Kaelen Culpepper sat in a chair at the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas, in between his parents, clutching his mother’s hand with one hand and his father’s with the other.

As Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred spoke the words, “With the 21st pick in the of the 2024 MLB Draft, the Minnesota Twins select Kaelen Culpepper, a shortstop from Kansas State,” he shook his head back and forth. When he heard his name, he squeezed his eyes shut and broke into tears, then going in for a big hug from each parent.

“When I heard my name being called, just a jolt of emotions ran through my body,” Culpepper said. “It was all excitement, joy. The tears were real. I came a long way in my journey just to get here. Looking back on it, it’s amazing. I’m just really excited and happy.”

The shortstop out of Kansas State hit .328 with a .419 on-base percentage and .574 slugging percentage in his junior season. He finished with 80 hits in 61 games, hitting 11 home runs, driving in 59 and swiping 17 bags.

Culpepper, 21, is athletic infielder, who said he would consider himself a five-tool player but touted his speed in particular, saying he hoped one day to steal 30, 40 or maybe even 50 bags.

MLB Pipeline’s scouting report describes Culpepper as having a “disciplined approach that prioritizes making consistent contact and using the entire field.”

Culpepper is the first position player to be selected in the first round from Kansas State, something which he said “really means a lot,” to him.

“The whole goal of Day 1, stepping on campus was, ‘Let’s get drafted,’ and I’m so happy and stoked that (the Twins) went with me,” he said.

While he spent his freshman and sophomore years at third base, he shifted over to shortstop once his former teammate, Nick Goodwin, was drafted last year and vacated the position.

Culpepper said he had always been a shortstop and could see himself sticking there long term at the position, which he said felt natural to him.

As he turns his sights to professional ball, he said his main focus is on being as consistent as he can, day in and day out.

“I think consistency plays a huge role at the next level,” he said. “Being a guy that’s (a) straight-line guy that’s always consistent is a lot better than being an up-and-down guy who has his best game sometimes and his worst game sometimes. I don’t want to be that person. I want to be the guy that’s at his best every single game.”

Culpepper wasn’t the only shortstop the Twins grabbed on the first day of the draft. With the 33rd overall pick, the selection they received as compensation for losing starting pitcher Sonny Gray in free agency after he rejected their qualifying offer, the Twins selected Kyle DeBarge out of Louisiana-Lafayette.

The 20-year-old hit .356 with a 1.117 OPS and 21 home runs in 62 games in his junior season.

The Twins followed that selection up by taking Billy Amick out of Tennessee with the 60th overall pick. Amick was the third baseman for the national champion Volunteers, hitting .306 with a 1.026 OPS as a junior. He added 23 home runs and drove in 63. Amick was 32nd on MLB Pipeline’s draft prospect list.

Their final selection of the day was high school pitcher Dasan Hill out of Grapevine High School in Texas. Hill, 18, is a 6’5″ lefty who has been sitting in the low 90s while topping out around 96 miles per hour after a recent growth spurt.

Related Articles

Louisville finishes off six-game sweep of Saints

Limping to the break: Twins rally late but fall in first half finale to Giants

Twins’ Carlos Correa diagnosed with plantar fasciitis, will not play in All-Star Game

Carlos Santana’s home run helps lift Twins to win, makes personal history

Carlos Correa scratched, plunging Twins catcher Christian Vázquez into third base duties