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If we have learned anything over the past couple of years, it's that when the Twins draft a college pitcher on the third day of the draft, don't just assume they will be an organizational filler. Who knows? That Day 3 draft pick may become an organizational thriller (like Louie Varland, Bailey Ober). A look through the top starting pitchers in the Twins minor leaguers, we see more examples of this. Pitchers drafted out of college on Day 2 or 3 fill up much of this list. The Twins 2022 college draft picks helped lead the Cedar Rapids Kernels to the Midwest League championship this year. It's fun to see these pitchers enter the organization with one scouting report, and one or two years later, they have added four to six mph of velocity and a second and/or third pitch that are now at least an average pitch. Before getting into the top four starters, here are some others who received votes. . Others Receiving Votes RHP C.J. Culpepper, 21, Fort Myers/Cedar Rapids: 21 GS, 86.0 IP, 72 H, 31 BB, 89 K, 3.18 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 3.2 BB/9, 9.3 K/9. RHP Andrew Morris, 22, Fort Myers/Cedar Rapids: 18 G, 17 GS, 84.1 IP, 86 H, 19 BB, 79 K, 2.88 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 2.0 BB/9, 8.4 K/9. RHP Marco Raya, 21, Cedar Rapids/Wichita: 22 GS, 62.2 IP, 45 H, 22 BB, 65 K, 4.02 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 3.2 BB/9, 9.3 K/9. RHP Louie Varland, 25, St. Paul: 16 G, 15 GS, 81.2 IP, 84 H, 26 BB, 88 K, 3.97 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 9.7 K/9. Others Receiving Votes Blayne Enlow, Ben Ethridge, Ronny Henriquez, Simeon Woods Richardson Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year Here are the top four vote-getters for Twins Starting Pitcher of the Year. 4. RHP David Festa, 23, Wichita/St. Paul 24 G, 22 GS, 92.1 IP, 86 H, 42 BB, 119 K, 4.19 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 4.1 BB/9, 11.6 K/9. Festa was the Twins 13th round pick in 2021 out of Seton Hall. He had a tremendous first full season in pro ball in 2022. After five starts (with a 1.50 ERA) in Fort Myers, he moved up to Cedar Rapids and went 7-3 with a 2.71 ERA. In 103 2/3 innings, he had 108 strikeouts with 34 walks. As important as the numbers, Festa had developed some really awe-inspiring “stuff,” including a fastball in the upper 90s. The 23-year-old began this season in Wichita and pitched in 21 games (19 starts). He went 3-3 with a 4.39 ERA, and in 80 innings, he struck out 104 batters. He also walked 34 batters. In July, he pitched an inning in the Futures Game. He ended his season with three starts for the Saints. He was 1-1 with a 2.92 ERA. He had 15 strikeouts in 12 1/3 innings. He also walked nine batters. He will need to hone in on his control, but David Festa should spend the 2024 season at St. Paul, eagerly awaiting an opportunity. He should continue to start, but like Louie Varland this year, Festa has the arm to finish the season as a dominant, late-inning reliever if needed. 3. RHP Zebby Matthews, 23, Fort Myers/Cedar Rapids 22 G, 20 GS, 105.1 IP, 96 H, 15 BB, 112 K, 3.84 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 1.3 BB/9, 9.6 K/9. A native of North Carolina, Zebby Matthews began his college career at Walters State. In 2020, he transferred to Western Carolina and went 3-1 before the season ended due to Covid. Over the next two seasons, he went 10-8 and posted sub-4.00 ERAs both years. In 157 innings, he had 182 strikeouts and just 28 walks. The Twins drafted him in the 8th round in 2022. He pitched in just two games. Matthews began the 2023 season at Fort Myers. However, after eight games (7 starts), he went 3-1 with a 2.56 ERA and was promoted to Cedar Rapids. He made 14 games (13 starts) for the Kernels. As he did in college, he continued to show great control. In 105 1/3 total innings, he has 112 strikeouts with just 15 walks. Matthews has a fastball that reaches 94-95 mph. He has also developed a sweeper and cutter, making them effective secondary pitches. The combination of three potentially average-or-better pitches and his ability to throw strikes and command the zone makes him very intriguing. 2. RHP Pierson Ohl, 24, Cedar Rapids/Wichita 24 G, 21 GS, 127.1 IP, 117 H, 18 BB, 115 K, 3.32 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 1.1 BB/9, 9.1 K/9 A southern California native, Ohl headed east, to Phoenix and Grand Canyon University for his college years. As a freshman, he posted a 3.45 ERA in 16 starts. He had a 2.89 ERA through his four pre-Covid starts in 2020. Then in 2021, he went 10-2 with a 2.60 ERA. Over those final two college seasons, he struck out 120 batters and walked just 13. Based on those numbers, the Twins had to be thrilled to draft him in the 14th round in 2021. He spent the entire 2022 season at Fort Myers and went 6-7 with a 3.53 ERA. In 91 2/3 innings, he had 101 strikeouts and just 13 walks. Oh began the 2023 season in Cedar Rapids where he pitched in eight games (7 starts). He started the season with five really good starts and had just two walks and 26 strikeouts in 26 innings. But then, over the next three starts, he gave up 15 runs (13 earned) in 14 1/3 innings, which made it very interesting that he was promoted to Double-A. He gave up nine runs in 10 2/3 innings in his first two Wichita starts. However, over his final 14 starts, he went 7-2 with a 2.00 ERA. In 76 1/3 innings, he struck out 65 and walked just 13. Opponents hit just .197 against him. While working as a starter, he touched 97 on the radar gun, well above the high-80s, low-90s he threw when drafted. He also has a good curveball and a change-up that can be very good most days. 1. RHP Cory Lewis, 22, Fort Myers/Cedar Rapids 22 GS, 101.1 IP, 74 H, 33 BB, 118 K, 2.49 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 10.5 K/9 I’m sure you won’t be surprised to learn that Cory Lewis was a star on his Marina High School baseball team. He was a four-year letter winner. He was the league’s freshman of the year. He was named the league’s top pitcher as a sophomore. He was also All-League as a first baseman. He was the league’s MVP his senior season. After high school, he went to UC-Santa Barbara. He was set to redshirt his first year, which worked out fine since it was the Covid season. In 2021, he pitched in 15 games and made 10 starts. He was 7-4 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. In 80 innings, he had 86 strikeouts to go with 31 walks. In 2022, he made 16 starts and went 9-1 with a 3.57 ERA. In 88 1/3 innings, he had 107 strikeouts and 42 walks. As a redshirt sophomore, Lewis was the Twins ninth-round pick in 2022. He didn’t pitch at all in the Twins organization. So he made his professional debut in 2023, and it went well. He began the season with nine starts in Fort Myers. He went 4-3 with a 2.75 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. In 39 2/3 innings, he struck out 55 batters and issued 15 walks. In mid-May, he threw the first 5 2/3 innings of a combined no-hitter for the Mussels. He was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he made 13 starts. He was 5-1 with a 2.32 ERA. In 62 innings, he had 63 strikeouts and 18 walks. And all that work led him and the Kernels to their Midwest League championship. Twins Director of Player Development Drew MacPhail began by simply saying, “Big Game Cory!” He continued, “Not only did Cory Lewis dominate across two levels this year. He also pitched in two, winner-take-all playoff series at Cedar Rapids (including a championship rubber match) and dominated both outings! Not only does Cory have outlier fastball pitch qualities and traditional secondary offerings, but he pairs that with an 84 mph knuckleball that got outlier miss across Low A and A+ this year.” You’ve been reading about Lewis throughout the season here at Twins Daily, so you knew he threw a knuckleball. However, he is not a knuckleball pitcher, per se. He doesn’t just throw a 60 mph knuckleball every pitch. No, with Lewis, the knuckleball is just one of his quality pitches. He threw it about 10% of the time in 2023, and as Mr. MacPhail noted, he throws it hard, generally between 82 and 85 mph. That is very unusual. And those pitches are typically seen heading toward the plate at less than 200 RPMs. Lewis has a fastball in the 91-93 mph range, but he can throw it very well up in the zone. He also has a solid changeup, curveball and slider. It will be interesting to see how his pitch repertoire changes as he continues to move up the organizational ladder. Congratulations to Cory Lewis on winning the Twins Daily Starting Pitcher of the Year award for 2023. He’s obviously joining an impressive group of previous winners. And congratulations to all of the pitchers mentioned in today’s articles on fantastic 2023 seasons! Join us in congratulating Lewis and the rest of these pitchers and discussing them and the Twins pitching pipeline in the comments below. For more Twins Daily content on the pitchers mentioned in today's article, click on the links below: Cory Lewis, Pierson Ohl, Zebby Matthews, David Festa, CJ Culpepper, Andrew Morris, Marco Raya, Louie Varland, Blayne Enlow, Ben Ethridge, Ronny Henriquez, Simeon Woods Richardson. Previous Starting Pitcher of the Year Winners: 2022 winner - Louie Varland 2021 winner - Louie Varland 2019 winner- Randy Dobnak2018 winner - Tyler Wells2017 winner - Stephen Gonsalves2016 winner - Stephen Gonsalves2015 winner - Jose Berrios2014 winner - Jose Berrios2013 winner - Taylor Rogers 2012 winner - BJ Hermsen

SAINTS SENTINEL Iowa 9, St. Paul 2 Box Score The Saints played a matinee on Thursday, with Randy Dobnak taking the mound. He worked 5 2/3 innings but allowed six runs on nine hits. Dobnak walked just two while striking out four but did allow a home run. The additional strikeouts helped to set the Saints single-season strikeout record. His 107 strikeouts took the lead from teammate Ronny Henriquez. With St. Paul and Iowa battling for playoff position, Matt Mervis started things off with his 20th home run of the year. The two-run shot gave Iowa a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Jair Camargo answered with a home run of his own, a solo shot, to make it 2-1 in the second inning. Unfortunately, the Cubs kept adding, and by the seventh inning, they held a 6-1 lead. Brooks Lee looked to keep the Saints close with a double that plated Michael Helman and brought them within a grand slam. However, a tough seventh inning saw three runs score, and Iowa was up by a comfortable 9-2 margin. Chris Williams stepped in with the bases loaded and just one out in the eighth. Unable to get the big hit, he put up a sacrifice fly that brought Camargo home and made it a six-run game. Carlos Luna finished the game on the mound, working 1 1/3 innings after his recent transfer from Double-A. Lee led off the ninth inning with his second double of the day, but an Austin Martin groundout and Yunior Severino strikeout didn't bring him in. Kyle Garlick went down looking at that's how this one ended. Camargo had three hits Thursday afternoon, with Lee adding his two doubles. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 5, Midland 4 Box Score Travis Adams took the pill Thursday night for Wichita and worked 4 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on seven hits. He was cruising until a four-run fifth inning did him in. Adams didn't walk anyone and struck out five on the evening. The good guys got on the board when David Banuelos homered for the 10th time. His solo shot made it a 1-0 game in the second inning. In the third inning, Alerick Soularie did his best impression of Banuelos, launching his own solo home run. Midland got a run back in the fifth inning to halve the lead and keep Wichita on their toes. Adams faced serious damage during the inning, with runners on first and second still having no outs. Instead of getting a double play ball, William Simoneit launched a three-run blast to take the lead 4-2. Working for the comeback, Jake Rucker singled home both Dalton Shuffield and Banuelos in the sixth inning to tie things up before Will Holland drove in Ben Ross for the lead. Ahead 5-4, Wichita needed the pitching to hold it down. Curtis Taylor did just that throwing 2 2/3 inning of scoreless relief before Francis Peguero grabbed the last out, with the Wind Surge emerged victorious. Both Soularie and Rucker recorded a pair of hits on the evening. Rucker also added a pair of RBI for himself. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 9, Peoria 4 Box Score Needing a win to extend their season, the Kernels sent Cory Lewis to the mound. He turned in a strong performance going four innings, allowing just a single run. He scattered four hits and didn't allow a run while striking out four. While Cedar Rapids was already up against a 1-0 deficit in the series, their bodies were also up against it. Despite playing against some internal adversity, the Kernels showed up in a big way. After giving up a run in the third inning, Cedar Rapids answered with four of their own during the fourth inning. Scoring all four runs before recording an out was a strong response. Jose Salas scored Luke Keaschal to tie the game, and then Jeferson Morales went ya-ya, scoring Noah Cardenas and Salas in the process. Still without Peoria recording an out, Noah Miller launched a two-run shot, scoring Carson McCusker and making it a 6-1 game. Malik Barrington took over for Lewis and ran into trouble during the sixth inning. He gave up a run and had two runners on before recording the third out of the inning. Jorel Ortega put himself on the board with a seventh-inning solo blast, and the home run made it a 7-2 game for Cedar Rapids. McCusker added some additional insurance with a double that scored both Cardenas and Morales. Both Miller and McCusker had two hits on the night with both adding a pair of RBI. Morales drove in three runs on his own as well. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K Hitter of the Day – Jair Camargo (St. Paul) - 3-4, 2 R, RBI, HR(19), K 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 (St. Paul) - 2-5, RBI #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 2 K #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-2, 3 BB #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-4, K #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, R ,K #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, BB, 3 K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 0-5, 4 K #19 - Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Iowa (7:08PM CST) - LHP Blayne Enlow Midland @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - RHP Marco Raya Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CST) - RHP C.J. Culpepper Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games!

Read all about the Twins week in Nick’s Week in Review. WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Overall: 36-27 (4-2 last week) in the second half; In first place in the IL West by 1.5 games; tied for fourth place in the International League. Overview: The Saints made a little progress, but thanks to losing to last two games are running out of time if they want to make the playoffs. 🔥: Trevor Larnach . Again! Eight hits in 23 at-bats. Four doubles and two home runs. Seven strikeouts, but six walks. 🔥: Bailey Ober made his first AAA start after his demotion. He threw five one-run innings, allowing three hits and struck out three. 🔥: Simeon Woods Richardson has had quite a year. He's still young, but the shine has faded. This week, though, he was really good. He struck out five in six innings, allowing only one run on four hits and a walk. 🤔: Yunior Severino hit three more home runs this week and has 32 total home runs on the season. But struck out 10 times in 23 at-bats. 🥶: Jordan Balazovic walked five and allowed three hits in 2 1/3 innings. 🥶: Hernan Perez was the hitter of the week two weeks ago. This week he was 2-for-15 with six strikeouts. What's Next: A road-trip to Iowa (31-31) followed by a season-closing series hosting Toledo (32-31). Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Overall: 34-29 (2-4 last week) in the second half and have dropped behind Springfield in the division. Overview: A one-game deficit with six games to go. The Wind Surge have to play their best baseball to make the playoffs. 🔥: Yoyner Fajardo led the team with seven hits, two triples and four walks. He also doubled twice and stole a base. 🔥: Marco Raya struck out three in 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Curtis Taylor (5 1/3 IP, H, BB, 5 K) and Isaac Mattson (4 2/3, BB, 8 K) where great in multiple relief appearances. Pierson Ohl gave up a home run among four hits, and struck out four in 5 1/3 innings. 🔥: Seth Gray led the team with two home runs and five runs batted in. 🥶: Aaron Rozek was very good two weeks ago, but last week struggled. He only retired two batters and allowed three hits, including two home runs. 🥶: Patrick Winkel had one hit in 16 at-bats. Will Holland had one hit in eight at-bats. What's Next: A cold stretch has Wichita on the outside looking in on the playoffs. The Wind Surge will host Midland (34-29) while Springfield (35-28) goes to San Antonio (30-33). High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Overall: 42-24 (2-4 last week) in the second half, six games ahead of Peoria. Overview: The regular season concludes with the Kernels sporting the best full-season record in the Midwest League (82-50). 🔥: Not a lot of big weeks for the Kernels hitters. Luke Keaschall led the team with six hits (including two home runs). Kala'i Rosario also had two home runs (but struck out 10 times). 🔥: Cory Lewis went five innings, striking out three and walking two, allowing only one hit. 🤔: Jose Salas had five hits last week. He barely batted over .200, but five hits, including a home run and double, is at least worth mentioning. 🥶: C.J. Culpepper gave up seven runs on seven hits and two walks in two innings. 🥶: Jorel Ortega (1-for-16), Keoni Cavaco (1-for-10), Carson McCusker (1-for-11) and Andrew Cossetti (0-for-9) combined to strike out 22 times this past week. What's Next: The Kernels will take their four-game losing streak to Peoria for Game 1 on Tuesday. They will host the remainder of the best-of-three series later in the week. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Overall: 33-32 (2-4 last week) in the second half, finishing 10.5 games behind Lakeland. 😍: Walker Jenkins may have completed his first professional season. He was 6-for-19 with two triples on the week. He drove in and scored four runs. 🔥: Jay Harry and Nate Baez had good weeks. Harry had seven hits and Baez led the team with eight hits and eight runs batted in. 🔥: Matt Gabbert made his first start at Low-A, and it went extremely well. He allowed one hit and two walks in five shutout innings. He struck out six. 😏: Chris Paddack and Jorge Alcala both made rehab appearances. 🥶: Ty Langenberg gave up two runs in 1 2/3 innings. Develson Aria gave up two runs while recording only one out. Juan Mendez, Juan Mercedes and Jack Noble all gave up two home runs. 🥶: The Kyle Schmidt hitless streak has reached a third week. Seven more hitless at-bats with one strikeout. (But his pitching!!) PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated periodically throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. Season-long stats will be in parenthesis. 20. Brent Headrick, LHP, Minnesota: Recalled to the Twins bullpen. (1.43 WHIP, .256 BAA ), St. Paul: (1.36 WHIP, .263 BAA). 19. Cory Lewis, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 5 IP, H, 2 BB, 3 K (1.06 WHIP, .198 BAA). 18. Jose Rodriguez, OF, FCL Twins: (.262/.325/.412. .737 OPS) 17. Danny De Andrade, SS, Fort Myers: 4-17, 2 2B, 3 RBI, 4 R, 3 BB, K, SB, CS. (.244/.354/.396. .750 OPS), played five games (90 total games) at shortstop and committed two errors in 18 chances (15 errors in 326 total chances). Previously played one game at third base and had no errors in four chances. 16. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 3.86 ERA, 2.1 IP, 3 H, ER, 5 BB. (1.75 WHIP, .270 BAA); Minnesota: (1.56 WHIP, .274 BAA). 15. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: 1-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 H, ER, HRA, BB, 5 K (1.50 WHIP, .253 BAA); Minnesota: (1.56 WHIP, .274 BAA). 14. Yunior Severino, 3B, St. Paul: 5-23, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 4 R, 2 BB, 10 K. (AA/AAA combined .277/.353/.550. .903 OPS). 13. Kala'i Rosario, OF, Cedar Rapids: 4-22, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 2 R, 2 BB, 10 K. (.252/.364/.467. .831 OPS). 12. Yasser Mercedes, OF, FCL Twins: (.196/.248/.381. .629 OPS) 11. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: Prielipp underwent season-ending elbow surgery. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA) 10. Luke Keaschall, 2B, Cedar Rapids: 6-24, 2B,, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4 R, 2 BB, K. (rookie/l-A/h-A combined .288/.414/.477. .891 OPS), played four games (24 total) at second base and committed two errors in 22 chances (three errors in 83 total chances), played one game in centerfield (four games total) and committed no errors in no chances (no errors in two total chances), and played one game at third base (two total) and committed no errors in one chance (one error in three total chances). 9. Brandon Winokur, OF, FCL Twins: (.288/.338/.545. .883 OPS), played nine games at shortstop and committed two errors in 34 chances and played seven games at centerfield and committed no errors in 19 chances. 8. Tanner Schobel, INF, Wichita: 5-18, RBI, 2 BB, 3 K. (high-A/AA combined .267/.357/.433. .790 OPS), played four games (54 total) at second base and committed no errors in 12 chances (9 errors in 212 total chances), played one game (58 total) at third base and committed no errors in one chance (four errors in 115 total chances), played two games (five total) at shortstop and committed no errors in six chances (no errors in 14 total chances). 7. Austin Martin, 2B/OF, St. Paul: 6-19, HR, 2 RBI, 3 R, 3 BB, 5 K. (rehab/AAA combined .266/.376/.409. .785 OPS), played one game (11 total) in centerfield and committed one error in four chances (one error in 28 total chances), played three games (36 total) at second base and committed no errors in 9 chances (four errors in 144 total chances), played two games (11 total) in left field and committed no errors in six chance (no errors in 27 total chances). 6. David Festa, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 3.86 ERA, 4.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 6 BB 6 K. (AAA/AA combined 1.37 WHIP, .244 BAA) 5. Charlee Soto, RHP: Did not pitch. 4. Marco Raya, RHP, Wichita: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3.1 IP, 2 H, 3 K. (AA/Hi-A combined 1.11 WHIP, .205 BAA) 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: 3-13, 3B, 3 RBI, 3 R, 7 BB, 6 K. (.240/.400/.463. .863 OPS) 2. Walker Jenkins, OF, Fort Myers: 6-19, 2 3B, 4 RBI, 4 R, 3 BB, 5 K, SB, CS. (FCL/low-A combined .362/.417/.571. .988 OPS) 1. Brooks Lee, SS, St. Paul: 4-19, 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 7 R, 6 BB, 3 K. (AA/AAA combined .282/.357/.470. .827 OPS), played four games (103 total) at shortstop and committed no errors in 20 chances (18 errors in 430 total chances) and played one game (six total) at third base and committed no errors in three chances (one error in 14 chances total chances). DESTINATION: The Show In this week's episode, Jeremy and JD chat with Carlos Collazo, prospect guru at Baseball America. Lots of Twins talk, especially regarding their 2023 draft class. Below is a quick out-take from the show. Click here to watch the full episode. You can find Destination: The Show on all major podcast platforms including Spotify, iTunes, iHeartRadio and Amazon Music. The show is available on Libsyn, our podcasting platform, in addition to Youtube. PLAYERS OF THE WEEKHITTER - Trevor Larnach, St. Paul CO-PITCHERS - Isaac Mattson, Wichita and Cory Lewis, Cedar Rapids

On Tuesday, Brooks Lee his a grand slam for the Saints. It was the team's 12th grand slam of the season which is more than any other team in professional baseball right now. On Wednesday, the Saints combined to hit five more homers including a 13th grand slam. And its timing couldn't have been better. It wasn't the only grand slam in the Twins minor leagues on Wednesday. Check out the records of the Twins and their affiliates: Minnesota Twins: 73-66 St. Paul Saints: 77-56 Wichita Wind Surge: 60-67 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 82-46 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 66-61 Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS The Twins had RHP Chris Paddack make his first rehab appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery early in the 2022 season. In addition, the Mussels put RHP Juan Mercedes on the Development List and activated LHP Develson Aria. photo by William Parmeter (Chris Paddack) SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 13, Louisville 8 Box Score The Saints scored one run from the second inning through the eighth inning. Yet somehow they scored 13 runs in the game.. Two big innings and some big home runs helped the Saints to their 77th win of the season. The Saints jumped to a big lead right away with five runs in the top of the first inning. Michael Helman led off the game with a home run, a sign of things to come. After one out, Brooks Lee singled and scored on Trevor Larnach’s 13th Saints homer to give them a 3-0 lead. Kyle Garlick was hit by a pitch. That was followed by Yunior Severino’s seventh Saints homer, and 31st homer overall. 5-0 Saints. As noted, the Saints offense didn’t do much again until the ninth inning. The lone exception was Austin Martin’s sixth home run which came in the fourth inning. So let’s jump to the pitching. David Festa started and gave up two runs on three hits over 4 2/3 innings. He had six strikeouts. However, he also had six strikeouts and six walks which drove up the pitch count. Michael Boyle walked two and struck out one over the next 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Alex Scherff came on and threw a scoreless seventh inning. However, he gave up one run in the bottom of the eighth inning before leaving the game with one out and two runners on base. Ronny Henriquez came into the game with a 6-3 lead. However, he allowed both of the inherited runners to score, and three more runs before getting the third out of the eighth inning. The Saints came to bat in the ninth inning down 8-6. #OldFriend Alan Busenitz, who has spent a couple of stints in the big leagues with the Reds this season, came in for the Bats. He spent parts of 2017 and 2018 with the Twins. He spent four seasons pitching for Rakuten in Japan. He returned to the States this year. With that as the backdrop, the Saints put together a huge inning. Busenitz struck out the first batters. However, Austin Martin and Gilberto Celestino singled to put runners on first and third. DaShawn Keirsey came in to pinch hit and walked to load the bases. Michael Helman singled to score Martin. Busenitz’s night was done, and Silvino Bracho came in. Alex Kirilloff came up and drove in two runs with a single to right field to give the Saints a 9-8 lead. Brooks Lee followed with a walk to load the bases again. That brought Trevor Larnach up, and he crushed the first grand slam of his professional career to give the Saints the 13-8 lead. The grand slam was the Saints’ 13th this season. Henriquez came back out for the bottom of the ninth inning. He walked the first batter but responded by coaxing a double play ball. After a two-out double, he was able to record the final out of the game. Larnach led the way with his two home runs and six RBI. Austin Martin went 2-for-3 and was hit by a pitch. Michael Helman went 2-for-5 with his fifth homer. Alex Kirilloff went 2-for-5. Gilberto Celestino went 2-for-4. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 4, Corpus Christi 10 Box Score The Wind Surge fell behind 5-0 through four innings. Sean Mooney made the start as an “opener” of sorts for Wichita. He walked one and struck out two batters in a scoreless first inning. Carlos Luna came in and was charged with five runs on six hits and a walk over 2 2/3 innings. He had three strikeouts and allowed three home runs. Down 5-0, the Wind Surge put together a burst. With one out, Ben Ross and Jake Rucker hit back-to-back singles. After a ground out advanced them with a ground out. With two outs, there was a pitching change. Aaron Sabato walked to load the bases, and Seth Gray’s eighth homer of the season cut their deficit to 5-4. Unfortunately, the Gray grand slam was the end of the Wind Surge scoring for the evening. Taylor Floyd gave up two runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. He had three strikeouts. Lefty Aaron Rozek recorded two outs. He gave up three runs on three hits (including two homers). Isaac Mattson came in and struck out five batters over two perfect innings. Ben Ross went 2-for-4 with a walk. Yoyner Fajardo hit his sixth triple. Aaron Sabato had a single and two walks. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Wisconsin 1 Box Score The Kernels jumped ahead 3-0 after two innings and it held up as they recorded their 82nd win of the year. Cedar Rapids got some help from their hosts in Appleton. Noah Miller reached first base on an error. After an Emmanuel Rodriguez single, a passed ball put runners on second and third. Soon after, Miller scored on a wild pitch. That was it, though. The second inning started completely the opposite. Rehabbing lefty Aaron Ashby got a groundout and a strikeout to start the inning before issuing a walk. That ended his appearance and Brewer Fanatic’s starting pitcher of the month of August, Cameron Wagoner, entered. After a Keoni Cavaco single and a Noah Miller walk loaded the bases, Emmanuel Rodriguez drilled a two-run single up the middle to give the Kernels a 3-0 lead. That was it for the Kernels’ scoring until the top of the ninth inning when Jose Salas hit his fourth homer of the season. The Kernels had five hits with Rodriguez having two of them. He also stole his 20th base of the season. Noah Miller hit his fifth triple and a walk. The offense did their part, but the pitching staff was the big story on Wednesday afternoon. Cory Lewis was fantastic. He improved to 5-1 on the season thanks to five shutout innings. He gave up just one hit. He walked two and struck out three to drop his ERA with the Kernels to 2.32. Mike Paredes came in and got one out before giving up a single to Brock Wilken. Then the rains came. The game was delayed for just over 100 minutes. When the game continued, Ricardo Velez came in. He gave up a hit to allow the Paredes runner to score, but he gave up just two hits over 2 1/3 scoreless innings. He walked none and struck out one. Jarret Whorff got the final four outs, two on strikeouts, to record his third save. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 6, Bradenton 5 Box Score The game went back and forth throughout the game. Fortunately, the Mussels scored last and held on. It was 3-3 through four innings, and then it was 5-5 through seven innings. But first, the Mussels were able to use a guy with 21 career wins in the big leagues as their starting pitcher. Chris Paddack came to the Twins on Opening Day 2022. After just a handful of starts, his elbow blew out and soon after, he had his second Tommy John surgery. On Wednesday night in Fort Myers, he returned to the mound for his first rehab appearance. The raw numbers won’t jump out to anyone. In 2 2/3 innings, he gave up two runs on two hits and two walks. He had four strikeouts. Most impressive, at least to me, was that he was able to (or allowed to) throw 52 pitches. No real surprise that just 27 of those pitches were strikes. But, the stuff looks good. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Down 3-0 going to the bottom of the fourth inning, Danny De Andrade and Rubel Cespedes started the inning with walks. Nate Baez followed with a three-run homer to tie the game. Then in the bottom of the fifth, the innings started with singles by Jay Harry and Walker Jenkins. Jenkins stole second. Soon after, Harry scored on a wild pitch. Jenkins scored on a groundout by De Andrade to make it 5-3. However, the Marauders tied it with two runs in the top of the seventh frame. When Paddack was done, Jack Noble came in as the ‘Bulk’ pitcher and worked the next 5 1/3 innings. He gave up three runs on five hits. He walked one and struck out five batters. He was really only hurt by two home run balls. In the bottom of the eighth, the Mussels started with Rubel Cespedes and Nate Baez walks. Maddux Houghton pinch-ran for Cespedes. Alec Sayre grounded back to the pitcher who got the out at second but Sayre beat the throw to first. Houghton advanced to third base. That brought up catcher Kyle Schmidt came up and grounded to shortstop. They recorded the out at second but Schmidt’s hustle beat the throw and allowed Houghton to score the go-ahead run. With the one-run lead, lefty Samuel Perez came in and worked a one-two-three ninth inning to record his second save of the year. Jay Harry went 2-for-4. Walker Jenkins was 2-for-4 with his second stolen base.. Nate Baez’s home run was his second of the season. He also walked twice. Rubel Cespedes was 1-for-1 with three walks and stole his third base. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day – Trevor Larnach (St. Paul) - 2-for-5, 2-HR(14), 2 R, 6 RBI, K. Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 69 pitches, 45 strikes (61.1%) Blooper of the Day - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - Great catch, but forgetting how many outs there are is always funny the next day when it gets on blooper reels. PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the new Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Wednesday. #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, 2 R, K #2 - Walker Jenkins (Ft. Myers) - 2-for-4, R, SB(2) #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, 2 RBI, K, SB(20) #6 - David Festa (St. Paul) - 4 2/3 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 6 BB, 6 K, 91 pitches, 43 strikes (47.3%) #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 2-for-3, HBP, HR(6), 2 R, RBI #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4 #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, 3 K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, HR(7, 31), R, 2 RBI, 3 K #17 - Danny De Andrade (Fort Myers) - 0-for-3, BB, R, RBI #19 - Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 69 pitches, 45 strikes (65.2%) WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Louisville (5:35 PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (5-6, 5.29 ERA) Wichita @ Corpus Christi (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Pierson Ohl (7-3, 2.95 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (6:40 PM CST) - RHP C.J. Culpepper (2-1, 3.58 ERA) Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM CST) - RHP John Klein (2-1, 2.97 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games or any other Twins minor league topics!

An issue that pops up in these lists is that of role assignments: pitchers in the minors often flip-flop between starting and relieving to eat up innings whenever they can. This poses challenges for those who acknowledge the delegation of title, as a starter with one relief appearance is still obviously a starter, but some situations aren't as clear-cut. I did my best to adhere to the spirit of the award while still understanding the sometimes silly nature of minor-league pitching order. Below are the names I thought most deserved to be on the list. Their ranking is entirely subjective; I value innings thrown, as those are outs, and outs are valuable, but also like to weigh strikeouts and peripherals as they can differentiate between dominance and a pitcher merely getting lucky. In times when it's a toss-up, I valued the almighty ERA as the great equalizer—got that? Good; let's start. Honorable mentions: RHP Louie Varland - AAA St. Paul, 23 2/3 IP, 18.6 K%, 1.90 ERA, 4.61 FIP Louie Varland had a sparkling 1.90 ERA in the month of August but walked a few too many people for my liking. Somehow he had eight unearned runs spread across multiple starts, which seems like a lot. Give him some help, Saints defense! RHP Carlos Gutierrez - FCL Twins, 12 2/3 IP, 35.7 K%, 4.26 ERA, 3.71 FIP Carlos Gutierrez allowed a few too many runs to make a serious case for the list, but he also struck out 20 in just over 12 innings. RHP Juan Cota - DSL Twins, 10 IP, 32.4 K%, 2.70 ERA, 1.88 FIP Lacking the innings to overtake other arms, Juan Cota nonetheless whiffed 12 over 10 frames, and only walked one batter—something almost no DSL pitcher ever does. RHP Miguel Cordero - DSL Twins, 9 2/3 IP, 20.5 K%, 2.79 ERA, 3.25 FIP Like Cota, Miguel Cordero showcased unusual command for a DSL pitcher. Even more impressive is Cordero’s fresh age of 17 (he was 16 for most of the season!). He was one of three Twins to appear in the DSL All-Star game. 5. RHP Cory Lewis - A+ Cedar Rapids, 23 1/3 IP, 28.4 K%, 3.09 ERA, 3.01 FIP At this point, Cory Lewis should just start paying rent for how much he lives on these lists. He’s been one of the best pitchers in the system since the season started, totaling a 2.62 ERA with a system-leading 115 strikeouts while pitching for both Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids. August was yet another stellar month for the part-time knuckler and full-time Kernels ace. He had two partial clunkers, holding him back from being even higher on this list, but was otherwise his usual, impressive self with squirrelly stuff and tremendous command. Expect him to rocket up end-of-season prospect lists. 4. RHP John Klein, A Fort Myers/FCL Twins, 21 1/3 IP, 32.5 K%, 2.95 ERA, 3.65 FIP Minnesotan alert! John Klein was born in Brooklyn Park and discovered when pitching for Iowa Central Community College—a university with quite the brotherhood of pro ball players. Klein popped up on the prospect radar after striking out 11 over four frames with the FCL Twins on June 10th (those especially handy with numbers may understand how impressive that is). July wasn’t kind to him, but fortune reversed in August, leading to four impressive starts—two of which were back-to-back starts of six shutout innings. That strikeout rate is especially impressive; he whiffed eight and nine batters respectively in those scoreless starts. 3. RHP Andrew Morris - A+ Cedar Rapids, 27 IP, 20.7 K%, 2.00 ERA, 2.82 FIP There was a time where Andrew Morris once seemed like the runaway winner of this award. His first three August starts were absurdly dominant, highlighted by a nine strikeout start on the 5th, and a seven punch-out outing on the 17th. His final two starts weren’t quite as good—proving the prestigiousness needed to take home honors from us gruff Twins Daily judges—so he’ll have to settle for 3rd place. Hopefully he’s not crestfallen over this bronze medal. Morris’ calling card is a spinny, vertical fastball that often appears to take off, rocketing far higher in the zone than hitters expect. Throw in a semi-crossbody delivery, and it’s understandable to see batters swing wildly at his offerings. The Texas Tech product is now solidly established as a prospect. 2. RHP David Festa - AA Wichita/AAA St. Paul, 20 1/3 IP, 33.3 K%, 1.33 ERA, 2.86 FIP Perhaps Minnesota’s best pitching prospect, David Festa was incredible in August. He allowed just three runs the entire month, steadily increasing his stamina following a short stint dabbling in short stints. The Twins saw enough after a dominant start against the Travelers and sent him to St. Paul. Festa appears well suited to join the crowd of small school arms turned into overwhelming pitching forced by the Falvey regime. He hammers the zone with a dominant fastball and well-command off-speed stuff, making hitters uncomfortable with his twisty windup and great extension. His early-season results weren’t sparkling—they were merely fine—but some of that could be chalked up to the difficult pitching environment that is the Texas League. If you’re looking for the next great Twins starter; here he is. 1. RHP Pierson Ohl - AA Wichita, 30 2/3 IP, 23.4 K%, 1.17 ERA, 2.75 FIP This was not a difficult deliberation; only Festa offered a serious case over Pierson Ohl. The Grand Canyon university product started the month with six shutout frames against the Tulsa Drillers—the Dodgers AA affiliate—and only surged from there, earning a win in each of his appearances. Pick any of his starts in August, and you have a gem on your hands: do you prefer his eight-inning outing on the 8th, or his eight strikeout performance on 26th to end the month? Ohl’s relentless pursuit of throwing strikes appears to be the fuel to his success. Batters simply can never get ahead of him. Falling behind too far only invites a dastardly changeup or a well-spotted fastball that often leaves hitters trudging back to the dugout unable to understand how to deal with Ohl’s craftiness.

TRANSACTIONS OF Byron Buxton begins rehab assignment with St. Paul 1B/OF Alex Kirilloff begins rehab assignment with St. Paul INF Kamron Willman reinstated from the development list by Fort Myers SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 6, Columbus 1 Box Score Quite possibly the most anticipated Saints game of the 2023 regular season took place on Wednesday night. Not only was prospect David Festa making his Triple-A pitching debut, but Alex Kirilloff was in the lineup rehabbing, and he was joined by Byron Buxton playing centerfield. The outfield action was Buxton’s first in more than a full calendar year as he ramps back up to rejoin Minnesota. After getting top Guardians prospect Bryan Rocchio to ground out on a broken bat, Festa grabbed his first strikeout when he punched out rehabbing major leaguer, David Fry. Festa popped 97 mph multiple times in the first inning. He got Jonathan Rodriguez, another top 25 prospect for Cleveland, swinging to end the frame. Watching a strike to kick off the at bat, Buxton lined a single to left field and his rehab assignment started off with success. Kirilloff grounded out to the first baseman, on a ball that should’ve been a double play, and Austin Martin stepped in behind the big leaguers. Putting more traffic on against Jerad Eickhoff, Jair Camargo ripped a single to left and brought home Kyle Garlick for the game’s first run. The lineup turned over and leadoff hitter Andrew Stevenson continued his strong season with a single to drive in both Anthony Prato and Camargo to make the score 3-0. In the top of the third inning, Columbus got Festa for a homer before Fry bounced a double off the left center wall. Buxton had his first fielding opportunity, but needed to do little more than play the bounce and throw it back into the infield. Kyle Manzardo finished the inning by sending a lazy fly ball to Buxton, and the Twins centerfielder had his first putout since 2022. It didn’t take long for the Saints to get the run back. Coming to bat in the bottom of the fourth inning, Camargo brought Kyle Garlick around on a single to push the lead back up to three. Buxton drew a walk in his third plate appearance and loaded the bases for Kirilloff with two outs in the fourth inning. He responded with a 105.5 mph single to bring Camargo home and make it a 5-1 game. Festa worked the fifth inning and struck out his seventh batter to end the frame. After throwing 91 pitches, his night was over. It was a strong Triple-A debut allowing just one run on four hits and a walk. Festa continued to sit around 95 mph late in the game, and navigated a very good Clippers lineup. A Brooks Lee double in the fifth inning came on a scary scene as Columbus left fielder Micah Pries went down in a heap tracking the ball. He was eventually carted off and replaced by Chris Roller. The Saints had second and third with no one out. Anthony Prato took his spot in the box and lined a ball back up the middle to score Martin and make it 6-1. Yunior Severino watched strike three on a pitch that just tickled the zone for the ABS system, and Camargo went down swinging leaving runners on first and third. Ronny Henriquez did a great job in relief of Festa on Wednesday night. Although he did walk a pair, the righty didn't allow a hit and struck out three during three scoreless innings of work. He remains on the 40-man roster and could be an option for Minnesota when rosters expand on Friday. Brent Headrick worked the ninth inning and secured Festa's win. Buxton finished going 1-for-2 with a pair of walks, while Kirilloff went 1-for-5 with an RBI and pair of strikeouts. The Saints had 11 hits Wednesday and were led by Stevenson, Prato, and Camargo. WIND SURGE WISDOM San Antonio 9, Wichita 2 Box Score The Wind Surge went with Jaylen Nowlin for the start on Wednesday. Starting strong, he tailed in the middle innings and wound up allowing six runs on eight hits and a pair of walks. Nowlin also struck out two. San Antonio struck for four during the third inning. Three singles and a sacrifice fly did a number on Nowlin and put Wichita behind. The Missions plated another in the fourth inning and one in the fifth inning to take a comfortable 6-0 lead. Wichita got on the board in the seventh inning when Willie Joe Garry Jr. doubled home Alerick Soularie. With Dalton Shuffield standing on third and just one out, the Wind Surge had a threat. Michael Helman lofted a sacrifice fly to bring Shuffield in and it was a 6-2 game. San Antonio grabbed a run back against Miguel Rodriguez in the eighth inning, and the lead was again five. Facing Sean Mooney in the ninth inning, San Antonio grabbed another pair and pushed the tally to 9-2. Wichita had just five hits, with Soularie accounting for two. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Lake County 2 Box Score Cory Lewis was on the bump Wednesday night for the Kernels, and he was again looking like the star prospect he has been all year. Turning in five scoreless innings, Lewis scattered seven hits but issued no walks while striking out six. He lowered his ERA to 2.53 in the process. In case you missed the incredible slow-mo video of his knuckleball on Twitter, feast your eyes on this. Cedar Rapids jumped out to an early lead when Jorel Ortega blasted his eighth home run of the year. The two-run shot also scored Noah Cardenas. After Lewis’ strong start, John Stankiewicz and Malik Barrington gave back both in the seventh inning. Emmanuel Rodriguez crushed his seventh triple of the season during the eighth inning, and the three-bagger brought Noah Miller home with just one out. Unfortunately the Kernels couldn’t bring him home, and the one-run lead was the only breathing room for the ninth inning. Jackson Hicks came on looking for his first High-A save. Doing it in style, Hicks sat down big prospects Chase DeLauter and Kahlil Watson before ending it with Dayan Frias. Cedar Rapids recorded just five hits on Wednesday and Rodriguez was responsible for two of them. MUSSEL MATTERS Canceled Fort Myers and Clearwater will kick off their series tomorrow night after Hurricane Idalia disrupted action earlier this week. Thoughts are with everyone down in the southern tip of Twins Territory. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K Hitter of the Day – Jair Camargo (St. Paul) - 2-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 K 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 (St. Paul) - 1-3, 2B(5), BB #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, RBI, 2B(11), 3B(7), 2 K #6 - David Festa (St. Paul) - 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-3, BB, R #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-4, 2B(5), BB, K #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2, 2 BB, K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 0-4, K #19 - Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K #20 - Brent Headrick (St. Paul) - 1.0 IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Columbus @ St. Paul (7:07PM CST) - RHP Louie Varland San Antonio @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - RHP Carlos Luna Lake County @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - RHP C.J. Culpepper Fort Myers @ Clearwater (5:30PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS LHP Brent Headrick recalled by Twins LHP Jovani Moran optioned to St. Paul SAINTS SENTINEL Columbus 2, St. Paul 0 Box Score The Saints started Kody Funderburk as an opener for their tilt on Sunday. He worked 2 1/3 innings and gave up a run on one hit and two walks. Funderburk struck out four, and after Moran’s option, continued to position himself for a call-up to Minnesota. Columbus scored runs in the third inning and the sixth inning on just three total hits. Trevor Larnach recorded a pair for the Saints but their three didn’t produce a run. Ronny Henriquez worked 1 2/3 innings of hitless baseball and struck out three. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 10, Tulsa 9 Box Score Chad Donato was on the bump for Wichita, and it was a short outing. He allowed eight runs over three innings. Seven hits did him in, and he also gave up a pair of walks. After falling behind 4-0 in the top of the first inning, the Wind Surge led off with a run when Yoyner Fajardo blasted his sixth home run of the season. Wichita gave up another in the second, but answered with five runs of their own. Will Holland roped his third triple of the year, clearing a loaded set of bases. Willie Joe Garry Jr., Jake Rucker, and Dalton Shuffield all scored. Fajardo then lifted a sacrifice fly to score Holland before Tanner Schobel doubled home Frank Nigro. The Drillers regained the lead in the third inning on a three-run shot, and they added a ninth run with a fifth-inning single. That made it a 9-6 game. Looking to draw even, Dalton Shuffield stepped in and lifted and launched his ninth homer of the year to tie things up. Alex Isola and Aaron Sabato scored on the big fly. In the eighth inning Sabato doubled for the 15th time, scoring Fajardo and putting Wichita ahead. That was enough for them to hang on and grab the victory. Fajardo picked up a pair of hits to lead the Wind Surge. KERNELS NUGGETS Lansing 2, Cedar Rapids 1 Box Score The Kernels turned to Cory Lewis on Sunday and he pitched quite well yet again. The right-hander tossed six innings and gave up just one run on three hits and a walk. He also punched out five batters. Lansing plated a run in both the sixth and seventh inning to take a 2-0 lead over Cedar Rapids. In the eighth inning, Noah Miller hit his sixth homer to put the Kernels on the board. However, the solo shot wasn’t enough to bring them back. The blast was Miller’s second hit of the day. Unfortunately, the team had just three total hits. MUSSEL MATTERS Dunedin 11, Fort Myers 9 Box Score Miguelangel Boadas made the start Sunday afternoon for the Mighty Mussels. He lasted just 2 2/3 innings after allowing four runs on five hits. Boadas didn’t give up a walk and struck out four batters. Fort Myers kicked off the scoring in the second inning when Kamron Willman doubled home both Nate Baez and Gregory Duran. The Blue Jays answered with four runs in the bottom of the third inning, but the Mighty Mussels answered in the fourth inning. Kyle Schmidt hit his second homer of the season and made it a one-run game. The fifth inning saw Dunedin add in a big way again. Their five runs put a six-run deficit between themselves and the Mighty Mussels. That didn’t deter Fort Myers’ comeback though, and they answered with six runs of their own in the eighth inning. Yohander Martinez drove in Baez on an error before Schmidt scored on a wild pitch. Martinez followed his lead and came home on another uncorked one, before Rafael Cruz clubbed a three-run homer. His eighth of the season brought home Willman and Ricardo Olivar knotted the game at nine. In the bottom of the eighth, Dunedin brought home two more runs which was enough to end the day with a win. Willman finished the day as the only Mighty Mussels player with a pair of hits. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Cedar Rapids) - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K Hitter of the Day – Dalton Shuffield (Wichita) - 1-1, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR(3), 3 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 (St. Paul) - 0-4, K #5 - Matt Wallner (Minnesota) - 1-4, R, 2 RBI, HR(7, walkoff), K #7 - David Festa (Wichita) - 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K #8 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-1, 2 BB, K #10 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-4, RBI, BB #16 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, 3 K TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Louisville @ St. Paul (7:07PM CST) - TBD Wichita @ NW Arkansas (7:05PM CST) - TBD Cedar Rapids @ Quad Cities (6:30PM CST) - TBD Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS Left-handed reliever Caleb Thielbar was sent on a rehab assignment with the St. Paul Saints, and he made an appearance in their game against Toledo. In Cedar Rapids, LHP Zarion Sharpe was released, and LHP Jordan Carr was activated from the injured list. Down in Fort Myers, C Frank Nigro was assigned to the Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins. SAINTS SENTINEL Toledo 7, St. Paul 14 Box Score Louie Varland took the mound for the Saints, but wasn’t as sharp as we’ve become accustomed to. He finished just 3 2/3 innings, and was charged with six runs (five earned) on nine hits and a walk, striking out four. The most damage came on a three-run homer in the third inning, and his team was down 6-2 upon his exit. Thankfully for the Minnesota native, the rest of his pitching staff and the lineup, picked him up. The Saints cut into that lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, when team MVP Andrew Stevenson launched his 12th home run of the season, a three-run shot to make it 6-5. They took the lead in the bottom of the fifth thanks to an RBI double from Anthony Prato and an RBI single off the bat of Alex De Goti. In relief of Varland, the Saints got a solid outing from Michael Boyle, who allowed just a walk in 1 1/3 innings, striking out two. Caleb Thielbar then made his first appearance of his rehab assignment. He walked one and struck out one in his inning. Cody Laweryson got hit with a blown save by allowing one run on two hits in his lone inning, striking out two. But he also got the win because the lineup took off after that. A six-run bottom of the seventh put this one away, with the big hits coming from a Prato home run, and bases loaded double from Gilberto Celestino, who also homered earlier in the game. Stevenson finished 4-for-5 with four runs scored and three-RBI, only missing a triple in his bid for the cycle. Prato also came a triple shy of the cycle. He went 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and three RBI. Celestino scored three runs and drove in three with two hits in five at-bats. As a team, the Saints also drew a club-record 13 walks on the night, which is how you end up with 14 runs total. Jorge Polanco played third base and was 1-for-4 with a run scored and two walks. He had one error. Austin Martin was in center field, but was removed from the game in the fifth inning with an apparent foot injury. WIND SURGE WISDOM Frisco 10, Wichita 4 Box Score Wind Surge starter Chad Donato got knocked around by the RoughRiders in the first inning, and the home team was unable to recover. Donato recorded just two outs, and before the Wind Surge could get anyone warmed up, he had been charged with nine runs (eight earned) on nine hits. Regi Grace and the rest of the bullpen admirably righted the ship after Donato’s exit, but it was too little, too late. Grace pitched 2 1/3 innings. he walked two and struck out three batters. Denny Bentley was charged with Frisco’s only other run, but completed three innings. He allowed four hits and struck out four batters. Curtis Taylor allowed one hit and struck out two in his two innings. Francis Peguero finished it out with a one-two-three ninth, all on K’s. Wichita got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third inning, thanks to David Banuelos’ eighth home run of the season. They added three more in the fourth inning on Yunior Severino’s 19th home run and a two-run triple from Yoyner Fajardo. Brooks Lee was 2-for-4 out of the leadoff spot, and Fajardo also had two knocks and stole his 30th base. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Wisconsin 1 Box Score Pitchers Cory Lewis and Mike Paredes combined to hold the Timber Rattlers to just one hit, and home runs from Andrew Cossetti and Kala’i Rosario were plenty of ammo to back them up on offense. Lewis got the starting nod and continued his string of strong performances to pick up his fourth win. He finished five innings, allowed just one run on one hit and one walk, and notched three strikeouts on just 59 pitches. Paredes finished the final four innings to pick up his first save of the season. He allowed no hits, walked two, and struck out three batters. The Kernels took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when they loaded the bases with one out, and Kyler Fedko delivered a sacrifice fly. Cossetti led off the fifth with his ninth double, and later scored on another sacrifice fly from Emmanuel Rodriguez to go up 2-1. Rosario led off the eighth with his 14th home run, and Andrew Cossetti led off the ninth with his fifth home run with Cedar Rapids to provide insurance runs. Noah Cardenas (3-for-4, 2B) joined Rosario (2-for-4, R, 2B, HR, RBI, K) and Cossetti (2-for-3, 2 R, 2B, HR, RBI, BB) with multiple hits in the game. MUSSEL MATTERS Palm Beach 3, Fort Myers 1 Box Score The Mighty Mussels were unable to muster much offense at Hammond Stadium on Tuesday. Their lineup collected just three hits. Ben Ethridge made the start and finished 3 2/3 innings. He was charged with two earned runs on five hits and a pair of walks. He had three strikeouts. Danny Moreno recorded the next seven outs and allowed one hit and a walk to get them to the seventh inning. He struck out one batter. Juan Mendez gave up one more run to the Cardinals in the top of the seventh to make it 3-0 Cardinals. He recorded three strikeouts. In the bottom of the seventh, the Mighty Mussels were finally able to mount a threat when Rubel Cespedes drew a leadoff walk and Rafael Cruz was hit by a pitch. With two outs, Alec Sayre put them on the board with an RBI single. However, they also ran into the third out at third base on the play which ended the inning. Zach Veen finished the game for Fort Myers, allowing one hit in two innings. He struck out two batters. Sayre had two of the team's three hits in the game, while Ricardo Olivar notched the other. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Braves 3, FCL Twins 2 (10 innings) Box Score Starter Eduardo Soriano completed the first three innings for the Twins and allowed two runs (one earned) on one hit and two walks. He had two strikeouts. The Twins tied the game in the fourth inning when Dalton Shuffield, Nate Baez, and Yasser Mercedes hit consecutive singles to start the frame and load the bases. A pair of wild pitches resulted in their only runs of the game. Shuffield, on a rehab assignment, finished 3-for-4 with a run scored out of the leadoff spot. Jose Rodriguez added a pair of hits, including a double, in four at-bats. The rest of the team managed just three hits, and they finished just 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position, leaving seven men on base. After Soriano’s exit, the bullpen trio of Pierce Banks (2 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 4 K), Jeferson Lopez (1 IP, 1 BB, 1 K), and Kyle Bischoff (3 IP, 3 K) got them through the ninth with the score still tied. Miguel Olivares was brought on for the start of the 10th inning and got two quick outs before a single drove in the go-ahead run. The Twins then went down in order in the bottom half, to fall to the Braves. DOMINICAN DAILY DSL Twins 2, DSL Mariners 3 (8 innings) Box Score Neither team was able to score a run during the scheduled seven innings, and in fact, the Twins had a no-hitter going into the extra eighth frame. Adrian Bohorquez made the start and went the first two innings. He issued two walks and struck out one batter. Yency De Jesus took over to start the third inning and walked only two over the next five innings. He had five strikeouts. The Twins had some threats and had five hits to the Mariners zero hits through seven innings. However, they ran themselves into outs multiple times which kept them off the scoreboard. With the runner on second to start the extra inning, an error on a pickoff and then an RBI single from Angel Trinidad scored the first run of the game. A single from Jayson Bass later in the frame put a runner on third, and a passed ball led to their second run. Back out to try and finish off their no-hitter, De Jesus ran out of gas. A leadoff walk was followed by the first Mariners hit of the game which loaded the bases. Then they scored their first run on a wild pitch. A sacrifice fly tied the game at two. The Mariners walked it off with their second single of the game, putting a damper on a solid team effort. Trinidad (2-for-2, RBI) and Bass (2-for-4, K) each had multiple hits in the loss to lead the offense. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Cory Lewis, Cedar Rapids Kernels (W, 5 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K) Hitter of the Day - Andrew Stevenson, St. Paul Saints (4-for-5, 4 R, 2B, HR (12), 3 RBI, BB, SB(34)) PROSPECT SUMMARY #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 2-for-4, K #2 - Walker Jenkins (FCL) #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, RBI, 3 K #5 - Matt Wallner (Minnesota) - 1-for-4, R, HR (2), 2 RBI, 3 K #8 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-for-2, R, K (left game in 5th inning due to injury) #10 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 0-for-4, K #11 - Yasser Mercedes (FCL) - 1-for-4, K #16 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, R, 2B, HR (14), RBI, K #17 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 1-for-3, R, HR (19), RBI, BB, K #20 - Jose Rodriguez (FCL) - 2-for-4, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Toledo @ St. Paul (1:07 PM CDT) - LHP Brent Headrick (3-1, 3.76 ERA) Frisco @ Wichita (12:05 PM CDT) - RHP David Festa (2-2, 4.79 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (12:10 PM CDT) - RHP C.J. Culpepper (2-0, 0.00 ERA) Palm Beach @ Fort Myers (11:00 AM CDT) - RHP Jose Olivares (2-3, 6.14 ERA) DSL Reds @ DSL Twins (makeup of 7/13) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games!

It was a rough pitching month for starters in the upper levels of the Twins system. Minnesota has needed to dig into Triple-A depth which can impact other levels too. However, some players are compiling numbers that will put them in the conversation to start showing up on top-30 prospect lists for the Twins. Let's dive into some honorable mentions before we reveal this month's winner. RHP Kyle Jones, Cedar Rapids Kernels Jones was limited to three starts in June but limited batters to a .216 BA. In 10 innings, he allowed two earned runs on six hits with 14 strikeouts and six walks. He allowed his first two home runs of the year in one June start; otherwise, his numbers would look even better. RHP Jack Noble, FCL Twins Noble is over two years older than the average age of the competition in the FCL, but he compiled some strong numbers in June. He averaged over five innings per start with an 11.5 K/9. Noble held opponents to a .543 OPS with only one extra-base hit against him. He was promoted to Fort Myers at the end of the month. Now onto the top five: 5. LHP Christian MacLeod, High-A Cedar Rapids Kernels, 17 IP, 26.7 K%, 2.12 ERA, 1.47 WHIP MacLeod has fared well since being promoted to High-A at the end of May. In four starts (17 IP), he posted a 2.12 ERA with a 1.47 WHIP and a 20-to-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He allowed one earned run in every appearance for the month and never allowed more than five hits. His best appearance for the month was an outing where he didn't start. Marco Raya started the game on June 9th and pitched four innings before giving way to MacLeod. He pitched the final five innings, allowing one earned run on four hits with nine strikeouts. MacLeod is slightly younger than the average age of the competition in the Midwest League, so it will be interesting to see what kind of numbers he can compile as he gets more comfortable at that level. 4. RHP Miguel Cordero, DSL Twins- 11 2/3 IP, 40.4 K%, 2.31 ERA, 1.11 WHIP Cordero is in his age-16 season, but he started strongly in his professional debut. He posted a 2.31 ERA in three starts with a 1.14 WHIP and 19 strikeouts over 11 2/3 innings. His first professional start is where batters did all the damage against him. In 3 2/3 innings, he allowed three earned runs on six hits with five strikeouts. In his other two starts, he has been nearly unhittable. Over eight shutout innings, he surrendered one hit and struck out 14 batters. Opponents are hitting .171/.277/.268 (.545) while striking out over 40% of the time. It's been a dominant start to his professional career, and he might be a player to watch in the coming years. 3. RHP Andrew Morris, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels- 23 1/3 IP, 22.8 K%, 1.93 ERA, 0.90 WHIP The Twins took Morris with their fourth-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, and he only pitched one inning during his professional debut. His 2023 season started slowly as he spent time on the IL with right bicep tendonitis and had mixed results on the field. Morris allowed an OPS above .800 in the season's first two months (three appearances) but lowered that to .527 during June. In five starts (23 1/3 innings), he posted a 1.93 ERA with a 21-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He is over a year younger than the average age of the competition in the FSL but has faced younger batters in over 60% of his plate appearances. Morris would likely have been the top pitcher on this list in other months because of his accumulated numbers. 2. RHP C.J. Culpepper, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels- 20 IP, 32.0 K%, 1.35 ERA, 0.95 WHIP Culpepper was the runner-up for this honor after four tremendous starts in Fort Myers. He's also been among the top-performing starting pitchers in the entire Twins system during the first half. Over 20 innings, he posted a 1.35 ERA with a 0.95 WHIP while averaging six strikeouts per appearance. Batters hit .177/.253/.265 (.518) against him, and he's held opponents to a .523 OPS or lower in every month of the season. Culpepper averaged a 62-game score across his four appearances, including two games with a 70 or higher. Minnesota can leave him in Fort Myers for the entire season, but it wouldn't be surprising for him to get a promotion at some point in the second half. 1. RHP Cory Lewis, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 15 2/3 IP, 33.9 K%, 0.57 ERA, 0.96 WHIP The Twins promoted Lewis from Fort Myers to Cedar Rapids earlier in June, and he had no trouble adjusting to the higher level of competition. In his first start, he pitched five shutout innings with eight strikeouts while limiting Daytona to three hits. Six days later, he continued his strikeout barrage with nine strikeouts over five frames. He had 15 or more swinging strikes in each of those two starts. In his final start of the month, he pitched five innings and allowed no earned runs on three hits. Batters hit .146/.242/.182 (.424) against him for the month, his second straight month with an OPS below .500. He has yet to allow a batting average above .200 in any month, and he has one of the best strikeout-to-walk rates in the farm system. For the season, he has faced younger batters the majority of the time, but that will likely change as he pitches more innings in High-A. What are your thoughts on the starting pitching performances in the Twins' minor leagues in June? How would you rank these pitchers? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

The All-Star festivities are still over a week from now. David Festa will represent the Twins organization in Seattle for the Futures Game. Three of four Twins affiliates are over .500 at this point. Cedar Rapids won the Midwest League West Division first half title and earned a playoff berth. Several prospects have taken a step back, due to performance or injury. Others have had a breakout seasons so far. There have been MLB debuts. The Twins have signed several players to minor league deals, and there have been a lot of releases. The Florida State League and Dominican Summer League Twins have introduced us to more prospects to get to know. The 2023 draft is about 10 days away, and we will get to know another 15-21 players. But what we want to do here today is acknowledge some of the top performers through half of the season (full-season affiliates). At the end of the year, we will again announce our Minor League Hitter, Starting Pitcher, Relief Pitcher of the Year and name our Twins minor league All Stars. The players written about below are halfway there, but will they be the same candidates for the year-end awards? It certainly is possible, or more players may emerge in the second half. Let’s get to it. Seven Twins Daily minor-league writers voted on these first half awards. Each ranked their top 5 hitters, top 4 starting pitchers, and top 3 relief pitchers. Votes were tallied and below are the results. Top First Half Relief Pitcher Regi Grace, RP, 23 Cedar Rapids Kernels/Wichita Wind Surge 23 G, 32 2/3 IP, 2-2, 6 Saves, 1.38 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 3.3 BB/9, 11.0 K/9 The Twins drafted Regi Grace in the 10th round of the 2018 draft out of high school in Mississippi. Grace has become a reminder to all of us that players and people develop at different paces. He spent 2018, 2019 and began 2021 in the Florida Complex League before ending that season with the Mussels. He was moved to the bullpen in 2022. He pitched in 56 2/3 innings over 33 games and posted a 4.45 ERA. He ended the season with three games in Cedar Rapids. In the first half of 2023, Grace has been the top minor league reliever. He began the season in Cedar Rapids and in 17 games and 23 1/3 innings. He had 2-2 went five saves. He had a 1.16 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP. He walked five and struck out 30 batters. After a slow rise in his first five professional seasons, Grace was promoted to Double-A Wichita by mid-May. He has made six appearances and has a 1.93 ERA. He didn’t give up a run in his first five outings. #2: RHP Patrick Murphy, 28, St. Paul Saints: 24 G, 33 1/3 IP, 5-0, 1.62 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 5.7 BB/9, 11.1 K/9 #3: LHP Kody Funderburk, 26, Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints: 25 G, 34 2/3 IP, 1-0, 1.00 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 4.4 BB/9, 13.5 K/9. Top First Half Starting Pitcher Cory Lewis, SP, 22 Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels 12 GS, 54 1/3 IP, 7-3, 2.15 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 3.1 BB/9, 12.4 K/9 Just under a year ago, the Minnesota Twins made Cory Lewis their ninth-round draft pick out of UC-Santa Barbara. Over his two seasons in the Big West, he went 16-5 with ERAs of 3.38 ERA and 3.57. He became a popular draft prospect because of the fact that he throws a knuckleball as part of his regular pitch mix. After signing, he didn’t pitch in 2022. He began the 2023 season in Ft. Myers. He went 4-3 with a 2.75 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP over nine starts. In 39 1/3 innings, he gave up 26 hits, walked 15 and struck out 55 batters. He earned his promotion to Cedar Rapids where he has made three starts. He is 3-0 with a 0.60 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP over 15 innings. He has walked four and struck out 20 batters. #2: RHP Marco Raya, 20, Cedar Rapids Kernels: 10 GS, 31 IP, 0-1, 3.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 1.7 BB/9, 10.2 K/9. #3: RHP C.J. Culpepper , 21, Fort Myers Mussels: 11 GS, 46 1/3 IP, 4-3, 2.33 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, 10.3 K/9. #4: RHP Blayne Enlow, 24, Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints: 13 G, 11 GS, 61 1/3 IP, 4-2, 4.11 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 10.9 K/9 #5: RHP Zebby Matthews, 23, Fort Myers Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels: 12 G, 10 GS, 55 IP, 4-2, 3.76 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 1.0 BB/9, 10.6 K/9 Top First Half Hitter Chris Williams, 1B, 26 St. Paul Saints 49 G, 200 PA, 48-for-168, .286/.392/.607 (.999) with seven doubles, a triple, 15 homers, 45 RBI. 29 BB, 65 K. When the Twins drafted Chris Williams out of Clemson in the eighth round of the 2018 draft, it was because 1.) he was a senior sign, and 2.) he had shown massive power in college, and 3.) despite shoulder issues, there was some thought that he could become a catcher. At Clemson, he hit 40 home runs n three seasons, including 32 homers over his final two seasons. After signing, he was sent to Elizabethton and was named the Twins Daily Short-Season Minor League Hitter of the Year. He split 2019 between Low-A Cedar Rapids and High-A Fort Myers. After the missed 2020 season, he began the 2021 season at High-A Cedar Rapids where he hit .100 over 17 games. He was moved up to Double-A Wichita where he started making much better contact because he was playing more. Williams really broke out last year. In 75 games at Wichita, he hit .277 with 16 doubles and 18 homers. He ended the season with 42 games at St. Paul and added five doubles and 10 home runs. In 117 total games, he hit .246/.343/.500 (.843) with 21 doubles, 28 homers, and 89 RBI. In April, he hit .229 with one homer. In May, he hit .241 with four homers. However, since the start of June, he has been amazing. He has played in 18 games and has at least one hit in 16 of them. He is hitting .364/.469/833 (1.302) with 10 homers. He hit three homers in a game on a Tuesday, then hit two more on Wednesday, and then another on that Thursday. He’s been on fire, and our voters have made him the top Twins minor league hitter in the first half. #2: OF Matt Wallner, 25, St. Paul Saints: 55 G, 247 PA, 60-for-203, .296/.413/.537 (.950) with 18 doubles, two triples, nine home runs, and 38 RBI. 32 BB, 75 K. #3: C/1B Andrew Cossetti, 23, Ft. Myers Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels: 53 G, 216 PA, 51-for-173, .295/.421/.555 (.976) with 16 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, and 40 RBI. 30 BB. 37 K. #4: OF Kala’i Rosario, 20, Cedar Rapids Kernels: 62 G, 273 PA, 64-for-229, .280/.396/.515 (.911) with 14 doubles, two triples, 12 home runs, and 46 RBI. 41 BB. 71 K. #5: 2B Jorel Ortega, 22, Ft. Myers Mussels, Cedar Rapids Kernels: 65 G, 294 PA, 72-for-294, .289/.398/.494 (.892), with 24 doubles, three triples, seven home runs, 44 RBI. 42 BB. 64 K. 17 SB.

Since it’s a unique time of the season, full-season affiliates don’t play again until Wednesday and because we didn’t have the same recap last Monday, this week’s report will look a little bit different. Next week’s will be back to the normal report. Stats will be from the last 15 days. Don’t forget to read Nick’s Week in Review to catch up on the Twins week. WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Overall: 43-31 Overview: The Saints finished the season a half-game out in the International League West, but five games behind first-half IL champ Norfolk. Norfolk will advance to the IL best-of-three League Championship Series. The best second-half record - aside from Norfolk - will advance to play Norfolk. All teams start with a clean slate. 🔥: Chris Williams went on a run that was quite impressive. In his last two weeks, he’s hit eight home runs and driven in 18 runs, along with scoring 14 runs of his own. Only three teammates scored more runs than he had home runs. And only two teammates drove in more runs than he had home runs. He also managed nine walks, but did strike out 14 times. He’s seen a little time behind the plate this year, but has mostly played first base. 🔥: Randy Dobnak has battled injuries for quite some time, but his last three starts have been glimpses of the old Randy. In 12 innings, he’s struck out 13 while only walking one. Though he’s allowed 14 hits, he’s only allowed one earned run. 🔥: Andrew Stevenson’s been overshadowed by Williams, but has been on a nice run himself. Over his last 10 games, he has three home runs, two triples, a double and 12 singles. He’s also stolen four bases and has walked five times while only striking out four times. 🔥: Kody Funderburk ended out the first half with six performance spanning 7 1/3 innings. He struck out 12, walked two and only allowed a single run on four hits. 🔥: Matt Wallner has put up a .279/.439/.488 line while Jose Miranda hasn’t been as good at .268/.348/.439. 😉: Dallas Keuchel threw four innings of one-run ball in his organizational debut. 🥶: Aaron Sanchez struggled over his last three starts. He walked 13 and yielded 16 hits that resulted in 14 earned runs over 12 1/3 innings. 🥶: Trevor Larnach has struck out time 14 times in 30 at-bats since being sent down. His .639 OPS doesn’t have a great path to go anywhere but up. What's Next: The Saints will kick off their second half against Gwinnett on Wednesday. Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Overall: 28-40 Overview: Wichita finished with the lowest winning percentage in the Texas League. 🔥: DaShawn Keirsey slashed .319/.396/.596 over his last 12 games and 47 at-bats. He homered three times, stole three bases and both walked and struck out six times. He’s more than deserving of a promotion, but there’s a logjam of outfielders at St. Paul, so he’ll have to remain in Wichita until there’s room. 🔥: Aaron Rozek struck out 11 in 10 2/3 innings. He allowed only two runs on four hits and two walks (and two hit batters). 🔥: When Alerick Soularie is healthy, he’s very good. He hit three home runs and added a double in 32 at-bats the last two weeks. He also stole three bases with more walks (7) than strikeouts (5). 🤔: Regi Grace is something. He’s got serious stuff, but he walked four in 6 1/3 innings. He struck out seven. 🤔: Yunior Severino gets a lot of hits (12 in 43 at-bats), but also strikes out a ton (14 in 42 at-bats). 🤔: Pierson Ohl completed 12 innings in his two starts. He only allowed 10 hits and a walk for a WHIP of 0.92, but he struggled keeping the ball in the yard, surrendering three home runs and having an ERA of 5.25. 🥶: David Festa allowed seven runs on 10 hits and four walks in 11 1/3 innings. He did strike out 15 though. 🥶: Yoyner Fajardo’s season started with a bang, but he’s cooled off. In his last 10 games, he’s got an OPS of .512. What's Next: Wichita’s second-half will start at home against Northwest Arkansas. High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Overall: 2-1 in the second half. Overview: The Kernels clinched a post-season berth on account of winning the Midwest League Western Division with a 40-26 record. 🔥: Emmanuel Rodriguez is the team’s top prospect and he’s starting to play like it. Sixteen hits in 46 at-bats over his last 12 games, including three doubles, a triple and three home runs. He drove in nine, scored 14 and stole four bases. He still struck out a lot (12 times), but drew nine walks. 🔥: Cory Lewis has made three starts since his promotion. In the last two weeks, he made two of those starts and allowed five hits and three walks in 10 innings. He struck out 12 and allowed a single earned run. 🔥: Kala’i Rosario continues to tear up High-A. Three more home runs, two more doubles, double-digit runs and RBI in his last 11 games… and more walks (12) than strikeouts (8). 😉: Newly-promoted Jorel Ortega only has 20 at-bats, but he has an OPS north of 1.000 so far. 🥶: Keoni Cavaco ended his half 1-for-11 and was placed on the Development List. 🥶: Jaylen Nowlin allowed 11 runs on 15 hits and seven walks in 8 2/3 innings. He struck out 11. What's Next: The Kernels will visit Peoria this week. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Overall: 1-1 in the second half. Overview: Fort Myers finished 34-32 in the first half, but missed the playoffs by 10.5 games. 🔥: Rubel Cespedes has three home runs in his last 12 games. He also leads the team with nine RBI, five doubles and 13 total hits. 🔥: Ben Ethridge (12 2/3 innings, six hits, two walks, eight strikeouts), C.J. Culpepper (11 innings, six hits, three walks, 12 strikeouts), Andrew Morris (11 innings, six hits, three walks, eight strikeouts) all started multiple games and had WHIPs below 1.00 and opponent batting averages under .170. 🔥: Jorel Ortega (before promotion), Maddux Houghton and Danny De Andrade all had 10 hits over the last 12 games. 🥶: Rafael Cruz and Dylan Neuse both had sub-.200 batting averages over the last 12 games. 🥶: Develson Aria allowed seven earned runs in 4 1/3 innings over two starts. What's Next: Fort Myers will host Lakeland. Rookie: FCL Twins Overall: 9-5, 1.5 games behind the FCL Pirates in the FCL South. Overview: Riding a four-game winning streak and being tied for least runs allowed are two signs of a good baseball team. It’s hard to look at individuals even over a two-week period because they’re given so much time off. Only three players played nine games, so we’ll focus on those three hitters. 🔥: Jose Rodriguez and Isaac Pena both had 11 hits and are hit .297 and .314, respectively. 🔥: Luis De Leon struck out 20 in 14 innings. He allowed nine hits and seven walks. 🤔: Bryan Acuna was brutal in his first handful of games but has rebounded nicely with eight hits in his last eight games. He did strike out 10 times though. Rookie: DSL Twins Overall: 5-10, 6-5 games back in the DSL South. Overview: Going .500 for 10 games is considerably better than the 0-5 start. The filter isn’t working properly, so I can only see full-season stats. 🔥: Dameury Pena has 18 hits in his first 12 games. He’s batting .391 and has four walks and four strikeouts. He’s listed as a second baseman. Is that enough to make a really early player comparison? 🔥: Yilber Herrera has walked 15 times already. He’s only struck out seven times and despite only having eight hits on the year, he’s scored 13 runs. 🔥: Miguel Cordero has 19 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings and WHIP of 1.11. 🥶: Cristian Hernandez has made three starts spanning 9 1/3 innings. He’s allowed 15 earned runs on 16 hits and eight walks. 🥶: Ariel Castro and Moises Lopez both have 22 strikeouts and sub-.200 batting averages. PROSPECT SUMMARY will return next week as will the PLAYERS OF THE WEEK as we will go in-depth with half-season awards later this week.

TRANSACTIONS RHP Oliver Ortega had his contract selected by the Minnesota Twins, and pitched against the Red Sox. In a corresponding move, Louie Varland was optioned to St. Paul. The Twins signed veteran catcher Mark Kolozsvary to a minor-league deal and assigned him to the Saints. He takes the roster spot of catcher Tony Wolters, who was placed on the injured list with a right MCL sprain. SS Alex De Goti was also activated from the Development List. The Minnesota Twins released Wind Surge RHP Osiris German to make room for RHP Owen Griffith, who was promoted from the Cedar Rapids Kernels after completing his rehab stint. The Surge also transferred outfielder Armani Smith to the Development List, and received infielder Ernie Yake from the Kernels. In the Midwest League, the Kernels transferred first baseman Keoni Cavaco to the Development List, and received second baseman Jorel Ortega from Fort Myers. At the Spring Training complex and Hammond Stadium, the Mighty Mussels added OF Andres Centeno and placed RHP Juan Mendez on the injured list with a right forearm strain. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 6, Toledo 2 Box Score Another Tuesday, and another home run for Chris Williams. His 14th of the season came in his first at-bat as the reigning International League Player of the Week in the second inning. Jair Camargo followed with a solo shot of his own for back-to-back bombs that made it 2-0 Saints early. Simeon Woods Richardson was on the bump for St. Paul looking to course-correct his season. He pitched into the fifth inning but ran up his pitch count so he was only able to complete 4 2/3 innings. It was much better than his last time out (6 ER in 3 1/3), however, as he allowed just one earned run on three hits and a pair of walks, while picking up four strikeouts. Josh Winder came out of the bullpen to relieve him, and besides giving up a solo home run, kept the Saints out front. He gave up two hits, one walk, and struck out four in his two innings. St. Paul’s wrecking crew added a pair of runs in the fourth inning to extend their lead to 4-1 when Winder took the mound. Anthony Prato had an RBI single and a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt allowed Camargo to scamper home. Left-hander Kody Funderburk got a strikeout for the final out of the seventh inning, but he did not come out for the eighth after allowing a hit and a walk. Patrick Murphy closed out the final two innings for the save, allowing two hits, striking out four, and consistently hitting 98 MPH with his fastball. Jose Miranda tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the top of the ninth with a two-run single, and finished the game 2-for-5. Andrew Stevenson (2-for-5, R, 2B, K), Miranda, and Williams (2-for-3, 2 R, HR, RBI, BB) had multiple hits. Camargo and Williams each scored two runs. Matt Wallner and Trevor Larnach were each 0-for-4 with a walk. WIND SURGE WISDOM Arkansas 4, Wichita 12 Box Score The Wind Surge took an early lead with a big inning, and piled on another one late to blow out the Travelers at Riverfront Stadium. A bases-clearing double from Alerick Soularie and two-run sac fly from Brooks Lee in the second gave Wichita an early 5-0 lead. If you had to read that sentence again, I don’t blame you. Because yes, Lee drove in two with his flyout as DaShawn Keirsey Jr. made the savvy and speedy play to score from second. Soularie and Aaron Sabato added solo home runs in the fourth and fifth innings respectively, with Sabato’s blast extending his on-base streak to 15 games. Wichita starter Aaron Rozek pitched into the fifth inning, but wasn’t able to complete it as a solo home run, double, single, and sac fly put an end to his outing. In all he was charged with two runs on three hits and a walk in 4 2/3 innings, striking out six. Relievers Alex Phillips (1 1/3 IP, H, ER, 2 BB) and Taylor Floyd (1 2/3 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, K) pitched the next three innings, giving way to Regi Grace with two outs in the eighth. Grace closed it out, allowing one hit, one walk, a hit-batter, and striking out two. The lineup poured it on again in the seventh thanks to a two-run double off the bat of Jake Rucker that was followed by a Keirsey Jr. three-run home run, his ninth of the season, later in the inning to make it the final of 12-4. Pat Winkel (2-for-5, 2B, K), Rucker (2-for-3, R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, K), Yoyner Fajardo (2-for-4, R, 2 K), and Soularie (2-for-3, 3 R, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, BB) all had multiple hits. In addition to the home run, Sabato drew three walks and scored three runs. In the 15 games of his on-base streak, Sabato has drawn 18 total walks (.454 OBP) along with 13 runs scored, seven doubles, and two home runs. KERNELS NUGGETS Beloit 3, Cedar Rapids 11 Box Score “Pitcher who also throws a knuckleball”-Cory Lewis took to the hill for the Kernels, and continued to shove, holding the former Minnesota Twins affiliate to just one unearned run on three hits and a walk in his five innings. He struck out three, picked up his third win, and lowered his ERA to 0.60 in three High-A starts. While the final score ended up being a blowout, when Lewis exited it was just 3-1 Cedar Rapids. The lineup scored those runs on a two-run double from Kala’i Rosario in the third, and an RBI groundout from Jose Salas in the fourth. Matthew Swain was the first reliever summoned for the sixth inning, and the Snappers got him for one earned run on a pair of hits in his lone inning. He struck out one. Alejandro Hidalgo came on for the seventh and went the next 2 1/3 innings, allowing just one run of his own despite five walks. He also gave up one hit and struck out three. Niklas Rimmel got the final two outs and allowed one hit. The Kernels blew this one open in the bottom of the seventh, batting around and plating six runs. The big hits were a two-run double from Ben Ross, and consecutive RBI doubles from Noah Miller and Salas. In the eighth, Emmanuel Rodriguez added on two more with his eighth home run of the season. Leading the way with multiple hits in the game were Tanner Schobel (2-for-3, 3 R, 3B, 2 BB, SB), Rodriguez (2-for-4, 3 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K), and Miller (2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI). Making his High-A debut, Jorel Ortega was 1-for-4 with a run scored. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 6, Tampa 8 Box Score Toeing the rubber for the Mighty Mussels was Miguelangel Boadas, and he was solid for the first four innings. In the fifth, he ran into some trouble after an error and was lifted with just one out. In all, he finished 4 1/3 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits and two walks, while striking out two. Fort Myers got on the scoreboard first in the second inning, when Mikey Perez hit his third home run of the season, a solo shot to left field. Rubel Cespedes made it 2-0 Mighty Mussels in the third with an RBI double. Zach Veen came on in relief of Boadas in the fifth, and got the next four outs. He was charged with one earned run on two hits and two walks in his 1 1/3 innings. He struck out one. In the top of the sixth Fort Myers took a 4-2 lead thanks to a two-run single from Kyle Schmidt, but then the bullpen continued to have some trouble. Johnathan Lavallee got the final out of the sixth, but the Tarpons jumped on him in the seventh. Before it was over they had taken a 6-4 lead, with Lavallee getting hit with the blown save and three earned runs allowed on four hits and two walks, striking out one. The Mighty Mussels offense again battled back, tying it at six in the eighth thanks to another two-run single from Schmidt, but the Tarpons were determined to get off their hook. Wilker Reyes delivered a one-two-three eighth inning and got two quick outs in the ninth, but a walk led to a two-run homer to walk it off in Tampa. Schmidt (3-for-4, 4 RBI, K, SB), Cespedes (2-for-5, R, 2 2B, RBI), and Perez (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, K) collected multiple hits in the loss. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Orioles 1, FCL Twins 6 Box Score The Twins scored one run in each of the first four innings, and the pitching staff held the Orioles in check for the entire game to pick up the win. Cesar Lares started on the mound and completed the first three innings. He allowed just one hit and struck out five. Ricardo Velez was credited with the win after a scoreless fourth inning, where he struck out two. Juan Mercedes (2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 5 K), Carlos Gutierrez (IP, 2 H, BB, K), and Jacob Wosinski (2 IP, H, 2 BB, K) finished out the dominating pitching performance, as the staff struck out 14 Orioles in total. The Twins drew eight walks as a team, but had some trouble bringing the runners in as they had just one extra base hit, a double from Frank Nigro, and were 3-for-16 with runners in scoring position. Isaac Pena was 1-for-4 with a run scored, RBI, walk, and stole two bases out of the leadoff spot. Harold Grant and Anderson Nova collected the teams other two RBI’s. DOMINICAN DAILY DSL Phillies Red 7, DSL Twins 2 Box Score The Phillies Red squad utilized a four-run third inning, to put the Twins away early. Right-hander Adrian Bohorquez made the start for the Twins and was on the receiving end of that scoring. In his 2 1/3 innings pitched, he was charged with five earned runs on four hits and four walks. He also struck out four. The bullpen trio of Leonardo Lugo (3 2/3 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 4 K), Jeicol Surumuy (2 IP, H, R, 3 K), and Jose Betancourt (IP, 2 BB) finished out the game for the home team. As an offense, the Twins managed just three singles in the loss but did collect seven walks. Jayson Bass was 1-for-3 with an RBI, walk, and his fourth stolen base. Ewing Matos was 1-for-4 with a run scored. Ariel Castro (0-for-2, R, 2 BB) and Dameury Pena (0-for-2, 2 BB) each drew a pair of walks from the top two spots in the lineup. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Cory Lewis, Cedar Rapids Kernels (W, 5 IP, 3 H, R, BB, 3 K) Hitter of the Day - Alerick Soularie, Wichita Wind Surge (2-for-3, BB, 2B, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 0-for-4, SF, 2 RBI #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 3-for-4, R, HR, RBI #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, 3 R, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K #4 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 1-for-5, R, K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-for-4, BB, K #12 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2 RBI, K #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI #15 - Brent Headrick (Minnesota) - 1 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, BB #18 - Jose Rodriguez (FCL) - 0-for-5, R, 2 K #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 1-for-5, 2 K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (11:05 AM CDT) - RHP Randy Dobnak (3-3, 5.51 ERA) Wichita @ Midland (7:05 PM CDT) - RHP Pierson Ohl (0-1, 7.59 ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (12:05 PM CDT) - LHP Christian MacLeod (1-0, 3.86 ERA) Fort Myers @ Tampa (5:30 PM CDT) - RHP Andrew Morris (1-1, 4.15 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games!

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: Brooks Lee The Twins were ecstatic that Lee fell to them with the eighth overall selection, especially since many pre-draft prognostications had him off the board before their pick. Evaluators viewed Lee as the most advanced college bat in the draft, and the Twins were aggressive with him during his professional debut. In 31 games, he hit .303/.389/.451 (.839) with six doubles and four home runs while splitting time between three levels. He finished the season as a starter in the Double-A line-up, including helping Wichita in the Texas League Championship Series. The Twins sent Lee back to Double-A for the 2023 season, where he has posted a .773 OPS including 23 doubles and four home runs through 57 games. He was a consensus top 50 prospect entering the season, so it will be interesting to see how he can improve in the second half. Second Round: Connor Prielipp, Tanner Schobel Prielipp was in the conversation for the first overall pick before suffering an elbow injury in college and having Tommy John surgery. Minnesota delayed his professional debut until the 2023 season. During spring, his pitching arm had some inflammation and soreness, so the Twins were taking it slow with him. Unfortunately, he's been limited to two professional starts after being diagnosed with a forearm strain. The plan is to have him start a throwing program at the team's facilities in Fort Myers before beginning rehab outings with the organization's rookie league teams. Prielipp might have the highest ceiling of any pitching prospect in the organization, but he needs to be healthy to move up the ladder. Schobel played collegiately in the ACC, so the Twins weren't afraid to be aggressive with him during his pro debut. He got his feet wet in the FCL (four games) before finishing the season on the Fort Myers roster. In 32 games, he hit .237/.353/.298 (.651) with five extra-base hits and a 26-to-19 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His first full season started in the Midwest League, where he is slightly younger than the average age of the competition. He's splitting time between second and third base while posting a .749 OPS with 16 extra-base hits through 58 games. The Twins didn't have a third-round pick in 2022 because the team had to forfeit their selection after signing Carlos Correa. Houston received a compensatory pick in the 2022 draft since they tendered the qualifying offer to Correa following the 2021 campaign. Minnesota's first three picks were protected, so they surrendered their fourth pick. Fourth Round: Andrew Morris Morris entered college as a 17-year-old and pitched his first three seasons at Division II Mesa State in Colorado. In 2022, he transferred to Texas Tech, where he posted a 4.58 ERA with a 1.22 WHIP and 91 strikeouts in 88 1/3 innings. Last season, Minnesota only had him make one FCL appearance after signing with the organization. He also made an appearance for the Mighty Mussels in the playoffs. In 2023, he's made six appearances (five starts) for the Mighty Mussels while allowing 12 earned runs on 26 hits with a 10.4 K/9 in 26 innings. Other Prospects Still in the Organization Ben Ross (5th Round): Ross posted a .817 OPS in 24 Low-A games during his professional debut. He's played the 2023 season in Cedar Rapids, hitting .239/.307/.424 (.732). Defensively, he's played six different positions. Jorel Ortega (6th Round): Saw limited action (3 games) after signing last season due to breaking his wrist in his first Mussels at-bat. In 2023, he's posted an .876 OPS at Low-A while splitting time between third base and shortstop. Kyle Jones (7th Round): He made two scoreless appearances near the end of the 2022 season. Minnesota sent him to Cedar Rapids for the 2023 campaign. He has a 4.47 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP and a 43-to-13 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 11 appearances. Zebby Matthews (8th Round): Matthews posted a 2.56 ERA with a 0.93 WHIP and 12.3 K/9 in eight Low-A appearances to begin 2023. The Twins promoted him to High-A at the beginning of June, where he had one bad start (8 ER) and two starts of six innings while allowing one earned run or fewer. Cory Lewis (9th Round): Lewis has been outstanding during his professional debut. In his first 11 starts (39 1/3 innings), he has limited batters to a .174 BA and a 72-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio. People want to talk about his knuckleball but he has a full repertoire of pitches to keep batters off balance. Lewis is over a year younger than the average age of the competition in the Midwest League since his most recent promotion. Dalton Shuffield (10th Round): He played parts of five college seasons because of the extra eligibility due to the pandemic. Because of that, when there was a roster need, Shuffield played quite a bit in Triple-A in his pro debut and posted a .917 OPS across three levels. In 2023, he's combined for a .786 OPS in Fort Myers. Andrew Cossetti (11th Round): Cossetti has split time between Low-A and High-A during the 2023 season. He's played catcher and first base while combining for a .986 OPS in 50 games. Nate Baez (12th Round): Baez hit .279/.338/.508 (.846) in 19 games after signing last season. He is currently on the IL with a broken hamate bone. C.J. Culpepper (13th Round): Culpepper shares some similarities to Joe Ryan, and the Twins hope he can follow a similar development path. In 10 starts (40 1/3 innings), he's posted a 2.68 ERA with a 1.14 WHIP and 10.7 K/9. Omari Daniel (14th Round): The Twins drafted him out of high school and held off on his pro debut until 2023 since he was still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. With the FCL Twins, he started the year 2-for-12 (.167 BA) with more walks (five) than strikeouts (four). Ben Ethridge (15th Round): Ethridge moved to a bullpen role in his senior season at Southern Mississippi, and the Twins have continued that role with Fort Myers. In 14 appearances (28 1/3 innings), he has a 2.86 ERA with an 8.6 K/9. Jankel Ortiz (16th Round): He went 3-for-12 (.250 BA) with four walks and a double in his pro debut. Ortiz made nine appearances in the Puerto Rican Winter League and posted a .978 OPS. He recently came off the IL and has cone 0-for-6 in his first two games in 2023. Alec Sayre (17th Round): Sayre has played all three outfield positions at Low-A in 2023. He's hitting .224/.364/.321 (.685) with seven extra-base hits in his first 44 games this season. Zach Veen (18th Round): Veen has pitched out of the Fort Myers bullpen during the 2023 campaign. In 18 appearances (28 innings), he has posted a 3.21 ERA with a 1.25 WHIP and a 9.0 K/9. OTHER POSTS IN THE SERIES -2021 Draft Retrospective -2020 Draft Retrospective -2019 Draft Retrospective -2018 Draft Retrospective -2017 Draft Retrospective -2016 Draft Retrospective What are your early impressions of the 2022 draft class? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

The 22-year-old Cory Lewis was selected 264th overall as a pitcher from the University of California, Santa Barbara. The institution name is a mouthful, but the Gauchos have put together a recent run of NCAA tournament appearances with Lewis contributing to both the 2021 and 2022 squads. Used as a starter during his senior season, Lewis tallied 88 1/3 innings to the tune of a 3.57 ERA. The eye-popping statistic was the 107 strikeouts, and while there were too many walks with 42 across that workload, it was clear there was something to like for the next level. Minnesota did snag him under slot at $140k, but this wasn’t your castaway senior sign. Immediately after signing, I heard from Ethan Chapman of Full Circle Sports Management. As Lewis’ agent, it was clear his goal was to be excited for his client, but this wasn’t just a message filled with air, and the substance spoke to a young man with a future. Full Circle recently landed Joe Musgrove a $100 million deal with the San Diego Padres, and helping to position one of the game’s up-and-coming arms for such a payday speaks volumes. Chapman wasn’t blowing smoke, and he knew Lewis had stuff that would play. When seeking clients to help, there has to be differentiators that motivate interest and Chapman put it simply with Lewis in saying, “Cory’s work ethic and understanding of his abilities are what separates him. He obviously has an interesting pitch mix, but he is also knowledgeable of his offerings and how to use them effectively. He’s someone that will earn everything he gets.” Making his professional debut this season at Low-A with the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, Lewis made quick work of a level he was too advanced for. Across nine starts Lewis posted a sparkling 2.75 ERA with a 12.6 K/9. He was part of a combined no-hitter during May, and elevated the staff to unexpected heights. That was enough for the Twins to make a move and decide a challenge at High-A Cedar Rapids was necessary. Now through two starts for the Kernels, Lewis hasn’t slowed down. He’s given up just a single run on five hits and three walks across 10 innings while striking out 17. Assuming he reaches Double-A this year is probably a lofty expectation, but there is no denying that he is positioning himself well for future growth. How Lewis gets batters out is also unconventional in and of itself. This isn’t a guy who throws in the upper 90s, but the Twins have helped to add velocity onto the fastball following the draft. With the ability to touch mid-90s with his heater, a secondary knuckleball offering makes him somewhat of a unicorn. Gone are the days that Tim Wakefield, R.A. Dickey, and Phil Niekro could exist while throwing dancing slop towards the plate. No one currently in the game is classified as a knuckleballer, and those that have been during recent memory generally wind up being a flash in the pan. Lewis being able to play with a full arsenal alongside of a knuckleball makes him somewhat of an anomaly, and it could do wonders for the progression of his career. Lewis shoots it straight with the offspeed pitch saying, “I’m more so a pitcher with a knuckleball rather than a knuckleball pitcher.” Lewis knows that he has plenty to work on, but also understands there is much to build off of utilizing the early groundwork he has laid. While the stage has gotten more substantial, and the outcomes impact his future, he says “being present in the moment and realizing that it’s still just the same game I’ve been playing for years” remains the focal point. The Twins have seen recent success in developing later round picks like Bailey Ober and Louie Varland. Being able to generate big league talent from picks directly tied to deep scouting is what can help an organization sustain success. As Rocco Baldelli has seen arms like Tyler Mahle and Kenta Maeda go down this year, he’s needed to rely on depth that the organization has incorporated. Bringing a guy like Lewis along in that vein would be another success story, and the progression at this rate could have him being an option much sooner than originally anticipated. Royce Lewis is going to be a cornerstone in the lineup for Minnesota’s foreseeable future. Having Cory Lewis ascend to that level in the rotation would be nothing short of a substantial developmental achievement. Here’s to hoping they can cross paths and contribute at the same level for years to come.

The Twins completed their sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday afternoon. The St. Paul Saints continued to crush baseballs, especially first baseman Chris Williams. Wichita got a great start from a lefty from Minnesota. Cedar Rapids had another terrific start from a certain knuckleballer drafted in 2022. And, well, we won’t spend too much time talking about the Mighty Mussels game on Wednesday. And the Twins completed a trade with the Brewers while they were in town. STANDINGS St. Paul Saints: 38-26 Wichita Wind Surge: 25-33 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 34-25 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 31-28 FCL Twins: 3-4 DSL Twins: 1-6 Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS The Twins optioned outfielder Trevor Larnach to St. Paul after the game on Wednesday afternoon. Presumably, he is making way for the return of Byron Buxton. In April, the Twins traded reliever Trevor Megill to the Brewers for a Player to be Named Later. On Wednesday, that player was named. The Twins received right-handed relief pitcher Taylor Floyd and assigned him to Double-A Wichita. He was that Brewers 10th-round pick out of Texas Tech. After a missed 2020 season, he spent most of 2021 at High-A Wisconsin before ending the season at Double-A Biloxi. Following the season, he went to the Arizona Fall League. He split the 2022 season pretty evenly between Wisconsin and Biloxi. This year, the 25-year-old has pitched in 23 2/3 innings over 15 appearances at Wisconsin. He has a 3.04 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. He has 32 strikeouts to go with just seven walks. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 11, Louisville 3 Box Score On Tuesday night, the Saints scored 18 runs on 21 hits. On Wednesday morning, they played again and the offense continued. They had 11 runs on 13 hits and eight walks in this game. Speaking of positive things that continued from the night before… Chris Williams knocked three home runs on Tuesday night. In his first at-bat on Wednesday, he hit a two-run homer that gave the Saints a 3-0 lead. Then in the sixth inning, he hit another two-run homer. He now has 12 homers on the season (and five homers over the past two days!). In this game, he went 2-for-3 with two walks, two homers and four RBI. Jair Camargo also continues to play well. The catcher went 2-for-5 with fifth double and 10th home run and three RBI. Andrew Stevenson went 2-for-6 with his fourth homer. He also stole his 24th base. Alex De Goti had two hits. Anthony Prato went 2-for-4 with a walk, his third double and first Triple-A home run, a solo shot against former Twins reliever Alan Busenitz in the ninth inning. Gilberto Celestino continued his rehab as the team’s DH today. He went 1-for-5 with two RBI. Randy Dobnak got the start and pitched well. He gave up three runs in the bottom of the first inning, but they were all unearned. He went 5 1/3 innings and gave up nine hits and a walk, and he struck out seven batters. Kody Funderburk finished the sixth and the seventh innings. He got all five batters out, three of them on strikeouts. Austin Schulfer struck out four batters over the final two scoreless innings. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 8,Midland 1 Box Score The Wind Surge got a strong start and plenty of offense in a really well-played game. Aaron Rozek was the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month for May. He was tremendous in this game. The southpaw tossed six shutout innings and had five strikeouts. He gave up just one hit and one walk. Hunter McMahon and Alex Scherff each threw a scoreless inning. Jordan Brink gave up a solo homer in the ninth. Will Holland played centerfield. He went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run, his third of the season. Brooks Lee had two doubles over his five at-bats and drove in two runs. Alerick Soularie went 2-for-3 with a walk. Aaron Sabato had two doubles on Tuesday night and another on Wednesday. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, South Bend 2 Box Score Cory Lewis was great again in his second Kernels start. In this one, he gave up one run on two hits. He walked two and struck out nine batters. Over his two Kernels starters, he is 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA. In 10 innings, he’s given up one run on five hits. He has 17 strikeouts and just three walks. Alejandro Hidalgo gave up one hit over a scoreless innings. John Stankiewicz gave up one hit over two scoreless innings. Miguel Rodriguez was charged with an unearned run on one hit in the ninth inning. Fellow 2022 draft pick Andrew Cossetti was behind the plate again for the Lewis start. Not only did he catch another strong game, but he went 2-for-4 with his fourth double and second home runs since joining the Kernels. Emmanuel Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with a walk. Ben Ross had the big hit of the game. In the fifth inning, he drilled a three-run homer. He now has 10 homers on the season. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 9, Bradenton 18 Box Score Former Gophers pitcher J.P. Massey made the start for the Pirates Low-A affiliate on Wednesday afternoon. The 23-year-old was the Pirates’ seventh-round pick a year ago after four seasons with the Gophers. Coming into the game, he was 2-3 with a 2.84 ERA. In this one, he struggled with control. However, he worked five innings. He gave up four runs on four hits and four walks. He struck out five batters. He was certainly helped by some run support and is now 3-3 with an ERA at 3.28. This section was started with a paragraph on a prospect who isn’t in the Twins organization in large part because it was not a good game for Mussels pitchers. Miguelangel Boadas started and gave up six runs (4 earned) on five hits over three innings. He had four strikeouts and no walks. Front here, it didn’t get better. Gabriel Yanez gave up three runs on two hits and a walk in his inning. He had two strikeouts. Juan Mendez then went 1 1/3 innings. He gave up two runs on one hit and three walks. Johnathan Lavallee gave up four runs on four hits and three walks in 1 2/3 innings. I think it’s fair to assume that if a team needs to have two position players pitch, the game didn’t go too well. Mikey Perez came in and was charged with three runs on four walks. He didn’t record any outs. Yohander Martinez came on and allowed two of three inherited runners to score, but he issued only one walk and recorded two strikeouts. The Mussels offense did well in the game, but we’re still going to talk about a Pirates prospect who had a big game for Bradenton on Wednesday afternoon. Termarr Johnson was the fourth overall pick in the 2022 draft out of high school in Atlanta. To say he had a big, breakout game is probably a huge understatement. He went 4-for-4 with two walks, two doubles, and a long home run. Coming into the game, Johnson was hitting .230/394/.349 (.743). After this game, he was hitting .254 and his OPS jumped to .824. Alright, now to the Mighty Mussels’ offense. Jorel Ortega went 2-for-6 with his 20th double and sixth home run .He drove in four runs. Frank Nigro went 2-for-3 with two walks and a double. Danny De Andrade went 1-for-3. He was hit by a pitch twice, and drilled his fourth home run of the season. The Mussels had 10 walks to go with nine hits in the game. Outfielders Alec Sayre and Luis Baez each walked twice, as did infielders-turned-pitchers Mikey Perez and Yohander Martinez. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Aaron Rozek (Wichita) - 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 83 pitches, 52 strikes. Hitter of the Day – Chris Williams (St. Paul) - 2-for-3, 2 BB, 2 HR(12), 3 R, 4 RBI PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the new Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Wednesday. #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 2-for-5, 2-2B(21), R, 2 RBI, K #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 0-for-2, K #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-3, BB, R, RBI. #4 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 1-for-3, BB, R, K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, K, 2-R #11 - Austin Martin (Rehab Ft. Myers) - hasn’t played since last Thursday. #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, K #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 1-for-4, BB. THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Louisville (5:35 PM CST) - RHP Cody Laweryson (2-1, 4.45 ERA) Wichita @ Midland (7:00 PM CST) - RHP Pierson Ohl (0-1, 10.38 ERA) South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) - LHP Christian MacLeod (1-0, 4.50 ERA) Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30 PM CST) - TBD FCL Braves @ FCL Twins (11:00AM CST) - TBD DSL Phillies Red @ DSL Twins (10:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!

Don’t forget to read Nick’s Week in Review to catch up on the Twins week. TRANSACTIONS None as of publishing. View Monday's transactions here. RESULTS Monday (6/5): Complex Opening Days! Tuesday (6/6): Saints Celebrate Grand Old Day Wednesday (6/7): Camargo Continues to Clobber for Saints Thursday (6/8): Lewis Dominant in Kernels Debut Friday (6/9): Raya and MacLeod Handle Business in Dayton Saturday (6/10): Maeda Crushes Rehab Assignment in Odd Day on the Farm Sunday (6/11): Soularie Slugs in Wichita, Cardenas Clobbers for Kernels MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Is the Next Joe Ryan Already in the Twins System? One Prospect Might Be Developing Into Minnesota’s Catcher of the Future Jordan Balazovic, Coming to a Bullpen Near You TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (5:35PM CST) - RHP Aaron Sanchez Wichita @ Midland (6:30PM CST) - TBD South Bend @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD Fort Myers @ Bradenton (5:30PM CST) - TBD See Pitching Probables here. WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints (Week: 4-3) Overall: 36-26, 0.5 game ahead in the International League West. Overview: The Saints won the series against Iowa, keeping them at bay. But the bigger week awaits… 🔥: Jair Camargo had a huge week. He hit four home runs and drove in 11. 🔥: Brent Headrick allowed two home runs, but struck out four and only allowed four total hits in seven innings. He would be next up if the Twins need a starter, but… 🔥: Kenta Maeda gave up only three hits in four innings and struck out five. He will be ready to return to the Twins in the next couple of weeks. 🔥: The rest of lineup was also very good. Andrew Stevenson led the organization with 13 hits. Joey Gallo (on rehab) and Andrew Bechtold both had two home runs. In total, eight hitters had double-digit total-base weeks. In the rest of the organization, there was only ten. (Though in fairness, the Saints did play seven games.) 🤔: Jordan Balazovic is going to be a passenger on the long-man shuttle soon. He struck out 10 in 6 1/3 innings over two appearances. He did issue six walks, which is a problem. 🥶: Three potential contributor for the big club - Simeon Woods Richardson, Ronny Henriquez and Randy Dobnak - were all bad this week. I’ll spare you the gross details, but in nine combined innings, they allowed 23 hits and 12 walks resulting in 21 runs. 🥶: Ryan LaMarre was 0-for-11 with five strikeouts. What's Next: A showdown at Louisville (35-26) for IL West supremacy. Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge (Week: 2-4) Overall: 23-33, 13.5 games back in the Texas League North. Overview: Wichita couldn’t gain ground on San Antonio, dropping four of six, but does end the week with a win. 🔥: Alerick Soularie has struggled to stay in the lineup consistently, but returned from a brief absence to hit two home runs on Sunday. He hadn’t hit a home run since April 15, though he missed a few weeks in early May. 🔥: David Festa and Blayne Enlow have been better, but they were the best of the team’s starters. Both allowed one earned run while striking out four. Enlow went a full five inning, while Festa recorded two less outs. 🤔: Yunior Severino tied for the team-lead in total bases (12), but led the team with eight strikeouts. 🥶: Welcome to AA, Pierson Ohl . In his first start since being promoted, Ohl allowed five runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out two. 🥶: Anthony Prato went hitless in 11 at-bats. What's Next: Wichita will head to Midland (26-31) who does have a positive run differential, but has dropped nine of their last 10. High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels (Week: 3-3) Overall: 32-25, 3.5 games up in the Midwest League West. Overview: Kernels settle for a split with Dayton, but increase their lead in the division. 🔥: Emmanuel Rodriguez would be here for only striking out once in 24 plate appearances. But he also had six hits, a home run, stole a base and drew five walks. 🔥: Welcome to high-A, Cory Lewis ! Eight strikeouts in five shutout innings is an impressive feat. 🔥: Marco Raya gave up a run, but he threw a season-high four innings. 🔥: Ben Ross continues to hit. His team-leading eight hits included two doubles and two home runs. 🥶: Zebby Matthews had a great debut, but didn’t make it out of the first inning in his start this week. He gave up eight runs on eight hits and only retired two batters. 🥶: It’s not new, but Jose Salas (1-for-13, 6 K) and Misael Urbina (1-for-15, 2 K) continue to not look equipped to handle this level of baseball. What's Next: It’s another showdown. Second-place South Bend (28-28) will look to make up ground on Cedar Rapids as the end of the first half quickly approaches. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels (Week: 2-4) Overall: 30-27, 10.5 games behind Clearwater in the Florida State League West. Overview: It could have gone worse against the league’s top team. 🔥: Rubel Cespedes has rebounded after a bad May. This past week he led the team with eight hits, 13 total bases, five RBI and tied for the team lead in runs (4), doubles (2) and home runs (1). 🔥: A.J. Labas struck out eight in 4 1/3 innings over three appearances. He walked one and allowed two hits. 😏: Austin Martin is back on rehab. Not doing much yet production-wise, but it’s nice to have him back. On Thursday, he made a catch in left field to end the third inning. Unfortunately, he collided with shortstop Danny De Andrade and didn't play the rest of the week. They will see how he progresses this week to determine if they will restart his 20-day rehab timeline. 🥶: Develson Aria walked five in 1 2/3 innings. It resulted in four runs. What's Next: Fort Myers will go to Bradenton (30-27) to battle it out for second place. Rookie: FCL Twins (Week: 3-2) Overall: 3-2, in a three-way tie for first place in the FCL South. Overview: The complex teams kicked off their season. This will be a fun team to follow. 🔥: Jose Rodriguez led the team with eight hits in 21 at-bats. He doubled twice and drove in two runs. 🔥: Local product John Klein struck out 11 in four innings in his season debut. 🥶: Bryan Acuna - you may have heard of at least one of his brother - has had a cold start to this season. One hit in 15 at-bats. Eight strikeouts. 😉: Connor Prielipp struggled in his rehab start, but him throwing again is a good sign. Rookie: DSL Twins (Week: 0-5) Overall: 0-5, 4.0 games back in the DSL South. Overview: Not a great start to the season. Only a few of these players will ever make it stateside, but we’ll still cover the good… and less good. 🔥: Hendry Chivilli is going to be one of the more-watched prospects on this team. He got two hits in his first game, but then hit the injured list. 🔥: Adrian Bohorquez - who you have likely never heard of - accumulated all nine of his outs by strikeout. He allowed three hits and a walk which resulted in two runs (one earned). 🥶: Yency De Jesus is one of the oldest players on the roster and struggled in his lone outing. He recorded two outs, but issued two walks, allowed four hits and seven runs (three earned). 🥶: Angel Trinidad and Jesus Peraza were the only two hitters not hit safely this week. PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated on the first of each month throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. (Season-long stats will be in parenthesis.) 20. Michael Helman, UTIL, St. Paul: On the Injured List with a dislocated shoulder. (.333/.434/.711. 1.145 OPS) 19. Yunior Severino, 3B, Wichita: 6-27, 3 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB, 8 K. (.274/.348/.527. .875 OPS). 18. Jose Rodriguez, OF, FCL Twins: 8-21, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB, 3 K. (.381/.417/.476. .893 OPS) 17. Blayne Enlow, RHP, Wichita: 1-0, 1.80 ERA, 5 IP, 7 H, ER, 2 HB, 4 K. (1.13 WHIP, .236 BAA) 16. Matt Canterino, RHP: Still recovering from Tommy John surgery. 15. Brent Headrick, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 2.57 ERA, 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 HRA, BB, 4 K. (1.30 WHIP, .270 BAA) 14. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 4.26 ERA, 6.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, HRA, 6 BB, 10 K. (1.53 WHIP, .250 BAA) 13. Noah Miller, SS, Cedar Rapids: 4-16, RBI, 2 BB, 3 K. (.208/.283/.279. .562 OPS), played shortstop in five games (45 total) and committed one error in 13 chances (five errors in 179 total chances); played no games (six total) at second base (no errors in 16 total chances). 12. Jose Salas, INF, Cedar Rapids: 1-13, RBI, R, 6 BB, 6 K, 2 SB, CS. (.155/.253/.211. .464 OPS), played one game at shortstop (11 total) and committed no errors in three chances (three errors in 36 chances total), played no games (10 total) at third base (three errors in 22 total chances). He played four games (25 total) at second base with one error in 16 chances (two errors in 100 total chances). 11. Austin Martin, SS, Fort Myers: 0-4, BB, K. FCL Twins: 1-2, HR, RBI, R, SB. Martin has played two games at second base and one game in left field so far. 10. Yasser Mercedes, OF, FCL Twins: 3-21, 2B, RBI, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K, SB, CS. (.143/.240/.190. .430 OPS) 9. Matt Wallner, OF, St. Paul: 8-27, 3 2B, 3 RBI, 4 R, 2 BB, 9 K. (.299/.405/.549. 954 OPS); Minnesota: (.368/.520/.579. 1.099 OPS) 8. David Festa, RHP, Wichita: 0-0, 2.08 ERA, 4.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 4 K. (1.42 WHIP, .255 BAA) 7. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 16.20 ERA, 3.1 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, HRA, 4 BB, 3 K (1.96 WHIP, .322 BAA); Minnesota: (1.85 WHIP, .313 BAA) 6. Marco Raya, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 0-0, 2.25 ERA, 4.0 IP, 3 H, ER, HB, 3 K. (0.73 WHIP, .157 BAA) 5. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: On a rehab assignment with the FCL Twins. Pitched 2 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks. He struck out four. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA) 4. Edouard Julien, 2B, St. Paul: 4-14, 2B, 4 RBI, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 K. (.293/.435/.496. .931 OPS), has played all 34 games at second base and has committed three errors in 158 chances; Minnesota: 3-7, 2 2B, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB, 3 K, SB (.246/.338/.478. .816 OPS) 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: 6-18, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 6 R, 5 BB, K, SB. (.198/.355/.397. .752 OPS) 2. Royce Lewis, SS: Minnesota: 8-16, 3 RBI, R, 4 K (.317/.317/.488. .805 OPS). 1. Brooks Lee, SS, Wichita: 5-19, 3 2B, 4 RBI, 3 R, 5 BB, 7 K, CS. (.262/.349/.416. .765 OPS), played five games (48 total) at shortstop and committed one error in 18 chances (five errors in 197 total chances). Lee has committed one error in three chances in one game at third base this season. PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (as voted on by fans on Twitter) PITCHER - Cory Lewis, Cedar Rapids. (Lewis 53%, Headrick 31%, Labas 8%, Klein 8%) HITTER - Jair Camargo, St. Paul. (Camargo 83%, Ross 14%, Centeno 3%) Who would have been your picks? Any early season surprises or disappointments? Ask questions and discuss the Twins prospects in the COMMENTS below.

An issue that popped up a little in this list is that of role assignments: pitchers in the minors often flip-flop between starting and relieving to eat up innings whenever they can. This poses challenges for those who acknowledge the delegation of title, as a starter with one relief appearance is still obviously a starter, but sometimes it isn't as clear-cut. I did my best to adhere to the spirit of the award while still understanding the sometimes silly nature of minor-league pitching order. Below are the names I thought most deserved to be on the list. Their ranking is entirely subjective; I value innings thrown, as those are outs, and outs are valuable, but also like to weigh strikeouts and peripheral numbers as they can differentiate between dominance and merely a pitcher getting lucky. In times when it's a toss-up, I valued the almighty ERA as the great equalizer—got that? Good; let's start. First, some honorable mentions: LHP Brent Headrick, St. Paul Saints Brent Headrick was second in the organization in strikeouts in May, punching out 32 hitters over 23 2/3 innings; run suppression proved his downfall, though, as he held a 4.18 ERA. RHP Marco Raya, Cedar Rapids Kernels May saw a rare perfect month as Marco Raya did not allow a run in four starts, striking out 35.0% of batters while walking just 2.5% of them. He only pitched 12 innings, though, which is why he was relegated to the honorable mention list. RHP Alejandro Hidalgo, Cedar Rapids Kernels Alejandro Hidalgo’s ERA was a sparkling 1.84, but he walked 12 batters over 14 2/3 innings, revealing some good fortune under the hood. LHP Jaylen Nowlin, Cedar Rapids Kernels Jaylen Nowlin led the organization in innings in May and walked just six batters. He also hit six more, though, limiting his placement to the honorable mention list. Now on to the main list: 5. LHP Jordan Carr - High-A Cedar Rapids Kernels, 21 IP, 24.1 K%, 1.71 ERA, 3.36 FIP Jordan Carr is a quick lesson in why pitcher designation in the minors is silly: Carr started three games in May but entered in relief once on May 26th to piggyback off Marco Raya, eventually finishing the game with six excellent frames. Technically that’s not a start, but Carr was still tremendous in May. With just four earned runs over 21 innings, Carr’s microscopic ERA was supported well by respectable strikeout and walks rates. Maybe next month, he won’t be a partial victim of circumstance, but for this month, he'll slot in as the fifth spot on this list. 4. RHP Blayne Enlow - AA Wichita Wind Surge, 25 1/3 IP, 32.4 K%, 3.20 ERA, 3.77 FIP An incredible lesson in patience and perseverance, Blayne Enlow rebounded from a middling 2022 season, making fools of Double-A hitters with revitalized stuff and excellent command. May was a continuation of April; Enlow gobbled up batters with two separate 10-K outings and a third start earning nine whiffs. If it weren't for a bizarre one-strikeout outing and another semi-blowup start, the 2017 draft pick could have reached even higher on this list. Still, Enlow is firmly back on the prospect map, and he could very well see major-league playing time sometime this season—something almost no one expected after the Twins removed him from the 40-man roster last off-season. 3. RHP Cory Lewis- Low-A Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, 19 2/3 IP, 34.6 K%, 2.29 ERA, 2.64 FIP Cory Lewis was a strong contender amongst the top three pitchers I considered for starter of the month. He didn’t take the top spot, but third place is something to cherish for the 22-year-old. He was dominant in May; A-Ball hitters walked back to the dugout 27 times after facing Lewis—a total only trailing Brent Headrick and Blayne Enlow, respectively. With a 0.92 WHIP and a suffocating .169 batting average against, that Lewis ever allowed runs seems like a miracle. You may remember him as the main force behind a May 14th combined no-hitter, striking out seven over 5 2/3 innings of work. He will inevitably join the Kernels sometime in the coming weeks, bringing his knuckleball north to the state of Iowa. 2. RHP Zebby Matthews - Low-A Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, 18 ⅓ IP, 36.0 K%, 1.96 ERA, 1.19 FIP 1.19 FIP! Yeah, that’s real, somehow. You should know about Zebby Matthews by now; perhaps no Twins pitching prospect has dominated this season like Matthews, who earned a promotion to Cedar Rapids before two full months had even passed. It’s easy to see why, though, given that Matthews allowed just four runs in May, striking out 27 batters while walking just two. Two. That’ll get a guy sent up a level. High-A hitters, be warned: Matthews looks to be a force even the strongest-willed amongst us would prefer to avoid. 1. LHP Aaron Rozek - AA Wichita Wind Surge, 22 2/3 IP, 22.4 K%, 1.99 ERA, 3.50 FIP A comeback story as fine as any. Aaron Rozek made three starts in April, surrendering 15 earned runs over 10 frames of work—unenviable numbers from the Burnsville native. But be it fate, fortune, hard work, or a combination of the three, Rozek found himself in May, turning in just five total earned runs over 22 2/3 innings. He beat out a tough crowd to become Twins Daily’s May Minor League starting pitcher of the month. In no start did he allow more than two earned runs, instead opting to hand his opponents one score before shutting them down for the evening; three of his starts were one-run endeavors. Those are difficult numbers to come by in an offensive-heavy environment like the Texas League. What are your thoughts on the starting pitching performances in the Twins minor leagues in May? How would you rank these pitchers? Comment below.

Don't forget to check out Nick's Week in Review. TRANSACTIONS Dereck Rodriguez was claimed off waivers by the Braves. Rodriguez was optioned to St. Paul on Saturday and it appears the Twins tried to slide him through waivers. There is now an open spot on the 40-man roster. Royce Lewis had his rehab transferred to St. Paul. He'll need to be re-added to the 40-man before being activated. He cannot come off of the 60-Day IL until June 1st. RESULTS Tuesday (5/9): Helboy? No, He Is a Helman! Wednesday (5/10): Big Bats, Big Innings, and Big Returns Thursday (5/11): Royce Returns Friday (5/12): Power Hitting and Solid Pitching Leads to Affiliate Wins Saturday (5/13): Offense Continues to Surge for Wichita Sunday (5/14): No-No for the Moms! MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Minnesota Twins 2017 Draft Retrospective: Lewis Early, Ober Late Respect Michael Helman It's Louie's Time to Shine The Twins Shouldn't Ask Brooks Lee to Save the Team's Offense TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Columbus (6:05PM CST) - RHP Jose De Leon (0-2, 3.62 ERA) Arkansas @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - TBD Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30PM CST) - TBD WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints (Week: 3-3) Overall: 21-16, 2.0 games back in the International League West. Overview: The Saints split with Indianapolis, who is below .500 on the season but is one of the hottest teams in the International League as they game into the series on a five-game winning streak. 🔥: Trevor Larnach came back to St. Paul and had seven hits with four extra base hits (two doubles and two home runs) in four games and 14 at-bats before heading back to Minneapolis. 🔥: Michael Helman continued his hot stretch before going on the injured list with a shoulder injury. He collected six hits in 12 at-bats and had a double, triple and home run. He drove in eight runs over three games. 🥶: Neither Ronny Henriquez, Simeon Woods Richardson nor Josh Winder had memorable weeks. They combined to give up 18 runs on 22 hits in only 10 2/3 innings. Their combined seven walks matched their combined seven strikeouts. 🔥: …on the flip side of that, the bullpen (minus Henriquez, Winder and Connor Sadzeck) combined to throw 17 2/3 shutout innings. That’s quite impressive. 🥶: Jose Miranda played in only three games, but in his 12 at-bats only had two hits. He walked once and struck out twice. After appearing to be the third baseman of the future recently, there is plenty of competition for that title currently. What's Next: The Saints head to Columbus who, like Indianapolis, is 18-20. But their +41 run differential and 22-16 expected win-loss record suggests they’re a better team than their record shows. Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge (Week: 5-0) Overall: 15-17, 6.5 games back in the Texas League North. Overview: The only thing that could stop the Wind Surge from going 6-0 this week was the weather as Sunday’s game was rained out. So the team will have to settle for 5-0. 🔥: Yunior Severino deserves more than one fire emoji. He had 11 hits in 22 at-bats with a double and four home runs. He drove in eight and scored nine times. With all the attention on Brooks Lee and Royce Lewis, Severino has flown under the radar. He’s played mostly at third base but is also dabbling in left field now. He went hitless in 14 at-bats earlier this month but is now hitting .286/.375/.619 on the season. 🔥: David Festa allowed four hits and two walks in five innings. He took struck out four and the lone run scored was unearned. 😏: Royce Lewis. He’s back! 🥶: Brooks Lee went 1-for-18 this week. He’s going to get back to hitting soon, but a good sign that his team can win five games without getting much of any production from Lee. What's Next: At home against Arkansas (22-11) who is tied for first place. High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels (Week: 5-2) Overall: 18-15, 2.5 games back in the Midwest League West. Overview: The Kernels dropped two of their first three, but ended with a four-game winning streak. 🔥: Jordan Carr threw six shutout innings in his lone start, striking out six while allowing four hits and two walks. 🔥: Noah Cardenas was limited to only 15 at-bats, but tied for a team-high with six hits. 🔥: Marco Raya is still on a short leash, but he struck out four in three one-hit innings. 🥶: Noah Miller got only two hits in 25 at-bats. He also struck out seven times. 🥶: Emmanuel Rodriguez struck out 12 times and has now struck out 32 times in 55 at-bats. What's Next: A two-week homestand, which begins with Peoria (18-15). Cedar Rapids and Peoria are in a second-place tie behind Beloit. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels (Week: 6-0) Overall: 19-14, 5.0 games behind Clearwater in the Florida State League West after making up three games in the standings. Overview: Fort Myers got the brooms out against Tampa and ended the series with an exclamation point when they no-hit the Tarpons on Sunday. 🔥: Cory Lewis faced 17 batters and retired every one of them, striking out seven (including four on his knuckleball). He was the first leg of a no-hitter. The bullpen didn’t give up a hit, but they blew the perfecto (on a strikeout/wild pitch). 🔥: After a week of being human, Andrew Cossetti got back to doing ridiculous things. In 14 at-bats, he got five hits (including a double and two home runs), plus he walked six times, drove in seven runs and stole a base. His OPS was 1.381. It’s time to promote him. 🔥: Speaking of promotions, Jorel Ortega was 9-23 with two doubles, a triple and a home run. He did strike out eight times, but drew two walks and also stole a base (in two tries). He should move up too. 🔥: Danny De Andrade shouldn’t move up because he’s so young, but a 7-for-19 week is what he needed. He doubled, homered, stole a base and struck out five times versus four walks. 🔥: C.J. Culpepper wasn’t perfect, but was really good. He struck out eight in 5 1/3 innings. He allowed a run on four hits and a walk. 🔥: Develson Aria bounced back after a poor showing. He struck out seven in five innings. He walked three and gave up two hits, but no runs. What's Next: The Mighty Mussels will hit the road for two weeks, beginning with a stop at Lakeland (13-20). PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated several times throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. (Season-long stats will be in parenthesis.) 20. Misael Urbina, OF, Cedar Rapids: 5-for-21, 2B, 3 RBI, R, 2 BB, 8 K. (.150/.239/.240. .479 OPS) 19. Jose Rodriguez, OF: Extended Spring Training 18. Tanner Schobel, 2B, Cedar Rapids: 6-for-23, 2 2B, 3B, HR, 3 RBI, 5 R, 5 BB, 5 K. (.239/.315/.389. .704 OPS), played one game at second base (12 total) and committed no errors in four chances (two in 50 chances total); played six games at third base and had one error in 10 chances (has committed one error in 32 total chances in 15 games). 17. Ronny Henriquez, RHP: St Paul: 0-0, 10.80 ERA, 3.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K. (3.30 WHIP, .533 BAA) 16. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, St. Paul: 0-1, 3.52 ERA, 7.2 IP (2 starts), 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 9 K. (1.29 WHIP, .200 BAA) 15. Matt Canterino, RHP: Still recovering from Tommy John surgery. 14. Noah Miller, SS, Cedar Rapids: 2-for-25, 2 R, 3 BB, 7 K, 3 SB. (.200/.287/.258. .545 OPS), played shortstop in six games (25 total) and committed one error in 29 chances (three errors in 103 total chances); played one game (five total) at second base and committed no errors in no chances (15 total). 13. David Festa, RHP, Wichita: 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 47 K. (1.34 WHIP, .257 BAA) 12. Yasser Mercedes, OF: Extended Spring Training 11. Matt Wallner, OF, St. Paul: 5-for-14, 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R, BB, 4 K. (.280/.423/.537. 960 OPS); Minnesota: (.000/.273/.000. .273 OPS) 10. Austin Martin, SS: Martin is still recovering from an arm injury. 9. Louie Varland, RHP, St. Paul: 1-0, 1.69 ERA, 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 8 K. (1.27 WHIP, .263 BAA); Minnesota: 1-0, 4.30 ERA, 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 HRA, BB, 7 K. (1.23 WHIP, .247 BAA) 8. Jose Salas, INF, Cedar Rapids: 3-for-20, 2 2B, 3RBI, 2 R, 1 BB, 8 K, 1 CS (.156/.250/.219. .469 OPS), played one at shortstop and had no chances (two errors in 26 chances in eight games total) and one game (seven total) at third base with an error in four chances (two errors in 16 total chances). He played four games (11 total) at second base with no errors in 18 chances (no errors in 41 total chances). 7. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: On the injured list, but expected to resume throwing. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA) 6. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 10.38 ERA, 4.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 HRA, 1 BB, 4 K (1.59 WHIP, .295 BAA); Minnesota: (2.14 WHIP, .350 BAA) 5. Edouard Julien, 2B, St. Paul: 6-for-28, 2B, 5 R, 5 BB, 6 K. (.276/.427/.480. .907 OPS), has played all 23 games at second base and has committed two errors in 106 chances; Minnesota: (.222/.276/.444. .720 OPS) 4. Marco Raya, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3.0 IP, H, 4 K. (1.84 WHIP, .184 BAA) 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: 4-22, R, 3 BB, 12 K, 2 CS. (.164/.309/.382. 691 OPS) 2. Royce Lewis, SS: Wichita: 2-6, 2B, RBI, 3 R, BB, 3 K, 2 SB. (.333/.500/.500. 1.000 OPS), played one game (one total) at shortstop and committed no errors in four chances. Lewis played one game (one total) at third base and committed no errors in one chance. 1. Brooks Lee, SS, Wichita: 7-for-22, 3 2B, 4 RBI, 6 R, 2 BB, 3 K. (.263/.323/.439. .762 OPS), played three games (27 total) at shortstop and committed no errors in 12 chances (three errors in 112 total chances). Lee played one game (one total) at third base and committed one error in three chances. PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (as voted on by fans on Twitter... except for this week, where 81% of voters agreed it was "obviously these two.") PITCHER - Cory Lewis, Fort Myers. The following tweet says it all. The Mighty Mussels combined for a no-hitter on Sunday, but when Lewis left the game he had retired all 17 batters he had faced. He had a perfect week... and it's hard to not be recognized for that. HITTER - Yunior Severino, Wichita. Severino wasn't perfect... but he was as close as a hitter is going to get in a week's worth of games. Who would have been your picks? Any early season surprises or disappointments? Ask questions and discuss the Twins prospects in the COMMENTS below.

SAINTS SENTINEL Indianapolis 15, St. Paul 3 Box Score Having worked as a reliever earlier in the year, Jordan Balazovic took the ball to start for St. Paul on Sunday. He went 3 2/3 innings while allowing five runs on four hits. Only three of the runs were earned, however, and he gave up just a single walk while striking out four. He was nearly perfect through the game's first three innings. Looking for an early lead, the Saints got on the board in the first when Matt Wallner lifted a sacrifice fly to score Edouard Julien. Mark Contreras continued his hot hitting later in the frame and singled in Kyle Garlick to make it 2-0. A five-run 4th inning for Indianapolis had the Saints looking up at a deficit, but Wallner brought them closer when he hit his fourth homer of the season in the 5th inning. After Austin Schulfer worked a scoreless 1 1/3 innings, Ronny Henriquez came on for St. Paul. He gave up a run on three hits. The Saints had four innings to crawl out of a three-run hole. Unfortunately, Indianapolis added again in the 7th inning and the deficit was 8-3. Despite loading the bases in the bottom of the 8th inning, St. Paul couldn't push a run across. Whatever slim chance they may have had in the 9th inning was dashed as Indianapolis followed the Twins lead and put up a seven-run frame. All of the runs came against Josh Winder. Elliot Soto and Edouard Julien struck out before Kyle Garlick grounded out in the bottom half to end the game. Of the seven hits, Contreras was the only one to generate a pair. WIND SURGE WISDOM Cancelled - Rain The Wind Surge won all five games of the series against Frisco. Infielder Yunior Severino was named the Minnesota Twins minor league hitter of the week after he batted .444 with four homers. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 2, Quad Cities 0 Box Score Jordan Carr worked the Sunday matinee for the Kernels, and he was sharp across six innings. Allowing no runs on four hits and two walks, Carr also punched out six batters to lower his season ERA to 2.25. Both sides were scoreless through four innings, and then Cedar Rapids jumped to a lead. Tanner Schobel recorded his second triple of the year and drove in Emmanuel Rodriguez to make it 1-0. Kala’i Rosario followed with his ninth double of the season, and the Kernels found themselves leaving the frame with a 2-0 lead. The Kernels wound up with six hits on the day, but the two runs they scored in the 5th inning were all they needed for the win. Rosario was joined by Jeferson Morales with a pair of hits. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 3, Tampa 0 Box Score Getting in a morning game for Mother’s Day, Fort Myers turned to Cory Lewis, and he did not disappoint. Working 5 2/3 innings, he didn’t allow a batter to reach while punching out seven. That was just the beginning of an amazing day as A.J. Labas, Gabriel Yanez, and Ben Ethridge took over to complete a combined no-hitter. The Mighty Mussels scored in the 3rd inning when Jorel Ortega singled in Yohander Martinez. They added in the 5th inning when Andrew Cossetti’s single turned into a throwing error that allowed Martinez a chance to scamper home again. Wrapping up the scoring, Dalton Shuffield and Cossetti swiped bags on a double steal with the former running home on a throwing error. Fort Myers only got four hits, but when your pitching is as dominant as it was, there was never a doubt. Lewis has been impressive while being an arm that displays a knuckleball but being able to do much more than act as a soft tossing type. The relievers backing him up today held down the Tarpons lineup, and while the combined no-hitter would have been cool, displaying command to lock in a perfect game could have been the icing on the cake. Only a wild pitch on a strikeout allowed a Tampa batter to reach. Headed to Lakeland this week, Fort Myers will certainly bask in this one a little bit. They finished the series with a sweep. It was their fourth no-hitter across the past three seasons. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Fort Myers) - 5.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K Hitter of the Day – Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-3, 2 RBI, 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: #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, R, 2 BB, 2 K #5 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 0-4, R, BB, 3 K #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, K #9 - Louie Varland (Minnesota) - 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 7 K #11 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-3, 2 RBI, HR(4) #14 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 3.2 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K #17 - Ronny Henriquez (St. Paul) - 1.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, BB #18 - Tanner Schobel (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, R, RBI, 3B(2), BB TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Columbus (6:05PM CST) - TBD Arkansas @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - TBD Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - TBD Fort Myers @ Lakeland (5:30PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games!

Cody Christie covered the hitting portion of our awards the other day, making it time to crown the best pitcher in the Twins system for April 2023. We start with the starting pitchers. Of course, in minor-league baseball, there are a lot of starters and potential starters. Sometimes teams strategically piggyback a couple of starters together, but one looks like a reliever in the stat line. We will take a look at the starters who began the 2023 season with a strong month. Coming Soon will be the top relievers in April. But before we jump into our Top 5 Twins Minor League Starting Pitchers for April, here some honorable mentions: RHP Blayne Enlow, Wichita Wind Surge The last cut, Enlow was great in April, striking out 24 batters while pitching more than 20 innings in his most effective month since returning from Tommy John surgery last summer. LHP Jaylen Nowlin, Cedar Rapids Kernels Nowlin walked a few too many batters, holding him back from greater honor, meaning a higher ranking on this list, but he also struck out 20 batters—something only six other pitchers in the system accomplished in April. RHP Kyle Jones, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels Inhaling more than 19 frames, Jones posted a 2.42 FIP thanks in large part to a miniscule walk rate (5.3%). Jones was a 7th-round pick in the 2022 draft. 5. RHP Bailey Ober - AAA St. Paul Saints, 17 2/3 IP, 30.1 K%, 2.55 ERA, 2.70 FIP Too good to be contained by the AAA confines that limit him, Bailey Ober turned in an excellent month of pitching for the Saints, earning a 2.55 ERA and a 2.70 FIP while striking out a hair over 30% of batters faced. He allowed just one homer. The walks were troublesome, though—an 8.2% rate is far higher than his typical, trustworthy command allows—and in a cutthroat environment like the Twins Daily Minor League Monthly Awards, these are the lines that must be drawn to determine dominance. Better news comes knocking for Ober, however: recent injuries in the starting rotation open up a chance for the tall righty to prove himself once more; he appears very likely to take over a starting spot as Kenta Maeda and Tyler Mahle deal with their ailments. 4. RHP Louie Varland - AAA St. Paul Saints, 15 IP, 40.3 K%, 4.20 ERA, 1.77 FIP A similar figure as Ober, Louie Varland is simply too good for AAA. His peripherals—good lord, his peripherals—were overwhelmingly dominant in April as the Minnesota native one-upped Ober, striking out over 40% of the batters he faced in the month. That’s deGrom territory. He also walked just four hitters. So why not rank him higher? Needing to be a stickler over such minor sample sizes necessitates a certain meanness when looking at one’s body of work, and Varland lacked the innings the other starters provided (15). With ever-increasing velocity, Varland’s ascent appears never-ending; his movement from fun hometown story, to legitimate minor league performer, to potentially dominant major leaguer has been breathtaking, astounding. His final hurdle appears to be the all-important playing time—something he should run into very soon. For now, he’ll settle for 4th place on this prestigious list. 3. RHP Cory Lewis - Low-A Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, 19 IP, 34.2 K%, 3.32 ERA, 3.50 FIP And now we reach the unicorn. Minnesota’s 9th-round pick in the 2022 draft carries the usual pitching repertoire—a spinny fastball; a dazzling curve; ideal extension—on top of a true wild card: “an impressive knuckleball.” More than a freak side-show, Lewis’ game has translated well to the minor leagues, as the starter pitched 19 innings in April, punching out 34.2% of batters while carrying an ERA of 3.32. The peak of his bat-missing madness came on April 26th, when the 22-year-old elicited 19 swings and misses over just 4 2/3 frames. The effectiveness has more to do with his fastball/curveball punch, potentially disappointing those hoping to see MLB’s first consistent knuckleballer since Steven Wright in 2019. Still, his success may not be a fluke, and continued production may result in night classes for Twins catchers unsure of handling the dancing, unpredictable nature of the 82-mph knuckleball. 2. RHP David Festa - AA Wichita Wind Surge, 19 IP, 35.5 K%, 3.79 ERA, 3.35 FIP Back to your regular, normal right-handed prospecting. David Festa popped up in 2022, elevating from a random 13th-round pick from Seton Hall—the college of Craig Biggio, Mo Vaughn, and Zack Granite—into a respectable potential rotation fixture. He “pops mid-90s heat and pairs it with a potential plus mid-80s slider with power 11-6 depth,” giving him a classic modern starter’s profile—with more apparent limbs than your prototypical hurler. And his tools served him well in April; the righty covered 19 innings while striking out 35.5% of batters at AA, a level he had not yet touched, while in the Texas League, a division famous for hitting. The early returns favor a repeat of 2022 for Festa, and such a development could push him into rotation plans for the big-league club in 2024. 1. RHP Zebby Matthews - Low-A Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, 20 1/3 IP, 34.7 K%, 3.10 ERA, 2.39 FIP One of the most apparent, sweeping movements in the Twins system under Falvey and Levine has been the rapid improvements made by anonymous college pitchers suddenly breaking out after draft day. Zebby Matthews is no exception. While he’s actually the highest-drafted arm of the five we talked about today—a regal 8th-round selection—Matthews’ immediate impact was not well-predicted. But it has been glorious. Combining the efficiency of a command artist with the punch outs of a workhorse, Matthews walked just three batters, struck out 26 of them, and swallowed 20 1/3 innings over four promising starts. One was a clunker, but the other three flashed brilliance; he didn’t allow a run for 13 consecutive frames to begin the season. What’s fascinating and different about Matthews’ success is his approach: a full serving of almost every pitch a pitcher can throw (except for that one, you know which), that has apparently befuddled Low-A hitters. When a batter must react to the four-seamer, sinker, slider, curveball, changeup, or cutter, it evidently leads to missed hacks, foolish takes, and the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month Award.

It's days like this where it's important to remember that the minor leagues are primarily about player development. And then we can continue by saying that sometimes people can learn the most from their adversity and bad days. That is an absolute truth. But when the big-league club gets blown out, and two affiliates not only give up double-digit runs but also get shut out, and another affiliate mounted a comeback only to lose it right away, it can be tough. That said, there's good in everything and there are highlights or players from each level that need to be discussed. Also, learn more about a Minnesota pitcher who appears destined for a big-league debut in 2023. And, we even added a little fun trivia for you to think about and discuss. So, how about we get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS After tossing five long-relief innings against the Yankees on Wednesday afternoon, Brent Headrick was optioned to the Saints. Corresponding move(s) coming before the Twins four-game series against the Royals starts on Thursday. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 2, Rochester 7 Box Score As you saw above, there was only a single transactions in the Twins organization on Wednesday. However, we have to assume that there are going to be at least a couple on Thursday as the Twins pitching depth is again being tested. Because of that, the Saints pitching depth has been tested as well. On Wednesday night, Jose De Leon made the start for the Red Wings. The righty from Puerto Rico gave up three runs (1 earned) on four hits in four innings. He walked three and struck out four batters. Connor Sadzeck came on in relief and threw two scoreless innings against a team he once played for. He gave up one hit, walked none and struck out three. Trivia: Ten members of the St. Paul Saints have been a part of the Rochester Red Wings in the past. I’ll give you one. Saints Manager Toby Gardenhire played for the Red Wings in 2010 and 2011. He was set to be the Red Wings manager for the 2020 season. He also spent half of a season as Mike Quade’s third base coach after the former Cubs manager (and current Twins minor-league outfield coordinator) had an arm surgery. In the comments below, let’s see if we can come up with the other nine? Anyway… Dereck Rodriguez came on for the seventh inning. He was charged with four runs on five hits. Patrick Murphy then struck out two batters in a scoreless eighth inning. The Saints actually got on the scoreboard first. Jair Camargo hit his first Triple-A home run, a solo shot in the third inning. The other Saints run came in the sixth inning when former Red Wings outfielder Andrew Stevenson singled in a run. The outfielder went 1-for-4 against his old teammates and stole his ninth base of the season. The Saints had base runners. They had seven hits and four walks. Edouard Julien had a double and a walk. Matt Wallner had a double, a walk, and was hit by a pitch in the game. Alex Kirilloff did not play in this game. Ryan LaMarre spent the game at first base. It was just the third time that he played at first base in his 14 seasons as a professional baseball player. He played two games there in 2021 for Scranton/Wilkes Barre. The loss ended the Saints five-game winning streak. The Saints also lost to the Red Wings for the first time since joining the International League in 2021 (7-1). Former Twin Travis Blankenhorn got the night off. The night before he hit a double to extend his on-base streak to 10 games. Finally, the winning pitcher for Rochester on Wednesday night was Bloomington Jefferson graduate Jake Irvin. The 6’-6” right-hander gave up two runs on five hits and three walks over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out six batters. Irvin graduated from Jefferson in 2015. That year, he was drafted in the 37th round by the Twins. However, he went to the University of Oklahoma and three years later, he was the Nationals’ fourth-round pick. He pitched quite well his first two pro seasons and was part of the Nationals’ player pool in 2020. He didn’t pitch in the big leagues, and then he got hurt. He had surgery in October of 2020 and missed the entire 2021 season. He returned in 2022 and made 24 starts between High-A and Double-A. After the season, he was added to the Nationals’ 40-man roster. He had a solid showing this spring and it’s very possible he will make his big-league debut this season. His velocity has actually improved post-surgery which is always encouraging. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 0, Springfield 10 Box Score With one out in the top of the fifth inning, the game was scoreless. Travis Adams was dealing with 4 1/3 scoreless innings. And then things turned. He gave up a single before Matt Koperniak hit a two-run homer. The next batter reached on an error, and Adams’ day was done. Tyler Beck, making his return after missing the 2022 season after Tommy John surgery, came in and struggled for the first time this season. He walked the first two batters he faced to load the bases. Then a bloop single scored two runs (one charged to Adams). Beck issued another walk to reload the bases. He got a ground out for the second out, but a run did score. Another walk loaded the bases and Ramon Borrego came out and brought Hunter McMahon in. A line out to left ended the five-fun innings. McMahon pitched a scoreless sixth frame. He came back out of the seventh and gave up two runs on three two hits and a walk before Seth Nordlin came on with one out. Whereas McMahon stranded the three base runners he inherited, McMahon left with two runners on base, and both scored. Nordlin gave up three hits and two runs of his own too. He gave up a third run on two more hits in the eighth frame. Michael Boyle pitched a scoreless ninth inning. The Wind Surge offense struggled throughout the only Yoyner Fajardo had the lone hit of the day, a single, and he also had one of the four walks the team had. Not-So-Fun Fact: The Wind Surge have now played in five afternoon/morning games. In those games, they are 0-5 and have been outscored 45-11. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 0, West Michigan 10 Box Score On Tuesday night, the Kernels shutout West Michigan. On this night, they scored 10 runs on 16 hits and shut down the Kernels offense. Something about Turnabout being fair play, or something? Jordan Carr started, and he did a decent job of limiting damage. He went five innings and gave up three runs on eight hits. He walked one and struck out seven batters. Matt Mullenbach gave up a one over two innings, and Matt Swain gave up a run in the eighth inning. Charlie Neuweiler got two outs in the ninth inning but gave up five runs on four hits and a walk. John Wilson came on and needed one pitch to end the inning. The Kernels were shutout for the first time this year, and three hits is tied for their fewest on the season. Ben Ross had two of the three hits, both doubles. Check out this Jeff Johnson article from The Gazette in Cedar Rapids on Kernels pitcher Regi Grace . MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 5, Daytona 7 Box Score Down 5-1 through seven innings, the Mussels rallied with four runs in the top of the eighth to tie the game. However, Daytona scored two in the bottom of that inning and held on for the win. Cory Lewis was back on the mound to start. In 4 2/3 innings, he gave up three runs (1 earned) on five hits. He walked just one and struck out nine batters. The two runs he gave up in the third inning were a bit of bad luck. After striking out the first batter, he struck out the next batter, but the ball got by the catcher and the batter reached base. After a second out, Lewis had a throwing error that allowed runners to reach first and third. With two outs, he struck out the next batter, but again, it rolled by the catcher and allowed everyone to advance. Another run scored on a single up the middle. AJ Labas got the final out of the fifth inning and then pitched a perfect sixth inning as well. Hard-throwing Juan Mendez gave up two runs in the seventh inning and then after the game was tied, he gave up two more in the eighth. Combined, he gave up four runs on two hits and three walks in two innings. In the four-run eighth inning for the Mussels, Andrew Cossetti scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch. The bases filled again, but Jorel Ortega emptied them with a double to tie the game… temporarily. Danny De Andrade, who played hero the night before, was the lone Mussel with two hits in the game, and both of them were triples. Cossetti went 1-for-2 with a walk, and he was hit by a pitch twice. Fort Myers had seven hits and six walks, but they went 1-for-10 with Runners in Scoring Position and left 11 on base. Mussel batters struck out 17 times in the game. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Fort Myers) - 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1ER, 1 BB, 9 K Hitter of the Day – Danny De Andrade (Fort Myers) - 2-for-4, BB, 2-3B, BB, 1 R, 1 RBI PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the new Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Wednesday. #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 0-for-4, K #5 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, 2B, 2 K. SB. #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-2, BB, K #11 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-2, BB, 2B, HBP, K. #14 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, 3 K #18 - Tanner Schobel (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, K. #20 - Misael Urbina (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, K THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Rochester (10:05 AM CST) - RHP Louie Varland (1-0, 5.59 ERA) Springfield @ Wichita (7:05 PM CST) - LHP Aaron Rozek (0-1, 14.21 ERA) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo (0-1, 1.59 ERA) Fort Myers @ Daytona (5:35 PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!

If you missed it, read Nick's Twins Week in Review after you've read about the minor leagues. TRANSACTIONS Michael Helman's rehab with Fort Myers is over and he'll be re-joining the Saints. RESULTS Tuesday (4/18): Ober Leads Shutout, Wind Surge Blasts Off Wednesday (4/19): Little Offense, but Aria and Cossetti Showed their Mussels Thursday (4/20): Cossetti Continues to Clobber Friday (4/21): Wallner, Garlick Power Extra-Inning Walkoff for Saints Saturday (4/22): Rucker and Shuffield Lead With Late-Inning Homers Sunday (4/23): Rehab Talents Providing Fireworks on the Farm MORE TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE CONTENT Bailey Ober Inching Towards Twins TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Rochester (5:05PM CST) - RHP Aaron Sanchez (0-1, 3.12 ERA) Springfield @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - RHP David Festa (1-1, 3.07 ERA) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:35PM CST) - RHP Kyle Jones (0-2, 5.65 ERA) Fort Myers @ Daytona (5:35PM CST) - LHP Develson Aria (0-0, 2.25 ERA) WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints (Week: 5-1) Overall: 13-7, 1.5 games back in the International League West. Overview: The Saints had an excellent week, but didn't make up any ground on Memphis who lost yesterday to snap a 12-game winning streak. 🔥: Jordan Balazovic has been good in his short appearances so far this year. He allowed one hit and struck out three in two innings this week. Could he eventually represent himself as a bullpen option for the Twins? 🔥: It's going to be Alex Kirilloff time sooner or later. Kirilloff played in only four games, but had six hits including a double and two home runs. He drove in nine and also walked more times (3) than he struck out (2). Hard not to like a .462/.588/1.000 (1.588) slashline for the week. Kirilloff will begin the week with the Saints, but if he ends the week there remains to be seen. 🔥: It wasn't a great cameo for the Twins, but Matt Wallner is hitting (1.126 OPS for the week) for the Saints. He also took 9 walks compared to 5 strikeouts. 🥶: After a spot start with the Twins, Louie Varland was back with the Saints and struggled in his only start. He allowed five runs on seven hits and a walk. He did strike out eight over his 4 2/3 innings. 🥶: Trevor Megill was a nice contributor for the Twins down the stretch last year, but failed to make the team after a rough spring training. In two appearances this week, Megill allowed five runs on three hits, including two home runs, and walked three. What's Next: The Saints will head to Rochester to face the former Twins affiliate. The Red Wings (6-14) are currently in last place in the IL East and have the worst winning percentage in the whole league. It should be a good week for the Saints to continue to their hot play. Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge (Week: 2-4) Overall: 7-8, 3.0 games back in the Texas League North. Overview: Wichita's two wins ended two- three-game losing streaks. The bats just weren't up to the task getting shut out in consecutive games. But after allowing 27 runs in the last two games against NW Arkansas, the pitching staff performed better. 🔥: Blayne Enlow completed six innings in his start this week. He allowed two runs on four hits and two walks. He struck out five and held opponents to a .100 batting average. 🔥: Michael Boyle had a clunker last week, but put together two hitless outings this week. In three innings total, Boyle struck out four and only allowed one baserunner via walk. 🤔: Carlos Luna gets the same emoji for the second straight week. He doesn't put runners on base (0.64 WHIP)... but both hits he allowed were home runs. He remains a curious case. 🥶: Yunior Severino struggled to make contact this week, striking out a team-high (and tied for organizational-high) 10 times. What's Next: Wichita will be hosting last-place Springfield (5-10) as they look to make up ground on Arkansas and Tulsa. High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels (Week: 1-5) Overall: 6-8, 3.5 games back and in last place in the Midwest League West. Overview: Only able to avoid a sweep against Beloit by winning Sunday, the Kernels found themselves in an eight-game losing streak. Luckily, the bats finally came alive and produced 11 runs. 🥶: Most of the Kernels. Of the many names that could be listed, no lowlights will be highlighted... cause it's not pretty. 🔥: Aside from Pierson Ohl, the starting rotation really struggled. Ohl struck out five in five innings and allowed only one run on four hits. 🔥: Charlie Neuweiler was a starting pitcher in the Royals system for part of last season, but struggled in his brief glimpses out of the AA and AAA bullpen. It's possible he's found a home in the bullpen with the Twins organization. He got eight outs this week and all the other team had to show for it was a walk and three strikeouts. 🔥: Kala'i Rosario broke out of his cold streak by getting six hits in 19 at-bats. He had three doubles and a triple, drove in three runs and walked three times. 🔥: Noah Miller and Noah Cardenas also had six-hit weeks. What's Next: A home series against West Michigan (9-6) who sits in a half game out of first place in the East Division. Low-A: Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels (Week: 3-3) Overall: 8-7, 2.0 games behind Bradenton in the Florida State League West. Overview: Lots of runs scored by both teams over the course of the last week, but a .500 week dropped the Mighty Mussels from a first-place tie into third place. 🔥: Cory Lewis is doing it. He's throwing the knuckleball (among his other pitches) and low-A hitters don't know what to do with it. He struck out six and walked two in five innings of one-hit, one-run (it was a home run) ball 🔥: Develson Aria is an intriguing left-hander who is getting results. The runner-up for pitcher of the week, Aria struck out four in five innings of near-perfect ball (he walked two). 🔥: Jose Olivares is the youngest pitcher on the roster and the 20-year-old is impressive. He threw 5 2/3 innings of one-run, one-walk, three-hit ball and struck out four. The strikeout numbers (7 in 10 2/3 innings) aren't overly impressive, but the lack of walks and hits (0.66 WHIP) are. 🔥: The trio of Michael Helman, Dalton Shuffield and Jorel Ortega was overshadowed by Andrew Cossetti, but they all had excellent weeks. Helmen (.421/.542/.684 (1.226 OPS)) is headed back to the Saints. Shuffield (.375/.412/.750 (1.162 OPS))) shouldn't be in Fort Myers to begin with. Ortega's pro debut was derailed by an injury but his 8:1 BB:K ratio was quite impressive. 🥶: Rubel Cespedes didn't offer much power, but batted nearly .290 in low-A in 2022. It hasn't been a great encore for the young infielder. This week, Cespedes went 2-18 with a double, two RBIs, a run, two walks and six strikeouts. His current .584 OPS is significantly lower than last year's .737. What's Next: Heading to Daytona (6-9) in hopes of making up some ground on Bradenton. PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated on the first of each month throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. (Season-long stats will be in parenthesis.) 20. Misael Urbina, OF, Cedar Rapids: 1-17, 2B, 3 BB, 5 K, SB, CS. (.114/.235/.205. .440 OPS) 19. Jose Rodriguez, OF: Extended Spring Training 18. Tanner Schobel, 2B, Cedar Rapids: 2-20, 3 RBI, R, 2 BB, 10 K, SB. (.200/.245/.320. .565 OPS), played four games at second base (eight total) and committed no errors in 9 chances (one in 32 chances total); has not committed any errors (four chances) at third base this season (three games). 17. Ronny Henriquez, RHP: On Minnesota’s injured list with elbow inflammation. 16. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0 (0.00 ERA), 2 IP, H, 3 K. (1.41 WHIP, .167 BAA) 15. Matt Canterino, RHP: Still recovering from Tommy John surgery. 14. Noah Miller, SS, Cedar Rapids: 6-21, 4 RBI, 2B, HR, 6 R, 2 BB, 5 K, SB. (.306/.397/.408. .805 OPS), played shortstop in four games (ten total) and committed one error in 13 chances (one error in 38 total chances); played one game (two total) at second base and committed no errors in six chances (nine total). 13. David Festa, RHP, Wichita: 0-1, 4.15 ERA, 4.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K. (0.89 WHIP, .180 BAA) 12. Yasser Mercedes, OF: Extended Spring Training 11. Matt Wallner, OF, St. Paul: 5-17, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 9 BB, 5 K, 5 R. (.295/.466/.591. 1.057 OPS); Minnesota: (.000/.273/.000. .273 OPS) 10. Austin Martin, SS: Martin is still recovering from an arm injury. 9. Louie Varland, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 9.64 ERA, 4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, HR, BB, 8 K. (1.34 WHIP, .297 BAA); Minnesota: (1.17 WHIP, .250 BAA) 8. Jose Salas, INF: 2-17, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 SB, CS (.122/.200/.122. .322 OPS), played two games at shortstop and had one error in 11 chances (one error in 15 chances in four games total) and two games (four total) at third base with no errors (one total) in two chances (nine total). He played two games (three total) at second base with no errors in five chances (no errors in nine total chances). 7. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: Prielipp was placed on the injured list last week. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA) 6. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: (2.43 WHIP, .412 BAA); Minnesota: 0-0, 4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, HR, 3 BB. (2.14 WHIP, .350 BAA) 5. Edouard Julien, 2B, St. Paul: 1-10, 2B, 3 R, 5 BB 3 K, HBP. (.244/.426/.463. .889 OPS); Minnesota: 4-13, HR, 3 RBI, R, 6 K (.222/.276/.444. .720 OPS) 4. Marco Raya, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 2.2 IP, H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K. (1.50 WHIP, .125 BAA) 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: Rodriguez was placed on the injured list with an abdomen strain. 2. Royce Lewis, SS: Lewis is still recovering from his second ACL surgery. 1. Brooks Lee, SS, Wichita: 5-26, 2B, HR, RBI, 2 R, 2 BB, 8 K, SB. (.263/.323/.439. .762 OPS), played all six games (14 total) at shortstop and committed two errors in 27 chances (64 total). PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (as voted on by fans on Twitter) PITCHER - Randy Dobnak, St. Paul. Dobnak gets a 4.99 out of 5 rating for his performance in St. Paul this week. In a six-inning start, Dobnak struck out four and allowed only one run on three hits and a walk. It's been a long and windy road for Dobnak since bursting onto the big-league scene in 2019, but hopefully the next twists and turns will lead back to Target Field. (Dobnak 56%, Aria 28%, Ohl 11%, Luna 5%) HITTER - Andrew Cossetti, Fort Myers. There wasn't a lot of competition for this award, but even if there was Cossetti would have won. Cossetti had organizational-highs in hits (10), total bases (21), home runs (3), average (.556), sluggling (1.167) and OPS (1.792) and tied in runs (7) and OBP (.625). Coming into this week, Cossetti was batting .200 with a .696 OPS but if he hits even half as well as he did this past week, the 11th round pick from last year can put himself on the prospect radar. (Cossetti 75%, Wallner 13%, Rosario 10%, Jake Rucker 2%) Who would have been your picks? Any early season surprises or disappointments? Ask questions and discuss the Twins prospects in the COMMENTS below.

TRANSACTIONS C Charles Mack activated from IL for Cedar Rapids C Wilfri Castro transferred to FCL SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 5, Scranton/WB 3 Box Score Toby Gardenhire turned to Jose De Leon for the start tonight, and he was nothing short of spectacular. Working four scoreless innings, De Leon allowed just two hits and two walks while punching out five. He once was dangled as a trade chip for Brian Dozier, and is now pushing for a debut with the Twins. The scoring started and ended in the third inning for the Saints. Rehabbing Twins first baseman Alex Kirilloff doubled to score both Elliot Soto and Matt Wallner. It was Soto's double that set up the additional runs. Mark Contreras continued his hot hitting with a double of his own to plate Kirilloff and Kyle Garlick. St. Paul had put up a four spot in the third inning and jumped out ahead. Scranton clawed back with runs in the fifth inning, seventh inning, and eighth inning, but ultimately they fell just short. Hernan Perez clubbed his second hit of the night, a solo shot in the eighth inning, to give St. Paul a bit of breathing room. Kirilloff finished his night going 2-for-3 while also being hit by a pitch. WIND SURGE WISDOM Tulsa 3, Wichita 0 Box Score Making the start for Wichita was Travis Adams. He lasted four innings and allowed just a pair of runs on four hits. Adams walked a pair, but also struck out four batters. The pair of runs came on a solo homer and a wild pitch. Jonny DeLuca led off the game for the Drillers with a solo blast in the bottom of the first inning. Adams buckled down, and while he did allow Diego Cartaya to score on a second inning wild pitch, no other damage mounted. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. made an amazing catch in centerfield to rob additional runs, but that didn't spark a Wichita comeback. The Wind Surge tallied just three hits on the evening, and Brooks Lee finally went without a hit (ending his 10-game hitting streak), though he did reach on a walk. With the lineup stalling out, a comeback was never in the works. KERNELS NUGGETS Beloit 3, Cedar Rapids 2 Box Score The Kernels turned to Jordan Carr for the start on Thursday, and he worked around six hits during his 4 1/3 innings of work. While two runs came across, only one was earned. Carr allowed a walk and struck out three. Cedar Rapids scored first when Kala’i Rosario tripled to drive in Noah Miller as the third batter of the game. It was the start of what would wind up being an impressive night for the outfielder. After giving the run back in the bottom of the second inning, and seeing another tacked on in the fifth inning, the sixth inning saw Cedar Rapids get even. Third baseman Ben Ross smacked his second home run of the season, and his blistering start to his 2023 season continued. Unfortunately, the Sky Carp’s Yiddi Cappe singled for the second time on the night in the seventh inning, and his RBI was the difference in this one. Adding a run, the Kernels never rallied and that hit was the difference. Rosario was the lone Kernels batter to post multiple hits, but he was a perfect 4-for-4 with a double and triple. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 11, Jupiter 1 Box Score Cory Lewis was on the bump for Fort Myers on Thursday, and he continued to rack up strikeouts. Working five innings, he allowed just a single run on a solo shot. It was the only hit against him, and while he walked a pair, Lewis also racked up six strikeouts. Although Lewis kept Jupiter down in the game, he was also given immediate breathing room. Andrew Cossetti stepped in with Michael Helman, Jorel Ortega, and Ricardo Olivar all on base. He drilled his fourth homer of the year, a grand slam, and put the Mighty Mussels up early. It’s been an impressive week for the slugger. After the solo blast against Lewis, Fort Myers immediately answered. Cossetti came through again, this time with a bases-clearing double. Ortega, Danny De Andrade, and Olivar all came across the plate. Maddux Houghton followed up with a fielder’s choice to score Cossetti, and it was an 8-1 lead when the bottom of the fifth inning concluded. Looking for more insurance runs, Houghton hit a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning to bring Carlos Aguiar home. The Mighty Mussels plated nine runs on just six hits. Both Cossetti and De Andrade recorded a pair of hits on the evening. Helman played shortstop and led off as he is rehabbing before returning to St. Paul. He did draw a pair of walks. Capping off the scoring, Dalton Shuffield tripled in the eighth inning to score Mikey Perez and Dylan Neuse. A 10-run rule could have been enforced, but the ninth inning didn’t change the score either. Fort Myers did a great job continuing to add runs all night long. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Cory Lewis (Fort Myers) - 5.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K Hitter of the Day – Andrew Cossetti (Fort Myers) - 2-4, 2 R, 2B, HR(4), 7 RBI PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top 20 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) - 0-3, BB, K #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, K #11 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 0-2, R, 2 BB, K #14 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, R, BB, K #20 - Misael Urbina (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, BB, 2 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Scranton/WB @ St. Paul (6:37PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson Wichita @ Tulsa (7:05PM CST) - LHP Aaron Rozek Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (6:35PM CST) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo Jupiter @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - RHP Jose Olivares Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS 1B/OF Joey Gallo was added to the Saints roster on major-league rehab assignment (right intercostal strain). RHP Cole Sands was optioned from Minnesota Twins to St. Paul Saints. RHP Louie Varland was recalled by the Minnesota Twins. Saints Sentinel St. Paul 4, Indianapolis 2 Box Score Twins fans who watched the Saints got the opportunity to watch major leaguer Joey Gallo play during a rehab assignment. He batted second and played first base for the first seven innings. He went 1-for-3 with a double off the wall in his first at-bat. However, there was not much on-base action due to the impressive mound work by both teams. Aaron Sanchez started and almost inexplicably tossed five scoreless innings despite allowing six hits and three walks. He received a lot of help from his infield which turned three double plays behind him. Indianapolis shuffled quickly through their pitching staff, reaching into the bullpen early, but managed to keep the Saints bats quiet through seven innings. The Saints kept a steady rotation of players on base in the top of the eighth inning which started with two walks, and ended with three runs on the board. The first came when Chris Williams was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Andrew Stevenson added a two-run single. Just for good measure, the Saints added an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning on a Mark Contreras double. The Saints pitching was outstanding. The bullpen was nearly flawless. Cody Laweryson tossed two scoreless innings, and Patrick Murphy pitched a scoreless eighth frame. Brock Stewart gave up two runs but recorded the final three outs to lock down a Saints win. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 7, NW Arkansas 4 Box Score With an ominous forecast which caused the Wind Surge to postpone their post-game fireworks show, the game started on time. In the bottom of the first, Yoyner Fajardo provided some fireworks with a lead off homer to give Wichita a 1-0 lead. It was a sign of things to come. Travis Adams made his second Double-A start on Friday night. He was unable to complete the first inning in his first start, but he was much better in start number two. He completed five innings and gave up two runs on two hits (both solo homers). He struck out seven batters without issuing a walk. The Surge put distance between themselves and the Naturals in the third inning. Two home runs from Jake Rucker and Yunior Severino with players on base, pushed the Surge ahead 5-1. Alex Isola added his second homer of the season in the fifth inning to give them a 7-2 lead. Right-hander Jose Bravo replaced Adams and gave up one run on two hits over 2 2/3 innings. Lefty Kody Funderburk came on and got a strikeout to end the eighth inning. He gave up a run in the ninth, but added two more strikeouts to finish the game. Fajardo went 2-for-5 with a double and a homer. DaShawn Keirsey went 2-for-3 with a walk and two stolen bases. Yunior Severino went 2-for-4 with a double and homer. Kernel Nuggets Cedar Rapids 4, Quad Cities 6 Box Score The Quad City River Bandits scored a run in the first inning, but the Kernels answered in the second inning, tying up the game 1-1 where it stayed until both teams got busy in the fifth inning scoring three runs a piece, tying up the game again. Jordan Carr started the game on the mound and provided a solid four innings. He was charged with one run on four hits and a walk. He struck out four batters. Malik Barrington came in and allowed three earned runs to give the River Bandits the lead in the fifth inning. The lead did not last long. In the bottom of the inning, the Kernels answered in like with three runs of their own, to tie up the score. Emmanuel Rodriguez drove in one with a double. Ben Ross and Kala’i Rosario drove in the other runs. Unfortunately, in the top of the seventh, Matt Mullenbach gave up a two run homer to put the Kernels behind 7-5. John Stankiewicz got the final seven outs for Cedar Rapids. Ben Ross, Noah Cardenas and Willie Joe Garry each had two hits. Garry had a double. Mussels Matters Fort Myers 5, Clearwater 1 Box Score The Mussels started the game off with a bang. Jorel Ortega led off the first with his first professional home run on the second pitch of the game off Clearwater’s Alex McFarlane. The Mussels were aggressive on the base paths throughout the game. In the fourth inning, Mikey Perez, who led the organization with 48 stolen bases a year ago, was hit by a pitch, then stole second and third and scored when Dalton Shuffield hit a line-drive single to right field. Cory Lewis, the Twins ninth-round pick a year ago out of UC-Santa Barbara, made his second start of the season on Friday night. In his first start, he gave up four runs on six hits, two walks and a hit batter over 4 1/3 innings. He was much better in this game. He didn’t give up a hit until the fourth. Overall, he gave up one run on two hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out eight batters. The Mussels bats broke out with a three-run seventh inning. The scoring started with an Ortega line-drive single with the bases loaded which scored Maddux Houghton. That was followed by a walk by minor-league Rule 5 draft pick Yohander Martinez that scored Dalton Shuffield. Finally, Carlos Aguiar drove in Alec Sayre with a sacrifice fly. The Mussels now had a 5-1 lead going into the 7th inning stretch and maintained the lead to end the game. Hard-throwing Juan Mendez came on and gave up just one hit over two scoreless innings. Gabriel Yanez struck out the side in the eighth inning. He then struck out one more in a perfect ninth inning. Ortega, Martinez and Shuffield each had two hits in the game. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Aaron Sanchez (St. Paul) - 5 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 K Hitter of the Day – DaShawn Kiersey, Jr. (Wichita) - 2-for-3, 2 R, 1K, 2 SB. PROSPECT SUMMARY The Twins Prospect Tracker is the best way to see how each of the Twins top prospects performed during their games; but in case you wanted a quick look, Here is how each of the top 20 performed today: #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - Did Not Play #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - Injured List #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, 2B(1), R, RBI, 3 K #4 - Marco Raya (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #5 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 0-3, K #6 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #7 - Connor Prielipp (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, RBI, SB (3) #9 - Louie Varland (Minnesota) - 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 K (3 HR) #10 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - Injured List #11 - Matt Wallner (Minnesota) - 0-0 (defensive replacement in 9th) #12 - Yasser Mercedes (Extended Spring Training) - #13 - David Festa (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch #14 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not play. #15 - Matt Canterino (Wichita) - Injured List #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch. #17 - Ronny Henriquez (Minnesota) - Injured List #18 - Tanner Schobel (Cedar Rapids) - 2-5, R, K #19 - Jose Rodriguez (Extended Spring Training) - #20 - Misael Urbina (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Play. SATURDAY SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Indianapolis (5:35PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (0-1, 4.91) Wichita @ NW Arkansas (2:05PM CST) - LHP Aaron Rozek (first start) Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids (1:05PM CST) - RHP Alejandro Hidalgo (first start) Fort Myers @ Clearwater (5:30PM CST) - RHP Jose Oliveros (first start) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss today’s game!

Let's take a look at the Mighty Mussels Opening Day roster. Coaching Staff Brian Meyer is back for his third season as the Mighty Mussels manager, his fourth in the organization. Pitching Coach Richard Salazar moves from Cedar Rapids to Ft. Myers this season after spending the past two years with the Kernels. Jared Gaynor will enter his second season as a Mighty Mussels pitching coach. Rayden Sierra returns to the Mighty Mussels as their hitting coach again. Luis Reyes was a coach in the FCL a year ago and he is now the Assistant Hitting Coach in Ft. Myers. Starting Pitchers: Tomas Cleto, Cory Lewis, Andrew Morris, Juan (Miguel) Olivares, Zebby Matthews. Andrew Morris was the Twins fourth-round pick from Texas Tech a year ago and made an appearance for the Mighty Mussels in the playoffs last year. Cory Lewis was their ninth round pick out of UC-Santa Barbara in 2022. Zebby Matthews is a hard throwing righty taking the eighth round last year out of Western Carolina University. Tomas Cleto pitched well in the FCL last season and earned a late-season promotion to the Mussels. Juan Olivares was the Twins Daily short-season minor league pitcher of the year last year when he, going by Miguel last year, posted a 144 ERA in the DSL. Relief Pitchers: Johnathan Lavallee, Develson Aria, Ben Ethridge, C.J. Culpepper, A.J. Labas, Juan Mendez, Samuel Perez, Jackson Hicks, Wilker Reyes, Zach Veen, Gabriel Yanez Ben Ethridge was the Twins 15th round pick a year ago from Southern Miss. CJ Culpepper was their 13th rounder out of California Baptist. Zach Veen was their 18th round pick in 2022 out of Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. Lavallee was their 16th round pick in 2021 out of Long Beach State. Hicks signed late in the 2021 season out of the USPBL in Michigan. That is about the time they signed AJ Labas who had gone undrafted out of LSU. Sam Perez was the Twins Daily short-season minor league pitcher of the year in 2021 and spent most of the 2022 season with Ft. Myers. Gabriel Yanez signed with the Phillies in 2016 and reached Low-A Clearwater in 2022. The Twins signed him this offseason as a free agent. Last year in this league, he had 58 strikeouts and just 13 walks over 50 1/3 innings. One to watch is hard-throwing Juan Mendez. And lefty Develson Aria is intriguing as well. Catchers: Andrew Cossetti, Ricardo Olivar, Dillon Tatum Andrew Cossetti was drafted in the 11th round last year out of St. Joseph’s in Philly. Tatum caught two Mussels no hitters last year. Olivar had a breakout season in the FCL last year, hitting .349/.442/.605 (1.046) with 12 doubles, three triples and five homers over 40 games. A good athlete, he actually spent more time in the outfield in 2022. Infielders: Rubel Cespedes, Danny De Andrade, Yohander Martinez, Jorel Ortega, Mikey Perez, Dalton Shuffield. Danny De Andrade is the top prospect in this group. One of the top international signings in 2021, he held his own in the FCL a year ago. Jorel Ortega was the team’s sixth round pick a year ago. He had one at bat with the Mussels and had an RBI hit, but he hurt his wrist on the play which ended his season. Cespedes is an intriguing prospect who has some offensive upside. Martinez was a minor-league Rule 5 pick in December. And why Mikey Perez and Dalton Shuffield are starting in Ft. Myers is just silly. Perez was the 15th round pick of the Twins in 2021 from UCLA. He played 81 games in Ft. Myers a year ago, then moved up to Cedar Rapids for 28 more games. He even played one game with the Saints and hit a game-winning, three-run homer in his lone at-bat. He led the organization with 48 stolen bases last year. And, for good measure, he played in nine spring games for the Twins this year and went 4-for-10. Shuffield spent five years at Texas State University before the Twins took him in the 10th round of the 2022 draft. After three games in the FCL last year, he moved up to Cedar Rapids for eight games. Then he moved up to Triple-A St. Paul and started almost every day for 14 games. He hit .271/.314/.542 (.855) with three doubles, two triples, and two home runs. All that is small sample size, but he just turned 24. Outfielders: Carlos Aguiar, Luis Baez, Maddux Houghton, Alec Sayre, Dylan Neuse. Carlos Aguiar and Luis Baez signed with the Twins in 2017 from Venezuela. Aguiar is a big, strong power hitting outfielder. Baez is a speed merchant, capable of stealing a ton of bags and taking extra bases at will. Houghton signed with the Twins just before spring training began. He spent five years at Lipscomb and then last year played in a summer wood bat league. Alec Sayre was the Twins 17th round pick a year ago out of Wright State. Neuse was the Twins 17th round pick in 2021 out of Texas Tech. His older brother Sheldon spent parts of 2019, 2021 and 2022 in the big leagues. He played in 89 games last year for the A’s. This year, he is playing in for Hanshin, in Japan. TWINS DAILY TOP 20 PROSPECTS None. Danny De Andrade is likely the highest-ranking prospect by most systems. There are definitely some pitching prospects to watch on this list. What do you think of the Mighty Mussels roster? Which players are you most intrigued by and interested in following?