Twins Have Built Baseball’s Best Catching Prospect Pipeline

[Cody Christie]

The Minnesota Twins have spent plenty of time searching for answers at catcher over the years. Now, the organization appears to have collected intriguing options throughout the farm system.

MLB Pipeline recently ranked the Twins as the top organization in baseball when it comes to catching prospects, a reflection of just how much talent Minnesota has accumulated behind the plate. The Twins have four legitimate prospects who give the organization reason to believe it can find a long-term answer at catcher.

That group became even more impressive during the 2026 MLB Draft. Minnesota selected Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey with the third overall pick before returning to the position in the second round to select Texas catcher Carson Tinney. Suddenly, the Twins had added two more high-upside catchers to a pipeline that already featured Eduardo Tait and Khadim Diaw. It is a remarkable collection of talent at one position.

Lackey is the headliner. The third overall pick is about as well-rounded as any catching prospect in the minor leagues. MLB Pipeline has given him above-average-to-plus grades for his hit, power, arm and fielding tools, making him the type of player who doesn't have an obvious weakness. That combination helped Lackey jump immediately onto national prospect lists following the draft.

Twins Daily currently ranks him as the organization's No. 2 prospect, behind only Walker Jenkins. Lackey has already moved quickly through his first professional season and was recently promoted to High-A Cedar Rapids. There is still plenty of development ahead, but the early returns have only strengthened the belief that Lackey could eventually become Minnesota's catcher of the future. And he isn't the only option.

Tinney brings a different offensive profile to the organization. He is more slugging-forward than Lackey and currently ranks No. 11 on the Twins Daily prospect list, giving Minnesota another potentially impactful bat at a premium position.

Then there is Tait. At just 19 years old, Tait remains the youngest member of this group and arguably the most difficult player to evaluate. He fell out of some national top-100 rankings this season because of concerns surrounding his contact ability and below-average defensive work behind the plate.

That doesn't mean his prospect status has disappeared. Tait still possesses legitimate power potential, and the upside that made him one of the more intriguing pieces of Minnesota's 2025 trade deadline haul remains. At his age, there is plenty of time for the Twins to work through the questions surrounding his offensive approach and defensive development.

Diaw provides yet another interesting option. The 22-year-old is hitting .302/.420/.439 across 95 games between High-A and Double-A this season. His athleticism also gives Minnesota some flexibility, as he has received opportunities in center field. Twins Daily currently ranks Diaw No. 13 in the organization.

That depth matters. Lackey is expected to be the player who eventually takes over as Minnesota's long-term catcher. The Twins didn't use the third overall pick on him expecting him to become anything less than a cornerstone player.

But prospects don't always follow the script. That is what makes this group so valuable. If Lackey develops into the catcher Minnesota believes he can become, the organization will have found its answer at a position that has been difficult to solve consistently. If he doesn't, the Twins aren't starting from scratch. Tinney, Tait and Diaw provide three more possibilities, each with a different set of strengths and developmental timelines.

For an organization recently recognized by MLB Pipeline as having baseball's best catching prospect system, that is the biggest takeaway. Minnesota doesn't have to find one catcher. It has multiple chances to get it right.

 

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[DJL44]

That’s 90% Lackey. The Cardinals have more guys who look like they will play catcher in MLB but they don’t have anyone with the upside of Lackey.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

That’s 90% Lackey. The Cardinals have more guys who look like they will play catcher in MLB but they don’t have anyone with the upside of Lackey.

Lackey is the upside and floor, but since last July there has been a conservative effort to improve the catching depth and pipeline. Last year before the deadline all we had was Diaw.  
 

Now- Lackey, Tait, Tinney, Diaw, Jimenez and Carabello. 

[DJL44]

Diaw is hitting okay for a catcher in AA. If he can refine his skills on defense he has a window of opportunity. If he can’t, he will probably spend a few seasons with the Saints before leaving the organization.

[PuckettPond]

We need more young catchers either by draft or trade as catcher is the only position to touch the ball every play. Surplus can be traded for pitching as teams will over pay for the hardest position to develop. Lackey has the athletic ability to also play corner in field & corner outfield. Thus allowing a team to carry 3 catchers.

[LastOnePicked]

That's helpful. Where does the pitching pipeline rank?

Nevermind. I looked it up. Not in anyone's top ten. Something this organization better start thinking seriously about, or it's gonna be a frustrating first few years for these top catchers.

[Peter Gravett]

2 hours ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Lackey is the upside and floor, but since last July there has been a conservative effort to improve the catching depth and pipeline. Last year before the deadline all we had was Diaw.  
 

Now- Lackey, Tait, Tinney, Diaw, Jimenez and Carabello. 

Glad to see you added Jimenez and Caraballo. Given we gave up a Rule 5 near MLB-ready catcher in such short order, the Twins must think very highly of Caraballo.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

1 hour ago, Peter Gravett said:

Glad to see you added Jimenez and Caraballo. Given we gave up a Rule 5 near MLB-ready catcher in such short order, the Twins must think very highly of Caraballo.

I had proposed  to punt the catching position this year at the rule 5 draft- trading Jeffers and go with Jackson, Pereda and and Susac.  Carabello is a lottery ticket.  But will be at a different level than the majority of our other catching prospects. 

[ashbury]

5 hours ago, PuckettPond said:

Lackey has the athletic ability to also play corner in field & corner outfield. Thus allowing a team to carry 3 catchers.

3 catchers is getting ahead of ourselves.  I'll settle for him developing into a good defender at one of those positions.  Below-average at multiple positions would be essentially no better than below-average at one.

[insagt1]

Twins are done for 2026. The decision to beef up the pen at trade deadline totally fizzled.they have been losing close games late and they are now toast. Buxton hasn't homered in 2 1/2 ,months and has contributed nothing 2nd half while being hampered by an annual injury.. his days of being a Twins superstar are over. For some reason the chemistry on the team doesn't work. Don't know if draft picks will do much. Disappointed at how this team aimply fell apart

 

[Cornholio]

I believe the Twins also have an agreement with a top international catching prospect.

[DocBauer]

Wow. Lifted almost exactly from the original MLB Pipeline article including no mention of Jiminez.

Granted Jiminez had a season interrupted by some IL time, but there seemed to be some excitement about him this time last year after being acquired from the Tigers at the deadline. He's got a long way to go, but reports have been a solid understanding of calling a game with a good arm and some pop/power. Even if he's a future backup he could be valuable. 

[Derojo]

5 hours ago, insagt1 said:

For some reason the chemistry on the team doesn't work. Don't know if draft picks will do much. Disappointed at how this team aimply fell apart

 

The chemistry doesn't work? What does that mean? Second, the Twins were expected to be .500 at best. They haven't fallen apart. They have had many injuries to starters. That's a big factor.

[Patzky]

On 8/29/2026 at 11:43 AM, LastOnePicked said:

That's helpful. Where does the pitching pipeline rank?

Nevermind. I looked it up. Not in anyone's top ten. Something this organization better start thinking seriously about, or it's gonna be a frustrating first few years for these top catchers.

What better way to catch the pitching pipeline! Seriously if we can get to 2028 I feel good about the position.

[Andy MacPhail]

IMO, to talk about a catching pipeline, we need a coaching staff to develop them. Do we have one? Lackey is our most promising defensively & closest to the MLB. Still he's still a little ways off. Having hope in a bunch of catching prospects that can hit doesn't matter much unless they can stick there. Keep Lackey at premium catching & let him focus there, he's the real thing.

[twinstalker]

LOL.  This is just a bow to the third player taken in the draft and NOTHING else.  Twins had a 2018 second rd pick (under very different development) make it and haven't had a single other catcher  from the system do anything in ten years.  It would seem our job here to identify the BS in the same way political statements need to be vetted.  Not celebrate something that has weak legs.

[bean5302]

On 8/29/2026 at 8:25 AM, DJL44 said:

Diaw is hitting okay for a catcher in AA. If he can refine his skills on defense he has a window of opportunity. If he can’t, he will probably spend a few seasons with the Saints before leaving the organization.

Diaw isn't a catcher, IMHO. He's got a 8% CS rate at 8 of 129 attempts. It's free base for anybody who wants it.