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Players the Minnesota Twins Should Look at the Rest of 2017

By Benjamin Chase

LOUISVILLE, KY - OCTOBER 23: 2015 World Series bats of Daniel Murphy of the New York Mets lay on a rack ready to be shipped out at the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory on October 23, 2015 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - OCTOBER 23: 2015 World Series bats of Daniel Murphy of the New York Mets lay on a rack ready to be shipped out at the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory on October 23, 2015 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Mitch Garver, C

Overcoming the odds at every step, Mitch Garver was not drafted out of high school, went to the University of New Mexico and was the third catcher the Minnesota Twins drafted in the 2013 draft, when he was the 9th round draft pick of the Twins.

Yet, he’s moved up and past every other catcher within the Twins system to the guy who is on the cusp of the major leagues, hitting the ball with tremendous force at AAA and getting on base at a rate that would have him standing in the batter’s box in a major league stadium in most organizations.

However, the Twins signed a catcher this past offseason, Jason Castro, who is a defensive specialist at the position for $8M per season for 3 years. He’s only in the first year of that contract, likely with the Twins not expecting Garver to take this next step, but as he’s done throughout his career, he once again exceeded expectations.

Garver has significant power in his bat and a good eye at the plate. While his swing can get long, and he might not be a guy who hits .300 consistently, but he should provide a steady .250-.270 bat with good on base skills and power.

Garver is already on the 40-man roster and is 26 years old (not terribly crazy for a catcher to hit the majors in his mid-20s). He doesn’t have a ton of time left to really be a “prospect” anymore, so he should get a look to see what the Twins really have. If Castro needs to be an expensive mentor, then that’s not the worst thing in the world with a young pitching staff coming up as well, but Garver certainly needs to get some time.

Next: Big-armed righty bullpen arms

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