Minnesota Twins: A look at the Twins Top-5 prospects

4- Nick Gordon SS

The Minnesota Twins drafted speedy shortstop Nick Gordon number five overall in the 2014 MLB draft. Gordon has lived up to the pressure of his bloodlines so far but there will likely be a position change in his future. We’ll talk about that more later, but for now, let’s talk about his history a little bit.

First, we’ll talk about his lineage quickly, because it is worth mentioning. Former MLB reliever Tom “Flash” Gordon is his father and current Seattle Mariners OF Dee Gordon is his brother, so baseball is in his blood. He has excelled every step of the way through the Minors and looks ready to contribute in the Major Leagues soon.

Gordon slashed .270/.341/.348 playing for Double-A Chattanooga during the 2017 season. Gordon worked 53 walks showing potential top of the order talent last season. However, he also had 134 strikeouts in 578 plate appearances. If Gordon wants to make an impact, he will need to cut down his strikeout rate.

He is fast on the base paths and has the potential to be more than he has shown so far. His 50 grade speed hasn’t translated into too many stolen bases to this point in his Minor League career. However, as the 22-year-old matures, he should develop into a true stolen base threat.

What does the future hold for Gordon?

The Minnesota Twins have numerous, important pending free agents, Joe Mauer and Brian Dozier just to name a couple. The latter is where Gordon will most likely come in. Minnesota made a splash in February by signing power-hitting Logan Morrison, and that opens up numerous opportunities for the Twins.

Gordon has shown at every level of the Minor Leagues that his future is bright. He has had a strong start in Spring Training for Minnesota, but is likely ticketed to start this season in Triple-A. However, Gordon will need to switch to the keystone to succeed in The Show.

As good as Gordon projects to be, he is still only the SECOND best shortstop prospect in the Minnesota Twins system, we will get to him later in our rankings. Minnesota could be moving on from Dozier after the 2018 season and Gordon could be the man to take over. However, now it’s time we talk about the number three prospect on our list, a pitcher who could play a role during the ’18 season, Stephen Gonsalves.