Ranking the Twins' top 10 player/prospect assets heading into 2026

Ryan is the ace of the Twins' staff and has the makings of a low-level No. 1 or a high-level No. 2 starter on a contending team. He fell off a bit down the stretch of this past season, but still finished with a 3.42 ERA and 194 strikeouts to 39 walks in 171 innings. He struggles a bit with giving up home runs and other loud contact, but Ryan's outstanding fastball frequently misses bats and is complemented by quality offspeed pitches like his sweeper and splitter. It would be another gut punch for the Twins' fan base if he were to be traded this offseason.

3. Walker Jenkins (OF, age 21)

It would be tough to justify putting any prospect above either of the Twins' 2025 All-Stars, but Jenkins is so talented that he has to go above everyone else. The top prospect in the organization and one of the top prospects in baseball, Jenkins has lived up to the hype so far at each of his stops in the minor leagues. The former No. 5 overall pick is coming off of a season where he missed some time due to injury but hit .286 with 10 homers, 17 steals, and an .850 OPS in 84 games. He's in the Buxton, Joe Mauer, Royce Lewis tier of prospect, with a superstar ceiling if he can continue to unlock his power at the plate. His MLB debut is likely coming at some point next year.

4. Luke Keaschall (IF, age 23)

Keaschall went from intriguing prospect to major long-term building block with his impressive rookie season this year. He only played in 49 games because of a forearm fracture that knocked him out for three months, but he was incredible on both sides of that absence. Keaschall hit .302 with four homers, 14 steals, an .827 OPS, and just a 14 percent strikeout rate in his shortened debut campaign. He's tough, aggressive, and fundamentally sound, which makes him the perfect fit for the brand of baseball the Twins seem to want to play moving forward.

5. Pablo Lopez (SP, age 30)

Lopez, like many others on this list, missed time this season due to injury. Before this year, though, he had thrown at least 180 innings in three consecutive seasons. With a 3.81 career ERA and a 3.68 mark in three years with the Twins, the 2023 All-Star has proven to be a quality No. 2 or 3 starter on a playoff team. He was excellent when healthy this year, posting a career-low 2.74 ERA in 14 starts. Back in 2023, he struck out 234 batters. Lopez is the Twins' most expensive player in the post-Carlos Correa world, making him a trade candidate if ownership wants to shed more salary, but that would be a shame. MLB starting pitchers of his caliber are difficult to replace.

6. Kaelen Culpepper (IF, age 23)

With Correa gone, there's a clear path for Culpepper to emerge as the Twins' long-term starting shortstop as soon as next summer. A first-round pick in 2024, he was named Minnesota's minor league player of the year last month after hitting .289 with 20 home runs, 25 steals, and an .844 OPS across 113 games at two levels of the minors. Culepper hasn't yet made his Triple-A debut, but he'll probably start the 2026 season in St. Paul. He has all kinds of tools, including the defense to stay at shortstop, and he should be considered the second-best prospect in the Twins' system at this point.

7. Royce Lewis (IF, age 26)

Maybe this is too high for Lewis, who is coming off of a brutal season. He missed chunks of time due to two different hamstring injuries, adding to his lengthy injury history. And when he was on the field, he carried over his cold finish to the 2024 season. Lewis hit just .237 with 13 homers and a .671 OPS in 106 games this year. Still, even with the injuries, it feels far too soon to fully give up on a 26-year-old who, not that long ago, hit 36 bombs in the first 116 games of his career, playoffs included. 2026 is a critical year for Lewis to show that he can still be relied upon as a big part of the Twins' future.

8. Emmanuel Rodriguez (OF, age 23)

Rodriguez is another player whose concerning injury history comes with a lofty ceiling that he could still theoretically reach. Unlike Lewis, he hasn't shown it in the big leagues yet. But if Rodriguez can ever just find a way to stay on the field, he has rare tools that could make him a star. He played in only 65 games this year and 47 the year prior. When healthy, Rodriguez has put up a .424 OBP and .912 OPS in minor-league action, with 50 home runs and 59 steals in 295 games. It's a rare combination of plate discipline, slugging ability, and athleticism. But as they say, one of the best abilities is availability.

9. Eduardo Tait (C, age 19)

This might be a lofty ranking for a 19-year-old who hasn't played above High-A. There's just so much uncertainty with young players in the low levels of the minors, even ones who scouts believe have immense upside. With that said, when considering the other options, Tait's potential earns him a spot on this list. He was 18 years old for most of this season, making him young for Low-A and very young for High-A. And he held his own at the plate, hitting 14 home runs and posting a .738 OPS in 112 games. Tait is a few years away, but the prize of the Jhoan Duran trade has a smooth lefty swing and a plus arm behind the dish. MLB stardom is well within his wide range of outcomes.

10. Matt Wallner (OF, age 28)

There are so many different players or prospects with an argument to make this list. Zebby Matthews, David Festa, or any of the Twins' other young MLB arms could go here. Outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez just had an incredible minor league season. Connor Prielipp has nasty stuff. But we're going to go with Wallner, even though he's coming off of a down year. This is a guy who, despite an unorthodox statistical profile and plenty of inconsistency, has a career 127 OPS+ in 273 games. When he makes contact, he hits the ball as hard as just about anyone in the league. If Wallner can play at his 2023-24 level for a full season, he'll be a 30-homer bat with an OPS not far below .900. He might never do that, but if he does, he'd be a very valuable middle-of-the-order player.