Jose Miranda wins the election in round 22 after ten rounds on the ballot. He is poised to do good things at Double-A this season.

Twinkie Town 2021 Prospect Voting Results

1. Alex Kirilloff 68% (Lewis 19%, Balazovic 9%, Larnach 5%)
2. Royce Lewis 65% (Larnach 17%, Balazovic 16%, Duran 2%)
3. Trevor Larnach 37% (Balazovic 37%, Jeffers 21%, Duran 5%)
4. Jordan Balazovic 73% (Jeffers 18%, Duran 7%, Sabato 3%)
5. Ryan Jeffers 45% (Duran 43%, Sabato 6%, Canterino 6%)
6. Jhoan Duran 79% (Canterino 9%, Sabato 5%, Celestino 4%, Cavaco 2%)
7. Brent Rooker 47% (Canterino 26%, Sabato 15%, Celestino 8%, Cavaco 4%)
8. Matt Canterino 39% (Sabato 32%, Celestino 15%, Enlow 12%, Cavaco 2%)
9. Aaron Sabato 43% (Enlow 21%, Celestino 21%, Cavaco 10%, Urbina 6%)
10. Gilberto Celestino 36% (Enlow 33%, Cavaco 17%, Urbina 8%, Wallner 6%)
11. Blayne Enlow 41% (Winder 20%, Cavaco 19%, Urbina 15%, Wallner 5%)
12. Keoni Cavaco 29% (Winder 25%, Urbina 20%, Sands 14%, Wallner 11%)
13. Josh Winder 33% (Urbina 28%, Sands 19%, Wallner 13%, Miranda 7%)
14. Misael Urbina 42% (Colina 28%, Sands 17%, Wallner 12%, Miranda 1%)
15. Edwar Colina 35% (Sands 35%, Wallner 20%, Rodriguez 7%, Miranda 3%)
16. Cole Sands 47% (Wallner 27%, Vallimont 11%, Rodriguez 8%, Miranda 7%)
17. Matt Wallner 47% (Vallimont 20%, Rortvedt 15%, Rodriguez 11%, Miranda 6%)
18. Ben Rortvedt 32% (Vallimont 26%, Miranda 17%, Rodriguez 14%, Soularie 10%)
19. Travis Blankenhorn 29% (Vallimont 25%, Rodriguez 18%, Soularie 15%, Miranda 13%)
20. Bailey Ober 32% (Vallimont 28%, Rodriguez 16%, Miranda 13%, Soularie 11%)
21. Chris Vallimont 46% (Miranda 19%, Rodriguez 16%, Soularie 14%, De Andrade 4%)
22. Jose Miranda 40% (Soularie 27%, Rodriguez 19%, De Andrade 9%, Raya 5%)

We have several infield prospects left to add. I’ll add a familiar name to this round with a player who could make his big league debut early in 2021.

Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF

2021 Age: 18

2019 High Level: N/A

The Twins made Emmanuel Rodriguez their top international free agent signing of 2019 with a $2.7M bonus. The Dominican outfielder was ranked 10th on MLB’s list of international free agent prospects and 19th by Fangraphs. The 5’10” outfielder has a good approach at the plate and his left-handed swing has drawn favorable comparisons to Eddie Rosario. He will probably start his career as a CF and move to a corner as he gets closer to the majors. He is considered a good base runner and, also like Rosario, has a strong outfield arm. He will probably make his professional debut this summer in a foreign rookie league and is unlikely to be a Twin before 2024.

Alerick Soularie, LF/2B

2021 Age: 22

2020 High Level: NCAA

The Minnesota Twins selected Alerick Soularie in the second round (59th pick) of the 2020 MLB Draft. The junior from the University of Tennessee was the leading hitter for the Volunteers while playing 1B, 2B and all outfield positions. He started his college career at San Jacinto Junior College and was named a third team junior college All-American after his freshman season. He transferred to Tennessee for his sophomore year, led the team in batting average, OBP and SLG and was named All-SEC. His junior season in 2020 was cut short but he still managed to hit 5 HR in 60 AB. He also went 10 for 11 stealing bases as a Volunteer. The Twins gave him a $900,000 bonus to forgo his senior year and become a professional. It looks like the Twins will try to see if they can develop him as a second baseman but left field is a more likely future position. Expect to see Soularie skip the rookie leagues and play A-ball in Fort Myers this summer.

Danny De Andrade, SS

2021 Age: 16

2020 High Level: N/A

The international signing period opened recently and the Twins immediately closed a $2.2 million deal with Venezuelan shortstop Danny De Andrade. The 6 foot 160 lb infielder ranked 16th on MLB’s list of all international free agents in this signing period. The scouts like his bat speed and ability to drive the ball to all fields. They believe he can develop power and also think he can stick on the left side of the infield. De Andrade was training in the Dominican Republic because American scouts cannot go to Venezuela to evaluate players. Like all international free agent teenagers he is a long ways away from the major leagues. Expect him to get his first at-bats as a professional in the Dominican rookie league.

Marco Raya, P

2021 Age: 18

2020 High Level: N/A

The Twins selected Marco Raya with the 128th pick in the 2020 draft from United South High School in Laredo, TX. The Twins gave him a $410,000 signing bonus to get him to break his commitment to Texas Tech. He has four pitches including a fastball in the lower 90s with a lot of spin. At 6’0”, 170 lbs he’s not as big as most pitching prospects but is considered a good athlete and has shown repeatable mechanics. He was a young senior, only 17 years old at the time of the draft. Expect Raya to spend a lot of time at extended spring training with a debut for the Gulf Coast Twins this summer.

Nick Gordon, SS

2021 Age: 25

2019 High Level: Rochester (AAA)

The 2014 first round selection (5th overall) has taken longer than hoped for to develop but is still too young to give up on. In 2018 he took a big step forward hitting .333/.381/.525 in 42 games proving that Double-A was no longer a challenge. Unfortunately he struggled at Triple-A Rochester after the promotion hitting just .212/.262/.283 in 99 games. The Twins sent him back to Rochester to start 2019 and his hitting improved to a .298/.342/.459 batting line but he only managed 70 games due to three different stints on the injured list. Nick is on the 40 man roster last off season and probably would have made his MLB debut in 2019 if he hadn’t been injured when they called up Luis Arraez. Last summer he tested positive for COVID-19 and took a long time to recover. He didn’t get to the alternate training site in St. Paul until late August and then was shut down early due to lingering fatigue. Defensively he has split time between second base and shortstop as the Twins try to get him ready for a role as a utility infielder. He still looks like he will become a major leaguer in the middle infield but there are some doubts he progresses past a utility role. This is Gordon’s last option season so his time with the organization may be coming to an end if he can’t prove himself this summer.