Twins Finally Give Former First-Round Pick His Shot in Major Leagues

The time has arrived for a former first-round pick. The Minnesota Twins are calling him up after a strong Triple-A St. Paul season.

A Minnesota Twins infielder slides into home safely. | USA TODAY Sports

Aaron Sabato has waited a really long time for this opportunity.

More than six years after the Minnesota Twins picked him in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft, he is finally getting his chance in the big leagues.

The Twins’ season is nearly over, and it has been a disappointing one. The final few days of the 2026 campaign will be spent continuing to evaluate what the future looks like, and Sabato might be an interesting audition.

Aaron Sabato’s Long Road to Minnesota

Sabato was the 27th overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft after he finished his college career at North Carolina. Minnesota saw value in his power and took a chance.

While the power has never been an issue, getting all the other skills put together may have been harder than they expected.

During his first professional season in 2021, Sabato only hit .202 and then came back in 2022 to hold a .215 average. His 2023 season was spent in Double-A. The next year wasn’t much of a success either, even though he split his time across the system. He managed to record only a .199 batting average.

It’s hard to say, but this kind of progress probably isn’t what Minnesota was expecting from a first-round draft pick.

Probably lucky for all, things started to look better last year.

Sabato hit .261 with 23 home runs and an .808 OPS across three levels of minor league ball in 2025. He took more steps forward in St. Paul during the 2026 campaign.

While playing defense at first base, he finally started to show promise on offense. In 2026 he hit .273 with 25 home runs, 75 RBI and an .877 OPS. His 25 homers make his minor league career total cross the three-digit mark to 111 now.

After recording 2,146 at-bats in the minors, Sabato’s wait is finally over. He’s headed to the big show.

Twins Evaluations Continue

Aaron Sabato Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Not taking anything away from Sabato, but at this point in the season, there really isn’t much downside to giving him an opportunity.

September ball for the Minnesota club has been all about evaluating players and looking to the future.

Sabato has earned the chance to show whether he can translate his acquired skills from the minors against Major League pitching.

This is his chance to prove that after six years, he is ready. Many first-round picks never make the MLB field. This is the opportunity Sabato has been waiting for his entire life.

With plenty of roster decisions to be made by the Twins, evaluating Sabato just makes sense.