Minnesota Twins Top Prospect Already Dealing With Injury

Monday marked the Minnesota Twins first full squad workout of 2025 MLB Spring Training. As pitchers and catchers reported last week, many position players were also getting some early work in at Fort Myers as well.

This season is one that will be heavily reliant on internal depth for the Twins, throughout the organization. There has been minimal roster turnover, which should lead to younger guys improving. Several spots have talented up-and-coming prospects ready to make their mark. Unfortunately, the injury bug has already bit one of them.

Emmanuel Rodriguez behind schedule with injury for MN Twins

Max Kepler is gone, and that means the Minnesota Twins corner outfield spots belong to Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner. The Twins have already talked about a potential impact that could be made by Emmanuel Rodriguez, as well. But now, they will have to wait.

Twins prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez sprained his left ankle last week and will be delayed for a week or two from participating in camp.

— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) February 17, 2025

Rodriguez is not only among the Twins best prospects, but multiple outlets have him inside the top 20 across all of professional baseball. He is an incredible talent that has already reached the Triple-A level, and will be just 22 years old. The problem is that injuries have been a consistent issue for him.

Rodriguez’ career with Minnesota Twins

Last season, Rodriguez played in just 47 games after dealing with multiple hand injuries. Ultimately, he underwent an offseason procedure to fix that issue. Before that, he played in 99 games during 2023. That is the only season of his professional career in which he has been available for more than 47 games.

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When he is healthy, Rodriguez is among the most talented hitters in the minors. He put out a .280/.459/.567 line in 2024 and his 61/52 K/BB rate jumps off the page. He is a patient hitter, sometimes to a fault, but can do significant damage when he swings.

In 47 games last season Emmanuel Rodriguez ran an average exit velocity of 94.7 mph. The only big leaguers with a higher figure in 2024 (min. 100 BBE):

Aaron Judge: 96.2 mph
Shohei Ohtani: 95.8 mph
Oneil Cruz: 95.5 mph pic.twitter.com/WjV974gTN2

— Aram Leighton (@AramLeighton8) February 12, 2025

The power is already there for the youngster. His nine home runs in 47 games last season were complemented by 14 doubles. He launched 16 home runs at High-A Cedar Rapids in 2023.

On the shelf with his ankle issue to start Spring Training, it’s possible that Rodriguez won’t get much of a look before being reassigned to minor league camp. He was not likely to make the big league roster, but still needs to utilize every opportunity to make an impression.

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This is the final option year for Trevor Larnach, and Matt Wallner has just one year remaining as well. Ideally, it would be Rodriguez that steps up if injury or performance opens the door. But, he needs to be on the field in order for that to be possible.