Minnesota Twins 2018 minor league awards
The Minnesota Twins didn’t have the season they hoped for at the major league level in 2018. The minor leagues, on the other hand, could not have gone much better collectively.
As part of our continuing coverage at Call to the Pen of the minor leagues, we will be covering each organization’s top players for 2018. The coverage will go in reverse order of record. Today, we will look at the Minnesota Twins.
We are going to review the system’s leaders for each organization statistically, then choose one hitter and one pitcher to honor for every team. This will be primarily based on statistical performance, though some “age relative to level” could come into play, so a very impressive season from a 28-year-old in AA will rank below a nearly as impressive season from a 20-year-old at the same level.
After we review each organization’s hitter and pitcher of the year, we will close out October with Call To The Pen’s Minor League team of the year. That will lead into November starting our team top 10 prospect lists. In other words, there will be plenty of minor league content on the way at CTTP, so keep coming back for more each day this offseason!!
Minnesota Twins minor leagues
The Minnesota Twins entered the season with as many as a dozen players on various top 100 lists, but none really in the class of elite prospects. They end the 2018 season with a pair of players considered among the top 10-15 prospects in the entire game.
There were other impressive performances throughout the season in the Minnesota Twins system, from the lower levels all the way up to AAA.
Before we offer up awards on the season, let’s take a look at the system’s statistical leaders:
Organization Leaders (min. 150 PA, 50 IP)
BA: Michael Helman .361
OBP: Jeferson Morales .466
SLG: Alex Kirilloff .578
OPS: Alex Kirilloff .970
R: Akol Baddoo, Royce Lewis 83
H: Alex Kirilloff 178
2B: Alex Kirilloff 44
3B: Jean Carlos Arias 12
HR: Brent Rooker 22
RBI: Alex Kirilloff 101
SB: Royce Lewis 28
TB: Alex Kirilloff 296
W: Stephen Gonsalves 12
G: Andrew Vasquez 40
GS: Lewis Thorpe 25
IP: Omar Bencomo 133
SV: John Curtiss 10
K: Lewis Thorpe 157
ERA: Anthony Escobar 1.10
WHIP: Anthony Escobar 0.75
K/9: Andrew Vasquez 14.0
K/BB: Bailey Ober 9.78
Let’s look at the award winners…
Minnesota Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year: Alex Kirilloff
Level(s): low-A Cedar Rapids, high-A Fort Myers
Stats: .348/.392/.578, 130 G, 561 PA, 44 2B, 7 3B, 20 HR, 101 RBI, 38/86 BB/K
After winning the Appalachian League player of the year in his draft season in 2016, Alex Kirilloff missed all of 2017 due to Tommy John surgery, but he came back in 2018 with a vengeance.
Kirilloff was the easy choice here, in spite of some very, very good seasons throughout the Minnesota Twins farm system. He could put together a legitimate argument for the best numbers season in all of the minor leagues!
Kirilloff has one of the most perfect swings you’ll ever see from the left side, with the ability to drive the ball for power while also hitting for a high average. He could start 2019 in AA and possibly see the major leagues as early as September of next season, but he certainly should debut by the end of 2020.
Runners-up
The Minnesota Twins surprised many when they selected North Carolina catcher Ryan Jeffers in the second round this past June, but after crushing the ball for both Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids, those doubts have been erased. Overall, he hit .344/444/.502 with 17 doubles and 7 home runs.
Only playing 3 games in 2017 before injury ended his season, Luis Arraez was known for his supreme contact abilities, though he doesn’t have a ton of power or speed to go along with that high average, though with a very good defensive ability at second base and a good batting average, he could have a long major league career with just those two skills. Between high-A and AA in 2018, Arraez hit .310/.361/.397 with 20 doubles, 3 triples, 3 home runs, and 4 stolen bases.
The #1 overall pick in 2017 by the Minnesota Twins, Royce Lewis was the highest-ranked Twins prospect coming into the season, and though he may be passed by Kirilloff in rankings now, it was not due to a poor season by Lewis. Between low-A and high-A, Lewis hit .292/.352/.451 with 29 doubles, 14 home runs, and 28 stolen bases while playing a high-quality shortstop.
A late signee out of Venezuela, likely due to his small stature, and in his first year with the Minnesota Twins organization, Morales played catcher in the Dominican Summer League and hit very well, with a .303/.466/.472 line with 17 stolen bases and a 41/29 BB/K ratio. He’ll likely be headed stateside in 2019.
Minnesota Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year: Lewis Thorpe
Level(s): AA Chattanooga, AAA Rochester
Stats: 8-7, 26 G, 25 GS, 129 2/3 IP, 3.54 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 35/157 BB/K
While there were some who may have posted lower ERAs, but none was as dominant this season as Lewis Thorpe. Thorpe returned in 2017 after missing two full seasons with a very positive performance, but he turned it up a notch in 2018.
Thorpe pitched just short of 130 innings without incident, and though he did show a proclivity to home runs, he also was very sharp with his control and showed the ability to dominate within the strike zone.
The Australian lefty will likely open in AAA to start 2019, but he should be in spring training and will get a fair shot to make the rotation.
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Runners-up
The Minnesota Twins have been a big fan of lefty Stephen Gonsalves since grabbing him from high school in San Diego. He finally made his way to the majors in 2018, tossing 24 2/3 major league innings with 22 strikeouts, but he struggled with his control, walking 18. In the minors, between AA and AAA, he tossed 120 2/3 innings with a 2.76 ERA with a 1.17 WHIP and a 65/120 BB/K ratio.
The guy who gave Thorpe the biggest run for the top spot was towering (6’8″) righty Tyler Wells. After his 2017 season ended early due to injury, Wells was able to make up for lost time in 2018, working between high-A Fort Myers and AA Chattanooga. He combined to post a 2.49 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and 31/121 BB/K ratio over 119 1/3 innings.
Minnesota Twins fans will want to remember the name Brusdar Graterol. The young righty blazed a trail from low-A Cedar Rapids to high-A Fort Myers. He tossed 102 innings, posting a 2.74 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 28/107 BB/K ratio. He’ll likely get a chance to open at AA at just 20 years old.
In his first year after the Minnesota Twins signed him out of Venezuela, Anthony Escobar had a very good debut in the Dominican Summer League. He tossed 47 1/3 innings with a 1.10 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, and a 14/53 BB/K. He’ll likely come stateside in 2019.
dark. Next. Mets minor league awards
The 2018 season was not what Minnesota Twins fans were hoping for, but the minor league system had a tremendous showing and should provide pieces for the big league club for years to come.