The Minnesota Twins protected six of their minor league prospects from next month’s Rule 5 draft by placing them on their 40-man roster on Tuesday. It’s an interesting mix of talent that includes former high draft picks, major trade acquisitions, and even a local kid.
While their stay on Minnesota’s current roster may be short, depending on how the rest of the offseason shakes out, they each have an opportunity to have some role on the big league club in 2026. With that said, here are the three newly-protected players that I think will have the biggest impact on the big league club next year.
The second-round pick in 2022 was seen as a potential 1-1 pick that year until injuries sidelined him in his final year at the University of Alabama. He’s dealt with elbow issues throughout his brief career as a professional in Minnesota’s system, but was finally able to put a full season of work in between Double-A Wichita and Triple-A St. Paul in 2025.
The 24-year-old southpaw earned Minnesota’s minor-league pitcher of the year honors by featuring an improving fastball with a wipeout slider, a pitch that might be the best version in the entire system.
Prielipp is the current favorite to have the biggest impact out of any of the five newly-protected players due to his high upside, the immediate need for his presence in their decimated bullpen, and the uncertainty surrounding his health. That last point could be taken as a detriment to his case, but in reality, the club would be smart to ride with him in the big leagues as soon as possible.
This gun might have a limited number of bullets for the year. Might as well shoot them off where it counts.
As the lone prospect coming back to the Twins in the 2024 trade that sent Jorge Polanco to the Seattle Mariners, Gonzalez can make that swap a clear win for Minnesota. Polanco had an underwhelming final year under contract for his new club in 2024, but re-signed with the M’s last year and went on to have a strong campaign that helped lead the team to the ALCS.
Since joining the Twins as a polarizing minor leaguer at the time of the trade – when some national lists had him as a fringe top-100 and others didn’t see the appeal at all – Gonzalez has shown an intriguing bat paired with questionable defense. His 2025 campaign at the plate was marvelous, as he had a combined .329 batting average with 15 home runs and a whopping 38 doubles between the three highest levels of the minor leagues.
Sure, there’s a small army of outfielders ahead of him on Minnesota’s depth chart heading into the 2026 season, but most of them are left-handed. The only righty besides Byron Buxton that has any real argument to be ahead of Gonzalez on the pecking order is Austin Martin. While he had a very strong final two months of the 2025 season, he’s hardly a lock to be a key contributor going forward. Look for Gonzalez to start the year at Triple-A St. Paul, but he could be one of the first call-ups if he continues to rake.
Once again, rotation depth is seen as a strength of the Twins heading into next year. But even with a full clip of options ahead of him on the depth chart, the club will realistically call upon Morris at some point in the season. And with the constant chatter surrounding trade candidates Pablo López and Joe Ryan (I know, I don’t want to think about it either), he could get that call sooner rather than later.
To his credit, Morris has put together a solid pro career in the minor leagues since being selected in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. The 24-year-old has a 3.02 ERA across 60 starts as a professional, with solid strikeout numbers and a manageable walk rate.
At Triple-A St. Paul last year, the righty had a good-not-great 4.09 ERA and missed about six weeks with an injury. But upon his return, he impressed to the tune of a 3.45 ERA across his final nine starts, with better stuff, which led to fewer walks and a dazzling .180 batting average allowed.
Look for Morris and his five-pitch repertoire to start next season in the Saints’ rotation, but he could feasibly be a mainstay in the back of the Twins rotation if the need arises and he can seize the opportunity.