It’s another match-up between the St. Paul Saints and Iowa Cubs at CHS Field this week. One roster had some drastic changes following the trade deadline, while the other remained essentially the same. See how some of the new faces on the Saints are performing and if any of the I-Cubs are making a push to get a late-season call-up to the Major League roster.
Notable Dynasty Performances in St. Paul
Twins Triple-A Hitters Who Are Standing Out
Hitter 1: Gabriel Gonzalez
Stats from the last two weeks: .271 AVG | .321 OBP | .417 SLG | 2 HR | 6 RBI | 0 SB | 26.4 K% | 5.7 BB%
No organization has had as many roster shake-ups from the trade deadline as the Minnesota Twins. They had nine players called up from Triple-A St. Paul on August 1st, and among the players to fill the open roster spots on the Saints was 21-year-old outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez. Gonzalez is the youngest player to appear on any Triple-A roster this season, and he earned it after a hot performance in Double-A, where he put up a .344/.429/.509 slash line with four home runs, 15 RBI, and five stolen bases.
Gonzalez’s bat-to-ball skills are what helped him earn the promotion to Triple-A at such a young age, but with the fast rise in the system has some parts of his game have fallen behind others. His strikeout to walk rate has been excellent all season, posting a 9.3% walk rate to 13.6%. But the last two weeks have not been great, and his strikeout numbers have only been amplified from his call-up to a new level.
This shouldn’t deter dynasty owners from pursuing Gonzalez as a roster option for 2026. His quick rise through the system will come with some setbacks in his swing. He’s never faced Triple-A pitching until last Friday, and August might end up being his worst month of the season because of it. But he’s made himself in a great place to be an option for the Twins roster in 2026.
Hitter 2: Payton Eeles
Stats from the last two weeks: .333 AVG | .464 OBP | .467 SLG | 1 HR | 10 RBI | 7 SB | 17.9 K% | 12.5 BB%
With several players changing in the Saints’ lineup due to call-ups and trades, Eeles has remained the hottest and most consistent bat for them. As Ryan Fitzgreald was called up to the Twins to fill a bench role as the back-up shortstop to Brooks Lee, Eeles has hopped in as the Saints’ everyday man at the position and lived up to the hype, performing highlight-reel plays almost every game.
Eeles has also been a lot more consistent at the plate, getting on base, driving in runners in scoring position, and striking out fewer times. With the Twins’ rosters looking almost interchangeable for the rest of the season, Eeles can certainly use the next month to play his way into a September call-up by Minnesota, which will make him worth waiting for dynasty owners have had for him this season.
Visiting Cubs Hitters Grabbing the Attention
Hitter 1: Moisés Ballesteros
Stats from the last two weeks: .333 AVG | .408 OBP | .571 SLG | 2 HR | 14 RBI | 0 SB | 8.5 K% | 10.6 BB%
Ballesteros got his second call-up to the Majors for a day when the Brewers were in Milwaukee last week, but delivered in his only game, getting a big bases-clearing RBI in the Cubs’ 10-3 victory. Despite being sent back down the next day, Ballesteros has been on a hot streak at the plate over the last two weeks, both in the Majors and at Triple-A.
The Cubs’ top prospect has been one of the most consistent bats in Triple-A this season, putting up a .333/.394/.501 slash line with 10 home runs and 62 RBI over 396 plate appearances in 92 games. But with the Cubs’ lineup remaining relatively healthy all year long, there haven’t been too many opportunities for him or Owen Cassie to get consistent playing time in the Majors. Fortunately for Ballesteros, time is still very much on his side as he’s only 21 and has certainly hit his way into the Cubs’ plans for 2026.
Notable Pitching Performances in St. Paul
Pitcher 1: Taj Bradley
One of the headline returns for the Twins this trade deadline, Taj Bradley impressed in his organizational debut in St. Paul on Wednesday, throwing six innings of one-run baseball where he struck out four and allowed no walks. The Rays had optioned Bradley down to Triple-A Durham a week before the deadline, as he had a 4.74 ERA and .286 BABIP in 24.2 innings over his last five starts.
He’s only made two starts at Triple-A since being sent back down, but he’s dominated over those starts, allowing just five hits in his Saints debut Wednesday and had seven innings of no-hit baseball with Durham the week prior, where he allowed only two walks. Over those 13 innings, Bradley has held batters to a 0.69 ERA and .116 opponents’ batting average. With Griffin Jax having plenty of struggles on the mound this season, the Twins may have ended up with the better end of this deal in the long term.
However, Bradley needs to show that he can dominate in the Majors just as he has in Triple-A. The once-consensus top-20 prospect has yet to show that transition in the Majors, as he’s allowed a career-high 9.3% walk rate in the Majors this year. For the time being, Bradley is trying to tinker around with all his pitches (fastball, cutter, splitter, and curveball) into effective strikeout pitches. He achieved this on Wednesday against the I-Cubs, getting all four of his strikeouts on each of his pitches.
For the time being, the Twins plan to keep Bradley at Triple-A and not rush him back up to the Majors as they evaluate him with their own player development staff. But it may just be one to two more starts with St. Paul for Bradley, as the Twins’ rotation is only made up of Joe Ryan, Zebby Matthews, Bailey Ober, and Travis Adams with a bullpen game mixed in. The Twins will need a fifth starter sooner rather than later, and dynasty owners should expect that to be Bradley before Mick Abel.
Pitcher 2: Javier Assad
The Cubs will be getting some pitching reinforcements back soon, as Javier Assad continued his rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday. Assad is coming back from a grade 2 oblique strain that has kept him sidelined since spring training. He attempted rehab starting back in April, but re-aggravated the injury on the mound. However, he is now looking stronger and is close to returning to the Cubs’ rotation.
Assad had three strong seasons between the Cubs’ bullpen and rotation to start his career, but the setback from the oblique injury forced the Cubs to find other options in their rotation before he could return. He’s pitched decently over his three starts since his rehab assignment restarted on July 24, pitching to a 1.64 ERA, .231 opponents average, striking out 12, and walking only three batters over 11 innings.
Assad went into the fifth inning of his start for the first time all year on Wednesday, but had his pitch count up to 68 after walking Saints second baseman Anthony Prato. The Cubs will keep Assad on rehab for another couple of starts before bringing him back to the Major League roster. Dynasty owners who want to bank on Cubs pitching should expect to see him in a dual starter and reliever role down the stretch.
Other Dynasty Storylines to Follow
Mick Abel threw five scoreless innings of one-hit baseball in his Saints debut on Sunday. The newly acquired Abel has been ranked as Minnesota’s top pitching prospect and is expected to spend more time in Triple-A than Bradley as the Twins’ player development staff works with him.
Miguel Amaya is continuing a rehab assignment with the Iowa Cubs. He’s been out since May 24 with an oblique strain. He’s currently played 10 games on his rehab assignment hitting .250 with no home runs and just two RBI.
