5 bold predictions for the 2025 Minnesota Twins

You think that's crazy? It probably is considering Wallner has a little bit of a strikeout problem and might be prone to slumps, but he's crushed six homers in 58 at-bats this spring. That's one homer for every 9.6 at-bats. If he maintains that pace for 500 regular season at-bats, it equates to 52 bombs. We're not going to predict 50, but 40 homers would put him on track to hit one every 12.5 at-bats.

Aaron Judge homered once per 9.6 at-bats last season and Shohei Ohtani went deep once every 11.8 at-bats. Wallner, so long as he doesn't devolve into Matt Walbeck, has the power to go deep frequently, and with regular playing time he should be among the league's top sluggers.

2. Bailey Ober wins the AL Cy Young award

Yes, we predicted this in last year's bold predictions. We're doing it again because Ober is a star. He led the Twins with 20.1 innings and a 1.77 ERA this spring, and we have no reason to believe he won't carry over his success into the regular season.

His 3.98 ERA last year was higher than his xERA, which came in at 3.22. That expected ERA was topped by only Tarik Skubal, Zack Wheeler, Chris Sale and Logan Gilbert, among qualified starting pitchers.

Look at his Baseball Savant chart. There's a lot of red on it, and that's a sign of an elite pitcher.

3. Connor Prielipp gives off Francisco Liriano vibes

Remember when Liriano came up in 2006 and was as electrifying as Cy Young-winner Johan Santana until an arm injury derailed his rookie season? Liriano pitched in 28 games (16 starts) and went 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA while striking out 144 batters in 121 innings. That was the peak of pitching in Twins history.

Prielipp probably won't get as many innings as Liriano did, but as a lefty coming out of the bullpen — once he's called up to the big leagues — Prielipp has the nastiness to completely dominate. He's legitimately scary, with a fastball touching 99 mph and a wicked slider that checks in at 93 mph.

Drew MacPhail, the Twins director of player development, told MLB.com recently that Prielipp's slider is "one of the most disgusting pitches I’ve ever seen."

4. Twins win 100 games

Minnesota's over/under win total is 84.5, but that number should be blown by if the Twins stay healthy. We know the bullpen is really good and could be incredible if Prielipp is an option.

We know that the starting rotation is strong with Pablo Lopez, Bailey Ober, Joe Ryan, Simeon Woods Richardson and Chris Paddack, and if any of them get injured or falter the Twins have David Festa, Zebby Matthews and Andrew Morris waiting to get the call at Triple-A.

We also know that the lineup is good if Byron Buxton, Royce Lewis and Carlos Correa stay healthy. It'll be especially dangerous if Matt Wallner plays like Kyle Schwarber in the leadoff spot and if Trevor Larnach improves.

It's a talented roster from top to bottom, and if they're able to stay on the field they could win 100 games.

5. Twins go to the World Series

While it seems likely that the Dodgers are in a class of their own, the reality is that Major League Baseball is lopsided right now. You can argue that 10 of the 15 best teams in the majors are in the National League, and the top contenders in the American League are dealign with injuries (hello, Yankees and Orioles).

That leaves the Twins in a pretty good spot to contend. Seattle, Texas and Houston will beat each other up all season long in the West, while the East will be a difficult division to navigate. Minnesota, so long as they stay healthy, is arguably the most talented team in the Central.

If the Twins win the division and have home-field advantage in the playoffs, we can see them going on a run to the World Series. It's a best-case scenario, but it's certainly a possible outcome. It would become even more likely if they're dominating and then upgrade the roster by trading prospects for high-end players made available by non-contenders.

Can they win the World Series? Sure, but this feels like a season where the Dodgers are destined to win it all.

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