Steve Lein

Absolutely you can compare these seasons and the players in this way, but your originating statement is shown here to be quite a stretch to make. That was a great season for Severino. McCusker is certainly having a great one this year, and I would agree, even arguably better in some ways. But you can pretty much insert the Spiderman pointing at Spiderman meme here.

I mean, Severino led all of the minor leagues in home runs in 2023... 😉

Image courtesy of David Malamut (photo of Jose Salas) TRANSACTIONS The only move in the system on Tuesday was the Minnesota Twins sending RHP Michael Tonkin on a rehab assignment with the St. Paul Saints. The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels were busy on Monday however, as C Luke Napleton and LHP Brennen Oxford were signed out of the Atlantic League and assigned to their roster. They joined RHP Ruddy Gomez who was promoted from the FCL Twins. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 6, Iowa 4 Box Score Jose Miranda led off this one with a single for his first hit since returning to the Saints lineup. He and Edouard Julien, who drew a walk, came around to score on a double from Mike Ford for an early 2-0 lead. Starter Andrew Morris promptly gave those runs back with three singles and a double in the bottom of the first, but like he has been doing so far on the season, went on to work around threats to limit damage in each of his next four innings. He did so by inducing three inning ending double-play balls, and in total was charged with three earned runs. This was somewhat miraculous as he gave up nine hits and two walks in his five innings, while striking out just one. The Saints added two runs in the top of the fifth after a Mickey Gasper single and Julien double brought up Carson McCusker. It wasn’t a(nother) home run, but his double off the center field wall was enough. They added single insurance runs in the sixth and seventh innings to keep their lead intact. A walk to Emmanuel Rodriguez and his fourth stolen base put him in scoring position. Ryan Fitzgerald then brought him in with a double that made it 5-3 in the sixth. In the seventh it was a Julien double followed by a ball hit so high into the air by McCusker that the defense lost sight of it, and it fell harmlessly just outside the infield grass for an RBI single and three-run lead. That lead held up as the bullpen trio of Jacob Bosiokovic (IP, 2 K), Richard Lovelady (2 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 3 K), and Brady Feigl (IP) held the Cubs to just one run over their four innings. Morris picked up his first win of the season, while Bosiokovic and Lovelady picked up holds, and Feigl his second save. The middle of the Saints lineup did most of the damage. Gasper (2-for-5, R, K), Julien (2-for-3, 3 R, 2 2B, 2 BB), McCusker (3-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI, K), and Ford (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI, 3 K) collected nine of their 11 hits in the game. WIND SURGE WISDOM Arkansas 6, Wichita 5 Box Score The Wind Surge lineup got to work quickly in this one, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first for an early lead. Tanner Schobel led off with a double, and Ricardo Olivar promptly brought him in with an RBI single. After Olivar stole second base, Kala’i Rosario delivered a single to bring him home for a 2-0 lead. Starting the first game of their series with the Travelers at Equity Bank Park in Wichita, was right-hander Trent Baker. He faced the minimum through two innings thanks to a double-play ball in the second, but Arkansas got him for a two-run homer in the third to tie the game at two. Those were Baker’s only runs allowed, as he went on to finish five innings, exiting the game with the Wind Surge up 3-2. He gave up four hits, walked none, and struck out five. Wichita took that lead in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to catcher Noah Cardenas. He smoked a full-count pitch onto the berm in left field for a solo home run. They added a run in the seventh after Ben Ross led off with a single. He came around to score on a triple from Tyler Dearden to make it 4-2. Reliever Mike Paredes came on to start the sixth inning and delivered two scoreless frames. Back out for the eighth, it went sideways with two outs. A single, double, walk, and another single tied the game at four before he got out of it. In all, Paredes was charged with two runs on four hits and a walk, while striking out three. Wichita went back out front in the bottom of the frame after Rosario reached on a walk, moved to third on a Kyler Fedko single (and an error), and scored on a passed ball to make it 5-4. Joel Cesar was brought on to close it out in the top of the ninth, but fared similar to Paredes in the eighth. With two outs and a runner on first, an RBI double followed by an RBI single put the Travelers in front by one before he picked up the third out with a K. In the bottom of the ninth the Wind Surge went down one-two-three to fall into a 1st place tie with the Travelers in the Texas League North division. Arkansas outhit Wichita 10-7 on the game, and picked up one more hit when it mattered in the same amount of chances with runners in scoring position, to make up the difference and steal one late from the home team. KERNELS NUGGETS Peoria 13, Cedar Rapids 10 Box Score The Kernels lineup got a huge performance out of a forgotten prospect that should have led them to an easy victory on Tuesday, but then the eighth inning happened… Cedar Rapids took the first lead in the bottom of the second inning after a single from Nate Baez put a runner in scoring position. Jose Salas then delivered his first big hit of the night, an RBI single. Misael Urbina followed with an RBI single of his own to put them up by two. Getting the starting nod for Cedar Rapids was Alejandro Hidalgo and he went five innings in this one. He held Peoria scoreless for the first two, but then gave up four runs over his final three innings. In all he was charged with four earned runs on seven hits in his five innings, striking out six. Despite giving up those runs, Hidalgo was never behind on the scoreboard as the Kernels kept pace in the middle innings. In the bottom of the third Brandon Winokur reached base on an error to lead it off. He made Peoria pay by stealing second, his eighth swipe of the year, and later scoring on a groundout from Khadim Diaw. In the fourth Salas led off with his first home run of the season, and the game, to make it 4-2 Kernels at the time. Urbina followed with a triple, and Kaelen Culpepper an RBI double to go up by three. The home team made most of their hay in the bottom of the fifth. Diaw got it started with a one-out single. Then Baez drew a walk in front of an RBI single from Jaime Ferrer. That brought Salas to the plate, and he again clubbed a homer, this one of the three-run variety for a seemingly comfortable 9-4 Kernels lead. Bullpen stalwart Spencer Bengard came on for the sixth inning and was hit for an unearned run that made it 9-5. Another error in the sixth gave him some trouble, but he induced a double-play ball for a scoreless inning. But then came the eighth inning. Rather than recap the ludicrousness in its entirety, I’ll point you to Cedar Rapids Gazette reporter Jeff Johnson. After it was done the Chiefs led 13-9 and the air had been sucked out of the home crowd. Kade Bragg got the final two outs of the inning, but in between was charged with three earned runs on five hits of his own. Jose Mercedes pitched a one-two-three ninth. The lineup got one of those runs back in the bottom half, when Brandon Winokur launched a long homer to make it 13-10, but that’s as close as they could get. The teams combined for 31 hits on the game and finished 16-for-39 with runners in scoring position. They scored more runs than they left runners on base. Diaw (2-for-5, 2 R, RBI, K), Ferrer (2-for-5, R, K), and Urbina (2-for-2, R, RBI, 3 BB) chipped in with multiple hits. Salas’ 3-for-5 effort, including two homers and five RBI, was wasted. Winokur stole two bases in addition to his home run. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 4, Jupiter 5 Box Score On the bump for Fort Myers on the road was righty Adrian Bohorquez, who hasn’t quite yet been able to match his success of last year. He pitched into the fourth inning in this one and struck out five, but also gave up three earned runs on five hits and a pair of walks. His ERA sits at 9.00 so far on the 2025 season. The Mighty Mussels did jump out to a 2-0 lead after the top of the second inning, where Poncho Ruiz led off with a double, and jogged home on Migeul Briceno’s second home run of the season. Cole Peschl came on in relief in the fourth, and finished the final 4 2/3 innings of the game. He was charged with the loss, but was solid by allowing just two runs (one earned) on four hits and a walk. He struck out three. Just like the second inning, in the sixth Ruiz led off with his eighth double of the season. A walk to Briceno and hit-by-pitch on Luke Napleton loaded the bases with one out. An error off the bat of Peyton Carr allowed them to tie the game at three. Down 5-3 in the eighth, Briceno led off with a single, moved to second on a walk to Napleton, and they both moved up a base on a Carr groundout. Angel Del Rosario then delivered an RBI single to make it 5-4, but that was all they could get. In the top of the ninth Jay Thomason reached third base with just one out, but Briceno grounded into a double-play to end the game. Thomason (2-for-4, BB, K), Ruiz (2-for-3, 2 R, 2 2B, 2 BB), and Briceno (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K) each collected two hits in the loss, while the rest of the lineup finished 2-for-22. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Rays 7, FCL Twins 3 Box Score Right-hander Yoel Roque pitched the first inning for the Twins in one-two-three fashion as the opener. He gave way to Miguel Cordero to start the second inning, and he had some trouble keeping the Rays off the bases. In 2 2/3 innings he was charged with six runs (four earned) on six hits and two walks, striking out one. Leonardo Rondon was summoned in the fourth inning and got them through the seventh. He allowed one earned run on two hits, three walks, and struck out three. Aiberson Ventura got the final two frames and allowed two hits and a walk, but no more runs. The Twins offense wasn’t able to take advantage of their chances as well as the Rays, finishing 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, and leaving nine men on base. The Rays went 4-for-15, and left only eight. The Twins scored single runs in each of the second, fifth, and sixth innings. Luis Fragoza drew a walk and came around to score thanks to a few wild pitches in the second. Murphy Hernandez clubbed a run-scoring double in the fifth, but they weren’t able to score any others despite having the bases loaded after with one out. In the sixth, Fragoza drew another walk, made it to third after a walk to Ricardo Pena and single from Irvin Nunez, and stole home for the teams third and final run. Hernandez (2-for-4, 2B, RBI, K, SB) led the way with a pair of hits. Daiber De Los Santos added a triple. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Trent Baker, Wichita Wind Surge (5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 5 K) Hitter of the Day – Jose Salas, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 5 RBI, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Tuesday. #3 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 0-for-3, R, BB, K, SB (4) #6 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2B, RBI, BB, K #8 – Andrew Morris (St. Paul): W, 5 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, K #9 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-5, 2 R, HR, RBI, 2 SB (9) #14 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, BB, K #16 – Eduardo Beltre (FCL Twins): 0-for-5 #17 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita): 1-for-4, R, 2B, BB #18 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 0-for-5 #19 – Carson McCusker (St. Paul): 3-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI, K #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 1-for-4, R, RBI, SB (1) WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Iowa (12:08 PM CDT) - RHP Cory Lewis (1-2, 8.53 ERA) Arkansas @ Wichita (11:05 AM CDT) - LHP Connor Prielipp (0-2, 3.63 ERA) Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP Tanner Hall (1-2, 4.81 ERA) Fort Myers @ Jupiter (5:30 PM CDT) - RHP Michael Ross (0-0, 2.70 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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It's the perfect example of "THE sound." 💥

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of Carson McCusker) TRANSACTIONS In Triple-A with the St. Paul Saints, C Diego Cartaya was transferred to the development list, while OF Austin Martin was activated from the injured list and started in left field (more on that to come…). Down in the Florida State League IF Dameury Pena was activated from the injured list, and in a corresponding move the Mighty Mussels sent RHP Xavier Kolhosser back to the FCL Twins. SAINTS SENTINEL Buffalo 2, St. Paul 6 Box Score In the words of Sean Aronson on the Saints broadcast, “Carson McCrusher” needs to be on a t-shirt. And probably trademarked. By somebody. Not me. Maybe. But somebody. We’ll see… That’s because Carson McCusker finished this one 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs to give him nine on the season, ranking second in the International League. And my goodness, the first one was absolutely obliterated (make sure you turn the sound up): The broadcast was adamant this ball cleared the roof of the Cub-a-Cabana out in right field. If you’ve been to CHS Field, you know that this party area is not particularly close to the field. Just to show how much power he has in his six-foot eight-inch tall frame, he went the opposite way for his second home run in the eighth inning. But I digress, because we also need to talk about David Festa. For the second game in a row the lanky right-hander cruised through his opposition. Last Tuesday he needed just 68 pitches to get through six innings, and punched out seven. In this one they didn’t quite let him finish six, but he again punched out seven and needed just 72 pitches, with 50 going for strikes (69%). In his 5 2/3 innings he gave up just three hits, and was removed from the game with two outs and a runner on second base. Travis Adams was brought on and promptly gave up an RBI single, leading to an earned run on Festa’s ledger and a no-decision in the scorebook. If it were me, I’d have let Festa at least finish that one batter one way or the other (and he wanted to), but it didn’t really end up making much of a difference thanks to McCusker. Adams went on to complete 2 1/3 innings of his own, allowing no runs on three hits while striking out four. Jacob Bosiokovic finished out the ninth inning with the Saints up by five. He gave up one run on two hits and a pair of walks and struck out two. Besides McCusker, Mickey Gasper finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored and his third home run in five games with the Saints. Jeferson Morales added a double. Austin Martin returned from the injured list and started this game in left field. He led off the game for the Saints with a single, and along with McCusker executed a double-steal for the game’s first run. However, Martin pulled up injured before reaching home and the only reason he did score is the throw got away from the catcher. He was removed for Anthony Prato to start the second inning. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 4, NW Arkansas 5 Box Score The Wind Surge took an early lead in this one as leadoff man Tanner Schobel started the game by reaching base on an error. Two outs later Rubel Cespedes drove him in with an RBI double for a 1-0 lead. Taking the bump for Wichita was Darren Bowen and he would get the first three innings. He delivered a one-two-three first inning including a strikeout, but lost his control in the second. Four walks led to a tie game, and he also allowed a solo home run in the third that made it 3-2. The Wind Surge had that lead as in the top of the third Jake Rucker and Schobel traded places with back-to-back doubles to start the inning, and Kala’i Rosario drove in Schobel with a single two batters later that put them in front 3-1. They added their fourth run in the sixth inning after a Kyler Fedko double and two walks loaded the bases, before Rucker brought a run in with a groundout. Righty Pierson Ohl came on to start the fourth inning and went the next two scoreless frames, giving up just two hits to keep Wichita in front. John Klein delivered a scoreless sixth inning, but ran into trouble in the seventh and eighth. A three-run homer in the seventh put the Naturals in front, then a pair of two out singles in the eighth ended Klein’s outing. He finished with three earned runs on six hits and a walk in his 2 2/3 innings pitched, while striking out three. Cody Laweryson got the final out of the game for the Wind Surge. Down 5-4 in the ninth, the Wichita lineup went down one-two-three to fall to 15-13 on the season. Aaron Sabato (2-for-3, BB) led the way with multiple hits. Schobel scored two runs from the top of the lineup. Five of their nine hits as a team were doubles, but the Naturals' big blast was enough to overcome the Wind Surge’s warning track power in this one. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, Beloit 0 Box Score The Kernels blanked the Minnesota Twins former Midwest League Affiliate on Tuesday behind a stellar effort from their pitching staff and taking advantage of Snappers miscues. Chase Chaney made the start and was excellent. He did not allow a run or issue a walk, scattering seven hits over six shutout innings. He threw 90 pitches, with 60 going for strikes (67%), and punching out six. He retired the first eight hitters of the game before giving up a single in the third inning. The lineup scored all the runs they would need in the top of the first inning, after Brandon Winokur reached base on an infield single, and advanced to second on a throwing error. Danny De Andrade followed with an RBI single that made it 1-0. They added a single run in the third when Kaelen Culpepper led off with a double, moved to third on another error (off the bat of Winokur), and was brought in to score on a De Andrade groundout. The Kernels lineup did most of their damage in the fifth inning. Caden Kendle led off with a double. Two more consecutive errors loaded the bases before Winokur drove in two with a single. Another De Andrade groundout scored another, before Khadim Diaw brought in the fourth run of the inning with an RBI single to make it 6-0. The bullpen duo of Samuel Perez (2 IP, 2 H, 2 K) and Jacob Wosinski (IP, K) closed out the final three innings in scoreless fashion to complete the shutout. Chaney picked up his first win of the year and completed six innings for the second straight game. The offense tacked on two more runs in the top of the eighth thanks to an RBI double from Kevin Maitan and a Nate Baez sac fly to make the final score. Winokur was the only Kernels batter with multiple hits, finishing 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI. De Andrade had just one hit in five trips to the plate, but drove in three. MUSSEL MATTERS Dunedin 12, Fort Myers 13 (11 innings) Box Score Fans at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers were treated to an extra-inning barn-burner on Tuesday, as a big early lead turned into a tied up affair late and headed to extra-innings. The Mighty Mussels ambushed Blue Jays starter Austin Cates, who wasn’t able to make it out of the first inning. Byron Chourio got him first with a solo home run. Then a sequence of single, walk, single, single knocked him from the game with Fort Myers up 3-0. They tacked on three more in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a thousand cuts approach, as singles from Demeury Pena, Chourio, Yasser Mercedes, and Jay Thomason built their lead to six. Starting for the Mighty Mussels was Michael Ross, and he pitched the first three innings, retiring the first seven hitters he faced before allowing a one-out triple in the third. That runner ended up scoring on a wild pitch, but Ross also struck out the final two hitters he faced. In total, Ross allowed one earned run on one hit, while striking out four. Then it got weird for Fort Myers and pitcher Jason Doktorczyk. While he did work the next three-plus innings, he was also kept in the game while giving up nine hits (including three home runs), eight runs (seven earned), and walking two. He did punch out four but by the time the Mighty Mussels made another call to the bullpen the game was tied at nine. Hunter Hoopes pitched a scoreless and hitless 1 2/3 innings, striking out one. Ivran Romero came in for the ninth and kept the game tied to head to extras. Back out for the 10th the ghost runner did come around to score on a double, but one run wouldn’t be enough. In the bottom half an RBI single from Yohander Martinez tied it up again, and they got the winning run to third before Chourio went down swinging. Tyler Stasiowski was brought in for the top of the eleventh, and again the Blue Jays were able to take advantage, as a two-run homer put them up 12-10. The visiting team couldn’t close it out, however. A walk to Mercedes and a single from Thomason loaded the bases with nobody out. An error brought the home squad within one, a wild-pitch tied it back up, and a sac fly from Jefferson Valladeres walked it off for those who stuck it out. Five of the starting nine hitters had multiple hits in the win. Martinez (3-for-5, 2 RBI) and Thomason (3-for-5, 3 R, RBI, BB, 2 K, 2 SB) each had three to lead the way. As a team the Mighty Mussels racked up sixteen hits (though only two went for extra bases), and they finished 8-for-17 with runners in scoring position. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Pirates 3, FCL Twins 7 (7 innings) Box Score The Twins lineup scored runs in five of their six turns at bat, taking advantage of 10 walks as a team in the game. Daiber De Los Santos led off the bottom of the first with a triple and scored on a groundout from Eduardo Beltre to get it started. In the second it was a pair of walks, a wild pitch, and a sac fly from Victor Leal. In the next two innings they scored two runs each, with those coming thanks to those walks and a sac fly in the third, and an extra out in the fourth. De Los Santos reached base on a passed ball strikeout in the fourth, which allowed Bryan Acuna (double) and Jayson Bass (single) to take advantage with RBI hits. Three more walks and a sac fly from Beltre in the fifth capped their scoring. Right-hander Miguel Cordero made the start and pitched into the fourth inning. He allowed three earned runs on four hits in 3 2/3 innings. He struck out three. Ruddy Gomez finished the fourth and fifth innings by facing four hitters, and striking out all of them to earn his first professional win. Will Armbruester closed out the final two innings, allowing one hit, walking one, and striking out two. The Twins had just three hits on the game, compared to five from the Pirates, but they took advantage of their extra opportunities. Beltre (0-for-2, 2 R, 2 RBI) drove in two and scored two runs without recording a hit or walk. Acuna (1-for-2, 2 R, 2B, RBI, 2 BB) and Bass (1-for-2, R, RBI, 2 BB, SB) each drew a pair of walks in addition to their hits. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – David Festa, St. Paul Saints (5 2/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 7 K) Hitter of the Day – Carson McCusker, St. Paul Saints (3-for-4, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our updated Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Tuesday. (Seth Note: We found that Twins Daily writers rankings were not included in the recent vote. The rankings have now been updated to include those votes. There were a few players that moved up or down 1-3 spots.) #3 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 1-for-3, BB, K #6 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-5, 2 R, 2B #9 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI #11 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-4, R, BB, K #16 - Eduardo Beltre (FCL Twins): 0-for-2, 2 R, 2 RBI. HBP, SF #17 – Tanner Schobel (Wichita): 1-for-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI, 2 K #18 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 1-for-5, 2 R, RBI, BB, 3 K #19 – Carson McCusker (St. Paul): 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 HR (9), 3 RBI, K, SB (1) #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 1-for-3. WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Buffalo @ St. Paul (6:37 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (0-1, 4.57 ERA) Wichita @ NW Arkansas (7:05 PM CDT) - RHP Trent Baker (1-2, 2.49 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (11:10 AM CDT) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo (0-0, 6.00 ERA) Dunedin @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Adrian Bohorquez (0-1, 6.75 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! View full article

Nothing I don't already know. The WHIP is a good and basic comparison indicator to the guys I mentioned. However, when I say he'd be top 20, organizationally that isn't actually all that high for starting pitchers. It would be around 10th for me, so I read this as assuming quite a bit more than what I'm actually saying. He should be in such a conversation. He's not.

MacLeod is a lot further under the radar than he should be, IMO. He pitched at three levels in the minors last season, just like Zebby and Morris did. While he only made a spot start in triple-A, he had a K-rate pretty much equal to Zebby on the year. I don't have him in my top 20 yet, but I really wanted to slot him in there in our current vote. If he continues to perform he will be.

The St. Paul Saints were scheduled for a doubleheader on the road on Tuesday, but David Festa sent the Columbus Clippers to the seafloor in game one before rain cut their battle short. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of David Festa) TRANSACTIONS LHP Aaron Rozek was assigned to the Wichita Wind Surge from the St. Paul Saints. Also in the Texas League with Wichita, OF Allan Cerda was transferred to the development list. The Cedar Rapids Kernels placed top pitching prospect RHP Charlee Soto on the 7-day injured list with a right triceps strain. Soto did not make an appearance for the Kernels last week and so far on the season had made three starts with a 1.38 ERA, 15 K’s, and just four walks in 13 total innings. Down in Florida RHP Adrian Bohorquez was assigned to the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins roster. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 4, Columbus 2 (7 innings) Box Score The Saints and Clippers were meant to play a doubleheader today, but the same rain that delayed the Twins game in Cleveland hit Columbus a bit harder, so they only got in one. In his first start after being sent back down to Triple-A right-hander David Festa was excellent. After striking out the first two hitters of the game, he allowed a bloop and a blast for an early 2-0 Columbus lead, but was locked in after that. He allowed just one other hit, and retired the last 11 hitters he faced. In total, he was charged with two earned runs on three hits, no walks, and punched out seven. He did so on just 68 pitches, with 49 going for strikes (72%), and included an astonishing 18 swings and misses. Pure dominance from the lanky righty. It took until the fourth inning for the Saints to put a run on the scoreboard, and they did so thanks to Carson McCusker. He launched his seventh home run of the season down the line the opposite way. Anthony Prato joined him with a solo blast leading off the fifth inning to tie the game at two. It was Prato’s second home run of the season. They took the lead for good in the sixth after a one-out single from McCusker put him on base for the big Mike Ford. He clubbed the team's third home run of the game to make it 4-2. That would be the final score as Richard Lovelady closed out the seven-inning contest with a one-two-three frame for his first save of the season, striking out the final hitter of the game. Festa improved to 2-1 in his three starts with the Saints. McCusker (2-for-3, 2 R, HR, RBI, K) and Prato (2-for-3, R, RBI) led the way with two hits apiece. Armando Alvarez added a double to the effort. Royce Lewis finished 0-for-3 as the designated hitter. The Saints were 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position and left only three men on base, but thanks to the long ball they were able to take the series opener on the road. Per Sean Aronson of the Saints, Game 2 that was rained out will be made up later this week. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 5, Frisco 4 Box Score Southpaw starting pitcher Christian MacLeod had yet to give up a run on the season in two games of a rehab assignment with Fort Myers, and his first start with Wichita a week ago. That is still a true statement after three shutout innings to start this one. MacLeod walked two consecutive batters in the second inning, but otherwise retired every other hitter he faced, going one-two-three in each of the first and third frames. He threw just 45 pitches as he’s still being eased in (26 for strikes), but also struck out two. The Wind Surge struck first in the top of the fourth after Ricardo Olivar led off with a double. Rubel Cespedes moved him to third on a groundout, and Kala’i Rosario brought him home with a sacrifice fly for the 1-0 lead. After MacLeod was done, Angel Macuare went the next two innings. He allowed one earned run on three hits and a walk in his two innings before giving way to Jarett Whorff to start the sixth. He went the next three innings, allowing a solo home run for his lone hit allowed, but also struck out three. In the top of the seventh the offense loaded the bases for Olivar, who delivered a two-run single to put Wichita back out front 3-1. They tacked on two additional insurance runs in the eighth when Ben Ross delivered an RBI double and came around to score himself on an RBI single from Kyler Fedko to make it 5-1. They needed each of those runs, as Whorff’s home run allowed came in the bottom of the eighth before Cody Laweryson had some trouble closing out the game in the ninth. A two-out two-run single brought the RoughRiders within one, but he clamped down to strike out the final hitter of the frame and pick up his third save of the season. Whorff picked up his first win to improve to 1-1 on the season. Olivar (2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K) was the only Wind Surge hitter with multiple hits. As a team they went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. KERNELS NUGGETS South Bend 4, Cedar Rapids 10 Box Score The Kernels struck early and late to take down the Cubs in Cedar Rapids on Tuesday night. They took a 4-0 lead after one thanks to a barrage of hits, including a big blast, to set the tone. Kyle DeBarge started the rally with a single. Brandon Winokur and Billy Amick followed with doubles to score the first two runs, before Danny De Andrade hit a two-run homer, his second of the season. Starter Ty Langenberg was solid for the first three scoreless innings, striking out four, but ran into trouble in the fourth. Before it was over he was out of the game and the scoreboard was tied at four. In all, Langenberg finished 3 2/3 innings and was charged with four earned runs on six hits and a walk. He struck out six. Cedar Rapids went back out front in the bottom of the fifth when Gabriel Gonzalez led off with a single. Two batters later Khadim Diaw brought him in with a double to make it 5-4. The offense tacked on five more runs in the seventh as they sent all nine hitters to the plate. Amick led off with a walk and trotted home on a Gonzalez homer. De Andrade continued the hitting with a triple off the wall in right, and scored on a single from Kevin Maitan. After a pitching change Kyle DeBarge snuck one past the third baseman for a two-run double to cap the scoring. After Langenberg’s exit the Bullpen trio of Gabriel Yanez (W, 1 1/3 IP, 2 BB, K), Logan Whitaker (2 IP, H, BB, 3 K), and Paulshawn Pasqualotto (2 IP, 2 H, BB) blanked the Cubs the rest of the way. DeBarge (2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K), Gonzalez (3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB), and De Andrade (3-for-5, 2 R, 3B, HR, 2 RBI, K) had multiple hits to lead the onslaught. On defense the Kernels turned five double-plays on the night to end any South Bend rally’s before they started. MUSSEL MATTERS Jupiter 14, Fort Myers 1 Box Score The Mighty Mussels scored their lone run of this one in the bottom of the second inning. It came from the bat of Jay Thomason, who launched his Florida State League leading sixth home run of the year. Unfortunately, that was pretty much it for the Hammond Stadium faithful. They had just two other hits as a team, which were singles from Jose Salas (1-for-3, 2 K, SB) and Daniel Pena (1-for-3, K). Byron Chourio and Thomason each drew a pair of walks. There were only two at-bats with runners in scoring position and five men left on base for the game. Eli Jones made the start and pitched into the third inning. He was charged with three earned runs on four hits and three walks, while striking out two. Jacob Kisting stabilized it a bit into the sixth, allowing one earned run on three hits and striking out three in 2 2/3 innings. Hunter Hoopes got them through the seventh with 1 2/3 scoreless innings and the score 4-1 Hammerheads. Then it went pear-shaped in the eighth, as Jupiter batted around and scored eight runs to make it 12-1. Tyler Stasiowski (1/3 IP, 2 H, 5 ER, BB, 2 HBP) and Liam Rocha (H, 3 ER, 2 BB) were only able to record one out before the Mighty Mussels went to the position-player-pitching well. Outfielder Maddux Houghton got the final five outs, but was also tagged for a home run to make the 14-1 final. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – David Festa, St. Paul Saints (W, 6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 7 K) Hitter of the Day – Danny De Andrade, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, 2 R, 3B, HR, 2 RBI, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Tuesday. #7 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-5, 2 K #8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, 2B, BB, K #13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K #17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2 R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, 2 K #18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 0-for-2, R, RBI, BB, K #19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR (2), 2 RBI, BB #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Columbus (5:35 PM CDT) - RHP Cory Lewis (1-1, 9.00 ERA) Wichita @ Frisco (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Trent Baker (0-2, 3.24 ERA) South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Chase Chaney (0-0, 7.20 ERA) Jupiter @ Fort Myers (11:05 AM CDT) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Tough to find a spot for McCusker with the OF and DH spots covered. I'd love to see it though. When he hit his home run yesterday it tied him for the International League lead.

Zebby Matthews was on the bump again at CHS Field on Tuesday, but his blazing fastball was just a blip on the craziness that happened in the system. There were grand slams (three of ‘em), a walk-off homer, and a cameo from Benny Hill in Wichita. Image courtesy of Jean Pfiefer (Go4twinkies on Instagram) - photo Kyle DeBarge and Kaelen Culpepper TRANSACTIONS In Triple-A with the Saints, the Minnesota Twins sent RHP Michael Tonkin on a rehab assignment to CHS Field, while LHP Brady Feigl was activated from the 7-day injured list. The Wichita Wind Surge activated LHP Christian MacLeod from the injured list, making room by sending RHP Chase Chaney to the Kernels. In addition to receiving Chaney from Double-A, Cedar Rapids activated SS Kaelen Culpepper from the 7-day injured list and he played shortstop and batted leadoff for the Kernels on Tuesday. Down in the Florida State League, UT Jose Salas began a rehab assignment with Fort Myers from Cedar Rapids. SAINTS SENTINEL Indianapolis 4, St. Paul 16 Box Score Zebby Matthews again kicked off a series at CHS Field on Tuesday afternoon, but it was the Saints lineup jumping all over former major leaguer and 8th overall draft pick, Carson Fulmer that provided the headlines in this one. Matthews allowed an unearned run in the top of the first as three singles combined with a fielding error on Armando Alvarez gave Indianapolis a 1-0 lead. It didn’t take long for St. Paul to get that run, and more, back in the bottom half. Ryan Fitzgerald led off with a single and Mickey Gasper drew a walk. With one out, Jeferson Morales delivered a single to load the bases before Yunior Severino drew a walk to tie the game at one. After Mike Ford went down on strikes, big Carson McCusker stepped in, and did this: With a 5-1 lead the Saints never looked back, but that was far from it when it came to scoring runs. Alvarez added a two-run homer in the third. Mickey Gasper a solo shot in the sixth. Then to top it all off Fitzgerald hit the Saints second grand slam of the game in the eighth as Indianapolis waved the white flag and brought in position player Alika Williams to pitch. Five St. Paul hitters collected multiple knocks on the day, with Morales (4-for-4, R, RBI, BB) and Fitzgerald (3-for-5, 3 R, GS HR, 5 RBI, BB) leading the way. Fitzgerald, Gasper, and Alvarez each scored three runs. As a team they went 9-for-18 with runners in scoring position, leaving only 8 of 25 overall runners on base for the game. As for Zebby, he wasn’t nearly as efficient as he had been in his prior three starts, but despite allowing seven singles and one walk in his 3 2/3 innings, did not allow an earned run and punched out four. His fastball topped out at 97.4 MPH and he picked up seven swings and misses between his cutter and slider. Of his 80 pitches, 55 of them went for strikes (nice…). Kyle Bischoff finished off the fourth inning with a strikeout and picked up his first win of the season. Michael Tonkin allowed three runs on three hits, including two home runs, in his lone inning of rehab work. Travis Adams then finished off the final four innings to pick up his second save. He allowed three hits and struck out four to lower his ERA to 2.08 on the season. Indianapolis and St. Paul square off with a double-header tomorrow, starting at 5:00 PM. Andrew Morris and Cory Lewis are the scheduled starters. Game 2 is a makeup of one of their postponements from opening weekend back on March 29th. WIND SURGE WISDOM Springfield 1, Wichita 12 Box Score The Wind Surge sent right-hander Ricky Castro to the mound, and he took advantage of an aggressive Cardinals lineup, needing just 57 pitches to get through his five innings. 42 of those went for strikes (74%) and he was charged with just one earned run on five hits, while striking out five. Five straight hitters from the end of the third into the fourth saw just one pitch each, and over those final three innings Springfield hitters made him throw just 29 pitches. This is an even more remarkable number as in that time they had four of their five hits against him. Kala’i Rosario tied the game at one in the bottom of the fourth by hitting his third home run of the season. Despite the low pitch count, Mike Paredes came out of the bullpen to start the sixth inning. He gave up one hit, walked one, and struck out one over the next three innings to keep the visitors off the scoreboard. Michael Martinez finished off the ninth with a scoreless appearance, allowing one hit. This game became a bit of a laugher in the eighth inning, as the Wind Surge sent nine runners across the plate, culminating with a Jorel Ortega grand slam. In case you were wondering, Ortega was not in the lineup to start this game. He only entered because Aaron Sabato was ejected earlier in this inning because of…I don’t actually know what. Well, I do, that being Sabato went down on strikes due to an automatic strike call, but all I can say is the umpire decided he was going to be the stereotype of an umpire in this instance. Then he rewarded himself by having to stand behind the catcher for ten more batters as the Cardinals pitchers couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn if they were standing next to it (also much of the reason why Sabato had an issue with a call the umpire made). There were three singles, five walks, a balk, three wild pitches, and a throwing error from the two pitchers in this inning (as well as a second play, that ended with the pitcher falling on his face, that could have had an error tacked on as well). They combined to throw 53 pitches in the inning, with just 21 of them landing for strikes (40%). I can’t stress enough how much of a gong-show this inning was, but I digress. When it finally ended it was 12-1 Wind Surge. Tanner Schobel (2-for-5, R), Ricardo Olivar (3-for-4, R, BB, K), and Rosario (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, BB, 2 K) each had multiple hits in the win. KERNELS NUGGETS Wisconsin 2, Cedar Rapids 4 Box Score The Kernels struck first in the bottom of the opening frame, thanks in large part to Kyle DeBarge clubbing a triple into right field. Two batters later Billy Amick sent a single into center to bring him home for an early 1-0 lead. It remained that way until the top of the fifth inning, as Cedar Rapids starter Jose Olivares kept the Timber Rattlers off the scoreboard for his three innings. He allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out five. Spencer Bengard came out of the bullpen to begin the fourth inning and went the next four. He did get tagged for a two-run home run in the fifth that put Wisconsin out front, but otherwise put up zeroes. He was charged with those two earned runs on four hits, and struck out three. Gabriel Yanez (IP, K) and Paulshawn Pasqualotto (IP, H) kept the game close for the final two innings, giving the home team a chance in the bottom of the ninth. Kevin Maitan delivered a one-out double to put the tying run in scoring position. Two-batters later Kaelen Culpepper drew a two-out walk and brought DeBarge to the plate as their last hope. He didn’t waste it. DeBarge belted a 2-1 pitcher over the wall in left for a three-run, walk-off blast in Cedar Rapids. He finished the game a single shy of the cycle, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored, a double, triple, and the walk-off homer. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 8, Clearwater 3 Box Score Fresh off of shutting out the Bradenton Marauders in three games last week, the Mighty Mussels traveled up the gulf coast to face the Clearwater Threshers in this one. In his last appearance Dylan Questad contributed three innings to one of those efforts, a 1-0 victory on Wednesday in which he picked up a three-inning save. Getting the start in this one, Questad went the first five innings. The only real trouble he had came in the first inning, as he walked the leadoff man and allowed a two-run homer two batters later. After that blast he did not allow another hit, walked only one the rest of the way, and faced the minimum thanks to a double-play ball. He retired the last seven hitters he faced and finished with two earned runs on one hit and two walks, while striking out six. The game stayed 2-0 until the top of the fourth inning, when the rehabbing Jose Salas got their first hit in the game with a double. Yasser Mercedes followed with his first home run of the season to tie the game at two. Poncho Ruiz kept it going with a single, and Jose Rodriguez punctuated it all with the second two-run blast of the frame to make it 4-2 Fort Myers. They added on in the top of the sixth thanks to four walks, a two-run double from Daniel Pena, and a two-run single from Yohander Martinez to take an 8-2 lead. From there the bullpen trio of Hunter Hoopes (IP, H, BB, 3 K), Liam Rocha (2 IP, 2 H, ER, 3 K), and Tyler Stasiowski (IP, 2 H, K) kept the Threshers at bay. There were no hitters in the lineup who had multiple knocks, but Ruiz (1-for-3, 2 R, BB, K) and Rodriguez (1-for-3, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K) each scored two runs. The team was 4-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left only four men on base in the game. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Travis Adams, St. Paul Saints (S, 4 IP, 3 H, 4 K) Hitter of the Day – Kyle DeBarge, Cedar Rapids Kernels (3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, walk-off HR, 3 RBI, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Tuesday. #2 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 2-for-6, 2 RBI, 2 K, SB (2) #3 – Luke Keaschall (Minnesota): 1-for-2, 2 R, 2 BB #7 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, BB #8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, 2 K #13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, HR (2), 3 RBI, K #15 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 1-for-5, R, HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 K #17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-3, RBI #18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 2-for-4, 2 R, HR (3), RBI, BB, 2 K #19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, K #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 3-for-4, R, BB, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Indianapolis @ St. Paul (Game 1 - 5:00 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (0-1, 4.61 ERA) Indianapolis @ St. Paul (Game 2) - RHP Cory Lewis (1-0, 9.82 ERA) Springfield @ Wichita (11:05 AM CDT) - TBD Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (0-1, 7.50 ERA) Fort Myers @ Clearwater (11:00 AM CDT) RHP Eli Jones (1-1, 3.14 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Said this in the comments of my Minors report on Tuesday, but I would not want to be relying on Keaschall in the field right now. You can see the arm still has a lot of recovery left to do, IMO. He is certainly a fun at-bat, though. Looks the part in the box, definitely super-athletic build. Go get 'em, kid!

I don't think I've even seen the surgery he had specifically called out. Tough to guess on a timeline without that information. I'm hoping he's back in June until I hear otherwise.

Zebby should absolutely go to the rotation in the majors right now, IMO. As for Keaschall, I love a debut more than anybody, but I'll note that you can tell Keaschall's arm isn't up to snuff yet. I'd be very wary playing him in the field on a major league roster for that reason at this point.

McCusker's double last night was absolutely smoked. The 112 MPH says a lot about that, but it also had a pretty low launch angle. Absolute missile. I think the center fielder fielded the bounce off the wall at least 30 feet from the wall.

While one major league pitcher began his rehab assignment down in the lowest level of the minors on Tuesday, another one continued to make his case that he and his blazing fastball no longer belong at any level of the minors with the Saints. Image courtesy of Eric Canha - Imagn Images (photo of Zebby Matthews) TRANSACTIONS Veteran RHP Tyler Beede was signed to a minor league contract by the Twins and placed on the Saints roster. UT Dalton Shuffield was moved up from Wichita. LHP Brady Feigl was sent on a rehab assignment to Fort Myers. The recently-demoted IF Jose Miranda, was also placed on the 7-day injured list with a hand strain before playing a game. Down in Wichita, 1B Aaron Sabato was activated from the 7-day injured list and served as the DH for the Wind Surge in his first game of the season. Fort Myers got some big-league reinforcement in the form of RHP Brock Stewart to begin his rehab assignment. SS Yohander Martinez was also assigned to the Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins roster. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 2, Iowa 1 Box Score Before we get into anything on this game, I’d like to send out a huge congrats to the St. Paul Saints own Sean Aronson, on his 2,000th game with the team! I can say without a doubt, it’s been a pleasure listening to him call these games since the team became an affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, and well before then, too! Class act all around! Zebby Matthews again took the ball for the Saints in a series opener and, tell me if you’ve read this from me before, was absolutely dominant. In fact, he seemed to get better as the game went on if you look at it through a certain lens… He retired the first six Cubs of the game, including three strikeouts. A leadoff double in the third turned into the Cubs lone run against him, but he induced a double-play ball to limit the damage and did the same thing to stymie a minor threat in the fourth. In the fifth he appeared to take great offense that the first two hitters of the inning again reached base, one of them on an error, as he punched out three in a row to end his outing, and did it by throwing absolute rocket fuel. He threw 14 four-seamers in his final frame, with the lowest registering at 96.8 MPH on the (BaseballSavant) radar gun, and topping out at 99.5. 12 of those 14 fastballs registered as 98 or above on the broadcast. Matthews ended his outing with one earned run on four hits, one walk, and he struck out seven. Of his 71 pitches, 49 went for strikes (69%), including 10 swings and misses. So far on the season Zebby has thrown 15 innings, allowed just three earned runs (1.80 ERA) on nine hits, two walks (0.73 WHIP), and has struck out 20 (12.0K/9IP). The Saints took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning after Jair Camargo reached base on a one-out single. Armando Alvarez followed with a double to put them both in scoring position, before Carson McCusker burned the Cubs center fielder with a 111.8 MPH laser off the wall for a two-run double. Travis Adams once again entered the game in piggy-back fashion and would finish the game. He kept the Drillers off the bases for three innings and the Saints had nobody warming up in the bottom of the ninth. It was ride or die time for him in the ninth. A leadoff single gave the Drillers some life, but Adams shut that down with a strikeout and a groundout before a liner was sent toward the gap that could have spelled disaster. Instead, Jeferson Morales made his second run-saving catch at full sprint of the game, ending it in favor of the visiting team. The Saints improved to one game below .500 in the early going, at 6-7. Luke Keaschall (2-for-5, K, 2 SB) and Emmanuel Rodriguez (2-for-5, K) each had two hits from the top of the lineup. Ryan Fitzgerald added a triple to the effort. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 0, Tulsa 3 Box Score On the mound for the Wind Surge to start their series with the Los Angeles Dodgers Double-A affiliate, was right-hander Ricky Castro. He worked the first 3 2/3 scoreless innings, working up a high pitch count but allowing just two hits and two walks, while striking out four. John Klein came on in relief and took Wichita through the seventh. In his 3 1/3 he was charged with three runs (one earned) on four hits and struck out three. Michael Martinez worked a scoreless eighth to finish the game for the Wind Surge. There was not much offense for the good guys in this one, even though they were able to coax six walks out of Drillers pitchers. Combined with their five hits as a team, they had just four at-bats with runners in scoring position as they weren’t able to string anything together, and grounded into two double plays. They left nine men on base for the game. Aaron Sabato, in his first Wind Surge appearance of the season, picked up two hits and a walk in four plate appearances, including a double to lead the way. Ricardo Olivar also picked up two hits in four at-bats. Tanner Schobel drew two walks out of the leadoff spot. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Peoria 6 Box Score The Kernels wasted no time jumping out to an early lead on the road against the Chiefs. After Kyle DeBarge and Brandon Winokur each struck out to start the game, five straight hitters reached base. Billy Amick, Gabriel Gonzalez, and Khadim Diaw each singled to load the bases, before a walk to Danny De Andrade and a wild pitch allowed two runs to score. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t have another inning with more than one baserunner until the ninth, when Kevin Maitan led off with a single and Caden Kendle drew a walk. Starting pitcher Jeremy Lee was only able to pitch into the third inning, as Peoria took control of the game with a four-run frame. Lee was saddled with the loss after his 2 2/3 innings, where he allowed four earned runs on five hits and two walks. He struck out two. The Kernels bullpen kept things in relative check from then on. Wilker Reyes (2 1/3 IP, H, ER, BB, 2 K), Logan Whitaker (IP, 2 H), and Jacob Wosinski (2 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 K) combined for just one run allowed over the final five innings. Amick led the way with two hits, a run scored, and a walk in five trips to the plate. De Andrade (0-for-2, RBI, 2 BB, SB) and Kendle (0-for-2, 2 BB, K) each drew multiple free passes. The offense as a whole finished 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base. MUSSEL MATTERS Bradenton 4, Fort Myers 9 Box Score The Mighty Mussels struck first in the bottom of the first inning, though they probably should have put up more than one run. Byron Chourio and Yasser Mercedes each drew a walk before Poncho Ruiz singled to load the bases. A one-out error allowed Chourio to score, but Mercedes was thrown out at home on the play and that would be all they’d get. Getting the start in this one was lefty Michael Carpenter, who the Twins drafted out of the junior college ranks of Madison, Wisconsin, in the 11th round of last year's draft. He pitched into the third, but after a pair of walks to start the inning was lifted for Liam Rocha. In his two-plus innings, Carpenter allowed one earned run on two hits, walked three, and struck out three. Rocha got the Mighty Mussels through the third, walking one and striking out one. In the bottom of the third the Fort Myers offense broke the game open. Mercedes led off with a single, Ruiz drew a walk, and Jose Rodriguez brought them both in with a triple. Two walks later, an RBI single from Miguel Briceno, and a wild pitch would make it 5-1 Mighty Mussels before it was over. In the top of the fourth, the powerful right arm of Brock Stewart was called upon for his first rehab appearance. He struck out the first two batters he faced, topping out at 96.7 mph with his fastball, before an error kept him from completing a full inning. Stewart threw 17 pitches, with 10 going for strikes, including four swinging. Kade Bragg came on to finish the fourth, and also pitched the fifth. He gave up a solo home run in the fifth but otherwise struck out three of the five hitters he faced. Fort Myers tacked on single runs in the fourth and fifth innings thanks to a wild pitch and RBI single from Byron Chourio. They added two more insurance runs in eight on a triple from Peyton Carr, and single from Daniel Pena. Joining Stewart with a rehab appearance was Brady Feigl. He walked one and struck out one in a scoreless sixth inning. Jacob Kisting then finished the game with a three-inning save, allowing two runs (zero earned) on three hits and a walk. He struck out two. Every batter in the Mighty Mussels lineup reached base in the game. The only one not recording a hit was nine-hitter Angel Del Rosario. Rodriguez (2-for-3, R, 3B, 2 RBI) and Carr (2-for-4, 2 R, 3B, 2 RBI, BB) each drove in two, while Ruiz (2-for-4, R, BB, 2 K) joined them with two hits. Jay Thomason added a double and a walk to the winning effort. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Zebby Matthews, St. Paul Saints (W, 5 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 7 K) Hitter of the Day – Peyton Carr, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (2-for-4, 2 R, 3B, 2 RBI, BB) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Tuesday. #2 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 2-for-5, K #3 – Luke Keaschall (St. Paul): 2-for-5, K, 2 SB (4) #8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-5, K #13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-5, 2 K #15 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 1-for-4, R, BB, K, SB (5) #17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-4, R, BB #18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 0-for-4, 2 K #19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 2-for-4 WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Iowa (12:08 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Wichita @ Tulsa (11:00 AM CDT) - RHP Chase Chaney (0-0, 7.71 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (0-1, 7.71 ERA) Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CDT) LHP Christian MacLeod (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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I think he'd be the obvious choice given their days line up, but they could move Festa there, too. If you're giving me the choice, it would be Matthews without question. He is done with triple-A. Questad's outing should be good confidence boost for him. I'll be very curious to see any ups and downs with him this year!

The starting pitching was a bright spot in each game on Tuesday, but the efforts of Zebby Matthews in St. Paul and Dylan Questad in Fort Myers were wasted by their defense and the bullpens. Image courtesy of William Parmeter (photo of Dylan Questad) TRANSACTIONS After a quick stint in Fort Myers, IF Brooks Lee’s rehab assignment was transferred to the St. Paul Saints and he was in their starting lineup, playing second base on Tuesday. In his place, the Mighty Mussels received a replacement in the form of 1B Aaron Sabato, who was sent on a rehab assignment from the Wichita Wind Surge. SAINTS SENTINEL Omaha 3, St. Paul 0 Box Score Zebby Matthews took to the bump for the second time this season, and he was (perhaps) even more dominant in this one than his scoreless first go-round. Through the first two innings he allowed just one hit, a comebacker to him on the mound he couldn’t quite get his full glove on, with three strikeouts. Then he struck out the side in the third on just 11 pitches. In the fourth, he walked (gasp!) somebody a whole 40+ innings before he had walked anyone last year, but struck out another to keep the game scoreless. In the fifth, Zebby didn’t get the help from his defense he needed to keep his ERA unblemished. He allowed a one-out single before picking up his eighth K of the game for the innings second out, but then a pop-up into right snowballed the inning a bit. Yunior Severino either lost it in the lights, or badly misjudged it (he has played very little outfield before this season) and wasn’t able to recover enough to make the catch. The ball fell on the outfield grass for an RBI double and 1-0 Storm Chasers lead. The next hitter drove in a second run with a single before Matthews struck out another for his final out. Overall Matthews finished five innings and was (unceremoniously) charged with two earned runs on four hits, one walk, and struck out nine to tie his career high. He topped out at 98.8 MPH with his fastball and racked up twelve swings and misses on his 80 pitches. Jacob Bosiokovic worked the next two scoreless innings for the Saints, allowing one hit, two walks, and striking out three. Alex Speas gave up one run in the eighth on a single, a pair of walks, and a sac fly. He struck out one. There wasn’t a ton of offense in this one for the Saints, but Brooks Lee batted second in the lineup, played second base, and finished 1-for-3. Austin Martin picked up their only other hit, while Mike Ford, Severino, and Luke Keaschall each drew a walk to account for all five of their baserunners. They had just two at-bats with runners in scoring position the entire game. WIND SURGE WISDOM Midland 1, Wichita 3 Box Score The Wind Surge scored early and held on late to take down the RockHounds in their home opener at Equity Bank Park in front of nearly 6,000 fans. In the bottom of the second Wichita used three walks to load the bases before Jake Rucker got them on the scoreboard with a sac fly. Allan Cerda followed with an RBI single to make it 2-0. Tanner Schobel led off the third with a solo home run to make it 3-0, and that would turn out to be plenty for Darren Bowen and the Wind Surge pitching staff. Bowen got the starting nod and was fantastic in his five innings. He allowed just one run on three hits, walked none, and struck out five to pick up his first win of the season. He threw 70 pitches, with 49 of them going for strikes (70%). His lone run allowed came on a solo home run in the fourth, but finished his outing strong by striking out two in the fifth. Angel Macuare came on for the sixth and pitched into the seventh. After a two-out walk Jarret Whorff came on for the final out, and also pitched a scoreless eighth. Macuare allowed two hits, walked one, and struck out one in 1 2/3 innings. Whorff struck out two in his 1 1/3. Cody Laweryson came on for the ninth and set the RockHounds down in order to pick up the save. He struck out two. Ricardo Olivar led the offense with two hits in four trips to the plate out of the leadoff spot. Kala’i Rosario (1-for-4, 2 K, SB) and Rucker (1-for-2, RBI) had the other hits in the game for the home team. KERNELS NUGGETS Beloit 2, Cedar Rapids 3 Box Score The Kernels kicked off their 2025 home schedule against the Minnesota Twins former affiliate, the Beloit Snappers at Veterans Memorial Stadium in this one. Right-hander Jose Olivares made the start and pitched into the fifth inning. He mowed down the Snappers one-two-three in each of the second and fourth frames, as well as facing just three men in the first thanks to a double-play ball. In his 4 2/3 innings he allowed just one hit, walked three, and struck out six. Two of those walks came in the fifth inning after he struck out the first two hitters, and put an end to his outing after 66 pitches. Five of his final six outs came on strikeouts. When he left the game the Kernels had a 1-0 lead, as a double from Billy Amick in the fourth scored Kyle DeBarge from first to open the game’s scoring. That is Amick’s fifth extra-base hit in four games so far on the season. Juan Mercedes finished off the fifth inning before Spencer Bengard came on to start the sixth. Twins Daily’s 2024 MiLB Relief Pitcher of the year kept the Beloit offense off the board through the ninth, and in the meantime the Cedar Rapids offense extended their lead. Caden Kendle led off the sixth with a walk, Kaelen Culpepper followed with a single, and DeBarge drew another walk to load the bases for Amick. He delivered the rare two-RBI sac fly to put them out front 3-0 at the time. After three scoreless innings in which he struck out three and walked two, Bengard came back out in the ninth looking to close out the game. It probably was one inning too many, as he walked the first two batters of the inning, and then a one-out double put the Snappers on the scoreboard and ended his appearance. Jacob Wosinski came on to finish the game, and gave up a sac fly before picking up a strikeout to end the game and pick up the save. For his efforts, Bengard earned the win to improve to 2-0 on the young season. It is a bit of a quirky box score when you look close, as the Kernels were outhit 4-to-3, left only five men on base, and were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position on the game, but came out with the victory anyway. Catcher Khadim Diaw was the other batter to pick up a hit, and DeBarge drew two walks in front of Amick’s heroics. MUSSEL MATTERS Tampa 5, Fort Myers 3 Box Score The Minnesota Twins drafted right-hander Dylan Questad out of high school from Wisconsin in the fifth round of the 2023 MLB Draft. He had a bit of a learning experience playing with the FCL Twins last season, but you wouldn’t know it if this game was your introduction to him. Questad was excellent, working five scoreless innings and needing just 66 pitches, with 41 of them going for strikes (62%). He allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out eight. After allowing a leadoff walk in the second, Questad retired the final 11 hitters he faced to put an emphatic bow on his full-season debut. When he exited, the Mighty Mussels were up 2-0 as Dameury Pena got them on the board in the second inning. With the bases loaded, he sent a liner into deep center that found the grass and bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double and two-run lead. The first man out of the bullpen was Zander Sechrist and he worked the next 3 1/3 innings. The first three of those were scoreless, but he ran into a bit of trouble in his fourth, partly due to an error. He was charged with three runs (two earned) on two hits, two walks, and struck out three. Liam Rocha came on to try and snuff out the rally, but wasn’t able to. Before it was over the Tarpons had a 5-2 lead and Rocha only recorded one out. Both inherited runners scored, and he was charged with two of his own before Devin Kirby came on and picked up a strikeout to stop the bleeding. The Mighty Mussels gave themselves a chance in the bottom of the ninth as multiple runners were put on via walks, before a wild-pitch strike-three to Yasser Mercedes made it 5-3 and put the tying run in scoring position. After a walk to Aaron Sabato loaded the bases, Jose Rodriguez wasn’t able to get them in as he grounded out to short to end the game. Pena (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI) and Poncho Ruiz (2-for-3, 2B, BB) each had two hits. Angel Del Rosario finished 1-for-3 with two runs scored, a triple, and a walk. The Mighty Mussels were unable to get any clutch hits, as they finished a paltry 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position, and left 11 men on base for the game. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Dylan Questad, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (5 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 8 K) All starting pitchers on Tuesday: 19 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 9 H, 5 BB, 28 K Hitter of the Day – Dameury Pena, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they performed on Tuesday. #2 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul): 0-for-4 #3 – Luke Keaschall (St. Paul): 0-for-3, BB, K #7 – Kaelen Culpepper (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-3, R #8 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-3, 2 K #13 – Kyle DeBarge (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-2, R, 2 BB #15 – Yasser Mercedes (Fort Myers): 1-for-4, BB, 2 K #16 – Rayne Doncon (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-4, 3 K #17 – Billy Amick (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-3, 2B, SF, 3 RBI, 2 K #18 – Kala’i Rosario (Wichita): 1-for-4, 2 K #19 – Gabriel Gonzalez (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-3, 2 K #20 – Ricardo Olivar (Wichita): 2-for-4, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Tampa @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM CDT) - LHP Michael Carpenter (0-0, -.-- ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - LHP Ross Dunn (0-0, -.-- ERA) Midland @ Wichita (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Ricky Castro (0-0, -.-- ERA) Omaha @ St. Paul (6:37 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Did you not watch it at all last year? I think it's great, especially from a fan perspective! The general consensus is the challenge version is what players and teams prefer as well. At one Saints game last year I was at the umpire had an especially bad day. One inning had like 9 challenges between the two teams, and if that many are happening it means the ump was getting them all wrong. He was catching a lot of flack from the fans and the teams. Was kinda hilarious, and he got a big cheer when he finally got one right.

"Given the Saints’ stacked rotation, it seemed like someone was due to be the odd man out; Wednesday’s game may reveal Lewis to be that individual." Nothing to see here. The Saints had two games rained out on opening weekend, which means they're two days behind their pitching schedule. Travis Adams piggy-backed Matthews on Tuesday, now Lewis gets that deal with Morris in this one. With Raya going today they should be back on the normal schedule. Festa, Adams, and Zebby are the scheduled guys over the next 3 so the 6-man rotation is back on.