St. Paul – Minnesota Twins fans have been asking to see Connor Prielipp reach Triple-A more than any other prospect in the system. On Tuesday, Prielipp, Minnesota’s top left-handed pitching prospect, made good on their wishes in his Triple-A debut against the Round Rock Express.
Prielipp delivered on the hype in the first inning. He faced the minimum on just nine pitches and got the third out via strikeout on a 97.9 MPH fastball, his highest velo of the night.
But as exciting as the first inning was for Prielipp, the Saints offense amassed 14 hits and 11 runs over the night, led by left fielder Kyler Fedko, who had his first-ever five-hit game in pro ball.
“He was pretty impressive,” Saints manager Toby Gardenhire said of Fedko postgame. “I don’t think I got that many hits in my entire career. So, Feddy is swinging it great, the whole lineup has been swinging it good, that’s the key to keep it rolling. We’ll see how long we can keep it going, because it’s fun to watch our offense play right now.”
Fedko became the sixth player in Saints Triple-A history to get a five-hit game, the last being Hernán Pérez in Omaha on August 24, 2023. Fedko managed his five-hit game with a 2-run homer, two doubles, and two singles, coming one triple shy of the cycle.
He remains an outlier among Saints players with five-hit games – Pérez, José Miranda, Kyle Garlick, Matt Wallner, and Round Rock utilityman Michael Helman – because he’s the only player who didn’t get his five-hit game against the Omaha Storm Chasers.
“It’s easy to hit in Omaha, I’ll say that,” Fedko said. “310 down the line, the wind was howling out. I mean, we saw some balls like 89 MPH go over the fence, so I mean, Omaha is unbelievable, hitting there.”
“That’s just who he is; he’s a natural hitter,” said Patrick Winkel, Fedko’s former roommate at UConn. “So it’s great to see him doing it, especially up here. It’s been a huge help with the run production. Ever since he got up, we’ve been smacking the ball.”
In addition to watching his longtime friend continue to mash, Winkel caught Prielipp behind the dish on Tuesday. The second inning was a lot more work for him, though. Round Rock’s hitters drew two walks and an RBI single, but Prielipp battled back, striking out the side with his slider on two and change on one.
Prielipp made one mistake to Helman, who led off the third with a solo home run off Prielipp’s changeup.
“I felt great tonight,” Prielipp said after the game. “Obviously, my control wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be, but it wasn’t a bad first start for me. Fastball velocity has been great the last few weeks, and I’m glad it was great tonight.”
“We love Helman, glad he got one,” said Winkel. “Let’s hope he doesn’t get another the rest of the week. But yeah, he put a good swing on a good pitch, too. I mean that ball wasn’t a strike, and for him to hit it there, sometimes you’ve got to tip your cap to him.”
Prielipp pitched into the fourth inning for the third start in a row and got the leadoff man out, but Round Rock shortstop Richie Martin tagged a one-out double. Prielipp got one more chance against veteran Omar Narvaez, but walked him to end the night at 81 pitches.
Jarret Whorff came into relieve him, inheriting two runners and walking the leadoff man. He escaped the jam on a pop-out and strikeout to prevent any more damage against St. Paul’s newest hitter.
“I know when I’m in the zone, good things are going to happen,” said Whorff. “After I released the ball, anything could happen. You don’t have control over those situations. You can’t help the lineouts, but you can’t help the bloop hits. So it’s all about being in the strike zone and being confident and letting your team play behind you.”
Whorff would get the win in the game by throwing two more scoreless innings before handing things off to Aaron Rozek, Noah Davis, and Trent Baker to close things out. They combined to allow only two walks and four hits over 5 ⅔ innings and no earned runs. It was a perfect cap off for the highlights of Prielipp on the mound and Fedko at the plate, who both look to make strong statements finishing up their 2025 seasons with St. Paul.
“It’s electric stuff, it’s electric stuff,” Winkel said on Prielipp. “I mean, you know what you’re getting. You’re getting an electric heater and a wipeout slider, and when those pitches are on, it’s really tough to beat in the opposing dugout.”
“It’s like a contagious offense, honestly,” said Fedko. “Like Eelesy starting it off, he’s been red hot, and then it’s so easy to hit when he’s on base. The pitcher’s thinking about him, the catcher’s thinking about him because he’s going to steal. Then another hit, another hit, another hit, and so when other people are hitting, it’s way easier to step in the box and hit as well.”
