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Although the Wichita Wind Surge was rained out tonight, the rest of Minnesota's system was in action and there were plenty of updates to filter in from the farm. No Star Wars shenanigans took place on the field, but there were more than a few notable performances. Image courtesy of © Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports TRANSACTIONS None to report SAINTS SENTINEL Nashville 10, St. Paul 8 (F/10) Box Score Brent Headrick, recently back from his debut with the Minnesota Twins, made the start tonight for St. Paul. He worked 3 2/3 innings, scattering seven hits that turned into four runs. Headrick did strike out nine while allowing no free passes. The Saints jumped out to an early lead with a four-spot in the 1st inning. Kyle Garlick singled allowing both Edouard Julien and Michael Helman to score before Ryan LaMarre drove in Garlick with a single of his own. Chris Williams finished the frame with his third double of the season to score LaMarre, and the good guys were off and running. After allowing six Nashville runs to cross the plate, St. Paul got back to work. Julien crushed his third homer of the season to draw within one, and then his single in the 6th inning plated Williams and Elliot Soto to regain the lead. Ryan LaMarre crushed his third homer of the season to provide a bit of additional insurance, and it was needed in the 9th inning. Former Twins prospect Brian Navarreto singled off of Kody Funderburk to pull Nashville within one. Rather than grab his second Triple-A save, Funderburk allowed the tying run to score on a Payton Henry single. With Connor Sadzeck on in the 10th inning, Nashville went back to work and added a pair of runs to put themselves back in the lead. With St. Paul unable to answer in the 10th, that's where this one would end. Although he is no longer rehabbing, Alex Kirilloff continues to produce for the Saints. Tonight he was 1-for-4 with a double. Kyle Farmer had the night off. The Saints picked up a franchise record 19 strikeouts on the evening. WIND SURGE WISDOM Scheduled to square off against NW Arkansas after their 3-1 victory last night, the Wichita Wind Surge saw the action tonight get banged. With the contest canceled due to weather, the clubs will play a doubleheader tomorrow night. Carlos Luna is expected to start game one for Wichita. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 8, South Bend 1 Box Score The Kernels turned to Orlando Rodriguez for the start this evening and he was nothing short of extraordinary. Working five innings allowing only a single unearned run, Rodriguez worked around five hits while punching out six and ceded no free passes. The dominant effort on the mound was more than enough on a night where the lineup did heavy lifting on its own. Cedar Rapids quickly gave Rodriguez a lead when Jose Salas singled in Ben Ross during the opening frame. After things were evened up in the bottom half, Kala’i Rosario singled in the 5th inning to plate both Ernie Yake and Noah Cardenas. The 6th inning turned the game into a blowout. Keoni Cavaco brought in Jeferson Morales with a double, and then Yake sent Cavaco home with a triple of his own. Ross found a way on thanks to a throwing error that allowed Yake to score, and Cardenas then doubled to bring him home. When the dust settled it was a four-run inning that led to a 7-1 lead. Rosario contributed again on a line drive in the 8th inning to score Ross, and the 8-1 lead held up as a final tally. Rosario posted a three-hit game on the evening with both Cavaco and Yake grabbing a pair of their own. MUSSEL MATTERS Dunedin 6, Fort Myers 5 Box Score Zebby Matthews was on the mound tonight for Fort Myers and while he continued to rack up strikeouts, he did give up some traffic on the evening. Across four innings of work, Matthews allowed four runs (three earned) on nine hits. His eight strikeouts came with only one walk. Dunedin jumped out to an early lead scoring on an RBI single in the 1st inning. Rubel Cespedes did answer things for the Mighty Mussels when he singled in Andrew Cossetti during the bottom half however. From there, it was largely Dunedin’s ballgame. They plated two more in the 3rd inning, and a double steal of Ricardo Olivar and Jorel Ortega saw the latter swipe home. Trailing 6-2 entering their final at bats of the night, Ortega again came through as he ripped his 9th double of the season, scoring Yohander Martinez, Fort Myers was within three. Fort Myers made things even more interesting after a Carlos Aguiar single brough in Ortega, and then Cossetti singled to drive him in. Down one with runners on second and third, that's where the rally ended. Ultimately, the 15 hits by Dunedin were too much to overcome. Ortega was the lone hitter to record multiple hits on the evening, but Cossetti was given his due earlier in the day being named the Florida State League player of the month. During April he slashed an incredible .339/.474/.678 and tallied a league-best 20 RBI. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Orlando Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K Hitter of the Day – Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR(3), BB PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #5 - Edouard Julien (St. Paul) - 2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR(3), BB #8 - Jose Salas (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, RBI, K #11 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-5, 3 K #18 - Tanner Schobel (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, BB #20 - Misael Urbina (Cedar Rapids) - 0-5 FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Nashville @ St. Paul (6:37PM CST) - RHP Simeon Woods Richardson Wichita @ NW Arkansas (5:00PM CST) - RHP Carlos Luna Cedar Rapids @ South Bend (6:05PM CST) - RHP Marco Raya Dunedin @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - LHP Develson Aria Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games! View full article

Pitching Wins, right? and the Twins have put a lot of time, money, technology and analytics into developing a strong pitcher development system. They have had several late-round picks that have impressed and added big velocity. Check out which starting pitchers had the top showings in August. The 2022 season has two full weeks left before the playoffs begin, but first, let's look back at the month of August. Yesterday, we announced the August Hitter of the Month. Today, we write about the top starting pitchers. HONORABLE MENTION RHP Orlando Rodriguez - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 5 G, 4 GS, 19.2 IP, 0-0, 2.75 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 16 H, 4 BB, 31 K RHP David Festa - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 GS, 15.2 IP, 1-1, 1.15 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 15 H, 8 BB, 14 K. LHP Brent Headrick - Wichita Wind Surge - 5 G, 4 GS, 24.0 IP, 2-1, 3.00 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 20 H, 6 BB, 35 K. THE TOP FOUR STARTING PITCHERS #4 - RHP Cody Laweryson - Wichita Wind Surge - 7 G, 4 GS, 1-0, 1.57 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 23.0 IP, 18 H, 6 BB, 29 K Laweryson (pronounced Lor-ih-sun) was the Twins 14th round pick in 2019 out of the University of Maine. That summer, he was named the Twins Daily short-season Minor League Pitcher of the Year. After the missed 2020 season, he reported to Cedar Rapids for the 2021 season. He went 2-5 with a 4.91 ERA in 15 games (14 starts). In 58 2/3 innings, he walked 19 and struck out 73 batters. After the season, he went to the Arizona Fall League where he struck out 18 batters in 14 innings. He began the 2022 season with the Kernels again, this time working primarily out of the bullpen. He posted a 2.57 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP in 16 games. In 35 innings, he walked 12 and struck out 42 batters. At that point he was promoted to Double-A Wichita. In 16 games, he is 4-0 with a 1.03 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. In August, he made four starts out of his seven appearances. As you can see, he was dominant. He continued to rack up strikeouts while not handing out free passes. The right-hander has a unique delivery and hides the ball well. (For more Twins Daily content on Cody Laweryson, click here.) #3 - RHP Pierson Ohl - Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels - 4 G, 3 GS, 2-1, 1.33 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 27.0 IP, 21 H, 1 BB, 26 K Ohl continued his strong professional debut. Not only did he not give up runs, but he also kept runners off of the base paths. Nearly a strikeout per inning, but just one walk in 27 innings is remarkable. He was the Twins 14th round pick a year ago from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. After the draft, he pitched in just one game in the FCL. This season, he has pitched in 20 games and made 18 starts. With the Mighty Mussels, he is 6-7 with a 3.53 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. In 91 2/3 innings, he has walked just 13 batters and struck out 101 batters. For more Pierson Ohl content on Twins Daily, click here. #2- LHP Jaylen Nowlin - Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4 GS, 2-1, 2.14 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 21.0 IP, 13 H, 7 BB, 33 K The Twins selected Nowlin with their 19th-round pick in the 2021 draft out of Chipola College in Florida. Following the draft, he pitched in just one game for the FCL Twins. In 2022, the southpaw began the season with the Mighty Mussels, pitching primarily out of their bullpen. As the season progressed, and Nowlin began putting up strong numbers, he began making starts. In 19 games (11 starts) with the Mussels, he went 4-3 with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. In 56 2/3 innings, he walked 29 (too many) but also struck out 89 batters (14.1 K/9). After two August starts, he was promoted to the Kernels where he made two more starts. As you can see above, he really improved his control in August and became even more dominant. In his final two Mighty Mussel starts, he walked three and struck out 16 batters in 10 innings. In his first start at High-A Cedar Rapids, he struck out 11 batters in six innings. He struck out six batters in five innings in his second start with the Kernels. Nowlin is young and still developing into what he can become. However, he currently can hit 96-97 mph with his fastball and is able to mix a couple of breaking balls in as well. (Click here to read more Twins Daily content on Jaylen Nowlin.) And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is: Wichita Wind Surge - RHP Louie Varland - 5 GS, 1-1, 1.32 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 27.2 IP, 22 H, 5 BB, 30 K While Varland is certainly a candidate the repeat as the Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year, it is almost surprising that he has not won a Starting Pitcher of the Month award this season… until now. The Saints Paul native was the Twins 14th round pick in 2019 out of Concordia University in St. Paul. He was the Twins Pitcher of the Year in 2021 and began 2022 at Double-A Wichita. In 20 games (19 starts), he went 7-4 with a 3.34 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. In 105 innings, he walked 39 and struck out 119 batters. He made one August start in Wichita, but earned his promotion to his hometown St. Paul Saints, one step away from Target Field and the big leagues. In his four starts for the Saints, he went 1-1 with a 1.69 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. In 21 1/3 innings, he walked just three and struck out 27 batters. In his Triple-A debut against the Columbus Clippers, he started with five no-hit innings. In his third start, he tossed six innings with nine strikeouts. His 146 strikeouts ranks 8th among all minor league pitchers this season. His 126 1/3 innings ranks #18. Varland continues to sit 94-96 with his fastball and touches 97 at times. He has a slider that can be devastating at times. And, he has made strides with his changeup and its consistency. He will be added to the 40-man roster after the season and could compete for an Opening Day roster spot during spring training. Congratulations to our Twins Daily Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month of August, St. Paul native and Saints starter Louie Varland. There has been a lot of Louie Varland content on Twins Daily since he was drafted. Click here to read more on him. Previous 2022 Starting Pitchers of the Month April: RHP John Stankiewicz, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels May: LHP Steve Hajjar, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels June: LHP Aaron Rozek, Cedar Rapids Kernels July: RHP Mike Paredes, Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels Feel free to agree or disagree with the order, if you like. It wasn’t as easy a decision as you might think. There were several solid starters in August. View full article

Josh Winder returned from the injured list, Billy Hamilton made an impact in his debut, and a traded away top Twins draft pick even made the start against his former organization. While all four affiliates were able to jump out to early leads, would they be able to hold them? TRANSACTIONS OF Billy Hamilton was officially assigned to the St. Paul Saints, and batted leadoff in their game, playing centerfield. RHP Josh Winder was also activated from the injured list and made the start for the Saints. IF Tim Beckham elected free agency after his DFA earlier in the week. SAINTS SENTINEL Omaha 6, St. Paul 10 Box Score Josh Winder returned from the injured list and made the start in St. Paul on Tuesday, and Billy Hamilton was also making his organizational debut as the designated hitter in the leadoff spot. Besides those storylines, it was an entertaining game to watch for a variety of other reasons. The Saints took little time putting a crooked number up on the scoreboard, as walks from Michael Helman and Matt Wallner preceded a three-run bomb from guess who? If you answered anything but Chris Williams, we need to have a chat. It was William’s 7th home run with the Saints, in just his 16th game with the team (that’s a higher pace than Aaron Judge this year, if you were curious), and his 25th of the year in total. On the mound Winder came out throwing 96MPH, looking plenty ready from a velocity standpoint, but was definitely shaking off some rust as he had just one appearance on his rehab assignment. He battled through it however, finishing four innings and allowing two runs on four hits and two walks, while striking out two. He threw 57 pitches, and could be brought back to the Twins later in some form as early as this week if there is a need. The lineup added two more runs in the second inning after four consecutive walks and an RBI single from Mark Contreras. In that sequence, Hamilton and Helman also executed a double steal. Hamilton led off the fourth inning with a double, and would later score on a wild pitch that made the score 6-2. This is what his speed can do: After Winder’s exit, the Saints got a scoreless fifth inning from Ben Heller (IP, BB, 2 K), but wildness from Tyler Thornburg (2/3 IP, 2 H, 4 R, K, 2 HBP) let the Storm Chasers tie the game in the sixth. Austin Schulfer stopped the bleeding and picked up the win with 1 1/3 innings, allowing one hit and striking out one, as the Saints took advantage of Omaha miscues in the bottom half of the sixth to pull back out front for good. After drawing a walk in each of his prior three plate appearances, Wallner finally got a pitch he liked and cut it in half, almost literally, sending a screaming line drive into the gap in right center to start the inning. Mark Contreras drove him in with a double a batter later, then the Benny Hill theme song began to play. A Jermaine Palacios blooper fell in between three players in shallow right, John Andreoli put down a bunt nobody was ready for to drive in another run, and then a slow ground ball got under the glove of the third baseman for an error that allowed another run to score for a 9-6 lead. It was an odd sequence to watch live, trust me. The Saints would add one more insurance run in the eighth, when Palacios hit a slow grounder away from a shift, and the throw was late and sailed over first base, allowing Contreras to scamper home after he had hit another double. Jharel Cotton (IP, BB, 2 K) and Michael Feliz (IP, K) finished off the game for St. Paul with scoreless innings. Contreras led the way with two doubles among his four hits on the night, Palacios was 3-for-5, and Williams drove in four runners. Hamilton, Helman, Wallner, and Contreras each scored two runs on the game, and as a team they swiped five bases, including three from Helman. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 6, Springfield 7 Box Score Always fun to write about a matchup in a stadium I’ve had the pleasure of watching multiple games at in my life, as the Wind Surge traveled to Springfield, MO and Hammons Field to face off with the Cardinals on Tuesday (check out Ebbets Field Bar if ever in the area!). Wichita jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first as a two-out walk from Jair Camargo was followed by a two-run bomb from Alex Isola. They added to that lead in the fourth with another two-out rally, when Yunior Severino clubbed a double and was driven in by an Anthony Prato single. Starter Daniel Gossett, thrower of a recent no-hitter, was solid through five innings in this one. Despite surrendering five walks, he allowed just two hits and struck out nine, so was able to limit the damage to just one run. Unfortunately, his bullpen wouldn’t fare as well, as their 3-1 lead turned into a four run deficit after the seventh inning. Fireballer Steven Cruz pitched a scoreless sixth, but three singles and just one out chased him in the seventh. Blayne Enlow was brought on to try and limit the damage, but four singles and a sac fly led to three runs being charged to each of them. Enlow did add a scoreless eighth, going one-two-three with a clean slate. Down 7-3 in the top of the ninth, Camargo sparked a comeback with a one-out solo home run. Isola then singled before Aaron Sabato got them within one with a bomb of his own. Anthony Prato would reach base with a single to put the tying run on base, but a groundout would leave them falling short. Isola (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI) and Prato (2-for-4, RBI) had multiple hits. With three of their eight hits going for home runs, the Wind Surge had just one at-bat with runners in scoring position, and left only two men on base for the game. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Dayton 7 Box Score In what would be a universal theme on the night, the Kernels were also able to take the first lead against the Dragons on the road. Of note in this one, is they did it against the Twins 2021 1st round draft pick, Chase Petty. Singles from Kyler Fedko and Wander Javier started the second inning, and they loaded the bases when Jeferson Morales was hit by a pitch. One out later, Charles Mack delivered a two-run single to put them out front early. They’d tack on three more in the fourth thanks to an RBI triple from Willie Joe Garry Jr., that was followed by a home run from Jake Rucker for a 5-1 lead. Petty’s day would be done after four, allowing five runs on seven hits and two hit batters against his former organization. He did strike out six. Starter Orlando Rodriguez was, in comparison, dominating for Cedar Rapids. In his five innings he allowed just one run on four hits, and struck out eight Dragons. Of his 66 pitches, 44 went for strikes (67%), including 11 swinging strikes. Cedar Rapids would add a run in the sixth thanks to doubles from Morales and Rucker that made it 6-1. That’s where the good things stopped for the Kernels, however. After Rodriguez’s exit, Dayton was quick to adjust to the bullpen. Matt Mullenbach got just one out in the sixth, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk. While Matthew Swain got them out of that inning, he ended up allowing three runs of his own in the seventh on two hits and a walk. Derek Molina came on in the seventh with one out, and gave up two doubles, allowing the Dragons to take a 7-6 lead and the Kernels were unable to respond. Rucker (2-for-5, R, HR, 2 RBI, K), Morales (2-for-2, 2 R, 2B, SB), and Mack (2-for-3, 2B, 3 RBI, BB) had multiple hits in the game. The Twins 2022 1st round draft pick, Brooks Lee, was 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts, but did reach base when Petty hit him with a pitch in the first inning. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 9, Bradenton 11 Box Score The Mighty Mussels also struck first in this one, taking advantage of a pair of walks from Misael Urbina and Noah Miller to lead off the game. A fly out from Tanner Schobel moved Urbina to third base, and he and Miller then executed a double steal for the game’s first run. They’d add another run in the top of the third when Miller reached base on a strikeout-wild-pitch to open the frame. He moved to third on two consecutive groundouts before Ben Ross drove him in with a single and a 2-0 lead. In a bullpen game from Fort Myers, Michael Boyle got the start and pitched into the second inning. He walked two and struck out two in 1 1/3 innings. John Wilson got the final two outs in the second before giving way to Brock Stewart in the third. He promptly surrendered a solo home run to the first hitter he faced, but got out of the inning without any further damage. In the top of the fourth the Mighty Mussels got their big inning after loading the bases with no outs. Noah Miller drew another walk with them juiced to score the first run, and then a sac fly from Schobel led to two more runs thanks to an error on the throw from center field. Back out for the fifth, Stewart was unable to finish the inning as walks and wild pitches led to a pair of runs. Mike Paredes got the final out of the fourth with the score 5-3, but would allow three of his own in the fifth to tie the game at six. Fort Myers was able to add single runs in the fifth and sixth innings courtesy of an RBI single from Rubel Cespedes and Ben Ross sac fly, respectively, but the bullpen wasn’t able to hold their lead for long. After Paredes delivered a scoreless sixth (2 1/3 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K in total), A.J. Labas was brought on to start the seventh and the 7-6 lead turned into an 11-7 deficit heading into the ninth. The good guys made it interesting, as three straight singles scored a run and put ducks on the pond, before another pair of walks from Urbina and Miller brought in a second run and loaded the bases with two outs. It would end there however, as Schobel struck out swinging to end the game. Four Mighty Mussels had multiple hits in the game, but Alec Sayre was the only one in the lineup to get one for extra bases, a double. Thanks to 12 free passes they were able to score their nine runs, as they went just 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position. Miller drew five walks total, scored two runs, and stole his 21st base of the season in the loss. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Orlando Rodriguez, Cedar Rapids Kernels (5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 8 K) Hitter of the Day - Mark Contreras, St. Paul Saints (4-for-5, 2 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY #2 - Brooks Lee (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, HBP, 2 K #4 - Austin Martin (Wichita) - 0-for-4 #7 - Noah Miller (Fort Myers) - 0-for-1, 2 R, 2 RBI, 5 BB, SB #9 - Matt Wallner (St. Paul) - 1-for-2, 2 R, 2B, 3 BB #14 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 1-for-4, K #15 - Blayne Enlow (Wichita) - 1 1/3 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, BB #18 - Tanner Schobel (Fort Myers) - 0-for-4, RBI, BB, K #20 - Kala’i Rosario (Fort Myers) - 1-for-5, R, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Omaha @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CDT) - RHP Louie Varland (1-0, 1.06 ERA) Wichita @ Springfield (6:35 PM CDT) - TBD Cedar Rapids @ Dayton (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Luis Rijo (0-3, 7.80 ERA) Fort Myers @ Bradenton (11:00 AM CDT) - RHP Pierson Ohl (6-7, 3.43 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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