There was a little uncertainty surrounding what the Minnesota Twins would do in this year’s MLB Draft, but according to Doug Mientkiewicz, drafting Walker Jenkins was the right call.
Mientkiewicz, who played for the Twins from 1998-2004 , took to Twitter shortly after his former team selected the high school outfielder out of North Carolina with the fifth overall pick in the draft Sunday night.
His verdict? The Twins got “an absolute stud” with their first-round pick.
Congrats Twins! You just got an ABSOLUTE STUD! Walker Jenkins is the best kid you will ever be around!! Plays with heart and he gets it! You just got a number one pick overall in any other draft!!
— Doug Mientkiewicz (@DMEASrecruiting) July 9, 2023
Jenkins is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound outfielder who is likely to wind up in a corner outfield spot as he gets bigger and stronger. The Athletic’s Keith Law and MLB.com both labeled Jenkins as a top-five prospect coming into the draft and he was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in North Carolina.
In addition to playing for the Twins, Mientkiewicz also knows a thing or two about player development, serving as a manager in the organization from 2013 to 2017.
The Twins have recently preferred collegiate bats with their early picks under Derek Falvey and Thad Levine, but Jenkins is a bet on upside that could pay off in the coming years.
