The Twins picked up one of their bigger wins of the summer before the season even started, jumping eight spots in the inaugural MLB Draft lottery to No. 5 overall.
The 2023 draft class features five players — three college players and two high schoolers — who are widely viewed in a tier above the rest, so the Twins will be in a position where at least one of them will be available when they are on the clock next month.
LSU outfielder Dylan Crews is the leading candidate for the No. 1 pick and the most unlikely to fall to No. 5 in the draft, but here are seven other names to watch as the calendar moves closer to the July 9 draft:
Paul Skenes, RHP, LSU
Working with former Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson, Skenes transformed into the best college pitcher in the country. Skenes holds a 12-2 record and a 1.77 ERA with 188 strikeouts and 18 walks across 108 innings. He can maintain triple-digit velocity deep into his starts to pair with a ferocious slider and a good changeup.
Skenes was a two-way player at Air Force, earning All-America honors, before transferring to LSU. The 6-foot-6, 247-pound righty carries ace upside, and he may be the best pitching prospect in the draft since Gerrit Cole in 2011.
Wyatt Langford, OF, Florida
If it weren’t for the LSU duo, Langford would probably be the talk of the draft class with his performance in the SEC. Langford is batting .373 with 18 homers, 24 doubles and 48 RBI in 58 games. He’s drawn 51 walks to 41 strikeouts, and he’s shown improved speed this year.
The 6-1, 220-pound Langford has questions about his ability to stick in center field, but he’s a righthanded hitter who can produce high exit velocities.
Max Clark, CF, Franklin HS (Indiana)
Clark, a Vanderbilt commit, was named the Gatorade National Player of the Year after hitting .646 with six homers, 33 RBI and 45 runs in 29 games this spring. He has a bodybuilder frame at 6-1, 190 pounds, which gives him good power, but the lefthanded hitter has excellent speed and draws some comparisons to Jacoby Ellsbury.
He’s viewed as an above-average defender in center field with a strong arm. He carries a big social media presence with more than 315,000 followers on Instagram.
Walker Jenkins, OF, South Brunswick HS (North Carolina)
Battling Clark for the title of top high school player in this year’s draft class, Jenkins is a lefty hitter who shows a ton of power in a compact swing. Jenkins had an impressive spring after he was bothered by a hamate injury last summer, cementing his spot toward the top of the draft.
Jenkins, a North Carolina commit, isn’t the fastest of runners at 6-3, 210 pounds, but his pure hitting ability separates him from almost all other high school hitters.
Jacob Gonzalez, SS, Ole Miss
The 6-2, 200-pound shortstop finished his season with a .327 batting average, 10 homers, 18 doubles and 51 RBI in 54 games. The lefthanded hitter walked (35) more than he struck out (28), but he didn’t steal any bases. A good contact hitter who flashes above-average power when he pulls the ball.
His speed leads to some concerns about remaining at shortstop, but he helped Ole Miss to a College World Series title in 2022.
Noble Meyer, RHP, Jesuit HS (Oregon)
The Twins took Chase Petty with their top pick in the 2021 draft, so they don’t avoid high school pitchers. Meyer, an Oregon commit, is rated as the top prep pitcher in this year’s draft with a fastball that sits around 94-96 miles per hour and a high-spin slider.
Meyer is from the same high school as Phillies prospect Mick Abel, who was the first prep pitcher taken in the 2020 MLB Draft.
Jacob Wilson, SS, Grand Canyon
Wilson, the son of longtime Pirates infielder Jack Wilson, ended his season with a .411 batting average, six homers, 17 doubles and 61 RBI in 49 games. Arguably the best contact hitter in the draft class, he struck out only five times in 192 at-bats with 19 walks.
His lack of power and elite speed limits his upside, but he’s a solid defender at shortstop.