La Velle E. Neal III ranks the Twins Top 10 prospects

March 30, 2016 at 1:48AM
Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton
Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton (Brian Wicker — Associated Press/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Here are the Top Ten prospects in the Twins organization as ranked by Star Tribune baseball writer La Velle E. Neal III.

1. Byron Buxton, 22, OF (majors): Second-ranked prospect in all of baseball. Took lumps — figuratively and literally — after June call-up last season.

Jose Berrios pitches against Nathan Orf while playing the Biloxi Shuckers at AT&T Field in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Thursday, May 28, 2015.
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

2. Jose Berrios, 21, RHP (AAA Rochester): Supremely confident and hard working, Berrios has three above-average pitches, fields well, holds runners on base.

Max Kepler
(Tom Wallace — Dan Henry / BiciPhoto.com/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

3. Max Kepler, 23, OF (Rochester): Once patient to a fault, Kepler got aggressive last season at Class AA Chattanooga and surged as a prospect.

Olympia Titans shortstop Nick Gordon (5) during a game against the Orangewood Christian Rams at Olympia High School on February 19, 2014 in Olympia, Florida. (Mike Janes/Four Seam Images via AP Images) ORG XMIT: NYWWP
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

4. Nick Gordon, 20, SS (High-A Fort Myers): Batted .302 during the second half of last season. Physically, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2014 draft is starting to fill out.

Chattanooga Lookouts shortstop Jorge Polanco #11 bats against the Biloxi Shuckers at AT&T Field in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Friday, May 29, 2015.
(Tom Wallace — Dan Henry / BiciPhoto.com/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

5. Jorge Polanco, 22, SS (Rochester): Needs to work on his defense, particularly his throws, but he projects to be a good offensive player.

Illinois pitcher Tyler Jay (11) pitches against Wright State at the Champaign Regional of the NCAA college baseball tournament in Champaign, Ill., Monday, June 1, 2015. (AP Photo/Bradley Leeb)
(Brian Stensaas — ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

6. Tyler Jay, 21, LHP (Fort Myers): First-round pick last year throws hard and has good breaking pitches. Will convert to a starter in 2016.

Stephen Gonsalves
(Howard Sinker — File/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

7. Stephen Gonsalves, 21, LHP (Fort Myers): Has a good fastball and has tightened up his curveball. Needs to stay aggressive.

Kohl Stewart
(Dml - Associated Press/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

8. Kohl Stewart, 21, RHP (Fort Myers): No. 4 overall pick in the 2013 draft. The Twins hope this is the year his quality stuff translates into more strikeouts.

Nick Burdi
(Brian Stensaas — ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

9. Nick Burdi, 23, RHP (Rochester): Big fastball (96-99 mph) and hard slider make him one of the top relief prospects in the game.

(Howard Sinker/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

10. Lewis Thorpe, 20, LHP (Low-A Cedar Rapids): Back after Tommy John surgery, he has good sink on his fastball and has averaged 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings.

about the writer

about the writer

More from Twins

card image
card image