The Quiet Upside in the Twins Move for Alex Jackson

[Parker Hageman]

Image courtesy of © David Frerker-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Twins’ acquisition of Alex Jackson did not spark much excitement, and that reaction is understandable. Backup catcher signings rarely generate buzz. However, once you look into the underlying data, the move starts to look more interesting. There are several indicators that suggest Jackson could be a legitimately useful depth piece with room to improve.

In his limited 2025 sample, Jackson looked like a different hitter. The changes were not just in the box score. They showed up in the underlying traits the Twins tend to value.

His average bat speed jumped from 74.4 mph to 76.1 mph, placing him near Matt Wallner’s 76.6 mph. His fast-swing rate, which measures swings at 75 mph or higher, increased from 46.9 percent to 61.7 percent. Those types of changes usually correlate with more impactful contact.

That improvement showed up in his batted-ball profile:

+ Barrel rate: 9.1 percent to 14.8 percent
+ Pulled balls in the air: 17 percent to 24.1 percent

These results line up with the mechanical adjustments he made:

+ Open stance increased from 8 degrees to 14 degrees
+ Wider base from 35.5 inches to 36.5 inches
+ More pull-side attack angle from 5 degrees to 9 degrees

These are not cosmetic changes. They are meaningful adjustments designed to access more loft, more damage out front, and more consistent pull-side lift. Jackson’s swing decisions and contact rate still need refinement, but he did make one positive improvement by cutting his chase rate from 36.6 percent to 29.0 percent.

made some adjustments:

+ opened stance (8 degrees➡️14 degrees)
+ widened stance (35.5 ➡️ 36.5)
+ attacking out front with pull intent (5 degrees ➡️ 9 degrees)
+ pulled ball in air more (17%➡️24.1%) pic.twitter.com/um5zzpxvr6

— parker hageman (@HagemanParker) November 21, 2025

 

Jackson’s progress at the plate is only part of the story. His defensive work in limited time was encouraging as well.

+ 3 framing runs
+ 2 caught stealing runs

His throwing strength stands out. Jackson averaged 83.4 mph on throws, which ranked sixth best in baseball. Christian Vázquez, for comparison, averaged 77 mph but paired that with an elite 0.59 second exchange. Jackson does not have that kind of transfer speed, but he possesses the raw arm strength that limits running opportunities.

With solid exchanges and above-average carry, he should help the Twins manage the increased running game trend across MLB.

No one should expect Alex Jackson to become a breakout star. That is not the role the Twins need him to fill. They need a backup who can receive a staff, manage the running game, produce occasional pull-side power, and trend toward better overall decisions at the plate.

The available data suggests Jackson can check those boxes. His improvements in swing intent, bat speed, and discipline are not minor. His defensive metrics are similarly encouraging.

This move may not be flashy. It is the type of depth addition that tends to look more meaningful as the season wears on. Based on what he showed in limited opportunities, the Twins may have identified a backup catcher who is quietly moving in the right direction.

 

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[thelanges5]

$1.8 mil for a backup C with some upside. Sounds good to me. 

[tony&rodney]

Appreciate the optimism and hope springs eternal so to speak.

It is worth remembering that we read similar upbeat posts with the big trade last year for Mickey Gasper. 

Alex Jackson is out of options and they are paying him more than the minimum. The other catchers still have options and thus there will not be a competition for the backup catching slot. There has been a decided trend under this front office to ride those type of players all the way into September. That is my concern.

[Blyleven2011]

There are lots of players that should be DFA'd  , I know some like Gasper , he's still on the 40 man roster and we are closing in on 3:00 deadline ...

Keirsey Jr was DFA'd and hope his luck turns with another organization , I'm waiting on  the 3:00 deadline to see if im surprised or not ...

[terrydactyls]

I thought it was a 7:00 deadline?

[D.C Twins]

Great article as always Parker!

[weitz41]

I like your optimism. It's a stretch to buy into. But that's what the off season is for.

[jkcarew]

There’s always room on a Twins roster for a 30-year-old journeyman. It’s how we do what we do.

[Jacksson]

At 1.8 Million, is Jackson viewed as a backup or will he become the starting C once Jeffers is traded?  That would be coupled with the elevation to backup status for whoever is remaining at AAA and proves worthy.  Keep an eye on Philly as a Jeffers destination if Philly fails to resign their starting catcher.  Flavey has already dealt with them recently.

[jorgenswest]

5 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Appreciate the optimism and hope springs eternal so to speak.

It is worth remembering that we read similar upbeat posts with the big trade last year for Mickey Gasper. 

Alex Jackson is out of options and they are paying him more than the minimum. The other catchers still have options and thus there will not be a competition for the backup catching slot. There has been a decided trend under this front office to ride those type of players all the way into September. That is my concern.

As for his catching ability I think this is more than upbeat. The skill to be a better than average catcher appears real based on the data. If there was an article about Gasper being an average catcher it had to be hope. I don’t think there is any data to support that. I think the data on Gasper was his OBP in AAA and the hope he would hit enough to be a 1B/DH/2B. I hoped he would be the next Brian Harper but it was just hope.

[old nurse]

A player can learn something and improve? Will wonder never cease.  With all of the comments on the other thread and some of the reactions here I now understand why the writers have moved away from discussing technical baseball 

[Bodie]

Worst career BA among MLers with 400 at bats...

Sounds like a another genius Failvey move!!!!

[DocBauer]

I appreciate all of the perspectives of a better offensive approach in 2025. But it was a limited example of ONE team in a SSS. Now he's with a different team. Does he maintain, grow, or regress?

If he's as good defensively as I keep reading and hearing about, he's  Butera with more power. I can live with that.

Hitting around .200 with power and playing good defense puts his about average offensively, which most don't realize. That makes him a really solid backup for about 50-60 games. If he only hits .150, we have a serious problem. 

 

[old nurse]

9 hours ago, Bodie said:

Worst career BA among MLers with 400 at bats...

Sounds like an another genius Failvey move!!!!

Did you read the article? Did you ever get better at doing anything skill wise? Not trying to be insulting,  it is more wonderment where the thinking behind your statement comes from when there is reasonable information 

[old nurse]

6 hours ago, DocBauer said:

I appreciate all of the perspectives of a better offensive approach in 2025. But it was a limited example of ONE team in a SSS. Now he's with a different team. Does he maintain, grow, or regress?

If he's as good defensively as I keep reading and hearing about, he's  Butera with more power. I can live with that.

Hitting around .200 with power and playing good defense puts his about average offensively, which most don't realize. That makes him a really solid backup for about 50-60 games. If he only hits .150, we have a serious problem. 

 

Fangraphs lists 107 players who played catcher last year.  29 had a better than league average OPS. So there is generally not much power there, In terms of batting average only 38 have hit worse that the career batting average of Mario Mendoza. 

[Nashvilletwin]

16 hours ago, thelanges5 said:

$1.8 mil for a backup C with some upside. Sounds good to me. 

Actually $1.8 mil for a starting C post the trade deadline at the latest.  Jeffers will certainly be traded at the deadline if not sooner. 

[JD-TWINS]

3 hours ago, old nurse said:

Did you read the article? Did you ever get better at doing anything skill wise? Not trying to be insulting,  it is more wonderment where the thinking behind your statement comes from when there is reasonable information 

I agree, in general. I think the sentiment that’s trying to be made by many, is that almost everyone here at TD forum wish the Bar was much higher than this for a Catcher move for ‘26. Is he better than Pereda?

I know this sounds nuts but I’d like to see Pereda or some other acquisition for roster at Catcher. This allows Jeffers to play 1B maybe 100 games and catch maybe 20 games to stay viable behind the plate. PH/DH another 25 games.

[Jeff K]

I like the trade considering who the Twins are.  He ought to be a decent back up catcher which the Twins desperately need.  Perhpas they can now move on from Gaspar when they make their next move.  And for the love of Shaboom, please trade Larnach!  Our young outfielders need to play MLB.

[jmlease1]

Jackson has always been solid defensively, which is why he keeps getting chances to stick as someone's backup. If he hits at all he'll be a nice player at a reasonable price. It comes down to whether or not you think the adjustments he made and results he put up last season are reflective of where he is as a hitter or just a small-ish sample size fluke?

As noted in the article, there are underlying metrics to suggest that he may have found something. His MLB track record prior to 2025 as a hitter has been pretty poor, but he has hit in AAA. Considering how poor Vazquez was as a hitter the past 2 seasons and just how low the bar is for catchers as hitters in MLB, this could end up as an upgrade at a much more palatable price.

Better than Pereda? We'll see.

[jjswol]

Falvey had better hope that Jackson can catch and hit because catchers get hurt and suffer concussions, you can't count on Jeffers catching 80% of the games. I see the Twins picking up more catching "bench".

[Brock O. Lee]

I don't mind this trade in terms of value. But it's hard for this organization to add another AAAA player to its 40-man. This team is 80% MLB players who aren't quite good enough to be in the majors or prospects who aren't quite ready to be in the majors. 

[old nurse]

1 hour ago, JD-TWINS said:

I agree, in general. I think the sentiment that’s trying to be made by many, is that almost everyone here at TD forum wish the Bar was much higher than this for a Catcher move for ‘26. Is he better than Pereda?

I know this sounds nuts but I’d like to see Pereda or some other acquisition for roster at Catcher. This allows Jeffers to play 1B maybe 100 games and catch maybe 20 games to stay viable behind the plate. PH/DH another 25 games.

Don't know if he is better. At somewhere around 30 he is stopgap. We would a love a catcher that is cost controlled, can hit and be an excellent catcher. They are harder to find than a true ace pitcher.  That is the conundrum. A catcher that can do the defensive stuff and be close to a league average hitter is probably a good get. Whether this is the guy or not remains to be seen.  

[ashbury]

23 hours ago, Bodie said:

Worst career BA among MLers with 400 at bats...

This had the feel of a cherry-picked threshold of at bats.  But if I use plate appearances, and even drop the threshold down to 300, Jackson still retains the crown.  Fair enough.

However, if I drop the threshold to 200 PA, one (and only one) other player steps in to usurp the throne.  It's our own, newly claimed 40-man roster member Ryan Kreidler, with his tasty .138 BA in 211 chances at the plate.  

We've got 'em both now!

(As noted earlier, this article isn't really about the catcher's entire past history, and explores reasons to hope he's turned a corner for real.)