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I feel the same way about Polanco. They would have to get a valuable arm in trade to move him I would think as when healthy he is an All Star caliber player. With the Twins moving Celestino off the 40 man it might make it easier to keep both Farmer and Polanco going into the season if no one ponies up for a trade or if they feel the team is just better with them on it. Hard to say what they do but they appear to be in a good spot depth wise right now.

Yeah they should hang on to to Farmer. I think he could be a valuable trade chip if they decide to go that route. FA class looks weak for shortstops so any team(s) looking for depth or a one year gap stop might give up something decent in trade for Farmer. If they keep him they could try and trade him around the deadline if Lee looks ready.

Walker Jenkins I still like Jenkins at number 1. He has true 5 tool potential and he should have good power as he grows into his body. It is a small sample size, but he hasn’t been phased by the competition level so far. It is close but I still think Jenkins should be number 1.Brooks Lee Lee’s batting line looks very balanced. He has started to get to more home run power and the only issue at AAA has been his BABIP is low and thus his batting average is very low. Still, he is only striking out 16% of the time so he is connecting but will need to find ways to barrel up more balls it looks like. You can easily argue that Lee belongs at number 1 as he is the only player, I know of that made it all the way to AAA in his first full Minor league season. I think he could use more tEmmanuel Rodriguez I have been a bit down on Rodriguez but I forget at times that he is only 20 years old and playing in a league with guys 2 to 3 years older than he is. He also led that league in OPS this year. He walks at a 20% clip and yet K’s at a near 30% clip. Still, he has almost as many extra base hits as singles and his .400 OBP is elite. He is still on a star in the making track with only that high K rate holding him back at this point. He really is a 5 tool player on par with Jenkins if he finds a Charlee Soto No idea how he turns out as high school arms are so tough to predict but he already throws hard and has ace upside. Most exciting pitcher in the system right now if you ask me. It is gonna take time to know if he belongs this high or not but for now, he has ace potential and a high velocity fastball so he is high up my list.Marco Raya He has great secondaries, but he hasn’t been able to get to 5 innings very often this year and he got rocked at AA when he first got there. If he makes it as a starter, he looks like Berrios lite to me so he should be a good one. If he can’t handle a starters load then should make it as a very good to elite reliever. Need to keep that arm healthy.David Festa Festa had a good year and is going to be in the running for Twins MiLB pitcher of the year. There were some ups and downs, but he still gets the K's and the FIP and xFIP look solid. Feels like he might need another something to be more than a 5th starter. He is going to be needed for depth next year, so I hope he is ready.Kala'i Rosario Yeah there are warts with the K rate and possibly defense but he led his league in HR’s and was top 5 in OPS. Like Rodriguez he was young for the level and they both need to work on striking out less. He was a clutch RBI bat as well and he led the league with 94 RBI’s next closest was 73. He can also take a walk and did so at a 14% clip. One of the only close to ready right-handed outfield bats he has the power to be a force at AA next year. He is underrated IMO as I have him higher than mostBrandon Winokur He is a 5 tool player projected for center or right field but also playing shortstop. He showed right quick that the power is for real and he also showed the swing and miss that had scouts worried about the bat. I assume the development team works with him on plate discipline a lot this year and next. Still despite his flaws his OPS was right there with Jenkins in the FCL. If the Twins can get the swing and miss down to acceptable levels he could be an All Star type player. If not, then he Tanner Schobel It is a tale of two halves for Schobel. He was a league leader at High A but it didn’t translate to AA at all. Like Lee he has excellent walk and K rates but is not making quality contact at AA. Feels like maybe an issue with approach at AA. He still looks like a solid hitter and defender but next year he needs to prove he belongs this high on the list.Luke Keaschall Keachall’s bat appears to be as advertised. In his small sample size he is hitting .288 with an .889 OPS. The walk and K rates are good as well so he makes good contact and has a good eye at the plate with a .441 OBP. He is a plus runner and if his power continues to show he might have plus power. Seems a bit like Spencer Steer except he can run better. It might be early to have him this high, but he hasn’t done anything to diminish his status so keeping him top 10 as he looks like an advancCory Lewis Lewis seems the favorite to be Twins MiLB pitcher of the year. The Stat line is outstanding for his first full season. WHIP at 1.00, ERA 2.49, 118 K’s in 101 IP. MLB.com doesn’t have him with a plus pitch but his results speak for him as he has been dominant all year no matter the level. Depending on how AA goes he could be top 5 for me, but for now I have him just outside the top 10.Danny De Andrade I haven’t had a chance to see him in action yet, but his stats for a 19 year old in A ball are impressive. From what I understand the defense is solid as well. Would like to see the average and slugging just a bit higher, but I still think he starts at High A next year as the walk and K rates are in line and he has good contact skills. Once the power kicks in he could be a special bat.Tanner Hall He hasn’t pitched yet, but he profiles better than Lewis to me as he has a plus Changeup with some scouts saying double plus. Hoping he can increase the fastball velocity and make that a plus pitch but will have to wait and see. He hangs his hat on control which generally helps pitchers move faster through the system. With no stats this is purely a projection pick.Ricardo Olivar He just has knack for getting hits (.285 BA) and is starting to hit for more power (SLG .452). He also plays catcher. He can take walks as he has a .400 OBP and he Strikes out only 20% of the time. In a normal year he would have been moved up midseason but there were too many good catchers at High A to move him up. He has a nice balanced line and if he just continues on his current path those numbers look really good for a catcher and if he gets even better he is a legit starting catcher at thAndrew Cossetti Maybe he is too old to be this high but his batting line has been so rock solid he looks like a special bat to me. He is stocky with a good catchers build and I think his defense is pretty solid as well. He seems similar to Jeffers in that he could be a fast mover. He hits for average, has a good OBP and has a really good slugging percentage as well. Personally, I think he is under-rated. Hopefully he gets moved to AA and make his way to AAA where he can be a legit prospect.Matt Canterino This might be high for an elite pen arm but he has the pitches and the velocity so I think he could be special out of the pen. Hopefully the arm holds up and his velocity holds. We need good pen arms and he has the kind of K rate that would be welcome in the Twins bullpen.Connor Prielipp Dropping Connor mainly because back to back TJ makes me wonder if his arm will ever hold up and I certainly no longer see him as a starter. He still has elite movement and could be a shut down pen arm so he slides down for me.Noah Miller I love watching Miller play defense. Picks the ball, makes the throws, gets in good position he feels elite defensively to me. His bat picked up the end of the season with an .800 OPS in August which is the best month he has produced in pro ball. It feels like the power is starting to come and I think that will help his BABIP luck which has been a tad low. He will only he 21 next year which is still young for the level. If the bat improves he likely ends up top 10. Will have to wait until Yunior Severino He likes to hang around the .900 OPS mark. Hits the ball hard and likes to hit HR's but his BABIP and K rate worry me. Still he is a power bat with a decent average. If the K rate were better I would have him much higher, but K rates at 30% in minor league ball generally don’t translate well to MLB. Still the contact rate is good enough that he belongs in the top 20 IMO.Austin Martin We are starting to see the old Martin and even the new and improved one as he has been hitting for more power. Doesn’t feel like there is room for him in the infield but he could be a nice right handed bat for Center field. I had Ben Ross at 21, He made it all the way to AA in his first pro year coming from a smaller school. He has learned to hit for power as he has 19 home runs. He could stand to get the average up and walk more. If he can do that he looks like a dangerous hitter to me. Jose Rodriguez at 22, Only big DSL player from last year holding his own in FCL. The power is not there this year but at least he is hitting the ball. I still think he could be a special bat but will have to wait and see. And Mercedes at 23 Off to a poor start in the FCL but not surprising as most first year DSL players struggle that first year. Still has a ton of tools, but want to make sure that hit tool is for real before moving him higher up the list.

I guess unsung means overlooked to me and I think the last three fit that description best. Pagan could also be included as there was so much negative energy around him he hasn't got much credit even now after a very good season in the pen. For once I agree with the pick in one of these articles. Castro looked like your typical hopeful 5 tool player missing the hit tool. So many of those players wash out because well they can't hit and defense only takes you so far. Watching him have a fast start in spring training gave me some hope but then he started K'ing a lot the end of spring. It looked like he was gonna be the same old Willie Castro. As I watched his great defense throughout the season and his bat warm up as the weather warmed up I saw a player that the Twins have needed for years. He can play solid defense anywhere on the field. He can bunt for base hits. He can steal bases. he is a switch hitter which also makes him a versatile pinch hitter. He is a do it all player that might sacrifice some offense from the starter he replaces but not much and his versatility seems unmatched right now. The TIger's have to be absolutely kicking themselves right now watching him become the all around player they were hoping he would become. Why Castro wanted to join the Twins with a very crowded infield doesn't make sense to me, but I am sure glad he picked the Twins as the only other player close to his all around skill level is Lewis. Thanks you Willie Castro for a great season and picking the Twins as the club you wanted to join!

Yeah I used to think those contact guys were almost rock solid to make it, but it is fools gold. Like you stated they hit the ball but get weak contact for outs instead of K's, but the result is the same. Guys who can take walks and wait for hitters pitches do better in the end. Making contact is obviously important but making solid contact is even more important and taking walks becomes important in the cat and mouse games that ensue to keep the pitcher off balance.

Yep 2015, 17 and 19 were really, really good years for Sano even with the 35% K rates. Maybe conditioning was more to blame than anything else hard to say. With K rates that high though you have to come through with those HR's or you are a sure liability in the lineup. I know I haven't enjoyed Gallo this year. Severino could end up an All Star for all I know. Hard hit rate does help when it comes to K's as HHR generally increases BABIP because when balls are hit hard they are harder to catch. Still bad K rates tend to drop players out of MLB all together so nothing to sneeze at. FWIW I like Severino as a hitter but I think guys with more balanced K to walk ratio's do better in the end which is why I like Cossetti better.

Congrats to Severino on the award. He is a switch hitting power bat that can be dangerous and he hits for decent average as well. Still for as great a line as that is the 36% K rate in AAA speaks to the difficulty he will face translating those numbers to MLB. I think we can see through past awards high power high K guys can flame out at the MLB level ala Arcia, Palka, Sano. Maybe he gets that more under control but it is a large concern IMO. Personally my choice for the award would have been Cossetti. He has a balanced line with almost as many walks as K's. A solid average and just as good of power as Severino. They are both the same age, but Severino is hitting in much tougher environments. Still overall I think a hitter like Cossetti has the better chance at the MLB level and his stats this year were equal if not slightly better than Severino's. Not sure why Cossetti gets so overlooked given the solid numbers, but I guess guys picked lower just don't get the same love as guys picked higher. if you look at the overall numbers I think Cossetti has to be number 1. Rosario had a breakout year IMO. K rate is still too high but he took a decent amount of walks so that bodes well for the future. He is the only right handed outfield power bat the the Twins have that is close but I still don't think they add him to the 40 man as he doesn't need to be protected until 2024. Lee making it to AAA in his first pro year is something that doesn't get mentioned enough. I can't remember another player to have done that. I think he could play at the MLB level right now but there is no hurry and he has things to work on at AAA yet. His BABIP is low so he is not making solid contact. He needs to figure out how to hit those breaking pitches better and then he will be good to go. Also nice to see him hitting for power. This is a really nice list with lot's of potential down the line as well.

I was kind of rooting for Ohl to be number 1 as AA is such a tough environment to pitch in and ranking first in all those categories from July on is extremely impressive at that level. Still Lewis's numbers were just too good and he might have the better pitching repertoire as well. Congrats to Lewis on well deserved recognition. The entire top 4 look like they have really good potential to make it to the majors and pitch well there. Looking forward to next year and the plethora of new pitcher's from the 2023 draft.

I was super high on Headrick after he had some early success and he came crashing down pretty hard. Too early to tell on Funderburk, but I am hopeful he is the real deal.

Prato is a tough one for me. 20% K rate, 20% walk rate. He has some power and is a tough out. It is a Brooks Lee batting line for the balance at the plate. Guys that walk and K about the same rate are hard to find and generally translate well because they have solid contact skills and don't chase much. There probably isn't room and he doesn't have the power the Twins crave and with Castro a tough option to displace and Lee right there with him it is gonna be hard to find room. Helman is no spring chicken but he can play as well. At 27 I don't see a team taking a rule V flyer but I could be wrong. Still I like Prato's line better and if I had to keep one it would be Prato for me. Camargo K's a lot but he hits everything hard and his batting line for a catcher is pretty darn good. He hit for a .300 average in May and June so he can hit. I believe his defense is OK as well. He is a must add this year to me. It was awesome that the Twins catchers stayed healthy this year but having three on the 40 man makes sense to me and Camargo has earned a spot IMO. Gonna be some tough decisions on who to add this year and this was supposed to be an easy year because 2020 was A LIGHT Draft and the Twins only took 2 college players none of which who look to be protected.

I have been a big Funderburk backer since his really good year at AA in 2022. His numbers weren't that far off from Varlands the main difference between the two was fastball velocity and K rate. Louie was better on both counts. Still the rest of the stats had Funderburk right with him. The one real nice stat for Funderburk was the lack of HR's allowed. from High A on his FIP xFIP and ERA have been really good and since moving to the pen his K rate has been excellent as well. He has been an under rated player since he signed but has been a consistent good to excellent performer all the way up. He has things to learn at the MLB level but given what he has done so far I wouldn't bet against him. Happy to see him finally get some well deserved recognition after all those years in obscurity.

I had my eye on Cordero this year I somehow missed Cota. Hopefully those are two arms that can make a difference as they have a loooong way to go. Cordero has to be happy with how well he did especially being young for the league.

I agree with you that Ethridge is interesting. Despite some control issues he exceeded my expectations and I think he has a chance to be a good pen arm. He was a go to arm for the Miracle and as his ERA suggests (2.99) he was tough to score on. Those late round picks face tough odds but I like his chances right now. Still a long way to go though.

Kind of surprised they are sending Cossetti as catchers get so dinged up over a full season although he did share quite a bit of time back there so maybe more reps wouldn't hurt. I sure hope he can be at least average behind the plate because his batting line looks elite with equal walks and K's, power and good batting average. He needs to be more challenged at the higher levels and I wish they would have given him some AA time but he was a big part of the Kernals championship team so I guess the fall league is where he gets some extra reps. I didn't think the MVP Rosario needed more work as it looked like he was wearing down as the season went on. If he can find a way to K less he could be a top 100 prospect. Will be interesting to see how he does but he played this well this spring training when up against higher level players so I assume he can handle himself in fall league as well. Always good to see some of the pitchers get extra work so sending 5 pitchers is a good thing IMO.

Don't forget Rodriguez, Rodriguez, Rodriguez, mainly in the outfield. Jose, Emmanuel and Endy..

This article seems too perspective based. If the goal was to just win the division then sure I can agree. If the article is saying there was no way to make the team any better at the deadline then I would have to disagree. It depends on the goal you are looking at for success.

Maeda to pen is a solid move. Also if a starter has a tough start they can use Kenta to clean up a short outing as he is stretched out. He has done well out of the pen before so has a proven track record. He makes the most sense to use out of the pen and is great insurance all the way around.

Rodriguez is a polarizing prospect. On one hand he appears patient at the plate and walks at an almost 15-20% clip. On the other hand he K's about 30 percent of the time. I have seen him have some really ugly plate appearances and some great ones. He hits everything hard but he swings through a lot of pitches as well. There definitely are still questions. Still I'm just not as pessimistic as Jeremy is. That walk rate should serve him well and he has time to get the K rate under more control as he is only 20 and hasn't played all that many games just yet. This was his first full season played injury free and he led his entire league in OPS as a 20 year old which is better than the Dodgers uber prospect Dalton Rushing who is 22 years old granted Rushing was right behind him key word is behind though. For as maddening as he can be to watch taking strike three calls and swinging through ton's of pitches he has an elite bat. AA should be a better barometer of where he is at as he will face even more breaking stuff. Still it seems hard to be down on a 20 year old who led high A in OPS despite some obvious flaws in his game. Despite the K rate I am still a believer.

I watched his stat line and he was hitting .400 for a good chunk of the year. he fell off down the stretch, but I am pretty excited about his hitting profile. Not many K's and getting plenty of hits bodes well for his future. Daniel Pena was also good all year long. If he can stick at catcher that would be a good find as well. These guys are so young it is hard to know how things will turn out in the end.

I don't disagree. Until September the team was just as good with Farmer and Castro at short. Not sure why they felt they "needed" him all through August while he under performed instead of getting the rest he needed, but they make the calls so I assume there were good reasons?

Sonny has had an exceptional year no doubt there, but I still think Cole looks better for the award. Cole has done it against the premier competition of the East and on a relatively bad team at least by NY standards. I think this is a done deal at this point. I will say I have been spoiled watching Sonny the last two years. He is a true competitor and one the best pitchers in the game IMO. I would love to have him back but with the season he is having and the league starved for elite pitchers it doesn't seem likely. Here is to hoping the Twins make a playoff run this year and find a way to get to the World Series.

Correa was already willing to play through this injury before finally going to the IL. He is a gamer and if the Twins need\want him to play he will play.

Nice to see Paddack with a really good outing. Having his fastball velocity at that level bodes well for the future. I don't know that I trust him for the playoff stretch having been out of action for so long but it is good to see him doing well. Very encouraging to see Stewart back to do doing what he was doing before. He would be a much needed addition for the playoffs if his arm doesn't go sideways again.

Seems logical. Right handed bat for a right handed bat. Might as well see what Stevenson can do. I still think he sticks as the designated base stealer but we will see. Luplow did about as well as expected and might be back. Will just have to wait and see, Gonna be interesting down the stretch to see who makes it and who doesn't.

Yep their WAR number shows that difference as well but even when Julien wasn't playing there Solano or Polanco were and they are not too far off either. Julien could tank the rest of the year and the numbers could look very different. My main point was the Twins had an easier path to getting players close to Arraez's production but no real way to get players close to Pablo's level of production other than trade which is what they did.