FORT MYERS, Fla. -- With so many of MLB Pipeline’s Top Prospects in the Twins’ big league camp this year, there is an overwhelming sense throughout the organization that the future may soon be on display in Minnesota.

“We have a really impressive group of young guys in camp this year that I think reflects both the impact potential and depth of our system,” said Twins assistant general manager Jeremy Zoll, who oversees the team’s player-development and player-performance efforts. “It’s a group that all of us are extremely excited about, having seen these guys continue to improve and now seeing them all here.”

While past first-round high-school picks Royce Lewis (2017; the Twins’ No. 1 prospect and No. 9 overall) and Alex Kirilloff (2016; the Twins’ No. 2 prospect and No. 32 overall), are the Spring Training headliners for the Twins this year, Minnesota’s top two picks from the 2018 Draft, Trevor Larnach (No. 3 prospect and No. 81 overall) and Ryan Jeffers (No. 6 prospect), have done their part to stir up excitement within the organization.

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“You look at Larnach and Jeffers, and they’re just monster humans physically,” said Zoll. “But what I think is so impressive about those two is that, beyond the talent, they’re highly intelligent players with a great work ethic.”

Selected by the Twins with the 20th overall pick in the 2018 Draft out of Oregon State, Larnach, a 6-foot-4, 223-pound outfielder, is in camp this year after a successful first full season in which he batted .309/.384/.458 with 13 homers and 30 doubles between Class A Advanced Fort Myers and Double-A Pensacola.

“Trevor’s biggest strength is his ability to drive the ball to the opposite-field gap and staying through the ball,” Zoll said. “He’s worked hard with everyone who has partnered with him on his ability to pull the baseball with authority and drive it in the air. It’s an area he’s continuing to hone in on, and we believe we’re seeing strides -- his homer the other day was over the batter’s eye in center field -- that are going to continue.”

Jeffers also has climbed quickly through the Minors since the Twins took him in the second round of the 2018 Draft. Though he’s known best for his defense, the Twins see the 6-foot-4, 230-pound catcher as someone who will have an impact on both sides of the ball.

“He’s been a top receiver in all of Minor League baseball since we drafted him,” said Zoll. “But I think the area where he’s really started to excel is managing a pitching staff and calling a game. Now that we’re able to provide him with a wealth of information on hitters, he’s enjoyed soaking that up and does a really nice job of building relationships with pitchers to accomplish those objectives.”

The intelligence and aptitude that help make Jeffers such a promising catcher also gives the Twins confidence in his bat. And although he batted .264/.341/.421 with 14 home runs between Fort Myers and Pensacola in his first full season, Zoll and the organization think the 22-year-old is only scratching the surface of his offensive potential.

“He’s a total pro with his plate discipline, with how he manages counts,” said Zoll. “He’s a really physical guy, and we think that his advanced approach is going to allow him to hit, and hit for power.

“It’s fun to chat with him about his approach, because it gives you an idea of the way he thinks pitchers are going to attack him and the way he wants to manage an at-bat.”

Prospect we’ll be talking about in 2021

The Twins gave Misael Urbina the largest bonus of any player in their 2018-19 international class, signing the Venezuelan outfielder for $2.75 million at the outset of the July 2 period. The 17-year-old didn’t disappoint in his pro debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2019, showing impressive all-around skills. In 50 games, he produced a .279/.382/.443 line wth 21 extra-base hits and 19 steals.

“He’s a superintelligent kid. His approach to the game really stands out, especially for someone at his age,” said Zoll about the Twins’ No. 21 prospect. “We really see the hit tool starting to come through in a lot of ways, and he’s continuing to work to manage his at-bats and learning when he can really do damage.

“For someone who has come in with a lot of expectations,” continued Zoll, “he’s met those and, from my perspective, even exceeded them.”

Camp standout

Gilberto Celestino was ranked in the upper half of MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 international prospects list for the 2015-16 signing period before the Astros snatched him up for $2.5 million. The Twins acquired him in the July 2018 Ryan Pressly deal and watched him take huge strides in his first full-season campaign, turning it on in the second half at Class A Cedar Rapids to earn not only a late promotion to the Florida State League, but a spot on the Twins’ 40-man roster.

“It’s been really nice to see the progress he’s made since we acquired him,” said Zoll about the Twins’ No. 15 prospect. “This offseason he gained 15 pounds and came in looking like he’s in really good shape. He spent a good chunk of the offseason working out with Juan Soto in the Dominican Republic.

“This offseason, Edgar Varela, our Major League hitting coach, took a trip down to the Dominican Republic to continue to work with him on some of his lower-half mechanics. He came to camp ready to go -- bigger, stronger. It’s been really good to see.

“For us, the biggest point in his development has been that ability to impact the baseball consistently, and we’re starting to see that come along.”

Something to prove
Nick Gordon (No. 17 prospect) looked like he would soon be in the big leagues after he hit .270/.341/.408 as a 21-year-old in Double-A in 2017. But the former first-round Draft pick (2014) and four-time MLB Pipeline Top 100 prospect has struggled to build upon that success in the past two years, producing mixed results in the upper Minors. Though he did perform better at Triple-A Rochester in 2019, slashing .298/.342/.459, injuries limited him to just 70 games.

“I think with him, if he can find a way to be healthy for a full season and have sustained success, he’ll bounce back nicely. We still believe in his hit tool, for sure,” said Zoll.

“It’s about finding that consistency and taking one more step forward with his bat to put himself in position for Major League success. Whether that will be a little bit of an approach adjustment or a mechanical adjustment, I think the net sum of that will be some combination of both. Hopefully, we can put him in a spot to do that and he can take a step forward.”