We break down the top three Minnesota Twins players you need to own for this upcoming fantasy season.
With the season still suspended, no date has been suggested yet for the start of the season quite yet. This means no regular season games yet, and no fantasy baseball either. For Minnesota Twins fans who are looking to scoop up their favorite players and win fantasy leagues, they have to wait to try to have Josh Donaldson lead them to a title.
With that in mind, we take a look at the Twins players that will help win leagues for the their owners. To make this list, we broke down the top performers on the Twins roster that perform well in homers, RBI, stolen bases, and quality starts, the key stats that help teams win in fantasy baseball. With that in mind, let’s get into it.
Minnesota Twins No. 5: Max Kepler, OF
Three-year Average, 2017-2019: .239 BA, 25 HR, 72 RBI, 4 SB
2020 Projected (over 120 games): .257 BA, 25 HR, 76 RBI, 3 SB
Overall Ranking on CBSSports.com: 89
Max Kepler is known for his power and defense, but defense doesn’t get you anywhere in most fantasy leagues. He’s a good run producer but struggles to hit for average, meaning he isn’t as valuable as some of the other players on this list.
In addition, Kepler is an outfielder, where there is a lot of talent (Kepler ranks 24th). This drives his value down a lot. He does however, provide enough power, RBI, and runs to earn a spot in the top 5.
Minnesota Twins No. 4: Josh Donaldson, 3B
3YA: .260 BA, 26 HR, 65 RBI
2020 PRJ: .272 BA, 32 HR, 80 RBI
OVR on CBSSports.com: 95
It may be surprising to see Josh Donaldson this low on the list, but he needed a bounce-back season in Atlanta to earn the payday he got with the Twins. He is still a top 50 player in fantasy baseball, as his batting average is decent and he provides a lot of runs.
Unfortunately for Donaldson, he plays third base, where he ranks fifteenth due to several shortstops and second baseman also qualifying for third too. Because he plays such a common position, that holds him back to fourth.
Minnesota Twins No. 3: Eddie Rosario, OF
3YA: .285 BA, 28 HR, 88 RBI, 7 SB
PRJ: .286 BA, 26 HR, 86 RBI, 4 SB
OVR on CBSSports.com : 87
Surprised? Eddie Rosario may not be the most valuable outfielder in real life, but his offensive production is nothing short of excellent. His offense makes him a very valuable player in fantasy, as very few outfielders have a three-year average that’s above .280/25/85/5, which is exactly what Eddie has.
He may not stay a Twin forever, but as long as he is one and a part of the Twins incredible lineup, expect him to keep putting up excellent numbers, allowing the stud offensive outfielder to stay up here.
Minnesota Twins No. 2: Mitch Garver, C
3YA: .264 BA, 13 HR, 38 RBI
PRJ: .268 BA, 22 HR, 64 RBI
OVR on CBSSports.com: 91
Mitch Garver is ranked the lowest overall on this list, as his 114th overall ranking puts him behind Kepler and Rosario. What helps Garver here is his position. Very few catchers have his power and run production combined with decent batting average.
Garver is the 5th ranked catcher, and at a position that there are only six or seven catchers that are worth owning, Garver’s consistent production could be a huge reason that a fantasy owner wins their league.
Minnesota Twins No. 1: Nelson Cruz
3YA: .284 BA, 39 HR, 108 RBI
PRJ: .294 BA, 40 HR, 110 RBI
OVR on CBSSports.com: 60
Nelson Cruz may not be the best player for the Twins due to his lack of defense, but as far as offense goes, no one on the team produces more. Nelson produced the most homers and the second best RBI and batting average numbers on the team.
The only downside for Cruz is he only can be placed at designated hitter, limiting his options. But when you have this much offensive power, he’s a must start every week. Cruz is the easy choice for the top of this list.