run. Lean Marrero hit his second double. Dane Hutcheon walked three times and stole his fourth base. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Dereck Rodriguez, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Akil Baddoo/Zach Featherstone, GCL Twins SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (12:35 CST) (doubleheader) - LHP David Hurlbut and RHP Omar Bencomo Chattanooga @ Birmingham (6:30 CST) - RHP Ryan Eades Charlotte @ Ft. Myers (5:05 CST) - RHP Keaton Steele Cedar Rapids @ Kane County (6:30 CST) – RHP Tyler Beardsley Elizabethton @ Bluefield (6:05 CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Saturday's games. Click here to view the article

While I agree with the first paragraph... I disagree with the second paragraph... Wiel shouldn't be hurt by the fact that no one was in scoring position before he came to bat or drove him in. Five hits in Five at bats is ALWAYS an impressive feat. He didn't get out. But I do think extra base hits are good too, which is why I had a hard time picking.

Played SS in high school, drafted as a 3B... They have Trey Cabbage at third base, so they moved him over to 2B. Blankenhorn's 3-4 years from the big leagues, so giving him some flexibility is a good thing.

I don't necessarily disagree, but a couple of things... 1.) he's a second baseman... Cavaness is an OF and Wiel is a 1B, so they have nothing to do with Blankenhorn playing 2B. 2.) Miller's going to play some 2B, some 3B and some SS, and he's worthy of playing time too. 3.) Arraez plays 2B too...