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Reports indicate that the Minnesota Twins are going to call up their top pitching prospect, Zebby Matthews. The Twins are deep in the AL Central race and are calling up Matthews to help as they have an immediate opening in the rotation.
It is expected that Matthews will make his debut as the starter on Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals, a team trailing the Twins by a half-game. Both Joe Ryan and Chris Paddack are expected to miss extended amounts of time, which could give the prospect a spot in the rotation for a lot longer.
In three different levels in the minor leagues in 2024, Matthews has pitched well. He owns a 2.60 ERA and 114:7 K:BB ratio in 97 innings. Here's what we know about this prospect.
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All about Zebby Matthews ahead of MLB debut
This has been the breakout season for Zebby Matthews. He was on the radar before, but his stellar performance saw him rise to 61 overall on Baseball America's Top 100 Prospects list.
On the MLB Pipeline, he just cracked the top 100, as he rose to 98th overall ahead of River Ryan of the Los Angeles Dodgers (who has made his debut) and Alex Freeland, also of the Dodgers system.
In the Twins farm system, he technically ranks below David Festa as a pitching prospect. But Festa has spent time at the big-league level already. Matthews, the number six overall prospect, is joining him now.
Matthews is known for his impressive command, a rare trait in a pitching prospect. His walk rate is an astonishing 1.8% and he walked just 1.3 batters per nine innings in his 2023 season in the minors.
He did have a little bit of difficulty adjusting to Triple-A once he arrived at that level, but the Twins believe he has the command and stuff to succeed at the big-league level.
After winning the division in 2023, the Twins are facing stiff competition with both the Royals and Cleveland Guardians. Injuries have and will continue to plague their rotation, which is why it may be a slightly premature call-up for Matthews.
