As MLB rosters are set to expand from 26 to 28 players on Sept. 1, the Twins have some important decisions to make. Pablo López and David Festa will find themselves on the 28-man roster at some point, assuming their rehab assignments continue as planned, but who else should the Twins consider promoting to the big leagues next month?

3 Twins prospects who proved they deserve a chance to play in the major leagues this September when rosters expand

OF Kyler Fedko

Taking one look at Fedko’s stats with the Saints this year proves why he deserves a shot in the big leagues, especially when the Twins aren’t going to be in the postseason (barring a miracle) this season. The Twins promoted Fedko to Triple-A St. Paul on Aug. 1 after the 25-year-old outfielder slashed .253/.375/.494 for a 139 wRC+ with 20 home runs in 88 games for Double-A Wichita this season. Since his promotion, Fedko has put up outstanding numbers, hitting .326/.406/.598 for a 157 wRC+ with six homers in 23 games.

Fedko has usually taken some time to get his feet wet at each level of the minor leagues before performing well enough to deserve another promotion, making his stats this month with the Saints all the more impressive. The Twins may as well give Fedko a shot at the big-league level and see if the right-handed hitting outfielder can be a key contributor in the future.

P Marco Raya

Raya’s ERA with Triple-A St. Paul this season isn’t great (5.99 ERA), but there are reasons to believe that he can turn things around, especially as a reliever. His main issue is a tendency to walk a lot of batters, as he has a 12.5% strikeout rate this year, but his pitch mix and ability to rack up strikeouts (22.9% strikeout rate) suggest he could be a game-changer if he can command his pitches better.

Since the Twins have a large number of starting pitchers who are at the big leagues or are likely in the Twins’ future plans – López, Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Simeon Woods Richardson, Zebby Matthews, Festa, Mick Abel, Taj Bradley and Kendry Rojas – Minnesota might look to add Raya, who ranks as the Twins’ No. 20 prospect per MLB Pipeline, to its bullpen soon. Although mainly a starting pitcher, his last two appearances for the Saints came as a reliever, signaling that the Twins likely are planning on converting him into a bullpen role long-term.

Raya relies on five pitches: a high-spin-rate fastball that tops out at 97 miles per hour, a good low-80s slider that also has high spin rates, a low-90s cutter he introduced last year, a decent curveball and a solid changeup.

1B Aaron Sabato

It’s been a long journey for Sabato. He was selected by the Twins in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of the University of North Carolina, and he finally made it to Triple-A this year after struggling in the Twins organization for several seasons. The 26-year-old is finally putting it together, and the Twins should allow him to show if he belongs in the major leagues this September. Across the Double-A and Triple-A levels this season, Sabato has slashed .272/.341/.494 for a 120 wRC+ with 19 homers in 384 plate appearances.