The Minnesota Twins have had an uneventful Spring Training so far in 2025. The Twins currently sit at 3-4-1 in the Grapefruit League and have avoided major injuries to the current MLB roster.
Unfortunately, for three minor leaguers, it's been a different story. Three of the Twins' top-five prospects have minor injuries this spring.
Walker Jenkins
Jenkins entered the 2025 season as the No. 1 Twins prospect and MLB's third-ranked overall prospect.
It's easy to see why.
On a 20-to-80 scouting scale, Jenkins has a 60 grade in hitting, hitting for power, and arm strength. With tremendous intangibles, Jenkins is considered one of the best overall prospects the Twins have ever drafted in franchise history.
Last season, Jenkins missed two months with a severe hamstring injury, which lingered throughout 2024. With his abbreviated season behind him, Jenkins was poised to break out. However, the Twins announced on Saturday that Jenkins suffered a high ankle sprain while jumping to catch a ball.
The injury will limit Jenkins' baseball activity for about one to two weeks.
While the injury is disappointing news for both Jenkins and the Twins, it’s not a major injury that resulted in extended time. According to Dan Hayes of The Athletic, Jenkins is not too far away from returning to the baseball diamond.
Marco Raya
The Twins decided to add Raya to the 40-man roster, which protected him from the Rule-5 draft.
Raya, promoted to Triple-A St. Paul in 2024, was on a positive trajectory to make his 2025 debut with the Twins. With a plus-fastball, slider, and changeup, Raya has the stuff to make it to Minnesota. The question, of course, is whether Raya will stay healthy.
After all, Raya missed the entire 2021 season due to injury, but that did not stop him from jumping through various minor league levels.
Last Wednesday, Raya strained his left quad during a bullpen session, according to Phil Miller of the Minnesota Star Tribune. Head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta was optimistic that Raya would continue throwing off a mound this week. "We're going to get him running this weekend and get him on the mound again Tuesday for a bullpen session."
Paparesta described Raya's injury as "very mild."
Emmanuel Rodriguez
Last season, Rodriguez saw his season end due to a right thumb sprain with 10 games left in Triple-A. It ended an injury-filled season for Rodriguez, who only played 47 minor league games in 2024.
Despite the injuries, Rodriguez showed promise, finishing the season with a 1.026 OPS through all four levels of the minor leagues. Had the injuries not taken place in 2024, Rodriguez had a chance to earn an MLB call-up.
Before the start of training camp in February, Rodriguez suffered a "moderate" ankle sprain, which The Athletic’s Dan Hayes said was worse than Jenkins’ sprain. The injury held him out of baseball activities until he started running progressions last Saturday. Given his injuries last season, the Twins are being careful with Rodriguez.
The team wants to make sure they do not rush him back to full baseball activities if he is not healthy.