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Wait A Minute -- Could We See Emmanuel Rodriguez Called Up To The Twins In September?

Lou Hennessy

By Lou Hennessy
in Twins Daily Front Page News

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Lou Hennessy First Round Pick

Lou Hennessy

Twins Daily Contributor
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The top prospect just made his debut at Triple-A St. Paul, but he’s knocking on the door to the big leagues. How realistic would a September promotion be for the team's latest phenom?
 

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson / St. Paul Saints

While the Twins will surely be cautious with Emmanuel Rodriguez (ranked No. 3 in the latest Twins Daily Prospect Ranking), teams are often forced to get creative if they want to catch lightning in a bottle before the postseason. So is it realistic for fans across Twins Territory to dream of a scenario where the slugging outfielder makes his MLB debut with the club this month? It will probably depend on two major factors - Rodriguez’s performance on the field and the availability of a spot on the now-28-man roster.

While there isn’t much time remaining for him to to turn heads in St. Paul (16 games, to be exact), it only takes one big push to prove you’re the top dog in the upper level of the minor leagues. If he can showcase his fantastic eye at the plate (25.1% walk rate in 37 games at Double-A this season) while boasting his patented plus power (.621 slugging percentage) and speed (nine stolen bases), he’ll be awfully enticing for a Twins lineup that is seemingly running on fumes. 

For what it’s worth, the team isn’t in urgent need of a left-handed outfielder--at least, not exactly, and not yet. Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner are both swinging strong bats at the moment, and are middle-of-the-order hitters against opposing righties. Max Kepler is still seeing regular playing time, but he’s been dealing with a sore knee for a few weeks now, and his performance hasn’t been particularly impressive (.246/.287/.352 clip in the second half, 81 wRC+). And after being a late-scratch to Tuesday night’s starting lineup in Tampa Bay, questions continue to swirl regarding the right fielder’s health and effectiveness down the stretch.

Should the Twins decide to put Kepler on the shelf, the easy answer would be to activate center fielder Byron Buxton, who will likely return for the Kansas City series, either way. But beyond that, you could make the case that Rodriguez presents the best opportunity for an upgrade in the outfield. Not only has he had a fantastic season when healthy, but he plays a competent center field (which could be huge, given the murky nature of Buxton’s health status) and he is already on the 40-man roster, meaning the Twins wouldn’t have to risk losing a player who would need to come off the roster in his place.

So what could Rodriguez provide for this year’s Twins team? Why would they even consider promoting a 21-year-old who only has 38 games above High-A? 

If Kepler were to go on the injured list, and the Twins wanted to increase their thump from the left side of the plate, Rodriguez would slide in rather perfectly to an outfield that had Larnach in left, Wallner in right, with Brooks Lee and Willi Castro playing up the middle on the dirt. Buxton will likely need days off, or at least days as the designated hitter. Just imagine this batting order against a right-handed opponent, and how well each of these players has done in those scenarios so far in 2024:

  1. Castro - SS (117 wRC+)
  2. Larnach - LF (127)
  3. Wallner - RF (170)
  4. Lewis - 3B (142)
  5. Buxton - CF/DH (142)
  6. Carlos Santana - 1B (94)
  7. Ryan Jeffers - C (110)
  8. Lee - 2B (80)
  9. Rodriguez - CF/DH

That’s a pretty fearsome lineup, and one that still provides a ton of positional versatility and impactful pinch-hit opportunities. And for a team that had an inconsistent stream of run support in August, and continues to lack clarity regarding the return of their star shortstop, Rodriguez could provide a jolt that other players on the fringe of the roster simply can’t at this time. 

A Rodriguez promotion would likely mean one of Austin Martin or Michael Helman gets optioned--which wouldn’t be the end of the world, as neither are providing a ton of value at the moment, nor are they at risk of being claimed by another team. Each has options remaining, so they could be shuttled back to St. Paul without being exposed to waivers.

Is it likely that Rodriguez plays his way into an opportunity with the big league club in September and hopefully into the playoffs? Probably not. It's more probable that both he and the team want to avail themselves of this chance to get regular playing time at Triple-A, after an injury-disrupted season. However, there is a version of reality where it could make the most sense to challenge him and roll the dice for the huge potential return of a late-season MLB debut. For now, the outfield prodigy can continue to acclimate himself to Triple-A, and wait for an opportunity to be their lightning in a bottle. 

What do you think? Would you like to see Rodriguez get a chance with the big league club before the end of the season? Or should the Twins let him simmer in Triple-A for the remainder of the year? Let us know what you think in the comment section, and as always stay sweet.


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High heat First Round Pick

High heat

Verified Member
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Boy I hope not!

 

Let him get sometime at AAA, with all the time he missed maybe even play in the AFL.  Can he play if he is on the 40 man roster already? I don’t know.  
 

This roster is going to have to sink or swim here the last few weeks and bringing up another rookie isn’t going to help.  
 

I like E rods upside and would be a nice Kepler replace sometime next season.

Fatbat FCL Twins

Fatbat

Verified Member
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Posted

Welp, Buck out Kepler out.  Helman and Kiersey are in for a cup of coffee. I would imagine that someone is scheduled to get injured this weekend so pencil Erod into the lineup next week 🤣🤷🏼‍♂️

USAFChief GOAT

USAFChief

Twins Daily Contributor
Posted
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12 minutes ago, S Bart said:

I am unsure if he would qualify for the playoffs based on his call-up time being in September. It was mentioned on the Skor North podcast that he would not qualify.

A player needs to be on the 40 man roster as of 1 September  to be eligible. 

Even that can be waived if it's a replacement for an injury. 

But I doubt it's any kind of factor in this case. 

shabbos1 College Ball

shabbos1

Verified Member
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Posted
6 hours ago, mnfireman said:

If Buxton is out, call him up. Just don't wreck him like they did Celestino...

Celestino ... there's a name I'd completely forgotten about.  What's he up to lately?

Doctor Wu FCL Twins

Doctor Wu

Verified Member
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2 hours ago, shabbos1 said:

Celestino ... there's a name I'd completely forgotten about.  What's he up to lately?

He was in the Pirates system earlier this season and then traded to the Cubs. I think he's still on their AAA team.

Doctor Gast Wichita Wind Surge

Doctor Gast

Verified Member
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Posted

Returning from a long IL stint, just getting his feet wet at AAA, after injury (I think that is a big enough challenge in itself). I wouldn't doubt they'd want him to get some AFL playing time in under his belt before bringing him up for next season & there's the question of service time. So I'd doubt it. 

Fatbat FCL Twins

Fatbat

Verified Member
Posted
Posted

Erod had a hit, BB, R and probably did alot more last night for the Saints.  He is healthy and has MLB talent.  If its not ‘24, ‘25 is gonna be his year and we won’t care when buck gets off the IL. 
Right behind him is a healthy Jenkins who is making MiLB pitchers scared.  Very soon, we will have a very young and star studded OF. It could happen as fast as 10/11 months from now. Jenkins, Erod, Wallner, Buck and Larnauch.  AK is gonna play a lot of 1B and DH will be a revolving door position. 

USAFChief GOAT

USAFChief

Twins Daily Contributor
Posted
Posted
10 hours ago, Fatbat said:

Hasn’t Erod been on the 40 man since 11/2023?

Yes, but I doubt it's a factor, since I doubt ERod is a candidate to be called up.

USAFChief GOAT

USAFChief

Twins Daily Contributor
Posted
Posted
10 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

MLB basically waives that "rule" for everyone these days.

What "rule"? 

Callup date isn't a rule for postseason eligibility. 

A player could make his major league debut in the postseason...say, for example, Alex Kirilloff. 

A player needs to be on the 40 man as of Aug 31 to be eligible. 

Teams set their 26 man roster for each postseason series from the 40 man. They can change that 26 man roster prior to each postseason series. 

A player who goes on the IL from the 40 man after 1 Sep can be replaced by a player who wasn't on the 40 man. This player will also be eligible for postseason play.

https://www.mlb.com/glossary/transactions/postseason-roster-rules-eligibility

 

Road trip Draft Eligible

Road trip

Verified Member
Posted
Posted

Kepler out, who knows if he'll be back this year.  Margot out, who knows if he'll be back this year.  Buxton out, who knows if he'll be back this year...

See a trend?  Believe it or not, ready or not, ERod is quite possibly the next guy to get called up after the next (seemingly inevitable) injury to a position player.  It's either that or bring up 3rd catcher Camargo yet again just to watch him rot on the bench.  The only other healthy position player on the 40 man is Severino, and the Twins have passed on bringing him up several times already.

DJL44 St Paul Saints

DJL44

Verified Member
Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Fatbat said:

AK is gonna play a lot of 1B and DH will be a revolving door position. 

AK is probably getting non-tendered.

saviking Draft Eligible

saviking

Verified Member
Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

I mean, if he's hitting and they trust him more than Kiersey (and Buxton is out), 100% do it. 

But, not likely, IMO. 

I doubt Buxton plays vs KC.

Only if he can start hitting over his weight in AAA

mnfireman Ft Myers Mighty Mussels

mnfireman

Verified Member
Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, USAFChief said:

How did the Twins "wreck" Celestino?

The team kept putting him out there despite the fact that he was over matched and not ready. So much so that he started making mistakes in the field, which supposedly was his strong suit. I understand it was out of necessity, which just shows that the team still hasn't learned that it needs a legitimate option behind Buxton.

Maybe they didn't wreck him, maybe he just isn't MLB caliber.

LambchoP FCL Twins

LambchoP

Verified Member
Posted
Posted

I think it'd be rushing it a bit to debut a 21 year old who just missed half a season and has barely played half a year at high A and AA. Best case scenario would be to have him play in the AFL to make up the at bats he lost this year. Start 25 in AAA and get a call up when it looks like he's ready to produce. Usually when young guys get called up before they're ready because of injuries, it can turn out bad and hurt their confidence. Of course, if Buxton, Margot and Kepler are done for the year, we just may see him. Not sure what happened with this team, but everyone just seemingly ran out of gas and got hurt. Buck, Correa, Kepler, Margot, Lewis looks like he's playing hurt, he couldn't even run out those ground balls last night. Now Santana might have hurt his hand? If we doake the playoffs, we'll be playing a juggernaut team with almost an entire field of untested rookies. Not a good look for a contending team lol

jmlease1 Cedar Rapids Kernels

jmlease1

Verified Member
Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, mnfireman said:

The team kept putting him out there despite the fact that he was over matched and not ready. So much so that he started making mistakes in the field, which supposedly was his strong suit. I understand it was out of necessity, which just shows that the team still hasn't learned that it needs a legitimate option behind Buxton.

Maybe they didn't wreck him, maybe he just isn't MLB caliber.

I think the Twins absolutely learned that lesson (maybe too well) about having backup and injury replacement options, which is why we acquired Margot, rather than just running with Martin. We went into this season with many options behind Buxton this season: Margot (in theory), Castro, then Martin, plus Helman, Kiersey...

and of course in 2023 we had Michael A. Taylor.

We're not calling up guys out of A-ball to start games on the MLB roster any longer. 

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