Patience Now Could Pay Off Big for Twins and Kaelen Culpepper

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of William Parmeter

The Minnesota Twins knew demoting Royce Lewis would create headlines. What they probably also knew was that the follow-up decision would create even more debate.

Instead of promoting top prospect Kaelen Culpepper, the Twins turned to veteran Orlando Arcia to fill the roster spot. For a fan base looking for a spark and dreaming about the organization’s future, it felt underwhelming. Culpepper is one of the most exciting prospects in the system, and he’s been on an absolute heater during May.

But even if the move was unpopular, it was probably the correct long-term decision. Culpepper has played fewer than 40 games at Triple-A. On a recent episode of Inside Twins, general manager Jeremy Zoll discussed how he believes the jump from Triple-A to the big leagues is more difficult now than ever. That distinction makes it easier to swallow the Culpepper decision. 

The former first-round pick has looked impressive for St. Paul, slashing .253/.346/.469, with nine home runs and nine steals in 39 games. Since the calendar flipped to May, he has elevated his production even further, hitting .291/.403/.582 with four homers in 67 plate appearances. There is no question that the talent is real.

Selected with the 21st overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, Culpepper has moved quickly through the organization because of his athleticism, power potential, and defensive versatility. While he has spent most of his time at shortstop, he also has extensive experience at third base, dating back to college. Some evaluators even believe third base could ultimately become his best defensive home because of his arm strength.

That positional flexibility makes him even more enticing. The temptation is obvious. If the Twins are serious about moving on from Lewis (for the time being), there are multiple ways Culpepper could fit onto the roster immediately. Brooks Lee could shift to third base to open shortstop for Culpepper, or Culpepper himself could handle third while continuing to get occasional work in the middle infield.

On paper, it all works. Reality is a little more complicated. The Twins are trying to avoid putting Culpepper into a situation where he arrives in the majors before every aspect of his game is fully prepared. According to The Athletic’s Dan Hayes, team officials want him to continue refining his defense at shortstop while also developing more consistency offensively. That is not an insult to his performance. It acknowledges that Triple-A development is still part of the process.

Fans often treat promotions like rewards for good statistics, but organizations view them as long-term investments. Once a top prospect arrives in the majors, expectations change immediately. Every slump becomes magnified. Every defensive mistake becomes a talking point. The Twins would prefer Culpepper’s debut to come when they believe he is fully equipped to stay permanently, rather than bouncing between levels because of short-term roster needs.

That distinction matters. Too many organizations across baseball have rushed prospects simply because the big league roster needed energy. Sometimes it works, like what the Twins saw with Luke Keaschall in 2025. Other times, a player arrives before he is fully polished, struggles immediately, loses confidence, and spends the next two years trying to recover.

The Twins do not want Culpepper learning on the fly while trying to save a roster spot. That is where Arcia makes perfect sense. He is not the flashy choice, but he is the practical one. Arcia has spent a decade in the majors and can handle multiple infield positions without the organization having to worry about stunting his development. He is also earning the opportunity himself after hitting .318/.376/.556 (.932) with eight home runs in 39 games for St. Paul.

Most importantly, Arcia buys the Twins time. If Lewis figures things out quickly or if the roster construction changes again in a few weeks, Minnesota avoids forcing Culpepper into a potentially unstable situation. If Culpepper continues to dominate Triple-A while sharpening his defense and approach, the eventual call-up becomes easier and cleaner.

And if the Twins do summon him later this summer, they want it to feel permanent. That should excite Twins fans more than a rushed promotion in May.

Culpepper is clearly part of Minnesota’s future. Nothing about this decision changes that reality. In fact, keeping him at Triple-A for now may be the best evidence that the organization believes he can become a cornerstone player instead of just a temporary roster fix.

The hardest part for fans is patience. The smartest part for the Twins may be showing it.

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Should Culpepper have been promoted? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[mikelink45]

Arcia earned the promotion but Culpepper will be up before the end of the year I believe.  

But it raises a question for me. I see other clubs bring up young players who have some struggles but seem to overcome and progress.  But we seem to have the promote and flame out - Lewis and Wallner, promote and injuries - Lewis and Kiriloff, looking like a star and then struggle - Keaschall.  

Lee is the opposite - he started low with lots of criticism and seems to be growing as a player. 

Please explain - we have so many with such good potential but we have not had as much success as I would like to see from prospects.  If they prepare Culpepper right I will be delighted. 

[karcherd]

It was talked about on MLB yesterday that teams are bringing up their top prospects earlier because they feel they will develop better in the majors because of the lack of pitching in AAA.  So are the Twins the outliers and if so why.  As an organization they have not shown based on results on the field that they are head and shoulders above other organizations.  Maybe they need to start trying to copy what others are doing and not always thinking they have the answers.

Also if they want him to refine his defense at short, then play him there every game, don't move him around at all.  Show a sense of urgency to get him ready.  He is the top prospect in St. Paul, he should be the priority at short.  

[TJSweens]

I have no issue with Arcia over Culpepper right now. Arcia has a solid major league track record and was playing really well at StP. There will be other opportunities for Culpepper. Right now Keaschall isn't hitting enough to justify his glove in the lineup and Lee looks every bit the place holder that he is. I think Brooks is destined for a utility infielder role. Letting Culpepper pile up more AAA experience seems like the smart play right now.

[Jeff K]

It's not a wrong decision to bring up Arcia.  As TJSweeny noted, Arcia played very well for the Saints.  I would have brought up Culpepper to see how he handled the jump.  Gray is trending downward, so it might be a matter of time before it's both Culpepper AND Arcia on the big club.  I think Royce Lewis needs a good bit of time before he is back in consideration...and it's a gigantic IF.

[Tallguy80]

I appreciate you tackling the topic that every Twins fan was thinking yesterday. However not mentioning other teams’ approach for prospects feels like a hole in the story. I don’t understand how the arbitration clock works but feel like it is an angle that should be factored in as well considering ownerships approach to payroll or lack there of. 
 

If this move was meant for short term then I suppose Arcia makes sense, but it’s difficult to justify why low ceiling players that likely don’t factor into the long term plans are continually promoted over prospects that do. Maybe the problem is I keep hoping the Twins ownership and management will do something exciting, it’s like thinking this time Charlie Brown will actually kick the football…

[Jack Pine]

It's a point that is hard to dispute.

[Nshore]

This almost exact article could have been written about Royce Lewis before he was first called up.  The Twins have to find out why these guys are going from raking in AAA to completely helpless in the Major Leagues.  If it means more time at AAA, so be it.  But it seems like there's more to it than that.

[rhal]

Not great pitching at AAA makes prospects look much better than they are. Twins obviously see some holes in his approach they want him to work on against inferior pitching before trying to take on the bigs. 

[Patzky]

1 hour ago, mikelink45 said:

Arcia earned the promotion but Culpepper will be up before the end of the year I believe.  

But it raises a question for me. I see other clubs bring up young players who have some struggles but seem to overcome and progress.  But we seem to have the promote and flame out - Lewis and Wallner, promote and injuries - Lewis and Kiriloff, looking like a star and then struggle - Keaschall.  

Lee is the opposite - he started low with lots of criticism and seems to be growing as a player. 

Please explain - we have so many with such good potential but we have not had as much success as I would like to see from prospects.  If they prepare Culpepper right I will be delighted. 

For me the first I examples that popped into my head were right here in our division. Caglianone, Montgomery, Bazzano, McGonigle. I can't fathom the Twins accelerating a top prospect as quickly as any of those young prospects (guess they're not prospects anymore) Caglianone has struggled some,  Montgomery worked through some issues last year and is now a rising star on an exciting Chicago team, McGonigle got a long term contract, and Bazzano has looked like a guy who comes through at the right moment. 

It's our turn but the time has to be right.

 

[Patzky]

38 minutes ago, Tallguy80 said:

I appreciate you tackling the topic that every Twins fan was thinking yesterday. However not mentioning other teams’ approach for prospects feels like a hole in the story. I don’t understand how the arbitration clock works but feel like it is an angle that should be factored in as well considering ownerships approach to payroll or lack there of. 
 

If this move was meant for short term then I suppose Arcia makes sense, but it’s difficult to justify why low ceiling players that likely don’t factor into the long term plans are continually promoted over prospects that do. Maybe the problem is I keep hoping the Twins ownership and management will do something exciting, it’s like thinking this time Charlie Brown will actually kick the football…

 

[Trov]

Another thing that bring Arcia up, if he can continue to hit anywhere close to what he was in AAA and still be above average defender like he has in his career, worst case, he builds some trade value.  No, he will not net some major return, but he would have some value for average hitting SS with above average defense.