Could Payton Eeles Soon Make Major-League Debut for Minnesota Twins?

[Cody Schoenmann]

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints

After missing the first two months of the minor-league season recovering from an offseason knee surgery, 25-year-old utility player Payton Eeles returned to baseball action last month with a rehab assignment divided between Low-A Fort Myers and High-A Cedar Rapids. Over his 13-game rehabilitation stint, the left-handed hitting fan favorite hit a combined .334/.420/.425 with 14 hits, two doubles, and a 144 wRC+ over 50 plate appearances. After a brief stint in the low minors, Eeles returned to Minnesota's state capital, rejoining the Triple-A St. Paul Saints, hoping to build on his breakout 2024 campaign.

Over just four games played, the former Southern Maryland Blue Crab is hitting .353/.389/.353 with six hits, one walk, and a 102 wRC+ over 18 plate appearances. Now, 68 combined plate appearances are a notably small sample. However, Eeles has yet to hit a home run while netting only one extra-base hit, an outcome that is antithetical to the relative power surge the 25-year-old underwent at Triple A last season (eight home runs over 260 plate appearances). Eeles could course-correct and begin hitting for power again. For now, though, his contact-skilled profile has been on display early in his 2025 Triple-A campaign, evidenced by his well-above-average .353 batting average and 5.6% strikeout rate.

Similar to last season, Eeles is demonstrating aggressiveness on the basepaths, stealing four bases during his low minors rehab assignment and two at Triple-A. While continuing to be a contact-skilled left-handed bat who provides value on the bases, Eeles has continued to exhibit defensive flexibility, garnering playing time at the following positions early this season:

• Shortstop (18 innings during rehab assignment; 19 innings at Triple-A)
• Left Field (21 innings during rehab assignment)
• Second Base (26 innings during rehab assignment; 18 innings at Triple-A)

He also netted three starts as a designated hitter during his rehab assignment. Regardless, the young utility player has played exclusively at second base and shortstop at St. Paul. while also seeing time in left field during his rehab assignment. Like many of Minnesota's young, homegrown position players. Eeles isn't fixed to one position. Part of his value manifests from his positional flexibility. Combining Eeles's profile at the plate with his positional flexibility, there is reason to speculate he could soon earn a spot on the Twins' 40-man roster and make his major-league debut.

Two weeks ago, this proclamation could have been deemed far-fetched. Eeles was still in the midst of his rehab assignment and the parent club was filled to the brim with healthy infielders, in Brooks Lee, Willi Castro, Kody Clemens, Royce Lewis, Jonah Bride, and Carlos Correa. However, given Lewis's recent struggles at the plate, Clemens showing signs of regression, Bride providing little-to-no value, and the offense's anemic state, there is reason to believe the playoff-hopeful club could benefit from inserting a jolt like Eeles into the mix.

Purchasing Eeles's contract would be a straightforward transaction for Twins decision-makers, as they could designate minor-league journeyman Ryan Fitzgerald for assignment. Yes, Eeles will need to continue maintaining a high batting average and on-base percentage while showcasing some of the slugging capabilities he displayed with St. Paul last season to make his potential promotion to the next level realistic. However, given his promising start to his 2025 campaign (following a serious offseason procedure) and the current lackluster state of the parent club's offense, there is reason to believe the former Indy ball product could make his major-league debut before the All-Star break.

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[mikelink45]

Yes, he could replace Bride.  I would like to see him called up and given an extensive run to show what he can do.  Maybe we have our own Altuve.  

[arby58]

22 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

Yes, he could replace Bride.  I would like to see him called up and given an extensive run to show what he can do.  Maybe we have our own Altuve.  

About the only thing Eeles and Altuve have in common is they're both short. Altuve made the majors at 21 without ever having played at AAA and has a career WAR of around 53. Eeles hasn't even sniffed the majors at 25.

A more apt comparison would be Nick Gordon, who had some minor league success and also made his Twins debut at 25 years of age. Wasn't exactly a stellar MLB career.

[Otaknam]

Eeles journey is a nice story, hopefully one that finds him in the bigs this season. 

[Whitey333]

If the Twins have all these great prospects that apparently are ready to play in the big show why is the major league team struggling to maintain a 500 club?  Most prospects are suspects until they prove otherwise.  I hope he makes it but.....

[arby58]

5 minutes ago, Whitey333 said:

If the Twins have all these great prospects that apparently are ready to play in the big show why is the major league team struggling to maintain a 500 club?  Most prospects are suspects until they prove otherwise.  I hope he makes it but.....

Eeles played 4 years of college against inferior competition. He did play a 5th year of college at a strong program (Coastal Carolina), but it's still hard to get super excited about a 25 year old prospect with little pop.

[stringer bell]

If Eeles can play a major league shortstop, he will make the major leagues. If not, he is no better than Fitzgerald, who got about half a cup of coffee in the majors due to a roster crunch. He is a better fit than Bride or Keirsey Jr. because he's an infielder more suited to hitting right handed pitching. I have major doubts about Eeles ever hitting enough to be a serious major league contributor, but his speed and infield defense might be an upgrade from what the Twins now have.

[Jasper]

Eeles just needs a chance, he could easily replace Bride for a few games.

[Old Crow]

2 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

If Eeles can play a major league shortstop, he will make the major leagues. If not, he is no better than Fitzgerald, who got about half a cup of coffee in the majors due to a roster crunch. He is a better fit than Bride or Keirsey Jr. because he's an infielder more suited to hitting right handed pitching. I have major doubts about Eeles ever hitting enough to be a serious major league contributor, but his speed and infield defense might be an upgrade from what the Twins now have.

 

3 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

If Eeles can play a major league shortstop, he will make the major leagues. If not, he is no better than Fitzgerald, who got about half a cup of coffee in the majors due to a roster crunch. He is a better fit than Bride or Keirsey Jr. because he's an infielder more suited to hitting right handed pitching. I have major doubts about Eeles ever hitting enough to be a serious major league contributor, but his speed and infield defense might be an upgrade from what the Twins now have.

If his contact skills are for real he is way better than what they have now.  I'd much rather see Louis Araez at the plate with the ghost runner on 2nd than any of the current lineup.  

[tony&rodney]

Eeles still needs some time at AAA St. Paul. If he is needed the exchange would be Eeles for Bride. No reason to DFA Fitzgerald because Bride cannot be retained at AAA so he would be DFA. I'm not sure Eeles would be used much but he can play everywhere at a Twins level defense and does provide some speed which was lost when Keirsey Jr. was returned to St. Paul. The Twins will wait for an injury before making a move and even then they might prefer Miranda.

[mickster]

42 minutes ago, Whitey333 said:

If the Twins have all these great prospects that apparently are ready to play in the big show why is the major league team struggling to maintain a 500 club?  Most prospects are suspects until they prove otherwise.  I hope he makes it but.....

They hold them too long instead of flipping them for proven talent................then wait until they are 25+ to hit the big leagues.

[stringer bell]

33 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Eeles still needs some time at AAA St. Paul. If he is needed the exchange would be Eeles for Bride. No reason to DFA Fitzgerald because Bride cannot be retained at AAA so he would be DFA. I'm not sure Eeles would be used much but he can play everywhere at a Twins level defense and does provide some speed which was lost when Keirsey Jr. was returned to St. Paul. The Twins will wait for an injury before making a move and even then they might prefer Miranda.

There is no person in MLB to compare with Arraez, period. Arraez has insane contact skills, but still has minimal value due to speed and defensive deficiencies. He has struck out five times all year! He also has the lowest swing speed and a 0.0 WAR. 
 

Edit to add:  Oops, I quoted the wrong posting. I meant to quote @Old Crow instead I quoted @tony&rodney. 

[jmlease1]

He's a fun story, and I'm rooting for the guy. But I wouldn't expect to see him soon. He's coming off a significant surgery, and has only played 5 games in AAA. He hasn't shown the power stroke that helped carry him up from A-ball to AAA last season (only 3 xbh so far this season, and none in AAA) and isn't commanding the strike zone quite as well yet. coming off a knee injury, it shouldn't be a surprise that he might need a while to start trusting the knee and getting his legs all the way back under him at the plate. But he also needs to show that last season wasn't a small sample size fluke.

It seems unlikely that they'll dump Bride for Eeles because he's had a good week coming off injury at AAA. With Royce looking better at the plate, what kind of role would there really be for him? Bride is barely playing now that everyone is healthy, not really sure what the point would even be to dump Bride and drop Eeles on this roster right now: they're unlikely to play him, and even pinch-running seems a little unlikely immediately coming off a knee injury.

Eeles probably need another month in AAA to show he's healthy, hitting, and trusts his knee enough to hit for some power. The problem for him is by the time he's shown it, Keaschall might be ready again, and I think they'll trust Keaschall to come back again over Eeles.

I won't be surprised if injuries do give him an opportunity at some point this season, and he looks like a real choice to be a utility guy for next season, especially if Castro is allowed to move on. But the injury came at a bad time for him this year: he probably would have gotten a shot (and either Bride or Clemens never comes over) earlier in the year if he'd been healthy and hitting during the stretch when we ran out of left-side infielders. But he missed that window, and it might be a while before it opens up again.

He's a great story, and I really respect the way he's fought his way into AAA. But he's still got more hurdles to clear.

[DJL44]

I get that Eeles is an interesting story because he's short and was undrafted but stories don't win baseball games. Both Ryan Fitzgerald and Will Holland have been hitting better than Eeles and both of them have better defensive reputations.

The Twins have a ton of options at 2B - Castro, Lee, Clemens are in the majors, Julien, Fitzgerald, Keaschall, Gasper and Austin Martin are on the 40 man roster. The last thing they need to do is add another 2B to the 40-man.

[Doctor Gast]

Eeles knee injury was poor timing, he could have been one of the 1st called up. Now we need to wait for his knee to be 100% & his power to return.

[jmlease1]

44 minutes ago, Old Crow said:

 

If his contact skills are for real he is way better than what they have now.  I'd much rather see Louis Araez at the plate with the ghost runner on 2nd than any of the current lineup.  

Eh. I still think i'd rather have Buxton up. The super contact guy is very nice in extra innings when your team is up in the bottom of the 10th and just needs 1 run to get the win, but holy cow that's a limited role. (it's notable that as much love as people give Arraez, he hasn't been particularly good this season, for all the expected reasons: when he's not hitting .320, he's not giving you much of anything else. No defense, no speed, little power, few walks.)

[chpettit19]

Soon? No. There's a near 0 chance he makes his major league debut "soon." I'd even put his chance of debuting this year under 10%. Keaschall will be back soon-ish. Miranda and Julien are still on the 40-man and won't be DFA'd lightly. Bride won't be DFA'd lightly. Clemens isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Fitzgerald is likely trusted far more with the glove at SS so he'd have the edge if a SS is needed. Gasper looks like he's being setup to be the 3rd catcher on the 40-man so he's not getting DFA'd.

McCusker, Camargo, and Keirsey are probably the 3 most likely DFA candidates on the 40-man when it comes to position players. Keirsey provides the same kind of speed as Eeles so they wouldn't DFA him for a pinch runner so that isn't Eeles' path. McCusker provides more of a bat so that isn't a path. Camargo is a catcher so that's kind of a different thing. He can provide the roster spot but they aren't fighting for the same opportunity. 

I don't think the Twins truly want Eeles playing short in the majors. Or 3rd. He's likely limited to 2B and LF in the majors. Those are pretty easy to fill spots. I love Eeles. He was my favorite player to watch in the minors last year. He's a gamer and plays hard. But his chances of getting to the majors this year are small. Being hurt when Keaschall got the call and when Clemens was acquired likely took away nearly his entire chance. There are just too many bodies in front of him now. He's not a high enough prospect for them to clear the way for him.

I love Eeles. I really want to see him in the majors. I really want to see him and McCusker hit back-to-back in a major league lineup at least once. But the odds of Eeles jumping everyone in front of him and the Twins DFAing someone to give him a shot after the right combination of people are hurt or playing so poorly the Twins move on from them are sadly very low.

[tony&rodney]

18 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

There is no person in MLB to compare with Arraez, period. Arraez has insane contact skills, but still has minimal value due to speed and defensive deficiencies. He has struck out five times all year! He also has the lowest swing speed and a 0.0 WAR. 
 

Edit to add:  Oops, I quoted the wrong posting. I meant to quote @Old Crow instead I quoted @tony&rodney. 

Agree with your take.

I wanted to add that Jacob Wilson might be the new standard for swing and hit. Wilson's .372 average with 16 Ks, 14 BB, and 23 XBH along with 5 SB while playing a decent shortstop is really something. Watching him is nearly comical as he hits bloops, blasts, frozen ropes, and broken bat hits all over the field on every type of pitch in crazy locations. There was an interesting article on Fangraphs on May 23 about his batting stance and The Athletic had a good article on him on June 2. Wilson was picked 6th in the draft immediately after Walker Jenkins. 

Arraez has fallen below .280 AVE sadly. He might struggle to get a decent contract next year as a slow DH who doesn't hit many XBH and provides next to no defense.

[tony&rodney]

40 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

I get that Eeles is an interesting story because he's short and was undrafted but stories don't win baseball games. Both Ryan Fitzgerald and Will Holland have been hitting better than Eeles and both of them have better defensive reputations.

The Twins have a ton of options at 2B - Castro, Lee, Clemens are in the majors, Julien, Fitzgerald, Keaschall, Gasper and Austin Martin are on the 40 man roster. The last thing they need to do is add another 2B to the 40-man.

This more clearly represents what I feel is the most accurate picture regarding Eeles and his prospects for becoming a Twins. What I wrote above in the comments needed a sentence that states that it is totally unlikely for Eeles to get a roster spot soon. As others noted, his knee injury knocked him out of competing for a slot in March. Eeles is down the list now.

[Dman]

16 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

Soon? No. There's a near 0 chance he makes his major league debut "soon." I'd even put his chance of debuting this year under 10%. Keaschall will be back soon-ish. Miranda and Julien are still on the 40-man and won't be DFA'd lightly. Bride won't be DFA'd lightly. Clemens isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Fitzgerald is likely trusted far more with the glove at SS so he'd have the edge if a SS is needed. Gasper looks like he's being setup to be the 3rd catcher on the 40-man so he's not getting DFA'd.

McCusker, Camargo, and Keirsey are probably the 3 most likely DFA candidates on the 40-man when it comes to position players. Keirsey provides the same kind of speed as Eeles so they wouldn't DFA him for a pinch runner so that isn't Eeles' path. McCusker provides more of a bat so that isn't a path. Camargo is a catcher so that's kind of a different thing. He can provide the roster spot but they aren't fighting for the same opportunity. 

I don't think the Twins truly want Eeles playing short in the majors. Or 3rd. He's likely limited to 2B and LF in the majors. Those are pretty easy to fill spots. I love Eeles. He was my favorite player to watch in the minors last year. He's a gamer and plays hard. But his chances of getting to the majors this year are small. Being hurt when Keaschall got the call and when Clemens was acquired likely took away nearly his entire chance. There are just too many bodies in front of him now. He's not a high enough prospect for them to clear the way for him.

I love Eeles. I really want to see him in the majors. I really want to see him and McCusker hit back-to-back in a major league lineup at least once. But the odds of Eeles jumping everyone in front of him and the Twins DFAing someone to give him a shot after the right combination of people are hurt or playing so poorly the Twins move on from them are sadly very low.

Yeah this is pretty close to my take as well.  I don't see Eeles as a legit shortstop so that makes it harder for him to crack the roster.  He is going to need to show the power and consistency he had last year to get his chance and it is way to early for that right now.  The sample size was so small everywhere he went last year it is hard to say how good he is yet.  Teams haven't had a crack at him a second third or fourth time through schedule to build a good book on how to defeat his approach.  

Like you I still love Eeles as a player and I think the potential is there for him to make the majors, but it is more likely as a second baseman or left fielder and so until he starts hitting for some power those spots look filled right now.  His power, speed combo could make him a difference maker otherwise he looks like a lot of other guys at AAA.  He can do it, but he is gonna have to earn it by showing out.

[DJL44]

25 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Arraez has fallen below .280 AVE sadly. He might struggle to get a decent contract next year as a slow DH who doesn't hit many XBH and provides next to no defense.

Correct. If you want that kind of production, you can get Ty France for $1M.

[thelanges5]

I’d rather not see him come up if they are going to treat him like McCusker. Pretty clear from the way they handled him what their thoughts are.

[chpettit19]

3 minutes ago, Dman said:

Yeah this is pretty close to my take as well.  I don't see Eeles as a legit shortstop so that makes it harder for him to crack the roster.  He is going to need to show the power and consistency he had last year to get his chance and it is way to early for that right now.  The sample size was so small everywhere he went last year it is hard to say how good he is yet.  Teams haven't had a crack at him a second third or fourth time through schedule to build a good book on how to defeat his approach.  

Like you I still love Eeles as a player and I think the potential is there for him to make the majors, but it is more likely as a second baseman or left fielder and so until he starts hitting for some power those spots look filled right now.  His power, speed combo could make him a difference maker otherwise he looks like a lot of other guys at AAA.  He can do it, but he is gonna have to earn it by showing out.

His "power" and K% are the things I'm most interested in following. I don't mean to be rude by putting power in quotes, but he isn't a real power hitter. That's the AAA environment playing tricks on us. His batted ball data doesn't come close to suggesting a .500 slug hitter. I think his best comp offensively is Steven Kwan. Not that I'd predict Eeles can put up OPS+ numbers in the upper 120s or wRC+ numbers in the low 130s, but that type of hitter. So, a poor man's Steven Kwan. (I don't predict many people will put up those kinds of numbers as that's well above average offensive production so that's no huge statement on my part)

So, I'm looking for him to get that slug back to .500 even though he isn't actually somebody who hits the ball super hard, super often and I'd like to see him get the K% at or under 10%. Technically, it is right now, but I think you understand I'm talking about over a larger sample size.

Kwan in AAA at age 23 had a .311/.398/.505/.903 quad slash with a 11.7% walk rate and 6.7% K rate in 120 PAs. He was in the majors the next year. Eeles at 24 last year had a .299/.419/.500/.919 quad slash with a 12.7% walk rate and 14.6% K rate in 260 PAs. Eeles' avg exit velo in AAA last year was 86.6 with a max of 107. Hard hit rate of 28.2%. Kwan's career average exit velo is 85.8 with a max of 107.1 and a hard hit rate of 21.1%.

Now they took very different paths to get to those points. Kwan was a 5th round pick out of a national championship D1 program where he starred with our good buddy Trevor Larnach and some dude named Rutschman I think a few people have heard of. Eeles, as we know, was undrafted after playing only 1 season at a major D1 program. Oh, and he's really short. Although, to be fair, Kwan isn't exactly Carson McCusker out there. Another reason I think it's a solid comp. It isn't easy for an undrafted guy out of indy ball to make the majors. And Eeles isn't likely to do it this year with the Twins. But if he can put up the numbers he did last year for a couple months, I'm going to start claiming he can be a poor man's Kwan and the Twins are missing the boat by not giving him a chance if their offense is continuing to struggle. 

The odds are stacked against him, but I'd like to see him reproduce what he did last year with a lowered K rate and get a shot. Whether it's here or somewhere else. But now it's up to Payton to do his thing and give the Twins a reason to believe. Julien, Fitzgerald, Camargo, Keirsey, Gasper, Miranda, McCusker, and eventually Martin are on the same field as him. Make it undeniable who the best player is. Start with Julien since you play the same position. Come mid-August (I think a much more realistic timeline than "soon") when the Twins are looking for a 2B because of injuries and they're making a call across town don't leave any doubt. Make it a silly question when Falvey asks Gardy if that Eeles kid is worth a shot over Julien. Because if it's close Julien and his 40-man spot is getting the nod.

 

[Western SD Fan]

The only thing that Eeles brings as an improvement over the current roster is his speed.  But we are also relying on a knee that is coming back from surgery to produce that speed.  If we look a month or two down the road at Eeles is tearing the ball off, stealing bases, and providing good defense, we can re-examine this as he will likely be better than both Bride and Clemens.  It is also likely that Keaschall will be back by this time.  Since they released Ford in AAA, Miranda has also been getting the majority of appearances at 1B so it's possible that once Miranda can show that he can hit again that he may be the next call up to replace Bride and give another option for France in case he needs a day off or an injury occurs.

[LambchoP]

I'd love to see him get a shot in the bigs. Problem is, the Twins seem pretty high on Lee. Clemens has been really productive this year and Keaschal will hopefully be back soon. I know he can play left field, but who do you sit then? Bader, Castro? I could see him being a solid injury insurance type guy they keep stashed at AAA. I hope we see him though. A contact hitter at the top of our lineup with some speed who can steal bases? Would provide a lot more than Bride is giving us as a bench warmer right now!

[Mike Sixel]

Good thread, with lots of good points

[mikelink45]

4 hours ago, arby58 said:

About the only thing Eeles and Altuve have in common is they're both short. Altuve made the majors at 21 without ever having played at AAA and has a career WAR of around 53. Eeles hasn't even sniffed the majors at 25.

A more apt comparison would be Nick Gordon, who had some minor league success and also made his Twins debut at 25 years of age. Wasn't exactly a stellar MLB career.

You have to be given a chance to shine when you are 21 - Eeles had to struggle to get signed and to get recognition.  I still like the comp - even if it is just based on being short. 

[arby58]

3 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Eeles knee injury was poor timing, he could have been one of the 1st called up. Now we need to wait for his knee to be 100% & his power to return.

His first 4 years of college, he hit 6 home runs - total. 2023, 7, and last year 'broke out' with 12. I think he's 'filled out' by now at age 25, so expecting power is highly unlikely.

[arby58]

7 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

You have to be given a chance to shine when you are 21 - Eeles had to struggle to get signed and to get recognition.  I still like the comp - even if it is just based on being short. 

He was shining in college at 21 at Cedarville University, to the tune of 1 HR and an .871 OPS against inferior college opposition. Altuve, at 21, between A+ and AA, had 10 HRs and a 1.017 OPS. Eerily similar comps?

[Dman]

1 hour ago, chpettit19 said:

His "power" and K% are the things I'm most interested in following. I don't mean to be rude by putting power in quotes, but he isn't a real power hitter. That's the AAA environment playing tricks on us. His batted ball data doesn't come close to suggesting a .500 slug hitter. I think his best comp offensively is Steven Kwan. Not that I'd predict Eeles can put up OPS+ numbers in the upper 120s or wRC+ numbers in the low 130s, but that type of hitter. So, a poor man's Steven Kwan. (I don't predict many people will put up those kinds of numbers as that's well above average offensive production so that's no huge statement on my part)

So, I'm looking for him to get that slug back to .500 even though he isn't actually somebody who hits the ball super hard, super often and I'd like to see him get the K% at or under 10%. Technically, it is right now, but I think you understand I'm talking about over a larger sample size.

Kwan in AAA at age 23 had a .311/.398/.505/.903 quad slash with a 11.7% walk rate and 6.7% K rate in 120 PAs. He was in the majors the next year. Eeles at 24 last year had a .299/.419/.500/.919 quad slash with a 12.7% walk rate and 14.6% K rate in 260 PAs. Eeles' avg exit velo in AAA last year was 86.6 with a max of 107. Hard hit rate of 28.2%. Kwan's career average exit velo is 85.8 with a max of 107.1 and a hard hit rate of 21.1%.

Now they took very different paths to get to those points. Kwan was a 5th round pick out of a national championship D1 program where he starred with our good buddy Trevor Larnach and some dude named Rutschman I think a few people have heard of. Eeles, as we know, was undrafted after playing only 1 season at a major D1 program. Oh, and he's really short. Although, to be fair, Kwan isn't exactly Carson McCusker out there. Another reason I think it's a solid comp. It isn't easy for an undrafted guy out of indy ball to make the majors. And Eeles isn't likely to do it this year with the Twins. But if he can put up the numbers he did last year for a couple months, I'm going to start claiming he can be a poor man's Kwan and the Twins are missing the boat by not giving him a chance if their offense is continuing to struggle. 

The odds are stacked against him, but I'd like to see him reproduce what he did last year with a lowered K rate and get a shot. Whether it's here or somewhere else. But now it's up to Payton to do his thing and give the Twins a reason to believe. Julien, Fitzgerald, Camargo, Keirsey, Gasper, Miranda, McCusker, and eventually Martin are on the same field as him. Make it undeniable who the best player is. Start with Julien since you play the same position. Come mid-August (I think a much more realistic timeline than "soon") when the Twins are looking for a 2B because of injuries and they're making a call across town don't leave any doubt. Make it a silly question when Falvey asks Gardy if that Eeles kid is worth a shot over Julien. Because if it's close Julien and his 40-man spot is getting the nod.

 

That is some excellent analysis! Kudos on the comp.  Hard to disagree with what those underlying numbers are telling us.

I just feel like his his contact approach brings down those hard hit rates.  Maybe it is just hope but I feel like he could develop Dozier pull side power.  That might bring the average down, but I feel like he might be able to develop that.  Otherwise as you stated it is going to be hard to distinguish between Eeles and a lot of other guys.  

At one point it looked like he had no shot and last year he showed he can play all they way to the AAA level.  Hopefully he can keep it going, but other teams are going to be more ready for him.  I want him to succeed so badly I might be blinded a bit, but I think he can show more power and I think that can give him the edge he needs to break in.