AL Batting Champ Luis Arraez Leads Former Blue Wahoos' Best Of 2022

On a mid-May day in 2019, shortly before midnight, Luis Arraez placed a call to Pensacola to relay a life-changing experience.

He informed then-Blue Wahoos manager Ramon Borrego, a fellow countryman from Venezuela and mentor to Arraez, that he was called up to join the Minnesota Twins. Arraez would make his Major League debut the next night.

“Hey Viejo!” said Arraez, a term as Borrego explained later, is the Spanish version of calling someone, old man. “Viejo, Viejo, you know what?... I’m going to the Big Leagues!”

Borrego began crying.

“It is unbelievable,” said Borrego, recalling the conversation a day later, during the only season the Blue Wahoos were a Twins affiliate. “I am the first person (Arraez) called,” he said. “That tells you something special. I feel for this kid with way he worked and the way he’s chased his dream. I think I am one of the bigger witnesses in his career.”

Arraez, who played 38 games for the Blue Wahoos in 2019, became at age 22 one of the fastest former Blue Wahoos players to reach the Major Leagues.

“This is just the beginning for you, I told him,” Borrego said during that night’s conversation. “Now, you have to work even harder.

“Why? To stay there.”

Not only has Arraez stayed, he’s now arrived as one of the game’s standout players, after winning the 2022 American League batting title with a .316 average, edging out New York Yankees megastar Aaron Judge

In doing so, the Twins first baseman was a runaway choice as the top former Blue Wahoos player with the biggest impact during the 2022 MLB season.

Among the top 10 selections, there were breakthrough performances in 2022 by pitchers Wandy Peralta, Jhoan Duran and Edward Cabrera representing former Blue Wahoos players of the team’s three affiliations – Reds, Twins, Marlins – in franchise history.

Though he played only six weeks for the Blue Wahoos in 2019, Arraez left a big impression with Pensacola fans. In 38 games, he batted .343. He was a guy always willing to sign autographs and greet fans after the game.

During a meet-the-team event at Seville Quarter, days before the April season-opener, Arraez led a group of players dancing on stage as people cheered.

“When you are talking about Luis Arraez, you are talking about a player with intensity, big heart, great passion,” Borrego said during the 2019 season. “You are talking about a guy who is loved by teammates. You are talking about a special person.”

Borrego, who has managed the Twins’ new Double-A affiliate, Wichita (Kansas) Wind Surge that past two years, including being the 2021 Double-A Central manager of the year, knew in 2019 that Arraez would make a quick impact in the major leagues.

This season, Arraez led the Twins in hits (173), runs scored (88), doubles (31). Also, he only struck out 43 times, which was the lowest among any qualified player in MLB. He is also a Gold Glove Award finalist.

In winning the batting title, he overcame a hamstring injury in the final weeks to maintain the .316 average. He became the first Twins’ player since catcher Joe Mauer in 2009 to win the AL batting title.

The Yankees’ Judge finished with a .311, falling just short of attaining the Triple Crown (average, home runs, RBI) which has only been attained twice in the past 55 years by an American League player (Detroit Tigers Miguel Cabrera in 2012, Boston Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski in 1967).

“It feels amazing,” said Arraez, speaking to Twins media members on the final day of the regular season. “This is one of my goals. I'm living my dream right now. This is amazing for me because I worked hard for this. I just want to say thanks to my hitting coach, Frank Valdez, and to Nelson Cruz (former Twins player, now with Washington Nationals).

“When I got to the (Dominican Republic in offseason), my hitting coach said, 'Hey, let's work hard, and then you've got the batting title.' I did it. I want to give this to him, to Twins fans, to my family, and to every person who supported me. I want to give them this."

Arraez’ big season was part of significant 2022 among former Blue Wahoos players. Here are the others in the Top 10.

2) LUIS CASTILLO – A wild year in Castillo’s career. He began 2022 as a mainstay in the Reds starting pitching rotation. He was the team’s representative in the 2022 MLB All-Star game. But the Reds opted to trade him on July 30 to the Seattle Mariners for a quartet of minor league players.

In 11 games with the Mariners, Castillo was 4-2 with a 3.17 ERA. He pitched in two of the Mariners playoff games, going 1-1 with 14.1 innings and 1.88 ERA.

Castillo pitched in Pensacola during the 2017 season, appearing in 14 games for the Blue Wahoos, before getting called up the Reds and making his MLB debut on June 23, 2017 with the Reds.

3) WANDY PERALTA – After making his MLB debut in 2016 with the Reds, following part of two seasons (2015-16) with Blue Wahoos, Peralta had bounced around four MLB teams.

The Yankees acquired him in an April 2021 trade with the San Francisco Giants. It led to Peralta posting his two best seasons, led by 2022 with a career-best 2.72 ERA in 56 games. Most importantly, he became a Yankees’ star in the post-season appearing in four consecutive games in the AL Division series win against the Cleveland Guardians

4) JHOAN DURAN – His breakthrough year led to him named the Twins’ Joseph W. Haynes Award winner as the team’s pitcher of the year. He also was named the team’s most outstanding rookie.

Like he did in Pensacola during the 2019 season, Duran wowed with a fastball exceeding 100 mph and became a dominating reliever. The 24-year-old righthander compiled a 1.86 ERA with a 2-4 record in 67.2 innings pitched. He made his debut on opening day of the 2022 season and appeared in 57 games.

5) JOSE MIRANDA – Destined to make his MLB debut in 2022 at some point, Miranda’s rise was accelerated when Twins’ veteran slugger Miguel Sano got hurt less than a month into the season. Miranda, 24, made his debut at third base with the Twins on May 2 and his season took off like a rocket from that point.

He became an instant star in Minnesota, blasting 15 home runs, 66 RBI and 25 doubles in 483 at-bats. He became one of the team’s most reliable offensive weapons during the season. It was something he flashed throughout his minor league career, including 2019 when he played an entire season in Fort Myers, before making his Blue Wahoos debut on Sept. 2, going 3-for-5 in his only Double-A game that season.

6) JIMMY HERGET – Playing for his fourth team in three seasons, Herget found a solid place in the Los Angeles Angels bullpen. He appeared in 49 games, his most as an MLB pitcher, compiling a 2-1 record with a 2.48 ERA that included nine saves and six holds.

Herget made 24 appearances for the Blue Wahoos in 2017 while a member of the Reds organization. He made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2019, then pitched for the Texas Rangers in 2021 before being signed as a free agent by the Angels in August 2021.

7) TANNER RAINEY – On a struggling team, Rainey had his best MLB season, recording 12 saves in 29 games for the Washington Nationals. Rainey appeared in 14 games for the Blue Wahoos in 2017. He made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2018, after they selected him in the second round of the 2015 draft out of West Alabama.

Unfortunately, the 29-year-old Rainey encountered an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery. He may miss the entire 2023 season while recovering from the procedure.

8) GRIFFIN JAX – After starting 14 games for the Twins in 2021, making history as the first U.S. Air Force Academy graduate to play in the Major Leagues, Jax made a transition to the bullpen in 2022 and had a solid season. He appeared in 65 games, recording a 7-4 record with a 3.36 ERA. He had18 holds and one save.

Jax was part of the Blue Wahoos starting rotation in 2019, pitching in 20 games with a 4-5 record and 2.67 ERA.

9) EDWARD CABRERA – He battled through injuries in 2022 to start 14 games for the Miami Marlins and post impressive numbers that included a 6-4 record with 3.01 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 71 innings. Blue Wahoos fans got to see Cabrera pitch twice in 2022 injury rehab starts. He went a total of six innings with no runs allowed and eight strikeouts.

He’s a pitcher the Marlins must decide whether to keep or trade, given that he doesn’t have any minor league option left in his contract status. When healthy, he’s be dominating.

10) MIGUEL ROJAS -- Though his batting average dipped to .236 in 2022, after finishing the previous year at .265, the 9-year MLB veteran became a finalist for the National League Gold Glove Award at shortstop. The other two finalists are the Atlanta Braves’ Dansby Swanson and the San Diego Padres Ha-Seong Kim.

Rojas, who was part of the Blue Wahoos’ 2012 inaugural season roster as a Cincinnati Reds prospect, made just seven errors in 531 chances for a .987 percentage. He was also the Marlins team captain and steady leader through a difficult year.