Steve Lein

Lots of new talent was injected via the draft this (the last 9 of their 11 top 10 round picks), but we won't know more on them until next season yet, as the Twins typically don't put them on the mound in their draft season.

Hey, like half of them are 22 or younger! 😅 Always a mix in these. You get the older gentleman who've been around the block and put up great numbers, the young breakouts, and the top studs. Good set here I have to say!

All week, we have been handing out our Twins Daily Minor League Awards. This morning, take a look at our 2026 Twins Daily Minor-League All-Star selections. In the comments, let us know how we did. How would your ballot look? CATCHER: Khadim Diaw (23 years old), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge 107 games, .306/.417/.452 (.868 OPS), 26 2B, 2 3B, 9 HR, 47 RBI, 56 BB, 71 K, 14 SB Diaw was a unanimous selection among Twins Daily voters at the catcher position, and you don’t have to look much farther than his triple-slash-line to understand why. He hit for average, got on-base, and provided plenty of extra-base-hit power. The only caveat here from the catcher position is he split his time basically 50/50 between catcher and DH/CF, but his 50 games behind the dish also ranked fifth in the system. FIRST BASE: Aaron Sabato (27), St. Paul Saints 113 games, .273/.349/.528 (.877 OPS), 29 2B, 1 3B, 25 HR, 75 RBI, 41 BB, 119 K, 5 SB Another unanimous selection, as at a position of power, Sabato paced the entire Twins minor league system in home runs, tying only with Matt Wallner for the St. Paul Saints all-time, single-season record. He was rewarded with his MLB callup earlier this week after the Saints season concluded. SECOND BASE: Cody Morissette (26), Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints 74 games, .259/.342/.513 (.856 OPS), 16 2B, 17 HR, 52 RBI, 32 BB, 68 K, 8 SB Released from the Miami Marlins system in early June, Morissette joined the Twins as a free agent about a week later and turned into a steady power presence in the Saints lineup. His .513 slugging percentage rivaled the system's home run kings, Sabato and Wallner. THIRD BASE: Brandon Winokur (21), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge 127 games, .252/.337/.427 (.764 OPS), 16 2B, 4 3B, 21 HR, 81 RBI, 58 BB, 162 K, 30 SB Winokur once again displayed the plethora of tools in his big frame by clubbing 20+ homers and stealing 20+ bases for a 20/20 season. He also led the system in RBI’s and ranked third in total bases. SHORSTOP: Marek Houston (22), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge 116 games, .312/.392/.455 (.847 OPS), 28 2B, 2 3B, 12 HR, 60 RBI, 61 BB, 108 K, 50 SB Houston came out of the gates swinging a hot bat for the Kernels and earned a mid-season promotion to Wichita where he barely slowed down. Among hitters who played at least 70 games, his .312 batting average on the season ranked fourth in the system, while his 28 doubles ranked third among all hitters. His 50 stolen bases should not go unnoticed as well, as it helped him lead the system in runs scored. He did all this while being one of the top defensive players in the minors! LEFT FIELD: Caden Kendle (24), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge (rehab w/FCL) 82 games, .330/.407/.572 (.979 OPS), 24 2B, 16 HR, 70 RBI, 34 BB, 69 K, 19 SB If not for missing a month-plus in the middle of the season, Kendle may have led the system in several counting categories. His breakout campaign will have to settle for the percentage ones, as he led in batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS. His enflamed bat earned a midseason promotion from Cedar Rapids to Wichita, where it then evolved into a Super Saiyan piece of lumber, as he hit .371/.430/.646 (1.076) in 45 games at Double-A. CENTER FIELD: Walker Jenkins (21), St. Paul Saints (rehab w/Fort Myers/Cedar Rapids) 73 games, .323/.417/.559 (.976 OPS), 18 2B, 3 3B, 14 HR, 31 RBI, 43 BB, 50 K, 17 SB Jenkins ended his summer with a flourish, hitting .411/.488/.795 (1.283 OPS) with 8 home runs in 18 August games for the Saints to earn his promotion to the big leagues. He raised his overall OPS over .100 points in that timeframe to put an emphatic stamp on his Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year season. RIGHT FIELD: Yasser Mercedes (21), Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels 109 games, .249/.343/.453 (.797 OPS), 27 2B, 3 3B, 18 HR, 72 RBI, 56 BB, 127 K, 52 SB Mercedes began the season by repeating the Florida State League but quickly lit the league on fire with a 1.081 OPS and six home runs in 21 games before being promoted to the Midwest League. While his numbers dipped considerably in High-A, they still included extra base power (23 2B, 12 HR) and a bunch of speed (41 stolen bases in 47 tries) as a table setter for the Kernels. DESIGNATED HITTER: Luis Fragoza (19), FCL Twins/Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels 83 games, .313/.408/.542 (.951 OPS), 23 2B, 14 HR, 53 RBI, 33 BB, 91 K, 24 SB Fragoza made his stateside debut during the 2025 season with the FCL Twins with forgettable numbers, then spent his offseason maturing and developing into a gale force that could not be contained in the state of Florida. After a quick refresher in the FCL to begin the year, he blasted an insane 14 home runs with 51 RBI for the Mighty Mussels in just 59 games to earn a promotion to Cedar Rapids in August. UTILITY: Ben Ross (25), Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints 121 games, .273/.379/.500 (.879 OPS), 30 2B, 3 3B, 20 HR, 71 RBI, 70 BB, 126 K, 20 SB After spending two straight seasons with the Wind Surge, Ross decided he had had enough of the Texas League in 2026, quickly bruising his way to Triple-A behind a 1.324 OPS in 16 games for Wichita. He continued that excellence for the Saints in enough fashion to post a 20/20 season and earn his call to the major leagues on September 1st. STARTING PITCHER: LHP Aaron Rozek (31), Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints 24 starts (34 total appearances), 124 2/3 IP, 4.19 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 104 K, 18.9 K%, 49 BB, 8.9 BB% Rozek continues to be a mainstay in the Twins system and for the St. Paul Saints. He’s spent portions of the last three seasons in St. Paul, and at 30+ years old continues to anchor their staff. Rozek led the system in innings pitched and took on whatever role the team needed, also appearing 10 times in relief. STARTING PITCHER: RHP Preston Johnson (26), Wichita Wind Surge 18 starts (24 total appearances), 88 2/3 IP, 4.26 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 106 K, 29.0 K%, 33 BB, 9.0 BB% Johnson came to the Twins system this year out of the independent leagues after spending three seasons in the Baltimore Orioles system, reaching Triple-A last year. He struck out 10.8/9IP with Wichita and had stretches of dominance. From August 4th through September 9th, he pitched to a 1.91 ERA in eight games and 33 innings, striking out 40 and walking just nine. STARTING PITCHER: RHP Adrian Bohorquez (21), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge (rehab w/FCL Twins) 18 starts (19 total appearances), 59 2/3 IP, 3.02 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 69 K, 27.3 K%, 32 BB, 12.6 BB% Bohorquez had a bit of a rough start to the 2026 season, making just three starts with Cedar Rapids in which he had an ERA of 11.25 before hitting the injured list. When he returned, it was lights out for opposing lineups. Over his final 16 games to close the season with the Kernels and Wind Surge, he carried a 1.74 ERA and .520 OPS against, striking out 56 hitters and allowing just 29 hits in 51 2/3 innings. STARTING PITCHER: RHP Riley Quick (22), Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge 23 starts, 81 2/3 IP, 4.74 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 110 K, 30.6 K%, 48 BB, 13.4 BB% Quick gets the final All-Star nod for starting pitchers as he is Twins Daily’s 2026 MiLB Pitcher of the Year. He began the season with the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, and finished it with Wichita Wind Surge, never missing time after coming back from surgery. RELIEF PITCHER: RHP Paulshawn Pasqualotto (25), Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints 42 appearances, 70 IP, 3.73 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 95 K, 32.9 K%, 26 BB, 9.0 BB% Like Quick above, Pasqualotto made stops at three levels during the 2026 season, with his final six appearances coming for the St. Paul Saints. In 18 innings with Cedar Rapids, he struck out 30. In 41 1/3 with the Wind Surge, he tacked on 48 more. Then with St. Paul added 17 in 10 1/3 IP to close out his year. This all resulted in him leading the system with a 12.2K/9IP rate among pitchers with at least 60 innings on the season. RELIEF PITCHER: RHP Michael Hilker (22), Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels 41 appearances, 63 IP, 2.86 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 73 K, 26.9 K%, 27 BB, 10.0 BB% With the Mighty Mussels to begin the season, Hilker worked himself into a high-leverage and closing role very quickly, finishing the game in 18 of his 34 appearances in Single-A. His sub 3.00 ERA and 11.0K/9IP rate earned him a bump to the Kernels to end the season. He continued that trend there, with four of his seven appearances ending the game. Congrats to all of our 2026 Minor League All Stars, and may 2027 be even better! View full article

Like I said, I did not give Quick a vote, but I did Bohorquez. Was just providing some reasoning. Besides a couple weeks off for a brief respites, Quick did pitch the entire season. Bohorquez missed almost two months. When he got back he was very-very good, that's why he did get a vote from me.

You have a different definition of "ludicrous" than I do, haha. Bohorquez was very-very good for most of the season. But it was just so little of it. Quick also bests him in K%.

I have the impression the Twins have worked Mendez out at 1B a bit, and came to the conclusion it's not really an option. Happy to be wrong, but he should be playing there by now if it is an option, and they simply haven't done it. Love his bat, but the power probably needs to show up more based on where he can play on defense. My expectation is Lackey will start next season in Double-A. If everything goes well or great, there's the opportunity for promotion mid-summer, and then just a phone call away from taking over in the bigs. I'd put the odds on him debuting in 2027 at about 50/50. Outside of Drew Burress, he had the best brief debut of high 1st rounders in this years draft. I'm a believer in Houston after his season. For all the accolades Kaelen Culpepper received last year and in making it to the majors this season, Houston was just as good with the bat at the same stops in 2026 as Culpepper was in 2025. Just with a better average and less HR power driving the OPS. Quick looked the part, even if the results didn't necessarily show it. I chalk this solely up to the fact he's thrown so few innings since reaching college. Improvement next season puts him on the MLB radar very quickly. I also expect Gallagher to contribute, just not sure which role. It's a back-end starter or perhaps another bullpen convert. Think a poor-mans Griffin Jax as long as he keeps developing as far as them working themselves up the MiLB ladder.

Personally, I'm not going vault a guy to this award with only 59 2/3 innings unless there's something ludicrous in the stat line. He got a vote from me, but it was good enough for the honorable mentions and not the top 3. I also did not vote for Riley Quick (shrugs). But his season was extremely promising coming off all his missed time!

It was kind of a constant debate between Zebby and Morris on which should be a starter and which should go to the bullpen... I never understood why most put Zebby in the bullpen. Morris always looked more like the bullpen move to me, and I made that call well before he ever made the majors. (shrugs) Edit: I am also not against Zebby in the bullpen, but he was always the more likely SP option to my eyes between the two.

Those were the days!

Pitching in the AFL has been especially bad the last few seasons. There aren't any top arms that get sent there unless they already missed most of the season. Andrew Painter was there in 2024 after missing both the 2023 and 2024 regular season, and actually was pretty dominant. But that did not extend into the 2025 season, or 2026 for that matter. The highest ranked pitcher this season is Jarlin Susana from the Nationals, who will be on the Rafters roster. He was put on the IL in Spring Training and finally returned to the mound about a month ago. There are probably a few really good pure reliever types on rosters, but in general nobody is sending pitching any better than the Twins are anymore without big asterisks attached.

Would be nice to see him go the Ben Ross route for sure!

I think the Twins have two legitimate catching prospects, and they are Vahn Lackey and Eduardo Tait. One is much more likely to stick than the other, but they're the ones to watch. I'd like to see them try to turn Carson Tinney into a version of Pete Alonso at 1B. Opponents basically had green lights to run on Diaw and Jimenez, not sure they can stick. It is nice to see so many guys in that consideration though.

The minor-league season has come to a close for the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, Cedar Rapids Kernels, and Wichita Wind Surge. The St. Paul Saints finish off their season this week on the road, still technically alive in playoff contention, but they need a lot of help. The “magic” number is two Saints losses or three wins from Washington's Triple-A affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings, for them to be eliminated with six games to go (the Saints hold the tiebreaker over Rochester but also trail the Indianapolis Indians in the overall standings for the 2nd half playoff spot). Rochester faces the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays to close their season, the Buffalo Bisons. TRANSACTIONS There were no transactions in the Minnesota Twins organization on Tuesday in advance of the St. Paul Saints final series of the season against the Columbus Clippers. In other prospect news, the Arizona Fall League rosters have been announced, including eight representatives from the Twins, headlined by Yasser Mercedes. Stay tuned here at Twins Daily for coverage of all things AFL for the Twins Prospects and the Salt River Rafters when their season starts on October 3rd! SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 0, Columbus 1 Box Score German Marquez made the start for the Saints against the Clippers and put together perhaps his best start since signing with the Twins organization. He scattered three hits and three walks over his five innings, allowing just a lone earned run. That came in the bottom of the second after a leadoff double, a walk, and a one-out RBI single. He retired six in a row after that before allowing his last hit of the game in the fourth and faced the minimum in the fifth after inducing a double-play ball to complete his outing. He threw 42 of his 71 pitches for strikes (59%) and struck out three. The score was just 1-0 Columbus at that point as the St. Paul lineup struggled to string anything together either. Cody Morissette singled in the second and stole second base but was left stranded. Tanner Schobel and David Banuelos hit back-to-back singles to start the third and two-out walk from Matt Wallner loaded the bases, but Gabriel Gonzalez flew out to center field to end the threat. The Cleveland Guardian’s rehabber Shawn Armstrong pitched the top of the sixth inning and struck out two in a one-two-three frame. In the top of the seventh Morissette again contributed a single and advanced to scoring position on a passed ball, but Ben Ross and Schobel went down swinging to keep the visiting team off the scoreboard. Jack Anderson took over for Marquez to start the bottom of the sixth inning and worked around a pair of singles with a double-play grounder and a strikeout to keep it within one. In the bottom of the seventh he retired the Clippers in order, including a second strikeout. Down to their last two at-bats, Banuelos again got the Saints started the right way with a leadoff single in the eighth, but a pair of smart defensive plays by the Clippers third baseman kept him at first base and turned a 5-3 double-play himself on a bit of a shift where he was positioned as a traditional shortstop. Unfortunate, as Aaron Sabato followed with a single that could have been a chance at a hit with a runner in scoring position to tie the game. Matt Wallner sent a ball to the warning track the opposite way but was caught at the base of the wall to end the inning. Anderson was back out for the bottom of the eighth and kept it rolling. He again retired the Clippers one-two-three, giving the Saints lineup their final chance to overcome a one-run deficit. Again, they got the leadoff man on base, as Gabriel Gonzalez led off with a single. Kala’i Rosario was up next and hit one 106.6 MPH, but into the ground and turned into a double-play ball to bring them to their last out. Morissette worked another good at-bad, but his ground ball toward second on the seventh pitch was an easy throw to first to end the game at 1-0. The Saints outhit the Clippers 7-5, but the only extra-base hit of the game was a big one, giving the Clippers a leadoff man in scoring position, and they were able to get a hit in that situation, finishing 1-for-7. St. Paul went 0-for-7 and left six men on base. Morissette (2-for-4, K, SB) and Banuelos (2-for-3, K) both finished with a pair of singles, but as a team they drew just one walk and struck out 11 times. In slightly positive news, the Rochester Red Wings lost to Buffalo, but the Saints could be eliminated from playoff contention tomorrow. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Jack Anderson, St. Paul Saints (3 IP, 2 H, 3 K) Hitter of the Day – Cody Morissette, St. Paul Saints (2-for-4, K, SB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (Minnesota): did not play #3 - SS Kaelen Culpepper (Minnesota): 0-for-3, K #6 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (Minnesota): 2-for-3, 2B(1), RBI #9 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 1-for-4, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Syracuse @ St. Paul (6:37 PM CDT) - LHP Aaron Rozek (3-6, 4.50 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s game! View full article