Minnesota Twins: Ranking the top 5 position player prospects

#1 Alex Kirilloff OF/1B

Though Alex Kirilloff got off to a slower start to begin the year thanks to an injury, he’s turned it up a notch lately. Last year, Kirilloff finished with a .348 batting average, 20 homers, 44 doubles, and 7 triples across two different levels of single-A ball. While only hitting .273 with 6 long balls and 14 doubles this year, it’s in nearly half as many at-bats as 2018.

Alex is still 21 years old and could see time with the Minnesota Twins as early as next year if he’s not a September call-up which I think is a long-shot. Time is on his side but his ability and skill may push the Twin’s front office into action soon. According to MLB.com Kirilloff has a 65 overall hit tool that is tops in the Minnesota Twins organization.

There’s a lot to like about Kirilloff and his swing. He has a very pure swing and a quick and compact load into his swing. The reason it may be a little more sustainable in the long run as opposed to Royce Lewis’ swing is because of the high leg kick present in Royce’s motion. While he’s still showing the ability to hit the ball extremely well, it’s fair to wonder how well that will translate at the big league level thanks to his unorthodox swing.

Don’t get me wrong, I think both will be very successful at the next level, and Royce Lewis probably has a chance to be a better all-around player. Though, I love the way Kirilloff attacks the ball in the zone and can hit it to all parts of the park, with power. Though he doesn’t have a ton of raw power, his swing and mechanics alone should generate a solid amount of dingers at the next level. 2018 was his best year and if he stays healthy, he could very well be the next Twins phenom at the plate.

Stay tuned Twins fans, as I’ll be diving into the top 5 pitching prospects shortly (again, according, to Puckett’s Pond). Following that, I’m going to take a look at the top 5 performers in the Twins minors this year. Guys that, no matter their age or time spent in the majors, deserve a shot with a big-league club once again or for the first time.

(Numbers could be slightly off as this took me a few days to throw together in my spare time, but you should get the gist. Baseball reference and MLB.com were the big sites I used for my numbers.)