Minnesota Twins: Prospect profile Chris Vallimont RHP

The Minnesota Twins recently acquired Chris Vallimont along with Sergio Romo in a trade with the Miami Marlins, let’s take a look at what the young righty brings to the Twins organization.

While the Minnesota Twins acquired a crucial bullpen arm for the playoff push, they also received RHP Chris Vallimont and a PTBNL in a package for 1B prospect Lewin Diaz. While Vallimont isn’t necessarily a top prospect, he offers some upside and depth in the minor-league system for Minnesota. What exactly does the young pitcher bring to the table?

Drafted by Miami in the 2018 MLB draft, Vallimont doesn’t have a whole lot of service time in the minors. A big prospect at 6’5″ and 220 pounds, Chris struggled his first year in the pros but has turned it up a notch since. Between 2 levels of single-A ball, he has an ERA of 3.16 and 122 strikeouts in 105.1 innings pitched.

Though struggling to the tune of a 6.21 ERA in his first year, Vallimont still showed plenty of upside. He issued more walks than strikeouts contributing to some of his struggles but hitters had a collective .215 average against the big righty. Altogether in his short minor-league career, Vallimont has held batters to an overall average of .210 and has secured 142 Ks in 134.1 innings on the bump.

According to MLB.com, the newly acquired pitching prospect is currently ranked as the 29th overall prospect in the Minnesota Twins system. Considering the depth within the organization, that is no small feat. A solid tool-set with a fastball that rates as a 60 overall, the power is there for Vallimont. Having a 55 overall slider also helps form a dangerous 1-2 punch to build off in the coming seasons.

MLB.com noted a nice increase in velocity for Vallimont stating, “Vallimont’s fastball velocity improved from 85-88 mph as a Pennsylvania high schooler to a consistent 92-96 mph after three years of college”. Some considerable improvement throughout the years for Chris, showing there may still be more in the tank as he climbs his way through the minor-league ranks.

Though the trade was focused on Sergio Romo, it’s a very solid move all-around. To ship out one prospect and create depth by bringing in another, especially in a position of need throughout the organization is a shrewd move.