Twins: Minor League Monday (4/18)
WELCOME TO THE FIRST MINOR LEAGUE REPORT OF THE 2022 MLB SEASON.
This season, you can expect the reports to come out on Mondays. This way we can call them “Minor League Monday.” Yes, maybe that’s a reach, but it has a better ring to it over Tuesday. It was hard to exclude some of the players from the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, as they’re playing at a high level. The St. Paul Saints were no-hit on April 13, but we’ll blame that on early-season jitters.
Simeon Woods Richardson took the mound for the Wichita Wind Surge this week and looked great. Plus, the Cedar Rapids Kernels had some solid performances from their pitchers and hitters.
Top Performers:
AAA
Royce Lewis, #1, SS
5 Games, .412 BA (7/17), 3 RBI, 3 SO
How refreshing is it to see Royce Lewis play baseball again? The Twins’ former No. 1 overall pick has missed the last two years due to COVID-19 and a torn ACL. This week he mashed at the plate and showed off some incredible defensive plays.
Cole Sands, #17, SP
1 Games, 0-1, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1.80 ERA, 1 BB, 5 SO
- Cole Sands will be pitching for the Twins before you know it. He’s been on many fans’ radars for quite some time now, and for good reason. In his lone start, he did pick up the loss on April 13, but he only surrendered one run in five innings.
AA
Louie Varland, #15, SP
1 Game, 1-0, 5.2 IP, 2 H, 0.00 ERA, 1 BB, 10 SO
- Louie Varland is good. He may only be the Twins’ No. 15 prospect, but he will be cracking the top-10 real soon. This week’s performance is just a glimpse of the future.
Tyler Viza, RHP
2 Games, 1-0, 4.1 IP, 3 H, 0.00 ERA, 9 SO
- Tyler Viza might not be a name you’ve heard of, but he’s had a great start to the season. He’s yet to give up a run in three outings this year, but on April 17, the right-hander struck out six.
High-A
Charles Mack, SS
3 Games, .583 BA (7/12), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 3 SO
The 22-year-old has gotten off to a blazing start, hitting .533, with an OPS of 1.496 in 15 at-bats. Charles Mack was the Twins’ sixth-round pick in the 2018 draft and will be looking to build off this performance.
Anthony Prato, SS
6 Games, .348 BA (8/23), 1 HR, 7 RBI, 5 BB, 8 SO, 1 SB
It’s hard to leave Anthony Prato off the list when he has a hit in six straight games and collected 7 RBIs. The former 2019 seventh-round pick hasn’t produced much power, but he was able to belt one over the fence this week.
Sawyer Gipson-Long, SP
1 Game, 1-0, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0.00 ERA, 9 SO
- If you paid attention to my Minor League Reports last season, then you’re familiar with the name Sawyer Gipson-Long. He made the list plenty last year, and he kicks off our first Minor League Monday of the season as one of the Top Performers again.
Aaron Rozek, SP
1 Game, 1-0, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0.00 ERA, 7 SO
- The Minnesota native has had a nice start to the season, striking out 13 and going 2-0. Aaron Rozek is 26 years old but has found success in his 18 career games (5-2, 2.31 ERA).
Low-A
Emmanuel Rodriguez, #18, CF
5 Games, .438 BA (7/16), 3 HR, 3 RBI, 6 BB, 4 SO, 1 SB
Finally, Emmanuel Rodriguez is the first non-shortstop to make the list. He’s only 19 years old and it’s likely he doesn’t make his MLB debut for a few years. However, he’s going to be a name you’ll want to pay attention to. He’s got power, speed and a good arm. He’ll be a stud.
Kyler Fedko, OF
6 Games, .500 BA (11/22), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB, 6 SO, 2 SB
Kyler Fedko has done nothing but collects base hits since getting drafted by the Twins in the 2021 MLB Draft. This season, other teams may not want to not pitch to him because he’s making contact with just about everything.
Kyle Schmidt, C
6 Games, .278 BA (5/18), 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 3 SO
Kyle Schmidt may not have the highest batting average of these other guys on the list, but when you drive in nine RBIs, you deserve a shoutout.
John Stankiewicz, SP
1 Game, 1-0, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0.00 ERA, 11 SO
- John Stankiewicz is dealing early in the season, picking up two wins and 19 strikeouts in only 11.0 innings of work.
Top Prospects
Austin Martin, #2, SS
6 Games, .292 BA (7/24), 2 RBI, 5 BB, 5 SO, 6 SB
Jose Miranda, #3, 3B
5 Games, .263 BA (5/19), 4 RBI, 1 BB, 4 SO
Simeon Woods-Richardson, #8, SP
1 Game, 1-0, 5.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 SO
Matt Canterino, #9, RHP
1 Game, 1.2 IP, 10.80 ERA, 3 H, 4 BB, 2 SO
Noah Miller, #10, SS
5 Games, .100 (2/20), 1 RBI, 6 BB, 8 SO, 1 SB
Spencer Steer, #11, SS
6 Games, .269 (7/26), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 7 SO
Matt Wallner, #12, RF
5 Games, .091 BA (2/22), 2 RBI, 1 BB, 12 SO
Aaron Sabato, #16, 1B
4 Games, .125 BA (5/16), 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 3 SO
Drew Strotman, #19, RHP
2 Games, 3.0 IP, 5 H, 7.05 ERA, 1 BB, 3 SO
Steve Hajjar, #21, SP
1 Game, 3.0 IP, 12.00 ERA, 4 H, 2 BB, 6 SO
Chris Vallimont, #22, SP
1 Game, 2.1 IP, 7.71 ERA, 2 H, 5 BB, 2 SO
Keoni Cavaco, #23, SS
1 Game, .500 BA (2/4), 1 SO
Jovani Moran, #24, LHP
1 Game, 1.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 BB, 3 SO
Alerick Soularie, #25, 2B
6 Games, .091 BA (2/21), 3 BB, 8 SO
Marco Raya, #26, RHP
1 Game, 4.1 IP, 4.15 ERA, 7 H, 1 BB, 4 SO
Cade Povich, #27, LHP
1 Game, 1-0, 5.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 H, 1 BB, 8 SO
Christian Encarnacion-Strand, #29, SS
5 Games, .273 BA (6/22), 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 7 SO
Jermaine Palacios, #30, SS
4 Games, .385 BA (5/13), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2 SO, 1 SB
