2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Kaelen Culpepper is an exceptional athlete who has shifted defensively from 2B/3B to SS in his junior season at Kansas State. With a strong offensive performance in 2024, he could provide a jolt to a weak draft demographic that's usually coveted (college SS).

At the plate, Culpepper has a strong overall skill set. He generates good bat speed, although a flatter bat path hasn't produced much loft to date. Additionally, he has good contact skills, solid plate discipline, although he does expand the zone a little too much at times.

Culpepper has had a solid 2024 season in which he’s walking more and has amassed 32 extra base hits in 61 games, in addition to 17 stolen bases. Defensively, it's a plus arm, with good defensive actions and athleticism. Regardless of whether Culpepper ends up sticking at SS as a pro, or slides over to 2B or 3B, it should be an above average defensive profile.

Culpepper made some mechanical adjustments to his swing that helped him catch fire at regionals, hitting a home run off Hagen Smith and hitting for the cycle in the process. This is a solid all around college hitting profile.

UPDATE:

DeBarge is a shortstop prospect who despite being undersized, does a little bit of everything well. After an unbelievable sophomore season for Louisiana-Lafayette in which he hit .371/.448/.576 with 7 home runs, 15 doubles, and 18 stolen bases, he's back at it in 2024 for the Ragin Cajuns.

DeBarge is one of the better contact hitters in the entire draft class. In the box, it's a quiet operation with a short, compact swing aided by lightning fast hands. DeBarge has excellent bat to ball skills, and rarely chases. He doesn't strike out much, but doesn't walk much either.

There's some sneaky power to the pull side. Through the end of his 2024 season, DeBarge hit .356/.418/.699 (1.117) with 21 home runs (43 XBH), 24 walks, and 34 strikeouts in 60 games played. That's a significant step forward in almost every offensive category.

DeBarge can impact the game with his other tools, too. He has plus speed with good instincts on the bases and a plus arm (he used to play catcher). While he might not be the smoothest operator at shortstop, his arm and lateral quickness aid his range, and he has a decent shot of sticking there as a professional.

This is a spark plug type profile who can accrue more value than you might think when you first watch him play.

After receiving limited playing time at Clemson in 2023, Amick transferred to Tennessee after a strong summer on the Cape and had an excellent 2024 season.

Possessing a simple, quietly loaded right-handed swing, Amick has serious strength and has started to put up some impressive exit velocities to underpin above average power. Amick does chase a bit too much and his aggressive approach might limit his ability to get to his power in game unless he can dial it back, but this is a potentially average hit, above average power profile with an increasing track record of performance to back it up. The one question for Amick remains swing and miss, with a lower contact rate something to monitor.

Amick has taken a step forward value wise defensively in 2024. The stocky prospect has manned third base with surprising athleticism. While it's fringe average defense at the moment, an above average arm helps ameliorate some of the rawness and there's increasing confidence he can at least start his pro career at third base. Not blessed with great speed, Amick will need to keep hitting to force his way up draft boards, the offensive profile has plenty of impact, though.

Dasan Hill is a projectable prep pitcher currently committed to DBU who has been moving steadily up draft boards this spring after notable improvements in his velocity and stuff.

At 6'4, 175 pounds, Hill is tall and lean and has plenty more velocity in the tank if he can add some good weight to an already athletic frame. His fastball will sit in the 94-95 mph range early in outings before sitting 91-93 mph by the middle innings, but that's squarely an improvement this spring.

Hill throws a slider in the low 80s that has good spin, a high 70s curveball, and has a low 80s changeup that's barely been used. The work to do on secondary pitch shapes, and strength needs to be added to the frame, but this is a name who is gaining some traction this spring ahead of July.

Pronounced Jow". 

Had a broken thumb. Good contact skills. Catches, but can play all three outfield spots. 

More to come. 

From MLB.com: 
Diaw played his high school ball at Notre Dame High School in Southern California, the same program that produced Giancarlo Stanton and Hunter Greene. He stayed close to home to go to Loyola Marymount for college but had all but eight games of his freshman year wiped out because of a back fracture. After redshirting, he had a solid first full year in 2023 for the Lions, finishing with an OPS of .896. He missed time this year with a broken left thumb from a foul tip but returned in mid-April swinging a hot bat, then suffered a sprained wrist at the end of the year, though that wasn't expected to keep him from being seen my more scouts in the Cape Cod League this summer ahead of the Draft. A right-handed hitter, Diaw has the chance to be a solid offensive performer. He rarely swings and misses with an aggressive, early-count approach. His swing can be a little slow to start with a lengthy path, but he's pretty efficient through the zone once he gets his bat going. It's more of a hit-over-power approach, but he has the chance to hit a lot of doubles with a swing geared to drive the ball to right-center field in the future. He can run into some home runs, especially to his pull side, and some scouts think there's more raw pop to tap into. Diaw is athletic and runs well, showing some defensive versatility that intrigues evaluators. He hasn't been behind the dish a ton, but he is agile and has plus arm strength that could play there. He's seen time in all three outfield positions, and while he's best suited for a corner, he's capable in center. With the injuries behind him, Diaw could draw a lot of Day 2 interest thanks to his positional flexibility and potential with the bat. - MLB.com

A native of Bayamon, Puerto Rico. He has a lot of power. 

From Baseball America: 
Ferrer is a 6-foot-1, 219-pound outfielder who has been a consistent hitter for three seasons for Florida State, while spending time in both right and left field. He’s an aggressive hitter who loves to swing the bat and has never walked more than about a 9% clip, but he makes a solid amount of contact and can leave the yard to the pull side and back up the middle. Ferrer could be something of a tweener prospect who doesn’t hit for quite enough power to be a slam dunk, everyday corner outfielder, but his consistent ACC performance—as well as a solid 2023 summer in the Cape Cod League—should make him a day three target at the least.

Update: 

Was a 10th round pick last year. Senior Sign. Very strong. 

From Baseball America: 
Kendle is a 5-foot-11, 200-pound outfielder who was drafted in the 10th round in the 2023 class but was the only player selected inside the first 10 rounds who opted not to sign. He returned to UC Irvine for his senior season where he has continued to level up as a hitter and through his first 31 games slashed .402/.503/.583 with the lowest walk rate of his career. Kendle does a lot of things well on the field as a solid runner and defender with above-average arm strength and a solid approach at the plate.

Bender is a tweener catcher profile who probably doesn't project to stay there defensively but has enough bat to play first base or even a corner outfield position.

Bender had a loud 2023 season for Coast Carolina and has wood bat performance on the Cape to back it up. In 2023, he hit .341/.399/.635 with 19 home runs, although the offensive profile isn't without its warts. Bender chased frequently, didn't walk out much, and struck out plenty, leaving some evaluators wondering how the bat would play against better pitching.

In 2024 he refined his approach, walking more and striking out less, but it came at the expense of some of his pull side power. Bender is an average athlete with fringy foot speed but an average arm. It's the bat you're buying here, and Bender has shown enough adjustments to his previously aggressive approach that he could have a 5 hit/5 power combo. Bender ended 2024 with a .320/.422/.520 (.942) line with 11 home runs (22 XBH), 35 walks and 43 strikeouts in 60 games.

From Baseball America: 
Jones is a 6-foot-1, 200-pound righthander who has been a consistent Friday night starter for South Carolina in 2024. He’s a ground ball–oriented starter with a sinker/slider combination that has never led to a significant amount of swing-and-miss, but has translated to a ground-ball rate north of 50% in his career and a 58% ground-ball rate in 2024. His fastball averages 92 mph and touches 95, and his average slider checks in around 82-86. Jones also has a firm, upper-80s changeup that is an average pitch and gives him something to attack lefthanded hitters with. His solid track record of strikes and SEC performance as a starter should make him a day two prospect even without elite miss traits.

From Future Star Series: 
Hall has been an impressively steady performer for Oral Roberts. He's a control-over-stuff guy who generates a good bit of swing-and-miss on his slider, but he induces a ton of soft contact and hardly ever walks a batter. Hall will run it up to 94, but more commonly sits in the 90-91 range.

From Future Star Series 
Doktorczyk has been a productive starter with the University of Nevada and impressed during his stint on the cape with Yarmouth-Dennis. The fastball will grab 95 with carry and occasional cut. He'll mix shapes and bore the ball in on righties at times as well. He works at the top of the zone and routinely ties up hitters on the knuckles, though he's not necessarily a prototypical punch out guy. Doktorczyk's sweeper is a good one, a low-80s banger with depth and considerable lateral tilt. He's shown a very good changeup with shape and tunnel. There's also a bigger curveball that'll he'll play off the sweeper to give a different look. Doktorzyck is a strike-thrower who doesn't possess overpowering stuff, but he knows hos to pitch. It's not a prototype deliver, more deception and angle than looseness and stride. He may ultimately end up in a relief role as a guy who throws a ton of sweepers. That said, the strikes are there and so is the menu of pitches. He projects a potential second-half of day two profile if a team believes in the starter upside.

From FSS: 

Carr has had a difficult go of things in his career. After a dynamic 2022 campaign at High Point, he missed much of the 2023 season with an undiagnosed abdominal injury. It was finally discovered during the 2024 season, but he didn't fully get back onto the field until April of this year. His abdominal injury has since been fully-repaired. It's limited his ability to play on the dirt, exclusively taking at-bats as a DH. When right, Carr has proven a plenty capable third base defender. The selling trait here however is the bat. It's plus raw power with feel for the barrel and a strong attack plan in the box. He's a selective hitter who pulls the trigger without expanding his zone. He hasn't missed a beat this spring and has proven one of the most dangerous bats in the Big South Conference. At time of publish, Carr already had eleven homers in just 15 games played. Carr hasn't had many chances to excel against premium pitching, but he did face off against Presbyterian righty Daniel Eagen this spring and put together several very loud plate appearances. Whoever elects to buy Carr in the draft will be banking on his ability to eventually slide back to third base full-time. He's a sneaky day-two prospect for teams looking to draft something of a diamond in the rough.

From MLB
The NJCAA Division II pitcher of the year, Carpenter led that level with a 1.03 ERA, 10.1 K/BB ratio and 0.80 WHIP while authoring a 45-inning scoreless streak and setting a Madison Tech record with 111 strikeouts in 78 2/3 innings. His best attribute is his command of a deceptive 89-93 mph fastball that he relies on heavily. He also has a 78-81 mph curveball with depth and a fading changeup with similar velocity. If he doesn't turn pro, he'll pitch at East Carolina next season.

More to come. 

More to come. 

More to come. 

From FSS: 
A first-year Tar Heel, Haugh spent two seasons at Fayetteville Tech before transferring to Chapel Hill. Haugh worked a multitude of roles this spring before eventually working his way into the rotation in April. He's shown average control of the baseball over multi-inning showings with a fastball that'll creep up to 96 featuring carry through the zone. Haugh will rest 91-94 as he lathers into his fourth and fifth innings of work. It hasn't been a particularly effective fastball at the college level as he struggles to produce whiffs with the pitch, though hitters will expand the zone on the pitch. It should be performing at a higher clip given the metrics, though it's possible Haugh lacks the inherent deception necessary to blow it by hitters. Haugh throws a low-80s curveball with sharp break and impressive tunneling attributes off his fastball. He's confident with the pitch and will throw it to lefties and righties alike. He can gets whiffs on pitches in the dirt with its shape and conviction. Right now it's an above average pitch and could eventually creep into 'plus' territory if he can get it a little more firm in the coming years. A low-80s gyroscopic slider has been especially effective this season, up to 85 and resting 81-83. He needs to throw that pitch more going forward to transform himself into the strikeout artist some believe he's capable of becoming. There's also a firm, upper-80s changeup that lacks distinct shape but does have some depth. It hasn't been a terribly effective pitch at generating swing-and-miss from left-handed hitters, but does possess arm speed and solid average command. At 6-foot-6, 210 pounds, Haugh is especially lean and projectable with a loose, athletic delivery. He's got a quick arm for his size and could eventually flirt with triple-digit velocity in a bullpen role. Because of his strike-throwing ability and four-pitch mix, Haugh will likely go out as a starter early in his professional career. He's a diamond in the rough in this class who could get paid on day two.

More to come. 

From Baseball America:
Ross is a 6-foot-2, 205-pound righthander who missed the 2023 season with injury but came back in 2024 and turned in a career year. He posted a 3.27 ERA over 96.1 innings and 15 starts with a 22% strikeout rate and 5.3% walk rate. Ross throws his fastball in the low 90s and will touch 94 and mixes in a low-80s changeup and slow and slurvy slider in the upper 70s. He’s been a strong strike-thrower throughout his career and owns a 5.8% career walk rate with Samford.

More to come. 

More to come.