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The Twins continued to use the final few Triple-A games as a rehab spot, and the Saints launched their 14th grand slam of the season. Although there was only one game on the farm Friday, there was plenty of action. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson - St. Paul Saints TRANSACTIONS OF Jordan Luplow recalled from St. Paul SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 10, Toledo 6 Box Score Lefty Blayne Enlow took the mound Friday night for the Saints last weeknight game of the year. Byron Buxton and Joey Gallo got the night off while Nick Gordon batted second and played second base. Enlow’s final start of the season was just a short three inning outing. He allowed three runs on two hits while striking out four. The lefty out a bow on his season, showing good command with no walks. St. Paul answered the three-run shot in the second inning with a big crooked number. Anthony Prato homered for the ninth time this season, and the two-run blast brought home Hernan Perez. Austin Martin then plated DaShawn Keirsey Jr. on a sacrifice fly. Michael Helman then stepped in with the bases loaded and launched the Saints 14th grand slam of the season. Chris Williams, Tony Wolters, and Nick Gordon all came home making it a 7-3 contest. In the bottom of the third inning, Prato hit his second dinger of the night, and the solo-shot made it an 8-0 game. Not to have his power outdone, Yunior Severino homered in the fourth inning. His 11th big fly at Triple-A pushed the score to 10-3. Brock Stewart worked a scoreless inning of relief striking out two, while Jorge Alcala pitched two scoreless innings and struck out four. Austin Schulfer took over for the next two and was perfect with a pair of strikeouts. Still up 10-3, it was Michael Boyle on to finish out the ninth inning. He allowed a pair of runners and then a big fly to bring them home. Still up 10-6, the lead was enough to hold up. Helman and Prato both had a pair of hits. Gordon was 0-for-3 on the night with a run scored. The 14th grand slam for St. Paul tied the modern era record by a professional team in a season dating back to 2005. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – St. Paul Middle Relief - 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, 6 K Hitter of the Day – Anthony Prato (St. Paul) - 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR(10), BB, 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: #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 1-4, R, 2 RBI, HR(11), K SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Toledo @ St. Paul (6:37PM CST) - RHP Patrick Murphy Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Friday’ game! View full article

One minor league affiliate is entering the final week of their season, with the playoffs now out of reach. Another minor league affiliate is trying to end their season as quickly as possible... and bring home some hardware. The last affiliate saw their season end on Sunday. Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (Photo of Marco Raya) Here we are: the final minor league weekly recap of the season. Read all about the Twins week in Nick’s Week in Review . WEEK IN REVIEW Triple-A: St. Paul Saints Overall: 37-32 (1-5 last week) in the second half; second in the IL West by 1.5 games; tied for seventh overall in the International League. Overview: The Saints ended their week on a five-game losing streak, which quickly eliminated the idea that they were going to make one last push for the playoffs. 🔥: It wasn't a pretty week for the Saints, but you can always count on Yunior Severino to hit some home runs (and strike out). Severino hit two more, bringing his season total to 34 (in 451 at-bats). In his first 1,189 minor league at-bats (five years), he hit 39. (He also struck out 10 times... and 164 times on the year). 🔥: Simeon Woods Richardson struck out five in five innings, allowing only one run on three hits and three walks. 🔥: Trevor Larnach led the Saints with seven hits (including a home run). Larnach got significantly more at-bats in the minors this year (258) than last year (44), though his big-league at-bats were almost exactly the same from last year to this year. He was able to stay mostly healthy, but he'll be 27 when he reports to spring training next year... so it's do or die time for Larnach. 🤔: Nick Gordon started rehabbing with the Saints. He struck out in two of his seven hitless at-bats. 🥶: Randy Dobnak struggled in his lone start, allowing six runs on nine hits. He struck out four over 5 2/3 innings. 🥶: DaShawn Keirsey , who has had a better season than anyone anticipated he would, went hitless this week (13 at-bats). His batting average dropped from .298 to .265 over the course of the week. Keirsey has batted only .188 in the month of September What's Next: The Saints season will end their season by hosting Toledo. Double-A: Wichita Wind Surge Overall: 36-33 (2-4 last week) in the second half and finished two games behind Springfield in the division. Overview: Entering the final day of the regular season, there was a still a chance: a win and help. Wichita failed to get the win and their season was over. 🔥: Jake Rucker and Alex Isola led the Wind Surge offense with ten and nine hits, respectively. Both doubled and homered. 🔥: Pierson Ohl and Marco Raya had very good starts. Ohl allowed three hits, a walk and hit two batters in his start, but lasted 5 1/3 innings without giving up a run. Ohl struck out five. Raya gave up a hit and walk while striking out four in four innings. 😏: Chris Paddack struck out six in four innings as he works his way towards potentially joining the Twins for the playoffs. 🥶: Jaylen Nowlin had a poor ending to his season, allowing four runs on three hits (and two home runs) in three innings. Nowlin figures to start next season in Wichita's rotation and still has a chance at the big leagues, which is a victory in itself when you're a 19th round pick. 🥶: After his promotion to Wichita in mid-July, Tanner Schobel got off to a slow start - it took him until September to get his batting average over .200 - so his 5-for-22 week to end his season isn't a terrible outlier, but he also didn't take any walks or get an extra base hit. It was his first full professional season, so you'll take some struggles with the 126 games and 479 at-bats. High-A: Cedar Rapids Kernels Overview: After losing the opener of the West Division Championship Series to Peoria, the Kernels returned home and won their next two games to advance to the Midwest League Championship Series. Then they used a comeback win to take a one-game lead on Great Lakes. 🔥: Noah Cardenas had a champion-type box score for the past week. He was 4-for-10 with a double, three runs scored and batted in. Most impressively, though, he drew seven walks and didn't strike out. While the big hit might get the highlights, it's the great plate appearances that help teams win big games. 🔥: C.J. "Big Game" Culpepper struck out eight and only allowed one run on four hits and a walk over five innings to earn a playoff win. 🤨: Maybe Jose Salas has just been holding it in until the games were really, really important. He may have only had three hits in 15 at-bats, but he managed to drive in six runs by homering and tripling. 🥶: Christian MacLeod allowed four runs on three hits and three walks (and a hit batter) while striking out three and recording only four outs. (Luckily, the offense came through in that game.) 🥶: Emmanuel Rodriguez has always used walks to beef up his OBP. This week he was 2-for-20 with no walks and nine strikeouts. (But maybe the freezing emoji is the wrong call because he hit two huge home runs on Sunday.) What's Next: One more win and the players will get a new piece of jewelry. Or two more losses and an offseason full of disappointment. PROSPECT SUMMARY This Prospect Summary shows our current Twins Top 20 Prospect Rankings and how they performed last week. The Prospect Tracker will be updated periodically throughout the season. Notice that these pages now include stats and splits, as well as past article links, video and more. Season-long stats will be in parenthesis. 20. Brent Headrick, LHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3.1 IP, HB, 4 K. (1.30 WHIP, .254 BAA). (1.44 WHIP, .267 BAA ), 19. Cory Lewis, RHP, Cedar Rapids: 0-0, 2.25 ERA, 4 IP, 4 H, ER, HB, 4 K (1.06 WHIP, .198 BAA). 18. Jose Rodriguez, OF, FCL Twins: (.262/.325/.412. .737 OPS) 17. Danny De Andrade, SS, Fort Myers: (.244/.354/.396. .750 OPS), played five games (90 total games) at shortstop and committed two errors in 18 chances (15 errors in 326 total chances). Previously played one game at third base and had no errors in four chances. 16. Jordan Balazovic, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 K. (1.70 WHIP, .267 BAA); Minnesota: (1.56 WHIP, .274 BAA). 15. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP, St. Paul: 0-0, 1.80 ERA, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 5 K (1.49 WHIP, .249 BAA); Minnesota: (1.56 WHIP, .274 BAA). 14. Yunior Severino, 3B, St. Paul: 4-18, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, 2 BB, 10 K. (AA/AAA combined .275/.352/.550. .902 OPS). 13. Kala'i Rosario, OF, Cedar Rapids: 3-15, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, 4 BB, 7 K. (.252/.364/.467. .831 OPS). 12. Yasser Mercedes, OF, FCL Twins: (.196/.248/.381. .629 OPS) 11. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Cedar Rapids: Prielipp underwent season-ending elbow surgery. (1.75 WHIP, .294 BAA) 10. Luke Keaschall, 2B, Cedar Rapids: 4-13, 2 RBI, 3 R, 3 BB, 3 K. (rookie/l-A/h-A combined .288/.414/.477. .891 OPS), played four games (24 total) at second base and committed two errors in 22 chances (three errors in 83 total chances), played one game in centerfield (four games total) and committed no errors in no chances (no errors in two total chances), and played one game at third base (two total) and committed no errors in one chance (one error in three total chances). 9. Brandon Winokur, OF, FCL Twins: (.288/.338/.545. .883 OPS), played nine games at shortstop and committed two errors in 34 chances and played seven games at centerfield and committed no errors in 19 chances. 8. Tanner Schobel, INF, Wichita: 5-22, RBI, 3 K. (high-A/AA combined .265/.352/.424. .776 OPS), played four games (58 total) at second base and committed one error in 12 chances (10 errors in 224 total chances), played one game (59 total) at third base and committed no errors in no chances (four errors in 115 total chances), previously played five games at shortstop and committed no errors in 14 total chances. 7. Austin Martin, 2B/OF, St. Paul: 4-15, 2 2B, 3 RBI, 2 R, 8 BB, 3 K, 2 SB. (rehab/AAA combined .266/.389/.408. .797 OPS), played two games (38 total) at second base and committed no errors in 8 chances (four errors in 152 total chances), played two games (13 total) in left field and committed no errors in eight chance (no errors in 35 total chances). Previously played 11 games in centerfield and committed one error in 28 total chances. 6. David Festa, RHP, St. Paul: 0-1, 3.38 ERA, 2.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K. (AAA/AA combined 1.39 WHIP, .246 BAA) 5. Charlee Soto, RHP: Did not pitch. 4. Marco Raya, RHP, Wichita: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 4.0 IP, H, BB, 4 K. (AA/Hi-A combined 1.07 WHIP, .197 BAA) 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Cedar Rapids: 3-13, 3B, 3 RBI, 3 R, 7 BB, 6 K. (.240/.400/.463. .863 OPS) 2. Walker Jenkins, OF, Fort Myers: 6-19, 2 3B, 4 RBI, 4 R, 3 BB, 5 K, SB, CS. (FCL/low-A combined .362/.417/.571. .988 OPS) 1. Brooks Lee, SS, St. Paul: 4-23, 2 2B, RBI, 7 R, 4 K. (AA/AAA combined .277/.349/.460. .809 OPS), played three games (106 total) at shortstop and committed no errors in 7 chances (18 errors in 437 total chances) and played one game (seven total) at third base and committed no errors in five chances (one error in 19 chances total chances). DESTINATION: The Show In this week's episode, Jeremy and JD tackle a variety of topics. Lots of Twins talk, especially regarding their 2023 draft class. Below is a quick out-take from the show. Click here to watch the full episode. You can find Destination: The Show on all major podcast platforms including Spotify, iTunes, iHeartRadio and Amazon Music. The show is available on Libsyn, our podcasting platform, in addition to YouTube. View full article

Another day. Another Yunior Severino home run. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson (photos of Yunior Severino), Ed Bailey (photo of Pierson Ohl) Seemingly every day, Yunior Severino has continued to mash and hit home run after home run. Find out below how impressive his current streak is, and how unique his season has been in Twins minor-league history. And while it may not be as historically significant, you'll want to see the run that Wind Surge starter Pierson Ohl is on too. The Saints got a nice start from a prospect who appears to have turned around his season. The Wind Surge played another one-run game. And, it was a travel day for the Kernels as they head back home hoping to keep their season alive on Thursday night. All that and much more in Wednesday's Minor League Report. Here are the records of the Twins and their active affiliates through games on Wednesday. Minnesota Twins: 76-70 St. Paul Saints: 80-59 Wichita Wind Surge: 62-71 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 82-50 regular season (0-1 in playoffs) Let’s get to the report. As always, please feel free to discuss and ask questions. TRANSACTIONS Before the games on Sunday, the Twins activated Jorge Polanco from the Bereavement List. To make room, OF Gilberto Celestino was optioned having not played during his short stint with the big club. . SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 2, Louisville 3 (10 innings) Box Score Simeon Woods Richardson started on Wednesday afternoon for the Saints in Des Moines. He gave up one run on three hits over five innings. He walked three and struck out five batters. His ERA this season is now down to 4.92. Now, that may not sound great, but when the calendar turned to July, he was 0-5 with an ERA of 7.47 over 11 starts and 47 innings. However, since then, He is 6-1 with an ERA of 2.95 over 12 games (10 starts) and 61 innings. It has been gradual, but it’s great to see that improvement. Andrew Bechtold came on in relief for the sixth inning. He gave up three runs on three hits and a walk in 2/3 of an inning. However, both outs he recorded were on strikeouts. He has made 18 appearances out of the bullpen since trying to take up pitching on the fly. Blessed with a big arm that is capable of hitting the upper-90s with a fastball, it is worth a shot, and it will be interesting to see if he’s shown enough potential to invest another season in that transition. Bechtold can be a free agent at season’s end. If that happens, it will be interesting to see how he is utilized moving forward. So, it’s important to take his numbers - which haven’t been good - into proper perspective, understanding he hasn’t pitched since high school (10 years ago) and he’s doing it in Triple-A against a lot of veteran players. In 16 innings, he has an ERA of 11.81 and a WHIP at 2.63. He has 14 strikes, but 21 walks, in those 16 innings. But he is 2-1 if you’re interested in Win-Loss record for relievers. Michael Boyle came on and faced four batters. He got all four of them out, two on strikeouts. Jordan Balazovic gave up a hit and struck out one batter in a scoreless inning. The Saints took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Michael Helman scored on a Wild Pitch. The Saints took a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth when Hernan Perez hit his 10th home run of the season. The Saints cut their deficit to 4-3 in the top of the seventh inning when Yunior Severino hit his 10th Saints homer and his 34th homer overall. He has homered in three straight games and in five of the past seven games. Only seven players in Twins minor-league history (62 seasons) have hit more home runs in a season than Severino. And he’s got nine games remaining to move up the lists. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 1, Midland 2 Box Score Pierson Ohl continues to roll. The right-hander from Grand Canyon tossed 5 1/3 innings of scoreless ball in this game. He gave up three hits, walked one and struck out five batters. He also hit two batters. Early in June, Ohl was promoted to Wichita. In his first three Double-A starts, he went 0-2 with an ERA of 6.61 and opponents hit .297 against him. Since then, he has gone 7-1 with a 1.78 ERA in 13 games (11 starts). His WHIP has been 0.89, and opponents have hit just .198 off of him. He’s got 62 strikeouts and just 12 walks in 70 2/3 innings. Isaac Mattson got out of the sixth inning and then gave up a single run in the seventh inning on a solo homer. Sean Mooney came into a 1-1 tie in the top of the eighth inning. He recorded one out and gave up only an unearned run on two walks. Miguel Rodriguez came into the game with the bases loaded and one out. He got the final two outs of the eighth inning and allowed just one inherited runner to score. He then pitched a scoreless ninth inning. He had three strikeouts. The Surge did score the first run of the game in the second inning. Ben Ross drove in Alex Isola with a single. That was about it for the offense. They had just six hits, and Alex Isola went 3-for-4 in the game and is now hitting .280 on the season. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids vs. Peoria The Kernels have their backs to the wall in Round 1 of the Midwest League playoffs. Fortunately, the team will find their backs on the walls at their home stadium in Cedar Rapids. And, if they find a way to win Game 2, then Game 3 will be at home as well. They are sending righty Cory Lewis to the mound on Thursday night. He’s arguably been the best pitcher in the Twins organization this season. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 2-for-4, HR(10/34), R, RBI, K Pitcher of the Day – Pierson Ohl (Wichita) - 5.1 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 5 K, 83 pitches, 53 strikes (63.9%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on the new Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did on Wednesday. #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 0-for-4 #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-for-3, BB, 2 K #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 0-for-4 #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 2-for-4, HR(10/34), R, RBI, 1 K #15 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 5 K, 84 pitches, 53 strikes (63.1%) #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 16 pitches, 11 strikes (68.8%) THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES St. Paul @ Iowa (12:08 PM CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak (5-8, 5.10 ERA) Midland @ Wichita (7:05 PM CST) - RHP Travis Adams (4-10, 5.55 ERA) Playoffs: Game 2: Peoria @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CST) - Cory Lewis (9-4, 2.49 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Wednesday’s games or any other Twins minor league topics! 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The Minnesota Twins lost to the Rays Wednesday afternoon at Target Field. With Cleveland in a tailspin, there’s not much to get worked up about in terms of wins and losses, but there were a couple of big-picture items of concern that continued to reveal themselves. Griffin Jax gave up the go-ahead homer in the ninth inning and has a 6.26 ERA in the second half. Also discussed is the decision to pinch hit Christian Vázquez for Edouard Julien. Down in the minors, both Simeon Woods Richardson and Pierson Ohl continued their strong streak of performances on the mound. Also, Yunior Severino homered for the third-straight game. View full video

The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels season may be over, but the rest of the Twins full-season affiliates are still in action. That includes the Cedar Rapids Kernels, who began their West Division playoff series against the Peoria Chiefs on Tuesday. A slugger in triple-A also added to his tremendous home run total on the season, while the Wind Surge fans enjoyed some pitching from rehabbing major league players. Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge 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! View full article

The Minnesota Twins beat the Rays Tuesday at Target Field thanks in large part to Willi Castro's go-ahead two-run homer. Joe Ryan struck out seven in his first outing against his former organization and Louie Varland supported him with 2 1/3 shutout innings of relief. Down in the minors, Yunior Severino slugged his 33rd home run of the season and Chris Paddack had an impressive start with Wichita. The Kernels started their three-game playoff series in disappointing fashion, losing a one-run game while blowing a golden opportunity in the ninth inning. View full video

St. Paul didn’t hit another grand slam on Thursday, but they flashed plenty of power. Wichita grabbed a late lead, and Fort Myers got off to a late start. Check all of the minor league action within. Image courtesy of Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports TRANSACTIONS RHP Alex Scherff placed on temporary inactive list by St. Paul RHP John Klein promoted from Fort Myers to Cedar Rapids The Twins released RHP Chad Donato from Wichita's roster SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 10, Louisville 3 Box Score St. Paul turned to Simeon Woods Richardson on Thursday night, and he was nothing short of lights out. He worked six innings and allowed just a single run on four hits and a walk. The run didn’t come until the sixth inning, and he punched out five on the evening. It didn’t take long for the electric Saints lineup to produce. Kyle Garlick launched a two-run homer that brought in Trevor Larnach and put St. Paul ahead. Gilberto Celestino nabbed a homer the hard way, an inside-the-park variety, that brought home Jair Camargo in the second inning. Up 4-0, Woods Richardson had a comfortable lead. For the second time on the night, Garlick spiced things up with a homer. The two-run shot was his 14th of the year, and again plated Larnach in the process. Hernan Perez then singled with both Yunior Severino and Anthony Prato on base, driving both in, and making it an 8-0 ballgame. In the sixth inning, Prato ripped an RBI single to score Larnach for the third time. With the bases loaded, Celestino drew a walk to drive Garlick in and make it a 10-0 game. Louisville recorded their first run in the sixth inning, and then plated a pair in the eighth inning, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make this one a game. While Austin Martin didn't make his mark with the bat tonight, he certainly made his presence felt with the glove. The Saints recorded a whopping 14 hits on Thursday with Larnach, Garlick, Severino, Prato, and Camargo all recording a pair each. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 2, Corpus Christi 1 Box Score The Wind Surge gave the ball to Pierson Ohl on Thursday night and he worked 5 1/3 innings allowing one run on four hits. Ohl also gave up a walk while striking out four. His one mistake came on a home run that Chad Stevens sent to left field. Wichita jumped out to an early advantage when Seth Gray crushed his ninth home run of the season. A second inning solo shot represented the game’s first run. Corpus Christi responded with a solo shot of their own in the bottom half and the game stayed tied until the ninth inning. Needing some separation to avoid extras, Wichita made things happen in the ninth inning. Willie Joe Garry Jr. stole second base, and when catcher C.J. Stubbs sailed the throw, he came around the score. The costly miscue put Corpus Christi behind by a run with only three runs to work with. Picking up six hits on the night, no one recorded more than one hit for Wichita. The late run was enough to win it. KERNELS NUGGETS Wisconsin 11, Cedar Rapids 6 Box Score C.J. Culpepper made the start on Thursday night for the Kernels, and unfortunately it was a tough outing for him. He lasted just two innings while allowing seven runs on seven hits. Culpepper also walked two and struck out just one. Despite a very good season, this wasn’t an outing to hang his hat on. Trailing 7-0 by the third inning, the Kernels didn’t fold and looked to bounce back. Jefferson Morales doubled home Misael Urbina to put Cedar Rapids on the board. In the fourth inning Luke Keaschall added another when he singled home Jorel Ortega. Then in the fifth inning, Kala’i Rosario kept up his hot-hitting while blasting his 21st dinger of the season. The three-run shot also scored Noah Miller and Emmanuel Rodriguez while bringing the Kernels within two. Wisconsin added a pair of runs back in the fifth inning to push it back to a four-run lead. Adding another pair in the seventh inning, it was an 11-5 game and Cedar Rapids found themselves staring at a sizeable deficit once again. Attempting to mount a comeback, the Kernels gained a run back when Rodriguez drew a bases loaded walk in the eighth inning to score Keaschall. They couldn't capitalize with other runners on base however. Unable to add in the ninth inning, the Kernels dropped the contest by five. The Kernels had just five hits Thursday night, and while Rosario posted three RBI, no one added multiple hits. MUSSEL MATTERS Bradenton 9, Fort Myers 5(F/7) Box Score With inclement weather in the area, the start of Thursday night’s tilt for the Marauders and Mighty Mussels was delayed. After finally getting underway, Miguelangel Boadas took the ball for Fort Myers. In the first inning, Nate Baez doubled with Jay Harry scoring and the Mighty Mussels were on the board first. Yohander Martinez added another with a single during the third inning that scored Danny De Andrade. Leading 2-0, the Mighty Mussels gave both back in the fourth inning and saw the Marauders tie the contest. Bradenton jumped on top of Fort Myers with three runs in the fifth inning. The Mighty Mussels weren't ok with playing from behind and immediately stormed back. De Andrade doubled home Ricardo Olivar before Baez traded places with him on a double of his own. Martinez then singled to drive in Baez and make it a tie ballgame. The Marauders loaded the bases in the top of the seventh inning and rather than emerge unscathed, the Mighty Mussels gave up a grand slam. The 9-5 lead was going to be difficult to overcome with just three outs left. Fort Myers couldn't mount a late comeback and that was enough to do them in. With both squads recording ten hits on the evening, Fort Myers saw two each come from De Andrade, Baez, and Martinez. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K Hitter of the Day – Kyle Garlick (St. Paul) - 2-3, 3 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR(14), 2 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: #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 0-2, R, RBI, 3 BB #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-6, 2 K #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 1-3, BB, K #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, R, RBI, BB, K #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5, R, 3 RBI, HR(21), BB, K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 2-6, R, 2 K #15 - Simeon Woods Richardson (St. Paul) - 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K #17 - Danny De Andrade (Fort Myers) - 2-3, 2 R, RBI, 2B(20) FRIDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (6:15PM CST) - RHP Randy Dobnak Wichita @ Corpus Christi (7:05PM CST) - RHP Marco Raya Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (6:40 CST) - RHP Zebby Matthews Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - RHP Matt Gabbert Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Thursday’s games! View full article

While a former top prospect has been rewriting the rules around grand slams in the majors, a current top prospect in Triple-A added to their team's baseball-leading-total on the season on Tuesday. It was also the first of his career as a professional. The Cedar Rapids Kernels also clinched the second half Midwest League division title with a win, after doing the same in the first half of the season. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of Royce Lewis and Brooks Lee) TRANSACTIONS With the affiliates off on Monday, there were multiple transactions to catch up with on Tuesday: RHP Louie Varland was recalled by the Minnesota Twins to pitch out of their bullpen. In a corresponding move, RHP Cole Sands was sent back to the Saints. UT Michael Helman was assigned to the St. Paul Saints, making his return to Triple-A. Replacing Helman in Wichita, was IF Ben Ross from the Kernels. The Wind Surge activated RHP Isaac Mattson. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 11, Louisville 3 Box Score The Saints got on the board first in the second inning when DaShawn Keirsey Jr., Yunior Severino, and Austin Martin all drew walks to load the bases. Jair Camargo brought in one with a sac fly, but Hernan Perez then lined out to keep them to just one run. Right-hander Blayne Enlow got the starting nod for the Saints and was solid through the first three innings. He scattered four hits, allowed one earned run, and struck out three. In the top of the fourth inning, the good guys broke through with a two-out rally. Martin, Camargo, and Perez all drew walks to prompt a move to the bullpen for the Bats, and Michael Helman brought them all in with a double. Alex Kirilloff followed with a run-scoring single, and it was 5-1 St. Paul. They tacked on two more runs in the fifth when Trevor Larnach led off with a single. Two batters later, Severino launched his sixth home run with the Saints, and 30th of the season to make it 7-1. Hunter McMahon was the first reliever summoned from the Saints bullpen and pitched into the fifth inning. He allowed two hits, walked one, and struck out two. He gave way to Austin Schulfer who went the next 1 2/3 innings, allowing one walk and striking out one. Jordan Balazovic started the seventh and worked around a single and a walk for a scoreless frame. In the eighth, a walk was followed by an RBI double before he was lifted for Austin Brice. In 1 2/3 innings, Balazovic was charged with one earned run on two hits and three walks. Brice finished off the final 1 1/3 innings, giving up one run on one hit and a walk. He struck out two. With the score still 7-1 in the top of the eighth, the Saints put it even farther out of reach as the first four hitters of the inning reached base, with Brooks Lee putting an explanation point on the game by slugging a grand slam the opposite way. Kirilloff (3-for-5, R, 2B, RBI) and Trevor Larnach (2-for-5, R, 2B) led the way with multiple hits for the St. Paul offense. Every hitter in the lineup scored at least one run, and Helman (1-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3 RBI, K), Lee (1-for-4, R, HR, 4 RBI, BB, K), and Severino (1-for-3, R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K) each drove in multiple runners. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 1, Corpus Christi 5 Box Score The Wind Surge were held to just five hits on Tuesday and were never able to mount a rally against the Hooks’ pitching, so not a whole lot to recap here. Their lone run came on Alex Isola’s 19th home run of the season in the fourth inning to give them a 1-0 lead, but it did not hold up. Starter Jaylen Nowlin was excellent in five innings, allowing just one earned run on two hits. He also walked three, but was able to work around them by punching out six. The bullpen duo of Francis Peguero (2 IP, 2 H, ER, K) and Denny Bentley (1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 K) was not able to keep that going however, allowing four runs over the final three innings. Yoyner Fajardo led the way out of the leadoff spot with two hits and a walk. As a team the Wind Surge were just 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position, and left only three men on base in a game that took just two hours to complete. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Wisconsin 3 Box Score The Kernels hit the ground running early in this one, with an Emmanuel Rodriguez triple being followed by a Kala’i Rosario home run for a 2-0 lead before their starting pitcher stepped on the mound. That was righty Andrew Morris, who was excellent in the month of August, going 5-0 with a 2.00 ERA in five starts. He wasn’t able to make it to the fifth in this one, but it also could have been a lot worse. In 3 2/3 innings he gave up eight hits (all singles) and walked three, but managed to allow only three runs. He also struck out three. When he left the game in the fourth inning, his team was still in the lead thanks to a three-run third inning from his lineup. Kyler Fedko led off with his sixth home run, before consecutive walks to Noah Miller and Rodriguez put more ducks on the pond. An error led to the second run of the inning, and a sac fly from Jorel Ortega capped it off. The Kernels added an insurance run in the fifth thanks to an RBI double from Miller to score Fedko, who had walked to start the inning. The Cedar Rapids bullpen took it from there, shutting down the Timber Rattlers the rest of the way after Morris’ departure. Gabriel Yanez picked up his first win with the Kernels by completing 2 1/3 innings. He gave up two hits and struck out three. Malik Barrington (2 IP, H, 2 BB, 2 K) and John Stankiewicz (S, 1 IP, H, K) held Wisconsin scoreless the rest of the way. Fedko led the way with multiple hits, collecting a double in addition to his home run, and also drew two walks. Rodriguez and Fedko each scored two runs. The Cedar Rapids Kernels are your second half, and undisputed full-season, Midwest League West Division Champions, with their record sitting at 81-46, the best in all of the minor leagues. MUSSEL MATTERS Bradenton 10, Fort Myers 5 Box Score Starting pitcher Juan Mercedes was ambushed for three runs in the first inning, but settled in pretty good from there. He was able to complete five innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits (two home runs accounting for most of the damage) and two walks. He struck out three. The Mighty Mussels got consecutive singles to the second inning, but it took a throwing error from the catcher for them to get a run across to cut the lead to two. In the fourth Rubel Cespedes led off with his thirteenth home run of the season, making the score 4-2 Bradenton. Wilker Reyes came on from the bullpen for Fort Myers to start the sixth inning and delivered a scoreless frame. Back out for the seventh however, he ran into trouble and was lifted after giving up a bases loaded double, allowing two runs to score. In 1 2/3 innings, Reyes was charged with two earned runs on three hits, one walk, and a hit batter, while striking out one. In the bottom of the eighth the Fort Myers lineup finally broke through for a crooked number on the scoreboard, closing the lead to just one run. The big hit came from Walker Jenkins, who delivered a two-run triple that made it 6-4. He then scored the third run of the inning on a groundout from Ricardo Olivar. Zach Veen came on after Reyes’ exit and got the next six outs. He did not allow a hit, but two walks led to two earned runs in the ninth inning. the next pitcher, Juan Mendez, wasn’t much better as he gave up a three-run home run and three walks before being lifted himself. Danny Moreno finally stopped the bleeding by getting a ground ball, but the score was now 10-5. The Mighty Mussels then went down in order to end the game. Jay Harry (2-for-4, R, 2B) and Cespedes (2-for-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, 2 K) had multiple hits in the loss. Jenkins finished 1-for-2 with a run scored, a pair of walks, and is now batting .441 with a 1.192 OPS in eight games with Fort Myers. Oh, and he’s also struck out only once. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Jaylen Nowlin, Wichita Wind Surge (5 IP, 2 H, ER, 3 BB, 6 K) Hitter of the Day - Brooks Lee, St. Paul Saints (1-for-4, R, Grand Slam, 4 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) - 1-for-4, R, GS HR (3), 4 RBI, BB, K #2 - Walker Jenkins (Fort Myers) - 1-for-2, R, 3B (2), 2 RBI, 2 BB #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, 2 R, 3B (9), 2 BB, K #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, R, 2 BB #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 0-for-3, BB #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2B (2) #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, R, HR (20), 3 RBI, BB, K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, R, HR (6), 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 1 2/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB #17 - Danny De Andrade (Fort Myers) - 0-for-3 WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Louisville (5:35 PM CDT) - RHP David Festa (1-0, 1.80 ERA) Wichita @ Corpus Christi (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Carlos Luna (2-8, 5.56 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Wisconsin (12:10 PM CDT) - RHP Cory Lewis (4-1, 2.53 ERA) Bradenton @ Fort Myers (6:00 PM CDT) - RHP Chris Paddack (MLB Rehab Assignment) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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The Minnesota Twins couldn't get anything going at the plate in a 2-1 loss at Cleveland, tallying just two hits. The Saints had no such problems. St. Paul scored 13 runs thanks in part to a pair of homers from Trevor Larnach. Also featured in tonight's system recap are Michael Helman, Yunior Severino, Austin Martin, Sean Mooney, Emmanuel Rodriguez and Jose Salas plus updates on Walker Jenkins and Chris Paddack. View full video

Each of the Twins affiliates who played on Tuesday were in their home ballparks, and despite the hitting being hard to come by at each level, pitching and timely hitting ended up winning the day for each of them. The Saints went to extra innings, Wichita got a big blast from a returning prospect, and a new top prospect to the Kernels came up big in their win. Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints (photo of Michael Helman) TRANSACTIONS In Double-A, the Wichita Wind surge were assigned LHP Jordan Carr from Cedar Rapids. RHP Isaac Mattson and SS Ernie Yake were transferred to the development list. RHP Sean Mooney was activated from the 60-day injured list. Down in Fort Myers, RHP Jeremy Lee was assigned to the Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins. On Monday, the Saints announced that RHP David Festa was being promoted from Wichita. RHP Alex Scherff went from the Saints to the Wind Surge. In addition, utility man Michael Helman was taken off of the 60-Day IL and assigned to Wichita. RHP Ricardo Velez and infielder Luke Keaschall were promoted to Cedar Rapids from Fort Myers. Of course, the big transaction was LHP Kody Funderburk having his contract selected by the Twins. He took RHP Oliver Ortega's spot on the 40-man roster. Ortega was moved to the 60-Day IL. Bailey Ober was optioned to St. Paul where he will get the chance to rest heading to September. The Twins released infielder Mikey Perez . He had been on the Kernels roster the past month or so. SAINTS SENTINEL Columbus 4, St. Paul 5 (11 innings) Box Score At CHS Field in St. Paul, the Saints went to right-hander Blayne Enlow for the start. He finished the first two innings, but allowed a run in each for an early 2-0 Clippers lead. He allowed four hits, walked one, and struck out two. In the bottom of the second Yunior Severino got him off the hook however, launching his fifth home run with the Saints, and 29th of the season, to put them out front 3-2. Brooks Lee and Trevor Larnach had drawn walks in front of him. The score stayed that way until the ninth inning, as pitching took over for both teams. For the Saints, that was Patrick Murphy who started the season as a key setup man in the bullpen, but in his last five games has gone at least three innings. He completed five scoreless innings in this one, keeping Columbus in check through the seventh. He scattered three hits, walked three, and struck out five. Jordan Balazovic came on for the eighth and had a one-two-three inning. Back out for the ninth, he was struck by some bad luck. A leadoff single put the tying run on base, a weak grounder to second advanced the runner, then another weak grounder up the middle found a hole past a sliding Austin Martin’s glove and the game was tied at three. In extras, the Saints went to Austin Brice and the Clippers struck first with a run-scoring double to make it 4-3 in their favor. He picked up two strikeouts after that to keep the game within one. In the bottom half the Saints took advantage of a little league play on an Andrew Stevenson chopper to first to tie it. It clanked off the first baseman’s glove, he threw it away toward first base to allow Jair Camargo to score, and a throw home was offline allowing Stevenson to reach second. Lee and Larnach weren’t able to bring Stevenson home, and it went to the 11th inning. Brice picked up where he left off, striking out the first two hitters of the inning, and getting a grounder to give the Saints an easier shot at the win in the bottom half. Larnach started on second base and advanced to third on a grounder, before Severino delivered a sac fly to walk it off. Brice struck out five of the seven batters he faced in extra innings, picking up his third win of the season. Larnach led the way with two hits in four at-bats, also drawing a walk and scoring two runs. The Saints were outhit 11-to-5 on the game and were just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position, but did just enough to pull out the win late. Willi Castro was 0-for-4 with a pair of K’s in his rehab appearance. Stevenson was 1-for-5 and stole his 43rd base. Martin finished 0-for-4 but drew a walk and stole his 14th base. Severino finished with four RBI and the game winner. WIND SURGE WISDOM San Antonio 2, Wichita 5 Box Score Wichita got on the scoreboard first in this one, putting up a crooked number in the third inning. Jake Rucker drew a walk to lead off and Willie Joe Garry Jr. followed with a one-out double. A fielder’s choice from Yoyner Fajardo led to an out at home, but Michael Helman announced his return to action with a three-run homer for the 3-0 lead. Regi Grace got the nod as an opener of sorts, his first start of the 2023 season, and went the first three-plus innings. He retired the first eight hitters he faced, before a single was sent into right field with two outs in the third. The runner tried to stretch it into a double however, and Garry Jr. cut him down at second base to keep Grace’s batters faced at the minimum through three. In the fourth inning Grace gave up a walk and recorded two more outs before reaching his pitch count. In 3 2/3 innings pitched, he allowed just one hit, walked one, and struck out four. 32 of his 48 pitches went for strikes (67%) and lowered his ERA to 3.23 with the Wind Surge. Jordan Carr came on as a piggy-back for his first outing after being promoted to Wichita, and promptly gave up a double. This allowed an inherited runner to score, but he went on to finish 3 1/3 innings himself. He allowed one run of his own on four hits, walked one, and struck out two. In the bottom of the fifth the Wind Surge got a run back thanks to a solo shot from Garry Jr. that made it 4-1 for the home team. They added another insurance run in the eighth when Fajardo led off with a single and stole his 47th base of the season, advancing to third on a throwing error on the play. Patrick Winkel then brought him in with a sac fly for a 5-2 lead. Aaron Rozek finished the final two scoreless innings, picking up his first save with the Wind Surge in the process. He allowed one hit and struck out three. Both teams had just six hits on the game, but the home runs for Wichita provided enough scoring. Garry Jr. was the only hitter with multiple knocks, finishing 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Fajardo scored two runs and stole two bases. Top 10 major league prospects, Ethan Salas and Jackson Merrill of the Missions and San Diego Padres organization, finished the game a combined 1-for-8, with Merrill striking out twice. Salas signed in January and turned 17 in June. He is the younger brother of Kernels infielder Jose Salas . KERNELS NUGGETS Lake County 1, Cedar Rapids 2 Box Score The Kernels got a very solid, if unspectacular, start from right-hander Andrew Morris. In six innings he held the Captains to just one run on four hits. He struck out only two and walked three, working around traffic to win the battles all game. He improved to 5-1 in the Midwest League as his bullpen and a new hitter in the lineup took care of business. Cedar Rapids tied the game at one in the bottom of the fourth, with Luke Keaschall taking advantage of a pair of walks in front of him to drive in a run with a single in his first game as a Kernel. He struck again in the sixth, driving in Jorel Ortega with another single to give the home team a 2-1 lead. Mike Paredes came on for the seventh inning and worked two scoreless frames. He allowed one hit, one walk, and struck out three. Still up by one in the ninth, the Kernels went to Jarret Whorff to close it out. He struck out the first hitter he faced before giving up a single. The Captains got the tying run to third base, but Whorff got both hitters after the single to pick up his second save with Cedar Rapids. The Kernels had just six hits on the game, but Keaschall came through with runners in scoring position, collecting both their hits in 10 such at-bats. Emmanuel Rodriguez joined him in the multiple hit category, finishing 2-for-4 with a double. Noah Cardenas also added a double to the effort. Jeff Johnson of The Gazette in Cedar Rapids has been following and covering the Kernels for a long time, including all of the seasons since 2013 when the Twins spent their first season in Cedar Rapids. He notes that this 2023 team is one of the best in the city's vast baseball history. Please follow Jeff on Twitter/X at @jeje66, and check out his article on how good this team has been. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers @ Clearwater - Postponed. As Hurricane Idalia approaches the gulf coast, games in the Florida State League are being postponed and/or canceled. Tuesday’s matchup is currently scheduled to be made up on September 1st, while Wednesday’s contest has been canceled. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day - Austin Brice, St. Paul Saints (W, 2 IP, H, R, 5 K) Hitter of the Day - Yunior Severino, St. Paul Saints (1-for-4, R, HR, 4 RBI) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out our full top 20 list here and how they performed on Tuesday below! #1 - Brooks Lee (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, R, BB, 2 K #3 - Emmanuel Rodriguez (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-4, 2B #7 - Austin Martin (St. Paul) - 0-for-4, BB, K, SB (14) #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 0-for-3, 2 K #10 - Luke Keaschall (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-3, 2 RBI #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-3, BB, 2 K #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, R, HR, 4 RBI, 2 K #16 - Jordan Balazovic (St. Paul) - 2 IP, 2 H, ER, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Columbus @ St. Paul (7:07 PM CDT) - RHP David Festa (Triple-A debut) San Antonio @ Wichita (6:35 PM CDT) - LHP Jaylen Nowlin (3-0, 1.57 ERA) Lake County @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 PM CDT) - RHP Cory Lewis (4-1, 2.77 ERA) Fort Myers @ Clearwater - Canceled. Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! View full article

The Minnesota Twins were 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and lost to Cleveland 4-2 Tuesday. Royce Lewis hit another home run while Michael A. Taylor both homered and made a tremendous catch. Down in the minors, Yunior Severino hit his 29th home run of the season (fifth with the Saints) and Luke Keaschall starred in his debut with the Kernels. All that and much more in tonight's Twins System Recap. View full video

A pair of Twins affiliates put up double-digit runs on the day, and offense was the story throughout the system. Yunior Severino went deep twice, and Kala’i Rosario won it for Cedar Rapids. Check out more of the action within. TRANSACTIONS RHP Oliver Ortega recalled by Minnesota RHP Jordan Balazovic optioned to St. Paul SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 7, Indianapolis 6 Box Score Randy Dobnak made a Sunday start for the Saints and went 2 1/3 allowing five runs (four earned) on eight hits, two walks, and three strikeouts. St. Paul scored in the first inning on a Trevor Larnach sacrifice fly that brought home Andrew Stevenson. They added another in the second inning on Yunior Severino’s third Triple-A homer. Running into trouble during the third inning, the Saints saw Indianapolis put up a five-spot. Severino then answered with his second dinger of the game, another solo blast, in the fourth inning. The sixth inning saw St. Paul regain the lead. Severino singled home DaShawn Keirsey Jr. Before Gilberto Celestino tripled home Jair Camargo and Severino. Stevenson then singled allowing Celestino to score and the four-run frame gave them a two-run lead. Although the Saints gave up an eighth inning run, they kept the lead in the ninth inning. Severino led the charge with three hits, accounting for half from St. Paul's total. Kody Funderburk continues to throw well for St. Paul as he struck out one across 1 1/3 innings and picked up his fifth save. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 12, Springfield 1 Box Score It was a good day to start for the Wind Surge as the offense exploded for 12 runs on 16 hits. Pierson Ohl was on the bump and turned in five innings of one-run baseball. He gave up just two hits while striking out three. Springfield scored their only run in the top of the first inning, and then Wichita took over. Tanner Schobel singled home Ernie Yake in the third inning to kick things off. Alex Isola followed with a single to score Yoyner Fajardo and Schobel before Jake Rucker went deep with a two-run big fly. Yake launched his first homer in the fourth inning, and David Banuelos doubled in Patrick Winkel and Isola. Doubling again in the eighth inning, Banuelos brought home Schobel and Winkel before Rucker traded places scoring Isola and Banuelos. The laugher saw Rucker, Yake, and Isola each record three hits. Schobel and Banuelos each had a pair of their own as well. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Wisconsin 1 Box Score Zebby Matthews started Sunday for Cedar Rapids. He twirled 4 ⅔ of one-run ball. Matthews scattered five hits and two walks while striking out five as well. Cedar Rapids scored first when Ben Ross drove in Carson McCusker on a sacrifice fly. Kala’i Rosario launched his 18th homer of the season, bringing Jefferson Morales and Noah Miller home, to make it a 4-0 game. Wisconsin answered with only one run and the Kernels cruised to a victory. Miller contributed two of the four Cedar Rapids hits Sunday afternoon. Mike Paredes improved to 6-1 with the victory. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 13, Palm Beach 8 Box Score Jose Olivares took the ball for the Mighty Mussels on Sunday morning and lasted just 1 1/3 innings. The short start came with four runs allowed on three hits, two of which left the yard. Olivares also walked three while striking out two. Danny De Andrade blasted his tenth homer of the year to kick off scoring during the first inning. In the top of the second inning, Dillon Tatum singled home Yohander Martinez before Jay Harry drove in Alec Sayre with a single of his own. Fort Myers got behind with Olivares’ tough inning coming in the bottom of the second. The Mighty Mussels answered in the fourth inning when Gregory Duran brought in Sayre with a ground out, and Maddux Houghton raced home on a wild pitch. It wasn’t until the seventh inning that Fort Myers scored again. Rubel Cespedes ripped a double to score Tatum and Jay Harry before Sayre’s single brought De Andrade home. The Mighty Mussels gave two back in the bottom half but still led 9-6. Martinez singled in the eighth inning to score Harry and De Andrade. Sayre then singled in Cespedes and Houghton doubled home Martinez. Fort Myers had doubled up Palm Beach by a 13-6 tally. The Cardinals got two of their own in the ninth inning, but it wasn’t enough to erase the deficit. Harry and Sayre both had three-hit games while Martinez and Houghton each had a pair. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Pierson Ohl (Wichita) - 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K Hitter of the Day – Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 3-4, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR(4) PROSPECT SUMMARY We will again keep tabs on the Twins top prospects. You’ll probably read about them in the team sections, but if they aren’t there, you’ll see how they did here. Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #8 - Tanner Schobel (Wichita) - 2-5, 2 R, RBI #13 - Kala’i Rosario (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, R, 3 RBI, HR(18) #14 - Yunior Severino (St. Paul) - 3-5, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR(4) #17 - Danny De Andrade (Fort Myers) - 1-4, 3 R, RBI, HR(10), K #20 - Brent Headrick (St. Paul) - TUESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Omaha (6:35PM CST) - TBD Wichita @ Arkansas (6:35PM CST) - TBD Cedar Rapids @ South Bend (6:05PM CST) - TBD Dayton @ Fort Myers (6:00PM CST) - TBD Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Sunday’s games! View full article

Dallas Keuchel carried a perfect game into the seventh inning of Sunday's Minnesota Twins game against the Pirates. Yes, really! Here's a look at every batter he faced in this improbable outing. Over in St. Paul, Yunior Severino hit two more home runs for the Saints. We'll take a look at those as well as a few highlights of him in the field at third base. That and much more in today's Twins System Recap. View full video