Seth Stohs

check the transactions later today...

Image courtesy of Malamut Photography It was a solid month for pitching in the Twins minor leagues, in general. As you'll see below, there are some pitchers who have pitched well in Triple-A and have been able to make their major-league debuts. You will also find several pitchers making their professional debuts in Fort Myers, mostly 2025 draft picks. One other thing you'll notice is that our minor-league writing core made the decision to only have a Pitcher of the Month. In the past, we have always had separate awards for Relief Pitcher and Starting Pitcher of the month. However, at this stage of baseball, what is the difference between a starting pitcher and a reliever? That is especially true with the Twins who have gone to having starters and relievers being able to work three or four innings at a time with more frequency. This isn't the "olden days" of two-to-three years ago where starters would hope to work five or six innings and top relievers would get an inning at a time. We will attempt to make sure that we recognize the variety of roles pitchers can have in the minor leagues in our Pitcher of the Month articles. HONORABLE MENTIONS LHP Kendry Rojas - St. Paul Saints - 10 1/3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, .229 BAA, 30.0 K%, 10.0 BB%, 4.18 xFIP. LHP Connor Prielipp - St. Paul Saints - 13 IP, 2.30 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, .200 BAA, 34.9 K%, 7.7 BB%, 2.96 xFIP. RHP Michael Hilker - Fort Myers Might Mussels - 12 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, .100 BAA, 30.2 K%, 22.6 BB%, 5.39 xFIP. LHP Aaron Rozek - Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints - 13 IP, 1.38 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, .264 BAA, 15.5 K%, 5.2 BB%, 4.65 xFIP. RHP Matt Bowman - St. Paul Saints - 16 1/3 IP, 1.65 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, .246 BAA, 24.6 K%, 8.7 BB%, 4.15 xFIP. RHP Merit Jones - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels - 18 2/3 IP, 1.93 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, .188 BAA, 23.4 K%, 11.7 BB%, 5.05 xFIP. RHP Jacob Wosinski - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 12 1/3 IP, 2.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, .178 BAA, 34.0 K%, 4.3 BB%, 3.14 xFIP. RHP C.J. Culpepper - Wichita Wind Surge - 19 2/3 IP, 2.75 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, .213 BAA, 28.2 K%, 10.5 BB%, 4.20 xFIP. RHP Eli Jones - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 4.70 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, .246 BAA, 24.2 K%, 3.1 BB%, 3.92 xFIP RHP Darren Bowen - Wichita Wind Surge - 11 1/3 IP, 3.18 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, .122 BAA, 26.7 K%, 8.9 BB%, 4.62 xFIP RHP Kolten Smith - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels - 11 IP, 3.27 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, .171 BAA, 43.2 K%, 6.8 BB%, 1.89 xFIP. THE TOP FOUR PITCHERS Number 4 RHP Reed Moring (21) - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels 3 G, 2 GS, 13 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, .229 BAA, 34.5 K%, 7.7 BB%, 2.96 xFIP. Moring was the Twins 15th round draft pick in 2025 out of UC-Santa Barbara. Like other 2025 drafted pitchers (other than Jonathan Stevens), Moring didn’t pitch at all in 2025. He began the 2026 season with Fort Myers. In his pro debut, he came out of the bullpen and worked four scoreless innings. He gave up two hits, walked none and had seven strikeouts. Six days later, he made his first start and again threw four scoreless innings. He gave up three hits, walked three, and had five strikeouts. Five days later, he made another start. He gave up six hits and one walk over five shutout innings. He struck out six batters. That was his final start of April. He returned to the mound about 2 1/2 weeks later with two perfect relief innings. Moring uses a four-seam fastball that averages 93 mph and tops out around 95 mph. He also has a slow curveball between 79 and 82 mph. He also throws a slider, a cutter and a changeup in the 83-87 mph range. Number 3 RHP James Ellwanger (22) - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels 3 G, 3 GS, 11 2/3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, .077 BAA, 34.1 K%, 11.4 BB%, 2.96 xFIP. The Twins have done a job in the past decade of drafting college pitchers and working with them to add velocity. In 2025, they drafted a couple of college pitchers with Top 100 picks, guys that already threw hard, so it’ll be interesting to see how they develop. The Twins drafted James Ellwanger in their third round pick out of Dallas Baptist. He signed and this spring made his official professional debut with the Mighty Mussels. As you might expect, he dominated in his three starts. In his first game, he gave up two hits and a walk while striking out four batters in three innings. His second game was in Jupiter. He tossed four shutout innings and gave up one hit and one walk. He struck out five. His third start was in Fort Myers. He walked three and struck out six batters in 4 2/3 scoreless innings. Ellwanger has really good stuff. In his first game, he topped out at 98.7 mph and averaged 96.2 mph. He also throws cutters in the upper 80s and low 90s. He has a slow curveball that sits in the low 80s, which is nice for giving him a pitch that alters a batter’s timing. He throws a low-90s changeup which he’ll want to work on to slow down a few ticks. Unfortunately, he came out of the game and soon after it was announced that he was placed on the 60-Day Injured List with a right elbow sprain. We can certainly hold out hope that he can be back on the mound this season. Number 2 RHP Cole Peschl (23) - Cedar Rapids Kernels 7 G, 0 GS, 10 2/3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.09 WHIP, .030 BAA, 27.3 K%, 0.00 BB%, 3.61 xFIP. If you want to tell me that Cole Peschl should be the pitcher of the month for April, you’re not going to get much of an argument from me. The 23-year-old was the Twins 15th round pick in 2024 out of Campbell University. He began the 2025 season with six games in Fort Myers, but he moved up to Cedar Rapids fairly quickly. With the Kernels, he made nine starts. He went 4-1 with a 3.40 ERA. However, his season came to an end before August. He is back in Iowa this season and working out of the bullpen. Just look at those numbers. He faced 33 batters during the month and gave up just one hit. No walks. No hit batters. I’ve never seen a WHIP of 0.09. Could a promotion to Double-A Wichita be in the near future? And the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Month for April 2026 is: RHP Riley Quick - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels/Cedar Rapids Kernels 5 G, 5 GS. 12 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.42 WHIP, .054 BAA, 45.0 K%, 7.5 BB%, 2.33 xFIP Riley Quick grew up in Trussville, Alabama. He attended Hewitt-Trussville High School, the same school that fellow 2025 first round draft pick Steele Hall (Reds, ninth overall pick). When Quick was in high school, he was the top-ranked right-handed pitcher and the number six overall prospect in Alabama according to Perfect Game. He ranked #2 according to Prep Baseball Report. He was also a four-star recruit, one of the top offensive line prospects in the country. His brother Pierce played football at Georgia Tech and Alabama. Quick signed pretty quickly following the draft last July. He spent the summer and much of the offseason in Fort Myers continuing to work, getting himself in better shape and working on pitching. When the 2026 season began, he was assigned to Low-A Fort Myers. As expected, his time there was very short. He made three starts and worked a total of eight innings for the Mussels. He gave up zero runs, one hit, walked three and had 13 strikeouts. The 6-6 righty was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he made one more start in April. He tossed four shutout innings. He gave up just one hit, walked none, and had five strikeouts. Using an upper-90s (four-seamer and sinker), Quick can be dominant. His highest velocity in a game this season is 98.7 mph. However, when you add in a cutter in the low 90s, a slider in the low-to-mid 80s slider, he’s got four or five above average pitches that can get swings and misses. Literally and figuratively, Quick is one of the biggest pitching prospects that the Twins have selected in a long time. We want to congratulate Riley Quick, Twins Daily’s choice for Minor League Pitcher of the Month for April of 2026. Feel free to share your thoughts and ask questions. How would you rank the top pitchers in the Twins organization in April? View full article

That makes sense. He was flying and his left arm/shoulder made the catch and hit the wall without any ability to brace himself. My initial thought was that it was a disclocation... =

You could make an argument for replacing Matt Wallner with E-Rod now, but not a week or so ago. e is deserving. That said, Roden was probably more deserving before that. Jenkins has been solid, but not so much so to add him to the 40 at this point. And Culpepper is doing fine as well, but same 40-man roster issues, and he's only hitting .245.

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey (photo of Ben Ross) One month of the minor-league season is now complete. Despite cool temperatures, especially early, there have been quite a few really strong offensive performances already. Today we take a look at the top hitting performances of the season's first month. Before we jump to the Top 5 hitters, there are several Honorable Mentions. HONORABLE MENTIONS OF Kyler Fedko - St. Paul Saints - 25 G, 18-for-78, .231/.291/.551 (.842) with 2 doubles, 1 triple, 7 home runs, 12 R, 21 RBI, 5 BB, 24 K. UT Dameury Pena - Fort Myers Might Mussels - 20 G, 25-for-73, .342/.417/.397 (.939) with 2 doubles, 1 triple, 0 home runs, 9 R, 8 RBI, 9 BB, 8 K. SS Marek Houston - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 23 G, 29-for-93, .312/.375/.473 (.948) with 2 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs, 16 R, 7 RBI, 10 BB, 25 K. OF Alan Roden - St. Paul Saints - 19 G, 189-for-69, .275/.425/.464 (.889) with 4 doubles, 3 home runs, 9 R, 15 RBI, 17 BB, 14 K. OF Jacob McCombs - Cedar Rapids Kernels - 13 G, 13-for-46, .283/.377/.587 (.964) with 5 doubles, 3 triples, 1 home run, 5 R, 12 RBI, 1 BB, 14 K. OF Yasser Mercedes - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels - 13 G, 14-for-49, .286/.417/.592 (1.009) with 1 double, 1 triple, 4 home runs, 13 R, 16 RBI, 11 BB, 15 K C Ricardo Olivar - Wichita Wind Surge - 18 G, 16-for-65, .246/.342/.554 (.896) with 5 doubles, 5 home runs, 12 R, 18 RBI, 10 BB, 10 K. THE TOP FIVE HITTERS Number 5 - Wichita Wind Surge - OF Hendry Mendez (22) - 22 G, 23-for-81, .284/.372/.519 (.891), 5 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs, 17 R, 19 RBI, 9 BB, 20 K. The Twins acquired Mendez and 17-year-old RHP Geremy Villoria from the Phillies at the 2025 trade deadline. Following the season, he was added to the team’s 40-man roster. With the Twins left-handed hitting outfield depth, both in the big leagues and at St. Paul, he returned to Double-A Wichita to start the season. There was also talk about him getting some time at first base, but to this point, he hasn’t played two full games at the position. What he can do is hit, and he generally knows the strike zone. He appears to be pushing for more power with 10 extra base hits in the month. Can he turn a great eye and contact skills into more power? That’ll be the question we’ll check on at the end of the season. Number 4 - St. Paul Saints - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (23) - 24 G, 20-for-80, .250/.419/.513 (.932), 3 doubles, 6 home runs, 15 R, 17 RBI, 22 BB, 31 K. It seems as though we have been talking about Rodriguez for years and years. His power potential. His speed and defense. Stolen bases. Lots of walks and lots of strikeouts. We know the scouting report as it has been similar for years. But he only turned 23 two months ago. Part of it is that he finished the 2024 season with seven games in St. Paul. And, he had an inside-the-park grand slam. We see his heart, his enthusiasm and his passion for the game and want to see it at Target Field. But injuries have kept him sidelined much of his career. In 2022, he played just 47 games. In 2024, he played in just 47 games including rehab games. In 2025, he played in just 65 games, including 13 rehab games. He got off to a fast start with the Saints in April. While he may never hit for a real high average (because of all the strikeouts), he gets on base (because of all the walks). He’s got tremendous power, not only hitting home runs, but in just hitting the ball really, really hard. It isn’t rare for him to have exit velocities over 110 mph, and he hit two over 117 mph during the month. He is playing mostly right field, some center field, and has made two starts in left field. Number 3 - Cedar Rapids Kernels - OF/1B Jaime Ferrer (23) - 23 G, 19-for-64, .297/.444/.484 (.929), 3 doubles, 3 home runs, 16 R, 7 RBI, 14 BB, 18 K. Ferrer was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, the same hometown as former Twins pitcher Jose Berrios. He went to high school in Orlando and then spent three seasons at Florida State. In 2024, he was the Twins fourth-round draft pick. There was an effort to move him behind the plate the last couple of seasons, but to this point this season, he has played both corner outfield spots and first base. Last year in Cedar Rapids, he hit .216/.296/.339 (.634) with 20 doubles, two triples, and five home runs. Note that his April stats above do not include the three home runs he hit over two games on May 1st and 2nd. While he’s been batting ninth for the Kernels, it gives them a very professional hitter at the bottom of the order. His quality of plate appearance has been much improved and he’s putting up the kind of numbers that captured scouts’ attention at Florida State. Number 2 - Wichita Wind Surge - OF Garrett Spain (25) - 19 G, .271/.354/.629 (.983), 5 doubles, 1 triple, 6 home runs, 16 R, 7 RBI, 9 BB, 21 K. Spain came to the Twins in December’s minor-league portion of the Rule 5 draft. He had spent the 2024 season with the Brewers organization. He played in 120 games for Double-A Biloxi and hit .207/.282/.377 (.659) with 17 doubles, four triples and 16 home runs. He also played 11 games at Triple-A Nashville. Spain grew up in Clarksville, Tennessee, and then he stayed home and attended Austin Peay. He was the Blue Jays 15th round pick in 2021. After two seasons at High-A Vancouver, and hitting .167 over 103 games at Double-A in 2024, the Blue Jays let him go,and the Brewers signed him before the 2025 season. Spain is a max effort type of player, but the hard work has kept him in affiliated ball. He generally takes quality at-bats. He has shown improved power. He’s a smart player. He was 5-for-5 in stolen base attempts in April. And the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Month is: Wichita Wind Surge/St. Paul Saints - IF Ben Ross - 20 G, 27-for-74, .365/.460/.676 (1.084), 8 doubles, 5 home runs, 16 R, 16 RBI, 12 BB, 13 K. Ben Ross grew up in Springfield, Ohio. In high school, he starred on the soccer pitch and the baseball diamond. Upon graduation, Ross made the 200 mile drive north and east to South Euclid, Ohio, a city of almost 22,000 people, a suburb east of Cleveland, adjacent to Cleveland Heights. It is the home of Notre Dame College, a Division II school in the Mountain East Conference. As a freshman in 2020, he hit .389 with three doubles in 11 games before the season came to an abrupt end. In 2021, he hit .426/.494/.844 (1.338) with 20 doubles, three triples, and 11 home runs. In 52 games as a junior, he hit .392/.452/.747 (1.200) with 20 doubles, two triples, and 14 home runs. He also had 15 stolen bases. That summer, he played for Wisconsin Rapids in the Northwoods League. In 42 games, he hit .421/.502/.649 (!.152) with seven doubles and 10 homers. He also stole 17 bases. In July of 2022, the Twins were thrilled to be able to make Ross their fifth round draft pick. He played in 22 games for the Mighty Mussels that summer. He made the jump to Cedar Rapids to start the 2023 season and hit .240/.322/.455 (.777) with 25 doubles, two triples, and 19 homers in 103 games. He ended the season with 10 games in Wichita. Between 2024 and 2025, he played in 244 games for the Wind Surge. With a full infield to start the season at St. Paul, Ross was sent back to Kansas to start this season. He could have been down, could have moped. Instead, he does what he’s always done. First and foremost, Ross has always played great defense. He can legitimately play shortstop, but he’s had opportunities all around the infield and in center field as well. He began the 2026 season with 16 games in Wichita. In that time, he hit .424/.528/.797 (1.324) with seven doubles, five homers, and 16 RBI. He had 12 walks to 10 strikeouts. He was 8-for-9 in stolen base attempts. He began the season with a 13-game hitting streak. He reached base in all 16 games. He had nine multi-hit games including two, three-hit games. A little over a week ago, Ross told Twins Daily, “I think a huge piece of hitting is the mentality going up to the plate. It’s super tough day in and day out to feel confident for every at-bat which is why it’s important to have a plan tailored to the situation.” He put in the time and put in the work and earned his first promotion to St. Paul. He played in four games for the Saints in April, and went just 2-for-15 which hurt his overall month stats, but what he did in Wichita is undeniable. Also, on May 1, he went 0-for-4 to start 2-for-19 with the Saints. But in two weekend games, Ross went a combined 3-for-5 with four walks, two doubles, a home run, five runs scored and four RBI. We want to congratulate Ben Ross, Twins Daily’s choice for Minor League Hitter of the Month for April of 2026. Feel free to share your thoughts and ask questions. How would you rank the top five hitters in the Twins organization in April? View full article

And Kaelen Culpepper also...

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (photo of Kala'i Rosario) Congratulations to RHP John Klein, the Minnesota native called up to the big leagues on Saturday morning. He made his MLB debut with a 12-pitch, 1-2-3 ninth inning against the Blue Jays. TRANSACTIONS On Saturday morning, we learned that the Twins were placing RHP Cole Sands on the Injured List with a forearm strain. Taking his place on the roster is RHP John Klein, the Minnesota native who was added to the Twins 40-man roster in November. The Saints activated C David Banuelos from the Development List. Saints RHP Cory Lewis began his rehab assignment with the FCL Twins on Saturday. The FCL Twins began their 2026 season on Saturday. Three players on their roster were officially placed on the long-term Injured Lists. RHP Rey Pacheco was placed on the 60-Day IL. RHP Anderson Ramos and infielder Santiago Leon were placed on the full-season IL. For more on these players and the other three dozen FCL Twins on their Opening Day roster, check out the 2026 FCL Twins Roster Preview. RHP Yosangel Braffit was signed by the Twins in late February and assigned to the DSL Twins on Saturday. The Twins signed infielder Murphy Stehly to a minor-league contract and assigned him to Wichita. He was signed from the HIgh Point Rockers of the Atlantic League. The 27-year-old was the Nationals 10th round pick in 2022 from the University of Texas. Reached Double-A. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 16, Iowa 2 Box Score The Saints and Cubs have been exchanging wins and losses with some very different game types. On Saturday, the Saints pounded out a record 11 extra base hits and seven home runs on their way to a 16-2 win. But let’s start with this. For the second straight start, Zebby Matthews was really good. He gave up one run on three hits, and in five innings, he walked three and struck out seven batters. Marco Raya came on and gave up a solo homer to Kevin Alcantara who hit his International League-leading 11th home run of the season. But that was it. One run on one hit over two innings. He also walked one batter. Raul Brito gave up two hits and a walk over two scoreless innings. The Saints scored runs in seven of the innings they batted. Five of those innings were multi-run innings. Of the nine starters, only the slumping Gabriel Gonzalez went hitless, 0-for-5. Over his past four games, he is 0-for-17 with seven strikeouts. Seven of the hitters had at least two hits. Kyler Fedko went 3-for-5 with his eighth home run. Kaelen Culpepper had just one hit, but he also had a walk and was hit by a pitch. In the first inning, Walker Jenkins and Kaelen Culpepper walked to start the game. With one out, Ryan Kreidler hit his third homer, a three-run blast (108.8 mph at 30 degrees = 433 feet.) In the second frame, Ben Ross led off with a walk. He scored on a Tanner Schobel double (106.2 mph). Jenkins drove in Schobel with a single to make it 5-1 Saints. In the third inning, Fedko scored on a Kreidler single and an error. With two outs, Ben Ross doubled (104.3 mph) to drive in another run Alex Jackson hit his fourth homer of the season to give the Saints a 9-1 lead. (108.4 mph at 25-degree angle = 412 feet.) Kaelen Culpepper led off the bottom of the fourth inning with his sixth home run (100.3 mph at 29 degrees = 365 feet.). Fedko followed immediately with his eighth home run. (101.3 mph at 29 degrees = 401 feet.) 11-1 Saints. Ben Ross (103.1 mph) led off the fifth frame with his second double of the game. He scored on a single by Jackson (103.3 mph) to give the Saints a 12-1 lead. Just three Saints batted in the bottom of the sixth. But Orlando Arcia led off the seventh inning with his fourth homer of the season. (105.9 mph at 18 degrees = 377 feet.) With two outs, Schobel knocked his second double of the game. He came around to score on Walker Jenkins' second home run of the season. (91.7 mph at 32 degrees = 328 feet.) 15-2, Saints. Following the Jenkins homer, Culpepper was hit by a pitch in the right shoulder. A fastball ran in on him, but he had already dove a bit and opened up his hips and shoulders. Hopefully he is just suffering from bruising, and it didn’t break any bones. From what it looked like, he is going to be incredibly sore tomorrow and probably for a few days. He stayed in the game to run, but after the half-inning, he was removed from the game for the final half-inning. With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Arcia knocked his second homer of the game and fifth of the season. (104.6 mph at 27 degrees = 388 feet.) Former Gopher and Minnesota native Brett Bateman led off and played center field for the I-Cubs. He went 1-for-2 with two walks. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 6, Arkansas 16 Box Score It was a rough one for the Wind Surge on Saturday night, right from the start. Jose Olivares was able to complete just one inning. He gave up two runs on three hits and a walk. He had one strikeout. He needed 34 pitches to get through the inning. With this just being his second start after rehab, there was no need to push it. Sam Ryan came on in relief. He was charged with six runs on nine hits (including a home run). William Fleming came in and gave up three runs on four hits (including a home run). Spencer Bengard struck out two batters over two scoreless innings. Alejandro Hidalgo gave up five runs on three hits (2 of them were homers). He walked three and struck out one batter. Hidalgo started the ninth and left the game with two runners on base and nobody out. Jorel Ortega came in and allowed one of the two inherited runners to score, but no more in before getting the final three outs. After two runs scored in the top of the first inning, Wichita put a four spot. With one out, Garrett Spain singled. Hendry Mendez singled, and then Billy Amick was hit by a pitch to load the bases. With two outs, Ricardo Olivar hit his sixth double which drove in two runs. Jose Salas followed with a two-run single to make it 4-2. After that, the Wind Surge offense was Jake Rucker. The infielder drilled two home runs, his first two of the season. He hit his first in the second inning. In the ninth inning, he hit his second. He went 3-for-4 in the game and also notched his fourth double. KERNELS CHRONICLE Cedar Rapids 11, West Michigan 6 Box Score The final score of this game is not really indicative of the game. Nine-run innings in the late innings often have the kind of an effect on a game. The Kernels grabbed the first lead with a second inning run. Danny De Andrade hit his first triple and scored on a Caden Kendle single to make it 1-0. Jason Doktorczyk started the game with three scoreless innings. He gave up one run in the top of the fourth. Then the Whitecaps scored five runs in the top of the fifth inning in large part due to a couple of errors. In all, he was charged with six runs (2 earned) on four hits and a walk. He had four strikeouts. Nick Trabacchi came into the inning with the bases loaded and allowed two of the three inherited runners to score. He worked a scoreless sixth inning. A Marek Houston single drove in Jay Thomason with the Kernels second run to make it 2-6 through five innings. Things were looking bleak, but remember that nine-run inning I mentioned? Well, that came in the bottom of the seventh. Andy Lugo led off with a single. Jaime Ferrer followed with his fifth home run of the season to cut the deficit in half. Marek Houston and Eduardo Tait followed with singles. Then with one out, Khadim Diaw singled to load the bases. Danny De Andrade walked to make the score 6-5. Caden Kendle lined a single up the middle to drive in Tait and tie the game. The Kernels took a 7-6 lead on a passed ball. Jay Thomason walked, which would have reloaded the bases, but on the fourth ball, a wild pitch gave the team an 8-6 lead. Jaime Ferrer came up with two on and two outs and launched his second home run of the inning to give the Kernels nine runs in the inning and an 11-6 lead. It was Ferrer’s second home run of the night. It was his third home run in two May games, and he’s hit four home runs over his past five games. The Kernels #9 hitter is currently hitting .319 with a 1.060 OPS. Yehizon Sanchez struck out four batters over two scoreless, one-hit innings to take the Win. Paulshawn Pasqualotto got the final three outs, two on strikeouts. MIGHTY MATTERS Ft. Myers 6, Daytona Beach 7 Box Score Ramiro Villanueva made his second Mussels start. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits and three walks in three innings. He struck out three batters. Reed Moring struck out two batters over two perfect innings. Harry Genth led off the top of the third inning with his fourth double. He scored on a Dameury Pena single. After a Ramiro Dominguez single, Pena scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Yasser Mercedes. That tied the game at 2-2. In the top of the fifth inning, Pena and Dominguez hit back-to-back singles. Pena scored on a Mercedes single to grab the 3-2 lead. The Mussels added another run in the top of the seventh. Mercedes knocked a one-out double, went to third on a fly ball to center field and scored on a wild pitch. Adam Falinski came in next and worked 1-2-3 innings in both the sixth and seventh innings. In the top of the eighth inning, Irvin Nunez walked and scored on Harry Genth’s first home run of the season. It gave the Mussels a 6-2 lead. Falinski went back out for the eighth inning and struck out the first batter. That was the only one he recorded. He gave up two hits and a walk. When he left the game, there were two runners on. Mitch Mueller allowed both inherited runners to score. The three runs that inning (2 earned) were charged to Falinski. Mueller did get out of that eighth inning with the Mussels hanging on to a one-run, 6-5 lead. The Mussels went 1-2-3 in the top of the ninth. Mueller came back out for the ninth inning. He gave up a single and a walk to start the inning. A passed ball moved runners to second and third with no one out. A wild pitch allowed the tying run to score, making it 6-6. However, Mueller got a ground out to first base for the first out. He hit a b after. Then he got another ground out for the second out. Could he work out of the damage? No, he threw a wild pitch, and the Tortugas topped the Mussels 7-6. All nine Mussels in the starting lineup reached base at least once by hit or walk. Yasser Mercedes led the way. He went 3-for-5 with his second double. He stole his sixth base. Genth was 2-for-3 with a walk, his first home run, and his eighth stolen base. Pena and Dominguez were both 2-for-5. Ryan Sprock, Quentin Young, and Jayson Bass each had one hit and one walk. COMPLEX CHRONICLE FCL Twins 8, FCL Red Sox 6 Box Score There weren’t a lot of highlights in this game for FCL Twins fans until their final at-bat at Bill Smith Field. Learn more about the FCL Twins roster in our FCL Twins Season Preview. RHP Cory Lewis was on the mound to start the FCL Twins season. He restarted his rehab for a second time. He had pitched on April 17th for the Mussels and went just 1/3 of an inning and gave up two hits and two walks. Saturday, he started for the FCL Twins and went 1 2/3 innings. He gave up one run on one hit and three walks. The hit was a home run. He struck out two. Omar Montano got the third out of the second inning. Last Sunday, lefty Matthew Becker tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings in the Mussels’ combined no-hitter. He was sent back to the FCL a day later. On Saturday, he made his FCL debut. He gave up four runs on three hits. In 2 2/3 innings, he walked four and had three strikeouts. Carter Holjes got four outs and gave up just one hit and walked one. Nick McAuliffe came on for the top of the seventh. He gave up one run on two hits. Jose Barrios drove in the Twins first run in the bottom of the second when he reached on an error. In the bottom of the fourth, a Barrios single drove in Merphy Hernandez with the team’s second run. Down 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth, Barrios came to the plate again and drove in Hernandez for the third time to make it 5-3. That brings us to the bottom of the seventh inning, Twins down 6-3. Teilon Serrano led off with a walk. Yovanny Duran followed with his first home run of the season which cut the deficit to 6-5. Luis Fragoza walked, stole second, and went to third on a wild pitch. Joyner Perez walked. That brought Merphy Hernandez, and he ended the game with a long, three-run homer that made it 8-6. Hernandez walked his first three plate appearances, so he was just 1-for-1 with the three-run walkoff homer. He stole a base. Barrios went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a stolen base. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Jaime Ferrer (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-4, 2-HR(6), 2 R, 5 RBI Pitcher of the Day Zebby Matthews (St. Paul): 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K, 80 pitches, 52 strikes (65.0%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 2-for-4, BB, HR(2), 2 R, 3 RBI, K, SB(5). (batted first, played RF, then CF) #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, BB, HBP, HR(6), 2 R, RBI(batted second, played SS) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - Did Not Play. #4 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) -1-for-5, R (batted second, played Catcher) #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (Minnesota) - Did Not Pitch #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, 2 K (batted fifth, played 1B, then RF) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch. #9 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, R, RBI (batted first, played 2B) #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (Minnesota) - Did Not Pitch #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-5, 2 K (batted third, played SS) #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, BB, 3 K (batted sixth, played SS). #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 0 K, 24 pitches, 15 strikes (62.5%) #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 1-for-5, R (batted third, played LF) #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 0-for-4, 2 K (batted fifth, played SS) #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch. #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, R, K (batted fourth, played CF) #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - 60 IL (right elbow sprain) UPCOMING PROBABLES Sunday: Iowa @ St. Paul (2:07 pm CT) - RHP Andrew Bash (1-2, 6.00 ERA) Arkansas @ Wichita (1:05 pm CT) - RHP C.J. Culpepper (0-1, 2.75 ERA) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (1:05 pm CT) - RHP Ivran Romero (1-0, 8.00 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Daytona (12:05 pm CT) - RHP Justin Mitrovich (professional debut) CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 14-20 St. Paul Saints: 14-17 Wichita Wind Surge: 13-13 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 13-13 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 16-10 FCL Twins: 1-0 DSL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, June 1) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article

I didn't see it anywhere today. Last season, the Twins began streaming DSL Twins games on YouTube. No announcers or sound, just the raw footage of the game. In fact, there was a DSL Twins preseason game on YouTube earlier this week. Hopefully they'll do the same thing with the FCL Twins.

Image courtesy of Seth Stohs, Twins Daily As you are reading this (on Saturday morning), the Florida Complex League (FCL) Twins players are anxiously preparing for their first official game of the season, going through their pre-game routine for their first game, playing their first game of the season, or basking in the knowledge that their 2026 season has begun. Think about it. Several of these players got to Fort Myers in January, or at least in late February when minor-league camp officially began. Players left Fort Myers for St. Paul, Wichita and Cedar Rapids a little over a month ago. These players continued their spring training work through the past month. Some of them filled in briefly for the Mussels at night. On Saturday morning, the Red Sox FCL team will travel a few miles west on Daniels Parkway. They’ll take a left on Plantation, go past the high school, and take a left into the Twins training facilities. The teams will play on Bill Smith Field. Tristan Toorie is taking over the managerial job of the FCL Twins after being a coach the last couple of seasons. He will be joined by pitching coaches Mathew Hartshorn, Ryan Meisinger, and Dan Urbina. Carter Kessinger is the rehab pitching coach, working with pitchers throughout the organization who are rehabbing in Fort Myers. The hitting coaches are Steven Cardona and Emilio Guerrero. Jairo Rodriguez is the team’s Development Coach. The long-time Twins minor league catcher has spent the past decade coaching all over in the Twins organization. The Pitchers There are 15 active pitchers on the FCL Twins roster. It is a strange, but fairly typical, group of pitchers. Five of the pitchers are 23 and older. They are recent late-round draft picks or recent minor-league signings staying ready for when they may be needed. The roster is composed of six pitchers from the Dominican Republic, five from the US, and four from Venezuela. . There are five pitchers who are under the age of 20 including two very high-end 17-year-olds. LHP: Matthew Becker (23), Yordi Jose (19). RHP: Jesse Bergin (26), Santiago Castellanos (17), Hendry Chivilli (20), Cristian Hernandez (21), Carter Holjes (24), Rainer Marin (20), Nick McAuliffe (25), Omar Montano (20), Melvin Rodriguez (20), Santiago Rojas (19), Yoel Roque (19), Brad Rudis (23), Geremy Villoria (17). Matthew Becker (23): He was the Twins 19th round pick in the 2025 draft out of the University of South Carolina. The 6-3, 215-pound lefty was signed by Ty Dawson. Last Sunday, he was promoted to the Mighty Mussels and threw 3 2/3 innings of their combined no hitter only to be sent back to the FCL the next day. Jesse Bergin(26): After three seasons at UCLA, Bergin was the 11th round pick of the Marlins. He was injured and didn’t pitch at all in 2022 or 2023. In 2024, he pitched in 25 games, most of them at Low-A Jupiter where he posted a 1.64 ERA. In 2025, he played five games at High-A and then 35 games at Double-A Pensacola. He went 2-4 with five saves and a 2.51 ERA. In 43 innings, he had 41 strikeouts and 17 walks. The Marlins released him in early March, and the Twins signed him a week to 10 days ago. Santiago Castellanos (17): Signed by Edgar Guerra on January 15, 2025, from Venezuela. In the DSL last year, he tossed 29 innings. He went 1-2 with a 2.79 ERA. He walked nine and struck out 36 batters. (He ranked #20 in my personal preseason Top 20 prospect rankings.) He was clocked Hendry Chivilli (20): Signed as a shortstop by Daniel Sanchez on January 15, 2023 from the DR. After posting sub-.600 OPS in the DSL in 2023 and the FCL in 2024, he was moved to the mound that offseason. Last year in the FCL, he went 2-0 with a 2.51 ERA. In 14 1/3 innings, he gave up eight hits, walked 10 and had 15 strikeouts. Big arm, just like his brother who pitches for the Yankees after a trade from the Rockies. Cristian Hernandez (21): Signed in January of 2023 by Manuel Luciano from the DR. He pitched in the DSL in 2023 and 2024. His 2024 season came to an end in early August with an elbow issue. He missed the entire 2025 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Carter Holjes (24): After the 6-6 right-hander pitched at UNC Wilmington for four seasons, he pitched at Florida Atlantic in 2025. He pitched for State College in the MLB Draft League last summer. He went 3-2 with a 2.17 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. In 49 2/3 innings, he walked 16 batters and struck out 72 batters. Yordi Jose (19): The 6-2 lefty signed with the Twins on July 3, 2025, out of the Dominican Republic. He tossed 8 2/3 innings over seven appearances. He gave up seven hits, five walks and struck out 11 batters. Rainer Marin (20): He signed in January of 2025 out of Venezuela by Oswaldo Troncosis. He pitched in 11 games (6 starts) for the DSL Twins last season. In 29 innings, he gave up 29 hits, walked 27 and had 27 strikeouts. Nick McAuliffe (25): What a winding road to pro ball. A native of New Jersey, he pitched at Kutztown (Pennsylvania), Mercer CC in New Jersey, the University of New Orleans, and East Stroudburg University in Pennsylvania where he pitched in 2023 and 2024. He played for summer college leagues in Pennsylvania, Texas, North Carolina and Vermont. In 2025, he pitched in two games for Sioux City in the American Association and 39 games for Evansville of the Frontier League. He signed with the Twins 10 days ago and was quickly assigned to Cedar Rapids. He pitched in one game there before returning to the FCL. Omar Montano (20): Signed out of the DR in August of 2024, he pitched one inning in just one game in the DSL Last year, he made 12 starts and threw 31 2/3 innings. He went 0-6 with a 10.80 ERA. He gave up 48 hits, walked 19 batters, hit eight batters, and threw 11 wild pitches. He had 32 strikeouts. Melvin Rodriguez (20): Signed by Manuel Luciano in January of 2024 out of the DR, Rodriguez has primarily been a starter. In 2024 in the DSL, he made eight starts and three relief appearances. He went 3-3 with a 2.72 ERA. In 46 1/3 innings, he had 48 strikeouts and just 12 walks. Last year in the FCL, he made nine starts and two relief appearances. He was 4-2 with a 3.53 ERA. In 43 1/3 innings, he had 32 strikeouts and 22 walks. Seeing his walk rate jump and his strikeout rate fall likely explains why he is returning to the FCL. Santiago Rojas (19): Alvaro Gomez signed Rojas in January of 2024 out of Venezuela. 10 of his 11 appearances in the DSL in 2024 were starts. In 40 1/3 innings, he had 41 strikeouts but 27 walks. He posted a 4.02 ERA and opponents hit .238 against him. Pitched just two innings over two games in the FCL last year before joining on the 60-Day IL with a lumbar spine fracture. Yoel Roque (19): The 6-2 Dominican right-hander was signed by Manuel Luciano in January of 2024. In 10 games (3 starts) and 24 2/3 innings in the DSL in 2024, Roque went 0-2 with a 6.93 ERA. He had 33 strikeouts, but he also walked 29 batters. He made 10 starts last year for the FCL Twins and went a total of 11 2/3 innings. He was 0-3 with a 16.97 ERA. He gave up 16 hits, walked 17, hit three, and struck out 13 batters. Brad Rudis (23): The Twins signed Rudis in early November. He had spent four years working out of the Texas A&M bullpen. He went 15-1 with three saves. Went undrafted but pitched well for Williamsport in the MLB Draft League. He made 10 starts and seven relief appearances. Geremy Villoria (17): He was signed in January 2025 out of Venezuela, the 6-2, 175 pound right-hander was the youngest pitcher in the DSL last year. He made five starts for the Phillies Red team of the DSL. In 14 innings, he had walked four and struck out 19 batters. He was traded to the Twins with Hendry Mendez in exchange for Harrison Bader. He pitched in three games and eight innings after joining the Twins. He posted a 2.25 ERA. The Hitters There are 18 hitters on the active roster. Ten from Venezuela and eight are from the Dominican Republic. The 2025 DSL Twins had a very talented group of young hitters. The Catchers All five FCL Twins catchers are from Venezuela, including three from Barquisimeto. A random fact is that there is a 17-year-old, an 18-year-old, a 19-year-old, a 20-year-old, and a 21-year-old. Daniel Pena (21), Ricardo Pena (20), Victor Leal (19), Pablo Castillo (18), and Miguel Caraballo (17). Miguel Caraballo (17): Signed by the Giants in January of 2025. Spent last season with the DSL Giants Orange squad. In 41 games, he hit .264/.432/.442 (.874) with four doubles, two triples, and five home runs. Came to the Twins in a December trade for Twins Rule 5 pick (Daniel Susac). Won’t turn 18 until the end of August. Pablo Castillo (18): Signed by Alant Moncion on January 15, 2025, from Venezuela. In 28 DSL Twins games last year, he hit .315/.474/.411(.885) with four doubles and a homer. He had 14 walks and was hit by eight pitches. Victor Leal(19): Oswaldo Troconis signed Leal out of Venezuela in January of 2024. In 2024, he played 43 games in the DSL and hit .230/.364/.333 (.697) with four doubles and three homers. Had 21 walks to 15 strikeouts. In 30 games in the FCL last year, he hit .161/.345/.161 (.507). He had 17 walks to 12 strikeouts. Daniel Pena (21): Signed in January 2022 out of Venezuela, Pena hit .304 in the DSL in 2022. He hit .278/.376/.474 (.850) with four doubles and five home runs. In 2024, he started the season injured and played in nine rehab games in the FCL (and hit .308 with a .938 OPS). He hit .195 in 36 games for Fort Myers that year as well. He spent the full 2025 season in Fort Myers. He played in 55 games and hit .199/.302/.265 (.567) with six doubles and two homers. He played quite a bit of first base the first couple of seasons as a pro, but now he has only caught since 2024. Ricardo Pena (20): Like Daniel Pena, the Twins signed Ricardo Pena on January 19, 2022 from Venezuela. He played two seasons in the DSL. In 33 games in the FCL in 2024, he hit .361/.481/.489 (.970) with eight doubles and a homer. His 2025 season began with 10 games in the FCL before a late-May promotion to the Mussels. He played in 12 games (and hit .150) before going on the Injured List with a back impingement. The Infielders Yilber Herrera (21), Daiber De Los Santos (19), Haritzon Castillo (18), Jose Barrios (18), Darwin Almanzar (18). Darwin Almanzar (18): Signed by Manuel Luciano on January 15, 2025 from the DR. In 44 games last year in the DSL, he hit .252/347/.496 (.843) with 17 doubles, a triple, and six home runs. His 17 doubles led the DSL. He led the DSL in doubles, homers and RBI (41). Jose Barrios (18): Signed by Oswaldo Troconis on January 15, 2025, from Venezuela. In the DSL last year, he hit .254/.352/.361 (.713). In 37 games, he had three doubles, two triples, and two home runs. Haritzon Castillo (18): Signed in January 2025 by Marlon Nava from Venezuela. In 39 DSL games last year, he hit .283/.395/.428 (.823) with eight doubles, three triples and two homers. He was 12-for-15 in stolen base attempts. He also had 24 walks to 22 strikeouts. Lone Twins representative in the DSL Mid-Season All Star game. Daiber De Los Santos (19): Signed in January 2024 by Luis Lajara from the DR. Ended 2024 in the DSL strong, hitting .301/.384/.460 (.844) with 11 doubles, a triple, five homers and even 17 stolen bases. In 48 FCL games last year, he hit .167/.296/.333 (.629) with 10 doubles, two triples, and four homers. Stole 15 bases. Struck out so much (89 in 180 PA).Season ended early due to a torn left labrum tear. Yilber Herrera(21): The infielder signed by Fred Guerrero in January of 2022 from the DR. He spent two seasons in the DSL. He played the last two seasons in the FCL. After hitting .226 (.737) with three doubles, a triple and two homers in 2024, he hit just .128 (.611) with two doubles and two homers in 39 games. That rough season is surprising as he had 30 walks to 28 strikeouts. He played 10 games for Fort Myers in 2025. He has hit .179 with a .395 on-base percentage over 13 games with the Mussels this season. The Outfielders There are eight players listed as outfielders on the roster. None of them will be 20 until just before Halloween. OF: Ricardo Paez (19), Merphy Hernandez (19), Luis Fragoza (19), Yovanny Duran (18), Jhomnardo Reyes (18), Joyner Perez (17), Teilon Serrano (17), Carlos Taveras (17). Yovanny Duran (18): Signed on January 15, 2025, by Edgar Guerra out of Venezuela. In 46 DSL games last year, he hit .296/.452/.382 (.834) with seven doubles and three triples. Had 39 walks (to 30 strikeouts) and stole 31 bases, both of which led the DSL Twins. Luis Fragoza (19): Signed in January 2024 out of Venezuela by Edgar Guerra. That summer, he hit .259/.439/.345 (.784) with five doubles, a triple and a homer in 41 DSL games. Last year, he played in 49 games for the FCL Twins and hit .217/.349/.297(.646) with eight doubles and one home run. He has been hit by 28 pitches as a pro. 14-for-17 in steal attempts in 2025. Merphy Hernandez (19): Luis Lajara signed the lefty outfielder in January of 2024 from the DR. In 48 games in the DSL in 2024, he hit .276/.389/.417 (.806) with four doubles, six triples, and two homers. He was also 36-for-38 in steal attempts. Last year, he was limited to just 16 games in the FCL. He hit .163 with two doubles and a triple. He stole eight bases. Ricardo Paez (19): Signed by Marlon Nava out of Venezuela in January of 2024, Paez debuted in the DSL in 2024. In 36 games, he hit .263/.388/.424 (.812) with four doubles, three triples and two homers. Last year in the FCL, he played in 39 games. He hit .242/.398/.295 (.693) with three doubles and a triple. Joyner Perez (17): Daniel Sanchez signed the burly slugger out of the DR in January of 2025. In 25 games in the DSL, he hit .313/.457/494 (.951) with six doubles and three homers. He had more walks (18) than strikeouts (17). Led the DSL Twins in OPS. His batting average and on-base percentage were second on the team. Jhomnardo Reyes (18): Signed by Manuel Luciano on January 15, 2025, from the DR. In 50 games in the DSL last year, he hit .291/.386/.469 (.855) with 10 doubles, nine triples, and a home run. Reyes stands 6-3 and is about 185 pounds. He runs well. Lots of swing-and-miss. Teilon Serrano (17): Serrano was expected to sign with the Dodgers, but LA backed out of the deal and the Twins jumped in. Roman Barinas signed Serrano out of the Dominican on January 15, 2025. He played in 41 games for the DSL Twins last year. He hit .258/.386/.426 (.812) with seven doubles, two triples, and five homers. He had 21 stolen bases in 26 attempts. Carlos Taveras (17): Signed by Daniel Sanchez in February of 2025 out of the Dominican Republic. In 18 games last year in the DSL, he hit .246/.389/.438 (.827) with three doubles, a triple, and two homers. Unfortunately, in early July he had surgery to repair a left knee medial meniscus injury. INJURED IF Santiago Leon (17): Leon was signed by Edgar Guerra out of Venezuela on January 15th, 2026. Last year in the DSL, he hit .223/.391/.313 (.704) with eight doubles, two triples and a home run. He stole 11 bases in 18 attempts. He had 39 walks and 39 strikeouts. He is the son of long-time Twins scout Jose Leon. The younger Leon will spend the 2026 season on the Full Seaason Injured List. RHP Anderson Ramos (20): Signed in March of 2024 from the Dominican Republic. That year in the DSL, he pitched 30 2/3 innings over 12 games. He went 5-3 with a 5.58 ERA. He had 33 strikeouts and 16 walks. Last year, he worked 28 1/3 innings over 17 games. He was 3-3 with six saves and a 3.81 ERA. Opponents hit just .153 off of him, and he had 38 strikeouts (with 17 walks. He is also on the Full Season Injured List. RHP Rey Pacheco (19), The Twins signed the 5-9 right-hander from Mexico in late May of 2025. Despite the late signing, he worked 33 innings over 16 games. He was 5-2 with a save. He had just seven walks to 31 strikeouts. However, he begins the season on the 60-Day Injured List. View full article

Image courtesy of Malamut Photography (photo of Khadim Diaw) Happy Opening Day in the Florida Complex League!! TRANSACTIONS Fort Myers announced before their Friday night game that Eduardo Beltre has been shifted from the 7-Day IL to the Full-Season Injured List with his knee injury. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 5, Iowa 6 Box Score The Saints went with an opener again on Friday night. John Brebbia gave up two runs on two hits and three walks over 1 1/3 innings. Kendry Rojas gave up an inherited run and two runs of his own on four hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. He had three strikeouts. Trent Baker gave up two runs on four hits over 2 1/3 innings. Grant Hartwig and Christian Roa each tossed a scoreless inning in relief. Down 1-0, the Saints tied it up in the bottom of the first frame. Walker Jenkins led off with a double. He advanced to third on a Kaelen Culpepper fly out to right and scored on an Emmanuel Rodriguez sacrifice fly. Down 2-1 going to the bottom of the third inning, Noah Cardenas led off with a walk. Jenkins hit a ground-rule double. Culpepper followed with another ground rule double to score both runners and give the Saints the 3-2 lead. After an Emmanuel Rodriguez walk and a fly out, Culpepper scored on a Kyler Fedko force out. In the fourth inning, Cardenas started with a double, and Walker Jenkins doubled for the third time in the game to give the Saints a 5-2 lead. Jenkins went 3-for-5 and doubled his doubles total from three to six. Culpepper went 2-for-4 with a walk and his fifth double. Emmanuel Rodriguez left the game in the fifth inning. He had grounded out to first base. Jonathon Long flipped to the pitcher for the out. Unfortunately, Rodriguez dove headfirst into first base and hurt his thumb. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 1, Arkansas 5 Box Score The Wind Surge had the, umm, opportunity to face lefty Kade Anderson again on Friday night. The last time they faced the Mariners top pitching prospect, the #3 overall choice in last summer’s MLB Draft out of LSU, was on April 10th. In that game, Anderson tossed five scoreless innings and had 11 strikeouts. On this night, the southpaw threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings and notched eight strikeouts. But the Wind Surge managed four hits. Overall, Anderson has made five starts. He’s 2-0 with a 0.37 ERA and a 0.70 WHIP. In 24 1/3 innings, he’s given up one run on 13 hits and four walks. Ty Langenberg started for Wichita. He gave up three runs on four hits and two walks. He had six strikeouts. Ricky Castro came on next and gave up one run on two hits over the next two innings. Jaylen Nowlin worked two innings and gave up one run on no hits but two walks. He had three strikeouts. Jake Rucker went 2-for-3 with two doubles, both against Anderson. Billy Amick went 1-for-3 with a walk. The Wind Surge didn’t get on the board until the bottom of the ninth inning when Ricardo Olivar hit his sixth home run of the season. KERNELS CHRONICLE Cedar Rapids 8, West Michigan 4 Box Score The Two’s were wild for Khadim Diaw and the Kernels on Friday night. Cedar Rapids scored two runs in the home half of the first, second, third, and sixth innings. The bottom of the first began with walks by Marek Houston and Khadim Diaw. Brandon Winokur singled to center to drive in Houston and tie the game at one. Diaw scored the second run on a ground out off the bat of Danny De Andrade. With two outs in the second inning, Jaime Ferrer and Marek Houston hit back-to-back singles. Diaw followed with his third double of the season to drive in both runners and make it 4-1. In the bottom of the third, Jay Thomason knocked his third home run of the season, a two-run blast to make it 6-2. West Michigan cut the lead in half at 6-3. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Rayne Doncon led off with a walk. Ferrer followed with his fourth homer to make it 8-3. Michael Ross started and gave up one run on two hits in four innings. He walked two and had three strikeouts. Sam Rochard gave up two runs on two hits and a walk in his inning. Christian Becerra struck out four batters over two scoreless innings. Jacob Wosinski struck out three batters over the final two innings. How good has Khadim Diaw been of late? Wednesday: 4-for-4, 2B, R, RBI. Thursday: 2-for-2, 2 BB, R Friday: 2-for-2, 2 BB, 2B, R, 2 RBI When they were taking batting practice before Wednesday’s game, Diaw was hitting .192/.352/.247 (.599). Three games later, he is now hitting .272/.427/.346 (773). MIGHTY MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Daytona Beach 5 Box Score The Mussels had 20 less runs on Friday than they did on Thursday. Just a short sentence to remind us all how crazy the Mussels 24-run game on Thursday really was. The Torgugas took a 3-0 lead in the second inning. The Mussels got on the scoreboard in the top of the fifth. With two outs, Yasser Mercedes singled. After a pitching change, Ramiro Dominguez singled Mercedes to second. Ryan Sprock drove in the run with a single to right. Down 4-3 going into the seventh inning, Dameury Pena and Bruin Agbayani started the inning with singles. With two outs, the runners had advanced to second and third base. Ryan Sprock came to the plate and drilled his first home run of the season. The three-run blast tied the game at 4-4. Merit Jones started and gave up three runs (2 earned) on seven hits. In four innings, he walked one and struck out one. Michael Hilker gave up an unearned run over two innings. He had three strikeouts. Matthew DesMarets gave up two hits but no runs in the seventh inning. Mike McKenna pitched a scoreless eighth inning. He began the ninth, but before getting an out, the bases were loaded. Brian Zeldin came on and gave up a single to end the game. Sprock led the offense, going 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBI. Mercedes and Dominguez each had two hits. Dominguez added his sixth double. Bruin Agbayani went 1-for-3 with two walks. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Walker Jenkins (St. Paul): 3-for-5, 3-2B(6), 2 R, RBI, 2 K Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-2, 2 BB, 2B(3), R, 2 RBI. Ryan Sprock (Ft. Myers): 2-for-4, HR(1), R, 4 RBI. Pitcher of the Day Christian Becerra (Cedar Rapids): 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 28 pitches, 21 strikes (75.0%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 3-for-5, 3-2B(6), 2 R, RBI, 2 K. (batted first, played CF) #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 2-for-4, BB, 2B(5), R, 2 RBI (batted second, played 3B) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-for-1, BB, SF RBI (Batted third, played RF). #4 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Play. #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (Minnesota) - Did Not Pitch #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, 2 K (batted fourth, played DH) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - 3 1/3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 65 pitches, 44 strikes (67.7%) #9 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, BB, 2 R (batted leadoff, played SS) #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (Minnesota) - Did Not Pitch #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, BB, RBI (batted third, played CF) #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play. #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch. #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - Did Not Play. #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 0-for-4, 3 K (batted fifth, played SS) #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch. #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-2, 2 BB, 2B(3), R, 2 RBI, SB(2) (batted second, played C) #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - 60 IL (right elbow sprain) UPCOMING PROBABLES Saturday: Iowa @ St. Paul (6:37 pm CT) - RHP Zebby Matthews (1-2, 5.91 ERA) Arkansas @ Wichita (6:35 pm CT) - RHP Jose Olivares (0-0, 0.00 ERA) West Michigan @ Cedar Rapids (6:05 pm CT) - RHP Jason Doktorczyk (2-3, 10.57 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Daytona (5:35 pm CT) - TBD FCL Red Sox @ FCL Twins (9:00 am CT) - TBD CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 14-19 St. Paul Saints: 13-17 Wichita Wind Surge: 13-12 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 12-13 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 16-9 FCL Twins: 0-0 (Opening Day!) DSL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, June 1) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View full article