St. Paul Saints infielder Rylan Bannon is a bit of an enigma, and it has to do with the numbers.

He’s a compact 5-foot-8, 180 pounds, yet possesses middle-of-the-lineup power. And, despite being one of the most productive hitters in the International League this season, he was
acquired from the New York Mets for cash on July 16.

Add it all up and the 28-year-old Bannon, whose resume includes seven major league games with three organizations, is an under-the-radar move by the Twins that could pay dividends.

“I’m excited to be here from an opportunity standpoint,” Bannon said prior to the Saints’ game with the Omaha Storm Chasers on Friday night at CHS Field. “It was tough leaving the Mets when I was having a good year, but I’m happy to be here; just keep building on what I was doing over there and keep rolling with it.”

Bannon walked twice while hitting second for St. Paul in Friday’s 6-1 win against Omaha, and he now owns an .854 OPS this season.

Playing for the Mets’ Triple-A team in Syracuse this season, Bannon hit 15 home runs and drove in 57 runs in 79 games. He has hit 105 home runs in less than six minor-league seasons.

“I think it’s more intent than anything,” Bannon said of his power. “Every time I go up there I’m trying to do damage — trying to get my pitch, trying to put my best swing on it. The name of the game now is to get your swing off and do damage.

“I’ve always tried to maintain that mindset, and it’s easier said than done. This year I kind of tapped back into that. I had some hitting coaches in Syracuse who were big on that, so it was fun to feed off of that with them.”

Bannon was an eighth-round pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017 out of Xavier, where he was Big East Player of the Year. A year later, he was part of one of the biggest trades in recent years, as he was among the package of players the Dodgers sent to Baltimore for Manny Machado.

“That was probably one of the more pivotal moments of my career,” Bannon said. “Getting traded the first time is always the hardest; it was definitely a shock to the system. Baltimore was in the beginning of their rebuild phase, and I went through a lot there.”

Bannon remained in the Baltimore organization until 2022, and made his major-league debut with the Orioles that season.

“It happened really fast,” Bannon said. “I was on the taxi squad with Baltimore and I didn’t even know I was playing that day. They pulled me into the office an hour before the game and told me I was playing.”

Bannon returned to the Dodgers’ organization in August when he was picked up off waivers in what was the start of a baseball odyssey. Eight days later, he was claimed on waivers by
Atlanta.

Bannon grew up in Joliet, Illinois, just outside of Chicago, and for a couple weeks in November he was a member of the Cubs, the team he grew up rooting for.

“I remember calling my dad and getting kind of emotional,” Bannon said. “It would have been really cool, but baseball is a business, and it didn’t work out.”

This time it was Houston that claimed Bannon off waivers, and his stint with that organization included two games with the Astros last season.

Time will tell if Minnesota will provide Bannon’s next chance to establish himself as a major-league player.

“It’s hard everywhere,” Bannon said. “I’ve been in a lot of situations where you think the opportunities are great and they don’t pan out. That’s the case for a lot of guys. So it’s hard to
say that the situation is greater here than anywhere else.

“So you just keep your head down and keep grinding.”

Briefly

Patrick Winkel and Dalton Shuffield each hit two-run home runs in the fourth inning of Friday’s win. Winkel, Shuffield and Wynton Bernard each had two hits. … Adam Plutko ran his record to 6-1 this season with six scoreless innings. He allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out six. … Reliever Justin Topa, on rehab assignment from the Twins, pitched a scoreless seventh with a walk and strikeout.

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