Seth Stohs

Credit to Sean Johnson, the Scouting Director, and his entire scouting staff!

My guess... and it's just that. He'll sign. Spend a couple of weeks at the Complex. Then move up to Ft. Myers for a month, and I wouldn't be surprised if he ends at Cedar Rapids. I'd also venture to guess that they will instruct the hitting coaches not to change a thing, They probably won't touch his swing at all this season. Just let him play. He's the best hitter in the draft already.

OK, Dude just got drafted following his junior season in college, he's 21, and he's "too old?" He was top 5 on most every board. I can't imagine not loving this pick.

I'm not sure on Rich Becker. He had a couple of nice OBP seasons... His big issue was the strikeouts, so you wonder if he played today if teams would even care. He'd be an on-base machine with some power. As for Romero, he was a mid-to-upper 90s guy who had some really nice starts at the beginning of his career. Lots of weird stuff there. Agree on Jay too. Keith Law was big on him and thinks the Twins should have kept him starting longer, but as you said, at minimum, I thought he'd be a strong lefty out of the bullpen. The FB/SL combo was Perkins-like. But then he had lots of arm issues, like Thoracic Outlet Syndrome and such.

Define "Good Arm"... A couple of 30 year old minor league veterans isn't going to get you much of anything. When the Twins traded JR Murphy, who was in AAA at the time, they got Gabriel Moya, a middling lefty reliever. And that was for a catcher in the same boat.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand also promoted, from Cedar Rapids to Wichita... per both Cedar Rapids and Wichita press release.

Darren Wolfson is reporting that Matt Wallner is joining the Saints. My assumption is that will happen after Saturday's Futures Game, rather than maybe playing one game for St. Paul and then going to LA with Spencer Steer. But, maybe.

Povich's 'ceiling' is right there with Balazovic, Canterino, Raya, etc. Great stuff. Competitive. Lefthanded. CES - He'll have to put in some work to stick at third. If he does, he can. If he isn't able to improve, then nope. Probably a hot streak, but we can hope.

Aguiar is a big dude... definitely a corner guy.

Short Answer: Not Very.

Also, I just can't not say something... Matt Wallner to Catcher????? ?

I think that guy they traded will be very lucky if he can have a career as solid as Drew Butera's!! Even offensively! First and foremost, let's just hope he gets healthy one of these years so we can find out. He is obviously the best defensively of the whole group, and right in that Butera class. Both are tremendous athletes, which I believe helps a lot. Jeffers is going to be just fine. He's more than solid defensively and he will hit. I still have no doubt. And even now, his offensive numbers are just over league average for a catcher. Sanchez, I'm fine with either way. He hasn't been as brutal defensively as I thought he'd be, and offensively, I do think he'll be fine. Obviously I wouldn't (and likely they won't) pay him $10M/year, but maybe he likes it here so much he's willing to do a two year, $10M deal, and I'd be on board with that. All that said, this scouting department has always valued catchers and usually takes at least one in the top 10 rounds, and then take another 2-3 later, and then sign a few more. Catcher is a position of attrition. It's hard to get to the big leaguers, period, much less as a catcher. The Mauer types are rare. Remember Joey Bart went #2 overall the year the Twins got Jeffers in the 2nd round.

Not a lot of surprise, but MLB announced this afternoon that both Luis Arraez and Byron Buxton have been named to their first All-Star teams. While some may believe that they should be starting in the All Star game in Los Angeles next week, both Luis Arraez Byron Buxton have been named to their first All-Star games. On Sunday, Byron Buxton hit his career-high 23rd home run. While he is hitting just .215 with an on-base percentage teetering around .300, his power and slugging make him a huge threat in a lineup. And his defense, of course. According to Darren Wolfson, Buxton was asked to participate in the Home Run Derby, but declined. Despite going 0-for-5 on Sunday, Arraez has a huge lead in the American League batting title race with a .348 batting average. Congratulations to both on a special moment in their careers. Watch as manager Rocco Baldelli informs the team of the player's All Star status. Jhoan Duran has given up runs in his most recent appearances. He had to have been considered. Maybe even Griffin Jax, who has emerged as arguably the team's top reliever right now, received consideration. Either way, that is a strong 1-2 punch in the back of the team's bullpen. Carlos Correa is another Twins player that could be an All Star. Maybe those three are "snubs" (or maybe not), but there are likely to be players added to the rosters over the next week for injuries or other reasons. Join us in congratulating two new Twins All Stars and share your thoughts. View full article

Not even worth worrying about yet. They'll use his full 20 days allowed for rehab, I'm sure. Who knows what will happen in the next 2 1/2 weeks, injury, etc.

Sabato was placed on the IL on Friday.

The game went back-and-forth a few times. On Friday night, the Rangers used a six-run inning to get the win. On Saturday afternoon, the Twins had a six-run inning, but that proved to not be enough. Box Score SP: Devin Smeltzer: 3 1/3 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 2 K (81 pitches, 50 strikes (61.7%)) Home Runs: Jose Miranda (7), Gary Sanchez (10), Bottom 3 WPA: Devin Smeltzer (-.667), Jhoan Duran (-.330), Nick Gordon (-.174) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Early Slugfest If you would have been asked before the game started what kind of game you would have expected on Saturday, this is probably what you would have assumed. Two powerful lineups that hit a lot of home runs, and a couple of lefties that the other team is familiar with. After a scoreless first inning, Devin Smeltzer gave up a three-run homer to same-sider Kole Calhoun. However, in the top of the fourth frame, the Twins put together a big inning. With Carlos Correa and Jorge Polanco on base, Jose Miranda launched a long, three-run shot to tie the game at three. Gio Urshela followed with a single, and Gary Sanchez gave the Twins a 5-3 lead with a big, two-run, opposite-field homer. Nick Gordon was hit by a pitch which brought a slumping Byron Buxton to the plate. Buxton launched a ball to right-center field that was thisclose to a home run. The double scored Gordon to make the lead 6-3. Given a lead, Smeltzer was unable to hold it. In the bottom of the fourth inning, he got the first batter out, but then a single from Leody Taveras and a line-shot double by Charlie Culberson put runners on second and third. Marcus Semien crushed a three-run homer to tie the game. One batter later, Corey Seager hit one out over the fencing in right-center field. That was the end of the day for Smeltzer, the Twins now behind 7-6. It wasn’t a pretty day for starting-pitcher line scores, but Perez was then able to throw two quick, scoreless innings and complete six innings without any further damage. Big, Not So Bad, Bullpen! I remember thinking it, and typing it above, when it was 7-6 after four innings. Glen Perkins said it on the Bally Sports North broadcast. To paraphrase, “I certainly don’t think that this game will end 7-6.” The assumption was that it was going to be a long game with a ton of runs scored. Instead, the Twins bullpen came on and did a very nice job. (Hey, if we’re going to bash them every time things go bad, we need to praise them on the strong days.) Griffin Jax came on and got the final two outs of the fourth inning. Tyler Duffey came on for the ninth straight time, he gave up zero runs. Over that stretch, he has worked 12 innings and given up nine hits, walked three and struck out 11 batters. The last time Duffey gave up a run was June 12th against the Rays. Trevor Megill had a quick, two-strikeout sixth inning which earned him a second inning. In the seventh frame, he got two slow ground outs before a strikeout to end the inning. Jovani Moran was warming up in the top of the eighth inning when the team was down 7-6, but when Gilberto Celestino’s ground out scored Luis Arraez to tie the game at 7-7, Jhoan Duran came in for the eighth inning. But Then… Of course, Duran has been the Twins’ best reliever pretty much all season, a guy who could hear his name called as an All Star on Sunday. But he did not have his best appearance. Light-hitting Leodys Taveras was late on two fastballs, so they threw a third straight fastball and he slapped the 0-2 pitch to left field for a single (while the Twins shifted him inexplicably to pull). After Josh Smith sacrificed him to second, Marcus Semien came to the plate. Duran hung a slider for him and Semien crushed a liner to left. What should have been a single, hit so hard it likely would not have scored a run, turned into a triple when Nick Gordon dove for the ball and it got by him. Corey Seager was intentionally walked, but #OldFriend Mitch Garver came through again. He was badly jammed by a Duran fastball but muscled a blooper into center field for an RBI single. Fortunately, Adolis Garcia grounded into a double play to end the inning. What’s Next? The Twins will finish their series in Texas with a 1:35 game against the Rangers. They are off on Monday before starting a quick two-game series at Target Field against the Brewers. Back to Sunday, the Twins will send righty Dylan Bundy to the mound. He is 4-4 with a 4.50 ERA on the season. However, over his past four starts, he is 1-1 with a 1.88 ERA. He’s allowed five earned runs on 17 hits and four walks in 24 innings. Those performances came against the Diamondbacks, Rockies, Guardians and White Sox. So, it will be interesting to see how he looks against the potent, powerful Ranger lineup. Texas will counter with right-hander Dane Dunning. The former Nationals first-round pick has been traded in a couple of significant deals. In 2016, about six months after the draft, he was traded to the White Sox in a deal for Adam Eaton. Then after the 2020 season, he was dealt to the Rangers in the Lance Lynn trade. This will be his league-leading 18th start of the season. He is 1-6 with a 4.15 ERA. In 93 1/3 innings, he walked 33 and struck out 82. He also leads the league with eight hit batters. Postgame Interview Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Cotton 21 0 0 42 0 63 Megill 2 22 0 0 22 46 Duffey 18 0 0 0 26 44 Pagán 0 23 0 10 0 33 Thielbar 11 8 0 13 0 32 Jax 0 17 0 0 15 32 Duran 0 9 0 0 14 23 Moran 0 8 0 0 0 8 View full article

Povich, for me, is a great example of this draft and develop philosophy that I think it terrific. The Twins pushed him and he's handling it pretty well. The K numbers are great. But, I think the best example from the 2021 draft has to be David Festa. Drafted in the 12th round or so, added some velocity right away. Hitting 98 now, which a slider. That's exciting. He's this year's version of Louie Varland... a 15th round pick in the previous 'season's' draft. (he was drafted in 2019 but obviously not able to pitch until 2021). Again, Varland's stuff is terrific and he's holding his own in Double-A now. I think 2021 19th round pick Jaylen Nowlin is exciting. Left-handed, throwing 97. I love the process the Twins now have in pitcher development, and hopefully, we see this pipeline that succeeds in MLB become strong and consistently provide the team with options.

The top guys in signed in January 2022 were: Yasser Mercedes ($1.7M) Yilber Herrera ($700K) Bryan Acuna ($650K) Jose Rodriguez ($650K) Also, from MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez: Harold Grant, IF, Spain -- $400,000 Ricardo Pena, C, Venezuela -- $300,000 Jesus Peraza, C, Venezuela -- $250,000 Leonardo Lugo, RHS, Venezuela -- $175,000 Anderson Nova, OF, Dominican Republic -- $150,000 Juan Zapata, IF, Dominican Republic -- $130,000 Ledwin Taveras, RHS, Dominican Republic -- $25,000 Cesar Lares, LHS, Venezuela -- $10,000 Jeferson Lopez, RHS, Venezuela -- $10,000 Daniel Pena, C, Venezuela -- $10,000

Buxton, Arraez, Polanco are the current core... Kepler probably fits in as the 4th there. The "Next" Core should include all three of the current core (as they'll remain around for a while) and Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda, Ryan, Winder, Duran. That is ideal to have a strong core and then bring up a new core every few years like they are now.

Agreed... It probably was a Core 2 with just Hrbek and Puckett, and we can throw Gagne in there for his defense (and his playoff power!).

On Thursday morning, MLB announced the participants in the upcoming Futures Game. Two Minnesota Twins prospects will participate, infielder Spencer Steer and outfielder Matt Wallner. The 2022 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game will be played at Dodgers Stadium on Saturday, July 16th at 6 pm central time. You can watch Twins prospects Spencer Steer and Matt Wallner live on Peacock and SiriusXM with MLB Network producing the telecast and re-airing the game at 7:30 pm that night. The two Twins representatives are the two hitters with the most home runs in the system. Wallner has hit 20 homers, and Steer has hit 19. It is a big deal for the players. Not only does it show that they are recognized by their own organization, but they are given the respect of the other organizations too. And finally, their names can become more well known to fans on a national level. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I'm so excited to get to experience." Steer said following the announcement. It is extra special for him for another reason. "It means so much to me that I get to go play a game so close to my hometown. This will be the first time a lot of my family have seen me play professionally, so I couldn't be more excited about that as well." Spencer Steer, 24, grew up in Long Beach (CA) and went to the University of Oregon to play college ball. The Twins drafted him in the 3rd round of the 2019 draft. He began the 2022 season at Double-A Wichita where he hit .307/.385/.591 (.976) with 13 doubles and eight homers. He was promoted to Triple-A St. Paul where he has now played 36 games. He has hit .243/.330/.533 (.862) with nine doubles and 11 home runs. Just so you don't have to look it up, combined, he has played in 71 games and hit .273/.356/.561 (.916) with 22 doubles, 19 homers and 58 RBI. One more reason for Steer's excitement? "It's awesome that I get to go play with Wallner, who is a great friend of mine." Wallner is a 24-year-old from Forest Lake (MN). He was the Mr. Baseball choice in Minnesota in 2016 and drafted in the 32nd round by the Twins, as a pitcher. He went to Southern Mississippi and became an All-American outfielder with immense power. The Twins drafted him with the 39th overall pick in 2019. He has been on fire this season. In 73 games at Double-A Wichita, he has hit .282/.422/.585 (1.007) with 13 doubles and 20 home runs. He also has 58 RBI. When the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospect rankings were updated on July 1st, Spencer Steer ranked #6 with Matt Wallner ranking #12. Below is an interview with Spencer Steer shortly after his promotion to St. Paul. Check it out! (Then below the interview you can see the players that Steer and Wallner join as Futures Game Twins representatives since the game's first year.) Past Twins in the Futures Game 1999: Michael Cuddyer, JC Romero, 2000: Luis Rivas, Brad Thomas, 2001: Grant Balfour 2002: Justin Morneau, Michael Restovich, 2003: JD Durbin, Joe Mauer, 2004: Jason Kubel, Justin Morneau, 2005: Travis Bowyer, Francisco Liriano, 2006: Trent Oeltjen, 2007: Matt Garza, Matt Tolbert, 2008: Luke Hughes, Denard Span, 2009: Rene Tosoni, 2010: Liam Hendriks, Ben Revere, Anthony Slama, 2011: Kyle Gibson, Liam Hendriks, 2012: Oswaldo Arcia, 2013: Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, 2014: Jose Berrios, Trevor May, Alex Meyer, Kennys Vargas (at Target Field) 2015: Jose Berrios, Max Kepler, 2016: JT Chargois, 2017: Nick Gordon, 2018: Alex Kirilloff, Lewis Thorpe, 2019: Jordan Balazovic, Royce Lewis, 2020: No Futures Game 2021: Josh Winder 2022: Spencer Steer, Matt Wallner View full article