Spring Training is in full swing, which means the fringes of the Minnesota Twins roster will start to become increasingly important. Opening Day is in less than a month, and not all of the team's 26-man roster spots are spoken for.
Last year the Twins experienced a youth movement that sparked a run in October that finally ended the miserable 19-year postseason losing streak. That's something which could continue this season with a bevy of prospects who could play key roles.
Before anyone gets mad, it's extremely possible that none of these guys end up making the 26-man roster. There are a lot of mouths to feed and an already limited amount of roster space, but everyone here deserves at least a conversation about how they fit into the Twins' immediate future.
3 Twins prospects who won't make the Opening Day roster, 2 who still have a chance
Yunior Severino, 1B/3B
There's almost no chance that Yunior Severino makes the Opening Day roster, but he's someone who is absolutely worth keeping tabs on as the season progresses. Minnesota added him to the 40-man roster back in November to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft which is a pretty clear indication of how the team views him.
He torched pitchers at Triple-A St. Paul late last year, showing the sort of power that the Twins could use to boost the offense. Severino hit 24 homers in 87 games at Double-A Wichita before moving up to Triple-A where he hit another 11 home runs in 36 games for the Saints.
This one didn't even register on Statcast. We can only assume Yunior Severino's homerun was an estimated 792 feet. Two-run blast to right, his 6th of the season with the Saints and his 30th overall. He becomes just the 8th player in the Minor Leagues to hit 30 home runs this year pic.twitter.com/9tBVcLiRjD
— St. Paul Saints (@StPaulSaints) September 6, 2023
As far as where he might fit, Severino projects as a potential option to platoon at first base if something happens to Alex Kirilloff or Carlos Santana. Don't hold your breath on him getting called up but now would be a great time to get in on the ground floor.
Chances of making Opening Day roster: None, but buy your stock now