Seth Stohs

That is not necessarily true at all. He might, but there is no way to know how he'd do in his first month in the big leagues, anything good or bad can happen in the small sample of 4-6 weeks. He has the talent offensively to be one of the best hitters in Twins history in his career.

The biggest topic of conversation among Twins fans involves when we will get to see Walker Jenkins in a Twins uniform. It's a fair question, and it's a good question. There are certainly arguments to be made on both sides of that argument. Jenkins made his 2026 Saints debut in late June after starting the season on the Injured List. Certainly, it was understandable to ease him back into the lineup. He has remained healthy for about two months now. In August, he has played in 13 games. He has eight multi-hit games this month. Twice this month, Jenkins has hit two homers in a game. At the end of July, he was hitting a solid .268/.377/.432 (.809). After yesterday's game, Jenkins is now hitting .295/.392/.500 (.892). A 20-year-old at AAA with an OPS of .800 is very exciting, a top 10 global prospect. A 20-year-old at AAA with nearly a .900 OPS is a guy to consider calling up. Of course, the assumption these is that he will play most every day. That's the difference between Jenkins situation and the Kaelen Culpepper situation. Culpepper came back from injury, started hitting again, and was called up? Why? Ryan Kreidler is a tremendous defensive shortstop, and he did an adequate job at the plate (even pretty good early in the season). But clearly there was a huge potential upgrade in going from Kreidler to Culpepper and the time was right. In my mind, Trevor Larnach should be in left field most days with Byron Buxton in center field most days. In right field are Luke Keaschall and Alan Roden. And this is after Austin Martin got hurt. For me, the key to whether or not to call up Walker Jenkins is how much playing time he'll get. Like Culpepper, Jenkins would need to play at least four to five games per week. It doesn't have to be an everyday thing. There are benefits and learning opportunities from being in the big leagues. But he needs to play at least two out of every three games in a series. Also, will Derek Shelton play him against left-handed pitching? Will he pinch hit for him against lefties late in games? Keaschall's been tremendous offensively for two months but certainly isn't a natural outfielder. So, Jenkins should get a bunch of time in right field. He should play one or two games per week in center field which would allow Buxton to DH or get a couple of days off. And, if the Twins are serious about being a playoff team, is calling up Jenkins the right move? Matt Wallner has again put up big numbers in St. Paul, and he's had plenty of exciting moments in the big leagues where he has carried the offense for extended periods. And what about Emmanuel Rodriguez? He is finally back with the Saints, and healthy, and like Jenkins, he hit two home runs in the team's doubleheader. "E-man" will be out of options (most likely) next year and the Twins would certainly like to get him some big-league time before next year too. While not a Top 20 prospect globally, Rodriguez has been at Top 50 global prospect most of the past four seasons. And I don't want to overplay it as I don't think it's a huge priority, but if there is a work stoppage in 2027 (likely), Jenkins could still play in the minor leagues if he's not on the 40-man roster. While there could be something to that, the Twins have already called up Culpepper. The Tigers called up fellow 2023 draft pick Max Clark, and just this weekend, the Mariners are calling up Kade Anderson. Likewise, the idea of holding him back to Rookie of the Year consideration next year or even getting an extra draft pick potentially for having him up from opening day 2027, aren't a consideration if the Twins believe that he can help them get to the playoffs and perform there. Two or three weeks ago, I didn't think that anything was saying that Jenkins was a Must Call Up. Ten days ago, or so when it became more of a topic, I still kept thinking that there are plenty of legitimate reasons to hold back a little more. How do the Twins and their front office feel about this situation? I feel pretty confident in saying that Jeremy Zoll, the assistant GMs, minor league coaches, and player development would be pretty consistent in their opinion. They are thrilled that Jenkins is making the decisions incredibly difficult for them. They're likely thrilled that Rodriguez is back, playing most every day, healthy and now performing. They're presumably happy that Matt Wallner has continued to provide power for the Saints. Tough decisions and depth are a good thing. Like Jenkins, Gabriel Gonzalez hit two homers on Thursday, and he's right-handed. I think we can all agree that we wouldn't want any of these players called up to sit on the bench, maybe play once a week, and do some pinch runner or be a late-inning defensive replacement. Right? Jenkins will come up, sometime. And we think he'll be really good. He could come up and be a difference maker for the Twins, or he could struggle immensely, as could other options and current options. For now, he just keeps raking in St. Paul and adding some power in the past month that he really hasn't shown previous to this month. I'd make sure he's getting some time in the corner outfield spots. And at the same time, I'd probably want to reach out to Jenkins' agent, Scott Boras, with the idea of calling him up as soon as he signs a contract that will keep him in a Twins uniform for the next eight-to-10 years. I mean, legally, of course. You've seen several articles making the case for calling up Walker Jenkins or not. Good cases have been and can be made on both sides. Now make your case for what you would do in this situation? Call him up? Keep him in St. Paul? If called up, how much would he need to play, or are you OK with him being a bench player? Which position will he play? Who would lose playing time to him? Discuss.

Image courtesy of Charisma Jones (photo of Brandon WInokur) TRANSACTIONS With the DSL season now complete, the Twins have released infielder Luis Suarez and RHPs Failin Placencio and Wisarly Reinoso. The Twins signed RHP Jui-Chieh Lin out of Taiwan about six weeks ago. On Thursday, he was placed on the Fort Myers roster. SAINTS SENTINEL Game 1: St. Paul 10, Iowa 2 (Completion of Suspended Game) Box Score On Wednesday night, the game began a bit late due to rain. When they started, Walker Jenkins drilled a leadoff home run beyond the wall in center field. An inning later, Tristan Gray launched a home run to make it 2–0. Ricky Castro started the game and when the rains came, he had tossed 2 1/3 scoreless, hitless innings. The good? He had five strikeouts. The less-than good? He also walked four batters. Then in the bottom of the third, the rains came again, and the game was suspended. That’s where the game started on Thursday. When the game resumed on Thursday, Trent Baker took the mound. He gave up two solo homers, but he struck out eight batters over 4 1/3 innings. Eric Orze and Marco Raya combined for the final seven outs without allowing a base runner. They combined for three strikeouts, and Raya had three strikeouts. The Saints batters just kept adding on. They scored two runs in four of their final five innings to take a commanding lead and the win. All eight additional runs came on homers as well. In the fifth inning, David Banuelos knocked a two-out single. Jenkins followed with his second home run of the game. The top of the sixth inning began with homers by Gabriel Gonzalez and Tristan Gray, his second of the game. In the top of the eighth, Emmanuel Rodriguez walked, and Gonzalez knocked his second homer of the day. In the top of the ninth inning, Kala’i Rosario was hit by a pitch. Emmanuel Rodriguez followed with another two-run homer to give them a 10-2 lead. Gonzalez was 3-for-4 with a walk and his 14th and 15th home runs. Jenkins was 2-for-4 with a walk and his eighth and ninth home runs. Gray went 2-for-5 with his first two Saints home runs. Rodriguez hit his seventh home run and had a walk. Matt Wallner hit his 11th double and had a walk. Game 2: St. Paul 8, Columbus 6 (Regularly Scheduled Game) Box Score The Saints completed the sweep thanks to a big, four-run sixth inning to put themselves 20-games over .500. With two outs in the top of the second, Tanner Schobel walked. Noah Cardenas kept the day’s theme going by launching a two-run homer to give the Saints the first runs of the game. In the top of the third inning, Matt Wallner hit his franchise-record 23rd home run of the season. The shortened game was basically a bullpen game for the Saints. Jack Anderson started and went three innings. He gave up five runs on seven hits and a walk. He struck out three batters. Garrett Acton came on and gave up just one hit over two scoreless innings. He also struck out three batters. In the top of the fifth inning, the Saints did something unusual. With two outs, Gabriel Gonzalez walked. He then scored on a Matt Wallner double. After 11 runs scored on home runs, the team finally found another way to score. Down 5-4 going to the sixth inning, Kala’i Rosario led off with a game-tying home run. Tanner Schobel singled and Ben Ross walked before Emmanuel Rodriguez hit a three-run homer that gave the Saints an 8-5 lead. Julian Merryweather gave up one run on two hits over the final two innings to record his fifth save since coming back from injury. He had five strikeouts. Wallner went 2-for-3 with a walk, his 12th double and 23rd homer. Rosario went 2-for-4 with his first AAA double and his third Saints homer. Rodriguez’s homer was his eight with the Saints. He also walked. Cardenas homered for the 11th time this season. Ross walked twice, and Schobel had a single and a walk. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 8, Frisco 4 Box Score The Wind Surge had the opportunity to face a rehabbing-Jack Leiter on Thursday night. The Surge grabbed a four-run lead in the top of the third. With one out, Jaime Ferrer reached on an error. Marek Houston walked. Jake Rucker hit his ninth double to drive in two runs. Brandon Winokur followed with a homer to make it 4-0. In the fourth inning, Andrew Cossetti walked before Leiter was removed from the game. Kyle DeBarge and Jay Thomason singled to load the baseball. Houston came up and drove in two runs with a single to make it 6-1. Preston Johnson started and gave up two runs on two hits (both solo homers) over four innings. He walked one and had five strikeouts. Hunter Gregory gave up two runs on two walks in his inning. Through five innings, the Surge lead was down to 6-4. In the top of the sixth, Cossetti led off with a single. DeBarge walked. Jay Thomason singled to drive in Cossetti with the team’s seventh run. DeBarge scored on a double play to make it 8-4. Cory Lewis came in and shut the door. He gave up three hits over four shutout innings. He walked none and had four strikeouts. Brandon Winokur went 2-for-5 with his second triple and seventh Wichita home run. Cossettie, DeBarge and Thomason each went 2-for-3 with a walk. Marek Houston was 1-for-3 with two walks. He also stole his 24th and 25th bases. KERNEL NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Beloit 2 Box Score The Kernels grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the third? How? Well, with one out Danny De Andrade was one third base, and Byron Chourio was on second base. Yasser Mercedes flew out to right field, deep enough that De Andrade scored. But it was close because a strong throw from right field was cut off by the first baseman who threw across the diamond to third base where a sliding Chourio was called out. However, De Andrade scored before the tag at third, so the team had a 1-0 lead. Adrian Bohorquez is on a roll!! The righty gave up one run on one hit (a solo home run) over five innings. He walked two and had seven strikeouts. Merit Jones came on and gave up one run on four hits over three runs. He struck out two batters. The Kernels had four hits and five walks. They were 0-for-5 with five runners left in scoring position. There were no multi-hit games or extra base hits. De Andrade had a single and a walk. JP Smith walked twice. Yasser Mercedes stole his 35th base with the Kernels. MIGHTY MATTERS Fort Myers 8, Palm Beach 1 Box Score Cristian Hernandez gave up one run on one hit over four innings. He hit two batters and had three strikeouts. Jake Covey struck out five batters over three shutout innings. He gave up one hit and walked one batter. Hendry Chivilli struck out two over two scoreless, one-hit innings. In the top of the second inning, Isaiah Lane (who, along with Colby Turner have been the top performers among the Twins 2026 draft picks) went to the opposite field for his first professional home run. In the fifth inning, Bryce Fowler and Hideki Prather reached base. Murphy Hernandez drilled his fourth home run of the season to give the Mussels a 4-1 lead. With two outs in the sixth, Jimmy Keenan and Bryce Fowler singled before Hideki Prather was hit by a pitch to lead the bases. That brought Hernandez to the plate. He lined a single to center to drive in two more runs and give his team a 6-1 lead. The Mussels added two more in the top of the ninth, Ramiro Dominguez and Yovanny Duran walked. Lane singled to drive in Dominguez, and then Lane stole second base. A throwing error allowed Duran to score the eighth run. Hernandez went 2-for-5 with his fourth homer and five RBI. Lane was 2-for-5 with his first pro homer and his third stolen base. Fowler was 2-for-2 with two walks. The Mussels combined for 16 strikeouts in the game. You don’t want to look at Quentin Young’s performance on Thursday. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter(s) of the Day Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 3-for-4. BB, 2-HR(15), 2 R, 3 RBI; Brandon Winokur (Wichita): 2-for-5, 3B(2), HR(7), R, 2 RBI. Merphy Hernandez (Fort Myers): 2-for-5, HR(4), R, 5 RBI. Pitcher(s) of the Day Cory Lewis (Wichita): 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K Adrian Bohorquez (Cedar Rapids): 5 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects. See how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - Game 1: 2-for-4, BB, 2 HR(9), 2 R, 3 RBI, K (batted first, played CF). #4 - SS Marek Houston (Wichita) - 1-for-3, 2 BB, R, 2 RBI, 2 SB(25) (batted first, played SS) #6 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - Game 1: 1-for-4, BB, HR(7), 2 R, 3 RBI (batted fifth, DHd); Game 2: 1-for-3, BB, HR(8), R, 3 RBI, 2 K (batted second, played CF) #7 - OF Hendry Mendez (St. Paul) - Game 2: 0-for-4 (batted fifth, played LF) #8 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2 K (batted second, played Catcher) #9 - 1B/OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - Game 1: 3-for-4, BB, 2 HR(15), 2 R, 3 RBI (batted sixth, played LF/1B); Game 2: 0-for-3, BB, R #12 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Wichita) - 2-for-5, 3B(2), HR(7), R, 2 RBI (batted third, played CF) #18 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-5, 5 K (batted sixth, played DH) #19 - OF Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, SF RBI, 2 K (batted first, played CF) UPCOMING PROBABLES Friday, August 21 St. Paul @ Columbus (6:05 pm CT) - LHP Kendry Rojas (2-0, 3.27 ERA) Wichita @ Frisco (6:05 pm CT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (1-4, 3.64 ERA) Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids (1:05 pm CT) - RHP Justin Mitrovich (2-1, 2.38 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Palm Beach (5:30 pm CT) - TBD CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 63-65 St. Paul Saints: 71-51 Wichita Wind Surge: 48-67 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 44-71 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 63-52 FCL Twins: 33-26 (Season Complete) DSL Twins: 19-35 (Season Complete) 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

45th!!! Wasn't he just playing in the American Legion World Series?!?!? :)

One September call up is likely to be an activated Austin Martin. Mendez has had a nice showing in 2026 in St. Paul. Wallner certainly is more deserving of the roster spot. They can certainly argue that they need to see and spend more time with E-Rod The other one will be a pitcher. It could be Joe Ryan, and if he's back before then, he could be whoever gets sent down when he's activated. I miss the days of calling up as many as they want. Teams would do a third catcher, a utility infielder, an extra outfielder and several relievers. You could add 1-2 good human interest stories. Those were the days.

He was part of the international signing class that included guys like Daiber De Los Santos and Eduardo Beltre. I think those were the two that got 7-digit signing bonuses. Merphy Hernandez was in that same class too.

Image courtesy of William Parmeter (photo of Colby Turner) TRANSACTIONS Three straight days with no transactions in the organization. Hard to believe. I would expect we will hear a few interesting transactions on Monday. We know that Catcher Alex Jackson has been outrighted to St. Paul. I believe that he has the choice to go to St. Paul or become a free agent. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 2, Iowa 1 Box Score Starting Pitcher: German Marquez: 4 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 57 pitches, 33 strikes Multi-Hit Games: None. HR: Matt Wallner (22) Veteran German Marquez made his first start in the Twins organization. He started with three zeroes before giving up a run in the fourth inning. Matt Wallner provided the offense. He drove in a run on a ground out in the first inning. Then when he came to bat in the fourth inning, he launched a long home run, tying the franchise-record 22nd home run of the season. The Saints bullpen was incredible. Aaron Rozek walked three and struck out three over three scoreless innings. Garrett Acton walked one and struck one batter out over a scoreless, hitless inning. Marco Ray came on for the ninth inning. He gave up two hits, walked a batter and struck out one batter, but he kept the Cubs from scoring to earn his third Saints save. Walker Jenkins and Ben Ross each went 1-for-3 with a walk. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 2, Corpus Christi 5 Box Score Starting Pitcher: Ty Langenberg: 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 55 pitches, 37 strikes Multi-Hit Games: Caden Kendle (2-for-3, BB, 2B, RBI, K) 2B: Caden Kendle (9) The Wind Surge got on the scoreboard first in the second inning when Jaime Ferrer singled to drive in Garrett Spain. In the third inning, Jorel Ortega scored on Kendle’s ninth Surge double. However, the Hooks scored five runs over the next two innings and held on for the win. Hunter Gregory came into a 2-2 game in the fifth inning. He was charged with three unearned runs in the inning. Spencer Bengard gave up one hit over two scoreless innings. Jacob Webb and Kyle Bischoff each threw a shutout inning with two strikeouts. KERNEL NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 1, Wisconsin 5 Box Score Starting Pitcher: Kolten Smith: 2/3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 9 pitches, 7 strikes (77.8%) Multi-Hit Games: JP Smith (2-for-3, BB) 2B: Quinn McDaniel (8) HR: Danny De Andrade (12) Joey Chestnut was in Cedar Rapids on Sunday afternoon. Following the game, he dominated local media personalities with his ability to eat kolaches. The Rattlers jumped out to an early 4-0 lead and held on to it throughout the game. The Kernels scored one in the ninth, but that clearly wasn’t enough. Ivran Romero came into the game after Smith departed. He went two innings and gave up two runs on four hits and a walk. Yehizon Sanchez was next. He gave up two runs on two hits and four walks over 2 1/3 innings. He had four strikeouts. Mike McKenna gave up a hit and walked two batters over two scoreless innings. He struck out three batters. At that point, the Kernels were out of pitchers. Quinn McDaniel came into the game to start the eighth inning. That inning started with three consecutive walks to load the bases. However, he responded by getting an infield pop-out and a double play groundout to end the inning. He gave up one run in the ninth inning. His final line was two innings, one hit, one run, five walks, and no strikeouts. And I’m thinking his teammates and coaching staff were thrilled with that. Danny De Andrade hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth to avoid a shutout. MIGHTY MATTERS Fort Myers 9, Clearwater 4 Box Score Starting Pitcher: Callan Fang: 4+ IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 75 pitches, 47 strikes (62.7%) Multi-Hit Games: Colby Turner (3-for-5, R, 4 RBI), Bryce Fowler (2-for-4, HBP, RBI), Hideki Prather (2-for-4, 2B, 2 R) 2B: Luis Fragoza (18), Quentin Young (12), Hideki Prather (1) Merphy Hernandez led off the home half of the first inning by being hit by a pitch. He stole second and went to third on a Colby Turner single. Hernandez scored on a balk. Turner went to third on a wild pitch. Fragoza walked. A successful double-steal saw Turner score to make it 2-1. Isaiah Lane walked. Aidan Teel drove in Fragoza with a single. Lane was caught stealing home. With two outs, Fowler drove in the fourth run, Teel, with a single. Fang gave up single runs in the first and third innings. He completed four innings. He faced three batters in the fifth inning without getting an out. He left with two runners on base and Jake Covey allowed one of the runners to score, but he got out of the fifth inning with the Mussels still leading 7-4. Covey tossed four scoreless relief innings to earn the win. Hendry Chivilli worked a scoreless ninth inning. The Mussels scored their nine runs on 12 hits, seven walks, and three hit batters. They added another eight stolen bases to their league-leading total. Along with the three who had multi-hit games, Luis Fragoza was 1-for-2 with two walks. Isaiah Lane walked twice. Teel, Young, and Charlie Scholvin each had one hit and one walk. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter(s) of the Day Colby Turner (Fort Myers): 3-for-5, R, 4 RBI. Pitcher(s) of the Day Jake Covey (Fort Myers): 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 K, PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects. See how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, BB (batted first, played CF) #3 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (Minnesota) - 2-for-4, 2B(1), K (batted ninth, played SS) #4 - SS Marek Houston (Wichita) - 1-for-3, SH, CS(6), 2 E, (batted first, played SS) #6 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, 2K (batted third, played LF) #17 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - 60 Day Injured List (right elbow sprain) #18 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - 1-for-4, BB, 2B(12), RBI (batted sixth, played DH) #19 - OF Yasser Mercedes (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, K, (batted first, played CF) UPCOMING PROBABLES Monday, August 17 DSL Twins @ DSL Marlins (10:00 am CT) CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 60-65 St. Paul Saints: 69-50 Wichita Wind Surge: 45-67 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 44-68 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 62-50 FCL Twins: 33-26 DSL Twins: 17-34 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 can't imagine bringing Rodriguez up at this point. He's had like 4 games at St. Paul after not having a great rehab. Give him another week of health and some production and then let him take Roden's spot, playing right field against right-handers and giving Buxton a day out of CF here and there. I'm find with Jenkins coming up as long as he'll pay 4-6 games per week. He did play a second game in left field this week. What's the move? Play him in LF every day? Larnach DH most every day? Caratini strictly a backup catcher. C: Jeffers, Caratini 1B: Lewis, Caratini 2B: Clemens, Kreidler 3B: Lee, Kreidler s SS: Culpepper, Kreidler LF: Larnach, Martin CF: Buxton/Kreidler/Keaschall RF: Roden/Keaschall DH: Bell/Larnach

Yes, they do that well. Caleb Durbin and Isaac Collins were top 3 in Rookie of the Year voting last year, and they traded both of them.

Such a great question, and something I've thought about a little bit, but it's likely a little bit of everything. International signings have been a huge part of it when you consider Chourio, Lara. They've been really good in trades. That William Contreras deal was amazing. Willie Adames was a great acquisition. They've drafted well, including taking a lot of high school kids and being very creative. The interesting long-term contracts for Chourio, Pratt, Lara. They have like 9 Top 100 worthy prospects... Andrew Fischer, their top pick in the 2025 draft, has 37 home runs this year between High-A and Double-A... and he's NOT in a top 100 list. They traded Corbin Burnes at the right time. They traded Freddy Peralta at the right time. They didn't even get back big returns for them, but they got out from under some big, long-term contracts. Signing flyers like Trevor Megill and turning him into an All Star is great. (The Twins kinda started that trend). Turning Aaron Ashby from a soft-throwing lefty starter to a late-inning reliever who touches triple digits. They also play really good defense. Gold Glove talent all around the outfield. Turang is tremendous. They don't hit for a ton of power, but they put together terrific at-bats. It'd be interesting to put this into a chart or something and compare to the Twins or other teams.

Yeah, he can play all three outfield spots. He's got good speed, not a burner. He's got a good arm. He's probably immensely underrated. He was a 5th round pick. It's not like he was a signing out of an indy league or something. There's a lot of talent there. Same thing with Ben Ross. We forget that he was also a 5th round pick.

Just trying to keep you all on your toes... I spend WAY too much time on these reports. Uggh!

Love it. I really think they're just trying to extend him just a little bit. They're really going to need some innings down the stretch.