Minnesota Twins minor league players
Below are select minor league players and the rosters of the minor league affiliates of the Minnesota Twins:
Players
David Banuelos
David Clemente Banuelos is an American professional baseball catcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Banuelos attended Damien High School in La Verne, California, graduating in 2014. As a senior, he batted.395 with four home runs and 24 RBIs. Undrafted out of high school in the 2014 MLB draft, he enrolled at California State University, Long Beach, and played college baseball for the Long Beach State Dirtbags. He became the Dirtbags' starting catcher as a sophomore in 2016. During the summer of 2016, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Bellingham Bells of the West Coast League. In 2017, he batted.289 with seven home runs and 29 RBIs and was named a First-Team All-American by Baseball America and one of three finalists for the Johnny Bench Award.
The Seattle Mariners selected Banuelos in the fifth round of the 2017 Major League Baseball draft. He signed with the Mariners, receiving a $300,000 signing bonus, and made his professional debut with the Everett AquaSox, where he spent his first professional season, posting a.236 batting average with four home runs and 26 RBIs in 36 games.
On December 6, 2017, in an attempt to sign Shohei Ohtani during the 2017–18 offseason, the Mariners traded Banuelos to the Minnesota Twins for $1 million in international signing bonus money. He spent the 2018 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, batting.220 with two home runs and 22 RBIs in 73 games.
Banuelos begin 2019 with Cedar Rapids before being promoted to the Fort Myers Miracle in May. Over 63 games, he slashed.177/.232/.263 with two home runs and twenty RBIs.
Travis Blankenhorn
Travis Allan Blankenhorn is an American professional baseball second baseman in the Minnesota Twins organization.Blankenhorn attended Pottsville Area High School in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. He committed to play college baseball at the University of Kentucky. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the third round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft.
After signing, Blankenhorn made his professional debut with the Gulf Coast Twins and he was later promoted to the Elizabethton Twins. He posted a combined.244 batting average with three home runs and 23 RBIs in 53 games between both clubs. Blankenhorn spent 2016 with both Elizabethon and the Cedar Rapids Kernels where he batted a combined.293 with ten home runs and 41 RBIs in 59 games with both teams. In 2017, he returned to Cedar Rapids, slashing.251/.343/.441 with 13 home runs and 69 RBIs in 118 games, earning Midwest League All-Star honors.
Blankenhorn spent 2018 with the Fort Myers Miracle. In June, he was named a Florida State League All-Star and won the Home Run Derby with 31 home runs. In 124 games with Fort Myers, he hit.231 with 11 home runs and 57 RBIs. He returned to Fort Myers to begin the 2019 season before being promoted to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos with whom he was named to the Southern League All-Star Game. Over 108 games between the two clubs, he slashed.277/.321/.466 with 19 home runs and 54 RBIs.
Blankenhorn was added to the Twins 40-man roster on November 20, 2019.
Keoni Cavaco
Keoni Kealakekua Cavaco is an American professional baseball shortstop in the Minnesota Twins organization.Cavaco attended Eastlake High School in Chula Vista, California. In 2019, his senior year, he hit.433 with eight home runs and 16 steals along with pitching to a 0.67 ERA. He committed to play college baseball at San Diego State University.
Cavaco was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the 2019 MLB draft. He signed for $4.05 million. After signing, he was assigned to the Gulf Coast League Twins, with whom he spent the remainder of the season with. Over 25 games, he hit.172 with one home run and six RBIs.
Dakota Chalmers
Dakota Reid Chalmers is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Minnesota Twins organization.Chalmers attended Lakeview Academy in Gainesville, Georgia, for his first two years of high school before transferring to North Forsyth High School in Cumming, Georgia. The Oakland Athletics selected Chalmers in the third round of the 2015 MLB draft, and signed for a $1.2 million signing bonus. He signed with Oakland, forgoing his commitment to play college baseball at the University of Georgia.
After signing, Chalmers made his professional debut for the Arizona League Athletics where he posted a 0–1 record with a 2.66 ERA in 11 starts. He spent 2016 with the Vermont Lake Monsters, going 5–4 with a 4.70 ERA in 15 games, and 2017 with the Beloit Snappers, pitching to a 2–2 record and a 4.34 ERA in ten games. He returned to Beloit to begin 2018, but only pitched in two games due to injury.
On August 9, 2018, the Athletics traded Chalmers to the Minnesota Twins for Fernando Rodney. He did not pitch after being traded. In 2019, he began the year rehabbing before being assigned to the Fort Myers Miracle, with whom he started five games, pitching to a 1-1 record with a 3.38 ERA.
Chalmers was added to the Twins 40-man roster on November 20, 2019.
Jhoan Durán
Jhoan Manuel Durán is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Durán signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks as an international free agent in December 2014. He made his professional debut in 2015 with the Dominican Summer League Diamondbacks. He played 2016 with the Arizona League Diamondbacks and Missoula Osprey and 2017 with the Arizona League Diamondbacks and Hillsboro Hops. He started 2018 with the Kane County Cougars. On July 27, 2018 the Diamondbacks traded Durán, Gabriel Maciel and Ernie De La Trinidad to the Minnesota Twins for Eduardo Escobar.
Durán started his Twins career with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. He started 2019 with the Fort Myers Miracle.
Durán was added to the Twins 40-man roster on November 20, 2019.
Griffin Jax
James Griffin Jax is an American baseball pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Jax attended Cherry Creek High School in Greenwood Village, Colorado. In 2013, his senior year, he went 7-1 with a 1.74 ERA and was named Colorado's Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 12th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign and instead enrolled at the United States Air Force Academy where he played college baseball for the Air Force Falcons.
Jax struggled during his first two years at the Air Force Academy, pitching to a 5.86 ERA as a freshman and a 5.17 ERA as a sophomore. He broke out a junior in 2016, starting 15 games and going 9-2 with a school-record 2.05 ERA, striking out ninety and walking only ten in innings, and was named the Mountain West Conference Co-Pitcher of the Year alongside Jimmy Lambert.
After his junior year, Jax was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the third round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft. He signed for $645,000, and made his professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins, pitching 8.2 innings. In 2017, he pitched in only five games before he was required to report Cape Canaveral, Florida for active duty. In those five starts, he went 2-2 with a 2.61 ERA between Elizabethton and the Cedar Rapids Kernels. In 2018, he was granted membership into the United States military's World Class Athlete Program, allowing him to make Olympic training his full-time responsibility which in turn allowed him to play in the minor leagues full-time. During the season, he pitched for the Fort Myers Miracle, going 3-4 with a 3.70 ERA in 15 games. After the season, he played in the Arizona Fall League. He began 2019 with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos with whom he was named a Southern League All-Star. While with Pensacola, he missed nearly three weeks due to fatigue. In August, Jax was promoted to the Rochester Red Wings, with whom he finished the season. Over 23 starts between the two clubs, Jax pitched to a 5-7 record with a 2.90 ERA, striking out 94 over innings.
Jax's father, Garth Jax played in the NFL.
Ryan Jeffers
Ryan Michael Jeffers is an American baseball catcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Jeffers attended Sanderson High School in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 2016, his senior year, he hit.398 with two home runs. Undrafted in the 2016 Major League Baseball draft, he enrolled at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington where he walked-on their baseball team.
In 2017, Jeffer's freshman year at UNCW, he appeared in only 13 games, but hit.348 with one home run and five RBIs. That summer, he played in the Coastal Plain League for the Wilmington Sharks. As a sophomore in 2018, he started 52 of 53 games and batted.328 with ten home runs and 32 RBIs, earning First-Team All-CAA honors. After the season, he played for the Upper Valley Nighthawks of the New England Collegiate Baseball League where he earned All-Star honors. In 2018, Jeffer's junior season at UNCW, he slashed.315/.460/.635 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs over 62 starts, earning a First-Team All-CAA selection for the second consecutive year. Following the season, he was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.
Jeffers signed with the Twins and made his professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins and was promoted to the Cedar Rapids Kernels in July. Over 64 games between the two clubs, he slashed.344/.444/.502 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs. In 2019, he began the year with the Fort Myers Miracle, with whom he was named a Florida State League All-Star, before being promoted to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos in July, with whom he finished the season. Playing in 103 total games with both teams, Jeffers batted.264/.341/421 with 14 home runs and 49 RBIs.
Jacob Pearson
Jacob Taylor Pearson is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Minnesota Twins organization.Pearson attended West Monroe High School in West Monroe, Louisiana. As a senior, he batted.519 with 12 home runs. He was named the state's Gatorade Player of the Year and the most valuable player of the All-State team. Pearson committed to attend Louisiana State University to play college baseball for the LSU Tigers.
The Los Angeles Angels selected Pearson in the third round, with the 85th overall selection, of the 2017 MLB draft. He signed with the Angels rather than attend LSU, earning a $1 million signing bonus. Pearson spent his first professional season with the AZL Angels where he batted.226 with 13 RBIs in 40 games.
After being told they would not sign Shohei Ohtani during the 2017–18 offseason, the Minnesota Twins traded $1 million in international signing bonus money to the Angels for Pearson on December 6, 2017. Pearson spent the 2018 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, hitting.237 with seven home runs and 36 RBIs in 78 games. He returned to Cedar Rapids to begin 2019 before being promoted to the Fort Myers Miracle in July. Over 117 games between the two clubs, Pearson slashed.233/.303/.338 with five home runs, 41 RBIs, and 19 stolen bases.
Ben Rortvedt
Benjamin T. Rortvedt is an American baseball catcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Rortvedt attended Verona Area High School in Verona, Wisconsin. As a senior, he slashed.444/.568/.667. He committed to play college baseball at the University of Arkansas. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the 2016 MLB draft. He signed with the Twins for $900,000, forgoing his commitment to the University of Arkansas.
Rortvedt made his professional debut that same year with the Gulf Coast League Twins before being promoted to the Elizabethton Twins. In 33 games between the two clubs, he batted.222 with ten RBIs. He spent 2017 with the Cedar Rapids Kernels where he compiled a.224 batting average with four home runs and 30 RBIs in 89 games, and 2018 with both Cedar Rapids and the Fort Myers Miracle, slashing a combined.262/.331/.379 with five home runs and 43 RBIs in 90 total games between the two clubs. He returned to Fort Myers to begin the 2019 season, and was promoted to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos in May, with whom he finished the year. Over 79 games between the two teams, he hit.238/.334/.379 with seven home runs and 29 RBIs.
Cole Sands
Bryson Cole Sands is an American baseball pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Sands attended North Florida Christian School in Tallahassee, Florida, where he played baseball. As a senior, he pitched to a 0.32 ERA. Following his senior year, he was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 22nd round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft, but he did not sign, and instead enrolled at Florida State University where he played college baseball.
In 2016, as a freshman at FSU, Sands appeared in 18 games in which he pitched to a 6-7 record with a 4.13 ERA over innings. That summer, he played in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Falmouth Commodores. As a sophomore at FSU, Sands once again pitched in 18 games, going 6-4 with a 5.40 ERA. He returned to Falmouth and the Cape Cod League that summer. In 2018, Sand's junior season, he made 14 starts and compilied a 7-4 record with a 4.54 ERA, striking out 88 over 75 innings. After the season, he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the fifth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft. He signed for $500,000.
Sands made his professional debut in 2019 with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. After eight starts, he was promoted to the Fort Myers Miracle, and, after nine starts with the Miracle, he earned another promotion, this time to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Over 18 starts between the three clubs, Sands went 7-3 with a 2.68 ERA, striking out 108 over innings.
Chris Vallimont
Chris Ryan Vallimont is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Vallimont attended Mercyhurst Preparatory School in Erie, Pennsylvania. He attended Mercyhurst University, where he played college baseball for the Lakers. In 2017, he briefly played collegiate summer baseball with the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Vallimont was drafted by the Miami Marlins in the 5th round, with the 147th overall selection, of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft, and signed with the Marlins.
Vallimont made his professional debut in 2018 with the Batavia Muckdogs, going 0–2 with a 6.21 ERA in 29 innings. He opened the 2019 season with the Clinton LumberKings, going 4–4 with a 2.99 ERA in 69 innings. Vallimont was named to the Midwest League All-Star team. He was promoted to the Jupiter Hammerheads on June 22.
On July 27, 2019, Vallimont was traded, along with Sergio Romo and a PTBNL, to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Lewin Díaz. He was assigned to the Fort Myers Miracle following the trade, and ended the season there. Over 23 starts between Clinton, Jupiter, and Fort Myers, Vallimont pitched to an 8-9 record with a 3.24 ERA, striking out 150 over innings.
Tyler Watson
A native of Gilbert, Arizona, Watson attended and played baseball at Perry High School. He was drafted by the Washington Nationals in the 34th round of the 2015 MLB draft and elected to sign for a $400,000 bonus, well above the slot value. After signing, he began his professional career with the GCL Nationals, pitching 13.1 scoreless innings. After posting a 2.64 ERA in 58 inning as a starter across two levels in 2016, Watson was labeled by Baseball America and Minor League Ball as a prospect to watch in the Nationals farm system. He began 2017 with Hagerstown and was selected among several Hagerstown players to participate in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game.
On July 31, 2017, Watson was traded to the Minnesota Twins for Brandon Kintzler. Minnesota assigned him to the Cedar Rapids Kernels. In 23 games between Hagerstown and Cedar Rapids, Watson posted a combined 7–7 record with a 4.34 ERA. In 2018, Watson pitched for both Cedar Rapids and the Fort Myers Miracle, compiling a combined 5-8 record with a 4.88 ERA in 22 games. He spent the 2019 season with the Miracle, going 1-5 with a 3.62 ERA over 23 games, striking out 88 over 112 innings.
Watson is a left-handed pitcher with a low-90s fastball, an above-average curveball, and a developing changeup.
Tyler Wells
Tyler Austin Wells is an American baseball pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization.Wells attended University High School in Morgantown, West Virginia as a freshman and sophomore before transferring to Yucaipa High School in Yucaipa, California. As a junior in 2012, he went 8–0 with a 0.84 ERA. In 2013, as a senior, he had a 0.28 ERA. Undrafted out of high school in the 2013 MLB draft, Wells enrolled at California State University, San Bernardino where he played college baseball for the Coyotes.
In 2014, as a freshman at CSUSB, Wells appeared in 11 games, going 1–5 with a 4.30 ERA, and as a sophomore in 2015, he went 2–4 with a 4.93 ERA in 12 starts. Wells broke out as a junior in 2016, pitching to a 4–7 record with a 2.84 ERA in 15 starts. After the season, he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 15th round of the 2016 MLB draft.
Wells made his professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins, going 5–2 with a 3.23 ERA in ten starts. He spent 2017 with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, going 5–3 with a 3.11 ERA in 14 starts, and began 2018 with the Fort Myers Miracle where he was named a Florida State League All-Star before being promoted to the Chattanooga Lookouts in July, where he finished the season. In 22 games between the two clubs, Wells went 10–6 with a 2.49 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP.
Wells began 2019 with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, but underwent Tommy John surgery in May, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season.