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Box Score Starting Pitcher: Kenta Maeda - 5 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (80 Pitches, 50 Strikes, 62.5% Strikes) Home Runs: Royce Lewis (10) Bottom WPA: Josh Winder (-.361), Cole Sands (-.276), Christian Vazquez (-.258) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The Twins looked to sweep the Rangers in their final preview for round one of the playoffs. Jon Gray took the hill for Texas, and Kenta Maeda countered for Minnesota. The Sunday matinee saw former Twins and new Twins star in the action, but ultimately the former Twins outlasted the current squad, and the twelve Twins left on base and six arms left in the bullpen tell the story of the game. Maeda Doesn't Like Garv-Sauce Texas attacked the scoreboard first again on Sunday, with former Twins catcher Mitch Garver delicately placing a Maeda slider that didn't slide just far enough into the left field bleachers. To make matters worse, Garver did this mean-spirited thing with two runners on, making the score 3-0 Rangers before Twins fans were even warmed up. With nine pitchers getting used on Saturday, a short start wasn't an option for Maeda. Maeda continued to give up contact and walks, seven hits and two walks in only three innings of work to be specific. And yet, Maeda was able to elicit ground outs and weak contact to escape these threats, keeping the Twins within striking distance as the game headed into the middle innings. Twins Offense Doesn't Like Gray-Sauce Edouard Julien led off the game with a double off of the wall in left field. The Twins didn't generate another hit against Gray until the top of the fourth when Carlos Correa smacked a single to center. Gray continually fooled the batters, with four of his early strikeouts being on called third strikes. Andrew Stevenson tried to bounce one off of Gray's pitching hand, and reached when Gray couldn't corral it in. He got Christian Vazquez to swing and miss, however, ending the threat in the fourth on his seventh strikeout for the day. Royce Lewis Needs a Sauce, and Twins Fans Would Buy All of It In the top of the fifth inning, Julien got his second hit of the game with one out. Jorge Polanco followed with a walk. Lewis followed by ripping a foul ball straight backward into the home plate umpire's face. After a short delay, everyone got back into their positions, and Lewis straightened it out this time to tie the game at 3-3. The Twins weren't done yet, Correa singled, Matt Wallner laced a 144 mph missile to right field (OK... 114 mph), and a jut-out in the foul territory fence saved a run by funneling the ball directly to the right fielder. After a Stevenson walk, the Twins were on the verge of breaking things wide open with the bases loaded and two outs. Christian Vazquez stepped up to the plate... and then sat back down after striking out as the Twins had to settle with the tie. Who's Left in the Bullpen? Not many relievers didn't see action Saturday night for both squads, so when Maeda and Gray exited after five innings each, the Twins and Rangers scrambled to find a way to complete the ballgame. The Rangers went to lefty Brock Burke in the top of the sixth, and struck out two more Twins for a quick inning. The Twins went to long-man Cole Sands, and he mowed through his first two opponents quickly as well. Then, Sands walked Marcus Semien, gave up a single to Corey Seager, walked Nathaniel Lowe, and chucked a baseball behind Adolis Garcia's back that allowed Semien to score to give the Rangers a 4-3 lead. 31 pitches later, Garcia struck out and the Twins turned to the last third of the game needing a comeback. Burke stayed in for the top of the seventh, and Lewis and Max Kepler greeted him with singles to knock him out of the game. Chris Stratton came in next and Correa hit a Metrodome classic to left to tie the game 4-4. The Twins once again failed to knock in the go-ahead run, as Stevenson and Vazquez both bounced out to first base to end yet another threat. 10 runners left on base through seven innings usually comes back to bite at team, and it didn't take long for that big bite to take place. Again, it tasted like Garv-sauce. Royce-sauce! The Twins' hopes for a comeback again rested on Lewis, who came up with one down and two on in the top of the eighth inning after Jordan Luplow and Polanco worked excellent patience into consecutive walks off of Jose Leclerc. Once again, Royce-sauce delivered a delicious swing to plate Luplow and knot the game 5-5. Will Smith then entered the game to neutralize Kepler, only to walk him to load the bases after a successful double steal to put the go ahead run at third with less than two outs. Correa was next man up, and he neutralized Kepler himself by bouncing into his 29th double play and leaving another couple of Twins on the pond. The bottom of the eighth saw lefty Kody Funderburk take the mound for the Twins, and things looked bleak after Leody Taveras ripped a lead-off double. Kody brought the Funder though, and stranded Taveras at third (after getting Semien, Seager and Lowe) to send the game to the ninth still tied. Willi Castro made his reappearance in the lineup by pinch-hitting for Wallner in the top of the ninth, and Kyle Farmer pinch-hit for Stevenson as well, and neither found a way to hit in a pinch en route to a no-run inning. Josh Winder was called upon to get the Twins into extra innings again, but that hope didn't last long as Adolis Garcia wiped away his 0-4 day with one big swing to send Rangers fans home happy and Twins fans to their phones to check the Guardians score. Until We Meet Again... If the playoffs began today, the Rangers would travel to Target Field as a wild card participant. Between now and October 3rd will be much scoreboard watching and hand-wringing by both clubs. The Twins took five of seven from the Rangers during the regular season, and could have won them all. They also could have easily gone two and five, with many close games and bullpen issues all around. This potential matchup could be the best the Twins could hope for to beat their playoff curse, but the rest of this week will go a long ways towards determining if they get that chance at first place in the first place. Post-Game Interview What’s Next? The Twins open their last series against the Guardians on Tuesday, with RHP Pablo Lopez (9-7, 3.72 ERA) facing new Guardians waiver man RHP Lucas Giolito (7-11, 4.45 ERA). Giolito managed going 1-4 with a 7.24 ERA in August for the Angels, but when with the White Sox he faced the Twins three times and only surrendered two runs over 18 innings. Which version of Giolito will be standing on the mound Tuesday? First pitch at Cleveland is scheduled for 5:10pm CDT. Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Durán 20 0 9 21 0 50 Sands 0 0 0 0 50 50 Funderburk 8 0 0 9 14 31 Thielbar 16 0 8 6 0 30 Jax 8 0 11 7 0 26 Pagán 0 0 0 24 0 24 Headrick 0 0 0 15 0 15 Winder 0 0 0 6 5 11 Floro 0 0 0 8 0 8

The Twins seem to find themselves backing into comfort zones when it comes to roster decisions on occasion. Sometimes it’s because of veteran status or it’s a player they personally like. Sometimes they’re just being overly protective of depth. Whatever the reason is currently, it simply isn’t justifiable to continue with how they’ve managed the bottom half of the bullpen. The middle of the Twins bullpen has picked up a lot of slack recently between Emilio Pagán and Caleb Thielbar. Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran have been struggling, which is bound to happen to even the best relievers in baseball. It’s also expected that the bottom part of a bullpen shouldn’t exactly be rock solid. After all, that’s why they’re at the bottom. The way the Twins are using the low-leverage parts of their bullpen simply makes no sense as we approach September. The team has been adamant in regards to keeping a long reliever on the roster. So much so, in fact, that coming out of spring training, it cost them several high-leverage relievers such as Danny Coulombe (2.77 ERA in 39 IP) and Jeff Hoffman (2.86 ERA in 34 2/3 IP) who both looked great in the spring. If having a long reliever really is that important to them, that’s fine. Minor league relievers being cut loose and going on to success can be overlooked. The Twins are taking it to another level though, and completely wasting opportunities and at least one roster spot. By currently rostering Cole Sands and Josh Winder, the Twins are playing with a hand tied behind their back when it comes to the bullpen, and it’s completely self-inflicted. Let’s start with Cole Sands. He’s actually been electric in St. Paul with a 1.64 ERA and near 40% K rate. In his time bouncing up and down with the Twins, he’s barely pitched. In fact, despite being completely healthy, he’s made three appearances, all with the Saints, since July 20th. He’s thrown only 4 1/3 innings in just under a month. In Wednesday’s game when the Twins were down four runs, they needed an inning filled. Instead of going to Sands who hadn’t pitched in over a week and actually has promising numbers in St. Paul, they went to supposed long reliever Josh Winder, who allowed a run that put Detroit over the edge to eventually win 8-7. Sands’ lack of usage is puzzling. If they aren’t going to let him pitch, why is he here? The easier question to ask has more to do with Josh Winder. At this point, it’s becoming time to wonder why Winder is an option in the MLB bullpen at all. He had an ERA over 6.00 in Triple-A and an ERA over 5.00 in the big leagues. In 11 appearances with the Twins this season, he’s only held the opposing team scoreless three times. There’s a difference between rostering a long reliever/mop-up man and continuing to give opportunities to pitchers who should be working on things in the minors. Winder is a former top prospect who still has hopes of recapturing the pedigree. He should be focusing on making adjustments against lower competition. Whatever the reason behind the Twins continuing to give Winder these chances, it's time to try something else. Perhaps they see something in him long-term, but there’s zero reason to let him try to find it in the big leagues at this point. At the very least, when a one-inning opportunity comes up, they should be giving it to Sands who has at least been able to get minor-league hitters out this year. Another usable middle-reliever developing would be a big boost down the stretch, and that’s not going to happen by giving opportunities to arms who are struggling so mightily. At this point, the Twins should be looking for upside in the lowest leverage rungs of the bullpen ladder. At the very least they shouldn’t be allocating those spots to players they’re never going to let pitch. A recent hot stretch by Ronny Henriquez should make him an option to get some runway in the majors. It shouldn’t be a problem to add Kody Funderburk to the 40-man, who has dominated Triple-A all season since his promotion just two weeks into the season. The Twins seem intent on making things as difficult as possible when it comes to the bullpen. It almost seems like they’re trying to show the world just how unimportant the bullpen is. It’s time they try to make improvements for the first time all year and give some different names an opportunity. What they’re doing right now isn’t helping anybody.

Ronny Henriquez has had his fair share of ups and downs in his Twins career. Acquired as part of the Mitch Garver deal, he’s gone from a starting pitching prospect to a relief prospect before injuries wiped him off the map. Henriquez may finally be righting the ship, and the Twins may be smart to see if they can hop aboard. The Twins perhaps waited too long to transition Henriquez to a full-time reliever. His body has been a red flag for his future as a starting pitcher, as his listed 5’10 height is considered extremely generous. He was making starts well into the 2022 season despite suffering from crippling home run issues. The Twins clearly liked what they saw when he finally landed in the bullpen, as they called him up for three appearances at the end of the season as a reliever. Henriquez began this season on the shelf after experiencing some elbow problems this spring. He didn’t make his first appearance until May, and the results as a whole have been less than impressive. In just under 40 innings, Henriquez’s 5.50 ERA looked earned when looking at his 18.8% strikeout rate compared to his 14.8% walk rate. He’s likely been off the Twins' radar when it comes to being a call-up, but things may finally be clicking. It’s an incredibly small sample, but a dominant one. Henriquez has a fastball that plays up in the mid-to-high 90s with an impressive changeup and usable slider. As a reliever, he should have all the tools he needs to contribute to an MLB bullpen. The walk issues he’s shown have never been seen before in his career, contributing to the theory that he may have just needed time to get his feel back after a worrisome injury and subsequent time off. It’s also the first season of his career where he’s been able to fully focus on the routine of being a reliever. Henriquez is already on the 40-man roster at the age of 23. The Twins have also been rostering multiple bulk relievers for several weeks now. As a former prospect of at least some pedigree, it’s likely Henriquez doesn’t need to show a ton more in Triple-A to find his way into the MLB bullpen mix. Considering their willingness to call him up in 2022, they’ve likely been waiting around for any signs that something has clicked. The Twins have plenty of options to cycle out in order to take a shot on Henriquez. First and foremost, they don’t need Josh Winder and Cole Sands in the same bullpen, as historically they’ve gone weeks without needing to use a bulk reliever, let alone two. Especially if Dallas Keuchel is no longer in the rotation, the need just isn’t there often enough. Jordan Balazovic also has regressed in unfortunate fashion. After filling more of a bulk relief role in Triple-A, he was thrust into more of a traditional relief role upon his debut. It’s possible more seasoning in Triple-A would benefit him if the Twins insist on having multiple long relievers on their MLB roster. Ronny Henriquez is clearly a pitcher the Twins saw something in at the end of 2022, and if he looks like he’s found his groove, it costs them little to see how it translates to the big league bullpen which is in need of someone to step up. Should Henriquez have to show he’s flipped the switch a bit longer? Should they call him up as soon as possible? Let us know below!

At one point, the Twins had four pitchers in their bullpen who were essentially called up from St. Paul out of necessity. Brent Headrick was recently sent back upon Jorge Lopez’s return, and Josh Winder was replaced by Cole Sands who was activated from the IL. Three arms remain, and Thielbar and Brock Stewart are not quite on the verge of returning, there’s a short window for these guys to prove themselves. Jordan Balazovic Perhaps the likeliest candidate to find himself as a textbook reliever down the line, the Twins have already started the process of switching Balazovic to a traditional relief role It’s a bit disappointing, but this is the path many pitching prospects take. Balazovic was being used as a long reliever in St. Paul, and the hope is that his stuff plays up enough to legitimately help in the late innings rather than bouncing up and down to Triple-A after making bulk inning appearances. Balazovic’s stuff hasn’t shown through, as despite his sub 2.00 ERA, he’s not even struck out 15% of the hitters he’s faced. He has cut down on the walks significantly though, and his slider and changeup have drawn some whiffs. If he can harness the stuff that once made him a top starting pitching prospect, Balazovic could become a legitimate weapon in the bullpen down the stretch. Oliver Ortega Ortega was one of the Twins few waiver claims prior to the season and later passed through waivers and stuck around. Like Balazovic, the stuff hasn’t shown through in his brief MLB stint so far, but Ortega was dominant in St. Paul, pitching to a 2.22 ERA with an over 30% K rate. He has a curveball and slider that each draw a whiff rate of at least 36% to pair with a fastball that’s been around 95 but has been in the upper 90s in previous seasons. It’s easy to see why the Twins took a flier, as even at 26 years of age, Ortega has all of the tools to become a valuable MLB reliever. Cole Sands Most people think of the two inning, five walks performance from Sands on May 13, but he’s been great otherwise. Sands was working on a change in arm angle and has looked dominant at times. In St. Paul, he’s struck out nearly 35% of batters faced and struck out over a batter per inning in the MLB. The walks haven’t been an issue aside from the one outing and he’s avoided the homer-happy concerns that have popped up last year. Sands has leaned into a split finger this season to pair with his plus breaking ball and fastball that has ticked up near 94 mph now that he’s fully transitioned to the bullpen. He should in theory have a pitch mix to attack hitters from both sides of the plate, and given his success in Triple-A, it may just be time to see what Cole Sands can do to help the Twins at nearly 26 years of age. The Twins lack of proven bullpen depth hasn’t hurt them as of yet, and hopefully the offense and starting pitching can continue to soften the blow of the injuries they’ve suffered. While they wait for some of their proven relievers to return, it doesn’t have to be all negative. There’s a chance one of these arms could come out on the other end of this as a semi-established option in the late innings. Do you agree? Does anyone stand out above the rest? Let us know below!

Box Score SP: Joe Ryan: 4.0 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 6 K (88 pitches, 56 strikes (63.6%) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Joe Ryan (-0.281), Byron Buxton (-0.115), Max Kepler (-0.059) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Say it Ain't So, Joe! Ryan has been the most consistent Twins starter, and his W/L record shows it. Tuesday was not his night, however, as the Astros got to him early and often. Alex Bregman led off the second inning with a rocket shot (94 mph, barely cleared the fence) to left for a home run. A few batters later, it was Chas McCormick and his .222 batting average's turn to inflate Ryan's ERA with a moon shot to the train tracks in left. 3-0 Astros. The hits just kept on coming for the Astros in the bottom of the third. A walk to Jeremy Pena with one out, and a single by Yordan Alvarez put runners on the corners for Bregman, and he delivered again with a run-scoring single to left to put the Astros up 4-0. Two batters later, Jose Abreu came up with the bases loaded, and while he couldn't replicate Jose Altuve's grand slam mojo, he did plate another run with a sacrifice fly (that Max Kepler caught while leaping into the wall in right). The Astro lead ballooned to 5-0, and it stayed that way until the fifth inning. Royce Lewis, Save Us! In the top of the fifth inning, Lewis stepped up to the plate and unleashed a 104.1 mph double to left. What followed shouldn't surprise Twins fans for the most part. Max Kepler struck out. Michael A. Taylor hit a ground out. The stage was set for the newly "Champion Ringed" Christian Vazquez to find a way to break out of his season-long slump, and he found a way to deliver a small dose of hope back into the game. The Twins Offense Stinks...Bad The top of the sixth inning started out well for the Twins, thanks to some uncharacteristic defense from the Astros. Edouard Julien led off with a shot to second base, and Altuve booted it. Carlos Correa drilled a 15 foot squirmer down the third base line which wasn't fielded. Suddenly, the Twins had two on with no one out, and Byron Buxton strode to the plate. One changeup later, Buxton hit into a 6-4-3 double play, and the hope meter decreased several notches yet again. Alex Kirilloff continued to get on base, however, and there were runners at the corners with superhero Lewis up at the plate. That walk chased Brandon Bielak from an excellent start, but reliever Phil Maton proved to be kryptonite to Lewis' abilities, and he struck him out swinging to end the threat. Sands Saves the Week, Win or Lose Out of all the predictions that were bandied about Twins Daily this week, a four-inning start by Ryan was not a common take. That's where the Twins found themselves Tuesday night, and luckily Cole Sands answered the call. After pitching only once in the last week, Sands found himself thrown into the fire against a hot lineup. He escaped the fifth and sixth innings without allowing a run, but left the game after walking two Astros in the seventh. Jovani Moran was the next man up, and one pitch and an Alvarez 4-6-3 double play later, the score remained 5-1. The ability to eat up innings won't bring the win home today, but it factors into every other game this week as the Twins don't get another off day until next Monday. A Double Play Kind of Day The heart of the Twins order came up in the top of the eighth, with the team amassing only three hits in the first six. Julien led off with a bloop to right that barely missed Altuve's glove. Correa was first pitch swinging, however, and chopped a 6-4-3 to remove the threat. The string of that poor at-bat lingered, as Buxton walked and Kiriloff shot a single into right to put runners at the corners with two outs. This time Ryne Stanek played the role of kryptonite, and Twins fans were forced to reckon with the fact that Lewis can't win 'em all. The Twins ended up getting six hits, limited the Astros to five hits, and managed to lose 5-1. That sums up Tuesday night's ballgame and the first third of this "Home Run or Bust" season quite well. Tough to watch, but a chance to redeem the series tomorrow. What’s Next? The Minnesota Twins will look to secure the series win again in game three as they send Louie Varland to the mound. The Astros will counter with young right-hander Hunter Brown. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10pm CDT. Postgame Interviews (Coming Soon, if available) Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet FRI SAT SUN MON TUE TOT Sands 0 0 16 0 48 64 De León 19 0 27 0 0 46 Durán 0 12 0 29 0 41 Stewart 0 13 0 18 0 31 Pagán 21 0 7 0 0 28 López 0 22 0 6 0 28 Jax 0 0 12 0 8 20 Morán 0 9 0 0 1 10

Major League Baseball's 2023 Draft is scheduled to start on July 9, 2023. Each team prepares for the draft with a specific plan, and sometimes those plans play out better than others. To prepare fans for the upcoming draft, this series will examine recent Twins drafts and how those players have performed so far in their professional careers. First Round: Trevor Larnach The Twins drafted Larnach with the 20th overall pick after a strong college season where he helped Oregon State win the College World Series. Three players taken behind Larnach (2.0 WAR) have accumulated more WAR so far in their MLB careers, including Nico Hoerner (8.1 WAR), Shane McClanahan (7.4 WAR), and Jake McCarthy (2.6 WAR). Larnach quickly impacted the Twins organization by winning the organization's Minor League Player of the Year award in his first full season. His most significant issue at the big-league level has been making consistent contact with offspeed and breaking pitches. He's part of the team's young core, and the Twins hope he can be a number-five hitter in the lineup for most of the next decade. Second Round: Ryan Jeffers Some were surprised the Twins drafted Jeffers this high because he was seen as a bat-first catcher with little defensive value. His outlook has changed significantly since signing with the Twins. He is a tremendous pitch framer and has improved his throwing arm this season. Jeffers has accumulated more WAR than any other second-round pick from the 2018 MLB Draft. Over the last two seasons, he struggled to find his swing with an 84 OPS+. His 2023 campaign started strongly with a 126 OPS+, ranking sixth in WAR among AL catchers. Minnesota lost their third-round pick in 2018 after signing Josh Donaldson. He had declined a qualifying offer by the Atlanta Braves, so draft pick compensation was tied to his signing. It is likely one of the reasons the Twins were able to sign him because some other teams would have had to forfeit a higher draft pick. His free-agent market didn't meet his expectations, and the Twins had to pivot from their plans to sign a free-agent starting pitcher. Other MLB Contributors: Cole Sands, Josh Winder The Twins took Sands with their fifth-round pick, and Winder was selected in the seventh round. Both players were starting pitchers throughout their minor-league careers but have shifted to a long-relief at the big-league level. Sands has posted a 2.96 ERA with a 1.40 WHIP in 11 relief appearances over the last two seasons. Winder made 15 appearances (11 starts) for the Twins in 2022, so he has less experience in a relief role. He dealt with a shoulder injury during spring training, and the team hopes a bullpen role will help him to stay healthy and improve his performance. Other Notable Picks: Michael Helman, Kody Funderburk, DaShawn Keirsey, Chris Williams Helman was taken in the 11th round and reached Triple-A last season. He's posted a .763 OPS with the Saints while playing multiple infield and outfield positions. Last season, he accumulated 20 home runs and 40 stolen bases between Double- and Triple-A. His best chance at a role with the Twins is being a super utility player, but he is currently on the IL with a dislocated left shoulder. Minnesota took Funderburk in the 15th round, and he's developed into an intriguing left-handed reliever. He has a chance to be the next Caleb Thielbar, especially if he can continue to post a strikeout rate above 13 K/9. He's given up too many hits in the upper minors, but he has been able to avoid home runs. The Twins will likely need bullpen replacements later in the season, and Funderburk is a prime candidate to add relief depth. Keirsey, a fourth-round pick, has played the last two seasons at Double-A. In 2022, he hit .271/.329/.395 (.724) with 36 extra-base hits and 42 steals in 121 games. He has ten extra-base hits in his first 31 games in 2023 while going 16-for-19 in stolen base attempts. His defense is strong in center field, so he could fill a backup outfielder role at the big-league level. Also in the Organization Regi Grace: He shifted to a relief role last season and is currently pitching for Cedar Rapids. His K/9 rate has been higher than 11.0 over the last two seasons. Charles Mack: Mack is in his second season with Cedar Rapids, being used as one of the team's primary catchers. Last season, he had 15 extra-base hits in 57 games. Willie Joe Garry: Over the last two seasons, the organization has used him at all three outfield positions, with most of his defensive innings coming in center field. He has a career .625 OPS across five professional seasons. Andrew Cabezas: After the pandemic, Cabezas shifted to a relief role. In 2022, he posted a 3.31 ERA with a 1.04 WHIP at High- and Double-A. Austin Schulfer: Last year, he pitched in relief for the organization's two highest affiliates, striking out nearly ten batters per nine with a 1.04 WHIP. He's in the Saints bullpen this year and has a sub-3.00 ERA to begin the year. Zach Neff: He is currently on the 60-day IL and hasn't pitched in the organization since 2021. Denny Bentley: In 2022, he posted a 3.56 ERA with 1.37 WHIP and 11.8 K/8. The Twins sent Bentley to the AFL last season to build off a strong 2022 campaign. He has yet to pitch in 2023. OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES -2017 Draft Retrospective -2016 Draft Retrospective What are your impressions of the 2018 draft class? Who will have the most significant impact on the Twins? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

What does it take for a starting pitching prospect to torpedo off of global Top 100 prospect lists aside from injury? Jordan Balazovic showed us in 2022, when he spent his entire season in Triple-A St. Paul allowing 2.55 HR/9 innings, and finishing with a 7.39 ERA in just over 70 innings. It was quite the uphill battle to regain the lost prospect status, and that was before he suffered a broken jaw during an off-field altercation at the beginning of spring training, resulting in him being the first player sent out of Major League camp. Fortunately, since returning to the mound, Balazovic has shown that he has the talent to wipe away the past. The Twins appear to have changed their view on their 2016 fifth-round pick. He began the season as a traditional reliever and has since moved back to making scheduled starts for the Saints. The Twins remain consistent in saying that they look at Balazovic as more of a potential bullpen piece for the MLB roster this season despite his starter’s workload thus far. If that’s the case, Balazovic is nearing the point where he’s more than deserving of a look. It’s been a small sample thus far in 2023 for Balazovic, but it’s hard not to be impressed. In 18 2/3 innings, the 6’5 right-hander has posted a 33.8% K rate and a 2.89 ERA with matching peripherals. Most notably, he’s allowed just one homer after struggling with the long ball in 2022. His walks have been uncharacteristically high at 14.3%, but it’s the only real blemish on his otherwise dominant line to begin 2023. Balazovic is currently built up to around 70 pitches per outing and has been able to maintain his mid-to-high-90s velocity along the way. He has secondaries to face off against hitters on both sides of the plate between his slider and splitter, though it's worth noting that during his last outing hitters did a decidedly better job of staying on him in his fourth inning. It's possible he's just destined for a bullpen role at this point rather than starting. The Twins have been churning multiple bullpen spots to begin the season, and while the bullpen performance has been acceptable as a whole, they’ve had some relievers struggle mightily. Unfortunately, Jorge Alcala appears to be a husk of his pre-elbow injury self, as his velocity remains down 2+ mph, and he continues to allow a barrage of homers. Cole Sands had an opportunity to stake his claim to a bullpen role on Saturday and subsequently allowed five walks in mop-up duty. Simeon Woods Richardson and Brent Headrick likely need to maintain their Triple-A starting jobs at this point due to the injuries to the MLB rotation. Balazovic conveniently is on the 40-man roster already as well. There are a few ways the Twins could use Balazovic. He’s built up to fill a true bulk reliever role, but that spot has been rarely utilized so far this season and regardless of how well he pitches, it would remain a revolving door with whatever pitcher filling it being optioned immediately after each appearance. They also appear to be dead set on the struggling Jorge Alcala being a multi-inning reliever, and they’ve declined to send him right back to St. Paul following his outings so far. If they want to give him a chance to cement himself onto the big league roster, they could simply send Alcala down to see if he can right the ship while giving Balazovic a chance to snag that job. He wouldn’t be so stretched to fill multiple innings and can have a real opportunity to work his way up the bullpen hierarchy. Whatever the Twins decide for his role, Balazovic is at the doorstep of his Major League debut. His main competition if Sands or Alcala are optioned back to St. Paul is likely Ronny Henriquez fresh off a rehab assignment and Josh Winder who has been an absolute disaster since being moved to the bullpen. Having just thrown over 70 pitches Sunday, it may be a few days until Balazovic is available to throw again. When that day comes, should he get the call?

TRANSACTIONS LHP Kody Funderburk promoted to St. Paul RHP Josh Winder activated off IL by Minnesota LHP Brent Headrick optioned to St. Paul RHP Andrew Cabezas reinstated from development list for Wichita SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 5, Rochester 1 Box Score Playing an early morning contest against the former Twins affiliate today, Louie Varland was on the mound for St. Paul. Having worked recently with Minnesota, it was evident that Varland sought to overpower the competition. Working 5 1/3 innings, Varland allowed one run on four hits. He walked two, but struck out eight and continues to pile them up at Triple-A. Before Varland ever took the mound, Mark Contreras stepped in for the Saints and blasted a three-run homer. Edouard Julien and Michael Helman drew walks to get on ahead of him, and Contreras continued his hot hitting with the fourth dinger of his season. Alex Kirilloff continued his rehab assignment in this one for St. Paul, and he went 1-for-4 while being hit by a pitch. Kirilloff did play first base today, and attempted to steal a base. He continues to look good and is trending toward a return for the Twins. Although St. Paul didn’t rack up hits today, the pitching continued to be impressive when Cole Sands took over for Varland. Working 2 2/3 innings, he allowed a single base runner on a walk and punched out four. Sands worked efficiently as well throwing 32 pitches, of which 20 were strikes. This game remained close up until the 9th inning went a bit awry for Red Wings reliever Gerson Moreno. Matt Wallner was hit by a pitch before both Mark Contreras and Andrew Bechtold drew walks. Tony Wolters singled to drive in Wallner, and then Edouard Julien took a bases loaded walk to bring Contreras across the plate. Contreras just keeps on hitting, and his 2-for-3 day represented half of St. Paul’s hits. He’s pushed his OPS up to .942 to begin the year. Tomorrow’s game will be the first time St. Paul sees the challenge system being implemented for 2023. With all other contests now using the ABS system to call balls and strikes, it will be interesting to see how batters and pitchers adjust. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 12, Springfield 11 Box Score The Wind Surge turned to Aaron Rozek tonight and while he did rack up five strikeouts, he also allowed five runs on seven hits. With three walks added in, there was significant traffic on the basepaths all night. Springfield took the lead with a pair of first inning runs. Wichita immediately answered though, and four runs came across in the home half of the inning. Jake Rucker started things off with a two-run double, scoring Brooks Lee and Yoyner Fajardo. Then DaShawn Keirsey Jr. plated Rucker on a single of his own, and Pat Winkel lifted a single to score Keirsey Jr. before the inning came to a close. Rozek’s unraveling came in the top of the 4th inning when he allowed a sacrifice fly and a two run single. Still, with plenty of game left, the Wind Surge had time to claw back. Before being able to add again on their own, Wichita saw Springfield add another pair in their half of the 5th inning. As he did earlier in the game, Keirsey Jr. came through big time. Fajardo and Yunior Severino stood at 2nd and 3rd base just long enough for the Wichita outfielder to hit his third homer of the season. Tying things up at seven, it was a whole new ballgame in the 5th inning. With the game quickly careening towards extras, Springfield made sure to do their part. Jacob Buchberger singled off reliever Alex Scherff and drove in Pedro Pages to take a late lead. Needing an immediate answer, Alex Isola singled to lead off the inning. He was lifted for Alerick Soularie and after a pair of pickoff attempts, Soularie was caught attempting to swipe second base. Winkel answered drawing a walk before Will Holland singled to put runners at first and second. Anthony Prato singled to load the bases for Brooks Lee, and it was up to the top prospect to come through. Springfield made a pitching change and Logan Sawyer was on to shut down the potential threat. Lee got a bender up in the zone and crushed it 97 mph to right center and cleared the bases. Fajardo followed him with a single to plate Lee, and the five-run inning was massive. Fajardo stole second to put himself in scoring position, and Rucker's third hit of the night brought him home. Now up 12-8, the Wind Surge had the opportunity to close this one out in the 9th inning. Osiris German did give Springfield breathing room as a runner came around to score on Nick Dunn's triple, and then a sacrifice fly brought him home. A solo blast then made it a one-run game, and the five run 8th inning became more necessary than nice. German did record the final out, and this one ended as a one-run win in a game that had 23 runs scored on 28 hits. Wichita put up 16 hits in this one, and multi-hit games were had by Fajardo, Rucker, Keirsey Jr., Winkel, Holland, and Prato. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, West Michigan 1 Box Score Alejandro Hidalgo made another start tonight for the Cedar Rapids Kernels, and he has done a good job of limiting damage since being acquired in the Gio Urshela trade. Tonight he went three innings allowing a single run on three hits. He did walk three batters and struck out one. Runs were at a premium this evening, especially for the Kernels who mustered just one hit through six innings. After getting behind on a West Michigan single in the 3rd inning, Misael Urbina launched his first homer of the year to put Cedar Rapids on the board. His 5th inning solo shot knotted things at 1. In the 7th inning, with things still tied at 1, 2022 Twins draft pick Tanner Schobel stepped in and launched his third home run of the season. With Noah Cardenas and Kala'i Rosario on, the three-run blast gave Cedar Rapids some much needed breathing room. The Cedar Rapids bullpen was great all night as Mike Paredes, John Stankiewicz, and Miguel Rodriguez combined to go six innings allowing a hit a piece, and each registering at least one strikeout. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 5, Daytona 1 Box Score Dealing with a brief delay, Jose Olivares only went one inning for the Mighty Mussels before Ben Ethridge was inserted in relief. Olivares did allow a run on a single hit, but Ethridge locked things down going three scoreless innings allowing just a single walk and fanning four. After a rain delayed start, Olivares allowed a single in the bottom of the first. Carlos Jorge then stole second base, moved to third on a fly out, and scored on an infield ground ball. Things stood pat for both teams from that point until Ricardo Olivar stepped in during the top of the 7th inning. With the bases loaded, he lifted a grand slam scoring Dylan Neuse, Luis Baez, and Danny De Andrade. Fort Myers had their first lead of the evening, and it came with some breathing room. Following Ethridge's lead, Zach Veen was amazing in relief. He worked three innings of his own, allowing just a hit and a walk, while picking up five strikeouts. The bullpen keeping the Mighty Mussels in this one to give them a chance was huge. Not ready to be done adding on offense late, Mikey Perez singled in Carlos Aguiar in the 8th inning to make it a 5-1 game. Samuel Perez entered in the 8th inning for Fort Myers and he worked two scoreless innings to close this one out. Aguiar was joined by Rubel Cespedes as the only Mighty Mussels to record multiple hits on the day. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Louie Varland (St. Paul) - 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K Hitter of the Day – Mark Contreras (St. Paul) - 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR(4), BB PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 1-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B, BB #2 - Royce Lewis (IL) - Knee #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - IL Abdomen #4 - Marco Raya (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #5 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 0-3, R, RBI, 2 BB, K #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #7 - Connor Prielipp (Cedar Rapids) - IL Elbow #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3 #9 - Louie Varland (St. Paul) - 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K #10 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - IL Elbow #11 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-3, R, HBP, 2 K #12 - Yasser Mercedes - Extended Spring Training: starting this week, the Twins extended spring team will get started. Each week, they will play four games against the Red Sox team, get two days of practice, and Sundays off. #13 - David Festa (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch #14 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K #15 - Matt Canterino (IL) - Tommy John #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #17 - Ronny Henriquez (St. Paul) - IL Elbow #18 - Tanner Schobel (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, R, 3 RBI, HR(3) #19 - Jose Rodriguez (EST) - Same as Mercedes. #20 - Misael Urbina (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, R, RBI, (HR), 2 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Rochester (5:05PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson Springfield @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - TBD West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - RHP Marco Raya Fort Myers @ Daytona (5:35PM CST) - RHP Zebby Matthews Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games!

The Twins have a strong top of the bullpen in Jhoan Duran, Jorge Lopez, Griffin Jax, and Caleb Thielbar. They also have a surplus of long relievers they’ve cycled through to begin the season. The bullpen problems have mostly fallen into the low-leverage, middle-relief tier, which so far has been occupied by the ineffective duo of Emilio Pagán and Jovani Morán. It may be time for the Twins to get creative. The Twins have already begun searching for an internal addition for what it’s worth. Brock Stewart was called up Tuesday after 8+ innings and 17 strikeouts in Triple-A to begin the season. The 31-year-old former top prospect may not be the most exciting option based on his age and career thus far, but the recent performance gives hope that Stewart has made some changes and can carry them over to the big league level. However, the Twins should pivot to other options if it doesn't pan out. The depth of the aforementioned “long reliever” group in Triple-A is nice in theory, but one could argue that such depth for this role is a bit overkill. Cole Sands, Simeon Woods Richardson , and Brent Headrick are all on the 40-man roster and have been used at the big-league level thus far. Jose De Leon and Randy Dobnak remain as options who could be added if needed. Their performances aren’t as inspiring, but considering they’d be pitching almost exclusively in blowouts, it’s easy to argue it doesn’t much matter. Woods Richardson remains a legitimate starting pitching prospect, with Headrick and Sands less so. Rather than having five candidates for a role that may come in handy once per week, the Twins should be looking to transition one of these options into a traditional reliever. Focusing more on Headrick and Sands assuming Woods Richardson will continue taking the mound every fifth day, there’s reason to believe either one could come up and settle into a traditional middle innings role. The benefits of changing a bulk innings pitcher into a traditional reliever have been covered plenty at this point. The velo ticks up, and they can throw their best pitches more often. Brent Headrick is averaging around 92 mph on the fastball in his debut season, and he grades out tremendously in command with a usable changeup to equalize his left-handedness against right-handed hitters. He’s a prime candidate to be one of the many fringe starting pitching prospects who move to the bullpen and flourish as we’ve seen in recent years. Sands has been an option for a similar move for a year-plus now because of his wicked breaking ball. He hasn’t been a full-time starter since 2021, and it may be time to crack the door open to a consistent big-league job and see if he can kick it in. They could also pivot on Josh Winder, who’s on the rehab trail in St. Paul, though he’s also filled a multi-inning role in four of his five outings thus far. His inability to hold up to a starters' workload could be solved by putting him into a traditional reliever role given his issues with the fastball and impressive slider. The Twins have no shortage of options, and it’s becoming untenable to maintain such long relief depth to cycle guys in and out of a role at the MLB level that’s so unplanned and rarely utilized. Especially when it’s become clear that there are little to no situations in which the Twins have a lead where Emilio Pagán and Jovani Morán can be trusted to get even three outs. Hopefully, Brock Stewart’s minor league stuff translates, but the Twins should be working on a backup option now in case it doesn’t. Worst case scenario, Stewart grabs the job and runs with it, and another option establishes themselves in Triple-A in case they’re needed. They have more than enough long relief depth with not many answers in middle relief. Is it time to start actively seeking out more internal relief options?

When the Minnesota Twins announced their Opening Day bullpen on Wednesday, one member was a surprise. Many (including myself) expected Bailey Ober to fill a six-man rotation or long relief role, or maybe a reclamation project like Jeff Hoffman or WBC sensation Jose De Leon would claim the final reliever spot. Instead the Twins opted to go with their homegrown player, Cole Sands. 2022 wasn’t inspiring for Sands as he posted a 5.87 ERA, a 4.74 FIP, and a 1.57 WHIP in just over 30 innings for the Twins. Strikeouts were not particularly high (19.3%), walks were not particularly low (9.0%), and loud contact wasn’t rare (39.4% hard-hit rate). So what are the Twins doing here? Sands would not have been my pick to make the team coming out of spring training, but I found some reasons they decided to keep him. Let’s look deeper into what Sands offers as a pitcher and see if we can make sense of all this. Sands Brings Length and Spin to the Twins Bullpen As a prospect, Sands profiled as a reliever very early into his professional career. Despite being a full-time starting pitcher until last season, I don’t think the Twins or anyone else saw Sands realistically developing into an MLB rotation arm. Due in part to injuries and in part to a 70-grade breaking ball (per Fangraphs), Sands found his way into the big leagues as a spot starter and a long reliever – the same role the Twins envision for him in 2023. As stated previously, Sands has an elite breaking ball. On Baseball Savant, his curveball generated 18.1 inches of horizontal movement, good for second-most among all pitchers that threw at least 100 curves in 2022 and just ahead of the infamous Rich Hill bender. While it didn’t quite generate the swings and misses its counterparts did, the tools to do it are certainly there. According to Jeremy Maschino’s MLB Pitch Profiler, Sands’ curveball has a Stuff+ rating of 135. This metric measures a pitch’s movement and velocity compared to others around the league. It works like other comparative rate stats such as wRC+ or OPS+, where 100 is the league average, so 135 is an excellent number. For some context, Jhoan Duran’s curveball that generated a 49.7% swing-and-miss clip is rated at 112 Stuff+. While mostly apples to oranges here, this demonstrates what Sands could have with his curveball. Sands offers an above-average split finger at 106 Stuff+, and an above-average cutter at 110 Stuff+, enabling him to pitch effectively to left-handed hitters. Could Pitch Mix Tweaks Lead to Improvement? Sands could benefit from a change in pitch selection as well. In 2022, Sands threw his fastball 48.8% of the time, much too high of a percentage given what his secondary offerings are and what his fastball is. Last season Sands’ fastball registered a 52.8% hard-hit rate against, good for 38th-worst out of 369 pitchers with at least 50 PA concluding against a four-seam fastball. MLB Pitch Profiler didn’t like his fastball any better as it has his fastball rated at a 72 Stuff+, 28% below a league-average fastball. Reduced fastball usage and increased curveball, splitter, and cutter usage could greatly benefit Sands. While all of Cole Sands’ success is still theoretical, he still has options, the ability to pitch multiple innings in long relief, and a decent prospect repertoire. Given the potential upside, taking this chance makes sense for the Twins. As long as he can stay in low-leverage situations for now, this is a good opportunity for Sands to develop at the major league level and maybe realize his potential to become a dependable reliever for the Twins.

Veteran leadership is necessary on a contending team. Still, a fine line exists where acquiring low-floor, low-ceiling players in the twilight of their careers can put a roster at a disadvantage. The lack of roster flexibility that comes with such players as well as the possibility of them falling off and damaging a team’s contention hopes is an issue the Twins have run into in recent years, and in 2023 they appear to be operating differently. Half of the fun of spring training is attempting to put together the Opening Day roster based on performances, interviews, etc. The Twins only had a few roster spots to fill and a handful of veteran-type players they’d been drawn to in recent years. Particularly in the bullpen, it appeared at one point that the Twins were certain to allocate a spot to a veteran reliever as we’ve seen them do in recent years. Jeff Hoffman had a great (thought limited) spring performance and had a minor-league contract with multiple opt-outs should he fail to make the Twins roster. It was easy to say the Twins would likely keep him rather than risk losing him based on how they’d behaved in previous seasons. He was reassigned to minor-league camp over the weekend, and on Tuesday, he opted out for an opportunity elsewhere. Danny Coulombe was not only a grizzled, journeyman veteran, but one the Twins are familiar with after years with the organization. He too put up stellar spring numbers before being reassigned to minor league camp. He had an agreement in his deal that if a major-league opportunity was available to him and he wasn't on the Twins roster, he could pursue it. So, he is now a member of the Baltimore Orioles, and the Twins got a little cash from them. Barring a late spring waiver claim, it appears Cole Sands is set to make the Opening Day roster. Rather than utilizing his remaining options on day one, the Twins have sided with his youth and roster flexibility. If the Twins have a need for another pitcher early in April, Sands can be optioned. If he struggles, the Twins won’t allow him to stay on the team for months out of fear of losing him on waivers. On top of it all, Cole Sands has more long and short-term potential than a Joe Smith-type signing. Further examples can be found in the starting rotation, where the Twins have chosen to forego low-impact veteran acquisitions and instead shot for the moon in acquiring Pablo Lopez this spring. They may have chosen Kenta Maeda over Bailey Ober despite their polar opposite spring training performances, but the hope is that even post-Tommy John Maeda is better than a Dylan Bundy type. They could have earmarked $7m for a 30-something-year-old fifth starter whose upside was 150 innings of a 4.80 ERA, but they decided against it after the previous two seasons of watching such additions play out. Perhaps the team feels more young players are ready to play a role on the 2023 team. It’s also possible they’ve realized that youth and upside are a better bet than what they perceive as a higher floor. At any rate, it’s a welcome change after watching them allow several players to suffer through the possible end of their careers on a roster that’s trying to compete. The Twins are carrying very few roster-clogging veterans in 2023. They didn’t waste a moderate amount of money on players who are undoubtedly past their primes. They also don’t have too many roster spots dedicated to fringe players without options. There were certainly things to like about Danny Coulombe and Jeff Hoffman-type players, but those likable qualities have led to the Twins hanging onto this mold of player long past when they should have in the past, and it’s cost them. It’s a welcome change in 2023, as even the choice of Cole Sands over an option-less veteran in the bullpen allows for much more roster flexibility. The rotation has more depth and upside than it’s had in years. The Twins finally dialing back on bottom-tier free agents and waiver claims to fill out their roster makes for a much more interesting squad, and opens the door for a wave of youth to spill onto the team throughout the season. The Twins have changed their approach. How do you feel about these Opening Day choices? Leave a COMMENT below.

Seven players on the 40-man roster have been either optioned (Jordan Balazovic, Matt Canterino, Brent Headrick, Edouard Julien, and Simeon Woods Richardson) or placed on the 60-day Injured List (Chris Paddack and Royce Lewis). That leaves decisions to be made on seven players, whether it’s an IL move or an option, before Opening Day. Injured List Alex Kirilloff remains the biggest question mark for the Twins. Will he be ready for Opening Day? The 2016 top pick took live batting practice on Monday against teammate Kenta Maeda. No further news of injury or discomfort in Kirilloff’s wrist from the live BP was reported by Twins beat reporters. The possibility of Kirilloff landing on the IL and staying in Ft. Myers for Extended Spring Training remains a possibility. At least one player will move to the Injured List before Opening Day. Gilberto Celestino's thumb injury will keep him out for six to eight weeks with a rehab assignment to follow. At that point, he will likely be optioned and play daily in St. Paul. The status of Ronny Henriquez and his sore posterior elbow has not been updated over the last week. While his health status has yet to be confirmed for Opening Day, it’s unlikely he’ll start the season on the Twins' 26-man roster as he has not thrown in a spring training game. Henriquez had a strong cup of coffee with the Twins bullpen last season posting a 2.31 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in 11 2/3 innings pitched across three games. It’s likely that healthy or not, the Twins' front office will want Henriquez to develop at Triple-A before getting back into the team’s bullpen. Minor League Options Matt Wallner’s has had a decent spring hitting .250/.358/.450 (.798 OPS) in 20 at-bats across eight games. Since he is an offense-first player in a Twins outfield group filled with great defenders, it is likely he will start the season in St. Paul to have more guaranteed plate appearances and continue his development. Wallner’s opportunity to crack the 26-man roster and expect everyday playing time is in the designated hitter role or if there is another injury. Trevor Megill is second to only Jhoan Duran having the fastest pitch out of the entire Twins bullpen, but his lack of command from 2022 is still showing in spring training. Megill had a 2.88 K/BB ratio last year with the Twins. He has walked six batters and struck out 11 (K/BB ratio of 1.83) in 5 1/3 innings this spring. The blazing fastballs will not be enough for Megill to crack the Opening Day roster if he cannot get his command of the strike zone under wrap before then. Cole Sands has no bigger fan than the Twins Geek himself. However, with so many reliever options to choose from and Sands' bad streaks in the majors last year, the Twins front office may see more benefit for him to start the season in St. Paul getting innings as a starter and reliever. Sands can stay ready to be called up and sent back down based on injury moves. Louie Varland and his abilities certainly are exciting. However, while Bailey Ober is forcing the hands of the Twins' front office to consider starting 2023 with a six-man rotation, Varland is Starter #7 on the depth chart. To open the season in the Twins rotation would mean that two of the top six starters would start on the Injured List. Varland could theoretically make the Twins' Opening Day roster as a long reliever. However, the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2021 and 2022 will go to St. Paul and continue to develop as a starter. Who do you think will be among the Twins' last seven roster cuts to trim the Opening Day roster down to 26? Leave your predictions and thoughts below.

The Twins have played with using a long reliever in the bullpen at times in the last few years and found that the role is inconsistent and sometimes not worth the trouble. In 2021, Randy Dobnak made the team as a long reliever as the team’s assumed sixth starter. The downside became evident almost immediately. When starters exited in a close game, it made more sense to go to a high-leverage reliever to keep the game intact. The Twins almost never found themselves having a sizable lead or deficit when the starter exited. Dobnak would go upwards of a week without throwing a single pitch, and he looked like that was very much the case when he did finally get some action. It can be argued that we learned that a long reliever role can’t be filled by a legitimate starting pitching option, at least not if you want them to develop or be ready to fill in if a member of the rotation goes down. This leaves the role to such a specific type of player that it becomes kind of hard to believe the Twins would actually choose to dedicate a roster spot to such a role. That being said, Rocco Baldelli continues to hint that he would prefer to go this route, so it’s worthwhile to explore some options on who could fill such a role. Cole Sands Sands is already walking the starter/reliever tightrope. The Twins were clear they weren’t planning on anyone making a formal switch from starting to relieving this spring, but Sands was listed as the closest arm to doing so. Sands already holds a 40-man roster spot and has options remaining, making him a prime candidate to serve as a long man on Opening Day. He also made spot appearances in this role in 2022 on occasion. Sands is far from the next man up in the rotation, and for this reason, may serve this role better than someone like Bailey Ober who needs to be ready to fill a traditional starter’s role on a moment’s notice. Sands could use the opportunity to acclimate himself to a bullpen job, which seems like an eventual certainty for his career. He should still be able to provide 3+ innings of work in a pinch as well, which makes him a decent candidate. Randy Dobnak While a long shot, it could once again be Dobnak to fill a long relief role. At this point, he’s buried in the rotational depth chart. He finally appears to be healthy, and while his unbelievable numbers in his debut are unlikely to be repeated, Dobnak could be serviceable and durable, making him a solid fit. The issue of course is Dobnak’s lack of a 40-man spot after being outrighted off the 40-man roster this winter. The Twins can easily make space if they feel he’s the best man for the job. Though the money they committed to Dobnak is inconsequential, they do owe him a few million in the next few years. If he’s in a good place health-wise, the Twins could very well decide to get their money’s worth and see if Dobnak can make a resurgence in a different role. He’s been used more or less as a starter so far this spring, meaning he should be physically capable of filling bulk innings if his previously ailing finger is right. José De León The deepest of sleepers, De León is a former top prospect that was discussed as part of a return for Brian Dozier back when he was in the Dodgers system. Injuries have derailed a once-promising career, but he’s still fighting for a roster spot at 30 years old. De León came out on Sunday and showed that he still had plenty left in the tank, allowing two hits and one run in three spring innings and striking out six. De León may not have a 40-man spot or options, but the right-hander is in a perfect situation with the Twins able to open a spot on the 40-man roster with ease. Rather than putting one of their young arms in an inconsistent role, the Twins could opt for adding a veteran to fill this job while being prepared to cut bait if it goes poorly. Keep an eye on De León’s performance in the World Baseball Classic in the coming weeks as well, as he’ll be departing to pitch for Puerto Rico this week. There are other candidates that could take a long relief role and do reasonably well, but it’s likely the Twins avoid using young prospects such as Josh Winder or Simeon Woods Richardson because of the inconsistency that comes along with the job. Instead expect the Twins to look towards former starters turned relievers or more of the veteran expendable types to fill the role, if the Twins choose to go this route at all. Are there any candidates you’d like to see take the long reliever role? Should the Twins bother using a long reliever at all? Let us know below!

Entering last season, Jhoan Duran had been a starting pitcher for his entire career. A lengthy injury history made the Twins reconsider his long-term role with the club. He was shifted to the bullpen and became one of the team's most valuable assets. Only some players can be as successful in transitioning to the bullpen, but there are multiple players the Twins may consider shifting to a bullpen role during the upcoming season. The Twins selected Cole Sands with their fifth-round pick in the 2018 MLB Draft from Florida State University. His professional career started at Low-A in 2019, and he made it to Double-A by the season's end. In 97 1/3 innings, he posted a 2.68 ERA with a 1.03 WHIP and 108 strikeouts. He controlled the strike zone and limited batters to 1.8 BB/9. The Twins would have penciled him into the Double-A rotation for the 2020 season, but he was limited to time in the instructional leagues due to the pandemic. Sands started the 2021 season back at Double-A, where he ended the 2019 campaign. As a 23-year-old, he was still over 1.5 years younger than the average age of the competition. He made 19 appearances (18 starts) and posted a 2.46 ERA with a 1.17 WHIP and 10.8 K/9. Injuries also limited him to just over 80 innings, but he entered the 2022 season ranked among the Twins' best pitching prospects. Season in Review 2022 Sands started the year in the Saints rotation and posted quality starts in his first two appearances (10 IP, 1 ER). In his next two appearances, he allowed ten earned runs in fewer than three innings, but the Twins had a need, and the team promoted him for his big-league debut. He pitched two innings at the end of a blowout win and allowed two runs on three hits. He spent most of May bouncing back and forth between Triple-A and the MLB level, and that trend continued for the remainder of the season. For the season, Sands split his time between being a reliever (14 appearances) and a starter (16 appearances). The opponent's OPS against Sands was only separated by four points in these two roles. The Twins never gave him an extended look at the big-league level, with the team bringing him up to make spot starts or to fill in for injured players. Sands never made more than four consecutive appearances with the Twins. His last 11 appearances came in a relief role, which might indicate the team's long-term plan for him entering the 2023 season. Projections for 2023 Currently, the Twins' rotation and bullpen don't have any glaring openings to fit someone like Sands. Injuries or poor performance might open a bullpen battle, but it seems likely for Sands to head to St. Paul, where higher-ranking prospects will pack the rotation. During the 2022 season, his longest stretch of starting games was 12 in a row in the middle of the season, but that was interrupted with multiple calls up. In July, Sands will turn 26 years old and has yet to establish himself at the big-league level. To get the most from Sands, it might help him find consistent success at one level in a specific role. On the mound, Sands threw his fastball over 50% of the time last season, averaging 92 mph. His lower arm slot helps to deceive batters, and he can top out in the high-90s. His best breaking pitch is classified as a curveball but has horizontal movement, so it has some qualities that resemble a slider. His split-finger held batters to a .292 SLG last season, so it will be interesting to see if he can use that pitch more regularly. He has a cutter that he uses against righties and a changeup against lefties, but opponents hit both pitches hard last season. Even with a five-pitch mix, Sands seems more comfortable utilizing his top three pitches. Summary Sands makes the most sense to move to a bullpen role out of the pitchers covered in the series so far. He's most successful when using his top two-three pitches and has shown the ability to add more velocity when used in multi-inning relief appearances. During the 2022 season, nearly half of his appearances were in a relief role, so that percentage likely would increase during the 2023 campaign. Should the Twins transition Sands to a multi-inning reliever? Can he add even more velocity in the bullpen? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES -Ronny Henriquez -Josh Winder

Gone are the days of Terry Mulholland. At least in Minnesota, you will rarely see a strange man sitting at the end of the bullpen bench who will, five times a month, run in to pitch four or five innings of low-leverage relief, only to retreat into the shadows until the next week, when his arm is needed again. The Twins tried to employ such a pitcher in 2021 when Randy Dobnak broke camp with the club as a long reliever. However, the team struggled to find him regular work, which had two adverse effects—it used a bullpen spot, and Dobnak (who was very much in their plans fresh off his five-year extension) could not continue to develop with the erratic schedule. That is not to say that the team doesn’t send guys out to eat innings occasionally; it simply works differently in the modern game. Instead of retreating to the end of the bench, they typically ride the green line back to St. Paul in favor of a fresh arm. The bullpen seems set in most people’s minds, with some hierarchy featuring Jhoan Durán, Jorge López, Griffin Jax, Caleb Thielbar, Emilio Pagán, Jorge Alcala, Jovani Moran, and Trevor Megill—each of whom has seen a good deal of Major League work. However, all are considered short relievers to one degree or another. This concentration of short relievers became a point of consternation in 2022, as the bullpen was stretched to cover four to six innings most nights. The team tried not to throw players on back-to-back games either, and you don’t need to be a math major to understand why that’s untenable with an eight-man bullpen. Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli doesn’t want to face that again this year, and a long reliever is a big part of that. “I personally think our best bullpen has, and always has, one option that can give you 50-75 pitches out of the bullpen. I’d like to carry someone like that at all times.”, Rocco said Friday to Twins Daily’s John Bonnes and the other Twins beat writers. “Is that going to be the case? No, we probably won’t be able to do that in all 162. But I think having someone like in the vast majority of our games will be very helpful. I also think we have those guys.” Given that, we may see the likes of Cole Sands, Josh Winder, Jordan Balazovic, Ronny Henriquez, or Brent Headrick called up to do something similar. Sands, Winder, Henriquez, and Headrick may be prime candidates, as they seem most likely to be relievers eventually (though Henriquez is also dealing with a sore elbow.). Calling a player up like this is more the exception than the rule when it comes to divvying up innings, though. Although the Twins could roster someone like Dobnak or Sands to be a-low leverage option, it’s debatable whether that will happen practically. I’m interested in speculating on how the Twins might get bulk work from this group—even if that doesn’t mean employing a true fulltime long reliever. I dug through 2022 usage patterns for Twins relievers with more than 15 innings and five relief appearances.Four types of usage profiles emerged in doing this. Short Relief The first is true short relief. Players like Joe Smith, Thielbar, López, and Michael Fulmer rarely threw more than an inning, and none had an appearance of two or more innings. They were also the most likely to be used on back-to-back days, with each over 20% of their appearances on zero days’ rest. Long Relief On the other side of the spectrum were pitchers predominantly used in long relief. There were two of those guys—Sands and Aaron Sanchez. Sanchez threw five relief outings, pitching 5, 3.1, 3, 3, and 1.2 innings. Had he been on the roster all season, he would have been a true long reliever, but he only filled this role in September after rosters were expanded. However, the Twins signed him as a minor league free agent this winter, so he is another option to fill this role at least partially. Multi-Inning Relief Then we get to the guys who were used somewhere in the middle, which is probably the modern version of a long reliever. Some of these guys were green line regulars, like Moran and Jharel Cotton. They threw more than one inning between 25% and 50% of the time, often when ahead by more than four runs or trailing. Although Moran and Cotton were sent down after multi-inning appearances several times, Trevor Megill remained on the roster after his initial call-up in 2022, despite having options remaining and throwing more than an inning 30% of the time. Megill’s usage was a bit all over the place in terms of leverage, and he may present the biggest question mark regarding his role for the 2023 bullpen, assuming he breaks camp with the team. Role Changers Finally, we have a group of pitchers that fluctuated between groups. The most pleasant surprises last year were Durán and Jax. Both players began the season as freshly-converted starters pitching multiple innings in the middle innings, but they transformed into predominantly one-inning guys. Both threw more than an inning about a quarter of the time, but most of those appearances came at the beginning of the year. For example, Jax recorded more than three outs just thrice in the last 100 games of the season. In the opposite direction, Emilio Pagán and Tyler Duffey began the season as single-inning options. They were converted into Cotton-esque innings-eaters by the end of the season due to performance reasons. Pagán, in particular, was an interesting case, as he took on more innings but was also relied on to throw in back-to-back games quite often. If there is one positive trait most can agree on, it’s that Pagán possesses a rubber arm. So What Will We See? At the beginning of the season, at least, the betting money would have to be on Megill, Moran, and Pagán being run out for multi-inning appearances. Suppose Pagán continues his improvements from late in the year (ironically in his new, low-leverage role). In that case, he may be in line for a hybrid role, lower on the bullpen hierarchy, but still trusted in some close games, depending on the rest status of other arms. Many fans are clamoring for Moran to be used as a second lefty rather than a long reliever, and if he develops control, he may be more suited for that role. Similarly, if Megill stops leaving balls middle-middle, he can ride his 100 MPH fastball a long way. Bulk innings may be given to whichever arm is freshest from that group, and if one emerges as a primary or secondary setup man, they may actually lead the bullpen in innings, taking the Griffin Jax path. There may be a rotating cast of waiver claims, semi-prospects, and minor league veterans at the end of the pen, soaking up innings before returning to St. Paul, or being jettisoned into the sun, never to be seen or heard from again. However, between Pagán, Moran, and Megill, the Twins may have a group who can fill multiple innings at a time while also seeing a moderate amount of medium-to-high-leverage innings.

For once, the Twins have some depth to their pitching staff with a mix of holdovers and younger arms in both the rotation and the bullpen. After a 2022 in which they turned Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax from starters to impact relievers, many have become interested in what struggling starting pitching prospect could be the next to follow that path. There are plenty of candidates to be fair. For now however, it doesn’t sound as though we’ll see those plans play out immediately. Such a small piece of news but so much to draw from it. Assuming health, Bailey Ober appears to be headed for Triple-A to begin 2023 due to the MLB rotation depth. For once, however, the Triple-A rotation will be tons of fun with names such as Louie Varland, Simeon Woods Richardson , and Jordan Balazovic behind him. It’s going to be a treat to attend CHS Field this summer to see some legitimate young arms throwing every day. With only limited spots in the Saints rotation, the Twins immediate plans to keep everyone starting is interesting. Not being too quick to transition starters into the bullpen is good practice. Especially considering the health questions in the Twins rotation, it’s good to make sure there are as many arms as possible to step in if things go south. For now, it appears the last spot in St. Paul is a three-way battle with names such as Ronny Henriquez, Cole Sands, and Josh Winder. With a few injuries this spring, those three options for the #5 spot in St. Paul could all find themselves starting games consistently. It may quickly become an issue that works itself out. It’s also just much easier to transition a pitcher from a starter to a reliever in a hurry than it is vice versa If the Twins health holds through the spring and they reconsider a few of their young arms, they could switch them over in no time as they did with Sands and Henriquez down the stretch in 2022. It may not have them as ready to relieve as they would be had they been preparing from Day 1, but some guys are able to flip the switch very quickly. Not committing young arms to those spots also opens up a few more possibilities. The Twins may not have as much Opening Day bullpen depth with all of these young arms remaining starters, but they can go and get external depth to build up even more. As of February 15, players such as Royce Lewis and Chris Paddack can all be put on the 60-Day IL, opening 40-man spots. It’ll be interesting to see how the Twins choose to fill these spots, but it’s probably safe to bet on one addition to the bullpen at the very least. The reliever market has been nearly bare for some time now, but a few fits still exist. They’ve already been linked to Chaska native Brad Hand, who’s far from the bullpen ace he once was but has continued to limit hard contact. Several other arms remain that they could take fliers on such as Will Smith or Trevor Rosenthal. They’re also due for their yearly waiver claim that makes the Opening Day roster. If they have any moves left to make, it’s easy to see at least one of them being a reliever because of the position-player logjam, and the Twins have at least two 40-man spots to fill if they feel inclined to make an addition. It also may be too early to rule out a trade. It’s been reported that the Twins are likely to hold onto Max Kepler, but this could easily be posturing on the Twins part. The left-handed hitting outfield depth is to a point where it can be argued that it doesn’t make sense. They aren’t trading recently-signed Joey Gallo, and Trevor Larnach’s value is likely at a low point despite a hope that he can still become an impact hitter to pair with the plus defense that graded out in 2022. This still leaves Kepler as the likeliest player shipped out if a trade is made. As a "two-ish" win player who gets most of his value from defense at this point, he’s certainly a candidate to be sent out in a trade involving a reliever. The Twins are left with a non-obvious answer for the next man up if one of the current MLB bullpen arms misses time. The Triple-A bullpen likely won’t have a young, obvious option to get the call if needed early in the season, although any acquisitions would likely push Jovani Moran into that spot once again (to this writer’s exhaustion). It’s likely that as the year goes on, we start to see some of these pitchers transition into the bullpen depending on the Twins MLB roster needs and how the young arms perform in the rotation. Sands is noted as the closest one to making this switch after struggling all-around last season. Henriquez got hit far too hard as a Triple-A starter in 2022. Winder’s shoulder appears to be a chronic issue at this point. If any of these issues persist, look for the Twins to pivot quickly off of their preseason plans to keep these arms in the rotation. By season’s end, we’ll likely be seeing a few of them making appearances out of the bullpen.

The Minnesota Twins bullpen is filling out nicely, projected as a top-five unit by some systems. They have arguably the best relief pitcher in all of baseball in Jhoan Duran and a strong supporting cast behind him, but there is plenty of noise that the Twins add one more right-handed reliever to fill out the bullpen. A popular candidate to re-sign for that last spot is one of their 2022 trade acquisitions, Michael Fulmer. Fulmer was solid for the Twins in the back half of the season, claiming a 3.70 ERA, 4.14 FIP, with a 20.6% K% and 7.5% BB% for Minnesota post-deadline. There has been little noteworthy reporting on a potential landing spot for Fulmer this offseason. Would a reunion in MN make sense for the right-hander? Fulmer sits in the mid-90s with his fastball, but his calling card is his slider. Throwing it more than 60% of the time and averaging over 90 MPH, the pitch laid waste to right-handed hitters, as Fulmer held them to a .188/.287/.257 slash line in 2022. However, as devastating as he is to right-handers, he was quite the opposite versus left-handed hitters. Allowing a .337/.404/.526 slash line, this extreme platoon split limits Fulmer’s value, as he is only useful against one side of the plate. Fulmer toes a very fine line of success. His strikeout rate is just under league average (45th percentile), and he does a good job of limiting hard contact (61st percentile HardHit%), but walks were a problem for Fulmer in 2022. His 10.1% BB% was the 20th percentile, and while you can be an excellent reliever with a high walk rate, it is difficult to do so while missing bats at a below-league-average level. I believe Fulmer allows too many free passes to consistently rely on the variance of balls in play to be a sustainably reliable relief pitcher in the future. In addition to his struggles commanding the strike zone, Fulmer is starting to see deterioration in his pitch arsenal. Fulmer saw his pitch velocities decline by more than a mile per hour for all four of his pitches. The thing that concerns me the most is what happened to his slider. In addition to losing velocity, it started to lose movement. According to Baseball Savant, from 2021 to 2022, his slider lost more than an inch of horizontal break and an inch of vertical break. Given how often he throws this pitch and how critical it is for his success, declining speed and movement on his slider is extremely concerning moving forward. For a pitcher that is going to rely on soft contact for outs while also not throwing a lot of strikes, seeing their best pitch starting to slip is a red flag. I’m not opposed to re-signing Fulmer, but it would be a risky bet, and it would have to be a low-cost signing. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Twins decided to fill that final bullpen spot with one of their relief prospects instead of Fulmer. Whether it’s Cole Sands, Ronny Henriquez, Trevor Megill, or another option, it’s not an unreasonable bet that the Twins can generate Fulmer’s value as a righty specialist elsewhere

Griffin Jax got a look as a starting pitcher down the inconsequential stretch of 2021. It didn’t go great as evidenced by his 6.37 ERA in 82 innings, but when his bright spots popped up, they were typically driven by a slider-heavy approach. While it can be rash to judge a starting pitching prospect when they struggle in their rookie season, the Twins opted to allow Jax to play to his strengths. In shorter stints, he could feature his wicked slider and complement it with a middling fastball that played up with a three mph increase in velocity. He went on to be a staple of the Twins bullpen, posting a 3.36 ERA in 72 1/3 innings. Could we see another Griffin Jax-type reliever in 2023? Cole Sands Sands became an afterthought to many in 2022 after being used to fill innings in several spots where the Twins were struggling to field a team. Never a prospect with a particularly high pedigree, it’s easy to see his ERA over 5.00 at both the Triple-A and MLB levels in 2022 and consider him as nothing more than a fringy fill-in type. The Twins however haven’t exhausted all of their options with Sands yet. Sands’ carrying tool as a prospect has always been his huge breaking ball which received an excellent 70 grade by Fangraphs. He doesn’t excel in any other department, but there’s a world where the offspeed is good enough to make him a legitimate weapon if he can go out and throw it as much as he wants for an inning. The pitch was in the 88th percentile in spin rate in 2022 and stymied opposing hitters even as he was often used for multiple innings. With several other starting pitching prospects graduating into the depth chart, it may be time for Sands to make the switch. Ronny Henriquez Henriquez is listed at what has been described as a generous 5’10. Regardless of his size, he’s shown the ability to run his fastball into the mid-to-high-90s with impressive spin. In addition, he features a well-regarded slider and changeup as well. Despite these tools, Henriquez just didn’t show what he needed to in Triple-A, posting a 5.66 ERA in 2022 due to issues with the long ball. He made his MLB debut working as a multi-inning bullpen arm for 11 innings. Henriquez could follow a similar path to Jax if converted to a traditional one to two inning reliever. He already featured his slider in his debut, throwing it about 46% of the time and drawing a 32% whiff rate. Like Jax, his fastball got absolutely pummeled. In a condensed role, it’s possible the fastball which debuted at 93.3 mph could gain a few ticks to help him get away with a few more mistakes. Unlike Jax, Henriquez appears to already have a solid left-hander equalizer in the changeup. If the Twins commit to the move for Henriquez at 23 years old, he has the tools to excel in short stints. Bailey Ober It may seem like a longshot for Ober to wind up in the bullpen, but he may be closer than many fans would like to believe. When it comes to the body of work for the 6’9 right-hander, it’s hard to complain about his performance. Ober has a sub 4.00 ERA across his first two MLB seasons and a legitimate four-pitch mix, making him a painful consideration to ever be moved to the bullpen. It’s more about quantity than quality in Ober’s case, however. He’s had an injury-riddled career and has surpassed 100 innings just once in his five professional seasons. His lack of reliability likely played a big part in the Twins acquiring Pablo López, which appears to have pushed Ober out of the Opening Day rotation. Many would be surprised to know that he’s already 27 years old, and at this point, another multi-week IL stint will likely push prospects like Louie Varland and Simeon Woods Richardson ahead of him on the rotational depth chart. With his age, Ober not only becomes more of an injury risk every year, but his projectability becomes an issue. The idea of building up to even 140-150 innings is almost unfathomable following a 2022 season where he threw just over 70. At some point, the Twins may just decide that if Ober’s cap is 100 innings, he may be better off throwing 50-60 innings out of the bullpen and giving those bulk innings to younger starters who are still capable of reaching a starter’s workload. Ober’s already-sufficient pitch would most certainly play up in the bullpen, and it may even help keep him on the field. Do you think the Twins have any more starting pitching prospects who could be headed for a successful bullpen job? Let us know below!

As the calendar flips into the new year, its time to look at where the Twins top 30 prospects according to MLB.com from 2020 are currently or expected to be for the 2023 season. Many of these 30 players are set to start their 2023 season playing professional baseball. Here’s the outlook for these past or even present Twins prospects 2023 seasons. 1. Royce Lewis Lewis' story is well known to Twins Territory. In a recent interview with the Athletic's Dan Hayes, Lewis is well aware of his situation and expects to have limited activity during Spring Training. A rehab assignment does not look likely before Memorial Day based off his recovery schedule. Still, there is great optimism that Lewis will be the Twins everyday shortstop upon his return from the IL. 2023 Season Start: IL 2. Alex Kirilloff Kirilloff is another story. Fortunately, he is expected to take part in full activities for the start of the Twins 2023 Spring Training. With the free agent acquisition of Joey Gallo on December 16, the expectation for Kirilloff is for him to see more playing time at first base than the outfield for 2023. Of course the health of Kirilloff’s wrist will be the major concern next to his everyday performance. As long as his wrist remain heathy, the sky is the limit for what he can do at the plate every day. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 3. Trevor Larnach Larnach, compared to his other two teammates, finished the season playing, although he ended the season with the Saints and didn't return to the Twins. Still with his core muscle healed, everyday playing opportunities aren’t a guarantee for Larnach right now with a crowded outfield. It is likely that Max Kepler will be traded before Spring Training begins, and with Kirilloff being prioritized at first, the corner spots could come down to him and Joey Gallo. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 4. Jordan Balazovic Balazovic had a season to forget at Triple A in 2022. After missing the first month of the season, Balazovic did not get a start until the first Saturday in May. Every start after then until September was a mess for the Twins top pitching prospect in 2020. Given the crowded rotation, Balazovic is likely to start his season at Triple A in St. Paul to prove that the flukes of his 2022 season were just a short term ordeal. 2023 Season Start: Triple A St. Paul Saints 5. Jhoan Duran There’s no question on where Jhoan Duran will be to start his 2023 season. The best rookie season for an American League reliever since 2006, Duran looks to repeat the success and protect his title of being baseball’s fastest pitching arm. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 6. Ryan Jeffers The promise of Jeffers as a starting catcher hasn’t exactly panned out how the Twins hoped it would have been when he made his MLB debut in 2020. Now, he will be splitting starting time with a defending World Series champion, Christian Vazquez. Like many others on this list, the question around Jeffers is how well can he play if he can remain healthy. Not having the bulk of catching duties on him should help in preventing further injuries from deteriorating his playing time. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 7. Keoni Cavaco Cavaco was drafted out of Eastlake High School in Chula Vista, California in 2019. Having missed out on key development in 2020 with no Minor League season, he spent all of the 2022 season at Low A Ft. Myers. Cavaco’s numbers didn’t flash off the back of a baseball card in the 99 games in which he played. He was drafted as a shortstop but shifted to third base full time in 2022. Given that Cavaco does not turn 22 until June, his 2023 season will be focusing on getting to higher levels of the Twins farm system. 2023 Season Start: High-A Cedar Rapids Kernels 8. Wander Javier Javier once had a lot of promise to be a second coming of Jorge Polanco, now after an under productive season mostly spent in Cedar Rapids, the Twins have let go of Javier. He is now a minor league free agent. Javier is still 24 years old but only spent seven games in his career above the High A level. That and having not had a batting average above .225 or OPS above .693 since the 2017 season will make him a hard sign for many teams, even on a minor league deal. 2023 Season Start: Inactive 9. Blayne Enlow Enlow’s 2022 season was spent recovering from Tommy John surgery that had him shut down for the 2021 season. Aside from a rehab start in Ft. Myers, Enlow spent his entire season at Double A Wichita, where he was used both as a starter and reliever. His numbers on the mound did not jump off the board as he posted at 4.50 ERA as a reliever in 14 games and 4.86 ERA in 11 starts and 37 innings pitched. Enlow is currently on the 40-man roster for the Twins, but given his need to reinvent himself as a pitcher from a bad recovery year, it is likely he will start the season back in Wichita. 2023 Season Start: Double A Wichita Wind Surge 10. Lewis Thorpe After being cut by the Saints following his one and only start in the Twins system, Thorpe went to play for the Independent League Kansas City Monarchs. His season was mediocre there at best, and following the Monarchs season, Thorpe returned to his home country of Australia. He is not currently playing in the Australian Baseball League, though their season is underway. Given that he is back home and inactive, it is hard to say if he’ll make the return to the States and play professional here for the 2023 season. 2023 Season Start: Inactive 11. Matt Canterino Canterino showed a lot of promise during his 2022 season, so much that many anticipated he’d be making his MLB debut with the Twins to help the broken bullpen. Unfortunately, that never happened as he was shut down for Tommy John surgery in August. With that, Canterino is not expected to return to pitching until mid to late-August, as the 25-year-old will not likely make his MLB debut until 2024 at the earliest. Fortunately for him, he is on the Twins current 40-man roster and will be alongside Lewis as he moves to the 60-day IL as early as possible. 2023 Season Start: IL 12. Brent Rooker Rooker was traded to the Padres along with Taylor Rogers the day before 2022's Opening Day, and spent the year with San Diego and Kansas City, mainly playing at both their Triple A affiliates. 2023 could be the best season for everyday playing time for Rooker as he was claimed off waivers from the Royals to the Oakland A’s earlier this offseason. Oakland’s 40-man roster is a mess and not too many players are guaranteed to be on the Opening Day roster, especially on the offense side. If he has a strong spring training, Rooker has a good chance to be on Oakland’s Opening Day roster. 2023 Season Start: Athletics Opening Day Roster 13. Akil Baddo Baddo’s disappointing 2022 season has been hashed on over, and over again. Fortunately for him, he is currently one of only four listed outfielders on the Tigers 40-man roster, meaning there’s a good chance he stays on the 26-man roster for Opening Day. Still, Baddo will have to prove his sophomore slump to be just that in Spring Training if he wants to bank on his chances of being on the road in Tampa for the Tigers’ opening series against the Rays. 2023 Season Start: Tigers Opening Day Roster 14. Matt Wallner The Forest Lake native had an impressive end to his 2022 season coming home to play in both Minneapolis and St. Paul. Wallner’s MLB debut was a bit rushed as the Twins outfield became completely depleted by September. With the addition of Gallo, the Twins left-handed hitting outfielders count is at six. Wallner is likely to start his 2023 season in St. Paul for a few weeks before returning to the Twins for more playing time. 2023 Season Start: Triple A St. Paul Saints 15. Gilberto Celestino Celestino logged 119 games in the outfield for the Twins in 2022, but with a lackluster performance at the plate all season, it’s likely the Twins will send him to Triple A to start the season. Celestino struggled on the field defensively as the 2022 season winded down as well. Having time with the Saints to have less pressure on his role as he did in 2022 with the Twins could help develop Celestino into a strong fourth outfielder again. 2023 Season Start: Triple A St. Paul Saints 16. Edwar Colina Colina had a cup of coffee with the Twins in 2020 making his MLB debut out of the bullpen for the final series of a 60-game season. Unfortunately, Colina has not pitched a professional game since then due to elbow issues. The Texas Rangers claimed Colina off waivers from the Twins on October 6, 2021, and has remained with the organization on a minor league deal. He turns 26 on May 3 and still could become an effective reliever out of their bullpen. 2023 Season Start: Triple A Round Rock Express 17. Nick Gordon Nick Gordon had a fantastic 2022 season amongst all the woes for the Twins last year. There is no doubt that he and Kyle Farmer are going to play heavy utility roles for the Twins in 2023. The main questions surrounding Gordon for 2023 are where he’ll receive the most playing time on the field and how often he’ll be in the lineup. The outfield is crowded for the Twins, especially in left field, plus Kyle Farmer and Jorge Polanco will be playing up the middle of the infield daily as they are better defenders at second and short. This is a good problem to have for Gordon as he will still contribute well to this Twins team. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 18. Travis Blankenhorn Blankenhorn, like Colina, had a quick cup of coffee with the Twins in 2020 playing in just one game against the White Sox in mid-September. He played one more game with the Twins in 2021 before being claimed off waivers not once, but three times and landing on the Mets. This off-season, Blankehorn signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals. He is not on their 40-man roster but with a depleted roster from their World Series win just a few years ago, there’s a good chance he can land some playing time in Rochester during this season. 2023 Season Start: Triple A Rochester Red Wings 19. Cole Sands Sands had an iffy 2022 season between his time with the Twins and Saints. He had an ERA north of 5.00 at both levels, demonstrating a need for development either as a starter or reliever in St. Paul for 2023. Sands will certainly not be in the Twins starting rotation for Opening Day and as long as the rotation stays healthy. He may end up as a bullpen piece when he’s up for the Twins throughout the 2023 season. 2023 Season Start: Triple A St. Paul Saints 20. Will Holland Holland was the Twins fifth overall pick in the 2019 Amateur Draft and spent his 2022 season between Cedar Rapids and Wichita. Holland’s numbers as a hitter have never been eye popping since being drafted. His Minor League career triple slash in three seasons sits at .217/.331/.380 with a .711 OPS. Fortunately, Holland’s versatility as a defender is his strength as he can play at each position up the middle of the field. 2023 Season Start: Double A Wichita Wind Surge 21. Misael Urbina Urbina had a decent year between the Mighty Mussels and Florida Complex League, totaling 60 games between the two levels in 2022. Urbina is still a ways out from becoming an impact player in the Major Leagues, though. He still needs to establish himself as an everyday outfielder between both A-level affiliates and even then, there’s the biggest jumpfrom High A to Double A. Urbina turns 21 in April, so age is on his side for making big jumps for the 2023 season. 2023 Season Start: Low-A Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels 22. Jose Miranda Miranda fluctuate up and down on Twins prospect lists through the years. Now he’s become the Twins everyday third baseman for the 2023 season. While Miranda had a strong rookie performance for the Twins in 2022. Many believe he will improve greatly both defensively at third and at the plate knowing he won’t move around the infield as often in 2023. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 23. Dakota Chalmers Chalmers has not been in the Twins organization since the beginning of 2021. He was moved over to the Cubs that season and spent a brief amount of the time with the Dodgers Triple A affiliate in 2022. Chalmers ended up leaving the Oklahoma City Dodgers mid season to join the Atlantic League’s Gastonia Honey Hunters. It is likely he will keep pitching in independent baseball to start 2023 and hope to find his way back into pro ball before the season is over. 2023 Season Start: Atlantic League 24. Yunior Severino Severino is another player who has slowly but surely worked his way up the Twins system in recent years. He had a solid season between Cedar Rapids and Wichita posting a .278/.370/.536 triple slash and .907 OPS between the two levels. Severino will most likely start in Wichita for 2023 but he is certainly a sleeper pick for Twins fans to keep an eye on once he gets the call up to St. Paul. 2023 Season Start: Double A Wichita Wind Surge 25. Jorge Alcala Both the Twins bullpen and fans missed Alcala dearly last season with his injury that kept him out almost all year. That being said, expectations for Alcala’s return are high going into the 2023 season. The Twins desperately need their bullpen to be much better than it was in 2022, but there is no telling as of now if Alcala will be the same pitcher as he was prior to his surgery on his right elbow for arthroscopic debridement. Alcala has had no setbacks in recovery and is still expected to be good to go for Spring Training. 2023 Season Start: Twins Opening Day Roster 26. Emmanuel Rodriguez Next to Brooks Lee, Emmanuel Rodriguez is the Twins prospect with the most hype and promise for what he can achieve for future Twins teams. Rodriguez only played in 47 games with the Mighty Mussles in 2022 as he battled injuries throughout the year. This season he’ll likely start in Ft. Myers again but all eyes will be on the soon to be 20-year-old's health and progression as a hitter. We'll see if he can make the jump from Ft. Myers to Cedar Rapids, and maybe even Wichita, before the 2023 season is over. 2023 Season Start: Low-A Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels. 27. Gabriel Maciel The Twins lost Maciel to the Oakland A’s in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft last offseason. He played decently across 62 games for their High A affiliate, the Lansing Lugnuts, in 2022 but was released by them at season’s end. Maciel remains a minor league free agent, currently. He has promise both as a hitter and defender but still has not played above High A baseball and will be turning 24 next week. Maciel’s numbers compared to Javier make him less of a gamble to sign and add to a Double A roster, but only time will tell if that ends up being his case. 2023 Season Start: Double A team TBD 28. Ben Rortvedt Rortvedt’s playing time in 2022 was limited to injuries and the Yankees (who acquired him in the Josh Donaldson trade) were able to maintain a good platoon at catcher between Jose Trevino and Kyle Higashioka. As long as both of them are healthy and the Yankees don’t opt to have three catchers on their Opening Day roster, he is most likely to start his 2023 season with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders at Triple A. 2023 Season Start: Triple A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders 29. Chris Vallimont The Twins lost Vallimont last season as the Baltimore Orioles claimed him off waivers and added him to their 40-man roster. While he pitched much better for their Double A team than he did for the Wind Surge, Vallimont still showed he wasn’t quite MLB ready having a 5.38 ERA in 72 innings for the Norfolk Tides. Vallimont is still seen as a starter by some and will likely be starting his season in Norfolk as long as he remains on the Orioles 40-man roster before spring training cuts happen. 2023 Season Start: Triple A Norfolk Tides 30. Josh Winder Winder’s 2022 season started decently as a rookie but he battled injuries and saw struggles as many Twins pitchers did for the season. Winder is still seen as a rotation option going into the 2023 season, but belongs in the same group as Louie Varnland and Simeon Woods Richardson as likely to start the season in St. Paul If Winder is to crack a spot on the Twins Opening Day roster, it will likely be in the bullpen. But given his struggles at the MLB level in 2022, the Twins are likely to opt him over to St. Paul to ensure he has regular time as a starter and redevelop himself into a better pitcher for 2023. 2023 Season Start: Triple A St. Paul Saints Total Prediction Spots for Players 2023 Seasons On the Twins Opening Day roster: 7 In the Twins System to start 2023: 11 On another MLB team’s Opening Day roster: 2 Starting in the Minor Leagues or Indy Ball: 6 On Injured List: 2 Inactive: 2 Much can still change between now and Opening Day for all of these players but in a perfect world of predictability, these are the most likely of spots for all of these 30 current or former prospects of the Twins to start the 2023 season. Where do you believe that these players to start their 2023 season? Leave your own predictions below.

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Louie Varland, 5 IP, 4H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 5K (78 pitches, 55 strikes, 70.5%) Home Runs: Gary Sanchez (16), Jermaine Palacios (2) Top 3 WPA: Gary Sánchez (.249), Jermaine Palacios (.088), Matt Wallner (.058) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Arráez is the American League batting champion! This is not breaking news, but… Luis Arraez has done it! Despite watching New York Yankee Aaron Judge briefly surpass him for the highest batting average in the American League, the Venezuelan hitting machine kept on hitting and regained first place, never letting it go again. He walked twice today before doubling to deep center in the third inning, raising his batting average to .316, and leaving the game after that. Even if he hadn’t doubled, his case for winning the crown was just too good. Coming into today, Arráez's batting average sat at .315, while Judge’s sat at .311. The Yankees outfielder would need to go 4-for-4 today just to match Arráez’s average while also hoping “La Regadera” would have some bad at-bats in Chicago. However, the Yankees decided not to play Judge for the day, making Arráez the batting champion right away. Even if Arráez had gone 0-for-4 for the day, his batting average would still be higher than that of Judge. Arráez becomes the fifth Twin to ever win the AL batting title, the first one since 2009, joining Tony Oliva (1964, 1965), Rod Carew (1969, 1971-75, 1977, 1978), Kirby Puckett (1989), and Joe Mauer (2006, 2008, 2009). He also becomes the sixth Venezuelan to win the distinction, the first one since 2017, joining Andres Galarraga, Magglio Ordonez, Carlos Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera, and Jose Altuve. The offense gets the job done early The game was basically decided after just two innings. The Twins' offense knocked around Chicago starter Davis Martin right out of the gate, building a six-run lead in the first inning. After Arráez drew a leadoff walk and was followed by a Gio Urshela single, Gary Sánchez obliterated a slider on the heart of the plate for a three-run rocket (106.2 MPH off his bat). On the very next at-bat, Jake Cave doubled to left, and he scored on a Matt Wallner single to center a couple of at-bats later. Then, Jermaine Palacios, who had hit his first major league home run on Tuesday night, made it back-to-back days with a dinger, taking Martin deep to left for a two-run jack, making it 6-0 Twins in the first. Three more runs scored in the second inning. Sánchez got another RBI with a double, bringing home Arráez from second after he got another leadoff walk and moved to second on a Nick Gordon single. That prompted a pitching change by Chicago, but it didn’t help. Both Sánchez and Gordon were pushed across by a Gilberto Celestino two-out single against reliever Vince Velasquez, making it 9-0 Minnesota. Things could’ve gotten even worse for Chicago in the third, as the offense loaded the bases with only one out against Velasquez. One of those runners was Arráez and his double, shortly before being lifted for pinch runner Jose Miranda. But this time, one run was all Minnesota could get after a Gordon sacrifice fly to score Caleb Hamilton. Varland takes advantage, secures first big league win Making his fifth start in the majors, rookie Louie Varland was still chasing his first big league win. Before today’s game, he had lost two and gotten a couple of no-decisions. Also, in his previous four starts, Varland had failed to prevent runs from scoring. He would reach both of those personal milestones by the end of the fifth inning today. Against an uninspired White Sox offense, Varland looked more comfortable than in any of his big league starts so far. He allowed a couple of hits early, one in each of the two first innings, including a leadoff double in the second. He pitched around that with three consecutive strikeouts. Despite not missing a lot of bats, Varland didn’t allow quality contact. Chicago hitters had an average 79.3 MPH exit velocity against him. Varland completed five on 78 pitches, throwing over 70% strikes. Also, this was the first start in his short big league career in which he didn’t allow a walk. Cole Sands pitched the rest of the way, and Chicago’s offense didn't pose a threat against him until the final inning, when they put two men on and scored a run, but Sands secured the four-inning save. With the win today, the Twins finish the season with a frustrating 78-84 record, but they do salvage one thing: they take the series season against the Sox with 10 wins in 19 games. Postgame interview Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Sands 0 0 0 0 59 59 Jax 0 12 21 0 0 33 Sanchez 0 0 0 33 0 33 López 0 18 0 9 0 27 Fulmer 0 26 0 0 0 26 Moran 0 0 0 21 0 21 Pagán 0 0 5 15 0 20 Thielbar 0 0 15 0 0 15 Duran 0 0 0 0 0 0

It was a vastly different experience going to that little ballpark compared to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, but watching unknown minor leaguers play on those fields always filled my mind with delusions of grandeur to be like them one day—a professional baseball player chasing their dream to become a Major Leaguer. That is the main reason I do a little bit different of a list heading into a new season than all those “Top Prospects” lists you see here at Twins Daily, on MLB.com, or at other outlets like FanGraphs and Baseball America. There are so many of them these days I don’t think this amateur scout can tell you anything you haven’t already heard. Instead, I want to recognize all those guys who have worked hard to get where they are, whether they’re a top prospect or not, and whom you might see make their MLB debut at Target Field during the upcoming season—those ready to make their childhood dreams like mine come true. Across all of Major League Baseball during the 2021 season, 265 players made their Major League debut, with eight members of the Minnesota Twins organization contributing to that number. They included pitchers Charlie Barnes, Griffin Jax, Jovani Moran, Bailey Ober, and Joe Ryan, as well as position players Gilberto Celestino, Nick Gordon, Trevor Larnach, and Ben Rortvedt. All four of those hitters and pitchers Jax and Ober were profiled in this same column before the start of the 2021 season, and you’ll see some of the same names in this list below for the 2022 calendar year that didn’t quite make the jump. So, who are the prospects that could make their Major League debut and become the next Minnesota Twins during the 2022 season? ON THE 40-MAN ROSTER: The Twins enter the 2022 season with a 40-man MLB roster that does not have much room for position players yet to make their MLB debut. That list is just two players, but any fan should be excited about the names that are included in this section. There is, however, much more room for pitchers in both the starting rotation and the bullpen, and the top end talent is almost all at the top of their system to start the 2022 season. Royce Lewis (22 years old on opening day), IF/OF – Twins Daily’s #2 Prospect (Lewis made his MLB debut on 5/6, playing SS against the Oakland Athletics and batting 7th. He finished 1-for-4, picking up a single in the 8th inning of a 2-1 win) It’s hard to gauge where Royce Lewis is at in his development, given he’s missed two entire years’ worth of time due to Covid and tearing his ACL. But when we last saw him, he was crushing in the Arizona Fall League to the point he took home the league’s MVP award. He has continued to work on his swing while off the field, and I expect big things during the 2022 season when he finds his footing. The biggest question continues to be what position he will play when he reaches the majors. I have been critical of his shortstop play in the past, but there is no doubt he can be an elite defender in the outfield. He excelled at third base in the AFL as well if that does not work out. That is to say, if he’s hitting well and anyone in the outfield or middle infield on the Major League roster goes out for an extended period, it would not surprise me at all if Lewis is the name that gets called to fill in if he is hitting. Plus, he looked good at short for the Saints on Tuesday if you were wondering: Jordan Balazovic (23), RHP – TD’s #4 Prospect Balazovic is ticketed for the starting rotation with the St. Paul Saints in 2022, though he will start the season on the Injured List with a left knee strain. While he does not necessarily get the accolades around his pure “stuff” that some of the other guys on this list do, he has been one to get better results as he’s climbed the ladder. That can be attributed some to having better command, but he has also shown steady improvement with his offerings year over year, showcased by his fastball averaging around 96 MPH with Wichita last season. One thing going against him is innings, as his 97 in 2021 were a career high after missing the first two months with a back injury. There is little doubt when it comes to Balazovic that he will break through as a starting pitcher and stay there when he reaches the majors, compared to others further down this list. Jose Miranda (23), 3B – TD’s #3 Prospect (Miranda made his MLB debut on 5/2, playing third base and batting sixth against the Baltimore Orioles. He was 0-for-4 in a 2-1 Twins win) The thing with Miranda was never about talent, as the Twins had always seen a good bat in the infielder from Puerto Rico. However, before the 2021 season that bat had never quite lived up to expectations, producing just one season with an OPS above .750 and that was all the way back in rookie ball. But coaches continued to encourage him to alter his approach and wait for pitches he could do damage with, instead of swinging first and asking questions later. He took it to heart and ran with it for the 2021 season, enroute to one of the most impressive Minor League seasons you have ever seen from a Twins prospect. He led all of the minors in total bases, clubbing 32 doubles and 30 home runs in 127 games between Wichita and St. Paul. He finished with a .344/.401/.572 slash line and rocketed up prospect lists by the end of the year. He’s basically only a corner infielder and won’t win any Gold Glove awards with his defense, but if he’s even close to repeating those hitting numbers in 2022 at triple-A, his bat will force the issue sooner rather than later. Jhoan Duran (24), RHP – TD’s #7 Prospect (Duran made his MLB debut on opening day, pithing two innings against the Seattle Mariners. He allowed two hits, walked one, and struck out four in a scoreless outing) Whether they’ve been trying or not, since I’ve been a fan of the Twins they have always had a velocity problem. Duran is one of the pitchers who can continue to change that, whether that comes as a starter or a reliever. He has size, is capable of hitting 100+ MPH with his fastball, and throws a weird sinker he can play off that velocity to get swings and misses. Like many young hurlers, consistency is key and despite his stuff he has had trouble maintaining that start-to-start in the past. When he is on Duran is fully capable of dominating an outing, but has thrown only 16 innings in live games since the end of the 2019 season. If you were asking me before the start of Spring Training, I would have fully expected Duran to begin the season in the St. Paul Saints rotation. Instead, he has been absolutely dominant in his outings thus far and will come North with the Twins to start the year! Josh Winder (25), RHP – TD’s #9 Prospect (Winder made his MLB debut on 4/12, pitching one inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He allowed one run on two walks and struck out one. He made his first MLB start on 5/1, and picked up the win with 6 innings of shutout baseball. He allowed just two hits, walked one, and struck out seven against the Tampa Bay Rays) A casual fan may not recognize Winder’s name as much as others, but I recommend paying a lot more attention to him this season. I have seen evidence from the Twins over the past two years that they may think he is the best of the starting pitching bunch they have approaching the majors. Plus, as of writing this he is still on the bubble to come North to Minneapolis instead of St. Paul to start the 2022 season. While he only threw 72 innings last year, they were so good that he was the Twins representative to play in the Futures Game during All Star Weekend. He was promoted to triple-A immediately after that and made four starts for the Saints before being shut down for the rest of the season with a shoulder impingement. He was solid in his outings this spring, starting three games (meaning he was facing mostly MLB players) and allowing just two runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out nine in eight total innings pitched. While there is no reason for the Twins to put him in the bullpen permanently, it would not shock me to see him as part of a 16-man pitching staff to start the season in a piggy-backing role. I can even envision him performing better than whomever he follows to the point he takes over when rosters get cut down from 28 players. Cole Sands (24), RHP – TD’s #13 Prospect (Sands made his MLB debut on 5/1, pitching two innings of relief against the Tampa Bay Rays. He allowed two earned runs on three hits, and struck out two.) Making his professional debut during the 2019 season, Sands was a standout performer and as a result pitched at three levels, reaching double-A for one start to end the year. He finished the season with a 2.68 ERA and struck out 108 hitters over 97 1/3 innings. He followed that up in 2021 by dominating with Wichita to the tune of a 2.46 ERA and 96 strikeouts across 80 1/3 innings. He missed some time due to an injury, but will be in the Saints rotation to start the 2022 season. His path reminds me a bit of one Bailey Ober and if the Twins can get more of that, they would be ecstatic. Since he is on the 40-man roster, you never know—if he is lined up to pitch on the right day, an injury on the Twins could spur a cab ride across the river to Target Field at any point. Drew Strotman (25), RHP The second half of the trade package the Twins received from the Tampa Bay Rays for Nelson Cruz, Strotman was thought by some evaluators to be the better prospect in the deal at the time. I do not think that is the case now, considering Joe Ryan is slated to pitch opening day for the Twins while Strotman fell off a bit after coming over, but it should give you an idea of how well the Twins did in that trade to get both of those guys. He throws in the mid-90s with a good cutter that catches the attention of scouts, but command has been a bit of an issue since having Tommy John Surgery back in 2018. He is being fully transitioned to the bullpen in 2022 and could turn into another high-octane option there as the season progresses. Ronny Henriquez (21), RHP – TD’s #16 Prospect (Henriquez made his MLB debut on September 19th against the Cleveland Guardians, pitching four innings of long-relief. He allowed three runs on four hits while walking two and striking out two.) With the flurry of trade activity that happened after the lockout ended, the Twins ended up with an intriguing right-hander from the Texas Rangers in sending off Mitch Garver. You will hear a lot about his size or lack thereof, but there is a lightning arm attached to his right shoulder that hits the mid-90s with ease. He has consistently piled up strikeouts and limited baserunners, but the long ball has been a bugaboo as he gave up nearly two per nine innings pitched in double-A last season. He has primarily started games in his pro career thus far and should continue to do so with the Twins, but his profile sounds a lot like a future reliever when it is all said and done. Chris Vallimont (25), RHP The moniker of the “Vallimonster” is apt for the right-hander, as he can perform quite the Jekyll and Hyde routine whenever he is on the mound. He paired a 13.0/9IP strikeout rate with a 5.8/9IP walk rate during the 2021 season and if you go game to game, you will see that up and down nature in his stat lines as well. A switch to the bullpen to maximize his pure stuff in shorter stints is something to watch for during the season if that pattern continues. TOP PROSPECTS: Consider this entry more of a “not-yet-on-the-40-man-roster” section heading into this season since a lot of the top prospects have already appeared above, but what remains below still holds the theme that these guys are close to Major League ready. All three of them are on the double-A roster of the Wichita Wind Surge to start the year, with a few of them sure to move up quickly when the 40-man depth above is called upon by the Twins. Austin Martin (23), IF/OF – TD’s #1 Prospect The top prospect on our board, it is slightly odd that Martin returns to double-A to start the season after spending all of the 2021 season there, but he does have some things to work on. Those being his defense at shortstop (or elsewhere), and tapping into some power that may have been hindered by a wrist injury throughout last year. That said, he posted a .414 on-base percentage in 93 games that led all of double-A and you would be hard-pressed to find a more prototypical leadoff hitter anywhere in the minors. As soon as a spot opens up in St. Paul I expect Martin to be promoted, but the depth the Twins have when it comes to position players pushes a debut timeline out to later in the summer. He is the type of talent who can force that issue sooner rather than later, however. Simeon Woods Richardson (21), RHP – TD’s #8 Prospect (Woods Richardson made his debut on 10/2 on the road against the Detroit Tigers. He went 5 innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits, walked two, and struck out three in a 5-2 loss.) Plenty of people seem to be down on SWR going into the 2022 season, but I am not one of them. You cannot blame him for the 2020 season being canceled or for competing in the Olympics (though he didn’t pitch at all) in the middle of the 2021 campaign. There was absolutely some rust to shake off by the time he put on a Wind Surge uniform, but he did flash what makes him highly regarded as well: A key point to consider with him in comparison to every other player on this list is his age. Even after missing a full season, he was only 20 years old and pitching in double-A at the beginning of last year. Especially for the Twins, this is a rare occurrence. Jose Berrios, for example, had turned 21 a couple of months before he reached double-A and was the quickest moving pitcher the Twins had produced in a long time. If he can reign back in his control, Berrios is also a great comp for the type of ceiling we are talking about for Woods Richardson, who has dwarfed any strikeout rates the former Twins pitcher ever produced in the minors. Matt Canterino (23), RHP – TD’s #6 Prospect Canterino finds himself in double-A to start the 2022 season despite pitching only 23 total innings last year with Cedar Rapids. That was due to elbow troubles, which is a legitimate concern moving forward given his history coming out of Rice University and herky-jerky mechanics, but you cannot deny the numbers. He struck out over half the hitters he faced while walking only four in his time on the mound, resulting in a 0.78 ERA and 0.61 WHIP. His stuff is electric, with a fastball that can reach the high 90’s and a slider and changeup that are both legitimate swing-and-miss offerings as well. Due to those health concerns, there are many evaluators who see the bullpen in his future, but if you are looking for a pitcher that can make some serious noise during the 2022 campaign, Canterino is your guy. MINOR LEAGUE DEPTH: While these players may not necessarily be top prospects, they are at or near the top of the system and have performed well to get themselves there. It could be a situation where a pitcher is lined up to pitch on the right day the Twins need a spot-start across the river at Target Field, or an injury leads to needing a specific position covered and there is no other ready replacement available. Maybe something new has clicked and they have improved their stock from internal evaluators. No matter how it happens, players like these are always needed at some point during the MLB season. Ryan Mason (26), RHP Mason has been a standout performer in the bullpens of Twins affiliates since being taken in the 13th round of the 2016 draft. Missing the 2020 season hurt guys like him more than most, but he came back in 2021 to post stellar numbers and finished the final two months of the season in St. Paul. While there, he posted a career-high strikeout rate of 12.1/9IP, and guys like him are always among my favorites to root for. Yennier Cano (27), RHP (Even though he didn't throw a pitch as the game was suspended, Yennier Cano was credited with his MLB debut on 5/11 against the Houston Astros. When he did take the mound the next day, he delivered two perfect innings before running into some trouble in his third. In total, he allowed three runs on three hits, and struck out two.) A sneaky international signing all the way back in 2019, Cano finally got to showcase his talents for a full season during the 2021 campaign, spending the bulk of it in St. Paul. He boasts a mid-90s fastball and deep repertoire, as well as an intimidating mound presence that reminds me a lot of Aroldis Chapman (both are around 6’4” and 230 lbs). He will need to reign in the walks that spiked once he reached triple-A, but certainly looks the part of a bullpen horse. Mark Contreras (27), OF (Contreras made his MLB debut on 5/12, when the suspended game from the day before resumed he took over for Byron Buxton, playing left field. He finished 0-for-2, but scored a run and drove in one with a sac fly in the 11-3 loss to the Houston Astros.) Contreras made his mark in the Twins organization with his defense, taking home a MiLB Gold Glove award after the 2019 season, but something clicked for him in the batter’s box in 2021. Spending the bulk of the year with St. Paul, the lefty nearly matched his career home run total to that point (23) with 20 on the year, 18 of them coming in his 95 games at triple-A. I would not expect Contreras to get the call as a long-term starter in the majors, but you can do a lot worse with a fourth outfielder type as he can play all the outfield positions well, including center in a pinch. Jermaine Palacios (25), IF (Palacios made his MLB debut on 5/31, playing SS in both games of a doubleheader. He picked up his first run scored, and hit, by finishing the day 1-for6 with a BB) Palacios is a bit buried on an organizational depth chart with the names Carlos Correa, Royce Lewis, and Austin Martin in the fold, but what he has above the other two prospects is that he is definitely a shortstop. That fact plays against him a little for the 2022 season as those two prospects above him need the work, but he is in triple-A where he will be moved around the infield depending on the day. He also showed some pop with 19 home runs for Wichita last year, and was also spectacular in the Venezuelan Winter League during the offseason, posting a .987 OPS in 42 games. DARK HORSES: There always seems to be a player or two who comes out of nowhere to make a surprise debut during the season. They might be a known name but are not that far up the ladder at the season’s outset, returning from an injury so they have been forgotten some, or have a unique skill set or background that is intriguing and could pay big dividends if something else falls into place. These are my shots in the dark at guys that could be in 2022. Jordan Gore (27), RHP The former shortstop begins the season as a high-leverage option out of the St. Paul Saints bullpen. He split time between Cedar Rapids and Wichita during the 2021 season, picking up seven saves and striking out 11.7/9IP with a WHIP below 1.00. Plus, he has great hair. Louie Varland (24), RHP – TD’s #14 Prospect (Varland made his MLB debut on 9/7 against the New York Yankees on the road. He was fantastic, going 5 1/3 innings, striking out Aaron Judge for his first career strikeout. He allowed two runs on three hits, walked one, and struck out seven) First of all, he is #OneOfUs, growing up in Maplewood and being drafted out of Concordia University in St. Paul in the 15th round of the 2019 draft. Second of all, he is the reigning Twins and Twins Daily’s, Minor League Pitcher of the Year. That is because he struck out 142 hitters in 103 innings pitched last season split between Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids. He is buried on a starting pitching depth chart at this point, but if he continues that type of dominance in double-A and eventually triple-A this season, there will be a spot for him at some point. Edouard Julien (22), OF – TD’s #19 Prospect I have long been a fan of the type of player Julien was during the 2021 season, where he led all of the minors in walks (110 in 112 games) and had an on-base percentage flirting with .500 for a large chunk of the season. He also tapped into some power upon being promoted to Cedar Rapids, launching 15 homers in 65 games after getting out of the Florida State League. He starts the 2022 season with Wichita, and he and Austin Martin should prove extremely annoying to double-A pitching for much of the summer. So, there you have it, my picks for some of the minor league players I think could be called up to the majors and put on a Minnesota Twins uniform for the first time during the coming season. When do you think any of them will show up at Target Field? Who are you looking forward to the most? And who are some of the prospects you think I have missed that could make that jump? Let’s play ball!

Last winter, it was clear to anyone looking at the Twins roster that the team needed frontline starting pitching. There were other off-season needs, but they only had Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober penciled into the rotation and many other question marks. Minnesota had the financial flexibility to sign frontline starting pitching, but the club decided to go in a different direction. With the pending lockout, the Twins front office watched most frontline free agent starters ink contracts with other organizations. Minnesota's lone signing before the lockout was Dylan Bundy, who figured to fit into the rotation's back half. It was tough to decipher how the Twins expected to fill the rotation, but the team's plan became clear as spring training inched closer. Following the lockout, Sonny Gray was the Twins' biggest offseason pitching acquisition. He was a clear frontline starter and pitched that way during the 2022 season. The team added Chris Archer to join Bundy at the back of the rotation, and Chris Paddack joined the club in a last-minute deal before Opening Day. All these arms impacted the 2022 Twins, but the club wanted to rely on the young pitching in the system to supplement the veteran arms. Derek Falvey was brought to Minnesota because of his experience with the Cleveland organization. During his Cleveland tenure, one of his calling cards was cultivating young pitching, which has been a staple of the Guardians organization. Minnesota was going to start the 2022 campaign with Ryan and Ober in the rotation, but there were expectations that other young pitchers would join their ranks. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case, and Minnesota's pitching pipeline may have taken a step back this season. As the season began, it looked like the Twins had plenty of pitching prospects in the upper minors that had the potential to impact the roster. Minnesota had five upper minors starting pitchers ranked in their top-10 prospects, and others rounded out their top-20 list. Ryan had an up-and-down season as a rookie, but he is on pace to set the team's rookie record for strikeouts. Josh Winder and Cole Sands have combined to pitch just over 80 big league innings, with both missing games due to injury. Louie Varland saw his stock rise the most out of this group as he pitched well in the upper minors before making his big league debut in September. Matt Canterino and Jordan Balazovic were arguably the team's top pitching prospects entering the 2022 campaign, but it was a lost season for both. Canterino dominated on the mound in 13 appearances, but he needed Tommy John surgery before the season's end. Balazovic was on pace to debut in 2022, but he struggled at Triple-A and is now getting back on track. Besides Varland, Simeon Woods Richardson helped his stock the most this season, and he deserves to make some starts for the Twins down the stretch. Many will blame injuries for the Twins' failures during the 2022 season. However, the lack of contributions from the pitching pipeline is also concerning. Not every pitching prospect can be successful throughout their professional careers, and there is hope that some of these arms will get healthy in the offseason. As Minnesota's focus turns to 2023, the front office might not be able to rely as heavily on the pitching pipeline when building next year's roster. Did the pitching pipeline plan fail in 2022? Is there hope for improvement in 2023? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

TRANSACTIONS LHP Jovani Moran recalled by Minnesota Twins RHP Ben Heller released by organization RHP Juan Minaya released by organization RHP Tyler Thornburg released by organization SAINTS SENTINEL Omaha 4, St. Paul 2 Box Score Josh Winder continues his return from the injured list now pitching for the Saints. He’s said to be in play for a bullpen role this month with Minnesota, and he was letting it fly knowing the outing would be shorter. His fastball sat 95-96 mph throughout his outing, and he touched 97 mph as well. Winder finished four innings allowing just a single hit and an unearned run. He struck out three. The Saints got on the board first, scoring in the 2nd inning on a pair of back-to-back jacks. John Andreoli nearly wore a pitch and then went way out to left center for his 12th of the season. Braden Bishop followed with a blast to left as well, and St. Paul was up 2-0. After an unearned run brought Omaha within one, a solo shot off Randy Dobnak in the 5th inning tied it up. Dobnak touched 94 mph with his fastball, and did get a nice strikeout on his offspeed to the second batter he saw. The Saints and Storm Chasers were knotted at two with two hits apiece when rehabbing Twins pitcher Cole Sands took over in the 7th inning. Omaha was able to manufacture a run in the 8th inning to take the lead and then tagged Sands for another in the 9th inning to double up the Saints. Down to their final at bat, St. Paul sent Chris Williams, Andreoli, and pinch hitter Michael Helman to the dish. Unfortunately they went down in order and that's how this one ended. WIND SURGE WISDOM Springfield 4, Wichita 3 (F/10) Box Score The Wind Surge had Daniel Gossett up tonight. He was great going five scoreless innings allowing just two hits and three walks. Gossett also struck out a trio of batters. After two scoreless frames to begin the game, Wichita got on the board with a three-run 3rd inning. Jair Camargo stepped in and blasted a three-run shot to centerfield. It was his 11th of the season and brought in both Austin Martin and Edouard Julien. Neither side could push anything else across through the 5th inning and the score stayed close. After Gossett exited in the 6th inning, Springfield immediately came to life. Three runs scored and the game was all tied heading to the 7th inning. Neither side could push across the go-ahead tally until extra. Springfield scored their runner from second base and completed the walk-off comeback. KERNELS NUGGETS Game 1: Dayton 8 Cedar Rapids 7 (F/7) Box Score Playing a twin bill today, Cedar Rapids began the afternoon starting Jaylen Nowlin. He went 3 1/3 innings allowing three runs on six hits. Bowling also struck out five while walking three. Cedar Rapids raced out to an early lead scoring three in the 1st inning. Brooks Lee scored on a fielder’s choice from Kyler Fedko before a Seth Gray single drove in Pat Winkel. Wander Javier capped off the three-run inning with a sacrifice fly to plate Fedko. After giving two back in the bottom of the 1st inning, Cedar Rapids let in another four in the 4th inning, and two more in the 5th inning. Facing a five run deficit, they looked to rally in the top of the 7th inning. Jake Rucker roped his 15th double to drive in Dylan Neuse, and Lee then crushed his 4th homer for the Kernels. Gray hit his 16th home run of the season a few batters later, but the one run deficit still remained and was where this one ended. Game 2: Dayton 7, Cedar Rapids 0 Box Score Jon Olsen took the ball for Cedar Rapids in game two but was chased after just 1 1/3 innings. He allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits. Olsen fanned one and allowed one free pass. Both teams matched zeroes during the 1st inning during the nightcap, but the Dragons exploded for five runs in the 2nd inning. A pair of singles and a double gave them all the run production they’d need, despite adding a two-run blast in the 6th inning for good measure. Former Twins prospect Chase Petty made the start for Dayton in game two and went five scoreless allowing just two hits and striking out two. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 11, Bradenton 2 Box Score The Mighty Mussels turned to righty Jordan Carr this afternoon and he turned in five scoreless innings. Carr allowed just three hits and a walk while striking out four Marauders. Fort Myers didn’t wait long to get on the board this afternoon. In the 2nd inning Keoni Cavaco roped his 18th double to score Rubel Cespedes. He then came home on Dillon Tatum’s 6th dinger of the season. In the 3rd inning Carlos Aguiar recorded his 9th double of the season, plating both Noah Cardenas and Ben Ross. The lead extended to 5-0 now, Fort Myers went scoreless in the 4th inning. They weren’t done adding however, and in the 5th inning Cespedes drove in Cardenas with a sacrifice fly. Looking to continue the run scoring, Kala’i Rosario stayed hot and singled in the top of the 6th inning with Tanner Schobel racing home. Cardenas then recorded his 17th double to drive in Rosario from third base. Misael Urbina got into the action with a 7th inning sacrifice fly before Daniel Ozoria hit his first homer in the 9th inning. The two run shot erased runs by Bradenton in the bottom of the 8th inning. Ozoria was playing in his 299th professional game, and the dinger was just the third of his career. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Josh Winder (St. Paul) - 4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K Hitter of the Day – Brooks Lee (Cedar Rapids) - 3-7, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B, HR(4) PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #2 - Brooks Lee (Cedar Rapids) - 3-7, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B, HR(4) #4 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 1-3, R, 3 BB, 2B #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-1, BB, 2 K #14 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1-3, R, 2 BB, K #17 - Cole Sands (Minnesota) - Rehab with St. Paul - 2.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2K #18 - Tanner Schobel (Fort Myers) - 1-4, 2 R, 2 BB #19 - Alerick Soularie (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3 #20 - Kala’i Rosario (Fort Myers) - 2-4, R, RBI TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Toledo (5:35PM CST) - RHP Ariel Jurado NW Arkansas @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - TBD South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games! It sure is exciting to have all four Twins full-season affiliates back and playing.

TRANSACTIONS Pitcher Cole Sands began a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul SAINTS SENTINEL Omaha 5, St. Paul 1 Box Score Louie Varland has been among the best pitchers in the Twins system this season and was on the bump for St. Paul tonight. He worked 4 1/3 innings giving up two runs on four hits. He didn’t allow a walk and struck out three. Matt Wallner has drawn plenty of excitement with his bat this year, but it was a sliding catch in the second inning that saved extra bases. The Storm Chasers got a run in the 4th inning on a sacrifice fly before a 5th inning solo shot ended Varland’s night. St. Paul found themselves halving the lead in the 6th inning when a passed ball allowed him to scamper home. Omaha added one in the 7th inning and two in the 8th inning to pull away, however, and the Saints never had a rally in them. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 5, Springfield 4 Box Score The Wind Surge gave the pill to Cody Laweryson tonight in Springfield. Wichita’s starter went 4 2/3 allowing just a single run on five hits. Laweryson punched out six and didn’t surrender a walk. His ERA is now down to 1.03. Bryan Sammons took over in the 5th inning, and after recording the final out of that frame, he gave up a three-run dinger in the 6th inning. The Cardinals found themselves with breathing room up 4-0. In the 7th inning, it became time for the Wind Surge to answer. Leobaldo Cabrera stepped in and singled home Yunior Severino. Star prospect Austin Martin then roped his third triple of the season to bring home both Anthony Prato and Cabrera. All of a sudden it was a one-run game. The Wind Surge weren’t going to go out quietly, and walks from Prato and Will Holland to start the 9th inning gave them a chance. Edouard Julien then stepped up and ripped a line drive single to score both runners and take the lead. KERNELS NUGGETS Dayton 9, Cedar Rapids 4 Box Score Cedar Rapids turned to Luis Rijo in this one and it was an outing he’d rather forget. Rijo didn’t record an out and gave up five runs on just one hit. The bugaboo was three walks in the inning. Two of the runs against Rijo came on bases-loaded walks. Down 6-0 by the bottom of the 2nd inning, the Kernels got on the board when Dylan Neuse singled in Seth Gray during the 4th inning. In the 6th inning, Cedar Rapids continued to claw away. A balk brought in Gray before Jake Rucker singled to score Jeferson Morales and Willie Joe Garry Jr. Unfortunately for the Kernels, Dayton plated three more runs to pull away, and that was where this one ended. MUSSEL MATTERS Bradenton 8, Fort Myers 7 Box Score Pierson Ohl took the ball this afternoon for the Mighty Mussels and turned in five solid innings while working around seven hits. He did give up three runs, but limited additional damage allowing just one walk and striking out two. Fort Myers scored first, right in the opening salvo, when Kala’i Rosario singled to drive in Tanner Schobel. Unfortunately, that was the only lead they’d have in this one. By the time the Mighty Mussels came up in the top of the 6th inning they trailed 3-1. Rosario once again was ready to do damage and launched a homer, his 11th of the year, to score Ben Ross and tie things up. The Marauders wound up adding in the 6th and 7th innings to jump ahead 8-3. Heading into the 9th inning, Fort Myers saw an uphill battle, but they were ready to work. Luis Baez triples to drive in Keoni Cavaco and Alec Sayre. He then came home during the next at-bat on a passed ball. Down just two, Rosario continued his good day with another single, scoring Ross and bringing the good guys within one. That’s where the rally ended, however, and this was a tough one-run defeat. Fort Myers managed just five hits on the day but definitely made this one interesting. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cody Laweryson (Wichita) - 4.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K Hitter of the Day – Kala’i Rosario (Fort Myers) - 3-5, R, 4 RBI, HR(11) PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. #2 - Brooks Lee (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, BB #4 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 1-5, 2 RBI, 3B, 2 K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-4, R, 2B, 2 BB #12 - Louie Varland (St. Paul) - 4.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K #14 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 2-4, 2 RBI, BB, K #17 - Cole Sands (St. Paul) - 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K #18 - Tanner Schobel (Fort Myers) - 1-4, R, BB, 2 K, 2B #20 - Kala'i Rosario (Fort Myers) - 3-5, R, 4 RBI, HR(11) THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07PM CST) - RHP Ronny Henriquez Wichita @ Springfield (6:35PM CST) - RHP Kody Funderburk Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (6:05PM CST) - RHP David Festa Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Monday’s games! It sure is exciting to have all four Twins full-season affiliates back and playing.

Box Score Starting Pitcher: Aaron Sanchez 4.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO (75-50) Homeruns: None Bottom 3 WPA: Jake Cave -.246, Aaron Sanchez A -.104, Gary Sanchez G -,092 Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Life comes are you fast. A week ago, the Twins were in the midst of a 9-0 demolition of the Royals, at the mid-point of an optimism catalyzing four-game win streak. Today, they are spiraling. A series in Houston was never going to be appetizing, no matter the form or health of the roster. The Minnesota Twins’ stars, however, have aligned in a tragedy of Shakespearian proportions, with the illusive ‘TBD’ pitcher to face Justin Verlander being named as Aaron Sanchez. Dylan Bundy and Chris Archer are slated to start game two and three respectively. Inhale, exhale, puke. The Twins star-crossed roster was also reeling from the news that Byron Buxton hit the IL for the first time in 2022 with a hip strain on Tuesday afternoon. Before any twitter bots with binary code in their handles get to say ‘I told you so’, let’s take a moment to commend the Twins on their plan to maximize Buxton’s time on the field so far in 2022. He’s played 92 games in 2022 (100 combined in 2020 and 2021) and has been worth 4.0 fWAR thus far on the season. Get well soon, Byron. Twins Offense Late to Ballpark, Arrives at Minute Maid in the Seventh Inning Carlos Correa singled in the top of the seventh inning. Max Kepler and Gio Urshela had back to back hits in the top of the eighth. No runners scored. The Twins offense finally delivered 'something' in the ninth inning, a walk and three hits plating Luis Arraez and Jorge Polanco to score their first runs of the game. This concludes all relevant updates on the Twins offense in game one of their series in Houston. Baldelli Ejected in Fifth Inning Following Bench Clearance Aaron Sanchez performed solidly against one of the best teams in baseball in his first four innings. He surrendered two runs on a Mauricio Dubon single in the second inning, and back-to-back doubles from Kyle Tucker and Trey Mancini in the fourth, the latter of which Nick Gordon seemed to slightly misjudge in center field. In the bottom of the fifth inning, Jose Altuve was hit by a pitch. Altuve and Sanchez exchanged words, leading to a pedestrian bench clearance. The clearance was apparently designated as a mound visit by home plate umpire Rob Drake. When Pete Maki came out to visit with Sanchez after a Yuli Gurriel walk, the umpires designated it the second visit of the inning, mandating that Sanchez be removed from the game. Rocco Baldelli lost it, and was ejected in the subsequent argument, giving Cole Sands plenty of time to warm up in long relief. Twins Offense Less Futile, Still Pretty Futile Against Astros Pen With eyes on loftier goals, the Astros removed Verlander after six no-hit innings and 10 strikeouts. On another day, I’d be more inclined to compliment the longevity and dominance of one of the best pitchers of his generation, tonight, I was just baffled by how inept the Twins offense looked. Cole Sands, who had pitched effectively in relief, exited the game in the seventh inning after being struck in the arm by a comebacker. Trevor Megill relieved Sands and surrendered a two-run homer to Alex Bregman, extended the Astros lead to 4-0. After a couple of wobbles, the Astros bullpen saw off the Twins for the final three innings. Under normal circumstances, surrendering just four runs away at Houston would give an effective offense a good chance to win a tricky road test. This Twins offense however, is just not effective. Four runs was more than enough, and the Twins fell to 62-59 on the season, losing their fourth game in a row. Bullpen Usage Chart FRI SAT SUN MON TUE TOT Pagán 0 0 39 0 14 53 Megill 24 0 15 0 8 47 Thielbar 17 11 0 12 0 40 Sands 0 0 0 0 38 38 López 20 9 0 0 0 29 Jax 0 11 0 14 0 25 Fulmer 0 0 0 12 0 12 Duran 10 0 0 0 0 10 Next Up On Wednesday, the Twins will continue their series against Houston. Dylan Bundy goes for the Twins against Framber Valdez for the Astros. First pitch is 7:10pm CT Postgame Interviews