Three Twins players or young players made it into a recent article by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel listing the top 10 baseball players of all ages between 16 and 25.
Royce Lewis finished fourth among players born in 1999, the oldest age group considered in this story. Only Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr. and Hunter Greene are better. McDaniel notes that Lewis “has struggled to stay healthy, but still shows star potential on the field.” Despite his current slump, Lewis has hit 36 home runs in his first 130 MLB games, including the playoffs. He just needs to stay on the field.
Emmanuel Rodriguez ranks fifth among players born in 2003, a group led by Jackson Merrill and Jackson Holliday. Rodriguez is the Twins’ most promising prospect and the most promising prospect overall in McDaniel’s latest rankings. The Dominican Republic-born outfielder has a 1.100 OPS in 37 games with Double-A Wichita this year, but hasn’t played in nearly two months due to a thumb injury.
In the 2005-born group, the best prospect is Walker Jenkins, the Twins’ top prospect — a widely recognized top-10 prospect in all of baseball. The 19-year-old from North Carolina, drafted fifth overall last year, is currently playing at High-A Cedar Rapids. Jenkins is the crown jewel of a Twins farm system that is one of the best in baseball.
Five other Twins also received honorable mentions from McDaniel: Zebby Matthews (2000), David Festa (2000), Brooks Lee (2001), Luke Keaschall (2002) and Charlee Soto (2005).
The future looks bright in Minnesota.
