Minnesota Twins’ Gordon adds depth at shortstop, faces stiff competition among other future talent
Honorable Mentions #20: Travis Blankenhorn
#19: Wander Javier #18: Stuart Turner #17: Jermaine Palacios
#16: Mason Melotakis #15: Jake Reed #14: Taylor Rogers
#13: Lewis Thrope #12: J.T. Chargois #11: Adam Brett Walker
#10: Alex Meyer #9: Nick Burdi #8: Kohl Stewart
#7: Stephen Gonsalves
Last season, the youth movement began in full swing for the Minnesota Twins and it brought with it success that has Twins fans excited for what the future may bring.
With players locked in at most positions for the foreseeable future, the one position that is not as clear is shortstop.
The Twins currently have Eduardo Escobar as the incumbent starting shortstop but is he the future at that position?
Name: Nick Gordon
Position: SS Age: 20
Height: 6’0 Weight: 160 lbs
Throws: Right Bats: Left
Acquired: 2014, 1st Rd (5th Overall)
That question remains unanswered as the Twins currently have shortstop Jorge Polanco and our pick for the No. 6 prospect in the organization, Nick Gordon.
Baseball runs in the blood of Gordon who is the younger brother of Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon and son of former reliever Tom Gordon.
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Like his older brother, Gordon brings a large assortment of tools onto the field.
This past season was his first full year with Twins’ Single-A Affiliate Cedar Rapids Kernels after appearing in 57 games in 2014 with the rookie level Elizabethton Twins. Gordon led the Kernels with RBI’s (58), runs (79), games (120), doubles (23) and was second on the team in stolen bases (25) while also carrying a slash line of .277/.336/.360.
Gordon was named the Twins’ No. 5 prospect on MLB.com’s list of Top-30 prospects, No. 77 on MLB.com’s Top 100 Overall Prospects and No. 98 on Keith Law’s Top 100 list.
Between Polanco and Gordon, the consensus is Polanco is closer to being part of the everyday roster. Polanco has also appeared in nine games for the Twins between 2014-15, while hitting .313 in limited action but also showing some shaky defense after moving over from second base to shortstop.
But with Gordon being a few years away and Polanco potentially being major league ready out of spring training, there is a strong possibility Polanco will gain a further grasp on the position by the time Gordon is ready.
So where will Gordon find himself when he finally arrives in the majors? It is possible, the Twins could shift him over to second, use him as a utility player or backup to shortstop. Another possibility is Gordon may find himself as a trade chip if Polanco proves he is ready to be the Twins’ every day shortstop.
However, with Gordon being a few years away, this is all speculation and obviously things could change as the Twins could move players or contracts may not be renewed. With that being said, the future looks very bright for the Gordon and it would be difficult to imagine the Twins giving up on the 20-year old due to a positional issue after being the team’s 2014 First-Round pick.