You've Never Heard of This Twins Prospect, But His Story and Skills Should Change That

[Cody Christie]

Big-league farm systems are full of players who get limited attention as they climb the organizational ladder. One Twins prospect fits this mold, and it's time to start talking about him.

Every baseball player embarks on a different journey, from their amateur days until the day they hang up their cleats for the final time. Some players are drafted in the first round and go on to have a Hall of Fame career. Other players must circumnavigate the independent leagues before an affiliated organization takes a chance on their skill set. Organizations need depth, and sometimes that depth comes from unexpected places.

Payton Eeles had zero Division I offers out of high school, and decided to begin his collegiate career at Cedarville University, a small Division II school in southwest Ohio. Some discounted him because of his 5-foot-7 frame, but he has been proving doubters wrong his entire career. 

"It definitely is something that's given me a chip on my shoulder," said Eeles. "Out of high school, I would say that was probably the big reason why I didn't get as many looks as I felt I deserved. A lot of coaches at some universities said I was too small. And so that always played a factor in motivation for me, just kind of proving people wrong in that area. But there's a lot of guys at the big-league level I saw performing at my size. Guys like José Altuve, Dustin Pedroia and Nick Madrigal. Some of those guys that really showed me 'Hey, this is possible,' and deep inside myself, I knew I could if I really wanted to."

He played his first four collegiate seasons for the Yellow Jackets, before using his final year of eligibility to play at Coastal Carolina. In 63 games, he hit .374/.500/.492, with more walks (45) than strikeouts (34). He was 23 years old at the end of his college tenure, and no affiliated teams drafted or signed him, so he began his professional career in the independent leagues. 

Last season, he played 39 games for the Chicago Dogs, a member of the American Association. Across 174 plate appearances, he posted a .827 OPS with 13 extra-base hits while going 13-for-15 in stolen base opportunities. His 2024 campaign began in the Atlantic League for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. Eeles hit three home runs in six games, enough for the Twins organization to take notice. Minnesota signed him to a minor-league contract on May 7 and assigned him to the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels.

Eeles began his Mighty Mussels tenure with a 10-game hitting streak, wherein he slashed .343/.457/.543 with four extra-base hits. After an 0-for-4 game, he promptly started a nine-game hitting streak with a 1.168 OPS and six extra-base hits. Overall, he hit .331 with a .965 OPS, 13 XBH, 26 RBI, 23 BB, and 13 stolen bases in just 34 games, before the Twins decided to promote him to Cedar Rapids. 

"He stands out as someone who comes out every day prepared," said Mighty Mussels manager Brian Meyer. "You don't have to worry about what you're going to get when you put his name in the lineup and what you're going to get out of the field. You know, he's always going to hustle. He's always going to compete."

His unique baseball journey meant he was old for playing in the Florida State League. At 24 years old, Eeles was three years older than the average age of the competition at his level. Out of his 154 plate appearances, only 12 came against older pitchers, and all his extra-base hits were against younger pitchers. He will be closer to the age of the players in the Midwest League, but most of the pitchers he faces will continue to be older than him. 

His character has been praised at every stop on his baseball journey. Other players gravitate toward him, and that is a skill that the Twins organization values. He may never reach the big-league level, but he will help improve other players around him. His baseball journey won’t end in Cedar Rapids, so keep an eye on Eeles in the months ahead. 

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What stands out so far about Eeles? Can he reach Double-A before the end of 2024? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[Dman]

Great writeup!  I have been really impressed with what Eeles has been able to do so far.  I really like his hitting profile.  Walk to K rate is almost even.  He has good bat to ball skills and makes hard contact and a fair bit of weak contact because he can get the bat to the ball on almost anything. He is fast and can steal bases but has been picked off a fair bit so something to work on there.  

So far he has performed better than a fair number of drafted players.  I don't want to get my hopes up too much as I felt this way about Shuffield as well.  The true test of his prospect status will be AA.  If he performs well there the Twins might have found a real diamond in the rough as he has all the tools to be a really, really good hitter.  He just needs to prove he can do it at the higher levels.

[FlyingFinn]

1 hour ago, Dman said:

I don't want to get my hopes up too much as I felt this way about Shuffield as well. 

That is the exact comp I was thinking about. He has a lot of hurdles to clear if he's going to make it to MLB, including perception. Like Shuffield, he may end up being a guy who bounces around the minors wherever the team needs him. Great story! Rooting for him.

[Doctor Gast]

Thanks Cody, he has been on my radar, his character is what stands out & I wanted to find out more about him. He basically plays 2B so it'll be super difficult to break through to MLB with MN with such a high glut of 2Bmen. But I'm rooting for him to find his way.

[Schmoeman5]

6 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Thanks Cody, he has been on my radar, his character is what stands out & I wanted to find out more about him. He basically plays 2B so it'll be super difficult to break through to MLB with MN with such a high glut of 2Bmen. But I'm rooting for him to find his way.

The Twins don't have a 2nd baseman. Is it Castro, Farmer, Lee, the cry is out to bring him up (bighats demand)Julien? Where's the glut? More like flavor of the day. And what kind of starter the Twins are facing that dictates who's playing there.

[bean5302]

Hmmmm... Trout's on the IL, right?

[TomG]

Article is spot on and love seeing this player continue to advance. I witnessed players gravitating to him in Fort Meyers. Thanks Cody!

[Pykkman]

Cody - How does his defensive profile look?   Thanks for the article.   

[TwinsDr2021]

great story and wish him the best, but a 24 year old with 21 at bats above A ball doesn't seem like a guy that is ever going to sniff the majors, but I would love to be wrong and hopes he rips it up in high A and quickly moves to AA and does the same.

[bean5302]

19 minutes ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

great story and wish him the best, but a 24 year old with 21 at bats above A ball doesn't seem like a guy that is ever going to sniff the majors, but I would love to be wrong and hopes he rips it up in high A and quickly moves to AA and does the same.

Signed out of Indy league where he was tearing it up. Undrafted so he doesn't have the MiLB experience. Tough to say how good he is, but the Twins bumped him to A+ already. Probably on the "prove it" fast track.

[NYCTK]

Yeah, hopefully he continues to excel and gets another promotion up to AA by August where he should be if he's going to continue his career. Best of luck to him. 

[DocBauer]

I won't hold his age against him as getting an offer to a major program or getting drafted after playing college ball isn't in his control. But Coastal Carolina is a quality school, so I'm surprised he wasn't at least a late selection due to his college numbers.

Still, 24yo at A+ isn't young. But the Twins are already being fairly aggressive with him. I'd be willing to bet he gets a couple weeks minimum at.the end of the year at AA just to get his feet wet. That puts him at Wichita for 2025 and maybe a late season shot at some time in St Paul. That wouldn't be bad for someone around 25-26yo who went undrafted.

Been impressed with what he's done and will be rooting for him. But with Julien, Lee, and Keaschall all as 2B options, he's going to have a pretty tough road ahead in the Twins system.

[Guest]

Promoting Brooks Lee, presumably after the ASG, could knock some dominos over.  If Eeles continues to hit like this, he'll have a spot somewhere.

[Doctor Gast]

3 hours ago, Schmoeman5 said:

The Twins don't have a 2nd baseman. Is it Castro, Farmer, Lee, the cry is out to bring him up (bighats demand)Julien? Where's the glut? More like flavor of the day. And what kind of starter the Twins are facing that dictates who's playing there.

Even on the roster we have Castro, Farmer, Martin, Lewis, with Lee & Julien ready to come up at the MLB level that can play 2B (that's the meaning of a 2Bman besides being able to have good range & turn a smooth DP). & the list is great throughout AAA, AA & high A. The glut is throughout the system. Forgive me if I don't make an exhaustive list. They are expanding Salas to the OF from the INF, because there is so many 2Bmen.

[Schmoeman5]

2 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Even on the roster we have Castro, Farmer, Martin, Lewis, with Lee & Julien ready to come up at the MLB level that can play 2B (that's the meaning of a 2Bman besides being able to have good range & turn a smooth DP). & the list is great throughout AAA, AA & high A. The glut is throughout the system. Forgive me if I don't make an exhaustive list. They are expanding Salas to the OF from the INF, because there is so many 2Bmen.

You just made my point. They have plenty of guys who can play 2nd base. They still don't have a 2nd baseman. They have a SS they have  1st and 3rd base covered. The have a RF. CF is covered when Buxton plays. Otherwise it's musical chairs. One day Castro one day Martin. Margot has played there. That doesn't make them CFers. If the Twins are moving guys in the minors, it's simply because they're not suited to that position. 

[RpR]

4 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Even on the roster we have Castro, Farmer

That is where the 2nd baseman who is good to OK stops.

Lewis is not going any where but 3rd, ever; Martin and is in the outfield because he is not good in the infield and Lee knows as much about playing 2nd base as he does about being a catcher.

I would rather have Wallner at 2nd than Julien.

[DocBauer]

2 hours ago, Schmoeman5 said:

You just made my point. They have plenty of guys who can play 2nd base. They still don't have a 2nd baseman. They have a SS they have  1st and 3rd base covered. The have a RF. CF is covered when Buxton plays. Otherwise it's musical chairs. One day Castro one day Martin. Margot has played there. That doesn't make them CFers. If the Twins are moving guys in the minors, it's simply because they're not suited to that position. 

They move guys around a lot in MILB so that everyone not only plays, but because they are still prospects. And when said prospects reach MLB, there might be opportunity to play a different position, or, be able to play multiple positions.

Perfect example is Lee. He's a SS by experience. But if he can play 3B as well as SS, he's probably a really good option for 2B as well. How about Castro having the rare ability to play almost anywhere solidly. Isn't there value in that? Emmanuel Rodriguez is, so far, primarily a CF. What if his best option to be in the lineup in 2025 is in RF with Kepler gone? It would be wrong for him to play something else besides CF in MILB?

Thirteen position players on a ML roster means guys need to be able to often be able to play more than 1 position, unless they are a STAR player generally locked in to one spot. That begins in MILB.

[bean5302]

47 minutes ago, RpR said:

That is where the 2nd baseman who is good to OK stops.

Lewis is not going any where but 3rd, ever; Martin and is in the outfield because he is not good in the infield and Lee knows as much about playing 2nd base as he does about being a catcher.

I would rather have Wallner at 2nd than Julien.

I'm glad you've seen the light on Wallner's skills. Clearly gold glove 2B in his future. 

[Doctor Gast]

9 hours ago, RpR said:

That is where the 2nd baseman who is good to OK stops.

Lewis is not going any where but 3rd, ever; Martin and is in the outfield because he is not good in the infield and Lee knows as much about playing 2nd base as he does about being a catcher.

I would rather have Wallner at 2nd than Julien.

I'm afraid that our opinion of good is a lot different than management and theirs is the one that counts. 

[nclahammer]

Terriffic story Cody and a guy easy to root for.  Look forward to seeing him play for the Kernels in July when we head to Iowa for our baseball road trip.

 

[Trov]

Not saying the kid will ever make majors or do anything if he does, but I hate when teams say because of height someone cannot get it done.  Yes, is it rare sure, but clearly they can do it.  Jose Altuve for years, even when he was getting it done at majors still was talked about that he will regress and never hit for any power. His first 4 years in league age 21 through hit for minimal power but had decent OBP.  Then he added the power. 

I bet if Puckett was around now, he would get passed over as well, he was only 5'8" and was not a power hitter when he first started.  Puckett played in era where getting hits was valued even if not for power, so he got a shot, then developed power.  No way would he have been given same shot these days.  Altuve, was signed when 16 so they may have thought growth was still coming, and he just kept hitting for average and a little power that he forced his way onto the team.  However, if he was born in US, I bet it would have taken much longer for him to get a shot, and similar to the kid in the article would have been passed over by teams. 

This is similar to Arraez situation, guy that has always hit for high average, but lacks the HR pop.  It really comes down to philosophy on do you want more power and extra base hits, or do you want guys that get hit generally and get on base?  Personally, I think a mix for a team is needed, and that is what used to be the norm, but many have switched to just extra base hits. 

I hope the kid keeps on hitting and forces some hands in next year.  At age 24 if he keeps hitting he could climb up to AA by end of year, and at 25 next year start there and move up to AAA and possible have a few good years in MLB.