Life as a small-market baseball team means that you need to be able to develop talent in the Minor Leagues. You need to be able to supplement your roster in-case of injuries. These are facts that the Minnesota Twins know all too well.
The Twins have the second-ranked farm system in baseball according to MLB.com but graduated Brooks Lee, David Festa, Simeon Woods-Richardson, and Austin Martin in 2024. Even with the departures, the Twins still have plenty of talent including their top five prospects entering the 2025 season.
1. Walker Jenkins - OF
The Minnesota Twins made good use of the draft lottery in 2023 when it allowed them to land the fifth overall pick and select lefty high school outfielder Walker Jenkins.
After signing in 2023, the Wilmington, North Carolina product got off to a blazing start for the Twins organization, slashing a whopping .362/.417/.571 in rookie ball and Single-A Fort Myers.
Jenkins spent some time with the Twins during Spring Training in 2024 before suffering a pair of injuries that kept him sidelined until early June. He picked up right where he left off when he returned, getting promoted to Cedar Rapids in late July and earning another promotion to Double-A Wichita in mid-September.
Jenkins is someone the front office and fans should be excited for. He’s the current No. 2 prospect in baseball and a true five-tool player who should be able to stick in center field. Look for the soon-to-be 20-year-old to provide a little more pop in his swing this season as he matures into his 6’3” frame.
Jenkins should see a promotion to Triple-A St. Paul at some point this summer, but don’t expect to see him at Target Field until 2026.
2. Emmanuel Rodriguez - OF
The Twins' No. 2 overall prospect slots as MLB.com’s 29th-ranked prospect. Rodriguez signed with the Twins in the 2019-2020 international signing period for $2.5 million and he’s been as advertised since. The Dominican native suffered an abdominal strain in 2023 and a thumb injury in 2024, but when healthy he put on a show.
Rodriguez might be the definition of a three-outcome player, with a career strikeout rate of 29.9% and a walk rate of 22% and an isolated power rating of .260. His combination of power, plate discipline and low swing-and-miss rate versus righties and lefties makes him a super exciting prospect and one that should slot into right field for years to come.
Rodriguez won’t make the Opening Day roster, but he should make his MLB debut at some point in 2025.
3. Luke Keaschall - 2B/OF/1B
Keaschall is the last Twins prospect appearing in MLB.com’s top 100 prospects list, slotting in at No. 63. Keaschall, the Twins' second-round draft selection in 2023, was drafted out of Arizona State for his contact skills and discipline at the plate above all else.
Currently on the mend from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, the injury didn't affect his performance at the plate where he was able to slash .303/.420/.483 and finish 2024 at Double-A Wichita in 2024.
Keaschall won’t be a perennial 20-homer player, but he has good gap-to-gap power, and his plate discipline should lead to him being an on-base threat from the top of the order.
Keaschall shouldn’t debut until 2026, but his positional flexibility could help that debut come earlier if he keeps swinging the bat the way he has so far.
4. Andrew Morris - RHP
Morris climbed to Triple-A St. Paul in 2024 by flashing a five-pitch mix paired with a deceptive over-the-top delivery. He complied a 2.37 ERA in 133 innings pitched with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 133 to 32. The Texas Tech product has consistently shown great command of the zone, which led to a 1.48 ground ball-to-flyball ratio in his 33.2 innings at St. Paul.
His fastball doesn’t overpower people, but it can reach 96-97 mph with some ride-in on a right-handed hitter. His second pitch is the slider, which he tends to operate in the low-to-mid 80s with plenty of movement away from his fastball.
Morris’ third offering is the curve and it’s his most eye-catching pitch, sitting in the mid-70’s with anywhere from 8-12 inches of vertical drop. He also features a cutter that sits between his four-seamer and slider, and a change-up that he could improve slightly if he lost some velocity.
Morris should be in line for a 2025 debut if he’s able to keep up the improvement he showed over the course of 2024.
5. Charlee Soto - RHP
Checking in at No. 5 is the 34th pick in the 2023 draft. Soto is still a teenager entering his age-19 season, and the sky is the limit for the former high school SS turned pitcher.
The Twins brought Soto along slowly, opting to wait until 2024 to make his professional debut. The jump from high school to Single-A Fort Myers proved to be a challenge as he went 1-7 with a 5.23 ERA in 74 innings pitched. While those numbers are rough, Soto flashed his potential, racking up 87 strikeouts on the year and winning Minor League Pitcher of the Month in July.
As he matures into his 6-foot-5 frame, I expect his fastball will tick up from the mid-to-high 90s, potentially being a pitch that sees triple digits. His sinker averages mid-90s just like his fastball, but features about six inches of vertical drop. Soto also features an upper-80’s change-up and a mid-80’s slider.
Soto has front-of-the-rotation potential and the next step in his development is gaining more command and control overall on his pitches. Soto will spend the majority of 2025 in Single-A Ft. Myers and I don’t expect his MLB debut to come any earlier than the 2027 season.