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Minnesota Twins 2014 Prospect Vote: Round 23

Down to the nitty-gritty!

By Jesse Lund

These last few rounds have been exceptionally tight, and it's not much of a surprise. The real surprise is in knowing that Miguel Sulbaran, who won Round 22 with 27% of your votes, had very comparable numbers in 2013 to Jose Berrios - the organization's number seven prospect on our list. Ceiling, stuff, and projectability (a real thing, right?) have constructed a huge split in how both players are viewed, but it's a shining example of the quality of players in the Minnesota system.

For Round 23, we'll once again refrain from adding any new players. But starting in Round 24, we'll add our final three players and we'll make the final push towards the Twinkie Town Top 30 prospects for 2014.

Twinkie Town Top 23 Prospects for 2014

  1. Byron Buxton, CF
  2. Miguel Sano, 3B
  3. Alex Meyer, RHP
  4. Eddie Rosario, 2B/OF
  5. Kohl Stewart, RHP
  6. Josmil Pinto, C
  7. Jose Berrios, RHP
  8. Jorge Polanco, 2B/SS
  9. Max Kepler, CF
  10. Lewis Thorpe, LHP
  11. Trevor May, RHP
  12. Adam Brett Walker, RF
  13. Felix Jorge, RHP
  14. Stephen Gonsalves, LHP
  15. Michael Tonkin, RHP
  16. Travis Harrison, 3B
  17. Danny Santana, SS
  18. Kennys Vargas, 1B
  19. Ryan Eades, RHP
  20. Zack Jones, RHP
  21. Fernando Romero, RHP
  22. Sean Gilmartin, LHP
  23. Miguel Sulbaran, LHP

Players up in Round 23: D.J. Baxendale, Amaurys Minier, Stuart Turner, Taylor Rogers

D.J. Baxendale, RHP
2014 Age: 23
2013 High Level: New Britain, 92.2 IP (Double-A)

Year Age Tm Lev ERA G GS IP WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9
2012 21 Elizabethton Rk 0.00 6 0 7.2 0.261 1.2 0.0 1.2 18.8
2012 21 Beloit A 1.64 11 0 11.0 1.182 9.8 0.0 0.8 12.3
2013 22 Fort Myers A+ 1.10 9 9 57.1 0.785 5.3 0.3 1.7 7.5
2013 22 New Britain AA 5.63 16 16 92.2 1.424 10.7 1.3 2.1 6.2
2 Seasons 3.58 42 25 168.2 1.138 8.4 0.8 1.9 7.6
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/13/2014.

The Twins had Baxendale on the fast track through his first two seasons in the system, which is exactly what you love to see from a collegiate pick. He struggled a bit in Double-A in 2013 though, so he's likely to start there again this season - particularly in light of the number of pitchers in the upper levels of the system. He seems to be the second-best pitcher from the 2012 draft, behind Berrios, meaning that - compared to our prospect list last season - he's leapfrogged fellow draft mates J.T. Chargois (#12), Mason Melotakis (#16), and Luke Bard (#17).

Amaurys Minier, 3B
2014 Age: 18
2013 High Level: GCL Twins, 119 PA (Rookie)

Year Age Lg Lev PA H 2B 3B HR BB SO BA OBP SLG
2013 17 GULF Rk 119 24 5 2 6 6 29 .214 .252 .455
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/22/2014.

Minier was the big international signing for the Twins in 2012, signing in July and finally making his organizational debut in 2013. At just 17 years old you might expect him to struggle, and he did - a little. But he also crushed six home runs and is considered a high-upside prospect with great power from both sides of the plate. He's already shifted from short to third, so that's out of the way, and in spite of his immense talent we'll be seeing him in the Rookie leagues for another year or probably two before we really start to get an idea of how good he might be.

Stuart Turner, C
2014 Age: 22
2013 High Level: New Britain, 4 PA (Double-A)

Year Age Tm Lev G PA H 2B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG
2013 21 Elizabethton Rk 34 142 32 5 3 19 12 22 .264 .340 .380
2013 21 New Britain AA 1 4 2 0 0 0 0 1 .500 .500 .500
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 2/13/2014.

Turner is undoubtedly the organization's best catching prospect going forward, since Pinto is graduating the list this season. He carries accolades for both his bat and his skills as a backstop. He seems a good bet to be given time over a full season this year, instead of a short season, so we'll get to see him over an extended period and we'll see how ready he is. Can he develop quickly? How much room does he have to grow? There's upside, but a lot of unanswered questions, too.

Taylor Rogers, LHP
2014 Age: 23
2013 High Level: Fort Myers, 130.2 (Advanced-A)

Year Age Tm Lev ERA G GS IP WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9
2012 21 Elizabethton Rk 1.80 6 6 30.0 0.833 6.0 0.6 1.5 11.7
2012 21 Beloit A 2.70 9 4 33.1 1.350 8.9 1.4 3.2 9.4
2013 22 Cedar Rapids A 7.20 3 3 10.0 1.800 12.6 0.9 3.6 9.0
2013 22 Fort Myers A+ 2.55 22 21 130.2 1.156 8.2 0.3 2.2 5.7
2 Seasons 2.69 40 34 204.0 1.172 8.2 0.6 2.3 7.4
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 2/13/2014.

Rogers was, as our own Roger notes, one of the better pitchers in the Twins' minor league system last year. He doesn't strike anyone out, but the command is decent and he does a good job of limiting base runners. He was an 11th-round pick in 2012 so you'd like to hope he can move quickly, but some of that will depend on how well he adapts to tougher competition. Can he continue to be successful even if he posts pedestrian strikeout rates?

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