Performance Review: The Minnesota Twins' Recent First-Round Draft Picks

Player development is a winding and often treacherous road. Some prospects fly through the minors and arrive in the big leagues within two years. Others battle injuries, make swing changes, or need extra time refining their approach before they are ready for the next level. For organizations like the Minnesota Twins, those first-round picks carry great weight because competing with lower payrolls means the organization must consistently develop homegrown talent into impact contributors. Unfortunately, that doesn't exempt the team from the vagaries of turning those picks into top-tier players.

The Twins will once again have a premium opportunity to add talent this summer. Minnesota owns the third overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, its highest selection since 2017, when the club selected Royce Lewis with the first overall pick. As the organization prepares for another important draft, it’s worth examining how the Twins’ recent first-round selections have progressed in professional baseball.

2025 First Round (16th Overall): SS Marek Houston
When the Twins drafted Houston, the appeal centered around his glove. Evaluators viewed him as a Gold Glove-caliber defensive shortstop with excellent instincts, clean actions, and advanced defensive reliability. The bigger question was always going to be the bat.

Houston answered some of those concerns during his junior season at Wake Forest, when he posted a 1.055 OPS with 15 home runs and 14 doubles. Still, some scouts wondered if those offensive gains would translate against professional pitching.

Now in his age-22 season, Houston has returned to the Midwest League. Through his first 30 games, he has slashed .282/.348/.403, with eight extra-base hits, a 20.9% strikeout rate and a 7.9% walk rate. The elite defense has remained intact, and the Twins are likely to challenge him with a promotion to Double-A later this summer.

Houston’s development path could resemble that of another recent Twins first-round shortstop (see below), who steadily climbed the ladder through strong defense and enough offensive growth to profile as an everyday player.

Updated ETA: Second Half of 2027

2024 First Round (21st Overall): SS Kaelen Culpepper
Culpepper quickly became one of the more intriguing prospects in the organization after the Twins selected him in the first round. Minnesota believed in the offensive upside and arm strength, but many evaluators projected him to move off shortstop eventually. So far, Culpepper has done plenty to quiet those concerns.

He posted a 138 wRC+ during the 2025 season, while showing enough athleticism and defensive consistency to remain at shortstop in the near term. The Twins challenged him aggressively by assigning him to Triple-A to begin the 2026 campaign, and he has largely handled the jump well.

Culpepper has emerged as a consensus top-100 prospect and is viewed by many as the organization’s second-best prospect. In 36 Triple-A games, he has slashed .253/.345/.460, with eight home runs and seven doubles. One encouraging sign has been his improved plate discipline. His walk rate climbed from 9.7% in 2025 to 11.5% this season, although his strikeout rate has also increased by roughly three percentage points.

Given Minnesota’s current roster construction, it would not be surprising if Culpepper makes his major league debut sometime this season, when injuries inevitably create opportunities.

Updated ETA: Second Half of 2026

2023 First Round (5th Overall): OF Walker Jenkins
The Twins were one of the biggest winners of MLB’s inaugural Draft Lottery. Minnesota jumped from the 13th position based on their 2022 record to fifth overall, in a draft class that many evaluators considered exceptionally strong at the top. The organization selected Jenkins, and he has been viewed as the club’s top prospect ever since.

Jenkins has shown flashes of why scouts viewed him as a potential superstar, but injuries have complicated the beginning of his professional career. He's currently on the injured list after injuring his shoulder while making a catch and running into the outfield wall.

Even with the injuries, Jenkins has advanced rapidly through the system. Reaching Triple-A during his age-20 season is a significant accomplishment, especially for a player drafted out of high school. Last season, he produced a 135 wRC+ across multiple levels, and he carried a 111 wRC+ in 2026 before landing on the injured list.

The talent is obvious. The remaining question is whether Jenkins can remain healthy enough to play consistently. If he does, the Twins still believe he has the upside to become the franchise-caliber player this organization has lacked in recent years.

Updated ETA: First Half of 2027

2022 First Round (8th Overall): SS Brooks Lee
Few players on this list arrived with as polished an offensive profile as Lee. Many evaluators viewed him as the best pure college bat in the 2022 draft class, and the Twins were thrilled when he remained available at eighth overall. Questions existed about his long-term defensive home, but scouts believed the hit tool would carry him to becoming an above-average major league regular.

Out of the players discussed here, Lee has become the most important part of Minnesota’s major-league roster so far—though, of course, that's mostly because he was drafted longest ago. After the Twins traded Carlos Correa at last year’s deadline, Lee took over as the club’s everyday shortstop. Across 139 games, Lee posted a 79 OPS+, though there were encouraging signs beneath the surface. He hit 16 home runs and 15 doubles, which exceeded expectations for a player once viewed as having limited power potential.

The beginning of 2026 was rough, but Lee has been looking more comfortable in recent weeks. He currently owns a 99 OPS+ with five home runs, and he has hit close to .300 during the month of May. While the defensive limitations remain part of the equation, the offensive production is beginning to resemble the player the Twins envisioned when they drafted him.

Updated ETA: Made His Debut in 2024

The Twins’ recent first-round history reflects both the uncertainty and importance of player development. Houston is trying to prove his bat can complement elite defense. Culpepper is rapidly forcing his way into the major-league conversation. Jenkins still possesses superstar upside if he can remain healthy. Lee is establishing himself at the highest level while continuing to adjust to the league, but showing the warts that will become his ceiling.

Not every first-round pick becomes an All-Star, and even successful prospects rarely follow the same developmental timeline. Still, for an organization like Minnesota, consistently finding contributors through the draft remains essential. With another top-three pick approaching in 2026, the next cornerstone player could soon be joining this list.

How have the Twins fared in recent drafts? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

Interested in learning more about the Minnesota Twins' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!