It was bound to happen. The Philadelphia Phillies traded away some top prospects at last week's trade deadline, and one of those young players, Mick Abel, had a gem of a start for his new Triple-A team over the weekend.
Abel, the former Phillies' No. 6 prospect who was dealt to the Minnesota Twins along with No. 4 prospect Eduardo Tait for Jhoan Duran, made his Twins organization debut on Sunday for the Triple-A St. Paul Saints. The right-hander dominated against the Toledo Mud Hens at Fifth Third Field.
Mick Abel dominates in Twins Triple-A debut after trade from Phillies
The Twins' new No. 6 prospect pitched five scoreless frames in his Saints debut, allowing just one hit while striking out seven and walking just two. He topped out at 96.9 mph with his four-seam fastball and averaged 95.3 mph. He generated nine whiffs on 66 pitches.
Mick Abel was masterful in his @Twins organizational debut 🌟
— Twins Player Development (@TwinsPlayerDev) August 3, 2025
5 IP / 1 H / 0 R / 2 BB / 7 K
He averaged 95.3 MPH and had a 50% whiff rate on his secondary pitches⛽️@mickabel13 | #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/JdsnXG2oNw
In 14 Triple-A starts this year, Abel now has a 2.16 ERA and 1.13 WHIP with 10.03 K/9 and 3.87 BB/9. After flashing his tremendous upside in his debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates, he had a bit of a rocky road before landing back in Triple-A Lehigh Valley. In his six MLB starts with the Phillies, the soon-to-be 24-year-old pitched to a 5.04 ERA and 1.36 WHIP.
It might not take long for Abel to crack the Twins' major league roster if he continues impressing in the minors.
Mick Abel could see action in Twins' rotation this season
Minnesota's rotation currently features ace Joe Ryan along with Bailey Ober and veteran journeyman José Ureña. After that, they have former top prospect Zebby Matthews and current No. 26 prospect Travis Adams plugged into the backend of the rotation. Matthews has a 5.67 ERA in seven MLB starts this season, while Adams has yet to debut.
The Phillies drafted Abel out of high school in the first round (15th overall) in the 2020 Draft. He battled command issues through much of his time in the minors. This is the first season that he has posted a BB/9 below 4.00.
Ahead of the trade deadline, Abel was the odd man out of the Phillies' stacked starting rotation depth. With the bullpen desperately needing reinforcements, some top prospects had to be moved. With No. 1 Andrew Painter, No. 2 Aidan Miller and No. 3 Justin Crawford not moving anywhere, Abel was one of the best bets to be traded this summer.
Thanks to his bounceback year, Abel raised his trade stock enough to be a valuable asset for Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski in trade negotiations. While Phillies fans wish Abel well in his career, we are certainly enjoying the trade return he helped bring to Citizens Bank Park.