Twins Daily Draft Preview: Kyle Teel

[Jamie Cameron]

Kyle Teel has become an increasingly well-represented name under top ten Draft consideration this spring, off the back of an outstanding 2023 season. While the majority of industry sources have continued to link the Twins to a consensus top five prospect, they have also been connected with additional college bats, including Teel. Outstanding athleticism and a burgeoning offensive profile at catcher add to the appeal of the Virginia backstop as a viable option for the Twins with the fifth overall pick.

Image courtesy of Dylan Widger, USA Today Sports

Over the next two weeks, we're going to be providing you with profiles of 10 players the Twins could take with the 5th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Who is He?
Kyle Teel is a left-handed hitting catcher out of the University of Virginia. His stellar 2023 season propelled the Cavaliers to a College World Series berth. Teel’s athleticism, production, and the positional scarcity at catcher in the 2023 MLB Draft class have cemented Teel as one of the leaders of the pack for ‘best of the rest’ outside the consensus top five. Teel currently sits at number ten overall on the Consensus Board but is one of just three top 20 players to have moved up at least five spots on the board since the beginning of the college season.

Why the Twins Will Draft Him
Before discussing Teel’s tools, it’s at least worth noting that while teams should never draft for positional need (and the Twins won’t), the organization isn’t exactly resplendent with catching talent. Teel has plenty of intriguing tools and has put it all together offensively for Virginia in 2023, hitting .407/.475/.655 with 13 home runs while holding an almost identical 13 K% and 12 BB%. At the plate Teel has good bat speed, with a little bit of a noisy swing, including a big leg kick as he loads. The results have been impressive, though, with Teel generating plenty of power to all fields in 2023. Defensively, Teel is an exceptional athlete, and should stick at the position, although his athleticism means he could easily carry an outfield position. He has an easy plus arm, throwing out 15 of 24 base stealers in 2023, with pop times around 1.90 seconds. 

Why the Twins Won’t Draft Him
As with many catching prospects, there’s still work to do and polish to add defensively. Teel can improve his framing and footwork. Offensively, a team might try and tamp down some of the noise at the plate, particularly if his aggressive tendencies are taken advantage of at the pro level. It remains more likely that the Twins take a player in the consensus top five with the fifth pick. Teel has, however, cemented himself in the next cluster of names off the board and should be a top 10 pick on July 9th and remains one of a handful of college bats the Twins have been explicitly lined with in recent weeks.

What do you think of Kyle Teel as a prospect? How would you feel about him being the Twins pick at 5 overall? Join the discussion in the comments.

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[jishfish]

I won't be happy if it's not one of the top 5, but if the Twins are set on the college bat route, Teel is the path I would most like to see them take. I can at least see the allure of an athletic left-handed hitting college catcher who tore up a premier conference and projects to stick behind the plate with a cannon of an arm.

Again, hope it's one of the top 5! But if the alternative is Teel at at least a small discount plus floating someone down to one of their next two picks, I could live with that result.

*Edit: Expanding on the discount, I don't imagine it would be huge considering Teel is pretty much a lock to go Top 10 either way. I would think something around $6.3-6.4M, which is roughly equal to the 7th overall pick and would be ~$700k under slot. Adding that to the 34th slot value could probably get someone ranked in the mid-20s down to the Twins Comp A pick, so maybe like a Thomas White or Dillon Head?

Edited June 27, 2023 by jishfish

[Mike Sixel]

I wouldn't be disappointed. 

[Cory Engelhardt]

I’d be all for it if Crews or Langford are already gone. 

[jkcarew]

I feel the same as Fish…last of top 5 or Teel.

[TL]

Teel feels like he has potentially both the highest floor (outside of Crews) and highest ceiling given positional value.  I would roll the dice on Skenes if he drops to 5 but other than him and Crews I have to say I'd take Teel and not think twice, especially if he comes with a bit of a discount like the first poster said. I have no doubt Langford will hit but drafting a LF just feels wrong given this teams needs the the incredible value a solid hitting C can provide.

[Doctor Gast]

I've been following Kyle Teel since early this off season. In the 1st '23 draft prospects rankings, Teel was in reach of our comp pick. I like his projectory, he has risen well beyond our comp pick to where I'd consider him as our #5 pick. I love his progression, his tools, with his athleticism, arm, left handed bat and the way he rushes down the line to back up 1B.

Old school, catchers were the ones too slow to play anywhere else. Today the top catchers will be the ones who are athelitic. Framing isn't that hard to learn & hopefully soon will be obsolete. Catching is a very valued position, Teel is the top established college catcher available, rising and great catching is a big need for us (some under value need in drafting but it should be high in the equation of selecting IMO). I would not be disappointed at all if we pick him at #5

[Cory Engelhardt]

1 hour ago, TL said:

Teel feels like he has potentially both the highest floor (outside of Crews) and highest ceiling given positional value.  I would roll the dice on Skenes if he drops to 5 but other than him and Crews I have to say I'd take Teel and not think twice, especially if he comes with a bit of a discount like the first poster said. I have no doubt Langford will hit but drafting a LF just feels wrong given this teams needs the the incredible value a solid hitting C can provide.

To be fair to Langford, he is every bit as fast and athletic enough to be a good defensive center fielder. He may need some coaching on defensive routes to the ball, but he is a fantastic athlete. He isn’t Josh Willingham/Delmon Young out there

[Dman]

I like the top 4 guys the best in Skenes, Crews, Langford and Clark.  I haven't been on the Jenkins bandwagon but I could be very wrong there.  If Jenkins is the one who is left and I presume he will be then I would prefer Teel at number 5.  An athletics catcher with good enough wheels could be a difference making pick if he turns out well at catcher.

I will say that for all the hype about college position players most of the Twins players started as high school or IFA's.  Look at the roster. The High school picks are Buxton, Correa, Kirilloff, Lewis, Miranda, Gordon  and IFA's are Polanco, Kepler, and the now departed Arraez. So a lot of the starters\star power for position players seems to come from the high school ranks at least for this team. Yeah Jeffers, Jullian and Gallo are college bats but the vast majority lie in kids that started pro young.

Last years draft had the first 4 picks as high schoolers.  So while high school picks can take some time and not everyone of them works out there are a lot of starters on this team that came into the system young. Doesn't mean college picks don't work out or work out as well but high school picks can be high reward picks.

I don't love the idea of Langford as a likely left fielder but he does have plus wheels so he should be able to play all three positions granted his arm is the weakest link in his profile and makes right field a stretch for him. Still I like the speed power profile and he isn't the typical plodder the Twins tend to pick.  H e could be the one to fall depending on how the draft goes.  

I think that Texas will end up going with Teel or a pitcher in the end.  They traded for Garver a while back and I think Teel would be a good fit for them and his bat plays almost as well as the top 5.  I also wouldn't be surprised to see them take Texas sized swing at  Lowder or Dollander as they like premier pitching. I think it all just depends on who falls.

[jishfish]

42 minutes ago, Dman said:

I like the top 4 guys the best in Skenes, Crews, Langford and Clark.  I haven't been on the Jenkins bandwagon but I could be very wrong there.  If Jenkins is the one who is left and I presume he will be then I would prefer Teel at number 5.  An athletics catcher with good enough wheels could be a difference making pick if he turns out well at catcher.

I'm with you on this point. I was Jenkins > Clark for most of the spring, but I've done a 180 on Clark and would think he brings a ton of tools to the table that the Twins are lacking (athleticism, speed, true CF/leadoff profile, line-drive approach). Plus it's not like he's Jacob Wilson with no power, I think he profiles as at least a 15-20 HRs per year guy.

So I think in terms of what I want to see the Twins do I'm pretty locked in on:

Tier 1: Skenes/Langford (0% chance Crews is there)

Tier 2: Clark

Tier 3: Jenkins/Teel

*Huge dropoff*

Tier 4: Matt Shaw/Tommy Troy/Chase Davis (only if they're like $1.5M under-slot. I think the minimum the Twins can offer is $5.4M)

Would pretty much hate anything else, in my unprofessional opinion.

[Jamie Cameron]

57 minutes ago, Dman said:

I like the top 4 guys the best in Skenes, Crews, Langford and Clark.  I haven't been on the Jenkins bandwagon but I could be very wrong there.  If Jenkins is the one who is left and I presume he will be then I would prefer Teel at number 5.  An athletics catcher with good enough wheels could be a difference making pick if he turns out well at catcher.

I will say that for all the hype about college position players most of the Twins players started as high school or IFA's.  Look at the roster. The High school picks are Buxton, Correa, Kirilloff, Lewis, Miranda, Gordon  and IFA's are Polanco, Kepler, and the now departed Arraez. So a lot of the starters\star power for position players seems to come from the high school ranks at least for this team. Yeah Jeffers, Jullian and Gallo are college bats but the vast majority lie in kids that started pro young.

Last years draft had the first 4 picks as high schoolers.  So while high school picks can take some time and not everyone of them works out there are a lot of starters on this team that came into the system young. Doesn't mean college picks don't work out or work out as well but high school picks can be high reward picks.

I don't love the idea of Langford as a likely left fielder but he does have plus wheels so he should be able to play all three positions granted his arm is the weakest link in his profile and makes right field a stretch for him. Still I like the speed power profile and he isn't the typical plodder the Twins tend to pick.  H e could be the one to fall depending on how the draft goes.  

I think that Texas will end up going with Teel or a pitcher in the end.  They traded for Garver a while back and I think Teel would be a good fit for them and his bat plays almost as well as the top 5.  I also wouldn't be surprised to see them take Texas sized swing at  Lowder or Dollander as they like premier pitching. I think it all just depends on who falls.

Agree with a lot of this. I think we're maybe (me especially) overly attached to the thought that the Twins love college bats. Context matters, this is the second time in the Falvey era they've had a top 5 pick. Even last year, the best prep bats were gone (besides Collier) when they picked.

Also think we're undervaluing Langford's defense. He'll start as a pro in center. What I saw this season was not getting great jumps. He's plenty fast enough to play center. If he doesn't, I think we're getting too caught up in defensive value for the fifth pick. He's a potential 30 HR bat, it's not going to matter much where he players in the outfield although of course center is much more valuable.

Home stretch now friends!

[jishfish]

4 minutes ago, Jamie Cameron said:

Also think we're undervaluing Langford's defense. He'll start as a pro in center. What I saw this season was not getting great jumps. He's plenty fast enough to play center. If he doesn't, I think we're getting too caught up in defensive value for the fifth pick. He's a potential 30 HR bat, it's not going to matter much where he players in the outfield although of course center is much more valuable.

I like the fact that he's at least not a plodder out there. It feels like LF is typically just a "throw someone there if they can't play anywhere else" position. But if Langford is a 30HR/12-15SB guy who's fast enough to be an asset out there, I don't think anyone should be upset about that. Especially if he's passable enough to play CF 30 times a year or something.

[saviking]

It's not like we don't hit and miss on first round picks anyways. Why not take a swing at a position of need who could be major league ready in a few years ... I'm not for taking a high school player and wait 7 years ..

[Doctor Gast]

4 hours ago, Jamie Cameron said:

Agree with a lot of this. I think we're maybe (me especially) overly attached to the thought that the Twins love college bats. Context matters, this is the second time in the Falvey era they've had a top 5 pick. Even last year, the best prep bats were gone (besides Collier) when they picked.

Also think we're undervaluing Langford's defense. He'll start as a pro in center. What I saw this season was not getting great jumps. He's plenty fast enough to play center. If he doesn't, I think we're getting too caught up in defensive value for the fifth pick. He's a potential 30 HR bat, it's not going to matter much where he players in the outfield although of course center is much more valuable.

Home stretch now friends!

Yeah it's exciting. I'm not crazy about Langford's defense in the OF for the exact reason you stated he has trouble reading the ball. No way he should stick at CF in the pros I don't like to see him there at the college ranks. But I agree with you that he has a big bat.

[SteveLV]

Langford has 60 and borderline 70 speed.  Kid can run.  He is NOT a plodding LFer.

The tough call for me, as DMan mentioned, is if the top 4 go Crewes, Skenes, Langford and Clark.

Jenkins vs. a possibly underslot Teel would be a tough call.  Some scouts love Jenkins, but I see that as a riskier pick.  Very tough decision in that scenario.

I hope the rumors that the Rangers love Jenkins are true, and not smokescreen.

[dex8425]

21 hours ago, jishfish said:

I won't be happy if it's not one of the top 5, but if the Twins are set on the college bat route, Teel is the path I would most like to see them take. I can at least see the allure of an athletic left-handed hitting college catcher who tore up a premier conference and projects to stick behind the plate with a cannon of an arm.

Again, hope it's one of the top 5! But if the alternative is Teel at at least a small discount plus floating someone down to one of their next two picks, I could live with that result.

*Edit: Expanding on the discount, I don't imagine it would be huge considering Teel is pretty much a lock to go Top 10 either way. I would think something around $6.3-6.4M, which is roughly equal to the 7th overall pick and would be ~$700k under slot. Adding that to the 34th slot value could probably get someone ranked in the mid-20s down to the Twins Comp A pick, so maybe like a Thomas White or Dillon Head?

This is my thought as well. I'd rather they pick Teel than Jacob Gonzalez or Matt Shaw or something to pick a college bat instead of Max Clark or Walker Jenkins. I have a feeling they're not going to pick a high schooler. 

[weitz41]

Teel seems like a draft for need at #5. Which sems like a big change for this FO.  With a really deep draft it may come down to money. I want them to just take the top 5 guy that lands in their lap. But I'm leaning towards a under slot draft pick. IDK why but have little faith in the FO swinging for the fences...

[Mike Sixel]

4 minutes ago, weitz41 said:

Teel seems like a draft for need at #5. Which sems like a big change for this FO.  With a really deep draft it may come down to money. I want them to just take the top 5 guy that lands in their lap. But I'm leaning towards a under slot draft pick. IDK why but have little faith in the FO swinging for the fences...

He's ranked in the top 7-10....picking him at 5 is reasonable, given our ability to predict the future. 

They didn't do well going underslot for Lewis (Rooker and Enlow).

[roger]

I expect the Twins have a super computer in some back room at Target Field.  That computer will tell them who to pick and it may shock many of you.  

[DocBauer]

I'm a big believer in top flight catchers and their importance to a team. Finding legitimate 2 way ones is pretty tough, and very valuable. 

I'm actually higher than most for the catching talent in the system. Carmago has really come on with both and power the last season and a half. Reportedly, his defense is quality. He's GOT to make better contact or he'll get eaten up at the ML level. But he's actually pretty young, especially for AAA. Winkel and Cardenas are off to nice pro careers after being drafted in 2021. (I like the potential of Cardenas more). Cossetti had looked like a real find. And Baez, also drafted just last year, is a "clone" of Teel. He's a much better athlete than you normally see behind the dish, and played INF and LF in school before becoming a full time catcher in 2022. The bat took off that season as well, producing good numbers across the board, including power. Teel has more time behind the plate, and that's where they greatly differ.

So I don't feel "desperate" to take a catcher high. But I like Teel and I don't think there is anything desperate about picking him. But can he stay behind the plate? Is his offensive boost this season for real? I need to know that in my gut before I take him at 5 over Langford or Clark, one of which should be there.

I repeat I think there's a realistic chance Teel, one of the other arms, or both, might sneak in to the top 5. There are scenarios where it could make sense. But the Twins SHOULD have their choice of one of Clark or Langford. And I think that's still the smartest way to go.

But if, in some strange turn of events, should both be gone, I'd have to consider Teel hard at 5.

[Otaknam]

I’m not sure how people posting here are able to assess any outfielder’s ability to get a jump on the ball. Of course maybe they are professional scouts who scouted in person or are knowledgeable baseball coaches themselves. The rest of us can only go by what we read and maybe have seen a few games on TV. It would not surprise me if the team passed on a consensus top five player to save some money that can be used to sign someone else. Teel might be a fit there. That said, we have to trust that Falvey won’t screw it up and the number five pick will be a strong contributor at the big league level. 

[MN_ExPat]

22 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Yeah it's exciting. I'm not crazy about Langford's defense in the OF for the exact reason you stated he has trouble reading the ball. No way he should stick at CF in the pros I don't like to see him there at the college ranks. But I agree with you that he has a big bat.

Did you know he played Catcher in HS and went to FL as a catcher (at least initially)?  He's a good enough athlete that he can stick in CF and be fine (at least initially).

[2wins87]

Teel is my favorite outside of the consensus top 5, not for positional need but for positional value.

I believe that truly good catchers do provide value beyond what we can typically measure.

I don't know that Teel is guaranteed to be successful in the role, but I'm willing to give a little extra bump in value to someone like Teel that could potentially impact both sides of the ball and lock down a crucial roster position for many years.

[Doctor Gast]

23 minutes ago, MN_ExPat said:

Did you know he played Catcher in HS and went to FL as a catcher (at least initially)?  He's a good enough athlete that he can stick in CF and be fine (at least initially).

Yes, I knew that & intially thought he could be a great catching prospect if he had a better arm. Overall he has slightly above average speed, average arm and not great at reading the ball, that makes him passable in LF but definitely not CF. His selling point is not his defense but his big bat which if he's available at #5 the Twins will gooble him up and I'm totally fine with that.

[SteveLV]

Langford's speed rating is 55, but I read somewhere that this may be low.

In contrast, Clark's is 70.

Jenkins is also 55.

I have watched both Langford and Jenkins, and Langford sure seems quicker and faster than Jenkins.

[Rigby]

55 is low on Langford's speed. Love his baseball acumen and instincts as well. He can handle 8 but does need some refinement. Would be shocked if he fell to 5.

[MN_ExPat]

18 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Yes, I knew that & intially thought he could be a great catching prospect if he had a better arm. Overall he has slightly above average speed, average arm and not great at reading the ball, that makes him passable in LF but definitely not CF. His selling point is not his defense but his big bat which if he's available at #5 the Twins will gooble him up and I'm totally fine with that.

Good point and I don't disagree really, just meant that he's still somewhat new to the OF.  He's athletic, has good baseball instincts and that he has the potential to grow into at least a passable CF in the majors. 

Like any draft prospect though, we won't know for sure until he get his feet wet in professional ball.

[Doctor Gast]

On 6/30/2023 at 7:58 AM, MN_ExPat said:

Good point and I don't disagree really, just meant that he's still somewhat new to the OF.  He's athletic, has good baseball instincts and that he has the potential to grow into at least a passable CF in the majors. 

Like any draft prospect though, we won't know for sure until he get his feet wet in professional ball.

I respect your opinion & I know some have the idea that Langford could play CF. But Matt Wallner has a much stronger arm, faster and more years of development than Langford but no one has ever considered him as CF material. Yet IMO Wallner makes more sense than Langford. Langford is athletic enough to pass at LF but what I've seen, in my book, he has no business in CF.

Edited July 1, 2023 by Doctor Gast