Minnesota Twins Prospects Soar in Latest Rankings

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Minnesota Twins, Walker Jenkins
Credit: Jonah Hinebaugh/Naples Daily News/USA Today Network-Florida / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Minnesota Twins are in position to be buyers this season. With the trade deadline just days away, they’ll likely move a couple of prospects. A midseason rankings update shows just how good their group is.

Minnesota Twins get rave reviews in Keith Law’s prospect rankings

Keith Law has been writing about prospects for years. His rankings have moved places during that time, but now appear for The Athletic. He has had controversial stances with different names, but it’s clear he is high on the current Twins crop.

Walker Jenkins, the Twins top prospect, is now a top 10 player for Law. Jumping to ninth from 15th, Law is clearly sky high on the 2023 first round pick.

“Jenkins got hurt in his first game of the season, hit the injured list, and has hit .277/.417/.406 since his return to Low A with 25 walks and just 15 strikeouts. He’s always had power and scouts loved his swing, but he was pitched around a ton in high school and there was some uncertainty about where his hit tool stood and how real the plate discipline was. I think we can say now it’s real, and the man can hit. He’ll probably follow Clark to High A soon.”

Similar to Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez sees a big boost for the Twins. Despite still being injured with a sprained thumb, he has looked exceptional at the Double-A level. Previously ranked 47th, Law moves Rodriguez to 26th.

“When Rodriguez is on the field, he rakes, up to .298/.479/.621 in 37 games so far as a 21-year-old in Double-A Wichita, even though he came into the year with only 183 games of professional experience over three seasons. That’s because he’s been hurt pretty often, missing time this year with a sprained thumb and the previous two years with a major knee injury and an abdominal strain. He still doesn’t chase pitches out of the zone and makes a ton of hard contact. If he plays, he’s a star, but he has yet to have a full season of at-bats.”

Rounding out the group of top 60 prospects is soaring riser Zebby Matthews. After starting at High-A this season, he is now pitching for Triple-A St. Paul. Previously unranked, Matthews gets love from Law.

“Matthews was an eighth-round pick in 2022 out of Western Carolina, but since then he’s added more than a grade of velocity while actually improving his control. He sits 94-95 now, topping out at 97. Matthews has a slider, cutter, curveball and occasional changeup, nothing clearly plus but everything playing up because he throws so many strikes — he didn’t walk a batter until his seventh start of the season, going over 125 batters without a walk — and because he’s got an extremely short arm action that adds some deception. I don’t love the delivery, but I wouldn’t change it until it causes a problem.”

Law did preface that the midseason list doesn’t follow the same criteria as his offseason updates. Current placement on a big league roster removes a prospect from consideration. For the Twins, this applies to both Brooks Lee and David Festa.

Related: Bleacher Report REALLY Loves the Minnesota Twins Farm System

Will the Twins move these prospects?

It remains highly unlikely that the Twins would part with any players currently in Law’s top 60. Jenkins is untouchable by all realistic measures. Rodriguez is right there with Jenkins, and dealing him while hurt isn’t going to happen. Matthews is a realistic option to pitch for Minnesota down the stretch, and that takes him out of consideration as well.

Given the Twins organizational depth as a whole, they shouldn’t need to move top prospects when filling big league holes. Players like Luke Keaschall and Gabriel Gonzalez are probably the top of the threshold from a prospect perspective. There are also 40 man candidates to be looked at as expendable for the Twins.

Up against self-imposed payroll constraints, expecting a big deal seems foolhardy. The Twins don’t need a massive swing to help their postseason positioning. That should help in providing realistic avenues to get something done. It will also mitigate the return sent to an opposing organization.

Related: Passan: Money Issues Continue to Hinder Twins in Trade Talks

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