One Twins Pitching Prospect on the Rise

Minnesota selected David Festa in the 13th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Seton Hall University. He posted a 3.49 ERA in three collegiate seasons with a 1.27 WHIP and 8.9 K/9. There were some positive signs from his junior year, where he posted career-best totals with a 2.00 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and two shutouts. He struck out 67 batters in 72 innings, but he showed positive strides toward being an effective pitcher. The Twins hoped to get Festa into the system and build on his collegiate improvements. 

Shortly after signing, Festa made his professional debut for the FCL Twins. In two starts, he was nearly unhittable as he struck out 8-of-16 batters he faced and didn't walk a batter. Minnesota promoted him to Fort Myers, where he allowed four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings. Festa was nearly a year younger than the average age of the competition at Low-A, and it was a small sample size.

The Twins sent Festa back to Fort Myers to start the 2022 season, and he was one of the best pitchers in the Florida State League. Through five starts, Festa had a 1.50 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP in 24 innings while striking out 33 and walking six. He was named the FSL Pitcher of the Week after pitching six no-hit innings with 11 strikeouts. Minnesota rewarded Festa's strong start to the season with a promotion to Cedar Rapids. 

On Sunday, Festa made his first appearance for the Kernels as Cedar Rapids scheduled him to follow Brent Headrick's start. He allowed one earned run on three hits with no walks and six strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings. The only run he allowed came in the ninth inning when his team was up by six runs. It was a tremendous High-A debut for a Twins pitcher putting himself on the Twins prospect map. 

Players drafted in the 13th round usually end up being organizational depth, but Festa is emerging as a legitimate top-30 prospect in the Twins organization. So far in 2022, batters are hitting .152/.208/.182 (.389) while striking out in nearly 40% of their at-bats. Festa has faced younger batters in two-thirds of his at-bats, but he has held them to a .334 OPS. Now that he is at High-A, he is over a year younger than the average age of the competition, so he will start facing older competition on a more regular basis. 

Festa has struck out more than 12 batters per nine innings throughout his professional career. Baseball America didn't rank Festa among the Top-30 Twins prospects entering the 2022 season, but they recently updated their list, and he is now ranked 29th. If he continues to perform this well, it's clear that Festa will establish himself as a pitching prospect to keep an eye on in the years to come. 

What has impressed you most about Festa so far? Do you think he should be ranked higher in the Twins system? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion.