When Twins front office officials reflect on Kaelen Culpepper’s 2025 season, one of the first things brought up is how much he helped his teams win.
The 23-year-old shortstop led High-A Cedar Rapids to a first-half title in the Midwest League, and then he pushed Double-A Wichita to within a game of the Texas League playoffs.
“His makeup and his leadership on the field, the way he goes about his work, have all been exactly what we’ve been looking for,” Twins GM Jeremy Zoll said.
The Twins drafted Culpepper 21st overall in 2024 out of Kansas State, and he has lived up to their highest expectations. He batted .289/.375/.469 with 20 home runs and 25 stolen bases in 113 games last season, winning the organization’s minor league player of the year honors.
“I think the power has probably exceeded our expectations,” Zoll said. “He knows the biggest thing for him is just cleaning up some chase on some sliders and refining his approach a little bit further.”
The Twins invited Culpepper to his first major league spring training this year, and a strong start at Triple-A St. Paul could put him on the cusp of the big leagues. The Twins don’t have much shortstop depth ahead of him.
“A big thing for him: He had some steps he took in a really positive direction to his shortstop defense, which we’re really excited about,” Twins farm director Drew MacPhail said. “He knows how important that is.”
A priority for the Twins, particularly after their 72-90 season in 2025, is becoming more athletic and improving defensively, MacPhail said.
Culpepper, who has shown how much he can lift his minor league teams, could prove important to the Twins’ plans this year.
“For us, the offensive year was really exciting,” MacPhail said. “We all knew KC had that. But I think the strides he made defensively were really exciting and something he can hopefully build off.”