Seth Stohs

There are some 14-year-olds who don't know a world in which Jorge Polanco and Max Kepler are not a part of the Minnesota Twins organization. Image courtesy of Jordan Johnson-USA TODAY Sports When Jorge Polanco and Max Kepler came to Fort Myers for spring training this year, it marked their 15th season as members of the Minnesota Twins organization. It also marked the first time that Miguel Sano was not in the organization with them. Every year, the Twins draft and sign players. They sign international free agents. It is very difficult for a player to remain in the organization until he can become a minor-league free agent. Consider this: players drafted in 2016 could have become free agents at the end of the 2022 season if not on the 40-man roster. Of the 33 Twins 2016 draft picks that signed, just four remain in the organization. The Twins drafted and signed 29 players in 2017. Just five of those players remain in the organization. If those players are not on the Twins 40-man roster by the end of the World Series, they can become free agents. Four of the Twins top five picks from the 2021 draft have already been traded. So it is in that light that I think it's important to recognize those players that have remained in the Twins organization the longest. Honorable Mentions Before we get to the ten players who have been in the organization the longest, here are the next ten on the list of longest-tenured Twins players. #20 - Randy Dobnak - 7/28/17 #18b - Andrew Bechtold - 2017 draft (7/22/17) #18a - Blayne Enlow - 2017 draft (7/22/17) #16b - Wilfri Castro - 7/3/17 #16a - Miguel Rodriguez - 7/3/17 #15 - Luis Baez - 7/2/17 #14 - Bailey Ober - 2017 draft (6/22/17) #13 - Royce Lewis - 2017 draft (6/17/17) #12 - Mark Contreras - 2017 draft (6/16/17) #11 - Jeferson Morales - 10/6/16 THE TOP 10 LONGEST-TENURED TWINS #10 - In the fifth round of the 2016 draft, the Twins selected Jordan Balazovic from St. Martin Secondary School in Mississauga, Ontario. He didn’t sign until July 19, 2016. He looked good in the GCL that summer but really struggled in 2017. In 2018, he impressed as a 19-year-old in the second half of the season at Cedar Rapids. He went 7-3 with a 3.94 ERA over 61 2/3 innings (he had 78 strikeouts). Keith Law made him a Top 100 prospect at that time before others did. He was even better in 2019. He made four starts for the Kernels and then 14 starts for Ft. Myers. Combined, he posted a 2.69 ERA and had 129 strikeouts and just 25 walks over 93 2/3 innings. He joined the Twins alternate site in the last few weeks in 2020. He was good again in Double-A Wichita in 2021 when he struck out 102 batters in 97 innings. And… Grace. Since then, things have been a struggle for Balazovic. He had a knee injury coming out of spring training, then went straight to St. Paul where he went 0-7 with a 7.39 ERA in 21 starts. He did have 76 strikeouts in 70 2/3 innings, but he also had 35 walks. It was the first time that control had been an issue for him, which could have been, in part, related to the knee injury. Looking to move forward in 2023, Balazovic was punched in the face in a Fort Myers bar just before spring training started and had to have surgery in which his jaw was wired shut. He missed spring training and was optioned quickly to minor-league camp. He has started this season in the Saints bullpen where he has four strikeouts and given up just one run over 3 2/3 innings. He also has five walks. However, it would be too early to completely give up on a pitcher with his talent. #9 - On the first day of the 2016 international signing period (7/2/16), the Twins signed Osiris German from San Cristobal, in the Dominican Republic. He made his pro debut in 2017 in the Dominican Summer League. He split 2018 between the DSL and the GCL. In 2019, he struck out 47 batters in 37 2/3 innings at Elizabethton. Like other minor leaguers, he did not pitch in 2020. Now 22, he split the 2021 season between Ft. Myers and Cedar Rapids. While his overall numbers didn’t look great, he had 90 strikeouts in 59 1/3 innings. People started really talking about his remarkable changeup. He began 2022 with the Kernels but very quickly moved up to Double-A Wichita. He posted a 3.33 ERA and had 49 strikeouts in 46 innings. #8 - In 2016, Jose Miranda was the Twins' third of four high school hitters drafted in the first two rounds. Alex Kirilloff was selected first. Ben Rortvedt was the second-round pick. Miranda and Akil Baddoo were taken back-to-back with the 73rd and 74th picks. Miranda also became the second player drafted out of Leadership Christian Academy in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. A year earlier, the Twins drafted outfielder Lean Marrero in the 16th round. He signed on June 23, 2016. Drafted as a shortstop, it was pretty well known he wouldn’t stay there. He split most of his minor-league years between second base and third base. He has incredible bat-to-ball skills, but he struggled with his knowledge of the strike zone. He would often swing at pitches outside the strike zone and get himself out. He had a great experience in the Puerto Rican Winter League before the 2021 seasons and even played in the Caribbean Series. His focus became knowing the strike zone, and he did just that and saw immediate results. He began 2021 in Wichita and in 47 games, he hit .345/.408/.588 (.996). Two months in, he was promoted to Triple-A St. Paul. He hit .343/.397/.563 (.960). Combined, he had 32 doubles, 30 home runs, and 94 RBI and was the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year. He began the 2022 season with 21 games in St. Paul, but he came up and hit .268/.325/.426 (.751) with 25 doubles and 15 homers in 125 games for the Twins. This season, he will be playing third base and hitting in the middle of the Twins lineup. #6c - The Twins were thrilled to see the sweet-swinging Alex Kirilloff with the 15th overall pick in the 2016 draft out of Plum High School, in Pittsburgh. He signed on June 21, 2016. He spent that summer in Elizabethton, but his season ended a little early with an elbow injury. Unfortunately, in spring training in 2017, he needed Tommy John surgery and missed the whole season. He returned in 2018 and showed himself to be one of the best hitters in minor-league baseball In 65 games at Low-A Cedar Rapids, he hit .333/.392/.607 (.999), and then in 65 games at High-A Ft. Myers, he hit .362/.392/.550 (.943). Combined, he hit 44 doubles, seven triples, 20 home runs, and 101 RBI. He played 94 games at Double-A Pensacola in 2019 but missed some time with a wrist injury. He spent the 2020 partial season at the Twins' alternate site in St. Paul. He made his MLB debut in the playoffs against the Astros. In 2021, he played 59 games with the Twins before his season ended early with wrist problems and surgery. In 2022, he played 45 games with the Twins, continued having wrist issues, and had a much more aggressive wrist surgery where some of the bone was essentially chiseled off. He continues to rehab in Ft. Myers and just recently started the rehab assignment. #6b - In the third round of the 2016 draft, the Twins made Griffin Jax that highest-drafted player from the US Air Force Academy. He signed on June 21, 2016. The Twins thought they would get Jax full-time by May 2017. However, the Department of Defense altered its policy and required him to serve two years of active duty. Jax spent his military leaves pitching in the minor leagues, but the fear was he would not be able to be a full-time baseball player until at least 2019 if not 2020. However, the military has a World Class Athlete Program which allows active-duty military personnel to make training for the Olympics their full-time responsibility. Because Baseball was again an Olympic sport in 2020, he could do that. The Twins and the Air Force figured out the financial side of things and he was fully with the Twins starting in 2018. In 2019, he pitched at Double-A and ended the season with three games in Triple-A. He was at the alternate site in 2020. In 2021, he made eight starts for the Saints and then 14 starts for the Twins. He became the first Air Force Academy graduate to play in the big leagues. He struggled, but he moved to the bullpen in 2022 and went 7-4 with a 3.36 ERA in 72 1/3 games over 65 games in the big leagues. His role will continue to be in high-leverage situations for the Twins this year. He continued his education and worked on gaining a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, focusing on Marketing and Data Analytics. After the 2021 season, he was honored as the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award recipient. He maintains the rank of Captain in the Air Force Reserves. He and his wife Savannah recently had their first child. She is also a Captain in the Air Force. #5 - The last remaining member of the Twins 2015 draft is left-hander Jovani Moran. The 25-year-old was the Twins’ 7th-round draft pick from the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy. He signed in early July and worked in six games in the GCL. Unfortunately, he missed the 2016 season because he had bone chips removed from his elbow. In 2017, he dominated at Elizabethton and was the easy choice for Twins Daily Short-Season Minor League Pitcher of the Year. He has experienced a lot of ups and downs over the years. His changeup made him intriguing and helped him to strike out a lot of batters, but he also struggled with his control often too. In September of 2021, he made his MLB debut and pitched in five games. He split 2022 between the Saints (6.00 ERA in 20 games) and the Twins (2.21 ERA in 40 2/3 innings). He made his first Opening Day roster in 2023. #4 - The Twins used the fifth overall pick in the 2014 draft to select shortstop Nick Gordon from Olympia High School in Orlando. He signed days later (June 9, 2014). The son of Tom Gordon, and the brother of Dee Strange-Gordon, Nick Gordon advanced through the Twins organization one level per year until he reached Triple-A. Unfortunately, that’s when he started experiencing several injuries and health issues. He was added to the 40-man roster after the 2019 season. In 2020, he was having some stomach issues and ended up with a very serious bout with Covid. He was down below 150 pounds and felt weak. Thankfully, he eventually got healthy and doctors figured out his stomach ailment. He’s been adding strength since. In 2021, he got an opportunity in the big leagues and hit .240 (.647) over 73 games as a rookie. He broke out in 2022. In 138 games, he hit .272 (.743) with 28 doubles, four triples, and nine home runs. In 2023, he played in left field, center field, and second base. He’s off to a slow start, but the Twins will (and should) stand by him. #3 - The Twins were not a good baseball team in 2011 and truly earned the second overall pick in the 2012 draft. As you know, the Astros selected a talented shortstop from Puerto Rico with the first overall pick. I wonder where Carlos Correa is these days. I hope he has found success somewhere. The Twins followed by selecting outfielder Byron Buxton out of high school in Georgia. On June 13, 2012, he signed. He quickly became the top prospect in baseball. He debuted with the Twins in 2015. In 2017, he received MVP votes, won his first Gold Glove, and was also awarded the Platinum Glove as the best defensive player in the American League. Unfortunately, injuries have cost Buxton a lot of time since. He hasn’t had another season in which he played 100 games or more. When healthy, he is a huge difference-maker for the Twins. He has become a tremendous talent with the bat. Following the 2021 season, the Twins and Buxton agreed on a $100 million contract extension, loaded with incentives. In 2022, he was named an All-Star for the first time and homered in the game. #2 – On July 11th, 2009, the Twins signed highly-regarded German outfielder Max Kepler. Though Kepler was always blessed with great athleticism and tools, it wasn’t until 2015 that everything came together for him. He was the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year when he was named the Southern League MVP and led the Chattanooga Lookouts to the league title. While his team was celebrating, Kepler learned that he was heading to the big leagues. On the season’s final day, he recorded his first MLB hit off of Johnny Cueto. He put up very similar numbers from 2016 through 2018. In 2018, he hit .224 with 30 doubles and 20 homers. He signed a five-year contract extension for $35 million in the offseason. In 2019, Kepler broke out. He hit .252/.336/.519 (.855) with 32 doubles and 36 home runs. In 2020, his OPS dropped to .760, then .719 in 2021, and just .666 in 2022. His 129 home runs rank 16th in Twins history. Another 20-homer season would put him into the Top 12. The Twins have an option on Kepler’s 2024 contract. #1 – On July 2, 2009, the Twins signed defense-first shortstop Jorge Polanco from the Dominican Republic. The Twins were very patient with him in the lower levels, but in 2014, he became the youngest player to debut with the Twins since Joe Mauer in 2004. He moved up and down between Triple-A and the big leagues in 2016 until July when Eduardo Nunez was traded. He missed the first 80 games of the 2018 season on a PED suspension but came back strong in the second half. He signed a five-year, $25 million contract extension. In 2019, he was voted as the starting shortstop in the All Star game. He ended the season by hitting .295 with 40 doubles and 22 home runs. In 2020, the Twins moved him to second base. He played 152 games in 2021 and hit .295 with 35 doubles and 33 home runs. He played in just 104 games in 2022 and will start the 2023 season on the Injured List. The Twins have options on Polanco’s contract the next two offseasons. So there you have it, the players in the Twins organization who have been in the system the longest, consecutively. I’ll guess that at least a couple of the names may not surprise you. I’m certain that you wouldn’t have guessed all 10 on this list. Feel free to leave your thoughts, or let me know if I forgot anyone. View full article

Obviously when Cleveland changed their name to the Guardians, we put in the correction so that it would be correct in the article. Frankly, I hadn't used their old nickname in years before that.

2 games for SWR. 3 games for Dobnak after pretty much not pitching for 2 years. They'll be fine

Much ado about nothing... Gallo was placed on the IL, retroactive for three days. He continued to work for 2-3 days. He plays a rehab game. Assuming it went well, he won't play tonight. Then he'll play Sunday, and then he can be activated on Tuesday.

Sometimes it is how you start, and there's no question that the Twins started out very well in Thursday night's game at Yankees Stadium. A nine-run first inning, led by a memorable inning for a Twins rookie, and back-to-back-to-back homers. Joe Ryan was fantastic and the Twins walked out with a nice, relaxing win against the Yankees. Image courtesy of Wendell Cruz, USA Today Box Score SP: Joe Ryan: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K (92 pitches, 69 strikes (75.0%) Home Runs: Michael A. Taylor 2 (3), Edouard Julien (1), Carlos Correa (1) Top 3 WPA: Jose Miranda (0.124), Byron Buxton (0.076), Carlos Correa (0.068) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Pregame Notes There were a few interesting notes before the game even started. With Kyle Farmer being placed on the 10-day Injured List after undergoing surgery on Wednesday night, the Twins have added outfielder Kyle Garlick to the roster and moved Gilberto Celestino to the 60-Day Injured List. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Gleeman’s tweet got us all thinking. What could it mean? Why was Louie Varland scratched so late? Was there an injury? All indications are that Dan Hayes was correct. It sounds like Varland will start for the Twins one of the next couple of days with the rest of the starters getting an extra day of rest. Julien Leads Off and has Memorable First Inning In just his second big-league game, Rocco Baldelli placed Edouard Julien at the top of the Twins lineup. In his debut on Wednesday afternoon, he went 0-for-2, but he did coax a walk. In his first at-bat of the night, Julien drove a ball that one-hopped the right field wall at 104 mph. Played well by the outfielder, Julien was held to a single. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== I’ll tell you more about what happened in between shortly, but the Quebec native, whose family was in Yankees Stadium for this game, came to the plate again in the first inning, this time against reliever Colten Brewer. In patented Julien style, he hit an opposite-field homer into the left field bleachers for his first career home run. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== That is just the fourth time since 1974 that a player has recorded his first hit and his first home run in the same inning (separate hits, of course). Huge, 9-Run First Inning It was a huge first inning for Edouard Julien, but it was a huge first inning for the whole Twins team. Julien got things going. Then he hustled to second on a Carlos Correa ground ball to the 5.5 hole. Anthony Volpe fielded it and threw to second, but after replay, Julien was safe at second. I included the article story photo that I did because you have to credit Rocco Baldelli for challenging the call in the first innings. You wonder, if they hadn’t challenged it or if Julien hadn’t been hustling, the rest of the inning and the game could have played out much differently than it ultimately did. Honestly, I’m just going to bullet point the inning for you. Scoring nine runs before your team even plays defense is always a good thing. Edouard Julien Single 104.4 mph. Carlos Correa Single 87.6 mph. Byron Buxton walk. Trevor Larnach sacrifice fly. 97.8 mph. (Julien scored) Jose Miranda double. 98.6 mph. (Correa, Buxton scored) Donovan Solano double. 96.8 mph. (Miranda scored) Nick Gordon ground out. 86.5 mph. Christian Vazquez double. 99.8 mph. (Solano scored) Michael A. Taylor home run. 104.0 mph. (Vazquez, Taylor scored) Pitching Change. (Colten Brewer replaced Jhony Brito) Edouard Julien home run. 96.7 mph (Julien scored) Carlos Correa home run. 99.8 mph (Correa scored) Byron Buxton walk. Trevor Larnach flew out. 84.7 mph. Nine runs. Eight hits. And to follow that, Joe Ryan needed just eight pitches to get through the Yankees top three in the bottom of the inning. 25-year-old Jhony Brito had made two MLB starts in his career before Thursday night. In his first two starts this season, he was 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA. Over 10 innings, he gave up just one run on five hits and three walks. My amateur scouting eye thinks that he has some really good stuff. His fastball sat between 96 and 98 mph, and he threw a few changeups that looked very good. Who knows where his career will go from here, but he certainly should get many more opportunities. Michael A. Taylor Power As you saw above, Taylor ended Brito’s night with a two-run homer in the first inning. After the Twins went scoreless in the second, Taylor followed a second Christian Vazquez double with his second home run of the night and third home run of the season. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Known for his defense, the 32-year-old is in his tenth big-league season. In his career, he has hit .241/.295/.381 (.676) with 115 doubles and 75 home runs (before this game). So no, he isn’t a great hitter, but when you couple in his Gold Glove-caliber defense with the occasional extra base hit, he does provide value to a team. In his career, he has a 19-homer season, a 14-homer season, and a 12-homer season. Joe Ryan Impresses If you only looked at his face, the focus that Joe Ryan showed in his Thursday night outing was tremendous. Even as he was running out to the mound with a 10-run lead in the 7th inning, he looked as if he was pitching in a one-run game. Given the 9-0 lead before he took the mound, he responded with strikes and a very quick inning, exactly what the team needed. He was perfect through the Yankees lineup. Nine up. Nine down. In the fourth inning, he allowed a solo homer to Anthony Rizzo but shook that off to strike out Giancarlo Stanton to end that inning. He then struck out two more batters in a perfect fifth frame. He gave up a bloop single to Anthony Volpe with one out in the sixth inning, but he got Gleyber Torres to fly out and then struck out Aaron Judge for a second time. Judge was replaced by Aaron Hicks in the eighth inning which ended his streak of 45 consecutive games of reaching base. His night was complete after seven innings. Cole Sands made an appearance for the first time in well over a week. He had an 10-pitch eighth inning. With two outs in the ninth inning, Anthony Rizzo hit his second homer. Of his 92 pitches, Joe Ryan threw 58 four-seam fastballs, with a range of 90.3 to 95.8 mph and an average of 93.2 mph. He also threw 23 splitters and 11 sweepers. Christian Vazquez deserves a lot of credit for Ryan's performance as well. Along with calling a great game, he went 3-for-4 with two doubles. He's hitting .379 on the young season. Postgame Notes (coming soon) What’s Next? On Friday night in The Bronx, the Twins will send RHP Louie Varland to the mound for his first start of 2023 to face 2022 All Star LHP Nestor Cortes (2-0, 2.61 ERA) in Game 2 of 4 in this series. Game time will again be 6:05 central time. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Alcalá 45 0 0 15 0 60 Durán 0 0 24 15 0 39 Morán 0 35 0 0 0 35 Pagán 23 0 0 0 0 23 Sands 0 0 0 0 23 23 Jax 0 0 8 12 0 20 Thielbar 0 10 4 0 0 14 López 0 0 0 12 0 12 View full article

Last weekend, Max Carlson (Sam's brother) gave up one run over seven innings against Georgia Tech. He really struggled in the middle of the season, but he had been the team's Friday night starter. Maybe not a first few round picks, but he can be my #PersonalCheeseball.

You mean North Side Baseball, right? https://northsidebaseball.com/

10th round pick, a senior sign, in 2021 out of Gonzaga. He did this same thing last year, playing in Ft. Myers, Wichita, and St. Paul... Solid defense, good approach at the plate. He's one of the guys that moves around to where there is need. Like Dalton Shuffield playing for the Saints a year ago after getting drafted.

I saw it live on TV, then had to be away from the TV... but they didn't even show the replay right away. The sound was awful. Definitely we wish him well!

His stuff has always been great. After being a starter for so long, his stuff really played up out of the bullpen last year. He just really seemed to tire in August. I think the same can be said of Griffin Jax. He had some struggles late in July and adding Lopez and Fulmer allowed him to get more time between appearances and he returned. Those two both are now in their second seasons as full-time relievers, so I think both will be (or at least can be) really good.

Ober, Varland and SWR are the ones we're most paying attention to. I Know Ober and SWR have had their rough starts, but nothing to make anything out of yet. Headrick will be starting there as well. With all the postponements, he was just thrown into long relief to get his innings. Obviously there are no guarantees with any of them, but it's so much more fun watching prospects than veteran, isn't it? Even though at AAA, it's typically those veteran teams that win the most. But it's a great challenge for those younger guy.s.

If you happen to have a good camera with a good zoom, please get us some pictures. Maybe we can use it on tomorrows Minor League Report. Thanks for sharing your experience.

There are several players that I thought could probably stick in Ft. Myers for another season or half season. I almost wonder if they considered the hitting environment there and thought it might be better to get them to Iowa.

Are people really questioning why Buxton would get a day off last night? He is still returning from a knee injury. He is still "just" DHing, so it's not like he's fully back. To have him play against the lefty on Wednesday, they chose to give him Tuesday off.

Is it written somewhere in the article that this was Alcantara's first start of the season? It was his second. If it's in the article, please point out where so I can see it. Notice that when they are behind it's Pagan and Moran. When they are ahead, it's Lopez, Thielbar and Jax. Duran'll be fine if it's truly just the kink in his neck. They are going to re-evaluate Kepler tomorrow morning to see if he'll play. That said, it's a 1:00 game there, and they're facing a lefty. Give him a second day off and have him fully ready on Friday.

Kenta Maeda is good... He had all the time he needed to recover without rushing. The thing is, assuming he stays healthy, he's just going to get stronger. I'm the biggest back of Bailey Ober, but Kenta deserves the chance to take his job back since it was injury that took it.

I thought about this a little more because I think it's a big question for Brian Dinkelman and their staff. However, my assumption is that they will have almost a lineup for every day of the week. Over those 6 games, the goal would be to get Miller X number of innings at SS and Salas Y number of innings, and Schobel will play second base, and certain guys will have a weekly game at first base. I think you'd almost have to organize it like that to get everyone enough playing time.

De Andrade is on the Mighty Mussels roster. Cruz did go to Twins minor league spring training in Ft. Myers. Mercedes and Rodriguez and Acuna stayed in the DSL for spring training. My assumption is now that things have cleared out in Ft. Myers with three affiliates leaving the location, those guys and a few others will come over. They'll play in the FCL though this year.

Keep Nowlin starting as much as possible... even if he just comes up to pitch out of the bullpen, keep him starting. Build him up to work on all of his pitches.

Just realized that along with Mark Vientos, Brice Turang was also on this team. Greene, Lewis and Turang played against each other in high school. SoCal baseball is amazing!

In the lower levels, they have three catchers and they each usually start twice per week. If they're also a decent hitter, they'll get a game or two more as a DH, maybe at another position. I think Olivar can fit into that category as he can play in the outfield too. They take care of these guys and their legs and understand that it is a position of attrition. It's really hard to get to the big leagues as a catcher. Keep them healthey, and get them a lot of work even when they have an off day. Lots to learn.

Really impossible to know. While unlikely, it's also possible more from this team make it then the Kernels roster will. Just hard to know, especially with the guys from the 2022 draft. A year ago, we probably weren't terribly excited about David Festa and Jaylen Nowlin, and now they're both Top 20ish guys with great stuff. Olivares is a big dude, filled with potential.

Yes, Ernie Yake was that guy the last couple of years too. At least in Yake and Shuffield's cases, they were 5th year senior signs, signed really for that purpose (along with saving bonus pool money). There are a lot of catchers that fit that category too, Kyle Schmidt, Frank Nigro, etc.