Twins prospect Payton Eeles has quite the story.
A 5'5" infielder, Eeles was lightly recruited out of high school and spent four years at D-II Cedarville University in Ohio. He then transferred and had a productive fifth year at D-I Coastal Carolina, but it wasn't enough to get him drafted in 2023. So Eeles turned to independent ball, playing for the Chicago Dogs of the American Association and the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League before the Twins signed him for just $500 last May.
Eeles proceeded to quickly play his way up Minnesota's minor league system. He raked at Low-A Cedar Rapids, earned a promotion to High-A Fort Myers, and then skipped a level and wound up at Triple-A St. Paul in early July. And he just continued to hit. Across 64 games with the Saints, Eeles hit .299 with 8 home runs, 20 stolen bases, and a .919 OPS. Heading into 2025, the 25-year-old has a legitimate shot at becoming just the second player listed at 5'5" or shorter to reach the MLB level in the last 50-plus years.
Eeles' impressive journey is the subject of a recent video from a prominent YouTube baseball content creator named Bailey Freeman, who has over 186K followers on X/Twitter and nearly 350K subscribers on his main YouTube channel. The video on Eeles, titled "The Best Underdog Story of 2025," was posted on his secondary channel, which has almost 100K subscribers. It's a ten-minute video that's worth a watch.
The attention is well-deserved for Eeles, whose journey from D-II baseball to independent ball to Triple-A is a rare one. The story would become even cooler if he eventually earns an opportunity with the Twins. The case for Eeles getting a shot in the big leagues at some point is that he's hit and gotten on base at a high rate at every level and he has the positional versatility to play multiple infield positions (or even the outfield). His plate discipline, bat control, and speed are real assets.
The Athletic's Aaron Gleeman ranks Eeles as Minnesota's No. 26 prospect, noting that he has "a path to the big leagues in a utility role."
As the 2025 baseball season gets underway in a couple months, the 5'5" infielder and on-base machine in St. Paul is someone to keep an eye on.
Payton Eeles was undrafted second baseman who opened the 2024 season in independent ball and ended it as shortstop and leadoff hitter for Triple-A St. Paul.
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) October 11, 2024
“One of the best climbers we’ve ever had in our system.”
( @StPaulSaints)pic.twitter.com/Z16vtHAX1d
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