The Rise and Fall of Jose Miranda: From Breakout Prospect to Forgotten Bat

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of © William Purnell-Imagn Images

When the Minnesota Twins selected Jose Miranda out of Puerto Rico in the Competitive Balance Round B of the 2016 MLB Draft, they believed his advanced bat could someday make him a fixture in their infield. It took several seasons for Miranda to emerge as a legitimate prospect, but when he finally did, his breakout was loud enough to make everyone in baseball take notice. The problem is, that peak proved fleeting.

A Star in the Making
Miranda’s path through the minors was slow and steady. After spending two summers in rookie ball, he gradually climbed the ladder, reaching Double-A by the end of 2019. He wasn’t protected on the 40-man roster that winter, and every team in baseball passed on him in the Rule 5 Draft. Those decisions aged poorly when he erupted in 2021.

That season, Miranda led all of Minor League Baseball in hits and posted a .973 OPS while launching over 30 doubles and 30 homers between Double-A Wichita and Triple-A St. Paul. His contact-first approach suddenly came with power, and his walk rate improved without sacrificing his elite ability to put the ball in play. Miranda struck out in just 12.5 percent of his plate appearances, rarely missing fastballs and routinely producing hard contact.

It was the type of offensive development the Twins’ system hadn’t seen in years. Scouts praised his compact swing and balanced approach, though some wondered if his aggressive tendencies would eventually be exploited at the next level. Still, it was hard to overlook a player who could make that much contact with that much authority.

Finding His Place
Miranda’s defense never matched his offensive profile. He moved between third base, second base, and first base, but his limited range and average arm strength left questions about his long-term position. The Twins didn’t seem to care. They believed the bat would play anywhere, and by 2022, he was proving them right.

In his rookie season, Miranda hit .268 with 15 home runs and 66 RBIs across 125 games, providing stability to a lineup ravaged by injuries. The Twins saw him as part of their young core alongside players like Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach, and Royce Lewis. Even after a step backward in 2023, he bounced back with a strong 2024 season that included tying a Major League record by recording hits in 12 straight at-bats. His confidence appeared to have returned, and his bat looked like it belonged.

The Collapse
Then came 2025. Miranda’s season began with a spot on the Opening Day roster but unraveled almost immediately. Through 12 games, he batted just .167 with 13 strikeouts in 36 plate appearances. His timing was off, his contact quality evaporated, and the plate discipline that once fueled his breakout vanished. The Twins demoted him to Triple-A St. Paul, where things somehow got worse.

Shortly after his demotion, he had a freak accident at Target while carrying a case of bottled water. One has to wonder if that injury impacted him throughout the year. Across 90 games with the Saints, Miranda slashed .195/.272/.296 with 57 strikeouts. His once-reliable contact ability seemed to disappear entirely. What had once been a plus bat-to-ball skill turned into a liability, as he continued to swing at pitches out of the zone and struggled to make solid contact when he did connect.

It was a shocking collapse for a player who, just a year earlier, had looked like one of the team’s most reliable hitters. In total, Miranda’s four-year Twins career ended with a .263 average, 28 home runs, and a 101 OPS+. 

What Comes Next
Miranda’s fall from promising cornerstone to organizational afterthought came to a head this week with the Twins dropping him from the 40-man roster. At 27, he’s still young enough to rebound, but the margin for error has shrunk considerably. He will need to rediscover his approach at the plate and prove that his 2021-22 breakthrough wasn’t a mirage.

For the Twins, Miranda’s story raises uncomfortable questions about player development and sustainability. How did a player with such natural contact ability and offensive instincts fade so quickly? Was it a matter of mechanical flaws, mental pressure, or organizational missteps? The answer is probably a mix of all three.

What’s clear is that Jose Miranda’s rise and fall is one of the most abrupt turnarounds in recent Twins history. He once symbolized the promise of homegrown offensive talent, but now stands as a cautionary tale about how difficult it can be to stay on top once you get there.

If Miranda finds his way back to the majors, it will be through the same perseverance that once defined his rise. But for now, his fall serves as a reminder that success in baseball can be as fragile as it is fleeting.

What stands out about Miranda’s time in the organization? Leave a comment and start the discussion. 

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[terrydactyls]

Before I read this article I have one question:  Is this the same article as the one Matthew Taylor submitted on September 9th?

[Reptevia]

You could write the same article for Kiriloff, Lewis and Larnach. Minnesota Twins: where prospects go to die. 

[Unwinder]

Miranda was my first prospect love, it's been painful to see him fall off. Still gonna be rooting for him and hoping he puts it back together.

[stringer bell]

38 minutes ago, Reptevia said:

You could write the same article for Kiriloff, Lewis and Larnach. Minnesota Twins: where prospects go to die. 

Injuries more directly got Kirilloff. Lewis is undetermined--I think he has a really good year in '26--and Larnach's career path hasn't had the peaks and valleys that Miranda has experienced. 

[stringer bell]

I think the beaning that Miranda suffered is the turning point in his roller coaster ride of a career. He hasn't been the same player since, not even close.

I don't think he could ever have been a true slugger, but I thought he would have the ability to hit for a high batting average in an era where that is very rare. I wish him luck as well and hope that he can regain some of his hitting mojo.

 

[T.O.]

My memory is that the Twins had a good first half in 22. Buxton and Correa went to the All Start Game. When they came back they went into a huge slump. Most of the team followed. I remember Miranda was the one that kept getting clutch hits. That's when he became my favorite. I think, for awhile,  there was talk him being in the running for Rookie Of The Year.
During that winter he over trained, lost some weight or something like that. Then things started to happen.

Really sad to see him end up here.

[Riverbrian]

It was really bad timing for Miranda. 

The combination of running out of options and a horrific year at AAA sealed his fate.  

  

 

[Cris E]

3 hours ago, stringer bell said:

I think the beaning that Miranda suffered is the turning point in his roller coaster ride of a career. He hasn't bee the same player since, not even close.

I don't think he could ever have been a true slugger, but I thought he would have the ability to hit for a high batting average in an era where that is very rare. I wish him luck as well and hope that he can regain some of his hitting mojo.

 

Absolutely this. His 2024 avg was .320 (.511 slg) through July 28 and .217 (.311 slg) after, and his woes in 2025 are stated above. There was never much discussion about concussion or long term effects of this, but those brain injuries can take years to recover from. Mauer got his concussion in 2013 and never hit like that again. Morneau had his in 2010 and didn't hit for average again (ie close to .300) until 2014. Not sure if that's a case in favor of working with Miranda or cutting him loose until he shows that he's recovered, but it's quite clear that no one is saying this out loud. 

[Parfigliano]

At 27 YOA he will catch on somewhere.

[stringer bell]

A lot of careers have been ruined by beanings. Jimmie Hall and Tony Conigliaro come to mind, but there are many lesser guys who never recover after getting hit in the head even if they are “healthy”. 

[bean5302]

Miranda looked like a solid every day 1B to me, until he didn't. The AAA struggles last year have evaporated any expectation of his career rebounding. It's a bummer how things turned out.

[nicksaviking]

If only the Twins would have recognized the peak for what it was. Which has been a problem for this club. The Twins traded two fringy prospects, Steer and CES for Mahle. Miranda was a big up-and-comer and league-wide talk at that time. He probably gets the Twins Luis Castillo instead.

Who the Twins would have of course traded last July.

[jorgenswest]

Miranda had one season as a prospect where his future value was above 40+. Even in his 2022 report he was an FV50 and came in at #91. He was also ranked 90th and 95th by MLB and Baseball America. He was not seen by those publications as a future star. A few players with that pedigree become stars but most bounce in and out of the majors. At his prospect peak Fangraphs wrote…

Quote

He very rarely whiffs and has an uncanny ability to put his bat on the ball regardless of where the pitch is with his short, compact swing. As it often does with young hitters, this has resulted in an overly swing-happy approach, with Miranda rarely working the count and often making suboptimal contact on pitches he should have left alone.

There was hope that he could grow beyond that. He didn’t and his success often hinged on streaks of a high BABIP. Without a position where he helped defensively he really needed to be more selective at the plate. When he toned down his aggressive approach to be more selective he also took from away his one strength at the plate.

[jmlease1]

18 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

If only the Twins would have recognized the peak for what it was. Which has been a problem for this club. The Twins traded two fringy prospects, Steer and CES for Mahle. Miranda was a big up-and-comer and league-wide talk at that time. He probably gets the Twins Luis Castillo instead.

Who the Twins would have of course traded last July.

I mean, 20/20 hindsight and all. But that's part of why the beaning is potentially such a meaningful part of this story (and I'm absolutely baffled why it's left out of the original article): we're never really going to know if Miranda's collapse was because the league figured him out, adjusted, and he never could make the counter-adjustments to overcome, or because he was never the same guy after getting drilled in the head.

It's one thing to trade high on a guy (like the Twins did with Arraez) that you expect to decline because of where their skills are, how the league will adjust, etc and another to trade a guy because you're able to predict catastrophic injury might derail his entire career. And we simply don't know (and may never know, unless Miranda decides to start talking) if the beaning really did change everything for him. The results suggest yes?

Did Miranda fall apart because he was never really that good in the first place, because of injuries, or a combination of both? Not really sure, but I suspect the injuries, especially the beaning played a significant part in it. He may never get it back, but regardless I think he has to go somewhere else to try. He had a miserable time in Saint Paul last season, and clearly needs a fresh start.

I wish him luck. 

[Cris E]

On 11/12/2025 at 9:24 AM, jmlease1 said:

Did Miranda fall apart because he was never really that good in the first place, because of injuries, or a combination of both? Not really sure, but I suspect the injuries, especially the beaning played a significant part in it. He may never get it back, but regardless I think he has to go somewhere else to try. He had a miserable time in Saint Paul last season, and clearly needs a fresh start.

I agree with this completely, and I wish for two more things.  I'd like to see him get some time away and just get healthy, whether it be in the minors somewhere or just driving Uber for a couple years. He did not look like a guy living his best life last summer. And I'd like an honest airing of this with Morneau or Koskie or someone else who has lived it and how it affected their vision and broader functioning. Injured guys can play for years hoping the fog clears and they can get back to who they were, but it doesn't always happen. That's a story that could benefit everyone.