The Minnesota Twins have shown that they have a few tendencies when it comes to their draft strategy and player development system. The first is a penchant for finding under-appreciated college pitchers from non-premier programs (or even division ranks), then tweaking their mechanics and repertoire to add velocity and swing-and-miss offerings. Think Bailey Ober, Louie Varland, Zebby Matthews, and Andrew Morris.
However, the Twins also have a penchant for drafting college infielders, especially shortstops, and developing their bats to a point where their defensive home becomes an afterthought. There’s been no better example of this in recent years than Luke Keaschall, their second-round pick (49th overall) in the 2023 draft. Keaschall hit .303/.420/.483 in High-A and Double-A this year before undergoing season-ending Tommy John surgery.
Brooks Lee is a pretty solid example of a draft-and-developed hitter, but pundits saw him as a no-brainer with the eighth pick in that draft.
Taking Keaschall and Lee in the same draft adds some punch to this exploration of Minnesota’s keen interest in college shortstops. Even though they probably selected the best shortstop in the draft with their first pick, they still reached for Keaschall, knowing he played the same position. They knew that his bat could lead him to stardom, and his defensive baseline could help him play elsewhere if they had too many shortstops on the 25-man roster.
The young slugger’s bat has done exactly that and then some. In just over a full calendar year since starting his professional career, Keaschall is hammering the opposition at Double-A, arguably the biggest prospect talent pool in the minor leagues. He has risen to prominence like the Twins planned despite a clear shot at playing time at his original position.
“He’s totaled 47 extra-base hits and 30 steals in 115 games as a pro, drawing 71 walks versus just 91 strikeouts while batting .317,” said Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic in his mid-season prospect rankings, where he placed Keaschall sixth in the Twins system. “One of the fastest-rising players in the Twins’ system, Keaschall is now a top-100 prospect on several prominent lists.”
Keaschall’s emergence on various global Top-100 lists might surprise many if you had told them this would be the case when the Twins drafted him a year ago. However, it makes sense when looking at his production. Between his two seasons in professional ball, the lofty right-handed hitter owns a sterling .300/.419/.482 slash line, with 51 extra-base hits and 34 stolen bases in 133 games played.
That bat has carried him to national prominence, including an invite to this year’s Futures Game, which is reserved for the best names in the minor league ranks.
“We checked on Keaschall, who has done nothing but rake since entering pro ball, albeit in a relatively small sample,” said Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs in his latest update. “He’s shown feel for the zone, bat control, and modest power. Keaschall has never been a very good infield defender and the Twins have been experimenting with him in center field. He is very much still learning to play out there.”
While Longenhagen isn’t as bullish on his defense, he mentions that the Twins may look to see what he can provide as a corner outfielder. However, the bat-first infielder could also be an option at first base in the long haul, where they’ve been adding him to the mix at Double-A. That could offer a clearer path to the game’s next levels for him because the depth chart at first is pretty sparse.
Carlos Santana has been very effective, but he’s likely in the twilight of his career at age 38. Jose Miranda has held his own so far, but he still looks better as a third baseman if he will be in the field at all. Yunior Severino is the primary first baseman at Triple-A St. Paul, but he’s hardly a cornerstone of the team’s future. So, if Keaschall keeps hitting at this rate, he could find himself as a top prospect on the verge of the major leagues without much sitting in front of him.
His name had to have come up in trade conversations before the July 30th trade deadline, thanks to his meteoric rise through the prospect ranks and the team’s insistence on hanging onto their current top prospects such as Lee, Walker Jenkins, and Emmanuel Rodriguez. If the club does want to make a significant deal to prolong their window of contention, someone like Keaschall might make for an appealing trade chip.
Regardless of where he ends up, it’s clear that this bat-first infielder that the Twins selected using their newfound strategy for prospect development will be a crucial cog in the club’s near and long-term future.
