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
After discovering Emmanuel Rodriguez, who was only 16 at the time, in the Dominican Republic in 2019, the Minnesota Twins signed him to a $2.5 million contract as an international free agent. MLB has Rodriguez at the Twins 3rd best prospect and 40th best overall. Rodriguez, 21, played in six games for the Wind Surge, hitting .421 (8-for-19) with two doubles, one triple, three home runs, 10 runs scored, five RBI, seven walks, a .577 on-base percentage, a 1.105 slugging percentage and a 1.682 OPS. Rodriguez is crushing AA and needs to move up soon. To see more go here and here.
Zebby Matthews was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 8th round of the 2022 MLB June Amateur Draft from Western Carolina University (Cullowhee, NC). Matthews is currently rated by MLB as the Twins 20th best prospect. Matthews, 23, made the start for the Kernels on Wednesday against Dayton, allowing one run on four hits in 5 innings pitched, with no walks and eight strikeouts. To see more on Matthews please go here and here.
The Minnesota Twins have announced that High-A Cedar Rapids right-handed pitcher Andrew Morris and outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez have been named the final minor league Pitcher and Player of the Week for the Twins organization in 2023. Both players helped lead the Kernels to their first Midwest League Championship since 1994 with a win over Great Lakes on Wednesday night.
Emmanuel Rodriguez a Santiago, Dominican Republic native was signed by the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent on July 2, 2019. Rodriguez was a top 10 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 international prospects list for 2019-20 when the signing period opened up in July of 2019. The Twins were all in, giving the toolsy outfielder $2.75 million to sign. MLB Pipeline currently has Rodriguez rated as the 48th best prospect overall and has Rodriguez as the Twins 3rd best prospect behind Walker Jenkins and Brooks Lee. You can learn more about Rodriguez here. Rodriguez has won this award four times earlier this season and he seems to be another in the long line of Twins left-handed sluggers.
Rodriguez hit a second-inning grand slam in the deciding Game 3, finishing the evening 1-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored. Slash line for the season is .240/.400/.463.
Andrew Morris was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 4th round of the 2022 MLB June Amateur Draft from Texas Tech University (Lubbock, TX). Morris signed with Minnesota for a reported signing bonus of $500K. MLB Pipeline now has Morris rated at the Twins 30th best prospect. You can read more about Morris here.
Morris started Game 2, allowing one run on three hits in 5 innings pitched, with no walks and seven strikeouts. On the season (between low A and High A) Morris pitched 84.1 innings allowing 86 hits with 70 strikeouts while posting a 8-2 record with a nifty 2.88 ERA and a 1.048 WHIP.
The Minnesota Twins have announced that Triple-A St. Paul right-handed pitcher Simeon Woods Richardson and High-A Cedar Rapids outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez have been named Twins minor league Pitcher and Player of the week for week 23.
Emmanuel Rodriguez a Santiago, Dominican Republic native was signed by the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent on July 2, 2019. Rodriguez was a top 10 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 international prospects list for 2019-20 when the signing period opened up in July of 2019. The Twins were all in, giving the toolsy outfielder $2.75 million to sign. MLB Pipeline currently has Rodriguez rated as the 48th best prospect overall and has Rodriguez as the Twins 3rd best prospect behind Walker Jenkins and Brooks Lee. You can learn more about Rodriguez here. Rodriguez has won this award three times earlier this season and he seems to be another in the long line of Twins left-handed sluggers.
Rodriguez, 20, played in four games for the Kernels, hitting .333 (3-for-9) with one triple, three RBI, six walks, a .600 on-base percentage, a .556 slugging percentage and a 1.156 OPS. On the season he is slashing .240/.400/.463. Although he does have 134 strikeouts in 455 PA’s he also has 16 home runs, 55 RBI and 20 Stolen bases.
The Minnesota Twins have announced that Double-A pitcher Wichita Pierson Ohl and High-A Cedar Rapids outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez have been named Twins minor league Pitcher and Player of the Week for week 18.
Pierson Ohl was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 14th round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft from Grand Canyon University (Phoenix, AZ). Reports have Ohl receiving a signing bonus of $100,000 to sign with Minnesota. According to Twins Daily, Ohl’s pre-draft scouting report cited a fastball that operated in the high 80s and low 90s, with plus command. Ohl, a 6’1″ right-hander carries a curve-ball and an above-average change-up which serves as his best secondary offering.
Ohl, 23, made one start for the Wind Surge on Wednesday vs. Tulsa, pitching 6.0 shutout innings, with three hits allowed, one walk and five strikeouts, earning the win. Ohl started the season with Cedar Rapids and moved up to Wichita in early June. Ohl is pitching better in Wichita than he did with Cedar Rapids. In AA Wichita Ohl has a 3-3 record in seven starts. He has allowed 41 hits in 46 innings while striking out 43 batters. His 1.087 WHIP indicates the good control he has.
The Minnesota Twins have announced that Double-A Wichita right-handed pitcher David Festa and High-A Cedar Rapids outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez as minor league Pitcher and Player of the Week for week 16.
David Festa a New Jersey native was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 13th round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft from Seton Hall University (South Orange, NJ). MLB Pipeline currently has Festa rated as the Twins 8th best prospect. Read more about Festa here.
He appeared for the AL Team in the 2023 SiriusXM Futures Game in Seattle over the Major League Baseball All-Star break and pitched 1.0 inning. The 6’6″ righty has made 15 starts this season and has a 2-2 record with 62 innings pitched allowing 60 hits while striking out 80. This is the second time he has won this award this season.
The Minnesota Twins have announced that High-A Cedar Rapids outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez and Florida Complex League (FCL) Twins left-handed pitcher Cesar Lares have been named Twins minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week for week 12.
Emmanuel Rodriguez a Santiago, Dominican Republic native was signed by the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent on July 2, 2019. Rodriguez was a top 10 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 international prospects list for 2019-20 when the signing period opened up in July of 2019. The Twins were all in, giving the toolsy outfielder $2.75 million to sign. MLB Pipeline had Rodriguez rated as the 69th best prospect overall and has Rodriguez as the Twins 3rd best prospect. You can learn more about Rodriguez here.
The 5’10” (210) Rodriguez, 20, bats and throws left-handed. Rodriguez suffered a left abdomen sprain in mid-April and was on the IL for three weeks. Rodriguez hit .571 with three home runs and a 2.095 OPS, while producing an 11% strikeout rate, compared to a 22.2% walk rate for the Kernels this past week. His slash line on the season is .232/.379/.470. Keep in mind that the 20 year old Rodriguez has just 84 games and 350 PA’s of pro ball under his belt prior to this season.
Cesar Lares signed with the Twins in the 2022 international signing period for $10,000 out of Maracay, Venezuela. Lares, 19, made one start for the FCL Twins on Tuesday vs. the FCL Orioles, pitching 3.0 shutout innings, with one hit allowed, no walks and five strikeouts. The 6’0″ lefty got hit around a bit in one of his three starts this season but in the other two starts he was stellar. A very short video of Cesar Lares on Twitter at work this past week.
SPRING FLING: Today the Twins will play the 28th and 29th of 32 scheduled Grapefruit League games as the Twins and Braves will play a pair of split squad at Hammond Stadium and CoolToday Park in North Port. After today, one more game will be played at Hammond Stadium and two more games will be played on the road. The Twins will complete the exhibition season with a 1:05 pm (ET) game in Bradenton against the Pirates on Tuesday, March 28. After the game, they will fly to Kansas City, hold an optional team workout on March 29 then begin a three-game, four-day series at Kauffman Stadium from March 30-April 2. Rocco Baldelli announced to the media how the starting five will open the season: for the Kansas City series – RHP Pablo López on Thursday, March 30 , RHP Sonny Gray on Saturday, April 1, RHP Joe Ryan on Sunday, April 2. For the Miami series – RHP Tyler Mahle on Monday, April 3, RHP Kenta Maeda on Tuesday, April 4.
Below is a look at MLB’s top ten Twins prospects entering the 2023 season: 1. Brooks Lee, 2 Royce Lewis, 3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, 4. Connor Prelipp, 5 Matt Wallner, 6 Simeon Woods Richardson, 7 Marco Raya, 8 Misael Urbina, 9 Matt Canterino, 10 Louie Varland.
PROSPECT SHOWCASE IN TAMPA: The Twins beat the Yankees yesterday afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Field by a score of 6-4. Pablo López was the starter in his final tuneup of the spring, allowing two runs on two hits in 3 innings pitched. Kenta Maeda made his final official spring appearance in relief, allowing two runs on three hits in 5 innings pitched, with five strikeouts. Twins prospects Edouard Julien and Emmanuel Rodriguez both went 2-for-4 with a home run, as Rodriguez’s three-run jimmy jack gave the Twins a ninth inning lead and eventual victory.
This week the Minnestoa Twins have named Low-A Fort Myers outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez and left-handed pitcher Steve Hajjar as the minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week.
Emmanuel Rodriguez a Santiago, Dominican Republic native was signed by the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent on July 2, 2019. Rodriguez was a top 10 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 international prospects list for 2019-20 when the signing period opened up in July of 2019. The Twins were all in, giving the toolsy outfielder $2.75 million to sign. MLB currently has Rodriguez as the Twins 17th best prospect.
Due to some injury issues Rodriguez did not make his pro debut until 2021 with the FCL league Twins. Rodriguez who bats and throws from the left-side made a big splash with 10 home runs in 37 games. This past week Rodriguez, 19, played in four games for the Mighty Mussels, hitting .636 (7-for-11) with one double, two triples, two home runs, five RBI, six walks, a .765 OBP, a 1.636 SLG and a 2.401 OPS. This years slash line is .280/.495/.568. Rodriguez is a very interesting young prospect to follow.
