Minnesota's Top 3 Most Underappreciated Players

[Cody Christie]

As the season winds down, it's easier to focus on some players who may be the team's secret weapons. So, who have been Minnesota's most underappreciated players in 2022?

Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson, USA TODAY Sports

Last week, MLB.com attempted to name the most underappreciated player on every team. This can be a challenging exercise for a national writer who can't focus on the day-to-day of every MLB team. The Twins have players that have exceeded expectations and others that have struggled to fill their roles. Here are the team's most underappreciated players this season. 

Gio Urshela, 3B
MLB.com picked Urshela as the team's most underappreciated player for multiple reasons. Surprisingly, he has a higher OPS than Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Josh Donaldson. That doesn't tell the entire story with Urshela. His defense at third base has dramatically improved in the second half, which helps his overall value to the club. During the offseason, the Twins will need to decide whether or not to offer Urshela arbitration in his final year of eligibility. 

Urshela's contributions to the team may be underappreciated because of baseball's offensive drop this season. He has an OPS near his career mark of .744, which translates to a 114 OPS+ in 2022. According to FanGraphs, Urshela has provided his second highest amount of value ($10.6 million) in any big-league season. Minnesota may consider this when deciding whether or not to bring him back for 2023. 

Caleb Thielbar, RP
It's easy to look at Thielbar's overall numbers for the season and not be impressed with a 3.80 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. However, some poor appearances near the season's start cloud those numbers. Since April 30, Thielbar has posted a 2.36 ERA with a 57-to-12 strikeout to walk ratio in 42 innings. For much of the season, he has also been the team's only left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen. While others have struggled, Thielbar has been invaluable as a late-inning option. 

Before the 2020 season, Thielbar was close to retiring from baseball as he was going to take a college coaching job. Luckily, the Twins convinced him that he had something left in the tank. Over the last three seasons, Thielbar has provided the Twins with nearly $20 million worth of value, including close to $9 million in 2022. Relievers can go through ups-and-downs with the small sample size of innings they pitch in a season, but Thielbar has continued to be consistent into his mid-30s. 

Gilberto Celestino, OF
In 2021, Celestino's first taste of the big leagues couldn't have gone much worse. He hit .136/.177/.288 (.466) with three doubles and two home runs in 23 games. Minnesota rushed him to the MLB level without playing at Triple-A, so the results should have been expected for a 22-year-old. He has improved significantly during the 2022 campaign, including a month when he was one of the team's best hitters. Back in May, he hit .364/.426/.418 (.844) across 19 games. With Byron Buxton getting regular rest, Celestino has been needed to fill the void in center field. 

Celestino can't compare to Buxton's defensive prowess, but few players can be that good. Defensively, Celestino ranks in the 82nd percentile for Outs Above Average, and his sprint speed is in the 65th percentile. He is an above-average defender that has provided offensive value that impacts the line-up. Some may forget that he is only 23 years old and has played fewer than 120 games at the big-league level. Minnesota will need him to continue to fill an outfield role in the years ahead. 

Who do you think have been the most underappreciated Twins players this season? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. 

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[Beast]

Tough to keep Bundy off of the list the way he’s been pitching lately.  Not always pretty, but he’s been keeping some pretty good offenses in check down the stretch.  

[mikelink45]

I think you have made great choices.  Griffin Jax has certainly done more than I expected with 53 appearances so far.   I would have said Gordon, but he has suddenly risen to everyone's attention so he is no longer under appreciated.

'

[twinfan]

Nick Gordon has been the sparkplug of the team this season. While he does make some baserunning miscues, it's as much as for his hustle than anything else. Without him, the Twins would be much worse off. But maybe Urshela is the top dog here.

And, believe it or not, we should add Sano to this list because he has been off the field which has allowed some others to flourish.

[Bill Tanner]

Three very good choices.  

I would like to suggest Jake Cave as another.  After being DFAd and off of the 40-man roster, he showed grit and determination throughout 2022 to make it back.  In the short time since being called up, he has provided plenty of clutch moments, as well as making several spectacular plays in the field.  

Reading many negative comments, I get the sense that Jake Cave is not only under appreciated, but not appreciated at all.  I, for one, appreciate what he has done and how he has found a way to contribute.  Could not have been easy task from a mental standpoint, given where he found himself on the Twins' deep outfield depth chart.

[Brandon]

Seems like the Twins Bench is under appreciated.  Gordon is my top choice.  Many here were expecting him to be DFA’d.  Garlick, Celestino, Urshala, Sanchez ( His ever so slightly above average defense is light years ahead of expectations).  Bundy is probably 2nd on this list.  He may be valuable enough to pick up his option at the end of the season the way he is going.  Bill Tanner has a good point on Cave.  He is not as high though because of time in majors is too limited.  But he does make the list.  

[DKrz56]

Celestino is great defensively......but heralding his offensive this year as even adequate in my opinion is not accurate. He's been pretty bad this year offensively despite a great month of May -- look at his OPS. 

 

[JoeCool]

I am not a fan of any of them but Celestino. Thielbar is average at best but can’t be trusted in high leverage situations. Urshela is also an easy out against the Verlanders of the world. I would not mind him as a utility guy, but not an every day starter. 
 

Nick Gordon deserves mention because he plays with fire. He hustles and has an igniter kind of quality to him. Too many hitters are trying to hit home runs at the expense of the little things needed to win. Gordon does the little things. 
 

I also think Bundy deserves to be mentioned. He is not an ace but he is solid enough to win some big games and gives us a chance to win each time he takes the mound. 

Edited September 5, 2022 by JoeCool
Spelling error

[LA VIkes Fan]

Bundy deserves to be on this list. He’s been the Twins 2nd or 3rd best starter this year, yet everyone is always trying to get rid of him. 

[Fritzderkat]

I'm for Urshela, have said so before. Impressed with the way Bunny hangs in there, too.

[TwinsDr2021]

18 hours ago, JoeCool said:

I also think Bundy deserves to be mentioned. He is not an ace but he is solid enough to win some big games and gives us a chance to win each time he takes the mound.

In the last 12 games the longest he has went is 5 1/3, he isn't winning any games alone, let alone big games, but what he is doing is giving the twins 5 mostly decent  innings and handing the second half of the game to the bullpen to finish it out. (Just over half of the time it is with 2 runs or less which is good)

The Twins are 11 - 13 in his starts, which is better than Archer's 8 - 16 so there is that. It is kind of crazy that the two FA signings have the Twins at 19 - 29 and somehow they are still 3 games over .500

 

As for the 3 mentioned I agree with Theilbar and Urshela, not sure how a guy playing like Celestino would be underappreciated unless of course we are talking about how he is available to play everyday because he isn't hurt and not being hurt on the Twins seems like a pretty big deal.

 

 

[arby58]

Agree with adding Bundy to the list. My third pick (along with Thielbar and Urshela) originally was Garlick - when he was out, they missed him against left handed pitching. Still, Bundy has been more impactful, and many Twins fans wanted to DFA him after the first couple months of the season.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

I chose Sandy Leon. Without him the Twins may have put Jose Miranda behind the plate and Jose Miranda may have broken his ankle in a collision blocking home plate and ruined his career. Thanks Sandy.

[Karbo]

21 hours ago, Bill Tanner said:

Three very good choices.  

I would like to suggest Jake Cave as another.  After being DFAd and off of the 40-man roster, he showed grit and determination throughout 2022 to make it back.  In the short time since being called up, he has provided plenty of clutch moments, as well as making several spectacular plays in the field.  

Reading many negative comments, I get the sense that Jake Cave is not only under appreciated, but not appreciated at all.  I, for one, appreciate what he has done and how he has found a way to contribute.  Could not have been easy task from a mental standpoint, given where he found himself on the Twins' deep outfield depth chart.

I call Cave Mr. Hustle. No one can say he isn't giving his all every time he steps on the field!

[mikelink45]

1 hour ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

I chose Sandy Leon. Without him the Twins may have put Jose Miranda behind the plate and Jose Miranda may have broken his ankle in a collision blocking home plate and ruined his career. Thanks Sandy.

How can you under rate someone who has a -0.5 WAR and .148 BA?  I think underwhelming is a better rating for him.

[Blyleven2011]

I'm going to have to go with bundy  as the most under rated twin ...

Why ? 

He wasn't on the twins roster last year and he signed as a free agent before the lockout  ...

Twins fans were furious  and thought bundy was another shoemaker  ,) my self included  )  ...

Nobody wanted him on twins daily ...    that is being under rated in my opinion  ....

He actually has given us more than anyone thought ...

I like his bulldogness 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

2 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

How can you under rate someone who has a -0.5 WAR and .148 BA?  I think underwhelming is a better rating for him.

Thant's my point exactly. You have underrated his ability to prevent Jose Miranda from being hurt.  

[William K Johnson]

On 9/5/2022 at 2:03 PM, JoeCool said:

I am not a fan of any of them but Celestino. Thielbar is average at best but can’t be trusted in high leverage situations. Urshela is also an easy out against the Verlanders of the world. I would not mind him as a utility guy, but not an every day starter. 
 

Nick Gordon deserves mention because he plays with fire. He hustles and has an igniter kind of quality to him. Too many hitters are trying to hit home runs at the expense of the little things needed to win. Gordon does the little things. 
 

I also think Bundy deserves to be mentioned. He is not an ace but he is solid enough to win some big games and gives us a chance to win each time he takes the mound. 

Everyone is an easy out against the Verlander's of the world.    Urshela is as steady at third as anyone we have had there since Corey Koskie.   I say bring him back next year and worry about all the other shortcomings this team has.

[Lasorda_This_Out]

Jake Cave.

I'll hang up and listen..

Thanks..

[Jeff D.]

For sure Urshela. Thielbar has been one of our most consistent pen guys all year. Ice is in his veins! Then there are a couple of others and you have Celestino. No problem with that mention. But there are a couple of others of note. Bundy could have been there, Gordon as well. I think Arraez is very undervalued/appreciated. Something bad happened to his swing when he went to the all-star game and I would sit him right now for a couple of games. It is doubtful we will take the Central this year and sitting him won't matter much. His value to the team is energy, flexibility, hitting, improvement is what a team needs. He will be even better next year.

More than anything the team needs to have a different manager and a more set batting order and wins. Go Twins!

Twins Geezer....out!

[Riverbrian]

Kyle Garlick is the most under appreciated player on this team. 

He leads the team in OPS (.835) and yet Rocco can't seem to get PLATOON out of his head and apparently it doesn't matter how many people get hurt or struggle.   

OPS Vs. RH 

Garlick - .734 - 57 AB's

Cave - .730 - 54 AB's

Larnach - .711 - 113 AB's

Kepler - .680 - 277 AB's

Kirilloff - .680 - 120 AB's

Celestino -.673 - 150 AB's

I am very pro front office and I remain supportive of Rocco because we all make mistakes in life. However, if you consider the injuries that we have had, we have certainly reached the point where the Twins need to take responsibility for intentionally putting Garlick to sleep due to stubborn adherence to unfair type casting. 

With all the injuries and Max Kepler's continued weak performance, there is no justification for it. 

Garlick is at the top of the list of who Falvey, Lavine and Baldelli under appreciates while Garlick is also on the top of the team's OPS and SLG list. 

 

 

[LA VIkes Fan]

You may have gotten your wish. Garlick is starting in RF for the first game today against the RH starter German.  Kepler not in the lineup. 

[RpR]

1 minute ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

You may have gotten your wish. Garlick is starting in RF for the first game today against the RH starter German.  Kepler not in the lineup. 

I am a fan of Garlick but I prefer Kepler's glove in Right Field; there has to be some thing truly wrong with him with his drop in batting, but then Donaldson had a similar drop for the Yankees.?

[Mike Sixel]

Bundy is the most under appreciated on this site for sure. He has more starts with 3 or less runs given up than more, and it isn't close. 

[ashbury]

52 minutes ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

German.  Kepler

LOL.

[LA VIkes Fan]

Always good to have subtlety appreciated. 

[USAFChief]

13 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

Kyle Garlick is the most under appreciated player on this team. 

He leads the team in OPS (.835) and yet Rocco can't seem to get PLATOON out of his head and apparently it doesn't matter how many people get hurt or struggle.   

OPS Vs. RH 

Garlick - .734 - 57 AB's

Cave - .730 - 54 AB's

Larnach - .711 - 113 AB's

Kepler - .680 - 277 AB's

Kirilloff - .680 - 120 AB's

Celestino -.673 - 150 AB's

I am very pro front office and I remain supportive of Rocco because we all make mistakes in life. However, if you consider the injuries that we have had, we have certainly reached the point where the Twins need to take responsibility for intentionally putting Garlick to sleep due to stubborn adherence to unfair type casting. 

With all the injuries and Max Kepler's continued weak performance, there is no justification for it. 

Garlick is at the top of the list of who Falvey, Lavine and Baldelli under appreciates while Garlick is also on the top of the team's OPS and SLG list. 

 

 

GIven the current options, there isn't a lot Rocco can do, but Garlick should rarely if ever face a RH pitcher. 

[Riverbrian]

2 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

GIven the current options, there isn't a lot Rocco can do, but Garlick should rarely if ever face a RH pitcher. 

I'll agree with you if the left handed hitting options were indeed playing like better options against RH pitching. 

If they are not demonstrably better options... all you have accomplished is give all the playing time to someone (someones) who is (are) not playing better at the expense of someone you will eventually need due to "not much Rocco can do" during a September pennant race.

Unfortunately you have been starving that person that you end up predictably needing due to the injuries that occur every year without fail.   

[Vanimal46]

Garlick went 0-7 with 5 ks in the double header. He may just be a platoon guy. 

[USAFChief]

1 hour ago, Riverbrian said:

I'll agree with you if the left handed hitting options were indeed playing like better options against RH pitching. 

If they are not demonstrably better options... all you have accomplished is give all the playing time to someone (someones) who is (are) not playing better at the expense of someone you will eventually need due to "not much Rocco can do" during a September pennant race.

Unfortunately you have been starving that person that you end up predictably needing due to the injuries that occur every year without fail.   

Gonna leave it at, disagree strongly that anyone is starving Kyle Garlick. And disagree it makes sense to feed ABs to him just in case things go to hell in a handbasket and you're later left with no better options. 

He's carved out a small niche as a lefty masher. That's it. No reason to intentionally expand on that at the expense of LH hitters.