The Twins’ No. 9 prospect didn’t need much time to settle in at Double-A Wichita. Since getting the call up on June 15 after a career-high 58 games at High-A, Diaw has kept doing what made him stand out in Cedar Rapids: getting on base, controlling the zone and making the most of every trip to the plate.
At High-A, the 23-year-old hit .300/.405/.454 with 15 doubles, five homers and one triple. The jump to the Texas League brought tougher pitching, but Diaw didn’t let the transition rattle him. Through his first 40 games in Wichita, he has hit .307/.430/.413 with 11 extra-base hits, 23 walks and 18 strikeouts.
“Double-A is probably the biggest jump they'll make until they go to the big leagues, just in terms of the quality of the pitching,” Wind Surge hitting coach Andrew Cresci said. “He did an excellent job.
The guy is a perfectionist in his attention to detail. I can definitely appreciate his work in the cage and his preparation.”
Diaw’s strikeout rate has nearly been cut in half, dropping from 19 percent to 9.7 percent after the promotion. His on-base skills have held up, too, but the power output has cooled some as the quality of pitching has improved. That hasn’t stopped him from staying productive.
“He does a great job of getting his pitch, driving it,” Cresci said. “When he doesn't, he still gets enough bat on the ball to get a quality swing in there and get on base. … He's managed to do that while playing center field and catching.”
The right-handed hitter has also been hit by pitches at a notable rate. In his first full pro season in 2025, he was plunked 18 times. Through 98 games in 2026, that number is up to 19, including 11 at Double-A.
“Last year, he was a bit of a ball magnet,” Cresci said. “He's done that this year, where he gets hit a lot. I don't think he's that close to the plate, but decision-making-wise, he's been good.”
Diaw’s walk rate remains strong at 11.8 percent in 2025, and his overall approach has continued to play. Cresci also pushed back on labeling him a simple “hit-over-power” prospect, pointing to a swing change Diaw has made in his second pro season. The hope is that as the contact quality keeps trending the right way, more of those balls start turning into extra-base damage.
“I'm hoping that he doesn't put too much pressure on himself with that,” Cresci said. “He's a big information guy in terms of watching his video and going through the reports.”
There’s another part of Diaw’s game that has popped this season: his running. He has already stolen a career-high 14 bases, with 11 of them coming after the move to Double-A.
“Our manager (Nico Giarratano) and our dev coach (Julian Gonzalez) would be [upset] if I didn't bring that up,” Cresci said. “We broke the franchise record for homers again, but they set the stolen base one, so they were all gung ho about that.”
Cresci, who also grew up in New Jersey, has taken note of how the Twins weigh character and personality in Draft evaluations. He’s seen more young players reaching Double-A in his second season in the organization, and Diaw has fit right in with the group.
“KD, he's intense, man,” Cresci said. “He gets in the cage, and he knows what he wants to do.
… He understands the moving patterns he's trying to execute. He's a guy that he's open to the feedback.
He's open to the coaching, but it's a good back-and-forth with them in the cage.”
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