Seth Stohs

The Twins got a great start, some strong defense, and plenty of offense on Sunday afternoon, and they were able to even the four-game series with the Kansas City Royals with a 7-3 win. Box Score SP: Sonny Gray: 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K (80 pitches, 52 strikes (65.0%)) Home Runs: Gio Urshela (4), Nick Gordon (1), Trevor Larnach (3) Top 3 WPA: Gio Urshela (.238), Sonny Gray (.222), Byron Buxton (.072) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Pregame Notes Royce Lewis is back. The Twins have recalled their top prospect from St. Paul. In the past two weeks with the Saints, Lewis has played shortstop, third base, left field, and center field. On Sunday, he is the Twins starting center fielder. On Saturday night, Max Kepler left the game with a leg injury. At the time, an IL stint was considered possible. However, on Sunday morning, Kepler felt better than anticipated and will not go on the IL, at least not now. Instead, the Twins optioned Jose Miranda to St. Paul. 150 Grunts of Gray, and Greinke 38-year-old Zack Greinke is in his 19th in the big-leagues. He was the Royals’ first-round pick, sixth overall, in the 2002 draft. He spent the first seven seasons of his big-league career with Kansas City during which time he made his first All-Star appearance and won his lone Cy Young Award. After the 2010 season, he was traded to the Brewers, and since then he has also spent time with the Angels, the Dodgers, the Diamondbacks, and the Astros. This past offseason, he returned as a free agent to the Royals. Overall, he is 219-135 with a 3.43 ERA in his career. He is a six-time All Star. Coming into Sunday, he had pitched in 26 games and made 22 starts against the Twins in his career. He was 5-10 with a 4.53 ERA. He had made seven starts at Target Field and is 1-4 with a 5.14 ERA. This marked his 498th career start which is 48th all-time. Next up is former Twins knuckleballer, Joe Niekro, at 500 starts. On the hill for the Twins was Sonny Gray. While he is a grizzled veteran compared to most of the Twins starters, he’s a half-dozen years younger than Greinke. While his career is not as celebrated or award-filled as Greinke, Gray has been quite good throughout his career, with Oakland and Cincinnati (not so much that year in the Bronx). While Gray throws harder than Greinke, he relies more on control and command of more than handful of pitches. The other huge similarity between Gray and Greinke? All the Grunting!! On this day, Sonny Gray led the Twins to a win with a very strong performance through six innings. He did leave the game with a sore right pectoral muscle, so hopefully, that is minor. Royce Lewis - Center of Attention Earlier this month, Royce Lewis made his MLB debut at Target Field. He was playing shortstop, replacing Carlos Correa. The first batter of the game found him, hitting a ground ball in his direction. Lewis flawlessly made the play. On Sunday, in his return to the big leagues, Lewis was in center field. The Royals' first two batters flew out to Lewis, and he made it look easy. Then in the second inning, well, just watch. He remained in the game for the rest of that half inning but left the dugout with trainer Michael Salazar to get checked out. As you can see, he immediately winced in pain and grabbed his right knee. He also hit his left shoulder hard against the wall. During the game, the Twins announced a preliminary 'right knee soreness' diagnosis, but he was set to undergo more imaging. Nick Gordon replaced him the next inning. Power Play In the third inning, the Twins were finally able to get to Greinke. Gio Urshela launched a long, three-run homer to left to give the Twins a 3-0 lead. Urshela has been hitting quite well of late. In his last nine games, he is 12-for-32 (.375) with a double, a homer and eight RBI. In his first at-bat after replacing Lewis, Nick Gordon led off the bottom of the fourth inning with a long, 390-foot homer over the tall wall in right center field. In his next at-bat, he hit one off the wall in right. Gordon has become a bit of a Royals killer... This season, he is 10-for-21 (.476) with two doubles, two triples, and a homer against Kansas City. Trevor Larnach followed with an opposite-field blast. It was the first time this season the Twins have gone back-to-back. Larnach went 3-for-4. He later added and RBI double and ended just a triple shy of a cycle, the first time he's done that in his young career. This marks the first time he's homered in back-to-back games in his career. He has reached base in nine of his past 12 plate appearances. Other Notes Caleb Thielbar struck out two batters to reach the 200 career strikeout mark. Just as momentous, he was called for the first balk of his career. Luis Arraez went 2-for-4 and now has a nine-game hitting streak. He has 15 multi-hit games this season, seven of which have come in his last nine games. In his last five starts against the Royals, Sonny Gray is 5-0 with a 1.41 ERA. What’s Next? The Twins will head to Detroit for a five-game series against the Tigers. Monday: Dylan Bundy (3-2, 4.54) vs RHP Beau Brieske (0-4, 5.04) Tuesday (Game 1): LHP Devin Smeltzer (1-0, 1.04) vs RHP Rony Garcia (0-0, 3.00) Tuesday (Game 2): RHP Cole Sands (0-0, 6.75) vs TBD Wednesday: RHP Bailey Ober (1-1, 3.25) vs LHP Tarik Skubal (3-2, 2.44) Thursday: TBD vs RHP Alex Faedo (1-2, 3.00) Postgame Interview Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet WED THU FRI SUN SUN TOT Thielbar 30 0 1 0 22 53 Duffey 0 31 0 20 0 51 Jax 23 0 0 0 20 43 Pagán 21 0 3 0 12 36 Moran 0 0 0 34 0 34 Megill 8 0 26 0 0 34 Minaya 0 0 0 31 0 31 Smith 3 0 18 0 0 21 Duran 0 0 19 0 0 19 View full article

According to all the media at Target Field today, Royce Lewis is back in the clubhouse... I assume a roster move is coming. Could be Kepler. Could be something else.

I'm a huge fan of Nick Gordon. Always have enjoyed talking about baseball and other things with him. He is a big leaguer. He is a very nice utility player, capable of at least solid defense in 5-6 spots. There is value in that, even if his OPS+ never reaches 100. That said, the Twins are in a little different position. They have a lot of depth at all those positions that Nick plays. SS: Correa, Lewis 2B: Polanco, Arraez 3B: Urshela, Miranda, Lewis LF: Larnach, Garlick, Celestino, Kirilloff CF: Buxton, Celestino And it's that depth that may make Gordon expandable IF they can find nearly every day playing time for the above players. Gordon can be a twice-per-week utility guy. The others you'd want playing nearly daily.

ICYMI: Yennier Cano was optioned to St. Paul after last night's game. Another pitcher will be called up this morning.

First, Duffey... Second,

"Decent"... maybe...

St. Paul split a doubleheader. Wallner walloped one for Wichita, but was it enough for a Wind Surge Win? Game 2 of the Kernels-Timber Rattlers series in Cedar Rapids evened the series. Keoni Cavaco muscled Ft. Myers to a big win. See what happened throughout the Twins minor league system on Wednesday. Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS RHP Joe Ryan was placed on the Covid-IL on Wednesday. LHP Devin Smeltzer was recalled from St. Paul to take his spot. RHP Chris Vallimont was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. The Twins had placed him on waivers over the weekend. SAINTS SENTINEL Game 1 - St. Paul 10, Indianapolis 16 Box Score Game 2 - St. Paul 5, Indianapolis 3 Box Score Fair to say that Game 1 did not go as the Saints would have wanted. Jordan Balazovic started and had his struggles again. That said, he gave up just one run over the first three innings. Then came a forgettable fourth frame. Balazovic was charged with four more runs. Tyler Viza came on in relief and allowed two inherited runners to score and four of his own and only got one out. Daniel Gossett got out of that inning, but then he gave up seven runs on seven hits over the final three innings as well. Jermaine Palacios led the Game 1 offense. He went 2-for-4 with his sixth double and four RBI. Cole Sturgeon drove in three runs as well as the Saints tried to come back but were just too far behind. Spencer Steer went 1-for-2 with a walk and was hit by a pitch. Game 2 was a lot cleaner, and through four-and-a-half innings, it was a 1-1 ballgame. Royce Lewis’s fifth Saints homer gave the Saints a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth frame. Indianapolis took a 3-2 lead in the top of the sixth inning. In the bottom of the sixth, Jermaine Palacios and David Banuelos each homered and the Sanits had a 5-3 lead that they held onto. Lewis led the offense, going 3-for-4 with the home run. Mark Contreras went 2-for-3. Chi Chi Gonzalez made the start. He gave up three runs (2 earned) on six hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out seven batters. Wladimir Pinto came on and walked two batters and giving up the tying run before getting an out. Jharel Cotton got the final four outs for the Saints. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 3, Corpus Christi 4 Box Score The Wind Surge made the incredibly long, 16-hour bus ride to Corpus Christi, but when the game started, they were ready to go. Matt Wallner crushed a three-run homer in the first inning to start things out well. Unfortunately, that was about it for the Surge offense. Simeon Woods Richardson started the game and threw two zeroes on the board before giving up four runs in the third inning. He gave up four runs on six hits and four walks in four innings. He struck out six batters. Ben Gross walked two over 1 1/3 scoreless relief innings. Osiris German got the next five batters out. Alex Scherff struck out two in the final innings. Wind Surge manager Ramon Borrego was ejected for the first time in a game since he’s been with Wichita. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Wisconsin 5 Box Score The Kernels took Game 1 of this series on Tuesday night. On Wednesday afternoon, the Timber Rattlers evened the series and returned to just one game back of the Kernels in the divsion. Cade Povich started and worked the first five innings. He gave up a single run in the fifth inning on a Carlos Rodriguez homer. He came back out for the sixth inning but with two runners on, he was replaced by Cody Laweryson who gave up doubles to Wes Clarke and Carlos Rodriguez and Wisconsin had a 5-0 lead. Andrew Cabezas, Ryan Shreve, and Orlando Rodriguez each pitched a scoreless inning. Seth Gray hit a solo home run in the ninth inning to avoid the shutout, but overall, Justin Jarvis and the Timber Rattler pitching staff were in control of this game. The Kernels had just four hits total. In his first at-bat with the Kernels, Patrick Winkel hit a double. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 10, Bradenton 2 Box Score Things have not gone smoothly for Keoni Cavaco early in his career, but on Wednesday, he had a terrific game for the Mussels. In the first inning, he hit a two-run double. Then in the fifth inning, he launched a grand slam. Overall, he went 3-for-4 with his eighth double, first home run and six RBI. Noah Miller went 2-for-3 with a walk and his 11th stolen base. He scored three runs. Emmanuel Rodriguez went 1-for-3 with a walk and a two-run homer, his sixth of the season, in the third inning. By the way, thank you to the Bradenton Marauders who are the only team in the Florida Sate League on milb dot tv! Mike Paredes made the start. He gave up two runs on three hits over five innings. He struck out seven batters without a walk. Samuel Perez came on and walked two but struck out three batters over the final two innings before lightning ended the game early. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Mike Paredes (Ft. Myers) - 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 7 K Hitter of the Day – Keoni Cavaco (Ft. Myers) - 3-4, 2B, HR/GS, 6 RBI, 1 R. PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #1 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 1-for-4, R (Game 1, played SS) #1 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 4-for-4, HR (5), R, RBI. (Game 2, DHd) #2 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 0-for-4 (played SS) #4 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - 0-for-0 #5 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 3.1 IP, 3 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 3 K (73 pitches, 44 strikes) #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 6 K (87 pitches, 52 strikes) #8 - Jhoan Duran (Minnesota) - Did Not Pitch #10 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-3, BB, HR(6), 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 K #11 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 2-3, BB, 3 R, SB (11) #16 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul ) - 1-for-2, BB HBP, 2 R (Game 1, played 2B) #16 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul ) - 1-for-3 (Game 2, played 3B) #17 - Cade Povich (Cedar Rapids) - 5 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 9 K (89 pitches, 55 strikes) #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, K #19 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - IL THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Indianapolis @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CST) - RHP Mario Sanchez (2-1, 4.63 ERA) Wichita @ Corpus Christi (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Blayne Enlow (0-0, 4.70 ERA) Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (2-2, 2.56 ERA) Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games! View full article

Steer was Miranda last year, just overshadowed by Miranda. Last year was his breakout year. 100 games at AA... now with 100 games at AAA, they'll have him ready to go next spring or early next season. If Correa and Urshela are gone, Lewis can be at short, Miranda at third and Steer being available at all four infield positions.

There have been some very strong performances throughout the Twins organization this week and all season. The Twins have been playing well. The Saints have struggled of late, but the three lower affiliates are all making a run for the playoffs and a first-half spot. Find out which players are playing well, and consider how the affiliates are playing so well. It has been a struggle for the Saints on the road these past two weeks. They return home this week, hoping to turn things back around. Tickets still available! The other Twins affiliates are in a good place to make a first-half playoff run. Wichita is just 1/2 game out of first place. Cedar Rapids is a game ahead of Wisconsin, and those two teams will be playing in Iowa this week. Tickets still available! The Mighty Mussels have the biggest lead, with a four-game cushion coming into play this week. If you missed it, read Nick's Twins Week in Review after you've read about the minor league week. TRANSACTIONS With no Monday Minor League Report, here are the transactions from later on Sunday and on Monday. Infielder Spencer Steer was promoted from Wichita to St. Paul. Infielder Kevin Merrell was sent back down to Wichita. RHP Matt Mullenbach was added back to the Ft. Myers roster from the Florida Complex. RESULTS Previous Week in Review (5/10-5/16): Tuesday: Alex Isola Goes Off Wednesday: Steer Walks It Off for Wichita, Four Hits for Kirilloff Thursday: Kernels Krush, Larnach and Lewis Launch Friday: Fort Myers Carries the Day Saturday: Cave, Saints Slam Storm Chasers Sunday: Mussels Win in 13 Innings, Wind Surge Win in Walkoff MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Despite Great First Impression, Royce Lewis Optioned to St. Paul After Tuesday’s Game Devin Smeltzer Deserves a Longer Look Three Questions With… Kernels RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (VIDEO) Three Questions With… former Kernels RHP (Current Wisconsin coach) Patrick McGuff (VIDEO) WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Week: 1-5, at Omaha Season: 16-24 overall, 9th place out of ten teams in the International League West. They are 12.5 games behind Nashville. The Saints are likely thrilled to get back to the friendly confines of CHS Field. They have been on the road the past two weeks and went 1-11. In Omaha, they ended their losing streak on Saturday with a 4-2 win, but that was it. They were outscored 25-45 by the Storm Chasers. Kevin Merrell was signed as a minor-league veteran after playing in the Royals organization since 2019. He played in 13 games with Omaha in 2021. He played all six games this week and went 7-for-17 and hit .412/.444/.765 (1.209) with two homers and four RBI. (and for his efforts, Merrell was sent down to Wichita on Monday) No one wanted to see Royce Lewis sent back to St. Paul, but he was, and he handled it well. He went 6-for-16, hitting .375/.444/.625 (1.069) with a double and a home run. He also stole bases. For those curious, he played two games at shortstop and one game at both third base and left field. Alex Kirilloff was the Twins' choice for hitter of the week. In six games, he went 9-for-25 and hit .360/.429/.520 (.949) with a double, a homer and five RBI. He also walked three times. Dereck Rodriguez made one start. In five innings, he gave up one run on three hits. He walked three and struck out nine batters. Chi Chi Gonzalez also went five innings in his start. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on five hits. He walked two and struck out six batters. It wasn’t a great week for all of the Saints starters. Jake Faria gave up four runs on four hits and three walks in three innings. Mario Sanchez gave up five runs (4 earned) on five hits and two walks in three innings. Ronny Henriquez made one start and one relief appearance. In 6 1/3 innings, he gave up nine runs on eight hits and four walks. Jordan Balazovic gave up six runs on six hits and a walk in four innings. What’s Next? The Saints return home for seven games against Indianapolis, starting at 11:07 on Tuesday morning with an Education Day special. The two teams will be playing two games on Wednesday night. Head to www.SaintsBaseball.com for tickets! Pitching Probables (RHP Cole Sands, (Wed DH: RHP Jordan Balazovic/LHP Devin Smeltzer ), RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez, RHP Dereck Rodriguez, RHP Ronny Henriquez, RHP Cole Sands) Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Week: 4-2, hosting Springfield Season: 23-14 overall, 2nd place in the Texas League North Division with Tulsa. They are just 1/2 game behind Tulsa (24-14). It was a tightly contested week of games at Riverfront Stadium last week against Springfield. The Wind Surge outscored the Cardinals 36-35 for the week. Three games were decided by two runs. Three games were decided by just one run. Here are some of the top performances for the Wind Surge this past week: Seven Wind Surge relievers did not allow an earned run last week. Five of them pitched twice. Austin Schulfer continues to make his case that he should be in Triple-A. In three innings, he gave up no runs and no hits. He walked one and struck out four batters. Lefty Bryan Sammons struck out four batters over 2 2/3 scoreless innings. He gave up just two hits and walked none. Matt Canterino had 12 strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings. Chris Williams played in five games. He went 9-for-17 and hit .529/.652/.588 (1.240) with a double. He also walked six times. In five games, Spencer Steer went 6-for-17. He hit .353/.389/.824 (1.213) with two doubles and two home runs. Matt Wallner went 7-for-22 last week. He hit .318/.444/.500 (.944) with a double, a homer, and five RBI. He also walked five times, and he played a little defense too. Alex Isola went 6-for-20 in five games. He hit .300/.364/.550 (.944) with two doubles and a home run. Austin Martin went 6-for-18 in five games and hit .333/.500/.333 (.833) with three walks. Also, minor league uniforms can be fun, or something... What’s Next? The Wind Surge will be traveling down to Texas to take on Corpus Christi. . Pitching Probables (RHP Louie Varland, RHP Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP Blayne Enlow, RHP Matt Canterino, RHP Casey Legumina, RHP Louie Varland) High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Week: 2-4, hosting Lake County Season: 26-13 overall, 1st place in the Midwest League West Division, 1.0 games ahead of Wisconsin (25-14), who they play in Cedar Rapids this week. In the two games that the Kernels won last week, they outscored Lake County 18-3. However, in the four losses, they were outscored 8-26. Ten Kernels pitchers did not allow an earned run last week, including three starting pitchers. Cade Povich went 5 1/3 innings in his start. He gave up two hits, walked one, and struck out five batters. The Twins named him their pitcher of the week. Sean Mooney went five scoreless innings in his start. He gave up just one hit, walked three, and struck out six batters. On Sunday, Brent Headrick started and threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings. He gave up three hits and walked one batter. He was replaced by David Festa, making his first Kernels appearance. He went the rest of the way. He gave up one run on three hits over 4 2/3 innings. He struck out six batters without issuing a walk. Brad Hanner has made big strides in 2022. The right-hander worked three innings over two games. He gave up no runs, just one hit, walked none, and struck out five batters. John Stankiewicz had his first rough start of the year. He gave up six runs on seven hits, two walks, and a hit batter in 3 2/3 innings. After a slow start, Will Holland has been much improved in the season’s second month. In five games, he went 5-for-16 and hit .313/.421/.688 (1.109) with a double, triple, home run, and four RBI. He walked three times and had two stolen bases. In five games, Willie Joe Garry, Jr., went 4-for-15 and hit .267/.353/.733 (1.086) with two triples and a home run. Christian Encarnacion-Strand had two doubles and two home runs. On the other side, Anthony Prato has been terrific atop the order for the Kernels, but last week, he went 2-for-20 (.100). Wander Javier went 2-for-18 (.111). What’s Next? The Kernels will be home for the second straight week. They will be hosting the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in a series of the top two teams in the division. The Rattlers have a development coach in former Kernels pitcher Patrick McGuff. In a Three Questions With… interview on Brewer Fanatic, I asked McGuff about his time with the Twins, his transition from player to coach, and about the very talented Wisconsin team that is coming to Memorial Stadium this week. Click here to watch. Pitching Probables (Aaron Rozek, LHP Cade Povich, RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long, RHP John Stankiewicz, LHP Brent Headrick, RHP Sean Mooney) Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Week: 5-3, hosting Clearwater Season: 25-13 overall, 1st place in the Florida State League West, 4.0 games ahead of Clearwater (21-17). The week began by completing a suspended game on Tuesday. They played eight games and had doubleheaders on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Ignoring the continuation of the suspended game, the Mighty Mussels outscored the Threshers 29-26. Lefty Steve Hajjar went five shutout innings in his start. He gave up one hit, walked one, and struck out six batters. Mike Paredes made another start and went four scoreless innings. He gave up one hit, walked none, and struck out three batters. Malik Barrington made his first start and went three innings. Then he came back a couple of days later and pitched up a save in the 13-inning game. In four innings, he gave up only an unearned run and two hits. He struck out three batters. Since returning from the Injured List, Niklas Rimmel pitched twice. He worked four relief innings over two games. He gave up an unearned run on two hits and two walks. He struck out five. Matthew Swain’s incredible season continued. In four innings over two games, he gave up one hit, walked two (both intentional), and struck out four. Lefty John Wilson worked 4 1/3 scoreless innings over two games. He gave up three hits and hit a batter. Regi Grace gave up one earned run over 3 2/3 innings. He walked one and struck out eight batters. In five games, Noah Cardenas played in five games. He went 6-for-17 and hit .353/.476/.706 (1.182) with three doubles and a home run. He walked four times as well. Dylan Neuse played in six games. He went 6-for-16 and hit .375/.474/.625 (1.099) with a double and a home run. Mikey Perez played in seven games and went 6-for-24. He hit .250/.321/.583 (.904) with two doubles, two homers and seven RBI. Emmanuel Rodriguez played in six games. He went 0-for-12, but he walked ten times to post a .478 on-base percentage. What’s Next? The Mighty Mussels will travel to Bradenton (19-20) for a “normal” six-game series this week. Pitching Probables (RHP Pierson Ohl, RHP Mike Paredes, LHP Steve Hajjar, RHP Marco Raya, TB D, RHP Travis Adams) PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker was updated on May 1 and will be updated on the first of each month throughout the season. #1 - Royce Lewis (St. Paul) - 4 G, 6-for-16 (.375), 1-2B, 1-HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K (Season: 28 G, .320/.432/.573 (1.005), 12-2B, 1-3B, 4-HR, 24 R, 12 RBI, 18 BB, 25 K) #1 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 1 G, 2-for-4 (.500), 1-2B, 1-HR, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (Season: 11 G, .308/.325/.564 (.889), 4-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K) #2 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 5 G, 6-for-18 (.333), 0-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 2 K (Season: 35 G, .257/.386/.338 (.724), 6-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 26 R, 12 RBI, 20 BB, 22 K, 18 SB, 2 CS) #3 - Joe Ryan (Minnesota) - 1 GS, 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 6 K (Season: 8 GS, 43.1 IP, 11 R, 29 H, 14 BB, 42 K, 5-2, 2.28 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 8.7 K/9) #4 - Jose Miranda (St. Paul) - In MLB (Season: 21 G, .256/.295/.442 (.737), 10-2B, 2-HR, 10 R, 12 RBI, 5 BB, 14 K) #4 - Jose Miranda (Minnesota) - Week: 4 G, 2-for-12 (.167), 1-2B, 0-HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 4 K (Season: 16 G, .117/.159/.217 (.375), 3-2B, 1-HR, 3 R, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 13 K) #5 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1 GS, 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 4 K (Season: 3 GS, 9.2 IP, 13 R, 9 ER, 19 H, 5 BB, 9 K, 0-1, 8.38 ERA, 2.48 WHIP, 4.7 BB/9, 8.4 K/9) #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (Wichita) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 4 K (Season: 7 GS, 37.2 IP, 11 R, 10 ER, 23 H, 19 BB, 36 K, 2-1, 2.39 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 2.4 BB/9, 8.6 K/9) #7 - Josh Winder (Minnesota) - 1 G, 3.2 IP, 5 ER, 9 H, 2 BB, 1 K (Season: 7 G, 3 GS, 29.1 IP, 14 R, 12 ER, 27 H, 9 BB, 23 K, 2-2, 3.68 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9, 7.1 K/9) #8 - Jhoan Duran (Minnesota) - 3 G, 3.2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 6 K (Season: 15 G, 20.1 IP, 6 R, 12 H, 3 BB, 31 K, 0-1, 3 Saves, 2.66 ERA, 0.74 WHIP, 1.3 BB/9, 13.7 K/9) #9 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - 2 G, 1 GS, 7.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 12 K (Season: 9 G, 8 GS, 28.1 IP, 7 R, 14 H, 14 BB, 40 K, 0-1, 2.22 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 4.4 BB/9, 12.7 K/9) #10 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Ft. Myers) - 6 G, 0-for-12 (.00), 0-2B, 0-3B, 0-HR, 0 RBI, 10 BB, 6 K (Season: 35 G, .235/.466/.441 (.907), 5-2B, 2-3B, 10-HR, 26 R, 14 RBI, 41 BB, 41 K) #11 - Noah Miller (Ft. Myers) - 6 G, 5-for-25 (.200), 1-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 2 BB, 7 K (Season: 34 G, .279/.410/.381 (.791), 4-2B, 2-3B, 2 HR, 25 R, 8 RBI, 28 BB, 39 K) #12 - Louie Varland (Wichita) - 1 GS, 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 8 K (Season: 7 G, 6 GS, 37.2 IP, 18 R, 15 ER, 30 H, 13 BB, 43 K, 4-1, 3.58 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 3.1 BB/9, 10.3K/9) #13 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - Injured List (Season: 5 G, 4 GS, 15.2 IP, 15 R, 22 H, 5 BB, 18 K, 0-4, 8.62 ERA, 1.72 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 10.3 K/9) #13 - Cole Sands (Minnesota) - (Season: 2 G, 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 K, 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 0.0 BB/9, 13.5 K/9) #14 - Ronny Henriquez (St. Paul) - 2 G, 1 GS, 6.1 IP, 9 ER, 8 H, 4 BB, 4 K (Season: 6 G, 4 GS, 20.0 IP, 16 R, 20 H, 11 BB, 17 K, 0-1, 7.20 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 5.0 BB/9, 7.7 K/9) #15 - Marco Raya (Ft. Myers) - 1 GS, 5.0 IP, 3 R, 3 BB, 3 K, (Season: 6 G, 5 GS, 24.0 IP, 9 R, 7 ER, 19 H, 8 BB, 24 K, 2-1, 2.63 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9, 9.0 K/9) #16 - Spencer Steer (Wichita) - 5 G, 6-for-17 (.353), 2-2B, 2-HR, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K (Season: 35 G, .307/.385/.558 (.976), 13-2B, 1-3B, 8-HR, 27 R, 30 RBI, 14 BB, 23 K) #17 - Cade Povich (Cedar Rapids) - 1 GS, 5.1 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 5 K (Season: 6 GS, 27.2 IP, 14 R, 10 ER, 24 H, 7 BB, 37 K, 3-2, 3.25 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9, 12.0 K/9) #18 - Christian Encarnacion-Strand (Cedar Rapids) - 6 G, 5-for-22 (.227), 2-2B, 0-3B, 2-HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K (Season: 37 G, .320/.384/.544 (.928), 8-2B, 2-3B, 7-HR, 23 R, 34 RBI, 15 BB, 42 K) #19 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1 G, 1-for-2 (.500), 0-2B, 0-HR, 1 BB, 1 K (Season: 23 G, .274/.439/.397 (.836), 4-2B, 1-3B, 1-HR, 14 R, 10 RBI, 23 BB, 21 K) #20 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 1 GS, 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 6 K (Season: 2 GS, 7.2 IP, 5 R, 4 ER, 8 H, 0 BB, 12 K, 0-0, 4.70 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 0.00 BB/9, 14.1 K/9) PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Hitter of the Week: Infielder Spencer Steer, Wichita Wind Surge Steer just hasn’t found himself touted on prospect lists over his still-young career, but he clearly is highly regarded within the Twins organization. Now after exactly 100 games at Double-A Wichita, he is heading to St. Paul and will make his Triple-A debut this week at CHS Field. In five games last week, Steer went 6-for-17 and hit .353/.389/.824 (1.213) with two doubles, two homers, and five RBI. He missed one game after fouling a ball off of his lower leg. On Wednesday, the Surge were down by one in the 11th inning. Two runners were on base. Steer did this... In 35 games with the Wind Surge this year, he has hit .307/.385/.591(.976) with 13 doubles, eight homers, and 30 RBI. Steer was the Twins' third-round pick in 2019 out of the University of Oregon where he was a three-year starter. He spent a little time in Elizabethton before joining the Kernels late that season. After the lost 2020 season, he split 2021 between now-High-A Kernels and Wichita. Combined, he hit .254/.348/.484 (.833) with 18 doubles, three triples, and 24 home runs. Defensively, Steer is solid all around the infield. He’s mostly played third base the last couple of seasons. This year, he has started at third base 16 times, shortstop nine times, and second base six times. With the Twins wanting Royce Lewis to play all over, Steer may do the same thing, giving the Saints plenty of defensive flexibility, and also giving them another prospect to be excited about. Pitcher of the Week: LHP Cade Povich, Cedar Rapids Kernels Povich is certainly one of the top young Twins pitching prospects. The hard-throwing lefty had a strong start last week. He tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings. He gave up just two hits, walked one, and struck out five batters. Reports showed that he was hitting 97 consistently with his fastball and his other pitches are coming along very well too. Povich was the Twins' third-round pick in 2021 out of the University of Nebraska where he had gone 6-1 with a 3.11 ERA over 15 starts. After signing, he pitched in one game in the FCL and three games with the Mighty Mussels. Combined, he worked ten innings. He gave up one earned run on seven hits. He walked two and struck out 19 batters. Reports of his increased velocity were frequent coming out of Instructional League after the season. The Twins have pushed Povich, challenging him by having him jump up to Cedar Rapids to start this season. In total, he has made six starts so far. He is 3-2 with a 3.25 ERA. In 27 2/3 innings, he has seven walks and 37 strikeouts. ---------------------------------------------------- It was an exciting week throughout the Twins organization, from the big leagues to the eight-game series for the Low-A Mighty Mussels. The coming week will present more storylines, the most exciting at this point could take place in Cedar Rapids where there’ll be a battle for positioning atop the Midwest League West Division. Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the players and the teams in the COMMENTS below. View full article

Seth chats with Cedar Rapids Kernels starting pitcher Sawyer Gipson-Long about his 2022 season, pitching for a winning team with several strong starters, goals for the season and so much more... 23 Questions, maybe? View full video

I'm sure they'd consider Rodriguez in that role... No Twins reliever has pitched in more than 17 out of 40 games. Baldelli and Johnson are doing a great job of managing the bullpen. Hanner is intriguing. Something has clicked with him. He'd struggled with control in the past, but the hard thrower has worked that out this year, it appears.

Bechtold is working hard behind the plate, and he's a good athlete with a strong arm. He isn't 100% catching. Still playing 1B and a little 3B too. He's got work to do, but he's improving his odds of getting to the big leagues by at least having catching as something he is capable of. Holland is just such a great athlete with great speed. But, he does have some power. Another Georgia high school player, si am very much intrigued by him.

In 16 games in Cedar Rapids in May, he's hitting .217/314/.367 (.681) with 4 doubles, a triple and a home run. That is 8th among Kernels batters... He had a great April and a Meh May (so far)... So I think he can prove that he can readjust to a league that has seemingly adjusted to him.

No... and when we update the Top prospect rankings on June 1st, a few more will have lost their prospect status.

He had surgery on June 9th last year. So, it was just shy of 11 months. He had the new version of Tommy John, so that's a 9-12 month recovery whereas the previous Tommy John was 12-18 month recovery. All of the Twins minor leaguers that I've talked to that have had it the past year have had the new version.

He fouled a ball off of his ankle/foot... got really sore before his next AB.

Seth was a guest on Hot Mic with Dom Izzo on WDAY Extra TV (Fargo) on Friday, May 20th. The two discussed the Royce Lewis situation, Byron Buxton, Chris Paddack, some Twins prospects and much more. View full video

I would hope not... Also nice to have a top four in the lineup of Buxton, Arraez, Correa and Polanco, and to get a strong start.

In a move that will likely surprise many when you wake up on Wednesday morning, the Twins announced after last night's loss that Carlos Correa will be activated on Wednesday. To make room, Royce Lewis will be optioned to St. Paul. So many thoughts role through my mind as I think about the news that the Twins are optioning shortstop Royce Lewis to Triple-A St. Paul and will activate Carlos Correa before the Wednesday afternoon's game. So I thought I'd just start jotting them down. *** Click here to listen to @Seth Stohs and @Dave Overlund discuss the Lewis option decision on WJON Radio in St. Cloud. What more could Lewis have done? Nothing. He did everything the Twins could have hoped during that 11-game stretch, and more. Put another way, he likely made this decision incredibly difficult. After going 2-for-4 with a double and a home run on Tuesday night, he is hitting .308/.325/.564 (.889) with four doubles and two home runs. In 11 games. As impressive as he was at the plate, he was equally impressive at shortstop. Yes, he had a couple of errors, but he also made some plays that were tough and showed that he absolutely can play the position. His arm is plenty strong. He's got good range. His instincts at the position have come a long way. Stick to the Plan We speak so often of not being swayed too much by a small sample. While 11 games is a nice little stretch, it is still less than 40 plate appearances. When Carlos Correa was injured, the plan was for Royce Lewis to come up and play shortstop until Correa returned, whether that was two months (as initially feared) or two weeks (as became the reality). When Correa returned, Lewis would be returned to St. Paul and continue to get everyday playing time and at-bats and reps at shortstop and such. Royce Lewis looked the part of Big Leaguer Despite spending the Covid-shortened 2020 season at the alternate site and missing all of the 2021 season after surgery for a torn ACL, Lewis got off to a terrific start in St. Paul. And, as mentioned above, Lewis was immensely impressive during his time with the Twins. Forget about the numbers for a minute (and that's not easy to do), Lewis looked like a future star. He looked comfortable at the plate. He looked confident. He looked relaxed. He was clearly having the time of his life as evidenced by frequent big smiles and conversations on the field with teammates and opponents. He showed his great speed. How showed his power potential. He showed his willingness to use the whole field. He looked comfortable at shortstop. He never looked overwhelmed. And while he had just one walk in his time with the Twins, he seemed to control his plate appearances quite well. If you're a chemistry person, seeing how well he fit into the dugout was certainly encouraging. Smiling with teammates. Congratulating teammates. The hugs we saw him get from Ryan Jeffers, Byron Buxton, and others. Sitting on the bench, observing the game, often sitting between Correa and Buxton. Lewis also shows leadership skills. Lewis is not one to take over a locker room, and yet, you'd be hard-pressed to find any former teammates who didn't love him. Again, even with him being the new guy on the roster, he showed that he can lead on the field. The Role Moving Forward Clearly, the plan would still be for Lewis to be the team's primary shortstop of the future (much depending on what Correa decides in the offseason. However, because Lewis is a special talent and just made a great first impression, the team will want him in the big leagues more. To do so, it appears that he is going to play around the diamond for St. Paul. Remember, Lewis played shortstop only during his senior season of high school. He played third base his first three years of high school ball because J Serra had Chase Stumpf as their shortstop. But that's been six or seven years since he's had any regular time there. He has played some second base in the past, on Team USA rosters, and in the 2019 Arizona Fall League. During his MVP AFL stint, he also played a bunch of centerfield, and he made highlight-reel plays there. Can he play left field or right field? Presumably yes, but he hasn't spent a lot of time in those spots. Could he play first base? Of course. So, the question becomes, should he get a little bit of time at these other positions in the big leagues, or should it happen in a less stressful minor-league situation? I think a case could be made for either side. I certainly don't disagree with Glen Perkins' thoughts. However, they have made that decision, to have Lewis get a little time at those positions in the minor leagues. My thought is that doesn't need to take real long, maybe two or three weeks. Get him two or three starts at each position that they can envision him playing, and then get him back up to the big-league club. Summary This is going to be made into a huge talker and topic among Twins fans. While I would love to see Lewis remain in the big leagues, I can certainly see the value of letting him play some other positions at Triple-A before bringing him back. I do think that making too much out of an 11-game stretch is never a good idea, and sticking to a plan makes sense. It especially makes sense with a guy who has missed so much time the last couple of years and just wants to and needs to play. The Big Picture The future of Royce Lewis is incredibly bright. The talent is immense. The charisma and intelligence are there. The confidence and the drive to not only succeed but to thrive, is something that Lewis has always possessed. Regardless of this decision and whatever timeline the Twins front office puts on his return, I can't wait. *** Click here to listen to @Seth Stohs and @Dave Overlund discuss the Lewis option decision on WJON Radio in St. Cloud. Feel free to discuss, but please be civil with each other. View full article