Twins minor league players of the week are Kirilloff & Povich

This weeks Minnesota Twins minor league players of the week are AAA St. Paul outfielder Alex Kirilloff and High-A Cedar Rapids left-handed pitcher Cade Povich. This is the second time that Povich has earned this honor this season.

Alex Kirilloff was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (15th) of the 2016 MLB June Amateur Draft from Plum HS (Pittsburgh, PA). Kirilloff made his big league debut on September 30, 2020 and has 69 major league games on his resume.

Kirilloff, who was optioned to St. Paul from Minnesota on May 14, played in six games for the Saints, hitting .458 (11-for-24) with one double, one home run, four RBI, three walks, a .519 on-base percentage, a .625 slugging percentage and a 1.144 OPS. On Wednesday at Omaha, he went 4-for-6 with a double, a home run and three RBI. Kirilloff has struggled with a wrist issue off and on in his short big league career. Kirilloff missed most of last season due to surgery on the troublesome wrist but the issue resurfaced again this year. This may be something that Kirilloff will have to learn to play with. In 14 games with the Saints Kirilloff has a slash line of .340/.450/.420. I expect we will see Kirilloff back at Target Field soon.

Rehabbing with Saints, Alex Kirilloff just trying to stay on the field

Twins minor league players of the week are Povich & Encarnacion-Strand

The 2022 MLB minor league season is underway and the Minnesota Twins have selected their first minor league players of the week and they are both from the High A Cedar Rapids Kernels and were both drafted in 2021. Congratulations to infielder Christian Encarnacion-Strand and left-handed pitcher Cade Povich.

Cade Povich was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Nebraska-Lincoln (Lincoln, NE). The 6’3″ lefty was born in Reno, Nevada in 2000, that should make some of us feel old. According to Jim Callis, Povich “signed for $500k, throws strikes, keeps 88-90 mph fastball off barrels, mid-70s downer curveball.” MLB Pipeline has Cade Povich rated as the Twins 27th best prospect.

Povich is just in his second year of pro ball and pitched in just his fifth professional baseball game. On his 22nd birthday Povich started and pitched five shutout innings (69 pitches) for the Kernels allowing just one hit while striking out eight including the final six batters he faced. Povich walked just one notching his first pro ball win. Povich’s birthday brilliance, clutch hitting leads Kernels to 8-1 win at Quad Cities

Christian Encarnacion-Strand was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 4th round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft from Oklahoma State University (Stillwater, OK). Encarnacion-Strand bats and throws right-handed. Reports had him signing for the exact slot bonus of $442,000. MLB Pipeline has Christian Encarnacion-Strand rated as the Twins 29th best prospect.

Christian was blistering hot out of the gate this season, just his second in pro ball. Cedar Rapids Kernels third baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand went 4-for-5 with two home runs and a franchise Opening Day record nine RBI to lead the Kernels to a 12-5 win in Friday’s opener against the Beloit Sky Carp. Encarnacion-Strand, 22, played in seven games for the Kernels to start the season, hitting .467 (14-for-30) with two doubles, five home runs, 20 RBI, seven runs scored and a 1.033 OPS making him the only player in minor league or major league baseball to reach the 20-RBI plateau so far this season. Christian Encarnacion-Strand Drives in Nine, Homers Twice in 12-5 Kernels Win

Twins Minor League POW are Alex Isola and Cade Povich

The week 19 Minnesota Twins Players of the week are catcher Alex Isola with High-A Cedar Rapids and Low-A Fort Myers LHP Cade Povich. The 2021 baseball season is winding down but players continue to show their stuff.

Alex Isola was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 29th round of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft from Texas Christian University (Fort Worth, TX). Signing bonus was reported as $70,000.

Isola, 23, played in five games for the Kernels, hitting .417 (10-for-24) with five home runs, eight RBI, a 1.042 slugging percentage and a 1.458 OPS. The California native homered in four of the five games, including a two-homer game on Friday at Wisconsin. For the season Isola is slashing .247/.351/.435 with 17 homers and 51 RBI in 93 games.