Twins spring training guide: 26 thoughts on all 26 hitters in major-league camp

Spring training is here and this year the Minnesota Twins have invited 56 players to big-league camp in Fort Myers, including 26 hitters.

Some are familiar names locked into Opening Day roster spots, but many will spend six weeks fighting for their major-league futures, and others are around mostly to provide depth early in camp.

Advertisement No matter the category, we figured they all deserve some love, so here are notes on each of the 26 hitters headed to major-league camp with the Twins.

We gave the 30 pitchers in camp the same treatment in their own article .

And if the Twins add more players between now and March 25, well add more, too.

Consider this your Who is that guy? guide to spring training.

(Notes: Ages are as of June 30, 2025.

Asterisks indicate non-roster invitees.) *3B/1B Armando Alvarez (30): Cut by the Athletics after making his MLB debut last year, Alvarez hit .311/.393/.570 with 33 homers in 149 games at Triple A the past two seasons.

Righty power without a ton of strikeouts is intriguing.

OF Harrison Bader (31): Signed last week for $6.25 million, Bader will serve as the backup center fielder and see action in the corners versus left-handers.

Hes one of the decades top defensive center fielders, winning a Gold Glove award in 2021, but his .705 OPS off lefties since 2022 is lacking for the platoon part of the role.

The Twins are hoping his fit is similar to Michael A.

Taylor s in 2023.

Home run robbery from Harrison Bader: pic.twitter.com/gDj6VG9a3b Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) May 26, 2024 CF Byron Buxton (31): Back in center field after spending 2023 strictly as a designated hitter, Buxton topped 100 games for the first time since 2017, hit .279/.335/.524 and looked strong defensively, producing double the value of his $15 million salary.

Healthy will forever be relative with Buxton, but he ended last season and enters camp in an encouraging spot.

C Jair Camargo (25): Slated for a third year in Triple-A St.

Paul as the little-used No.

3 catcher, Camargo has a strong arm and 20-homer power but struggles to control the strike zone.

He looks capable of being a solid backup, but it will likely take a trade or an injury for him to get more than a cameo with the Twins.

Advertisement C Diego Cartaya (23): Formerly a consensus top-25 prospect whose stock plummeted the past two seasons, Cartaya was acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in January as a low-cost lottery ticket.

Plenty of flaws have been exposed, but pull power and competent defense are decent (re)building blocks.

IF/OF Willi Castro (28): For the second straight year, Castro quickly turned into an everyday regular without having a set starting spot, playing a team-high 158 games across five positions to win Twins MVP despite an average-ish .717 OPS.

Retained for $6.4 million in his final season before free agency, Castro should fill a similar role in 2025: Hell play a ton ...

somewhere.

SS Carlos Correa (30): Recovered from the plantar fasciitis that ruined his 2023 season, Correa batted .308/.377/.520 during an All-Star first half, only to miss two months with the same injury in the other foot.

Hes fully cleared for camp, with optimism about new methods to avoid further issues .

So much of the Twins success revolves around the health of Correas feet.

*1B Mike Ford (32): Journeyman left-handed Quad-A slugger.

Ford has hit .205/.298/.402 in 251 games spread over parts of six seasons in the majors for six teams.

Hell be Triple-A depth at a thin position for the Twins.

1B Ty France (30): Signed to a non-guaranteed $1 million deal two days before the start of camp, France will try to prove hes back on track after a June heel injury wrecked his second half.

He was carrying a 117 wRC+ at the time of the injury, similar to his 123 wRC+ as an All-Star in 2022.

Not known for his glove, so he could see time at designated hitter, too.

1B/C Mickey Gasper (29): Acquired from the Red Sox for Jovani Moran in December, the late-blooming Gasper led Triple-A hitters in OPS last season.

His standout on-base skills and theoretical fielding flexibility are intriguing, but Gasper lacks ideal power for first base and isnt seen as much of a catcher.

Advertisement *1B/COF/C Alex Isola (26): In camp because hes nominally still a catcher, Isola has transitioned mostly to first base and the outfield corners.

He had a solid track record of right-handed slugging before struggling last season.

C Ryan Jeffers (28): Season-long consistency has been elusive, but Jeffers is coming off a career-high 21 homers and ranks fourth among all catchers with a .784 OPS over the past two seasons.

He should be in line for a bigger share of playing time after starting 81 games behind the plate in 2024 and is still young enough to put everything together for six months.

Good podcast guest , too.

2B/1B Edouard Julien (26): One of last seasons biggest letdowns, Juliens elite plate discipline often blurred into passivity and pitchers exploited his rigid swing path.

His glove also regressed, likely pushing him to first base/designated hitter more than second base, which puts additional pressure on Julien to rediscover his rookie hitting upside.

*2B/OF Luke Keaschall (22): Emerged as a consensus top-100 prospect and won Twins minor league player of the year in his first full season.

Keaschall hit .302/.420/.483 with 15 homers and 23 steals in 102 games despite playing through an elbow injury that required surgery, reaching Double A at 21.

Possessing a well-rounded skill set, he can get to the majors this year if his recovery goes smoothly.

Luke Keaschall is on a power surge at Double-A @Twins 2023 second-rounder puts a charge into his third homer in his past four games for @WindSurgeICT .

pic.twitter.com/n85Q7ZDSWx MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 28, 2024 OF DaShawn Keirsey Jr.

(28): Speedster center fielder with a late-blooming bat, Keirsey made his Twins debut in September after hitting .292/.370/.451 in two Triple-A seasons, totaling 16 homers and 44 steals in 150 games.

He has a prototypical fourth outfielder skill set, but needs a chance to prove it.

COF Trevor Larnach (28): Finally broke through, seven years after being a first-round pick, staying (mostly) healthy and hitting .259/.338/.434 with 15 homers in 112 games.

Mechanical adjustments helped Larnach put up more of a fight against off-speed stuff and cut his strikeouts, leading to optimism he can be a key lineup piece for 2025 and perhaps beyond.

IF Brooks Lee (24): Defense was the rookie bright spot for Lee, who looked decent at shortstop and great at third base and second base.

But he missed a total of three months with back and shoulder injuries and didnt hit much in the majors despite a team-low strikeout rate.

He wont be handed a spot, but Lee could hit his way into the Opening Day lineup with a good spring.

Advertisement 3B/2B Royce Lewis (26): It was business as usual in the first half, as Lewis put up huge numbers between injuries, but the bottom fell out in the second half.

He hit .207/.270/.350, talked openly about being worn down and chafed at criticism.

It was a reminder hes played just 152 games in the majors and is, in fact, human.

By all accounts, hes put in the work to get back on track.

OF/2B Austin Martin (26): His rookie offense was largely as advertised, with some promise of speed and on-base skills making up for minimal power, but Martins defense underwhelmed in the outfield and at second base.

Hell get more chances this year, but the upside has shrunk from his top prospect days.

3B/1B Jose Miranda (27): It was looking like a breakout 2024 for Miranda when he batted .331 through 75 games, including a record-tying 12 at-bat hit streak , but then he hurt his back in July and batted just .207 with no homers in his final 46 games.

Frances late signing gives Miranda competition to be the default option at first base, where his defense and health are question marks.

*COF/C Jeferson Morales (26): Finding a fielding fit is tricky due to limited athleticism and 5-foot-8 frame, but Morales can hit.

He finally made his Triple-A debut in August, seven years after signing with the Twins, and batted .359 in 17 games.

CF Emmanuel Rodriguez (22): One of MLBs top prospects , Rodriguez is an oddity as an athletic center fielder who resembles late-career Jim Thome at the plate.

Hes a career .250 hitter whos averaged 30 homers, 150 walks and 200 strikeouts per 150 games, including crushing Double-A pitching in 2024 before season-ending thumb surgery.

If healthy, hes closer than you think.

Emmanuel Rodriguez 1.261 billion foot home run to the moon pic.twitter.com/i3d4lKQNWm TFTwins (@TFTwins) April 12, 2024 *1B/3B Yunior Severino (25): Cut from the 40-man roster and re-signed to a minor-league deal after a mediocre season, Severino is a former prospect who has stalled out as a high-strikeout Triple-A slugger.

C Christian Vazquez (34): Jeffers presence and a $10 million salary led to an offseason of trade rumors, but Vazquez was difficult to move for value after back-to-back seasons with a sub-.600 OPS.

Setting money aside, hes still a useful No.

2 catcher thanks to his framing, blocking and game calling.

Advertisement COF Matt Wallner (27): Demoted to St.

Paul after a 2-for-25 start, Wallner returned in July to hit .282/.386/.559 in 62 games.

His high strikeout totals come with massive raw power and his limited outfield range is offset by an elite arm.

Stylistic skepticism may never go away, but Wallners career .866 OPS is the third-best in Twins history through any hitters first 169 games.

*C Pat Winkel (25): Struggled on both sides of the ball in his first Triple-A season, but teams can never have enough catchers during spring training and Winkel is back as camp depth for the second straight year.

GO DEEPER Twins spring training guide: 30 thoughts on all 30 pitchers in major-league camp GO DEEPER Twins spring preview: Key dates, position battles and 3 questions to answer (Photo of Carlos Correa, Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton: Brace Hemmelgarn / Minnesota Twins / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.