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Pump the brakes on Brooks Lee. For that matter, the same applies to Austin Martin, Yunior Severino, Jair Camargo, Chris Williams, and DaShawn Keirsey. Lee is the third baseman of the future, hopefully. Martin, Severino, Camargo, Williams, and Keirsey will all likely appear in games for the Twins at some point during 2024, but we don’t need to put the cart before the horse. The Twins have a number of decisions to make with an already crowded infield, a questionable mix at first base, a backup catcher making $10 million in both 2024 and 2025, a hole in centerfield, and an unclear budget for making additions. Many of the aforementioned names could be written in as key contributors in those spots. However, none of those players are beating down the hatches. Lee has 60 games at AAA with a mediocre August and a solid September. Martin similarly has 59 games and one outstanding month in St. Paul. Severino and Keirsey have even less than that. Williams and Camargo are both in their mid-20s coming off great offensive years, but they still haven’t gotten a single plate appearance in MLB. None should be the answer to any question at the beginning of 2024. It would put the Twins in a very difficult spot. If Martin or Keirsey are your personal long-term answer in center field, you’re welcome to that. You might see Camargo as a long-term backup catcher, replacing Vazquez. Forcing that to happen in March is a problem. The recent success of rookies Royce Lewis, Edouard Julien, and Matt Wallner has been incredible, but it’s important not to expect that level of production to be the norm, even for prospects at the top of organizational rankings. It’s not normal. Their success was exceptional. They themselves may struggle to find the same level of success going forward. So often prospects, even those who are hyped and go on to have great careers, struggle in their early stints. Names like Torii Hunter or Michael Cuddyer come to mind, struggling for years to find their footings before becoming mainstays in the Twins lineup for a decade. Other prospects don’t manage to get their footing at all, such as more recent examples like Stephen Gonsalves, Alex Meyer, Oswaldo Arcia, or Joe Benson. It’s difficult to project success, even in players at the upper levels of the minor leagues. Both Jose Miranda and Trevor Larnach have shown flashes of being very good players, but they have also gone through extended stretches that cast a cloud over their long-term outlook—and both were Opening Day starter in 2023. If that’s not the organization showing a reliance on them, I’m not sure what is. Fortunately, Miranda and Larnach were able to be replaced by Lewis and Wallner, respectively, but it would be foolish to assume that that outcome was always a given. What if the team didn’t open the season with Lewis and Wallner in reserve as alternative options? What if they were going to sink or swim with Miranda and Larnach? They would have been in trouble. Likewise, starting 2024 with upper minors depth in key roles is asking for the same. The Twins clearly have a philosophy in this type of situation, and it’s probably the right one—they want depth. That’s exposed in the acquisitions of players like Michael A. Taylor, Joey Gallo, and Donovan Solano. Granted, not all of these types of acquisitions are beneficial, but that’s kind of the point. They want options. Do those options sometimes block our favorite prospects on the depth chart? Sure. But it also allows those prospects to be a short-term backup plan, protecting them and the team. Blocking prospects is the cost of bringing in big league depth. Beginning the year with some sort of big leaguer in those roles ensures better talent is in the organization. Those same big leaguers wouldn’t take a minor league deal to serve as a backup to the prospects. The decision is effectively between bringing in an MLB veteran and having a top prospect as a backup or having a top prospect with a minor league veteran as a backup plan. One of those plans has a better rate of success. It’s risky business trusting a big league role to someone who’s never seen an MLB pitch, and it can go wrong in any number of ways, be it performance or injury. Sure, the MLB veteran could struggle or get injured too, but it’s much more comforting to be able to turn to a top prospect than a career minor leaguer in that event. If any of the aforementioned players do break camp with the team, it’s not the end of the world. They all have the potential to be competent pieces at minimum. It just shouldn’t be what any of us are clamoring for. They’ll be here when it’s time. Right now, the Twins have a division to win.

If the reports hold that the Twins are attempting to cut payroll from over $150m in 2023 to $125-140, the expectations for activity this offseason can be lowered significantly. The downside of this is obvious. The Twins likely can’t afford to bring in a proven slugger like Rhys Hoskins for first base. Safer Sonny Gray replacements, such as Eduardo Rodriguez or Aaron Nola, can be all but written off. There will be plenty of negativity around this news, and it’s all warranted. However, the payroll reduction will create opportunities for some players within the organization, likely the sole positive of pulling back on spending. Austin Martin With center field as one of the primary needs this offseason, Martin could be part of the solution. It would be great to sign Kevin Kiermaier or bring back Michael A. Taylor, but these names may price themselves out of the Twins' plans due to requiring multiple years or a one-year deal at a premium. Willi Castro became a passable center fielder in 2023, and they still hope that Byron Buxton will return to the field at some point. Austin Martin would be the fallback option, undoubtedly getting a big chance to stick in 2024 if everything stays the same. Martin slashed .263/.386/.405 in St. Paul last season, and the Twins are high on his ability to handle center. He stole 16 bases in 59 games, and his six homers were the most he’s hit in a season in professional ball. Martin’s skill set would be a great complement to the Twins' lineup with his ability to get on base and lack of strikeouts, and he could even become a platoon leadoff hitter against lefties if everything breaks right. Yunior Severino Even after Alex Kirilloff’s shoulder injury proved less significant than initially thought, the Twins likely need more confidence in the former top prospect’s ability to lock down first base for 2024. A right-handed option to platoon is a reasonable ask to insulate the position. Such a role may be less of a priority with limited funds available. Severino has little to prove after leading the minors with 35 homers in 2023. He got off to a rough start in his Triple-A debut but finished with a slash line of .233/.320/.511, and the Twins saw enough to add him to the 40-man roster after the season. Severino is a strikeout-prone light tower power hitter with a defensive profile likely to slot in best at first base. His ability to switch hit makes up for some of his lack of versatility, and he could carve out a career for himself as an all-or-nothing slugger capable of being a legitimate offensive weapon when he’s running hot. At 24 years old, Severino’s time may come in 2024, as the first call-up should Alex Kirilloff miss more time. Jair Camargo To combat the financial limitations, the Twins may not only spend less but look to shed salary from places they can afford to add elsewhere adequately. Should they decide to do so, Christian Vazquez becomes a prime candidate to ship out to another team. After not appearing in a single postseason game, it’s obvious Vazquez is the backup to Ryan Jeffers, and his total collapse offensively in 2023 makes him more replaceable despite his still great defense. Camargo profiles as a perfect backup catcher: He spent all of 2023 in St. Paul, hitting .259/.323/.503 with 21 homers in 90 games, he has received solid reviews on his defense and pitch calling, and his raw power gives him enough of a floor to be an asset to an MLB squad for several years. Camargo would likely debut in 2024 regardless after being added to the 40-man. Trading away an MLB catcher may push him onto the Opening Day roster. The Twins have internal options should they slash payroll, as in addition to the listed names above, they have several other young players on their way. Deshaun Kiersey Jr. may create a strong career for himself in center field. Several pitchers, such as David Festa, could see an earlier debut should the Twins shop in the bargain bin to replace Sonny Gray. At least with the deflating news comes the excitement of young players potentially debuting. Are there any other internal options that stand to benefit from the payroll decrease? Let us know below!

We cover the Rule 5 draft and more in the twelfth episode of Destination: The Show. 0:00 Intro 4:00 Craig Counsell to the Cubs 10:14 Kala'i Rosario wins the AFL Home Run Derby 14:32 Rule 5 - what is it? 18:35 What happens when a player is drafted? 21:00 How common is it to find a great player? 25:50 What teams are looking for? 27:30 Brewers Overview - main options 33:15 Other possible Milwaukee adds 36:37 Cubs Overview 48:50 Twins Overview You can support the show by downloading it from wherever you get your podcasts, leaving us a positive review and five star rating at iTunes or Spotify, retweeting show related content on Twitter, and subscribing to the Twins Daily YouTube page. You can follow us @DTS_POD1, @J_D_Cameron, @Jeremynygaard, and @TheodoreTollef1 on Twitter. Send us your prospect and draft related questions for our next episode. 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.

In reality, the World Series could be over as early as Wednesday night. At the latest, a Game 7 would be played on Saturday. When that final out is recorded, hundreds of players will become free agents. As you know, big league pitchers Sonny Gray, Dallas Keuchel, Kenta Maeda, Tyler Mahle, and Emilio Pagan, infielder Donovan Solano, and outfielder Joey Gallo will be among the newly-minted free agents. Five days later, they can start signing with other organizations. Things get interesting on the minor-league side, and it isn't always as easy to know who is a free agent. This year, players drafted in 2017 and not on a 40-man roster will become free agents. Those players signed contracts to play in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. In addition, they were given credit for 2020 despite the season being cancelled by Covid. 2017 Draft Royce Lewis was the #1 overall pick in the 2017 draft. However, he was added to the Twins 40-man roster after the 2021 season and remains on the 40-man roster to this day. No, Royce Lewis will not be a free agent. The same is true for Bailey Ober, the team's 12th round pick in 2017. 2016 International Signings (or Earlier) In addition, players signed when they were 16 years old in 2016 who are not on the 40-man roster can also become free agents. The Twins didn't spend big on any one international prospect that year. While I found Wander Valdez and Jesus Feliz very interesting prospects, neither came close to the big leagues. One player signed that year was right-hander Prelander Berroa. However, he was traded to the Giants in the ill-fated Sam Dyson. He was later traded to the Mariners and made his MLB debut in 2023. What we can learn from Berroa, however, is that when a player is dealt to another organization, his free agency timeline doesn't change. In addition, a player signed in 2015 became a free agent after last year's World Series. When he signs another minor-league contract, he becomes a free agent again a year later. Case #1: C Jair Camargo That is the exact scenario that played out a year ago for catcher Jair Camargo. In fact, he was the one pending minor-league free agent a year ago that I recommended the Twins bring back. That is exactly what happened. The Twins and Camargo quickly came to terms on a one-year minor-league contract. The Twins have the same season again this year. Camargo signed with the Dodgers out of Colombia in 2015. He came to the Twins with Kenta Maeda in the Brusdar Graterol deal before the 2020 season. He had a breakout season in 2022 between Cedar Rapids and Wichita. Combined, he hit .262 (.793) with 18 home runs. With the minor-league signing last offseason, Camargo was left at risk to be lost in the Rule 5 draft. Fortunately, he was not selected. However, as a 23-year-old in 2023, Camargo jumped up to Triple-A St. Paul. In 90 games, he hit .259/.323/.503 (.826) with 16 doubles, 21 home runs and 63 RBI. If the two sides reach an agreement again quickly on a minor-league deal, there is no way that Camargo is not lost in the Rule 5 draft. A power-hitting catcher who is athletic and a solid-to-average defensive backstop? It's likely Camargo would be the first pick of the Rule 5 draft. The Twins were able to go through the entire 2023 season and only used two catchers, Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vazquez. That is not normal. Jeffers, 26, is entering his first arbitration season and won't be a free agent for three more years, after the 2026 season. Vazquez, 33, just completed his first season of a three-year, $30 million contract. Most years, the Twins bring in a veteran catcher or two on minor-league contracts. They essentially become the team's #3 catcher and can be recalled if and when needed. Examples of that in recent years include Tony Wolters, and later Mark Kolozsvary, in 2023. In 2022, veterans such as Chance Sisco, Grayson Greiner, and later Jose Godoy. Tomas Telis was a Triple-A catchers for the Twins for three years before that. What Should Happen? Before the World Series ends, the Twins should absolutely add Jair Camargo to their 40-man roster. That move can be done without a corresponding move as the Twins 40-man roster is already below 40. Camargo should go to spring training understanding that if Jeffers or Vazquez miss some time, he will be the first call. In addition, they should still bring in one more veteran catcher for St. Paul, and to work with other younger catchers in the organization. What Will Happen? The Twins will absolutely add Jair Camargo to their 40-man roster. Case #2: RHP Blayne Enlow The case for Enlow is a lot more difficult and a case could be made either way. In case you are new to Twins fandom, Blayne Enlow was the Twins third-round draft pick in 2017 out of high school in Louisiana. He dropped in the draft because he had a commitment to LSU and a specific number in mind that it would take to get him signed. Royce Lewis agreed to sign with the Twins well below slot and the extra money was used to sign Enlow. Enlow moved up the Twins organizational ladder slowly, but he was long a top 10 Twins prospect. He threw in the low-90s and was known to be able to spin the ball well. Unfortunately, he was not able to pitch in 2020. In 2021, he began at Cedar Rapids. Through three starts, he had a 1.84 ERA, and in 14 2/3 innings, he had 23 strikeouts. Missing bats was the one thing he needed to start doing. Unfortunately, in a bullpen, something didn't feel right in his elbow. Soon after, he had Tommy John surgery and missed the rest of that season. Still, the Twins had seen enough improvement and with his rehab that they added him to the 40-man roster after the season. He was able to return to the mound quickly, He threw 43 pitches in 1 2/3 innings of a May 7th rehab with Fort Myers, and the Twins deemed his rehab complete. They sent him to Double-A Wichita and he made 10 starts and 14 relief appearances. In 57 1/3 innings, he posted a 4.40 ERA. He had 64 strikeouts (10.0 K/9) but he also walked 30 batters (4.7 BB/9). Last offseason, the Twins were making player claims for pitchers such as Oliver Ortega. When they did that, Enlow was outrighted from the 40-man roster. He started the 2023 quite well. In Wichita, he made 11 appearances and went 3-1 with a 3.17 ERA. In 54 innings, he had 65 strikeouts (10.8 K/9) to go with just 13 walks (2.2 BB/9). He had found his lost control and he was still missing bats at career-high rates. He moved up to the Saints and made 15 appearances (12 starts). Things didn't go as well. He went 2-5 with a 7.94 ERA. In 45 1/3 innings, he had 44 strikeouts (8.7 K/9) and 19 walks (3.8 BB/9). He gave up a lot of hits and two homers per nine innings. Enlow will turn 25 in March. He's still young and still learning. He is a hard worker, and he knows the game well. However, he should have a lot of options this offseason. What Should Happen? I would like to see the Twins try to sign Enlow and keep him around another season. He lost a full season to Covid. He lost a full season due to Tommy John surgery, and that 2022 season was more about getting through the season healthy. Since he's at Triple-A and healthy, give him another six-to-eight weeks as a starter. If that doesn't go great, move him to the bullpen full-time. See how he can perform in that role where he can air it out more often and see if it can play out. The hope would, of course, be that he becomes a dominant reliever and either help the Twins in the season's second half or make himself an easy addition to the 40-man roster. If the Twins don't add Enlow to the 40-man roster, they should still attempt to sign him to a minor-league deal. However, Enlow should certainly take advantage of his free agency, talk to any and all teams that show interest and do what is best for him. Of course, that means, which team does he think he has the best opportunity to get called up to the big leagues and live out his lifelong dream. What Will Happen? I would be surprised if the Twins added him to the 40-man roster, and that's probably the right decision. I would like to think that the Twins would make him a fair minor-league offer. However, Blayne Enlow needs to go to an organization that needs pitching in the upper-levels of their minor-league system and there is more opportunity than there would be with the Twins. Other Free Agents There is one other member of the Twins 2017 draft class that is still in the organization is Andrew Bechtold. He was the Twins fifth-round pick out of Chipola. He played all over the infield during his early years in pro ball. Blessed with a huge arm, his most natural position is third base. He also spent a lot of time at second base earlier in his career and at first base the last couple of seasons. In 2021, he started working bullpens in the catchers gear and ended the season making one start behind the plate. That year, he went to the Arizona Fall League and caught some more. In 2023 with the Saints, Bechtold added another position. Because of his arm, he was given a chance to pitch out of the Saints bullpen. He made 20 appearances, and in 18 innings, he had 24 walks and 16 strikeouts. Nothing like learning on the job in the highest level of the minor leagues. What I'd Like to See Happen? I would really like to see the Twins bring Andrew Bechtold back and give him a real opportunity on the mound. See where it goes. Let him hit. Let him catch. Let him play the corner infield spots. It doesn't need to be an everyday role, but building his versatility can hopefully keep his career going. Gilberto Celestino came off of the 40-man roster as the playoffs were about to begin. He was outrighted, but because it was his first outright, he could not elect free agency. Once the World Series ends, Celestino will become a free agent. But could the Twins add the still-just-24-year-old before then and keep a right-handed outfield bat on the roster, at least for right now? Right-hander Alex Scherff was the Red Sox fifth round pick in 2017 out of high school in Texas. He came to the Twins in a July trade deadline deal in 2021 that involved Hansel Robles. Once a very exciting prospect, injuries have really cost hi a lot of consistent development time. This year, he posted a 3.57 ERA in 53 innings at Wichita. he had 66 strikeouts but also walked 31 batters. He made five appearances with the Saints. Not a guy that would be considered for the 40-man roster, but an intriguing arm worthy of a minor-league deal. Obviously this is not a complete list of potential minor-league free agents (meaning, guys who could be free agents in the next several days), but these are certainly names that likely received quite a bit of conversation in the Twins offices. If you were Derek Falvey, Thad Levine, Jeremy Zoll, Alex Hassan, Drew MacPhail, a minor league coach or coordinator and could have your voice heard, what would you recommend?

Christian Vázquez struggled significantly at the plate throughout much of 2023. His down year came to a head in the postseason, where his lack of a single appearance confirmed that he's undoubtedly the backup to Ryan Jeffers moving forward. On the wrong side of 30 years of age, and with multiple years of a relatively high salary remaining, could the Twins shake up the catching mix this winter? The Twins aggressively pursued Christian Vázquez last winter, eventually signing him to a 3-year, $30m contract to ensure he came to Minnesota. The bottom fell out in the deal's first year, as Vázquez posted a .598 OPS. His barrel rate plummeted to just 3.2%, and he struck out a career-high 23.1% of the time. At 32 years of age, it's fair to wonder whether this was a skills decline rather than just a down year. To the credit of Vázquez, he was still a plus defender behind the plate, something that the Twins indeed value for good reason. His blocking and framing were still excellent, even if his pop time declined. The defense is a significant consideration for two reasons. From the Twins' perspective, it may help bridge the gap between his offensive decline and the price tag. We know by now that the Twins believe in a near timeshare behind the plate to keep their catchers fresh. As long as Vázquez remains a plus defender, he'll likely still be seen as a perfectly viable option to start roughly half of the time in 2024. On the other hand, the defense could offer one final chance for the Twins to get out of the remaining $20m through 2025. After such a down year offensively, it may be hard to envision teams lining up to trade for Christian Vázquez, but it's not impossible. Just one offseason ago, the Twins had to go to great lengths to outbid multiple other teams. It may be tempting if they're willing to pay down at least some of the money to trade him and have a few million to spend elsewhere. When it comes to backup catchers, there are always plenty of options. Another significant factor in how the Twins pursue the catching position for 2024 likely has much to do with their opinion of Jair Camargo. The 24-year-old spent all of 2024 in St. Paul with a league-average .253/.323/.503 slash line. He slugged 21 homers with adequate defense behind the plate. He may not be a top prospect, but if the Twins believe he can hold his own offensively and play passable defense, he would likely be a fine backup catcher. The allure of this scenario is that Camargo would make the league minimum instead of $10m. The Twins could sign another glove-first backup at a more appropriate price tag, with Camargo still waiting in the wings in the event of injury. There may not be exciting names hitting the open market to replace Vázquez. Still, a player such as Victor Caratini could make sense as a switch hitter who provided near-league-average offense and plus defense last season and still won't break the bank. The Twins will have to decide this winter whether so much shuffling would be worth it at such a low-impact position. With revenues likely to decline with the TV network situation, it could be a reasonable way to save a few million. It's also possible they still see Vázquez as worthy of his $10m price tag, which would be fair given his strong defense. Perhaps they even project him to bounce back to some degree with the bat in 2024. After signing a sizeable three-year deal, it's been an odd first year for Christian Vázquez. Should the Twins look to move on from Christian Vázquez in 2024 to reallocate some payroll? Do they have what they need in Jair Camargo, or can they find another worthy replacement? Let us know below!

One year ago, the Twins wondered what to do about the catcher position. Gary Sanchez had led the team in appearances during the 2022 season but was heading to free agency. Minnesota wanted a veteran player to pair with Ryan Jeffers behind the plate. Early in the offseason, the Twins identified Vazquez as their top free agent target and quickly signed him to a three-year, $30 million deal. The team brought him in to provide solid defense, hoping he could provide some offense at the back end of the lineup. Vazquez struggled offensively during his first season with the Twins. In 102 games, he hit .223/.280/.318 (.598) with 19 extra-base hits and 82 strikeouts. His 65 OPS+ was his lowest total since 2018. According to FanGraphs, Vazquez provided the Twins with $7.6 million worth of value during the 2023 season. Over the last five seasons, Vazquez has been worth anywhere from $28.1 million (2019) to $2.7 million (2021). There have been good and bad seasons throughout his career, so the Twins can hope he bounces back in 2024. Even with poor offensive totals, Vazquez remains a strong defensive catcher. He ranked fifth among AL catchers in SABR’s Defensive Index when the totals were last updated. Baseball Savant ranked him in the 70th percentile or higher in Blocks Above Average and Framing while also being above average in Pop Time. His Caught Stealing Above Average moved from the 34th percentile last season to the 61st percentile in 2023. His defensive numbers and how he handles a pitching staff are the main reasons the Twins continued to split time between their two catchers. Minnesota’s evolving payroll situation is in flux entering the offseason. The Twins are unsure of their television home for 2024 and beyond after their contract with Bally Sports expired at the season’s end. As John wrote over the weekend, the team’s TV rights were worth $54.8 million in 2023, and that revenue is in question for next season. Last year, the Twins' payroll was a team record $154 million on Opening Day, and the Twins have roughly $124 million committed for next season if they bring everyone back besides free agents. The Twins can trade away higher-priced veterans to open some spending, but the team will likely have to pay some of Vazquez’s contract to get anything back. The Twins have an intriguing catching prospect that played the entire 2023 season at Triple-A. Jair Camargo was acquired along with Kenta Maeda from the Dodgers leading into the 2020 season. At the time, he was a 20-year-old catcher who had yet to play a game above the High-A level. In 2023, he played 90 games at Triple-A and hit .259/.323/.503 (.826) with 16 doubles and 21 home runs. Camargo became a minor-league free agent last year but quickly signed to stay with the Twins. He is a logical candidate for the Twins to add to the 40-man roster, and they will need to do so before he again becomes a free agent at the completion of the World Series. Would the front office trust him enough to take over a backup role to Jeffers? The free-agent catcher market is sparse this winter, which might make teams more interested in trading for Vazquez. Former Twins Mitch Garver and Gary Sanchez are some of the best options, and both players have flaws in their game. Garver is seen more as a DH option, with the Rangers giving him fewer than 30 starts behind the plate. In addition to Garver's forearm surgery that cut his 2022 season in half, Jonah Heim has become an All Star backstop for the Rangers. Sanchez struggled to find an organization last season before finding a home in San Diego and posting a 116 OPS+ in 72 games. Neither player is considered strong behind the plate, and that’s why organizations might start looking for trade options. The Twins still like Vazquez, and they likely believe he can return to his previous offensive production. He previously had poor seasons and bounced back nicely the following year. However, Vazquez is 33 years old, and he’s caught over 6,200 innings at the big-league level. That’s a lot of wear and tear on a player’s legs, which can impact offensive performance toward the end of a career. Minnesota must decide which version of Vazquez will enter spring training next season. Depth became a theme for the 2023 Twins, and it’s likely one reason the team won the AL Central. Minnesota was lucky to make it through the season by only needing two catchers for the entire season. That won’t happen again next year, so the Twins will likely keep Vazquez and find other spots on the roster to make cuts. Will the Twins keep Vazquez or try to trade him? What kind of value does he have on the trade market? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

Just because a player isn’t on top 100 prospect lists doesn’t mean they have no chance to impact their Major League roster. In addition to several global top prospects who are sure to have a future with the Twins, a trio of less-known names will be pushing for a shot in 2024. It should be interesting to see how things play out. Anthony Prato The former 7th-round pick Anthony Prato looked like a success story throughout his professional career through 2022, but what he did in 2023 was different. After a disappointing start with a .553 OPS in Double-A, Prato was promoted to St. Paul and never looked back. He wound up finishing the season slashing .302/.452/.539 with 10 homers and 10 steals with the Saints. He walked nearly 20% of the time while bouncing around the infield and outfield. Between his plate skills and defensive versatility, Prato looks like a legitimate option for a super-utility role. The issue, of course, is finding room for him. With several top prospects on the verge of debuts and some such as Royce Lewis and Edouard Julien already having arrived, the opportunity is slim before even mentioning the assumed return of Willi Castro in 2024. Prato is Rule 5 eligible this winter, and it’s very possible a team will take a shot on him if the Twins don’t have 40 man space. Prato deserves a shot somewhere. Michael Helman Helman had a very unfortunate season from an injury standpoint, as his right-handed bat almost surely would’ve been called upon by the Twins had he been available. After a 20-homer, 40-steal season between Wichita and St. Paul in 2022, Helman showed more of the same when healthy in 2023. Between three levels, Helman hit seven homers and stole eight bags in just over 150 plate appearances. A shoulder injury caused him to miss significant time, but he hit .296/.356/.546 with the Saints. There’s no way the Twins couldn’t have found him a spot during their offensive outage of the first half, especially when they were so in need of right-handed options. Like Prato, Helman can play just about anywhere, including shortstop in a pinch. Turning 28 next year, it’s time he gets a shot somewhere, and he’s Rule 5 eligible as well. Perhaps his lack of volume this year keeps him from getting snagged, and the hope is that a healthy 2024 gives him an opportunity to make his debut if he sticks around in the Twins system. Jair Camargo It was pretty surprising that Camargo didn’t debut this season, but the Twins were incredibly fortunate with the health of their catching duo of Christian Vázquez and Ryan Jeffers. Camargo held up his end of deserving a promotion, socking 21 homers and posting an .826 OPS from behind the plate in 2023. He has the profile of a solid backup catcher at the major-league level with his passable defense, strikeout concerns, and thunderous bat when he gets his pitch to hit. The question in 2024 will be whether the Twins trust Ryan Jeffers to take over the lion’s share of appearances behind the plate. Both defensively and offensively, Jeffers has blown Christian Vázquez out of the water, and he’s the younger option. Some have suggested that the Twins should shop Vázquez and see how much they’d have to pay to unload the remaining two years, $20 million elsewhere since it’s possible Jeffers playing time increases to a point where that dollar amount isn’t justified. If the Twins trust Jeffers to catch 60-70% of the innings behind the plate, The bar to clear for the other half of the tandem becomes lower, and Camargo is deserving of an opportunity to fill a modest role in the big leagues. A lot would have to change, but hopefully, Camargo can find a way onto the big league roster at some point in 2024. The Saints had an incredible season. Hopefully, several future pieces emerge as part of the Twins' future from the 2023 Saints roster. We know plenty of top prospects such as Brooks Lee, David Festa etc. Some of the underrated prospects deserve a lot of attention too.

TRANSACTIONS RHP Chris Paddack completes rehab assignment and is activated by Minnesota RHP Josh Winder optioned to St. Paul SAINTS SENTINEL Toledo 3, St. Paul 2 Box Score After a rainout on Saturday evening, the St. Paul Saints took the field Sunday afternoon for their final game of the 2023 season. Although Chris Paddack was activated by the Twins, Byron Buxton, Joey Gallo, Nick Gordon, Brock Stewart, and Jorge Alcala all continued their rehab assignments. Patrick Murphy took the ball for Toby Gardenhire on Sunday and worked four innings. Murphy allowed seven hits and three runs while giving up a walk and striking out four. Brent Headrick then took over in relief for St. Paul. The Mud Hens took the lead with a run in the second inning, and then tacked on another pair in the third inning. St. Paul got on the board in the fifth inning, and it was because of Michael Helman’s hustle that they got two. Beating out an infield single, Helman was on when Jair Camargo stepped in and launched his 21st homer of the season. The two-run blast made it a 3-2 game with the Saints drawing closer. Taking over for the seventh inning, and looking to keep things close for St. Paul, was Ronny Henriquez . He worked a scoreless inning of relief while striking out one. Hunter McMahon got the eighth inning with the Saints still needing a run to tie things up. McMahon followed Henriquez’s lead and worked a scoreless inning of his own. Unable to score in the eighth inning, Cole Sands was on to hold the deficit in the ninth, and give the Saints a chance. He did his job working a scoreless inning, and St. Paul was down to their final three outs. Yunior Severino struck out for the fourth time on the afternoon to kick off the inning, and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. was a strikeout victim as well. Buxton stepped in with just one out left and worked a 3-2 count. His fly out to centerfield ended the game Gordon finished the day going 0-for-2 with a strikeout and a walk. Buxton finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout, and Gallo was 0-for-3 with a strikeout. The Saints finish their season with an 84-64 record. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day –Brent Headrick (St. Paul) - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K Hitter of the Day – Jair Camargo (St. Paul) - 1-3, R, 2 RBI, HR(21) PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 0-3 #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-2 #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 0-3, 3 K #20 - Brent Headrick (St. Paul) - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s game!

TRANSACTIONS The Saints had an active day in transactions, with a bunch of major league rehabbers joining the team across the river in St. Paul. RHP Chris Paddack, RHP Jorge Alcala, and LF Joey Gallo were all sent on rehab assignments with Saints. RHP Carlos Luna was transferred to the development list. RHP Curtis Taylor was promoted from the Wichita Wind Surge to the Saints. SAINTS SENTINEL Toledo 2, St. Paul 4 Box Score With the plethora of major league rehabbers joining the roster, the St. Paul Saints went with a bullpen game of sorts on Tuesday. The entire staff of seven who made an appearance was basically lights out against the Mud Hens. Hunter McMahon served as the opener and delivered a scoreless inning, working around one hit and two walks by inducing an inning-ending double-play. That would be a theme for the night, as the Saints completed four of them in total, while Toledo added three more. Austin Schulfer was the next man up and walked one and struck out one in a scoreless second inning. In the bottom half of the frame the Saints got their scoring started. Yunior Severino led off with a walk, and two-batters later Jair Camargo clubbed his 20th home run of the season for a 2-0 lead. The home team then turned the ball over to their first rehabber, in right-hander Chris Paddack. It didn’t go so well after a strikeout to his first batter, as a walk and two singles loaded the bases with one out, but Paddack bore down and struck out the next two hitters to keep the Mud Hens scoreless in the third. He went on to retire the final eight hitters he faced, picking up another strikeout in each inning to finish with five in his outing. Overall he allowed two hits, walked one, and struck out five while topping out above 98 MPH with his fastball. In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Saints extended their lead to 4-0 when DaShawn Keirsey Jr. led off with a single, rehabber Nick Gordon was hit by a pitch, and rehabber Joey Gallo delivered an RBI single. Trevor Larnach followed with a single of his own to complete their two-run inning and add insurance. After Paddack’s exit Michael Boyle (1 IP, 2 K) delivered a scoreless inning before giving way to Brock Stewart. Stewart ratcheted his fastball up to 99 MPH in his inning of work, walking one in striking out one in another scoreless frame for the pitching staff. Another rehabber, Jorge Alcala then did the same in the eighth, giving up one hit but inducing another double-play ball. In the ninth, Jordan Balazovic allowed two walks to start the inning, but got a big double-play grounder himself to keep this one from going sideways. It could have done that, because the next batter slugged a two-run homer for Toledo’s only runs of the game. Balazovic struck out the final hitter to close out the win. Nick Gordon (2-for-3, R, 2B, K) and Trevor Larnach (3-for-4, RBI, K) led the way with multiple hits. Joey Gallo finished 1-for-3 with a walk, RBI, and no strikeouts. Yunior Severino drew two walks and scored a run. KERNELS NUGGETS Great Lakes 1, Cedar Rapids 0 (Suspended in the 5th inning - Rain) Box Score Well, I’m not going to be able to crown the Cedar Rapids Kernels the Midwest League Champions tonight, as their game with the Great Lakes Loons was suspended in the fifth inning. The Kernels came into the game with a 1-0 lead in the three-game series, and sent right-handed pitcher Andrew Morris to the mound. He was excellent in his five innings before the suspension, with his only blemish being a solo home run in the fourth inning. He set the Loons down in order in each of the first and third innings, needing just five pitches in the third to do so. He finished with the one run allowed on three hits, no walks, and struck out seven. Both teams have just three hits to this point, with Emmanuel Rodriguez, Jorel Ortega, and Luke Keaschall all delivering singles. Rodriguez also stole a base but the Kernels are only 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position thus far. Game two of this championship series will resume tomorrow at 5:30 PM, with the Kernels up to bat in the bottom of the fifth, and Luke Keaschall due up. If Cedar Rapids is unable to make a comeback, game three will be a seven inning contest after this one’s completion. Right-hander Cory Lewis is the scheduled starter for game three, but there could be some shuffling of that due to this suspension. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Andrew Morris, Cedar Rapids Kernels (5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 7 K) Hitter of the Day - Jair Camargo, St. Paul Saints (1-for-3, R, HR, 2 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out our full top 20 list here and how they performed on Tuesday below! #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 0-for-4 #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-2, K (game suspended) #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-for-3 #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-1 (game suspended) #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-2 (game suspended) #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 0-for-2, R, 2 BB, K #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1 IP, H, 2 BB, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Toledo @ St. Paul (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (6-6, 4.92 ERA) Great Lakes @ Cedar Rapids, Game 3 (if necessary) - RHP Cory Lewis (0-0, 2.25 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games!

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!

TRANSACTIONS RHP Carlos Luna was assigned to the St. Paul Saints from Wichita, and in his place RHP Alex Scherff was sent back down to the Wind Surge. The Minnesota Twins sent RHPs Jorge Alcala and Chris Paddack on a rehab assignment with Wichita. The Twins signed 17-year-old Venezuelan catcher Irvin Nunez. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 4, Iowa 1 Box Score The St. Paul Saints trail the International League second-half leaders, the Durham Bulls, by four games heading into their penultimate week of play. While they lead the West division by one-and-a-half games, only the first- and second-half league winners advance to the postseason in Triple-A play. The Saints wasted little time putting runs on the board, scoring one in the top of the first and two in the second for an early 3-0 lead. In the first, Trevor Larnach drew a two-out walk before Austin Martin drove him in with a double down the left field line. In the second Yunior Severino led off with his 33rd home run of the season, which is good for second in all of the minor leagues. Later in the frame, Jair Camargo clubbed his first triple of the season, and two batters later Michael Helman drove him in with a single. St. Paul went with a bullpen game on Tuesday, with Hunter McMahon working as the opener. He pitched the first two scoreless innings, allowing two hits, walking two, and striking out two. Austin Schulfer then pitched into the fourth inning. In 1 2/3 innings, he gave up one run on three hits and a walk. He struck out two and picked up his sixth win of the season. In the fourth the Saints tacked on an insurance run thanks in part to an error on the Cubs defense. Camargo reached on that error and then stole his first base of the season to get into scoring position. Helman brought him home again with another single and a 4-1 lead. Gotta love those “firsts” on the season for the sturdy backstop in this one! Austin Brice went the next 2 1/3 from the bullpen, getting the Saints through the sixth inning. He allowed just one hit and struck out three. Ronny Henriquez went the next two innings, retiring all six hitters he faced, including a pair of strikeouts. Cole Sands finished out the victory with a scoreless ninth for his third save of the season. He walked one and struck out two. Helman (2-for-5, 2 RBI, SB) and Larnach (2-for-4, R, BB, K, SB) led the way with two hits apiece. Brooks Lee finished 0-for-5. WIND SURGE WISDOM Midland 5, Wichita 2 Box Score After pitching 2 2/3 innings for the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels last week, the rehabbing Chris Paddack made the start for Wichita on Tuesday night. He set the RockHounds down in order in each of the first two innings, collecting three strikeouts along the way. After a pair of strikeouts around a single in the third inning, a wild pitch put a runner in scoring position, and another single brought him home for a 1-0 Midland lead. The leadoff man took him deep to start the fourth, but Paddack made it through down 2-0. In four innings, Paddack was charged with two earned runs on four hits and zero walks. He struck out six in total while pounding the strike zone, with 44 of his 58 pitches going for strikes (76%), including nine swinging. The Wind Surge threatened in the bottom of the second with runners on the corners and nobody out, but the pair of strikeouts and a groundout that followed led to no runs on the scoreboard. Another major league rehabber, Jorge Alcala, came on to start the fifth inning, but he did not make it out of it. The first batter lined a single into center field, stole second base, then advanced to third on a balk. After a groundout, Alcala served up a homer for a 4-0 Midland lead before a second groundout finished his outing after 16 pitches. Taylor Floyd got the final out of the fifth and added a scoreless sixth. In 1 1/3 innings, he allowed two hits, walked one, and struck out three. Regi Grace (2 IP, H, R, BB, 3 K) and Francis Peguero (1 IP, H, BB) finished the final three innings for Wichita, keeping it close to give their lineup a chance. That lineup scored their first run of the game in the sixth inning, when singles from Patrick Winkel, Alex Isola, and Aaron Sabato loaded the bases with one out. Ben Ross delivered a sac fly to make it 4-1 at the time, but they couldn’t get a big knock to make it any closer. In the bottom of the ninth they again showed some spark, with Willie Joe Garry Jr., Alerick Soularie, and Yoyner Fajardo hitting consecutive one out singles to make it 5-2. But just as quick as the rally started, it was ended by a double-play ball to end the game. The Wind Surge outhit the RockHounds 11-10 on the game, but each of those 11 knocks were all singles, while the visitors had three go for extra-bases, including a pair of home runs. Fajardo (2-for-5, RBI), Isola (2-for-3, BB, K), and Rucker (2-for-4) all collected two singles to pace the offense. Sabato finished 1-for-3 with a walk. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 3, Peoria 4 (Chiefs lead series 1-0) Box Score After finishing the regular season with a Midwest League-leading record of 82-50, and winning both the first and second half West Division titles, the Cedar Rapids Kernels drew the Peoria Chiefs as their Division Series opponents. The Chiefs finished six games back of the Kernels in the second-half, and 13 games back overall on the season, with a record of 69-63. Right-hander Andrew Morris got the starting nod for the Kernels and retired six in a row after allowing a double to his first hitter of the game. Cedar Rapids loaded the bases with one out in the second inning, but were only able to score one on a Jose Salas fielder's choice for an early lead. To start the third inning Morris gave up a solo home run to tie the game at one, then three consecutive singles in the fourth led to a 2-1 lead for the Chiefs. After retiring the first two hitters in the fifth, an infield single was followed by another homer, and it was 4-1 Peoria. Morris finished five total innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and a walk. He struck out five. After Morris’ exit, the Kernels relief duo of Mike Paredes and John Stankiewicz was lights out. Paredes went two innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. Stankiewicz set the Chiefs down in order in the eighth, needing just eight pitches to do so. Down 4-1 in the top of the eighth inning, the Kernels finally were able to close the gap, and it took the Midwest League home run king to do so. After a Noah Miller single to put a man on base, Kala’i Rosario launched a two-run homer to dead center that traveled 416 feet to make it 4-3. In the ninth, the Kernels got their chances. Luke Keaschall and Noah Cardenas started the inning with a pair of walks. Jose Salas was then given the task of bunting them over, which was a questionable choice at that point, as just one of the nine pitches to that point was a strike. Unfortunately he not only failed to do so, but also seemed to swap the momentum. The first pitch was in the dirt, but he stabbed an attempt at it anyway. Then the next pitch he nearly bunted into a double play to the catcher, but it was ruled foul. He then watched strike three go by for the innings first out. Kyler Fedko went down swinging next, and it was up to leadoff man Noah Miller. His grounder to third base looked like it would end the game, but almost inexplicably the third baseman went for the tag instead of stepping on third base. In the fray, the ball popped out of his glove for an error, and the bases were loaded for Emmanuel Rodriguez. On a 1-1 count, Rodriguez made contact, chopping one toward first base. He hustled out of the box but the throw to the pitcher at first just beat him. The Kernels head back to Cedar Rapids down 1-0 in the series, needing to win both games at home to advance in the playoffs. Of note for this series, is that the Chiefs and Kernels played a total of 21 times during the regular season, and 12 of those matchups were decided by one run. Another three had just two runs between them, so the final score shouldn’t be surprising to either squad. The Kernels will send right-hander Cory Lewis to the mound looking to even the series at home on Thursday. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Mike Paredes, Cedar Rapids Kernels (2 IP, H, 4 K) Hitter of the Day - Yunior Severino, St. Paul Saints (1-for-2, R, HR, RBI, BB, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out our full top 20 list here and how they performed on Tuesday below! #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, K #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-5, 3 K #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, RBI, BB, K #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-for-5, K #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-1, 2 BB #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, R, HR, 2 RBI #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 1-for-2, R, HR (9), RBI, BB, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Iowa (12:08 PM CDT) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (6-6, 5.07 ERA) Midland @ Wichita (7:05 PM CDT) - RHP Pierson Ohl (7-3, 2.87 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS INF Yohander Martinez reinstated from 7-day IL at Fort Myers OF Luis Baez transferred from 7-day IL to 60-day IL at Fort Myers OF Matt Wallner recalled by Twins RHP Pierson Ohl reinstated from development list RHP Jose Bravo reinstated from development list and released RHP Jordan Brink released OF Armani Smith released Saints Sentinel St. Paul 4, Durham 2 Box Score Brent Headrick: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K HR: Anthony Prato (6), Jair Camargo Multi-hit games: Jair Camargo (2-for-4, HR, 2B, R, RBI) The Saints scored late to win on Saturday. They did it again. After the wild success that was last Saturday’s Brent Headrick/Simeon Woods Richardson’s piggyback, the Saints tried the strategy again. Headrick crushed his start, tossing a trio of scoreless innings, while Woods Richardson flourished as well, allowing a lone earned run over five frames. Kody Funderburk slammed the door with a quiet 9th. The bats aided the outstanding pitching effort. Anthony Prato and Jair Camargo both hammered late homers, earning and extending the precious lead. 0Prato now has a 1.064 OPS since joining the Saints. No hitter batting 1-4 got a hit on Saturday; only once did they reach base. Durham’s finest prospect is INF Curtis Mead. The Australian—third in the system; 32nd in MLB—doubled and singled in three at-bats. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 2, Springfield 10 Box Score Pierson Ohl: 4 ⅓ IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K HR: Brooks Lee (8) Multi-hit games: None The Wind Surge got smoked on Saturday. Pierson Ohl was not himself. The righty, so adept at throwing strikes, never found his command; he walked three with a smattering of base hits to allow three runs on his watch. Given that he was only reinstated from the Development List today, he may have just been rusty. Hopefully his typical strike-throwing self appears soon. Brooks Lee gave Wichita their first run when he smoked a solo shot in the 4th inning. But they could only score once more against the Cardinals. Ace pitching prospect, Tink Hence, allowed both runs in an atypically mediocre outing, but Springfield’s bullpen was nails, and the Wind Surge never even got a hit after Hence exited the game. Wichita’s pitchers found no such fortune. Taylor Floyd and Hunter McMahon allowed seven combined runs in support of their starter. The team never recovered. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 9, Beloit 7 Box Score Kyle Jones: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K HR: Kyler Fedko (3) Multi-hit games: Andrew Cossetti (3-for-3, R, RBI, BB) An explosive 1st inning carried the Kernels to victory on Saturday. It took until the seventh batter for Beloit starter Zach King to earn his first out; even that ended up as a run-scoring sacrifice fly. Cedar Rapids went double, hit by pitch, single, single, walk, single, before earning their fifth and final score of the inning when Andrew Cossetti flew a ball deep enough to coax in a run. The Kernels all-around offense continued throughout the game—and the team ended up walking more than they struck out (nine to eight) with every hitter reaching base at least once. Pitching wasn’t as smooth. Kyle Jones was cromulent over five innings, allowing a trio of earned runs, but a few late runs pushed the game within striking distance; fortunately, the Sky Carp never found the critical game-tying knot. Miguel Rodriguez stared down his last man and caught him looking, stranding a runner at third to conclude the game. The Kernels improved their season record to 51-32. Beloit’s star prospect—the second-in-the-system third baseman, Jacob Berry—doubled and struck out three times in five trips to the plate. Mussel Matters Ft. Myers 7, Clearwater 8 (10 Innings) Box Score Jarret Whorff: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K HR: Danny De Andrade (7), Mikey Perez (5) Multi-hit games: Ricardo Olivar (3-for-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB) The Mighty Mussels blew a late lead, turning a three-run advantage with one in the 9th into an extra-innings loss. Jarret Whorff was who he needed to be. The 24-year-old righty worked five scoreless frames, holding the second-scariest offense in the Florida State League to just a pair of singles, scattered and harmless. He unfortunately exited before his bats could give him the support he deserved. But they did come through eventually. Clearwater took a slim lead before Fort Myers roared back, plating four with a Danny De Andrade two-run shot exclaiming the scoring with authority. The lead held strong, guiding the Mighty Mussels into the 9th confident in their work. Gabriel Yanez acquired the first out before Jackson Hicks entered the game. He fell apart. A pair of singles and a three-run homer instantly zapped away the lead. The game entered extra innings. Zach Veen suffered just as well. The new pitcher allowed a back-breaking bases-clearing triple, eventually exiting with four runs standing between Fort Myers and the game continuing. They nearly did it. Mikey Perez blasted home himself and the Manfred Man. A productive groundout brought the game within one, but that was as close as the team could get, and Rubel Cespedes’ full-count strikeout delivered the game its final, disappointing verdict. Outfielder Justin Crawford, Philadelphia’s 3rd-best prospect, and the best prospect playing for the Threshers, singled in five plate appearances. Complex Chronicles The FCL Twins game was halted in the fifth; they will continue their match against the FCL Red Sox on the 21st. Dominican Dailies DSL Twins 2, DSL Guardians Red 6 Box Score Juan Cota: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Jayson Bass (2-for-3), Juan Zapata (2-for-3, 3B, RBI) The DSL Twins lost handily on Saturday. It took until the 5th for either team to score—and the game still ended up a seemingly normal affair. Starter Juan Cota has his stuff, leading to three scoreless frames with a pair of strikeouts—and, unusual for a DSL pitcher—no walks. But the Twins’ batters couldn’t take advantage of the effort; a Juan Zapata triple was their lone extra-base hit. The Guardians Red (what a clunky team name) stole four bases, and caught the Twins stealing twice. Hendry Chivilli, Minnesota’s big international signing in January, struck out three times in the game. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Simeon Woods Richardson Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Jair Camargo PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 1-4, HR, R, RBI, 3 K #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-3, R, BB, 2 K #7 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K #11 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-4, K, SB #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-4, R, BB K #15 - Brent Headrick (St. Paul) - 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 0-4 SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Durham @ St. Paul (2:07 PM) - LHP Dallas Keuchel Springfield @ Wichita (1:05 PM) - RHP Travis Adams Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (1:05 PM) - LHP Christian MacLeod Clearwater @ Fort Myers (11:00 AM) - RHP Andrew Morris

While the Minnesota Twins offense completely sputtered in Atlanta this week, their three minor-league affiliates that returned to action on Wednesday all scored at least a dozen runs. Like the big-league schedule, the minor league affiliates are now in their second halves. So, they got an extra day, but it's really not that simple. It was an extra day off, but instead of playing Tuesday through Sunday this week, the series will be played Wednesday through Monday. They won't get a day off at all next week as they will all play on Tuesday, July 4th. So again, the big-league club has been struggling, but thankfully we've got the minor leagues to talk about too... and I'm sure you're enjoying the great 2023 MLB Draft coverage that @Jeremy Nygaard and @Jamie Cameron have been providing. Finally, before we get started, if you missed yesterday's First-Half Awards article, click here to see who we voted the top hitter, starting pitcher, and relief pitcher in the Twins minor leagues in the first half. And if you missed the interview with DaShawn Keirsey, Jr, click here. Here are the records of the six Twins affiliates through games on Wednesday. St. Paul Saints: 44-31 Wichita Wind Surge: 29-40 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 42-27 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 36-34 FCL Twins: 9-7 DSL Twins: 5-12 Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS The Twins had RHP Cole Sands begin his rehab assignment with the Saints. RHP Ronny Henriquez was also activated from the 7-Day IL and back in the Saints bullpen. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 12, Gwinnett 9 Box Score It wasn’t a great game for the Saints as they began their season’s second half, but in the end, it couldn’t have ended any better. Louie Varland was the Saints starter in a matinee game at CHS Field. It would be fair to say that it didn’t go really well. The St. Paul native was charged with six runs on six hits (including two homers) and five walks. He had four strikeouts. Just 52 of his 95 pitches were strikes (54.7%). However, when he left the game, the Saints were ahead 8-6 that’s to a five-run third inning. Left Michael Boyle came on and got four outs. Then Cole Sands tossed a perfect inning. Patrick Murphy came on and gave up three runs on three hits and a walk in the eighth inning and suddenly the Saints were down 9-8. Fortunately, Kody Funderburk struck out two batters in the top of the ninth inning to set things up. But let's go back to the beginning. The Saints took the early lead when Jose Miranda crushed his third Saints home run. However, in the top of the second, Gwinnett scored four runs. But the Saints came back with two in the bottom of the season thanks to a single from Anthony Prato and a fielder’s choice off the bat of Elliot Soto. In the top of the third, Braden Shewmake hit a solo homer to make it 5-3. The Saints responded with a five-run third inning. The scoring started with a bases-loaded walk by Chris Williams. Jair Camargo then drove a two-run single. Prato drove in Williams with a force out before Soto singled in Prato to give the Saints the 8-5 lead. Alright, let’s jump back to the ninth inning. Matt Wallner led off with a groundout. Kyle Garlick singled, but Gilberto Celestino grounded out for the inning’s second out. However, Trevor Larnach and Andrew Bechtold walked to load the bases and bring up Camargo. On the first pitch, Camargo crushed his third grand slam of the season to give the Saints a 12-9, walkoff win. The ball left his bat at 109.6 mph and traveled 442 feet. Jair Camargo went 2-for-5 in the game and drove in six big runs. The home run was his 12th of the season. Kyle Garlick and Gilberto Celestino both went 2-5 as well. Trevor Larnach was 0-for-2 but walked three times. Chris Williams was 1-for-2 and walked twice. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 15, NW Arkansas 8 Box Score An extra day off at home was maybe just what the Wind Surge needed as their offense broke out in this one, scoring 15 runs with 18 hits. All nine Wichita batters had at least one hit. Seven of the nine had two hits in the game, and Brooks Lee led the way with three hits and a walk in the game. The team scored in five of the first six innings, but it was an eight-run fifth inning that broke it open. David Festa made the start and was charged three runs on five hits over four innings. He had four strikeouts. Francis Peguero tossed a scoreless fifth inning. Regi Grace gave up three runs on three hits (including two homers) and a walk in 2 1/3 innings. Alex Phillips gave up two runs on five hits, but he got the final five outs. The game time temperature in Wichita was 102 degrees, and there was a 15 mph wind blowing out to left field. The Wind Surge bats were hot, in at least some part due to the wind. Lee went 3-for-4 with a walk and his 24th double. He hit his sixth home run on the first pitch of the bottom of the first inning. Alex Isola went 2-for-5 with his 12th double. Aaron Sabato hit his eighth double and his first triple. DaShawn Keirsey went 2-for-4. Will Holland hit his sixth and seventh doubles and walked. He also stole two bases to give him a dozen on the year. Yoyner Fajardo went 2-for-4 and stole his 21st bag of the season. David Banuelos batted ninth and went 2-for-4 with a walk and his sixth home run since joining the Wind Surge. Yunior Severino drilled his 14th and 15th home runs of the season and drove in four runs. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids, Peoria The Kernels traveled to Peoria to start a new series. However, due to poor air quality, the game was postponed. It will be made up on Thursday as part of a doubleheader, starting at 5:00. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 16, Lakeland 2 Box Score Apparently the extra day off was just what all three of the Twins full-season affiliates that played on Wednesday needed. St. Paul scored 12 runs. Wichita scored 15 runs, and Fort Myers was on top of the leaderboard with 16 runs scored. As an aside, you may have heard that the Twins offense was shutout on Wednesday in Atlanta. Maybe they all need a two-day break! Anyway, this is the minor-league report. Let’s keep it positive. Back to the Mighty Mussels… you might be surprised to learn that the score of this game was 2-2 going into the bottom of the sixth. That’s when Fort Myers put up an 11-spot in that inning. Gregory Duran has only been up with the Mussels for three weeks. He had a breakout game on Wednesday. He went 3-for-3 with two walks, his fourth double, and his second home run. He scored four runs and drove in five runs. He batted eighth for Fort Myers in this game. The nine hitter, Maddux Houghton, went 4-for-5 with his second double and third triple. He scored twice and knocked in four runs. That is some pretty strong offensive performance from the bottom of the lineup. They were helped because sixth hitter, Kyle Schmidt, went 1-for-3 and walked twice and scored twice. Seven hitting, Dylan Neuse, went 1-for-2 with two walks and three runs scored. Ricardo Olivar was leading off. He went 2-for-4 with a walk and his ninth double. Danny De Andrade batted second and went 2-for-6 with his ninth double and his sixth home run. He drove in four runs and scored twice. Andrew Morris made the start for Fort Myers. He was charged with one run on three hits in 2 2/3 innings. He struck out two batters. Unfortunately, a nearly two hour rain delay ended his outing. Samuel Perez improved to 4-1 thanks to tossing 3 1/3 innings in which he gave up only an unearned run on three hits. The soft-tosser struck out five batters and issued no walks. Danny Moreno threw two scoreless innings and Johnathan Lavallee struck out two in a scoreless ninth inning. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Samuel Perez (Fort Myers) - 3 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K Hitters of the Day – Gregory Duran (Fort Myers) - 3-for-3, 2 BB, 2B(4), HR(2), 4 R, 5 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) - 3-for-4, BB, 2B(24), HR(6), 2 R, 4 RBI. #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 0-for-4, 3 K #4 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 0-for-1 #8 - David Festa (Wichita) - 4 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 69 pitches, 47 strikes. #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, R, K. #14 - Jordan Balazovic (Minnesota) - 1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 18 pitches, 12 strikes. #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 2-for-5, 2-HR(15), 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 K. THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Gwinnett (7:07 PM CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak (3-3, 5.02 ERA) vs RHP Dereck Rodriguez NW Arkansas @ Wichita (7:05 PM CST) - RHP Pierson Ohl (0-2, 6.61 ERA) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (DH starting at 5:00 PM CST) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin (2-4, 5.15 ERA), TBD Lakeland @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM CST) - RHP Ben Ethridge (0-4, 2.97 ERA) FCL Twins @ FCL Pirates (11:00 AM CST) - TBD DSL Giants Black @ DSL Twins (10:00AM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games or any other Twins minor league topics!

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.

Trading for prospects can be challenging for fans to evaluate, especially if those players are in the low levels of the minor leagues. It can take multiple years for those players to work through the team’s farm system. Jair Camargo is one of those players, and he might finally be putting it all together at the Triple-A level. The Dodgers originally signed Camargo in 2015 as a 16-year-old from Barranquilla, Colombia. He made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League, hitting .250/.309/.346 (.654) with eight extra-base hits and a 28-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 41 games. In 2017, he came stateside and played for the Dodgers rookie-level team and more than held his own. He posted a .709 OPS with nine doubles, one triple, and two home runs in 36 games. Camargo’s final rookie ball season came in 2018 when he hit .257/.277/.443 (.720) with 12 extra-base hits in 113 at-bats. His career was off to a promising start, and it was time for him to move to a full-season league. During the 2019 season, Camargo headed to the Dodgers’ affiliate in the Midwest League. He caught over 550 innings for the first time in his career, and there were some offensive challenges with the increased level of competition. Still in his teens, Camargo was over two years younger than the average age of the competition at his level and faced older pitchers in over 91% of his plate appearances. In 79 games, he hit .236/.301/.342 (.642) with 18 doubles and four home runs. He showed some ability to draw walks while being one of the youngest players in the Midwest League. Minnesota looked to bolster their rotation entering the 2020 season, so the club traded Brusdar Graterol and Luke Raley to the Dodgers for Kenta Maeda and Jair Camargo. Graterol and Maeda were the obvious headliners from the deal, but the Twins identified Camargo and thought he could potentially add future value to the trade. Unfortunately, the pandemic wiped out the 2020 minor league season, so that he couldn’t debut in the Twins system that season. The Twins sent Camargo to Cedar Rapids in 2021, where he was the third youngest player to suit up for the Kernels that season. He played over 100 innings at first base but continued to get plenty of time at catcher by starting 43 games. His OPS jumped over 50 points compared to 2019, and he hit double-digit home runs (13) for the first time in his career. Camargo continued to strikeout at a high rate with 106 strikeouts in 263 at-bats, but he was facing older pitchers in nearly 87% of his plate appearances. With this performance, he wouldn’t appear on top prospect lists, but he continued improving as he moved up the organizational ladder. Camargo has also gained some experience on the international stage. Over the last two winters, he has played in the Colombian Winter League and the Dominican Winter League. Following the 2021 season, he hit .185/.258/.296 (.555) with three home runs in 27 games for CWL. Last winter, he played in the Dominican and posted a .592 OPS with four extra-base hits over 76 plate appearances. He’s been significantly younger than the average age of the competition at those levels, but the experience should help him in the long run. During the 2022 campaign, Camargo split time between High- and Double-A. He began the season at Cedar Rapids with some of the best hitting in his professional career. In 28 games, he hit .296/.314/.496 (.809) with five doubles and six home runs. It was his first time posting an OPS above .800 at any level, so the Twins promoted him to Wichita. He posted a .778 OPS at Double-A with five doubles and 12 home runs in 46 games. He was over two years younger than the average age of the competition, and he continued to hold his own. The Twins could have sent Camargo back to Double-A for the 2023 season since he had played fewer than 50 games at Double-A. Instead, the club assigned him to Triple-A, where there were growing pains with the transition to a higher level. In his first 17 games, he went 7-for-62 (.113 BA) with two extra-base hits and a 27-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. From there, things took off for him at the plate. In his next 16 games, he went 19-for-61 (.312) with two doubles and seven home runs. He’s been one of the hottest hitters for the Saints, and it’s hard not to get excited about a power-hitting catching prospect. During the 2023 season, Camargo has only appeared at catcher and designated hitter. He’s gone 8-for-28 in throwing out runners (29 CS%) after throwing out 36% of runners in 2022. The Saints have yet to use a player younger than Camargo this season, and he has only had eight plate appearances against younger pitchers. He’s improved over the last two years and might have solidified his place in the Twins’ long-term plans. Can Camargo help the Twins in 2023? Will he be the team’s catcher of the future? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 11, Iowa 6 Box Score Toby Gardenhire had Aaron Sanchez on the mound and he was cruising until running into trouble during the fourth inning. He wound up working 3 2/3 innings giving up four runs on four hits and three walks. Sanchez also struck out five. After the Cubs put a run on the board in the first inning, St. Paul answered with two of their own. Edouard Julien clubbed his 12th double of the season and drove in Jose Miranda. Chris Williams then kept up with his hot hitting and singled to bring Julien across the plate. Homering for the second night in a row, Jair Camargo blasted his seventh of the season for a third inning, three-run shot that scored Matt Wallner and Williams. Iowa clawed back with three in the fourth inning, but St. Paul’s lead remained intact. After Iowa took a 6-5 lead in the top of the sixth inning, St. Paul got right back to work. Miranda drew a bases loaded walk to bring home Tony Wolters, and Matt Wallner took a hit by pitch to plate Alex De Goti. The Saints had regained the lead without putting a ball in play. On a fly ball double-play from Julien, Stevenson raced home and made it an 8-6 lead. For the second time on the evening Camargo went deep, another solo shot, this one putting St. Paul up 9-6 in the seventh inning. Then Miranda continued his solid night with a two-run single that scored both Wolters and De Goti. WIND SURGE WISDOM San Antonio 10, Wichita 3 Box Score Aaron Rozek started tonight’s game for the Wind Surge but he was chased early after a tough outing lasting just 2 2/3 innings. Giving up eight hits led to seven runs (six earned). Command was a bit of an issue as well with three walks and just a single strikeout. San Antonio got on the board first with two runs in the second inning, and then they exploded for a five-spot in the third inning. Adding another in the fourth inning, Wichita was down eight before putting anything up for themselves. Finally in the eighth inning the Wind Surge broke through. Will Holland singled in Yoyner Fajardo, and although it was just one run, baby steps were taken. Quickly washed away in the bottom half, Wichita saw San Antonio add another pair to create a larger divide. They did answer with a ninth inning rally and it was nice to see them go down fighting. First Aaron Sabato singled to bring Brooks Lee home, then Fajardo plated Jake Rucker with a single of his own. Down to their final out, Alex Isola reached on a throwing error that gave Sabato a chance to come home and make it a 10-4 game. Holland popped out in the next at bat though, and that was all she wrote for the good guys. Holland did have a pair of hits on the night, and his two were almost half of the five total for Wichita. It was a tough showing going up against 10 runs on 14 hits for San Antonio. KERNELS NUGGETS Dayton 2, Cedar Rapids 1 Box Score The Kernels went with Mike Paredes on the bump tonight. He worked four innings while allowing two runs on three hits and a walk. The Cedar Rapids pitcher did strike out three on the evening. Paredes saw Dayton jump out to a first inning lead when Edwin Arroyo clubbed a two-run shot. That’s where he’d strand Dayton during his outing however, and it was up to Cedar Rapids looking for an answer. Andrew Cossetti got the Kernels on the board with a ground out in the second inning. Misael Urbina came across the plate to halve the lead and bring Cedar Rapids back within one. Unfortunately the offense then stalled out and despite Jordan Carr keeping Dayton scoreless in relief, it wasn’t enough to secure the victory. Carr was amazing however, allowing no baserunners and punching out seven. Noah Miller was the lone batter to record a pair of hits on the day. MUSSEL MATTERS Clearwater 7, Fort Myers 2 Box Score C.J. Culpepper was the starter tonight for Fort Myers, and he worked four solid innings. Dancing around six hits, Culpepper gave up two runs (only one earned), while striking out six and walking just one. Clearwater put a run on the board during the second inning before adding another in the third inning on a wild pitch. Then in the fifth inning they answered again, this time with a pair, and it was a 4-0 game. Before the Mighty Mussels could find a way to push anything across, Clearwater struck again. With two more runs coming home during the sixth inning, clawing back was getting more unlikely. The second wild pitch of the game made it a 7-0 deficit and it wasn’t until the seventh inning that Fort Myers got on the board. With Jorel Ortega on base, Danny De Andrade hit an inside-the-park homer for his third dinger of the season. Clearwater still led by five but the Mighty Mussels had finally shown signs of life. They couldn’t do anything to keep it rolling though and ultimately fell for the second night in a row. De Andrade put up a three-hit effort, but was the lone player with multiple in that category. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Jordan Carr (Cedar Rapids) - 4.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K Hitter of the Day – Jair Camargo (St. Paul) - 2-5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR(8), 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 (Wichita) - 0-3, R, BB, 2 K #2 - Royce Lewis (Minnesota) - 1-4, RBI, K #4 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 2-4, R, 2 RBI, 2B(12), K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 2-4, R, RBI, 2 K #12 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2, 2 BB, K #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4 #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 0-4, K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Iowa @ St. Paul (5:37PM CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05PM CST) - RHP Travis Adams Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (6:05PM CST) - RHP Cory Lewis Clearwater @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS After appearing in a game Monday for the FCL Twins, IF Austin Martin continued his rehab assignment with the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels. The St. Paul Saints were assigned 3B Seth Gray from Wichita. The Cedar Rapids Kernels sent RHP Owen Griffith on a rehab assignment with the FCL Twins. SAINTS SENTINEL Iowa 4, St. Paul 10 Box Score Jordan Balazovic was the scheduled starter early Tuesday morning, but by game time the Saints went with an opener in Cody Laweryson, before handing it over to Balazovic. Laweryson pitched into the second inning, but his pitch count soared and after recording two outs, gave up a three-run homer to end his outing. Balazovic then came on and gave up a pair of doubles to put another run on the board for the Cubs, before getting his first strikeout to end the second inning. Laweryson went 1 2/3 IP, and was charged with three runs on three hits and two walks, while striking out three on 48 pitches (27 for strikes). Of note from the Saints Broadcast, the talk was of Balazovic coming out of the bullpen, and how the Twins wanted to get him used to that instead of the routine of starting. They may be onto something, even if his usage has been odd this year if that’s the case. Anyway, they might be onto something as Balazovic cruised for the next three innings, allowing just one hit and two walks, while punching out six more Iowa hitters. He finished with one earned run allowed on three hits and two walks, striking out seven total. He still threw 71 pitches, which you’d rather see in about five innings, but made it work. He was 94-96 MPH with his fastball, and dropped in some great breaking balls hitters watched for called third strikes. The Saints offense scored first in the game thanks to International League Player of the Week, Matt Wallner. His double in the first inning left his bat at 106.3 MPH to score Andrew Stevenson, who had led off with a single. In the bottom of the fourth, they cut the Cubs lead to two, when Jose Miranda delivered an RBI double. Almost unfathomably, this was Miranda’s first double since joining the Saints. He added his second in the eighth inning. In the fifth, the Saints loaded the bases with nobody out, and Jair Camargo cashed them all in with his sixth home run of the season, a 447-foot grand slam that put them out front 6-4. After Balazovic’s day was done, Austin Schulfer pitched a scoreless sixth inning, working around three singles thanks to Wallner’s arm in right field, as his bullet cut down a runner at home to keep the inning scoreless. Austin Brice chipped in two scoreless frames, striking out three. In the eighth inning, a single, double, and walk loaded the bases again for the Saints, and this time it was Chris Williams with the moonshot. His 440-foot grand slam made it 10-4 Saints. Oliver Ortega finished it out with a scoreless ninth to send the CHS Field faithful home happy, and ensure Balazovic earned his first career triple-A win. The Saints knocked out 13 hits as a team, with Stevenson (3-for-4, 2 R, 2B), Miranda (2-for-5, R, 2 2B, RBI, K), Williams (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 4 RBI, BB, K), and Mark Contreras (2-for-5, R, K) collecting multiple hits. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 5, San Antonio 6 Box Score The Wind Surge jumped out to an early 5-0 lead after two innings, stringing together a bunch of doubles in both frames. Brooks Lee led off the game with his 17th double of the year, extending his Texas League leading tally. Then it was Yunior Severino and Jake Rucker who followed suit to give them a 2-0 lead before an out was recorded. Pat Winkel later added an RBI single to make it three runs in the first. In the second, Lee got a two-out rally started with his 18th double, Severino drew a walk, then Rucker brought them both in with his second double in the first two frames for the 5-0 lead. Unfortunately for Wichita, they got just two more hits the rest of the way, and San Antonio battled back. Starter Carlos Luna went the first four innings, allowing one run on three hits and three walks, while striking out three. His run allowed came in the fourth on a solo home run. Hunter McMahon delivered a scoreless fifth, but didn’t make it out of the sixth. He was charged with two earned runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings, striking out one. Jordan Brink went the next 1 1/3 scoreless, allowing one hit and one walk. Regi Grace then made his double-A debut, delivering a scoreless eighth inning to pick up a hold and keep the Wind Surge’s two-run lead intact. He walked one and threw 14 pitches (7 strikes). In the bottom of the ninth Wichita turned to Curtis Taylor, and it didn’t work. Two walks and a hit-batter loaded the bases before Francis Peguero was brought in. His first pitch was sent into center field for a bases-clearing double, and walk-off win for the Missions. Lee (2-for-5, 2 R, 2 2B) and Rucker (2-for-2, R, 2 2B, 4 RBI, BB) led the way for the offense, but what started out white hot, finished ice cold for the team as whole and San Antonio was able to steal game one of their six-game series late. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Dayton 6 (5 innings) Box Score The Kernels series opener against the Dragons was cut a bit short by rain in Dayton, Ohio but it may have been for the best. They fell behind 5-0 after just two innings, as starter Kyle Jones got ambushed from his first pitch. Literally, as it went for a solo home run to begin the bottom of the first inning. From there, a walk, single, and an error made it a 2-0 for Dayton after one. In the second inning, another error led to an RBI single and two-run homer, and the Dragons were in control. Jones went on to finish four innings, allowing those five runs (three earned) on four hits and two walks. On a positive note, he did strike out seven. Malik Barrington came on to start the fifth and allowed one run on two hits, while striking out two. The Cedar Rapids offense managed just two hits in the shortened contest, which came from Emmanuel Rodriguez and Kala’i Rosario. Rosario’s single in the third drove in their only run of the game, scoring Tanner Schobel who walked twice in three at-bats. As a team the Kernels did draw seven walks, but were just 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position. Right-hander Mike Paredes is scheduled to pitch on Wednesday, taking on former Twins first round draft pick Chase Petty, who has a 0.56 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts for the Dragons in four starts and 16 innings pitched on the season so far. MUSSEL MATTERS Clearwater 10, Fort Myers 5 Box Score Fort Myers starter Develson Aria recorded only one out in this contest, and the Mighty Mussels never recovered. Aria couldn’t find the strike zone, walking five of the first seven hitters of the game and before the inning was over had four earned runs on his ledger. Emergency reliever A.J. Labas managed to keep the damage to just that and added a scoreless second inning, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out three in 1 2/3 innings. Danny Moreno (1 2/3 IP, 4 H, 4 R (3 earned), BB), Samuel Perez (3 1/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, K), Johnathan Lavallee (1 1/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, BB), and infielder Mikey Perez (2/3 IP) accounted for the rest of the pitching staff’s innings. The Mighty Mussels' scoring came in just two innings, with three runs in the fourth inning on a Rubel Cespedes RBI double and Alec Sayre two-RBI single, then two in the eighth thanks to a double steal of home and second base, and an RBI single from Cespedes. Jorel Ortega (2-for-3, 2 R, BB, K, SB) and Cespedes (2-for-4, R, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K) had multiple hits, and Dylan Neuse chipped in a double. Gilberto Celestino continued his rehab assignment but finished 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Austin Martin began his rehab assignment playing second base and batting second. He was 0-for-3 with a walk. COMPLEX CHRONICLES FCL Twins 5, FCL Rays 6 Box Score Jack Noble put together a strong start for the Twins, finishing the first five innings, allowing just one run on three hits and three walks, while striking out five. The rehabbing Owen Griffith pitched a scoreless sixth inning, striking out one Down 1-0 at that point, but the Twins offense finally got going in the seventh. A sac fly from Bryan Acuna tied it, then two batters later Anderson Nova put them in front 4-1 with a three-run home run. Unfortunately, the Rays countered with five of their own in the bottom half. Carlos Gutierrez finished the final two innings for the Twins, but gave up those five runs on three hits and a walk while striking out four. Yasser Mercedes was 1-for-2 with a pair of walks out of the leadoff spot. Jose Rodriguez was 1-for-3 with a run scored and a walk. Byron Chourio scored a run and drew two walks in four plate appearances. DOMINICAN DAILY DSL Twins 3, DSL Phillies Red 4 Box Score The Twins got solid pitching for the first five innings, allowing just one run as a team in that timeframe. They were led by starter Adrian Bohorquez who went the first three innings, and recorded all nine of his outs via strikeout. He allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and a walk. But they weren't able to hold on from there. Oscar Paredes (1 IP), Jeicol Surumuy (2/3 IP, 3 H, K), Jose Ojo (1/3 IP), Leonardo Lugo (2 2/3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 K), and Reynel Garcia (1/3 IP) finished off the rest of the game, with Lugo getting saddled with a blown save and the loss. The lineup managed just six hits, with shortstop Yilber Herrera and first baseman Javier Roman collecting doubles and an RBI. The Twins biggest bonus baby of the year, Ariel Castro, went 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout hitting in the three-hole. Catcher Carlos Silva was also 1-for-3 with a walk and two K’s. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Jordan Balazovic, St. Paul Saints (W, 3 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) Hitter of the Day - Chris Williams, St. Paul Saints (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 4 RBI, BB, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY #1 - Brooks Lee (Wichita) - 2-for-5, 2 R, 2 2B #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-2, BB #4 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, R, 2 K #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, R, 2B, RBI, BB, HBP, 2 K #10 - Yasser Mercedes (FCL) - 1-for-2, 2 BB #11 - Austin Martin (Rehab-Fort Myers) - 0-for-3, BB #12 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-2, K #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-1, BB, K #14 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - W, 3 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K #18 - Jose Rodriguez (FCL) - 1-for-3, R, BB, K #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 1-for-4, 2 R, 2B, BB, 2 K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Iowa @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CDT) - RHP Aaron Sanchez (3-4, 3.72 ERA) Wichita @ San Antonio (7:05 PM CDT) - LHP Aaron Rozek (0-2, 6.11 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Mike Paredes (2-0, 2.11 ERA) Clearwater @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM CDT) - RHP C.J. Culpepper (2-2, 2.59 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games!

TRANSACTIONS OF Willie Joe Garry Jr. place on the injured list with an oblique strain for High-A Cedar Rapids C Kyle Schmidt had been activated off the injured list for High-A Cedar Rapids RHP Zebby Matthews promoted from Low-A Fort Myers to High-A Cedar Rapids RHP Jose Olivares reinstated from the development list for Low-A Fort Myers LHP Wilker Reyes reinstated from the injured list for Low-A Fort Myers SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 10, Omaha 6 Box Score Royce Lewis was given the day off today for the Saints. He will fly to Texas and is expected to be reinstated to the Minnesota Twins roster tomorrow. The Saints turned to Simeon Woods Richardson and things again went poorly. Across just four innings, Woods Richardson gave up four runs on six hits while allowing a pair to reach on walks. He struck out just a single batter. Trailing 4-0 after the top of the third inning, St. Paul finally found an opportunity to answer. Andrew Stevenson continued his ability for heavy lifting with a single that scored Jair Camargo. No longer were the good guys being blanked, and we had a 4-1 game. In the fifth inning, things got worse for the Saints. Samad Taylor stole his 26th base and then scored on a throwing error from Tony Walters attempting to nab him at third base. A C.J. Alexander single then drove in Nate Eaton and the deficit grew. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Camargo looked to make things interesting. With the bases loaded, he hit a grand slam for his fifth dinger of the season. Scoring Chris Williams, Hernan Perez, and Ryan LaMarre, St. Paul was only down by a run. Former star prospect for the Royals, Jackson Kowar was on for Omaha and the wheels fell off. Andrew Stevenson crushed his eighth double of the year to score Tony Wolters, and Jose Miranda scored Stevenson on a single to Brewer Hicklen. Hernan Perez then went deep for the fourth time this season scoring both Miranda and Williams to make it a 10-6 game. That's where things ended and Stevenson was matched by Perez and Camargo four multi-hit games. WIND SURGE WISDOM Springfield 10,Wichita 5 Box Score Chad Donato was on the bump and his coal was to shut down the opposite. Unfortunately, he allowed five earned runs on four hits across just two innings, and his 2/1 K/BB was rendered virtually useless. The Cardinals put up a five-spot against Donato in the bottom of the second inning and it became an uphill battle from there for Wichita. Jacob Buchberger ripped his 8th home run of the season for the Cardinals and Springfield stretched their lead to 6-0 in the third inning. Anthony Prato did bring Alex Isola home on a fielding error in the fourth inning, but the Wind Surge allowed a Noah Medlinger homer in the bottom half of the inning to make it 9-1. Extended to 10-1 in the fifth inning, the deficit just got worse. Looking for some sort of a rebound, Prato triple for the first time this season and scored Isola. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. then drove in Prato on a single and Will Holland scored Keirsey Jr. on his third double of the season. With it 10-4 going into the seventh inning, Wichita was trying to rally. Keirsey Jr. singled in Yoyner Fajardo to make it 10-5 in the eighth inning, but that's as close as the good guys got. Isola recorded two hits as did Prato and Keirsey Jr. Working for something better next week is now the goal. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 9, Wisconsin 6 Box Score Coming off the injured list, Christian MacLeod made the start for Cedar Rapids. He pitched only a single inning while giving up three runs on two hits and a walk. Wisconsin raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning when Joe Gray Jr. blasted a three-run homer, his third of the year, to put the Timber Rattlers on the board. Trying to immediately answer, Noah Miller singled in Tanner Schobel making it a 3-1 game. Gray Jr. blasted a two-run shot in the third inning to make it 5-1 before Cedar Rapids went to work. Noah Cardenas roped his ninth double of the season to score Emmanuel Rodriguez and shorten the lead. Miller’s fourth double then brought the Kernels within two before the inning ended. During the fourth inning, Schobel singled in Jose Salas and the Kernels found themselves within a run at 5-4. Without being able to even it first, Gray Jr. doubled and put Wisconsin back up 6-4. The Kernels answered in a big way during the fifth inning. Misael Urbana singled in Cardenas before a Jose Salas sacrifice fly scored Miller to tie the game. The Kernels looked to be back in command at that point. In the sixth inning, Cedar Rapids decided to call game. Cardenas singled in both Schobel and Ben Ross. Then Urbina plated Cardenas and the lead had been stretched to 9-6. Both Schobel and Cardenas opted for a pair of hits on the day. Urbina decided to join them while Miller grabbed three of his own. MUSSEL MATTERS Dunedin 7, Fort Myers 1 (Game 1/F/7) Box Score Looking to play a pair today, the Mighty Mussels sent Jose Olivares to the mound in Game 1. He worked 3 2/3 innings while allowing seven runs on six hits. The disastrous day only included a single strikeout and walk apiece. Dunedin raced out to a 7-0 lead by the fourth inning, and the Mighty Mussels never flexed anything. Dylan Neuse recorded his fourth double in the seventh inning to make it 7-1, but the game was well in hand at that point. Fort Myers 6, Dunedin 4 (Final/7) Box Score Wilker Reyes was on the bump for Game 2 as the Mighty Mussels twirled a pair. He worked 2 2/3 innings allowing two runs on two hits with three walks and no strikeouts. Fort Myers jumped on the board first when Dalton Shuffield scored Jorel Ortega and Ricardo Oliver on a first-inning single. Rubel Cespedes then launched a two-run shot to right field, scoring himself and Shuffield, making it a 4-0 lead. Dunedin added single runs in both the second and third innings before the Mighty Mussels responded. Mikey Perez ripped a single that scored Cespedes to make it 5-2 and that helped to preserve a lead when Dunedin added another. Jorel Ortega homered for the fourth time this year when he went deep in the seventh, and that was plenty to hold the lead after a Blue Jays run in the seventh inning. Fort Myers held on for the victory. Ortega was joined by Cespedes for two hits on the day. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Juan Mendez (Fort Myers) - 2.1 IP, 1 H 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K Hitter of the Day – Noah Cardenas (Cedar Rapids) - 2-4, 3 R, 3 RBI, BB, 2B 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) - 0-4, R, BB, 3 K #4 - Edouard Julien (Minnesota) - 0-3, BB, 2 K #7 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - 4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 1 K #9 - Matt Wallner (Minnesota) - 2-2, 2 BB #12 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 1-3, R, RBI, 2B, K #13 - Noah Miller (Cedar Rapids) - 3-4, R, 2 RBI, 2B #19 - Yunior Severino (Wichita) - 0-0, BB SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Buffalo (5:05PM CST) - TBD Tulsa @ Wichita (7:05PM CST) - LHP Blayne Enlow Cedar Rapids @ Lansing (5:00PM CST) - RHP Marco Raya St. Lucie @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games!

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!

Kenta Maeda returned triumphantly to the mound last week after nearly 18 months between starts while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He looked dominant in his first start with nine strikeouts across five innings, including Whiffs on 45% of opponent's swings. The Twins skipped his third start after he dealt with some fatigue. Like his return from injury, his acquisition by the Twins was filled with some bumps. Let's look back at the trade that brought him to Minnesota. Initially, the Twins were part of a monster three-team deal that included the Twins, Red Sox, and Dodgers. That deal looked like the Dodgers receiving Mookie Betts (BOS) and David Price (BOS), the Red Sox receiving Alex Verdugo (LA) and Brusdar Graterol (MN), and the Twins receiving Kenta Maeda (LA). Boston expressed concerns over Graterol's medicals and wanted the Twins to include another high-ranked prospect. Minnesota pulled out of the deal after that request. Eventually, the Dodgers and Twins were able to put a similar deal in place without including the Red Sox. Los Angeles received Graterol, Luke Raley, and the 67th selection in the 2020 MLB Draft. (Note - MLB draft picks cannot be traded, with the exception of the Competitive Balance picks.) Minnesota acquired Kenta Maeda, Jair Camargo, and cash considerations. It's been over three years since the two teams agreed to the trade, so both organizations have a clearer picture of the results. Dodgers Trade Acquisitions At the time of the trade, Graterol was considered a top-100 prospect, but his time as a starter was ending. Graterol has pitched in the Dodgers bullpen for the last four seasons with mixed results. In 120 total innings, he's combined for a 3.83 ERA with a 1.13 WHIP and a 95-to-28 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His fastball has always been his calling card, averaging triple digits during the 2022 season. However, big-league hitters can hit that velocity, especially since it is pretty straight, and his 7.1 K/9 could (maybe should?) be better for a reliever. Graterol has filled a role for the Dodgers but has yet to develop into a dominant bullpen arm. Raley came to the Twins from the Dodgers in the Brian Dozier trade, so Los Angeles wanted him back. He broke into the majors with LA during the 2021 season and posted a .538 OPS in 33 games. The Dodgers traded him to the Rays leading into the 2022 season, and he's found a role with one of baseball's best organizations. To start the 2023 season, he's gone 4-for-15 (.267) with three home runs and a .867 SLG. The Dodgers used their draft pick from the Twins to select Clayton Beeter in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft. He's spent most of his professional career pitching at Double-A. For his career, he has a 4.04 ERA with a 1.31 WHIP, and a 14.4 K/9. During the 2022 season, he was traded from the Dodgers to the Yankees for Joey Gallo. He's posted a sub-2.15 ERA since joining the Yankee organization, so they may have solved some of his former issues. Twins Trade Acquisitions Maeda's first season with the Twins couldn't have gone much better. After posting a 2.70 ERA with an MLB-leading 0.75 WHIP, he finished runner-up for the AL Cy Young. His performance declined during the 2021 season (4.66 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP), but he was fighting through elbow issues and never had his command. Maeda underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2021, and it took him over 18 months to pitch in another game for the Twins. He's in his last year of team control and turns 35 on April 11th. During the 2023 season, he's trying to prove he is healthy and can continue to be an effective starter. Maeda wasn't the only piece with value to the Twins. Jair Camargo is coming off a solid season, hitting .262/.310/.483 (.793) with 11 doubles and 18 home runs in 77 games between High-A Cedar Rapids and Double-A Wichita. Catcher is his primary defensive position, but he has had some at-bats at first base and DH too. He became a free agent last offseason but very quickly re-signed with the Twins and received his first invitation to big-league spring training. Camargo is starting the 2023 season by getting his first taste of Triple-A, where he is over three years younger than the average age of the competition. Every organization needs catching depth, and there is a chance the Twins will need him at the big-league level. This trade would be an easy win for the Twins if Maeda stayed healthy. His 2023 season started well, but there are no guarantees with 35-year-old pitchers coming off major elbow surgery. Which team won the trade? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.

Here we are in mid-December. The Rule 5 draft has passed, and reports over the past week have shown the the Twins have made some minor-league signings. Here are some notes on those who have signed to this point, at least the ones that we have heard. No one gets overly excited about minor-league signings, but as we have seen in recent years, injuries and Covid have forced the Twins to play a lot of players. So these are not meaningless signings. C-Jair Camargo The one returning player to re-sign with the Twins. Camargo came to the organization in the Kenta Maeda/Brusdar Graterol trade before the 2020 season. Camargo split his season between Cedar Rapids and Wichita. He is a good athlete with a strong arm. He doesn't like to walk, and he has some swing-and-miss, but he has shown a lot of power 1B/DH-Tyler White Tyler White's name may ring a tiny bell; the first baseman collected over 800 plate appearances for the Houston Astros between 2016 and 2019, earning a World Series ring while slashing .241/.319/.420. White’s MLB career peaked with an excellent 2018 campaign where he collected 1.7 fWAR over 66 games, buoying his career total of 1.2. After a trade to the Dodgers in 2019, the Western Carolina University product failed to recapture his previous magic, bouncing between the KBO and three minor league systems in his search for a home. The 32-year-old White is your prototypical minor league free agent, but he did own a .900 OPS with Buffalo in 2021, perhaps hinting that his best baseball is not yet gone. RHP-José De León Finally, The Twins have acquired José De León. A crucial part of the Great Brian Dozier Trade Talks of 2016, De León is now, unfortunately, the tale of a pitching prospect gone awry. De León owns 48 MLB innings scattered across five seasons; his 18 1/3 frames in 2021 represent his highest single-season total. The culprit? Injuries. The Southern University product often endures extended bouts without time on the mound, never coming close to hitting his career high in innings set between A+ and AA in 2015 (114 ⅓.) De León’s stuff is good, so if he remains on the mound, he could boost a pitching staff always needing an extra jolt. RHP-Carlos Luna The Panamian native, Carlos Luna, crosses the border, trekking from Milwaukee’s system to Minnesota’s. Luna joined the Brewers as a 17-year-old, pitching deep in the recesses of Rookie Ball in 2014 and 2015 before missing all of 2016 and 2017 with (presumably) an injury. The 26-year-old stayed knocking on the door, putting up adequate numbers just shy of worthy of a cup of coffee; he pitched 109 1/3 innings at AA last season. Luna’s baseball peak occurred when he netted the final 12 outs of a combined no-hitter in 2021. RHP-Patrick Murphy A member of the Blue Jays and Nationals organizations, Patrick Murphy tossed 39 2/3 middling innings in the majors—mostly in 2021—and looks to start fresh with the Twins. Murphy owns a 96 MPH fastball, which renders any more analysis unnecessary. It’s unlikely that Murphy will suddenly learn command, but minor-league deals are pure upside moves by nature, so if he does, then the Twins can reap the rewards of an effective multi-inning reliever. Murphy punched out 26.1% of batters at AAA last season.

Immediately following the completion of the World Series, players eligible for free agency will officially become free agents. The Twins have over 30 minor leaguers eligible for free agency at that time including 11 hitters. Here are three that I think the Twins should attempt to retain. But first, let's talk about the team's transactions from Tuesday and which players are eligible for free agency. Tuesday Transactions Let’s start by going through the Twins-related transactions from Tuesday. RHP Jhon Romero and LHP Devin Smeltzer were outrighted and sent to the Saints. Three players were claimed by other organizations. C/1B Caleb Hamilton was claimed by the Boston Red Sox. OF Jake Cave was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. SS Jermaine Palacios was claimed by the Detroit Tigers. The Twins roster is currently at 47 players (27 pitchers, 20 hitters). There are still 10 players on the 60-Day IL that will soon have to be removed from the 60-Day IL. About ten players will either become free agents or have a player or team option on their 2023 seasons. Minor-League Free-Agent Hitters Let’s start the regularly-scheduled portion of today’s article by considering who is eligible to become a minor-league free agent. Sometimes, they are called six-year minor-league free agents because they become free agents after they have played six minor-league seasons. Of course, being on the 40-man roster means that they won’t be a free agent. At that point, the three option years come into play Players drafted in 2016 can be minor-league free agents. For example, LHP Zach Featherstone was the Twins 12th round pick in 2016. He’s missed a lot of time with injuries. If the Twins don’t add him to the 40-man roster before the end of the World Series, Featherstone will be a free agent. Alex Kirilloff. Jose Miranda. Griffin Jax. Jordan Balazovic. Each of these players was also drafted by the Twins in 2016. Each of them is currently on the 40-man roster. Because of that, they cannot become free agents. Devin Smeltzer cleared waivers and was outrighted and sent to St. Paul. However, since he was drafted by the Dodgers in 2016, he will become a free agent after the World Series. Had Caleb Hamilton cleared waivers, he would have been a free agent also. That’s important because of the Red Sox DFA and he clears, he can be a free agent. That tells me that the Red Sox are likely to keep him on their roster throughout the offseason. However, if the Twins remove any of them from the 40-man roster, they can choose to become a minor-league free agent. International players signed in 2015 can be minor-league free agents Wander Javier signed with the Twins on July 2, 2015, as a 16-year-old from the Dominican Republic. Jair Camargo signed with the Dodgers on July 10, 2015, out of Colombia. Their pro careers began in the Dominican Summer League in 2016. Of note, Jhon Romero cleared waivers on Tuesday, but at the end of the World Series, he will become a free agent. Veterans Players signed as minor-league free agents will again become minor-league free agents. Occasionally there are two-year minor-league contracts. One example of that is veteran Brock Stewart. The Twins signed the former top prospect late this summer. He finished his rehab and pitched in some games late in the season. He should come into 2023 fully healthy and ready to compete for a return to the big leagues in a bullpen role with the Twins. Three Hitters to Keep It is probably worth noting that as a minor-league free agent, players can actually make some decent money. Obviously, that is based on their level of play, age, and competition for the player’s services. Often, minor-league contracts will come with an invitation to big-league spring training. #1 - Catcher Jair Camargo Camargo came to the Twins in 2020 with Kenta Maeda in the deal that sent Brusdar Graterol to the Dodgers. He split the 2020 season between Cedar Rapids and Wichita. In 77 games, he hit .262/.310/.483 (.793) with 11 doubles and 18 home runs. While he still didn’t walk much, his approach at the plate was much improved. And he became a reliable middle-of-the-order hitter for his teams. Defensively, he has work to do behind the plate, but he does continue to improve. He is athletic and has a strong arm. In 2022, he threw out 38% of would-be base stealers at both Cedar Rapids and Wichita. Camargo may not be one of the Twins more well-known prospects, but he is a name to know. He just turned 23 on July 1st. I don’t know what kind of offers he could get as a minor-league free agent, but I would prioritize bringing him back. Ideally, the Twins would offer him a fantastic minor-league deal and get him to sign it after the Rule 5 draft so they don’t have to worry about him being selected. If not, they may need to consider adding him to the 40-man roster, and if that’s the case, they might as well do it before the World Series ends to avoid the risk of losing him. #2 - Infielder Wander Javier In 2015, Javier was one of the top 16-year-olds available in the international market. The Twins signed him to a $4 million bonus. This summer, Twins Director of Player Personnel Mike Radcliff acknowledged on Bally Sports that the Twins also had an agreement with Juan Soto before he backed out and signed with the Nationals for $1.5 million. While he put up some strong numbers in the rookie leagues, he also missed a lot of time due to injury. He played just nine games in 2016 in the DSL. He missed all of 2018 with a shoulder injury that cost him time early in 2019. Then, he didn’t play in 2020. In 2021, he stayed in Cedar Rapids, though the league had changed from Low-A to High-A. He hit .225 with a .280 on-base percentage, but he also had 15 doubles, 10 triples, and 12 home runs in 96 games. He returned to the Kernels this year, and in 109 games, he hit .209 with a .273 on-base percentage. He hit 14 doubles, five triples, and 12 home runs. He ended the season with seven games for the Saints and had two hits in 20 at-bats including a home run. So why would I want the Twins to bring back Javier? Well, he will turn 24 near the end of December. He is a very good athlete, and while he just has not hit at High-A, he has the speed and strength to develop at some point. Maybe. Defensively, he is a better-than-average defensive shortstop with good range and a strong arm. The Twins have had him play almost exclusively at shortstop throughout his time in the organization. However, after 2022 top pick Brooks Lee joined the Kernels, Javier played mostly third base and a couple of games at second base. I wouldn’t mind it if the Twins brought him back and used him as a utility infielder. He has had the pressure of his signing bonus all these years, and maybe being able to remove some of that might help. Of course, potentially the best way for him to do that would be to get a new start elsewhere. #3 - Outfielder Leobaldo Cabrera Leobaldo Cabrera, a 24-year-old outfielder from Venezuela has had an interesting career. He originally signed with the Yankees back in July 2015 for $250,000. A year later, they signed his brother Oswaldo Cabrera. Leobaldo was released by the Yankees in 2018. Oswaldo made his MLB debut in August. The Twins allowed Leobaldo to spend a weekend with his family to be at his brother’s debut. In 2019, Cabrera began to play in the independent Empire League. The Twins liked his power potential and his big outfield arm and in April of 2021, they signed him as a depth piece in the minor leagues. He began in Ft. Myers where he rarely played where he played five games. Then he moved up to Cedar Rapids and only played 14 games. But then he went to Double-A Wichita and hit .235/.335/.482 (.817) with seven doubles and 11 homers in 52 games. He re-signed with the Twins and spent the whole season in Wichita. In 83 games, he hit .223/.309/.356 (.665). When you consider he started the season by going 0-for-32 in April, it’s not quite so far. He is still just 24. He has some right-handed power, and like his brother, he has a rocket for an arm. He’s also just a pretty good defensive outfielder. Other Soon-To-Bee Minor-League Free Agents C/1B Roy Morales IF Nash Knight IF Elliot Soto OF John Andreoli OF Braden Bishop OF Cole Sturgeon C Chance Sisco OF Zach Huffins Would you be interested in seeing the Twins bring any of these hitters back? I’ll be back soon with the potential minor-league free agents.

The Wind Surge are in the championship series. We'll alter the "normal" template and order of the minor league report today and start with them.. On Sunday night, the Wind Surge were in Frisco for Game 1 of the Texas League Championship Series. Unfortunately, it did not go well for Wichita. However, they will make the drive back to Wichita where they will host Frisco for Game 2 on Tuesday and, hopefully, Game 3 on Wednesday. Turnabout is fair play, I guess. In the semi-final series, the Wind Surge beat Tulsa by a combined, two-game score of 28-2. On Sunday, the Wind Surge were on the other side of a blowout game. Lefty Kody Funderburk got the Game 1 start for the Wind Surge. In the regular season, he had gone 10-5 with a 2.94 ERA. He had made 17 starts and 15 relief appearances. On this day, it didn't translate. He gave up one run in the first inning and then four runs in the second inning. In his 1 1/3 innings, he gave up five runs on four hits and four walks. Osiris German came on and allowed one inherited runner to score but that was it. He struck out two batters in 1 2/3 innings. In the top of the fourth inning, Yunior Severino put the Wind Surge on the board with a solo home run. Blayne Enlow worked the fourth and fifth innings. After a scoreless inning, he gave up a solo homer to Scott Kapers. Wichita was down 6-1 heading into the sixth inning. Jordan Gore came in to pitch the sixth inning. He recorded one out. Unfortunately, he walked two batters and then gave up an RBI single. He then walked the bases loaded before being replaced by Francis Peguero. His first batter faced was Scott Kapers who hit a grand slam to put the game out of reach. (Should I mention that Kapers batted ninth? He went 2-for-5 with five RBI in the game?) Denny Bentley and Aaron Rozek each pitched a scoreless inning. Jair Camargo scored Will Holland with a single in the top of the eighth inning. Severino added a sacrifice fly that scored Austin Martin and give us the final score of 11-3. Severino went 1-for-2 with a walk, his home run and two RBI. Jair Camargo and Brooks Lee each went 2-for-4 in the game. The Rangers have a solid minor-league system, and the Frisco RoughRiders roster includes several of the organization's top prospects. Consider the pitching staff includes the likes of Jack Leiter, Antoine Kelly, Owen White, and Avery Weems. They never did activate their 2022 top pick Kumar Rocker who will participate in the Arizona Fall League. Several of the top prospects were moved to Double-A over the past several weeks. The top six hitters in their lineup on Sunday night are Top 30 prospects. Jonathan Ornelas is the Rangers #22 prospect according to MLB Pipeline (Not top 30 at Baseball American). He was the RoughRiders leadoff man in this game and went 4-for-5 in the game. Outfielder Evan Carter (#1 at MLB Pipeline #3 at Baseball America) batted second and went 0-for-1 but walked four times. Justin Foscue (#5 at MLB Pipeline, #9 at BA) was the Rangers first-round pick in 2020. He went 2-for-5 with three RBI in the game. Batting fourth was OF Aaron Zavala (#11 MLB Pipeline, #12 at BA) who walked twice. Thomas Saggese (#20 MLB Pipeline) had a double and a walk. Luisangel Acuna (#7 MLB Pipeline, #6 Baseball America) walked once. Game 1: Frisco 11, Wichita 3 Box Score SAINTS SENTINEL The Saints had a scheduled off day on Sunday as they returned home from Indianapolis. On Monday, the team will start its final series of the 2022 season. They have three home games against the Omaha Storm Chasers at CHS Field. Tickets for all three games are available at the Saints website. TRANSACTIONS Utility man Elliot Soto was activated from the Injured List. Also, RHP Aaron Sanchez cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Saints. It will be interesting to see if he reports or elects free agency this late in the season. PITCHING PROBABLES Monday Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07 pm) - RHP Jackson Kowar (4-10, 6.16 ERA) vs RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (1-0, 2.64) Tuesday Game 2: Frisco @ Wichita (7:05 pm) - TBD vs LHP Brent Headrick (8-2, 2.34) Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07 pm) - LHP Angel Zerpa (0-0, 1.59 ERA) vs RHP Jordan Balazovic (0-7, 7.81 ERA) Wednesday Game 3 (if necessary): Frisco @ Wichita (7:05 pm) - TBD vs TBD Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07) - RHP Alec Marsh (1-0, 1.80 ERA) vs TBD IN CASE YOU MISSED IT Last week, Twins Daily handed out our 2022 Minor League Awards. If you missed any of them, see below. Short-Season Hitter of the Year: Jose Rodriguez Short-Season Pitcher of the Year: Miguel Olivares Minor League Hitter of the Year: Matt Wallner Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year: Louie Varland Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year: Evan Sisk

TRANSACTIONS NONE SAINTS SENTINEL Saints 4, Guardians 6 Box Score The Saints took one on the chin Thursday. Randy Dobnak started and gave up three earned runs in 2 2/3 innings. Dobnak allowed five hits while walking two and striking out one. Cole Sands was excellent in relief, pitching 2 1/3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Evan Sisk also added two scoreless innings, lowering his ERA to a sterling 2.20. The Saints tallied 12 hits in an overall strong offensive effort. Michael Helman went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs scored. Cole Sturgeon put the Saints on the board with an RBI single in the first, one of his two hits on the night. Roy Morales went 3-for-3 with two walks out of the cleanup spot. Morales is hitting .295/406/.404 in 42 games for the Saints. Nash Knight also notched two hits and Andrew Bechtold drove in two with a double in the eighth. The Saints went 4-for-13 with runners in scoring position but couldn’t quite break through enough for a win. The Saints are 69-75 with five games remaining. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wind Surge 11, Drillers 1 Box Score The Wind Surge clinched their Division Series with a decisive victory Thursday. Now advancing to the Championship Series, the Wind Surge once again relied on their overwhelming offense to complete the sweep. Jair Camargo was absolutely incredible, belting two homers and driving in five. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. also blasted a homer, a solo shot in the fifth. Leobaldo Cabrera made sure to get in on the action with a two-run homer in the eighth. Wind Surge starter Daniel Gossett worked around five walks in his four-inning outing. Gossett struck out four and allowed one run on three hits. Cody Laweryson, continuing his outstanding campaign, struck out three over three innings of scoreless relief. Steven Cruz and Alex Phillips each added scoreless innings themselves. It’s been a special second half for Wichita. The Surge outscored Tulsa 28-2 in the two-game sweep. Next up: the Frisco RoughRiders. Frisco swept San Antonio, setting up a great matchup in the Texas League Championship Series. Game 1 is set for Sunday at 5:05 p.m. CT in Frisco. TWINS MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Minor League Hitter of the Day: Jair Camargo (3-for-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI) Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Cody Laweryson (3 IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER, 2 BB, 3 K) PROSPECT SUMMARY #2 Brooks Lee - 0-for-5 #4 Austin Martin - 1-for-4, 2B, BB #14 Edouard Julien - 1-for-4, 2B, BB #17 Cole Sands - 2 1/3 IP, H, 0 R/ER, BB, 3 K FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Saints - RHP Dereck Rodríguez QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? LEAVE THEM BELOW!