TWINS TRIVIA is hopefully a fun and informative site that will help you to better enjoy the Minnesota Twins and their wonderful history. “History never looks like history when you are living through it” – John Gardner, former Secretary of Health
Week 20 has the Minnesota Twins naming High A Cedar Rapids Kernels first baseman Aaron Sabato and pitcher Louie Varland as the minor league players of the week.
Aaron Sabato was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round (27th) of the 2020 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Sabato, a Rye, New York native started the season with the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels and was promoted to Cedar Rapids on August 23.
Sabato, 22, played in seven games for the Kernels, hitting .292 (7-for-24) with four home runs, six RBI, six walks, a .792 slugging percentage and a 1.211 OPS, including two two-homer games. On the season between Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids Sabato is hitting .202 in 464 PA’s with 19 home runs and 57 RBI. He also has 149 strikeouts and 92 walks.
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.
In week 17 AA Wichita Wind Surge outfielder/1B/DH Trey Cabbage and High A Cedar Rapids Kernels pitcher Sawyer Gipson-Long have been named Twins minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week. Both are repeat winners this year, this is Cabbage’s second time this and for Gipson-Long it is his third time. Congratulations to Trey and Sawyer!
In week 15 the Minnesota Twins have selected High-A Cedar Rapids infielder Yunior Severino and right-handed pitcher Ben Gross as their Twins minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week.
Yunior Severino was a player that the Twins wanted to sign during the 2017 international signing period but he chose to sign with the Braves instead. Then in November of 2017 MLB ruled that the Braves had circumvented international spending rules and Severino, who by then had played in 48 games in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League, was among 13 Atlanta prospects whose contracts were voided. The Twins moved quickly, committing $2.5 million to sign the 18-year-old.
Severino, 21, started the season in Fort Myers and was bumped up to Cedar Rapids on July 26. Severino a switch-hitter played in six games for the Kernels, hitting .560 (14-for-25) with three doubles, one home run, two RBI, three walks, six runs scored and a 1.421 OPS. He recorded two four-hit games this week. Severino was signed an a middle infielder but might outgrow that position although he is currently playing second base. On the season Severino is .285/.379/.437 .
This week (#13) the Twins have named A+ Cedar Rapids Kernels infielder/outfielder Michael Helman and A+ Cedar Rapids Kernels right-handed pitcher Ben Gross the minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week.
Michael Helman is another repeat winner this season. The Nebraska native was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 11th round of the 2018 MLB June Amateur Draft from Texas A&M University (College Station, TX) and has spent the season in A+ Cedar Rapids.
The right-handed hitting Helman played in seven games for the Kernels, hitting .423 (11-for-26) with one double, one triple, two home runs, three RBI, four walks and a 1.269 OPS. Used primarily in the outfield but has played some second base this season. For the year Helman is hitting .333/.420/.754.
Week 12 finds AA Wichita Wind Surge outfielder Trey Cabbage and High A Cedar Rapids Kernels pitcher Louie Varland named as the Twins minor league Player and Pitcher of the week.
Trey Cabbage was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 4th round of the 2015 MLB June Amateur Draft from Grainger HS in Rutledge, TN.
Cabbage started the season by playing 40 games in High A Cedar Rapids before being bumped up to AA Wichita on June 28th. This past week he played six games for the Wind Surge, hitting .300 (6-for-20) with two doubles, two home runs, six RBI, four walks and seven strikeouts. You can follow him on Twitter at @Treycabz
In week 10 we have High-A Cedar Rapids Kernels outfielder Michael Helman winning this weeks Minnesota Twins minor league position player of the week. Helman was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 11th round of the 2018 MLB June Amateur Draft from Texas A&M University (College Station, TX). Helman reportedly signed for a $220,000 signing bonus.
The 25-year-old Helman played in six games for the Kernels, hitting .409 (9-for-22) with one double, two home runs, four RBI, one walk, a .458 on-base percentage and a 1.186 OPS. The right-handed hitting Helman started his career as a second baseman and had appeared there in a few games but is primarily being used in the outfield in 2021. On the season Helman has an average slash line of .217/.310/.411.
Week six finds another repeater (week two) as the Twins minor league position player of the week with infielder Spencer Steer. Steer who was born in Long Beach, California was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Oregon (Eugene, OR). The 5’11” Steer had previously been drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 29th round in 2016 but did not sign with them. Steer is primarily playing second base for the High A Cedar Rapids Kernels this year but he has also played shortstop and third base.
Steer who was on fire this past week played in six games for the Kernels, hitting .333 (9-for-27) with one double, six home runs, 11 RBI, four walks and a 1.456 OPS, including two two-homer games, one on Sunday at Fort Wayne and one on Wednesday at Beloit. MLB Pipeline recently added Spencer Steer to the Minnesota Twins 2021 top 30 prospect list. You can follow Steer on twitter at @spenc__er .
Pioneer Press East Metro baseball player of the year, Matt Wallner of Forest Lake is photographed Monday, June 13, 2016. (Pioneer Press: Jace Fredrick)
In week three the Twins minor league position player of the week is outfielder Matt Wallner. Wallner a Minnesota native born in Forest Lake was first drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 32nd round of the 2016 MLB June Amateur Draft from Forest Lake HS (Forest Lake, MN) but chose not to sign. The 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, Wallner was the Pioneer Press’ 2016 East Metro Player of the Year. The Minnesota Twins upped the ante and drafted him again, this time in the 1st round (39th) of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, MS). Wallner, a left-handed batter grew up a Twins fans and did some pitching in college but always wanted to be on the hitting side of the ball. The Twins took Wallner with a pick in Competitive Balance Round A by virtue of being in either one of the 10 smallest markets or 10 smallest revenue pools, which thereby gave them an additional pick at the end of the first round. According to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis, Wallner received a signing bonus of $1.8 million just under the $1.9 million slot value.
In his first season in pro ball Wallner played at rookie league Elizabethton and briefly at Low A ball with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. With no MiLB in 2020, Wallner started 2021 with Cedar Rapids again but this time as a High-A ball Kernel. This past week Wallner played in six games hitting .400 (10-for-25) with one double, one triple, two home runs and four RBI, including a four-hit game on Thursday versus Beloit. Wallner is off to a nice start hitting .333 with four home runs and 14 RBI over 17 games this season.
The Twins minor league pitcher of the week is Texas native right-handed pitcher Matt Canterino. Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 2nd round of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft from Rice University (Houston, TX). Canterino started his pro career with the rookie Twins Gulf team in 2019 before jumping up to the Low-A Cedar Rapids Kernels. 2021 finds him with the High-A Cedar Raids team.
Canterino, 23, made two starts for Cedar Rapids this past week, going 1-0, 1.64 ERA (11.0 IP, 2 ER) with one walk and 19 strikeouts, including a 10-strikeout game on Friday versus Beloit.
In week two the Twins minor league position player of the week is infielder Spencer Steer. Steer who was born in Long Beach, California was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Oregon (Eugene, OR). The 5’11” Steer had previously been drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 29th round in 2016 but did not sign with them.
In 2019 Steer spent 20 games with Elizabethton and then moved up to the Low-A Cedar Rapids Kernels where he appeared in 44 games. The right-handed hitting Steer is playing in Cedar Rapids again this year but this time it is with a High-A Cedar Rapids Kernels team. In five games this past week he hit .333 (4-for-12) with one home run, two RBI, five walks and had a .500 on-base percentage playing primarily second base but he has also played shortstop and third base. Steer has committed three errors in 9 games played this season. You can learn more about Spencer Steer by watching Seth Stoh’s Twins Spotlight on YouTube.
Winder, a big right-hander was 3-1 with a 3.72 ERA at Elizabethton in 2018 and in 2019 was 7-2 with the Low-A Cedar Rapids Kernels and led the Midwest League in ERA and WHIP during his first full season in pro ball. According to MLB.com “Winder worked hard during the 2020 shutdown to add strength to his 6-foot-5 frame, and it showed. After sitting in the low 90s throughout the 2019 season, he was up to 98 mph consistently during instructional, albeit in a smaller sample size, throwing it with good riding life. He added velocity to his curve as well. If the velocity and stuff gains are for real, Winder could be one of the biggest starting pitcher sleeper prospects in the game.” MLB has Winder at the 14th best Twins prospect going into 2021. Winder, 24, made his first start of the season the start on Friday for the AA Wichita Wind Surge vs. Amarillo, pitching 5.2 shutout innings with three hits allowed, one walk and eight strikeouts, earning the win for the Wind Surge.
