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Before the start of spring training each year, Twins Daily asks our group of writers to share their preseason rankings of top Twins prospects. We take the results, calculate them, and arrive at a consensus board that informs our annual Twins Daily Top Prospects countdown.
It should be noted that this list merely serves as a starting point for our real-time top prospect rankings, which are updated throughout the season with new stats and blurbs. I highly recommend bookmarking that page if you're a prospect hound who wants to keep a close tab on rising talent in the system.
For now, here's a rundown of our rankings to open the 2024 season, with links to read more and analysis of key themes that emerged from the list.
Twins Daily Top 20 Prospects of 2024
(Click on the player's name to read their full prospect profile from our team.)
20. Zebby Matthews, RHP: Strike-throwing machine buzzed through Low-A.
19. Simeon Woods Richardson, RHP: Stock is fading, but he's still youngish.
18. Ricardo Olivar, OF: Intriguing because he can hit and can play catcher.
17. Connor Prielipp, LHP: Down with another elbow injury, but a bright talent.
16. Matt Canterino, RHP: Returning from his own elbow injury, primed for impact.
15. Yunior Severino, 1B: One-tool player whose power is worth price of admission.
14. Danny De Andrade, SS: Toolsy teenager is rounding into impressive form.
13. C.J. Culpepper, RHP: 13th-rounder raised his profile with strong pro debut.
12. Kala'i Rosario, OF: Can his classic run-producer profile overcome poor glove?
11. Luke Keaschall, 2B: Advanced college bat handled minors in his first taste.
10. Tanner Schobel, 2B: One step ahead of Keaschall, at Double-A, but similar mold.
9. Brandon Winokur, OF: High-school draft pick flashed eye-popping power tool.
8. Charlee Soto, RHP: Another prep pick poised to rise fast with advanced stuff.
7. Cory Lewis, RHP: Deep pitch mix headlined by knuckleball distinguishes him.
6. Austin Martin, OF: Shook off injuries and struggles with redeeming second half.
5. David Festa, RHP: Near-ready with MLB stuff if he can keep it in the zone.
4. Marco Raya, RHP: Stellar results in limited sample due to cautious handling.
3½. Gabriel González, OF: Newly acquired outfielder is aggressive but can mash.
3. Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF: Rare power/patience combo threatened by contact woes.
2. Brooks Lee, SS: Convincing first full season in minors has him at doorstep of majors.
1. Walker Jenkins, OF: Top draft pick showed to be full package in dominant debut.
Where Does the Twins' Farm System Rank Among MLB Teams?
It's easy to read through all these profiles of promising young players and feel excited about the future. But that is the nature of prospects. Every organization across the league is bursting with young talent, so it's all relative. You might wonder how Minnesota's stable of prospects on whole compares against other organizations around the league. The answer: right around the middle of the pack.
In Keith Law's ranking of MLB farm systems at The Athletic, he had the Twins ranked 17th out of 30. Baseball America has them 14th. According to Fangraphs, Minnesota's farm system currently ranks 15th.
While one might consider it disappointing that the Twins are viewed by outsiders as having an average system, there are two things to consider. The first is that much of their young impact talent has already graduated to the majors. Including last year's historic rookie class of Edouard Julien, Royce Lewis and Matt Wallner would significantly lift this overall group in perception. Secondly, Minnesota's system is noticeably rich in high-end talent, featuring two players who are consensus top-30 prospects (Walker Jenkins and Brooks Lee) and another who cracks the top 50 on most lists (Emmanuel Rodriguez).
A Late Addition to the List
The announcement of the Jorge Polanco trade took place with our 2024 preseason prospect rankings already baked, and our countdown already underway. Still, we felt it was important to represent the newcomer Gabriel González in these rankings somehow, given that his addition does meaningfully impact the overall quality of the system.
Obviously, we're not as familiar with González's game as the Twins prospects we've been closely following, but the general view on him is strong enough (top-100 rankings from MLB and The Athletic) that we felt comfortably sneaking him into the top five, between Rodriguez and Raya as our "3½-ranked" prospect for this year. Fellow newcomer Darren Bowen might slot somewhere into the back end of the top 20, but his placement felt less clear, so we'll sort that out for our season-opening update next month.
Having González basically side-by-side with Rodriguez in our rankings makes for a "beautifully asymmetrical pair," as JD Cameron put it in his E-Rod writeup. Both are outfielders at similar stages of development, but one is a bulky, aggressive swing-at-everything force and the other is an ultra-patient athletic oddity.
Pivotal Year for the Pitching Pipeline
Among pitching prospects in our top 20, several are of the same mold – college pitchers drafted in the middle rounds with a goal of unlocking new levels of success. David Festa, Cory Lewis, C.J. Culpepper, Zebby Matthews and several who just missed the cut share this characterization. These are the types of draft-and-develop projects Derek Falvey was hired to spearhead.
Big tests lie ahead for all of these hurlers, as Festa vies for a shot in the majors and others navigate the transition to the upper minors. We're going to have a much better picture of the true quality of Minnesota's pitching pipeline by the end of this year. As things stand, the front office appears poised to lean on this prospect depth with a lack of impactful additions to the rotation this offseason.
Prioritizing Power Bats
The Twins front office has clearly placed an emphasis on power-hitting in building their major-league offense, and that reflects in the makeup of their top hitting prospects in the minors. With the stark exception of Austin Martin (who was notably drafted with a high pick by another team), virtually every position player in this top 20 counts power as a primary offensive strength. In some cases – Rodriguez, Brandon Winokur, Kala'i Rosario, Yunior Severino, etc. – the big question is whether these players can develop enough contact skill to limit strikeouts and make that immense power viable.
The 2B Pipeline
It's notable that, within the past 12 months or so, the Twins have shipped out three players who were not-so-long-ago considered key to their depth and outlook at second base. Polanco, Luis Arraez and Nick Gordon combined to make 156 of the team's 162 starts at the position in 2022, and now all are gone. But as you look at this list of upcoming high-quality talent, it becomes easier to see why the Twins were willing to flip these established big-leaguers for value.
Julien, who was our No. 5 prospect at this time last year, is set up to primarily man second base from the outset of 2024. Last year's No. 2 prospect Lewis is also an option there going forward if it's deemed to be his best spot defensively. Current No. 2 prospect Brooks Lee could force the issue by pushing for playing time at third, if he himself doesn't end up second. Martin played more at second than anywhere else for St. Paul last year, and is also pretty much MLB-ready. Further down the line, you've got a pair of promising prospects in Tanner Schobel and Luke Keaschall, who both profile best at second base.
Share Your Thoughts
I know we have a lot of hardcore prospect followers in our audience and I've really enjoyed reading all the comments throughout this series. Now that you take a step back and look at these rankings, what are your thoughts? Who are we underrating, or overrating? How do you feel about the health of Minnesota's system as a whole?
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!
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