Meet Andrew Morris: Top 10 Twins Prospect Continues To Rack Up Ks, Open Eyes This Spring

Image credit: Andrew Morris (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, Twins righthander Andrew Morris spun three shutout innings against the Blue Jays. His fastball sat in the mid 90s, and he allowed one hit and struck out three before yielding to Louis Varland. Two of Morris’ strikeouts were swinging, and he got four more swinging strikes before his day ended.

The whiffs came on a variety of pitches, too. One was one a four-seam fastball. Another was on a sinker. Two were on cutters. His sweeper and changeup each got a swing and miss. That’s six whiffs on five pitch types.

Through three starts, Morris has yet to yield a run, but Tuesday’s turn was the first time he’d struck out multiple hitters. Two of those Ks came against all-stars: Bo Bichette swung through a 95 mph sinker and Anthony Santander stared at a 95 mph four-seamer. Another veteran, outfielder Daulton Varsho, missed a 96 mph heater down the chute.

A start ago, Morris lone strikeout victim was Braves backstop Sandy Leon, a big league veteran with a World Series ring. The start before that, in his Grapefruit League debut, Morris rung up Spencer Torkelson, the No. 1 overall pick from the 2020 draft.

If you’re keeping tabs, Morris’ five strikeouts this spring include two all-stars, a World Series champion and a player talented enough to warrant the top selection in a draft. Oh, and Varsho too.

Morris entered the season ranked No. 10 in the Twins’ system. Among pitchers, he’s behind Zebby Matthews, Connor Prielipp, Marco Raya and Charlee Soto. The 23-year-old was taken by Minnesota in the fourth round of the 2022 draft and signed for $500,000.

He spent his draft season at Texas Tech after three years at Colorado-Mesa, school which also counts longtime reliever and all-star Sergio Romo among its alumni. After moving to the Big 12, Morris more than held his own. He went 8-2, 4.58 with the Red Raiders and struck out 91 hitters in 88.1 innings.

Once he turned pro, Morris added a few ticks to his fastball. He now regularly brings the pitch into the mid 90s and can ramp it up to 98 mph on occasion. The righthander works predominantly with the four-seamer and a low-90s cutter that impressed scouts during Tuesday’s turn. Those two offerings accounted for 27 of Morris’ 40 pitches on the day. He threw each of his other four pitches no more than six times each.

In all, scouts were intrigued by Morris’ mix. His slider projected as a plus pitch. His four-seamer showed plus life, and the cutter and curveball were effective offerings against lefties. He pounded the zone with his entire repertoire, though his command could stand to improve a tick or two.

After a bout of biceps tendinitis in 2023, Morris rebounded in full in 2024 and zoomed from High-A Cedar Rapids to Triple-A St. Paul—where he’s likely to spend a good chunk of the 2025 season—and struck out 133 hitters, one shy of an organization high.

If things go well there, he should be in line for his big league debut at some point during the summer.