Twins Prospects Being Slept On

Rodriguez is definitely cheating but with both Stank and Festa promoted it makes picking a Low A guy tricky. Raya and Hajjar were both picks in the first 5 rounds.

Either Perez or Fedko would be my picks for Low A even if they are old for the level.

Headrick is another pitcher who doesn't get on the prospect lists but could contribute someday.

I like Hamilton enough where I'd suggested that with our catching depth (before Garver & Rortvedt trades),  Jeffers could be trade bait for high end SPing. I haven't seen enough from Bechtold to judge his catching, 3B we have plenty of options at this level to be excited about them there.

Really like E Rod and Festa, I  have great hopes for them in the future.

Christian Encarcion- Strand has turned a lot of heads. He came out of nowhere, is he for real? 

Steer has been coming on strong but as a 2B/ 3B he has a lot of people ahead of him

Been watching Hamilton for a while.  He had a big June and August last year but was average to pretty bad most of the other months. If he can get more consistent with the hit tool I believe his defense is MLB ready.  I think he would make a good third catcher but with Isola right behind him who can hit well he looks like he could be the odd man out.  Still I think he is good call out pick for AAA.

I really like the Bechtold pick.  His bat has been better this year and his defense has always been good. I just think he is buried by depth right now.  Maybe changing to catcher will give him a better chance?  Hard to say but if his bat stays solid he looks like a guy that could make it.

For High A I think Prato or Mack would be better picks. Macks bat has dropped off since the beginning of the season so he might not be doing well enough to highlight but Prato is an under the radar pest at High.  Prato can steal bases, can be a tough out, and can play solid defense.  Festa while a lower pick just recently got promoted to High A and seems less under the radar than Prato IMO.

For A ball I would have went with Mikey Perez.  He was drafted in round 15 and has really come on strong with the bat recently.  If he bumps that OPS into the 900 range I think he follows Fedko to high A.  Rodriguez is a great story and likely a great player but he got a lot of love last year and he was a highly rated international pick.

There are several players that are playing well this year that might opt out of the system next year.  I think Palacios, Bechtold Helman and Hamilton should probably follow in Whitefield and Cabbages footsteps and move to an organization with a better chance for a call up.  They are on the cusp players but pretty blocked in the Twins system.
 

Bechtold is this generations Blankenship.  Also David Banuelos is this generations Drew Butera.  All defense not hit backup C.  And my favorite part of his acquisition is we got him for pretty much nothing.  (1 million international spending so the Mariners could chase after Ohtoni).  

42 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Christian Encarcion- Strand has turned a lot of heads. He came out of nowhere, is he for real? 

Oklahoma State isn't exactly "nowhere". That's a good college baseball program.

There seems to be a pecking order for prospect advancement in the Twins system.

Part of the problem is that there are a lot of prospects, there are some in the majors (Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda) getting their chance.

You oughta get to the 40-man. And most teams in baseball won't add a player to the 40-man unless they really need to be protected (Enlow, Balazovic) or are on the cusp of playing. Because if they can't play in the majors, they take up space for a time (Vallimont as an example). 

Even advancing a player too soon to AAA ball, especially if they are entering the 1st year of Rule 5 eligibility, is a gamble...because if a player excels, a low-end team will grab.

Twins were lucky Miranda went thru 2020 without being grabbed. But decisions also have to be made before a minor league player becomes eligible for free agency.  I would be looking at Caleb Hamilton more as the call-up catcher at the moment than, say, Godoy. Of course, if the guy doesn't work out and needs to taken off the 40-man, you can lose them on the waiver wire...so you want to be pretty sure of their longer-term standing in the organization, which is why prospects are often oevrlooked as the team goes with minor league free agents as fill-in when duty calls in the majors due to injury.

That being said, my under-the-radar ghuys are Travis Adams and Steven Hajjar at Ft. Myers. Kyler Fedko already advanced to Cedar Rapids.

The pitching staff at Cedar Rapids reminds one of the Twins. What would the Twins record be if their staff wasn't doing what it is doing, considering the hitters (and baseball) is light on offense. SO many standout arms, but I like Bradley Hanner, Sean Mooney and Bobby Milacki as sleepers. And don't forget Jair Camargo, still a horribly young catcher who will have to be Rule 5 protected. Look for him to get some advancement this season.

I still like Bryan Sammons as a fringe lefty. He should've been in St. Paul. This is his last chance to shine and maybe be a backend part of the bullpen. Or he may disappear, like Ryan Mason did earlier this month. Austin Schulfer is lights out. Is he the real thing? I hope is is the real thing and NOT J.D. Durbin!

Keep monitoring Chris Williams and Alex Isola s they become comfortable with positions. Both can catch and play elsewhere. A valuable skill when you have that extra bench spot.

And the Twins got Alex Schreff from the Red Sox and he continues to put up solid numbers in relief. ANotehr guy getting buried by the 25 minor league free agents the Twins signed this year.

My deep sleeper picks to get to the big show that were not even on the top 50 prospects list are the following:

1 Headricks 

2. Isola

3. Mooney

Headricks is dominating high A ball, the real test will be AA but he should be able to pass that level as well. Isola is already at AA, the only concern I have is that he is one that may wear down as the season goes down just like he did last year. He maybe an ideal backup catcher. The third is Mooney, he was drafted late due to an injury and lost a season with Covid. He is just a pitcher that knows how to pitch. Hendricks has gotten more notoriety this year, but Mooney has even out pitched him this year.  All 3 came from the 2019 draft, in rounds 9, 29 and 12 respectively.  

9 hours ago, Rosterman said:

There seems to be a pecking order for prospect advancement in the Twins system.

Part of the problem is that there are a lot of prospects, there are some in the majors (Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda) getting their chance.

You oughta get to the 40-man. And most teams in baseball won't add a player to the 40-man unless they really need to be protected (Enlow, Balazovic) or are on the cusp of playing. Because if they can't play in the majors, they take up space for a time (Vallimont as an example). 

Even advancing a player too soon to AAA ball, especially if they are entering the 1st year of Rule 5 eligibility, is a gamble...because if a player excels, a low-end team will grab.

Twins were lucky Miranda went thru 2020 without being grabbed. But decisions also have to be made before a minor league player becomes eligible for free agency.  I would be looking at Caleb Hamilton more as the call-up catcher at the moment than, say, Godoy. Of course, if the guy doesn't work out and needs to taken off the 40-man, you can lose them on the waiver wire...so you want to be pretty sure of their longer-term standing in the organization, which is why prospects are often oevrlooked as the team goes with minor league free agents as fill-in when duty calls in the majors due to injury.

That being said, my under-the-radar ghuys are Travis Adams and Steven Hajjar at Ft. Myers. Kyler Fedko already advanced to Cedar Rapids.

The pitching staff at Cedar Rapids reminds one of the Twins. What would the Twins record be if their staff wasn't doing what it is doing, considering the hitters (and baseball) is light on offense. SO many standout arms, but I like Bradley Hanner, Sean Mooney and Bobby Milacki as sleepers. And don't forget Jair Camargo, still a horribly young catcher who will have to be Rule 5 protected. Look for him to get some advancement this season.

I still like Bryan Sammons as a fringe lefty. He should've been in St. Paul. This is his last chance to shine and maybe be a backend part of the bullpen. Or he may disappear, like Ryan Mason did earlier this month. Austin Schulfer is lights out. Is he the real thing? I hope is is the real thing and NOT J.D. Durbin!

Keep monitoring Chris Williams and Alex Isola s they become comfortable with positions. Both can catch and play elsewhere. A valuable skill when you have that extra bench spot.

And the Twins got Alex Schreff from the Red Sox and he continues to put up solid numbers in relief. ANotehr guy getting buried by the 25 minor league free agents the Twins signed this year.

 

Great call out to Austin Shulfer.  A terrific young man and seems to be putting it together since being moved to a bullpen and closer role.