Twins Add Catching Depth with Early Offseason Swap

[John Bonnes]

Image courtesy of © Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The Twins started their offseason by acquiring their likely backup catcher from the Baltimore Orioles in an arbitration-deadline-driven trade. Alex Jackson, a 29-year-old, power-first, defense-capable catcher who has spent most of his career on the fringe between Triple-A and the majors, will join Minnesota. In return, the Twins sent Payton Eeles, a 26-year-old utility infielder who has yet to make his MLB debut.

Jackson is a right-handed hitter and the prototypical journeyman backstop: raw power, a strong arm, dependable defense, and plenty of strikeouts. A former first-round pick, he has consistently shown real pop at Triple-A — slugging .517 across his time at that level — but that production has never carried over against MLB pitching. Across parts of five big-league seasons, he’s hit just .153 with six home runs, limited by high strikeout rates and difficulty making consistent contact. 

That changed for the better in 2025. With Baltimore, he hit well at Triple-A (772 OPS) and briefly filled in behind Adley Rutschman in the majors (763 OPS over 100 PA). But he also qualified for arbitration this winter, and MLB Trade Rumors projected him to earn $1.8 million, making him available. With Rutschman and top prospect Samuel Basallo in the big leagues, and Basallo signed through 2033, Jackson would have only been an emergency catcher. For the Twins, who paid Christian Vázquez $10 million each of the past three years before he became a free agent, that's a relative bargain.

Eeles, headed to Baltimore, gives the Orioles some middle-infield depth. At this time last year, he looked like one of the Twins’ most unexpected development wins, jumping from the independent Atlantic League in May of 2024 to Triple-A St. Paul by season’s end. Once in Triple-A, the then-24-year-old slashed .299/.419/.500 with eight homers, 20 steals, and a 14.6 percent strikeout rate over 260 plate appearances. Offseason knee surgery pushed back the start of his 2025 campaign back. He returned to the Saints in early June. His production was down, but he still posted a .379 OBP. 

But Eeles is just 5-foot-5 and unlikely to grow into much power. He profiles as a pesky, contact-oriented hitter who can get on base, pressure defenses and swipe 20-plus bags with regular playing time. The Twins have several infielders that they are more committed to developing in the organization, a fact underscored when Eeles did not receive a late-season call-up even after the team traded away ten players at the deadline.

To make room for Jackson on the Twins 40-man roster, outfielder DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. was designated for assignment. 

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[Ricky Vaughn]

Underwhelmed 

[Blyleven2011]

Well the back up catcher has been addressed and the cost was a pesky hitter from AAA , jackson is just another acquisition of hope by falvey , potential but unproven in the major leagues  , power , defense questionable and strikes out a plenty ...

We need hitters that hit in the major leagues , not hope to hit ...

Another Gasper trade that the hope hasn't panned out on ...

[LambchoP]

Don't like it. Backup catcher with a career .150 BA and a 37 percent K rate? And we're going to pay him 1.8 million?! I'd rather they let Perada take a chance. Plus we had to give up Eeles who could have been a valuable backup or utility guy. With our lack of depth at SS we probably shouldn't have gotten rid of Eeles. Not a good trade imo....

[rdehring]

See he is on the 40-man roster.  Does that confirm he is the leading candidate to back up Jeffers?

In a related question, any information on who will be removed from the 40-man as they are now at 41?  And how will player X be removed?

[Cory Engelhardt]

Just now, rdehring said:

See he is on the 40-man roster.  Does that confirm he is the leading candidate to back up Jeffers?

In a related question, any information on who will be removed from the 40-man as they are now at 41?  And how will player X be removed?

Keirsey was removed already.

[nicksaviking]

Obviously this team needed another catcher. However this guy looks like the type that is constantly floating around on the waiver all year, so I’m not sure why you’d want to roster this caliber of player now.

[Vanimal46]

15 minutes ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

Underwhelmed 

What exactly did you expect to receive in a trade for a 26 year old, 5'5" former independent league baseball player? The odds are very much stacked against Eeles making it to MLB. 

[Vanimal46]

Getting a viable MLB backup C for a former lottery ticket minor league FA signing is a win in my book.

[rdehring]

6 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

Keirsey was removed already.

Where did you see that?  Just checked the Twins website and Keirsey is still listed.

This deal brought the Orioles 40-man down to 39.  Seems they are doing a better job of cleaning up their roster than the Twins.

[Cory Engelhardt]

Just now, rdehring said:

Where did you see that?  Just checked the Twins website and Keirsey is still listed.

This deal brought the Orioles 40-man down to 39.  Seems they are doing a better job of cleaning up their roster than the Twins.

https://www.mlb.com/twins/news/alex-jackson-twins-orioles-trade

 

3rd line in the writeup by Matthew Leach states that they designated Keirsey from the 40 man to make room.

[TNtwins85]

14 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

Well the back up catcher has been addressed and the cost was a pesky hitter from AAA , jackson is just another acquisition of hope by falvey , potential but unproven in the major leagues  , power , defense questionable and strikes out a plenty ...

We need hitters that hit in the major leagues , not hope to hit ...

Another Gasper trade that the hope hasn't panned out on ...

Well, if you read anything about him other than his stat line he fits the mound of a BACKUP catcher. Good defensively, good arm, can crack a couple over the fence. Way better than Gasper. What were you looking for? 

[Hubie29]

6 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

What exactly did you expect to receive in a trade for a 26 year old, 5'5" former independent league baseball player? The odds are very much stacked against Eeles making it to MLB. 

The main point is he is expected to be the backup to Jeffers. Not only underwhelming but a complete joke. 

[Ricky Vaughn]

1 minute ago, Vanimal46 said:

What exactly did you expect to receive in a trade for a 26 year old, 5'5" former independent league baseball player? The odds are very much stacked against Eeles making it to MLB. 

Its not the trade of Eeles, I know he will never be anything but light hitting utility player at best. Why would anyone trade for a catcher who hits a buck fifty and pay him 1.8 mil. If thats what they had in mind why not bring back Vazquez.

[Cory Engelhardt]

14 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

Obviously this team needed another catcher. However this guy looks like the type that is constantly floating around on the waiver all year, so I’m not sure why you’d want to roster this caliber of player now.

Isn't that exactly what a backup catcher would be described as?

[Cory Engelhardt]

1 minute ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

Its not the trade of Eeles, I know he will never be anything but light hitting utility player at best. Why would anyone trade for a catcher who hits a buck fifty and pay him 1.8 mil. If thats what they had in mind why not bring back Vazquez.

Vazquez is older, probably not as good at defense any longer, and costs 2-3 times as much.

[Gamblerssoftball]

Eeles path to the majors has several roadblocks to overcome with the Twins. I like the kid and I hope he gets a chance with his new team. Whether this is a good swap won't be known for awhile, but I think it's not a high risk deal. Who knows, it could be a great move.

[TNtwins85]

15 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

Don't like it. Backup catcher with a career .150 BA and a 37 percent K rate? And we're going to pay him 1.8 million?! I'd rather they let Perada take a chance. Plus we had to give up Eeles who could have been a valuable backup or utility guy. With our lack of depth at SS we probably shouldn't have gotten rid of Eeles. Not a good trade imo....

If they did that you would have complained that they should have traded for a backup catcher. Eeles is not a major league shortstop in any way. Didn’t get a chance at all last year. They traded a guy they were never gonna use for a guy who they need. Solid trade. Addresses depth. Simple as that.

[Vanimal46]

4 minutes ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

Its not the trade of Eeles, I know he will never be anything but light hitting utility player at best. Why would anyone trade for a catcher who hits a buck fifty and pay him 1.8 mil. If thats what they had in mind why not bring back Vazquez.

He rated positively at defense and showed some pop playing in Baltimore. Sounds like a good enough backup C to me but YMMV.

[DJL44]

13 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

Don't like it. Backup catcher with a career .150 BA and a 37 percent K rate? And we're going to pay him 1.8 million?! I'd rather they let Perada take a chance. Plus we had to give up Eeles who could have been a valuable backup or utility guy. With our lack of depth at SS we probably shouldn't have gotten rid of Eeles. Not a good trade imo....

Eeles is not a SS and he's not going to take Keaschall's job. The Twins like Schobel better and I can't blame them for that opinion.

[IndyTwinsFan]

3 minutes ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

Its not the trade of Eeles, I know he will never be anything but light hitting utility player at best. Why would anyone trade for a catcher who hits a buck fifty and pay him 1.8 mil. If thats what they had in mind why not bring back Vazquez.

Because it's likely that Vazquez, or any other catcher in his general class, would likely cost well more than that per season, without providing markedly better offense and/or defense. 

Transaction was a big "meh" for me.

[TNtwins85]

5 minutes ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

Its not the trade of Eeles, I know he will never be anything but light hitting utility player at best. Why would anyone trade for a catcher who hits a buck fifty and pay him 1.8 mil. If thats what they had in mind why not bring back Vazquez.

Because Vazquez is way older, terrible hitting, defense getting substantially worse and would probably never sign for anything close to $1.8M. 

[TNtwins85]

2 minutes ago, IndyTwinsFan said:

Because it's likely that Vazquez, or any other catcher in his general class, would likely cost well more than that per season, without providing markedly better offense and/or defense. 

Transaction was a big "meh" for me.

But surely needed. And starts to point towards the Twins keeping Jeffers rather than trading him.

[IndyTwinsFan]

Just now, TNtwins85 said:

But surely needed. And starts to point towards the Twins keeping Jeffers rather than trading him.

Agreed.

[GNess]

Jackson strikes out....often. 

[LyleCole]

We got him.  With them DFA Keirsey they need another sub .200 hitter to take his place on the 40 man roster.  

The Twins looked at that .137 batting average in 2021 (151 PAs), that .157 average in 2021 (123 PAs), the .122 average in 2024 (155 pas) and said,  WE NEED THIS AND WE NEED IT BAD.

I will concede that he actually hit pretty well in 100 plate appearances last season with Baltimore from an OPS standpoint.   But when a .220 average and .290 OBP are major statistical aberrations for your career it probably indicates a return to the mean is inevitable.  

Still, I agree that for a team conserving payroll and $1.8 million is a huge amount of money for the owners that are pushing to a low budget rebuild, why not just add Ricardo Olivar to the 40 and pencil him in as the backup C and give him some other chances of playing LF to see if he has MLB value?   Olivar is younger, more versatile, and his minor league career has been more successful.  If Olivar can't do the job try someone else like Nate Baez, Noah Cardenas, or even Patrick Winkel.   

What is the fascination with journeymen that this team's management seems to love?

[IndianaTwin]

For pretty much any team, more transactions are about nudging the needle than they are about making a splash.

This is one more of many of the former (see Orze, Eric) that will happen before Opening Day. For the reasons others have noted above, it makes sense in that context. 

[Doctor Gast]

Jackson won't cut it as a Jeffers's backup catcher. As a 3rd catcher or backup to a primary catcher, where he's used sparingly, he'll be fine, but not used extensively. He's not that great offensively until he was used sparingly in the 1st half & did well in July when he was used more regularly, but as time ground by, he tailed off quickly. He won't be able to regularly cover for Jeffers as the season drags by. Jeffers & Jackson may come out like gangbusters, but they'll be very disappointing before the All-Star break. 

But I'm happy for Eeles, he wasn't getting the chance with MN in the MLB as he should. Hopefully, he'll get that chance with a contender.

[DJL44]

If you look at Jackson's AAA stats - .242/.323/.517 for an .840 OPS - it makes his 2025 MLB line of .220/.290/.473 look sustainable. An .840 OPS in AAA is higher than Eeles (.790) and Keirsey (.811) and neither of them can play adequate defense behind the plate.

 

[IndianaTwin]

23 minutes ago, LyleCole said:

We got him.  With them DFA Keirsey they need another sub .200 hitter to take his place on the 40 man roster.  

The Twins looked at that .137 batting average in 2021 (151 PAs), that .157 average in 2021 (123 PAs), the .122 average in 2024 (155 pas) and said,  WE NEED THIS AND WE NEED IT BAD.

I will concede that he actually hit pretty well in 100 plate appearances last season with Baltimore from an OPS standpoint.   But when a .220 average and .290 OBP are major statistical aberrations for your career it probably indicates a return to the mean is inevitable.  

Still, I agree that for a team conserving payroll and $1.8 million is a huge amount of money for the owners that are pushing to a low budget rebuild, why not just add Ricardo Olivar to the 40 and pencil him in as the backup C and give him some other chances of playing LF to see if he has MLB value?   Olivar is younger, more versatile, and his minor league career has been more successful.  If Olivar can't do the job try someone else like Nate Baez, Noah Cardenas, or even Patrick Winkel.   

What is the fascination with journeymen that this team's management seems to love?

I'm responding to your comment, LC, but it could just as easily be responding to several above.

Jackson may well regress to his historical average. But he also may not. I remember a Bill James article stating that the most common position player to defy the aging curve is the backup catcher. Because of the emphasis on defense for catchers (and which Jackson apparently provides), AAAA catchers have to focus their energies on that side of the ball if they are going to stick. As a result, their offensive development often lags behind their defensive development and some do improve into their 30s. It's hard for a starting catcher to improve in their 30s because their body has taken such a pounding, but that's much less of an issue for a career backup like Jackson. 

 

I'd also note that he was a No. 6 overall pick, so there's some sense of pedigree. And let's not overlook the fact that he's a Christmas baby, so maybe he'll be a gift for us! 😀