Kaelen Culpepper didn’t spend long making his case in St. Paul before Minnesota decided it had seen enough.
The Twins purchased the contract of their third-ranked prospect from Triple-A on August 7, and Culpepper made his major league debut that night against Milwaukee. It was a quick rise after a brief hiccup in his return from the injured list.
Activated off the 7-day Triple-A IL on July 24 after a left hip strain kept him out for more than two weeks, Culpepper opened with a rough stretch, batting .179/.207/.214 with a 2 wRC+ over 28 plate appearances. Then he flipped it fast, going .412/.474/.706 with a 199 wRC+ over his next 21 plate appearances and putting together one of the best three-game runs of his 2026 season.
He found out about the call-up in the middle of a shower.
“Our clubby told me to go into (Brian Dinkelman ’s) office, and I walked in, and all staff was in there; coordinators were in there. I kind of knew what was going on.
He broke the news to me. I got pretty emotional.
I started crying and stuff.”
That emotion carried right into the big-league dugout. “(I) felt welcomed, for sure.
Everyone’s focused, of course, but so many congratulations. I feel very comfortable.
The last couple of hours were very hectic, you know what I mean? I’m just excited to get the first at-bat out of the way for sure.”
His first plate appearance ended with a popup to Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers. The second one was a different story. Culpepper got a Shane Drohan pitch he could drive and launched it 390 feet at 100.2 MPH off the bat, leaving no doubt that the bat Minnesota has been tracking is for real.
Manager Derek Shelton had already seen enough to believe Culpepper could hit at the highest level.
“He’s definitely made strides (at the plate). There’s still gonna be room for improvement at the major league level, but I think all the challenges we’ve thrown at (Kaelen) organizationally this year, he’s done a really nice job…there’s bat speed there. There’s an ability to impact the baseball.”
That kind of power has been part of Culpepper’s profile for a while. Minnesota took him 21st overall in the 2024 MLB Amateur Draft, and he’s done little to quiet the hype since.
He hit 20 home runs across High-A and Double-A in 2025, backed by near-elite average exit velocity and barrel rate at both stops. At Triple-A, those quality-of-contact numbers stayed strong while he worked on his approach and swing decisions against more advanced pitching.
Shelton also sounded comfortable with where Culpepper fits defensively, at least for now.
“I think right now (he’s) just going to be playing shortstop. I mean, I think with our club, we’ve got to know that you can play multiple positions.
He’s played second and third in St. Paul.
But I think right now in the short term, it would just be short. But, I mean, hell, we’ve watched guys go to positions that I don’t-I mean, if you would have told me Alex Jackson was going to start two games at first base a month ago, I would have told you that you were crazy.”
However Minnesota uses him, Shelton thinks Culpepper can matter right away. The 23-year-old is viewed as ready, and Shelton pointed to the progress he has made on defense, his health, and the timing of the promotion.
“He’s very ready…he’s become a better defender. I mean, this is a kid that has some tools.
It’s why he’s so highly touted. He’s back healthy, he’s playing well, so we felt it was the right time to bring him to the big leagues.”
In Other News...
Twins Just Showed How Far Theyd Go For This Playoff Push
The Twins spent the deadline acting like a club that believes the window is still open. They added reliever Jeff Hoffman, absorbed extra payroll and gave up a cluster of prospects, including Bruin Agbayani, Billy Amick, Jhomnardo Reyes, Dasan Hill and John Klein, in a clear push to deepen a roster that thinks it can matter in October.
Just as notable, Minnesota did not empty the cupboard to get there. The front office kept top names like Walker Jenkins and Kaelen Culpepper, signaling a willingness to chase the postseason without gutting the long-term plan. The overall message was pretty plain: the Twins were ready to spend a little more and part with real talent, but only up to the point where the future still looked intact. [Read more 🡒]
Former Twins Infielder Gets Another Shot With A Division Rival
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For the former Twins infielder, the opportunity appears to be a real one, with Bride expected to start at third base in the upcoming game. Texas is sorting through its infield depth while Leiter continues to work back after ankle surgery, and Bride now has a chance to show he can hold down a role against familiar American League Central competition. [Read more 🡒]
Twins Bet On Jeff Hoffman Despite One Lingering Concern
The Twins went into the trade deadline looking for a bullpen lift, and Jeff Hoffman gives them a reliever with real closing experience and a familiar face from a previous spring. He was in Minnesotas camp in 2023 before moving on without appearing in a regular-season game for the club, then rebuilt his value with strong stretches as a closer for the Phillies and Blue Jays. Even with his uneven numbers this year, he arrives as the kind of late-inning arm the Twins were clearly trying to add.
Minnesota also had to pay a meaningful price to get him, which only raises the stakes on how quickly Hoffman settles in. His recent track record suggests there is enough there to trust the fit, and the fact that he has started to trend better since June only adds to the appeal. The lingering question now is whether the Twins have landed the steadier version of Hoffman, or whether the rough patches from earlier this season are still part of the package. [Read more 🡒]