The Connor Prielipp Conundrum: Minnesota Twins Unveil the 2025 Plan For Electric Lefty

[Matthew Lenz]

Recently, the Minnesota Twins unveiled their early season plans for left-handed pitching prospect Connor Prielipp. What is the plan, and what does it tell us about the possibility of him impacting the big-league club sometime in 2025?

Image courtesy of William Parmeter

The 2022 second-round pick out of Alabama has been the subject of speculation here at Twins Daily for much of the offseason. Should the Twins develop him as a starter? Should they move him to the bullpen, putting him on the fast track to Target Field? Based on recent comments made by Twins general manager Jeremy Zoll, it seems as though we may have our answer. The first-year GM shared that the organization plans to have Prielipp follow a college-like schedule.

“A once-a-week schedule keeps him really routine-oriented," Zoll said. "He’ll have some shorter outings in the early going, and we’ll build up some workload to get his feet under him…”

Our own Jamie Cameron pointed out that isn't actually a unique approach to pitching in the minor leagues. Many teams utilize a six-man rotation, resulting (since the four full-season levels all operate on six-day schedules with Mondays off) in their starters pitching once a week. Yes, Prielipp was the Opening Day starter for the Double-A Wichita Wind Surge. In his lone outing, the southpaw got two quick outs before allowing the next four batters to reach, resulting in a 1-0 deficit. He'd put the side down in order in the second inning, before being lifted after hitting the leadoff hitter in the third.

Prielipp’s final line was 2 innings, 2 hits, 2 earned runs, one walk, two hit batters, and three strikeouts. He's currently projected to make his second start Saturday against the Athletics' Double-A affiliate.

To this point, everything that's been presented to us suggests that Prielipp is going to get a shot at building up as a starter. However, Twins president of baseball and business operations Derek Falvey suggested they're not pigeonholing themselves to that plan.

“[Prielipp] may be the best lefthander we’ve ever drafted … his profile, internally, has evolved into more of a hard-throwing lefty reliever,” Falvey said.

It's rare for the Twins front office to show their cards making Falvey’s statement especially noteworthy. Moreover, he specifically pointed out that their view on Prielipp has evolved “internally.” You don't have to read the tea leaves too much to understand that the Twins project Prielipp to impact the big-league bullpen someday. That day may be sooner, rather than later.

While the Twins don't necessarily have a need in the bullpen right now (don't let the first 10 games of the season dissuade you from that), they’ll make room for one of the most electric arms in the minors. Right now, Prielipp basically has a three-pitch mix of plus pitches, but it’s his slider in particular that is considered one of the best pitches of any prospect in baseball.

Aside from the globs of talent Prielipp has, the Twins' bullpen isn’t particularly deep from the left side. After Danny Coulombe, the only other southpaw reliever on the 40-man roster is Kody Funderburk. Both of them are fine mid-to-low leverage options, but adding Prielipp would give the Twins yet another high-leverage option, to go along with Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, and Cole Sands.

All that said, we can't put the cart before the horse. With only 30 professional innings across two-plus seasons, the primary goal needs to be Prielipp getting into a familiar routine that allows him to stay healthy. If he can prove to handle 3-4 innings per outing in the early going, then comes the discussion of what's next. For now, keep an eye out for highlights of the lefty carving up Double-A hitters.

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Do you think Connor Prielipp can impact the big-league club in 2025? Join the conversation in the comments!

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[Whitey333]

I hope Conner can excel with the Twins at the big league level soon.  I'm not holding my breath though after all the can't miss great prospects we've been promised during the Falvey years.  Yes we have some prospects on the Twins right now.  But almost all of them have a lot to prove.  Great article but I've learned to take all the overdone hype with a grain of salt.

[Karbo]

His "electric stuff" needs to be plugged in to work. Lets see how much time he gets to be plugged in.

[Hrbeks Divot]

I have no issues with this approach. The key info here is that he’s thrown 30 innings the last two years. Slowly ramp him up to see what he can handle and then hopefully we’ll see everything he’s capable of as a healthy pitcher.

[Cory Engelhardt]

Yes the easiest path to him getting MLB time this year is in the bullpen. But really, if he can get stretched out enough, I hope they keep him as a starter. Best of luck to him with health this season.

[jorgenswest]

The goal this year should be finish the season healthy. In this case health is what they need to develop and not a role as a reliever or as a starter.

I think the best way to get there is the regular work in the rotation once a week and the corresponding regular mound work outside of games. Once he gets through this year healthy they can figure out his role.

[Doctor Gast]

25 minutes ago, jorgenswest said:

The goal this year should be finish the season healthy. In this case health is what they need to develop and not a role as a reliever or as a starter.

I think the best way to get there is the regular work in the rotation once a week and the corresponding regular mound work outside of games. Once he gets through this year healthy they can figure out his role.

I agree, health is the priority. I'm not certain that the Twins will reach the postseason, so why push Prielipp to get him to the bigs? If something changes & we find ourselves in the postseason, then we can have this discussion. I like the way they are handling Raya & Prielipp & wished they had started Canterino this way & maybe even keep him in the BP to try to keep him on the field.

[jmlease1]

Please stay healthy. Just that. The stuff is electric and if he can get the changeup a little sharper (I'm guessing he rarely needed it before with such a strong slider-fastball combo) then he could be a monster. but can his arm hold up? please stay healthy so we can find out.

I think I'd prefer him going to the bullpen sooner rather than later, because at the end of the day i think that's where he's most likely to thrive...and stay healthy. But I could be wrong: which is going to be harder on his rebuilt wing, trying to grind through 5-7 innings once a week or going max effort 2-3 times a week for an inning or so?

[DJL44]

We may see the team pivot this year from thinking short-term (compete in 2025) to longer-term (compete in 2026-27). It could happen as soon as May. That could affect how they develop all of their minor league pitchers.

[rdehring]

Have the same thoughts as several comments above.  Which puts the least stress on a pitcher's arm?  Is it starting once a week and going 5-6 innings?  Or is it going an inning or even two a couple times a week?  I don't know.  Question is whether anyone outside of a major league coaching staff/trainers knows?

Should he stay a starter or move to the pen later this year doesn't mean that is where he will be long term.  As many above have said, I see the most important goal for him this year is to pitch every week and end the season HEALTHY!

Another question is whether or not the arrival of Hill and Carpenter will play into their decision of what to do with Prielipp.  If both remain excellent starting prospects, there may be less need for Prielipp to stay on that parth.

[Mike Sixel]

He's how old? Can he be a starter next year given the workload? At some point, you need to get him in the majors. I'd consider a permanent move to the bullpen, otherwise it might be two years before he sees the majors. 

How many guys are in line in front of him right now?

If they really think he can be a starter next year, great, keep him starting. Otherwise? Bullpen for me. 

[LambchoP]

With an arm like that I think I keep him a starter. He has ace level potential. Pairing him with Mathews, Festa, Morris, Raya, Soto and Lewis. Our SP prospects down the road look pretty good. Of course so.e of these guys will end up in the pen eventually. The way the season has gone so far, it looks like the pen may throw more innings than the rotation, meaning we're going to need a few long men to pitch multiple innings in relief. If Prelipp dominates AA for awhile, maybe he gets his debut in the pen throwing 2-3 innings piggybacking the starters. Or just move him to St Paul and keep him on a starters schedule. Whatever keeps him healthy, the Twins aren't a playoff team this year anyways 

[saviking]

Bullpen.. that way maybe he has a chance tonstay healthy

[USAFChief]

This path of continually asking less and less of pitchers is monumentally stupid. Self-defeating.

What is the point of pitchers who don't pitch? 

They're not avoiding injuries.  That's indisputable. 

[BK432]

3 hours ago, Whitey333 said:

I hope Conner can excel with the Twins at the big league level soon.  I'm not holding my breath though after all the can't miss great prospects we've been promised during the Falvey years.  Yes we have some prospects on the Twins right now.  But almost all of them have a lot to prove.  Great article but I've learned to take all the overdone hype with a grain of salt.

as it is with all prospects on all teams.

[jorgenswest]

I would follow the same path that the Rangers did with Cole Ragans. Here is how they used him in 2021. He hadn’t pitched since 2017 while undergoing two Tommy John surgeries. He made it to the majors in 2022.

I don’t think they need to treat every pitcher similarly but I this gives him the best chance to build up his arm. As a starter in the minors he will have a regular routine and throw more innings. 

[bean5302]

Prielipp ceiling as a reliever 2.0 WAR.
Back end starter value? 2.0 WAR.

Apparently, Falvey views Prielipp differently than the coaching staff since Prielipp is on a path for use as a starter. It's not a good message to have the front office leadership and the development plan at odds. Falvey needs to go.

[IndianaTwin]

It seemed to work well to have Raya start 25 consecutive Fridays last year in building from 62.2 innings in 2023 to 97.2 in 2024. People bellyached about how few innings he threw, but if you look at his game logs, there was a pretty clear progression in number of pitches over the course of the season.

One wonders if the plan is to start Prielipp for x number of consecutive Fridays and then eventually decide whether to continue in that direction for development vs. shift to the pen for a temporary MLB need if he's showing he can handle it. 

[jkcarew]

37 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

This path of continually asking less and less of pitchers is monumentally stupid. Self-defeating.

What is the point of pitchers who don't pitch? 

They're not avoiding injuries.  That's indisputable. 

It’s the Marco Raya approach. I read a Twins official actually use the term recently in relation to Prielipp, (despite the denial by at least a couple writers on this site that Raya is being handled differently).

You spend 5 years making sure you never stress the arm. Then, after 5 years, find that the arm can’t handle any stress.

Brilliant.

[jorgenswest]

18 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Prielipp ceiling as a reliever 2.0 WAR.
Back end starter value? 2.0 WAR.

Apparently, Falvey views Prielipp differently than the coaching staff since Prielipp is on a path for use as a starter. It's not a good message to have the front office leadership and the development plan at odds. Falvey needs to go.

I really don’t think he is on a starter path as much as he is on a build up an arm path. 

[bean5302]

19 minutes ago, jorgenswest said:

I really don’t think he is on a starter path as much as he is on a build up an arm path. 

Pitching 1x per week and building him up is definitely a starter path. Relievers don't throw 50 pitches a game like Prielipp did in his first start. The path outlined by Zoll is a starter build up. If Prielipp was viewed as a reliever, we'd be seeing him used frequently as a reliever.

[Linus]

I wonder if being in the bullpen is easier on a pitchers arm. Obviously the starter is going to pitch more innings but they do so in a very controlled way. They have a uniform amount of time between starts and off day throwing is very controlled and managed. Starting days have a well thought out routine that takes considerable time before the actual game. Within the game they get removed as soon as fatigue starts to effect the quality of their pitches.

Relievers pitch a varied schedule.  They are asked to warm up in 5-10 minutes and then come into the game pitching with max velocity. Relievers don’t do the controlled side work that would help build skills and arm strength. 
I don’t profess to know the answer and am unaware of any studies done on the subject but it might be an example of conventional wisdom that isnt really true. 

[Cory Engelhardt]

2 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

He's how old? Can he be a starter next year given the workload? At some point, you need to get him in the majors. I'd consider a permanent move to the bullpen, otherwise it might be two years before he sees the majors. 

How many guys are in line in front of him right now?

If they really think he can be a starter next year, great, keep him starting. Otherwise? Bullpen for me. 

I'd really argue that IF he is healthy, there isn't anyone ahead of him in line. The STUFF is that good.

[jorgenswest]

6 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Pitching 1x per week and building him up is definitely a starter path. Relievers don't throw 50 pitches a game like Prielipp did in his first start. The path outlined by Zoll is a starter build up. If Prielipp was viewed as a reliever, we'd be seeing him used frequently as a reliever.

We disagree. I think it is a health path in this case. Even if it was a reliever path I think he is still a starter in his first go in AA in the Twins organization.

I also believe that the best path to a major league reliever is starting through AA. The regular work as well as the number of innings in  a starter role is more conducive to developing. Every pitcher they developed in their bullpen was a starter in the minors. Funderburk started 17 games in his first year in AA. The only two relievers in the pen that were not starters in the minors are Coulombe and Topa but they weren’t developed here. They also were quite old before establishing themselves as major leaguers.

You might argue that the development path of Twin pitchers is flawed. Maybe they should be putting them in a relief role in the low minors. How many pitchers have come up as relievers since Falvey took over and were spent most of their time in the minors also as a reliever in the Twins organization? Without searching I can think of Jovani Moran.

[terrydactyls]

3 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

I agree, health is the priority. I'm not certain that the Twins will reach the postseason, so why push Prielipp to get him to the bigs? If something changes & we find ourselves in the postseason, then we can have this discussion. I like the way they are handling Raya & Prielipp & wished they had started Canterino this way & maybe even keep him in the BP to try to keep him on the field.

Here are Canterino's stats for his minor league career.

2019   7 games.  25 IP.  AVG 3.6 IP/G

2021   6 games.  23 IP.  AVG 3.8 IP/G

2022   13 games.  37 IP.  AVG 2.8 IP/G

Looks like the Twins handled Canterino very similarily to Raya & Prielipp.

[$tryf4Life]

1 hour ago, BK432 said:

as it is with all prospects on all teams.

yes every team has prospects. But every team also differs on how they develop prospects. 

[DJL44]

1 hour ago, IndianaTwin said:

It seemed to work well to have Raya start 25 consecutive Fridays last year in building from 62.2 innings in 2023 to 97.2 in 2024. People bellyached about how few innings he threw, but if you look at his game logs, there was a pretty clear progression in number of pitches over the course of the season.

One wonders if the plan is to start Prielipp for x number of consecutive Fridays and then eventually decide whether to continue in that direction for development vs. shift to the pen for a temporary MLB need if he's showing he can handle it. 

If they add 30 innings to Raya's workload every year it will only take 2 more years before he's ready to pitch a full season in the major leagues. Of course, that all gets blown up if there is an injury setback in which case he'll never be ready to pitch a full season as a starter in the major leagues.

23 minutes ago, jorgenswest said:

I also believe that the best path to a major league reliever is starting through AA. The regular work as well as the number of innings in  a starter role is more conducive to developing

I agree 100% with this. If you want to develop a pitcher you have to give him innings. An A-ball pitcher who has been turned into a reliever means the org believes there is no upside. Even if Prielipp's future is in the bullpen, they should have him making 3-inning starts in the minors.

Your starting pitchers are guys who can get outs without using max effort on every pitch. The human arm can't withstand max effort for 110 pitches a game. You can't sprint for a mile.

[Seth Stohs]

2 hours ago, rdehring said:

Another question is whether or not the arrival of Hill and Carpenter will play into their decision of what to do with Prielipp.  If both remain excellent starting prospects, their may be less need for Prielipp to stay on that path.

Hill and Carpenter should have absolutely nothing to do with what they decide on Prielipp. Those two are 3-5 years from the big leagues if they get there. Prielipp is an option for 2025 (later in the year). 

I'd like to see them come up with a multi-year plan... Have him make 10-12 starts (about half the season), throwing 50-60 pitches each time out. If things are going well, move him to the bullpen in mid-June. At that point, have him pitch twice a week, two days rest in between, 30 pitches. Now you're to mid-July, assuming things are going well, move him up to St. Paul with the same pattern for 2 weeks. If things are going well, try every other day. Call him up around mid-August if the Twins are still in contention. If they're not, go back to the twice a week pattern. 

In 2026, have him go to St. Paul with an opportunity to start. Start with a month of 50 pitch limits. Then do a month of 65-70 pitches. Evaluate and prep to call him up in the bullpen. 

By 2027, could he be ready to start without the limitations? He would have an option left to build up. 

OR - just do the 2025 plan, and then have him in the bullpen going forward (probably the best plan and probably the most likely). 

[bean5302]

35 minutes ago, jorgenswest said:

We disagree. I think it is a health path in this case. Even if it was a reliever path I think he is still a starter in his first go in AA in the Twins organization.

I also believe that the best path to a major league reliever is starting through AA. The regular work as well as the number of innings in  a starter role is more conducive to developing. Every pitcher they developed in their bullpen was a starter in the minors. Funderburk started 17 games in his first year in AA. The only two relievers in the pen that were not starters in the minors are Coulombe and Topa but they weren’t developed here. They also were quite old before establishing themselves as major leaguers.

You might argue that the development path of Twin pitchers is flawed. Maybe they should be putting them in a relief role in the low minors. How many pitchers have come up as relievers since Falvey took over and were spent most of their time in the minors also as a reliever in the Twins organization? Without searching I can think of Jovani Moran.

Correlation does not equal causation. Starters turn into relievers solely because they're ineffective as starters (Funderburk) or because have injury concerns (Duran), but the hope is maybe the team can salvage some value by converting them to relievers where a pitcher can throw a little harder or drop ineffective pitches from their arsenal to concentrate on the stuff they have which works. Kody Funderburk was a failed starter.

Starters have a higher likelihood of injury when compared to relievers for a multitude of reasons. Starting puts greater strain on pitcher's bodies. It's pretty much just established fact at this point, and it's hard to believe you'd even attempt to argue differently based on a colossal amount of established methodology.

I don't know where you're drawing your theories from, but it's certainly not from any research or data I've ever seen.

[Mahoning]

You have to wonder what the Twins may mean by "building up" to be a starter. Does that mean (as it seems to) conditioning a young man to go six innings maximum? Hunter Green for the Reds pitched 8.2 yesterday. I doubt the Twins EVER let a minor league pitcher go long. No one gets stronger by being babied and rested. If the Twins had a Roger Clemens clone they'd probably send him to the bullpen to protect his arm.