4 Triple-A Bats Who Deserve a September Audition with the Twins

[Matthew Taylor]

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson (photos of Payton Eeles, Kyler Fedko, Aaron Sabato, Noah Cardenas)

The 2025 Twins season is, for all intents and purposes, over. A season that began with promise has ended with frustration, and the only thing left on the table is information. The Twins are wisely starting to use the final month to evaluate players who may (or may not) be part of the 2026 roster and beyond.

We have already seen it on the pitching side. Newly acquired Mick Abel and Taj Bradley made their Twins debuts over the weekend, and James Outman is getting a chance in the outfield. That is exactly what this stretch should be about: figuring out which players are future pieces, and which are simply Quad-A placeholders.

But while the Twins are auditioning arms and a few bats, there are plenty more in St. Paul who deserve a chance to step into Target Field over the next month. These are the bats who deserve that audition:

Aaron Sabato, 1B
If you have read me long enough, you know I have developed an odd obsession with Aaron Sabato. My “pet prospect,” if you will. For years, it looked like the 2020 first round pick was destined to flame out, but 2025 has been a resurgence. Between AA and AAA, Sabato has posted an .833 OPS, finally flashing the right-handed power bat the Twins envisioned on draft day. That said, his play in St. Paul has cooled after a hot start, and at 26 years old, time is running out. The Twins have long needed a right-handed power option at first base. Could Sabato be that platoon bat in 2026, or is it time to move on and risk losing him in the Rule 5 draft? A month in the Majors is the only way to find out.

Noah Cardenas, C 
The Twins’ catching situation is sneaky important heading into 2026. Ryan Jeffers is entering his final year of team control, and while Eduardo Tait is the future, at just 19 years old, he is years away. Enter Noah Cardenas, who has been one of the organization’s more promising under the radar catchers. After impressing in Double-A with an .825 OPS, he has continued to produce in St. Paul with an .802 OPS. His defense has been more up and down, but this is where the Twins’ coaching staff could really make a difference. Giving him a month in the big leagues would allow the organization to see if he can develop defensively while also evaluating whether he can be a viable part of the catching situation once Jeffers moves on.

Payton Eeles, UTIL
At 5 foot 5, Payton Eeles would instantly become a fan favorite in Minnesota. A grinder with a high contact bat, he broke out in AAA last season before a knee injury slowed him down. His 2025 has not been quite as loud (.763 OPS in 292 PA), but Eeles still profiles as the kind of high batting average utility player every contender needs. The Twins already have Willi Castro in that role, but Castro is entering his final arbitration year. Could Eeles step into that spot in 2026 at league minimum? It is worth finding out this September.

Kyler Fedko, OF
Perhaps the best story in the Twins’ farm system this season, Kyler Fedko has burst onto the radar with a legitimate 30 home run, 30 stolen base campaign split between AA and AAA. Since his promotion to St. Paul in early August, he has gone deep six times in 20 games, proving his power travels. He will turn 26 next month, meaning he is not a “prospect” anymore. But what he is, without a doubt, is deserving of an MLB look. Is Fedko just a fun 2025 breakout story, or does he have the tools to be part of the Twins’ outfield mix going forward? There is no better time to find out than now.

September auditions do not always turn into guaranteed roles, but the Twins are at the stage where every opportunity for information counts. Sabato, Cardenas, Eeles, and Fedko represent a cross section of organizational depth: a former first rounder, a potential Jeffers replacement, a utility grinder, and a breakout bat. Not all of them will stick. Maybe none do. But in a season where the standings no longer matter, the Twins can and should give each of them a chance to show if they are more than just Minor League lifers.

Which of these players excites you the most? Which do you think has the best chance to make an impact in 2026? And which are you most skeptical of? Drop a comment and start the discussion.

View full article

[DocBauer]

And this is why I really hate the September additions only being TWO players. Teams who have nothing to play for should have the opportunity to bring up more than that. (All teams treated equally for sure). Doesn't mean you have to allow for 40 again. But how does the Twins bringing up another handful of prospects for auditions in Septemeber affect the integrity of the game. They could be worse than they are now? Lol

I wouldn't mind Sabato getting a shot. The fact that he's cooled down in a hitters league after his promotion concerns me some. But his future is probably organizational filler if he isn't ready to contribute pretty soon. A month looksee would be nice.

Eels is already a fan favorite! His numbers...primarily SLG%...just arent what they were last season. Possibly a result of his surgery recovery? (Not that he ever had a LOT of power). But he's been building up after a slow 1st month. I think most of us would be behind him getting a shot.

Fedko might not THIS powerful or THIS fast, but he doesn't have to be to be a quality RH 4th OF who can play both corner spots and help a little in CF as needed. He's always done a great job of maintaining a quality OB%, so there's recognition to go along with pop and speed. And not quite yet 25yo is NOT old. GG is probably the better long term option...with less speed...but Fedko appears ready for an audition NOW. I sure hope he gets one.

Cardenas' OPS at St Paul has been enhanced by a sudden power burst. A burst I fear comes from the league/park and not a true power breakout. But he's always had a good OB%...career .380...indicating some zone control and contact ability. (His K/BB splits are very good). And he's got a good arm and a solid reputation behind the plate. I just fear the HIT tool might be a few months or half a season away. But he's got some very good qualities, has been a bit of a hot streaks, and a September looksee might decide, at the least, as to whether he could be the #3 guy in 2026 or not.

It would require a little roster shuffling to get 3 or all 4 up, but Fedko and Eeles in particular, IMO, should be getting a shot. 

 

[Brett]

Let’s just swap the Saints and Twins rosters. Novelty? Yes. Watchable? Maybe for a bit.

[Parfigliano]

3 minutes ago, DocBauer said:

And this is why I really hate the September additions only being TWO players. Teams who have nothing to play for should have the opportunity to bring up more than that. (All teams treated equally for sure). Doesn't mean you have to allow for 40 again. But how does the Twins bringing up another handful of prospects for auditions in Septemeber affect the integrity of the game. They could be worse than they are now? Lol

I wouldn't mind Sabato getting a shot. The fact that he's cooled down in a hitters league after his promotion concerns me some. But his future is probably organizational filler if he isn't ready to contribute pretty soon. A month looksee would be nice.

Eels is already a fan favorite! His numbers...primarily SLG%...just arent what they were last season. Possibly a result of his surgery recovery? (Not that he ever had a LOT of power). But he's been building up after a slow 1st month. I think most of us would be behind him getting a shot.

Fedko might not THIS powerful or THIS fast, but he doesn't have to be to be a quality RH 4th OF who can play both corner spots and help a little in CF as needed. He's always done a great job of maintaining a quality OB%, so there's recognition to go along with pop and speed. And not quite yet 25yo is NOT old. GG is probably the better long term option...with less speed...but Fedko appears ready for an audition NOW. I sure hope he gets one.

Cardenas' OPS at St Paul has been enhanced by a sudden power burst. A burst I fear comes from the league/park and not a true power breakout. But he's always had a good OB%...career .380...indicating some zone control and contact ability. (His K/BB splits are very good). And he's got a good arm and a solid reputation behind the plate. I just fear the HIT tool might be a few months or half a season away. But he's got some very good qualities, has been a bit of a hot streaks, and a September looksee might decide, at the least, as to whether he could be the #3 guy in 2026 or not.

It would require a little roster shuffling to get 3 or all 4 up, but Fedko and Eeles in particular, IMO, should be getting a shot. 

 

They are STUCK in a loser loop hole.

 

 

[farmerguychris]

I think this is exactly who they should call up.  Who to send down?  I'm not sure since they've been hard to watch since we gave up on the season - but I'm sure they can find someone who won't be part of our future.  

[jmlease1]

12 minutes ago, farmerguychris said:

I think this is exactly who they should call up.  Who to send down?  I'm not sure since they've been hard to watch since we gave up on the season - but I'm sure they can find someone who won't be part of our future.  

This is the challenge with adding any of these guys for the rest of the season. we're only going to get 1 position player with the tiny roster expansion, and the only semi-logical candidates to send out are Julien (who you kind of want to get the same long look at, because if he hits he could still be with the team), Outman (who is getting this kind of look to see if he has any future with the team), and frankly Clemens (who has tottered back down to earth with a poor June and a terrible august sandwiching a good July and an excellent May). Gasper is the backup catcher right now, so you could swap him for Cardenas? But this is also the first time Gasper has gotten more consistent ABs to see what he can do too.

Sabato hasn't earned a shot with the way he's hit in AAA (pretty average for the Int'l League), and until Eeles shows he has some pop back in his swing coming off the injury, it's hard to say he's earned the MLB nod either.

I'd give Fedko the September promotion, and if you want to sell me on swapping Gasper for Cardenas, I could be convinced.

[chpettit19]

Sabato was a fun story for a while this year, but I wouldn't add him to the 40-man. I don't think there's much of a chance he gets taken in the Rule 5, and if he does, good luck to him. If he was still mashing, I'd feel different. But he isn't. Bat only corner players who don't destroy AAA and are 26 aren't super high on the Rule 5 wish list for teams.

Cardenas would be #1 with a bullet for me from these 4. Mickey Gasper is not an MLB catcher. Cardenas is rule 5 eligible. Either you're protecting him or you aren't. You've already made that decision. And if you've decided you're keeping him, give him a month worth of games in the majors to figure out if he can be your #2 catcher next year. Or at least gain some MLB data on that decision.

Eeles isn't Rule 5 eligible so he wouldn't be my choice, as much as I love watching him play and his story. Not taking up a 40-man spot for the offseason just to get him some ABs now.

Fedko is an interesting one. I wouldn't be super worried about him getting picked in the Rule 5, but it'd be possible if a team thinks he can truly field CF well enough to be a 4th OFer. He'd be my second choice off this list, but I'd take someone like McCusker who's already on the 40-man over him. I know people freak out about the Rule 5, but holding a guy for an entire year on your 26-man is hard. The odds of Fedko being that good are incredibly small. Not 0, but tiny. If you can avoid adding another non-MLB talent to the 40-man and push your decision on him out another year, that's better.

[Greglw3]

I’d like to see Gabriel Gonzalez, who’s risen all 3 levels this year and Fedko.

[DocBauer]

I've been pretty much beaten to the punch on this, but there are 40 man considerations involved here, not just who we'd like to see, oe who deserves a shot. And yes, I'm fully aware there are a few guys who could easily be removed from said 40 man roster. 

For instance, no matter how much I want to see Eeles up, he doesn't have to be protected, so he might have to wait until ST next year. Currently, Fitzgerald is the only backup at SS, so you probably don't send him down or remove him. But unless the Twins still hold out some sort of hope that Miranda can be fixed, he can't even hit at the AAA level. That's an available 40 man spot for Fedko. They seem to want to give Julien every opportunity to succeed. Whether you agree with that or not, removing him might send him packing.

So it's also up to what the coaches and FO really think about the future of some of these guys, and whether or not they are ready to "give up" on them. 

Fedko remains my #1 choice as there is a very clear path available for him to be the 4th OF next season.

And again, while I think he might need a little more time to work on his HIT tool, I can easily see Cardenas getting a shot at catcher with Gasper going down. 

[SteveLV]

Note that the text discussing Eeles mentions Castro.  He is no longer a Twin.

Would love to see any and all of these players for our second Spring Training season here in September.

[LA Vikes Fan]

Cardenas makes the most sense to me for the extra spot, assuming one will go t a position player and 1 to a pitcher. I would like to see Fedko and Gonzalez get a shot but I just don't see it happening. As an earlier poster pointed out, the guys you might send down are the same guys you have to evaluate for 2026 (Julien, Outman, Martin). Question, I think that any call up, even September call ups, have to be on the 40 man roster. Is that true? If so, another barrier to someone like Cardenas, Fedko or Gaonzalez, although there's lots of chaff on our 40 man to dump. 

[Chris Hove]

I'd like to see Sabato and my guy Fedko.

[FlyingFinn]

54 minutes ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

Question, I think that any call up, even September call ups, have to be on the 40 man roster. Is that true? If so, another barrier to someone like Cardenas, Fedko or Gaonzalez, although there's lots of chaff on our 40 man to dump. 

They do. But if you think they will be selected in the Rule 5 draft and want to keep them, they have to go on the 40 man this year anyway. I don't think Fedko would get selected (age). The other two I think would get picked. I agree with @chpettit19 on all of his post.

[SarasotaBill]

Unless the Twins already know the player will be on the 40 man roster in November, none should be recalled.

If a player is taken off the 40 man then another team only needs to put the player on their 40 man roster.

If a player is taken in the Rule 5 draft then that player needs to be on their 26 man roster for a year.

[nicksaviking]

4 minutes ago, SarasotaBill said:

Unless the Twins already know the player will be on the 40 man roster in November, none should be recalled.

If a player is taken off the 40 man then another team only needs to put the player on their 40 man roster.

The list of players I wouldn't bat an eye about removing from the 40 man roster is longer than the list of players I would.

[SarasotaBill]

22 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

The list of players I wouldn't bat an eye about removing from the 40 man roster is longer than the list of players I would.

I count 32 of the present 42 probably protected. Probably need to protect 4-5 new minor league players and 3-4 free agent signings. They don't have the space to be care free with guys who will not be on the 40 man in November. 

It would be stupid to expose them to other team's 40 man roster for a weeks of MLB in September.

Sorry - just trying to be realistic.  

[Jamie Cameron]

I'd rather see Fedko as an option at 1B instead of Sabato. 

Sabato at AAA:
.256/.297/.461 with a 5.6% walk rate, 33.3% strikeout rate, a 90wRC+, a 33% chase rate, and an overall contact rate of 67%

Don't get the love here. Like the rest of the list quite a bit though.

[nicksaviking]

2 hours ago, SarasotaBill said:

I count 32 of the present 42 probably protected. Probably need to protect 4-5 new minor league players and 3-4 free agent signings. They don't have the space to be care free with guys who will not be on the 40 man in November. 

It would be stupid to expose them to other team's 40 man roster for a weeks of MLB in September.

Sorry - just trying to be realistic.  

32 players you want? I count 18. They’ll certainly protect more, but they don’t need to have any sleepless nights worrying about 22 of them.

[Blyleven2011]

4 hours ago, DocBauer said:

I've been pretty much beaten to the punch on this, but there are 40 man considerations involved here, not just who we'd like to see, oe who deserves a shot. And yes, I'm fully aware there are a few guys who could easily be removed from said 40 man roster. 

For instance, no matter how much I want to see Eeles up, he doesn't have to be protected, so he might have to wait until ST next year. Currently, Fitzgerald is the only backup at SS, so you probably don't send him down or remove him. But unless the Twins still hold out some sort of hope that Miranda can be fixed, he can't even hit at the AAA level. That's an available 40 man spot for Fedko. They seem to want to give Julien every opportunity to succeed. Whether you agree with that or not, removing him might send him packing.

So it's also up to what the coaches and FO really think about the future of some of these guys, and whether or not they are ready to "give up" on them. 

Fedko remains my #1 choice as there is a very clear path available for him to be the 4th OF next season.

And again, while I think he might need a little more time to work on his HIT tool, I can easily see Cardenas getting a shot at catcher with Gasper going down. 

If fedko needs to work on his hitting , let him work on it with the twins for a month and then send him to the Arizona fall league ...

I'd like to swap Cardenas for Gasper , it can't hurt for a month,  he's got some tools to be a backup catcher  for now and if he shows potential for a month , send him to the AFL ...

[DocBauer]

53 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

If fedko needs to work on his hitting , let him work on it with the twins for a month and then send him to the Arizona fall league ...

I'd like to swap Cardenas for Gasper , it can't hurt for a month,  he's got some tools to be a backup catcher  for now and if he shows potential for a month , send him to the AFL ...

Just to be clear, Fedko hasn't been a great hitter, but he's OK. He's better at avoiding K's and taking BB.

The lack of a HIT tool was a reference toward Cardenas. For instance, he hit .257 at Wichita but is only hitting .217 with St Paul. Your idea of sending him to the AFL might be a good one. 

[DJL44]

What we are likely to see is Pereda until Vazquez returns.

[old nurse]

Four triple a bats are in the lineup getting their more than an irregular sample size shot for their future. Martin, Outman. Julian and Gasper

[rv78]

It doesn't matter which borderline players are in the majors getting at bats. With Rocco in charge they aren't consistant at bats with his, platoon/rest/play where you belong/DH/play a secondary position/bat first/bat 4th/bat 9th/get pinch hit for, kind of play that he uses almost every game. What we are finding out is that most all of them do NOT excel with his style and amount of playing time. Heck, even guys like Lewis, Lee, Larnach, Wallner are not excelling with his approach. Bringing in new players for a view isn't going to prove they belong or not when the manager doesn't know how to use them.

[Nashvilletwin]

With possibly the exception of Cardenas, none of these players have a snowball’s chance in Hades of being an everyday major leaguer.  Sure, give them some Show ABs to reward their effort or for the novelty factor.   Otherwise, a complete snooze fest.  

[David HK]

I'd much rather see all those guys than another month of Julien, Gasper, Outman, and Clemens.  Martin can stay, but he needs to find a seat on the bench.

Now, on the pitching side, I'm just gonna throw up my hands.

Or maybe just throw up.

[Otaknam]

Fedko has earned a call up, given his fantastic season in AA and AAA. And the team can use a right hand outfield bat. Eeles is a great story, but I think they will opt to bring more pitchers. 

[LambchoP]

I think it's pretty clear Gasper is not a viable backup catcher for next year, so why not swap him for Cardenas to see if he's an option. We need to know whether we've got a viable #2 catcher in the organization or if we have to sign someone. With our limited budget that money needs to be spent elsewhere. I'd love to see Eeles, I really think he can be our next "Castro" moving around as utility guy. He's the exact type of player that the team is trying to mold their game around. High energy, great contact, high obp, stolen bases, defensive versatility. That said, I don't think we'll see him until next year until he NEEDS to be added to the roster. Fedko is one I'd call up now. Guys like Roden and Outman won't hit enough to be big leaguers and I'm kind of thinking Larnach will be traded or released. Martin can be a decent 4rth outfielder but if Fedko can be a RH power bat in LF, that would lengthen our lineup a lot. Let's see what he can do.  If E Rodriguez is healthy I wouldn't mind seeing him get a shot as well. Time to see what the future holds as we are going to be relying on a lot of youth and inexperience until we come out the other side of this rebuild. Sorry, "re-tooling" lol 😆 . We have a lot of interesting bats coming up through the high minors. It is our pitching that concerns me. We've got all the depth in the world but high end talent has been hard to find 

[DJL44]

Emmanuel Rodriguez is healthy again, right? Get him some at-bats in the majors.

[Jeff K]

19 hours ago, DocBauer said:

I've been pretty much beaten to the punch on this, but there are 40 man considerations involved here, not just who we'd like to see, oe who deserves a shot. And yes, I'm fully aware there are a few guys who could easily be removed from said 40 man roster. 

For instance, no matter how much I want to see Eeles up, he doesn't have to be protected, so he might have to wait until ST next year. Currently, Fitzgerald is the only backup at SS, so you probably don't send him down or remove him. But unless the Twins still hold out some sort of hope that Miranda can be fixed, he can't even hit at the AAA level. That's an available 40 man spot for Fedko. They seem to want to give Julien every opportunity to succeed. Whether you agree with that or not, removing him might send him packing.

So it's also up to what the coaches and FO really think about the future of some of these guys, and whether or not they are ready to "give up" on them. 

Fedko remains my #1 choice as there is a very clear path available for him to be the 4th OF next season.

And again, while I think he might need a little more time to work on his HIT tool, I can easily see Cardenas getting a shot at catcher with Gasper going down. 

Let Julien pack; he would probably drop his suitcases on the way out.

[Fatbat]

Fedko and Cardenas for sure. Is there an exception if there is a rash of injuries?