Scouting Report

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Cutter: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 40

Another in a string of interesting late-round arms taken by the Twins, Culpepper was a 13th-rounder in a 2022 Draft class that has provided a bounty of arms for the organization. It’s never completely clicked for the 6-foot-3 right-hander out of Cal Baptist, but he has been solid -- first across two levels of A ball in 2023, then reaching Double-A in 2024 and again back with Wichita in 2025. Injuries have played a part in the inconsistency, with a forearm strain sidelining him in ‘24 and a nerve injury in his finger delaying him for two months last year.

Culpepper has never been a big stuff guy, and that nerve injury caused things to tick down. His fastball has typically been around 94 mph, but he’d been able to reach back for 97-98 mph, something there wasn’t much of in 2025, though there’s hope that a fully healthy version of him will allow him to get back to the delivery that helped him get to that more premium velocity. His low-80s sweeper is his best pitch in terms of missing bats. He can mix in the occasional curve and changeup, but he might be best served by focusing on his two-seamer to get groundball outs, the sweeper and his 88-90 mph cutter.

More than anything, Culpepper needs to stay healthy and log innings -- he failed to top 60 IP in either of the last two seasons -- to get a sense of what kind of role he might be able to play long-term. He tends to be around the plate and has the repertoire to be a back-end starter, but given the durability concerns, using that sinker-slider combination out of a bullpen might make sense.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Cutter: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

Culpepper's move into Cal Baptist's rotation in 2022 after two years as an effective reliever, put him more solidly on some Draft radars. The Twins got him on Day 3, in the 13th round, part of a Draft class that has produced big leaguer Zebby Matthews as well as fellow pitching prospects Connor Prielipp, Andrew Morris and Cory Lewis. Culpper had a solid, but unspectacular first full season in 2023, then pitched his way from High-A to Double-A with better stuff in 2024, though he missed two months with a forearm strain and a pinched nerve in his right wrist delayed his 2025 debut until the end of May.

With a bit of a kitchen sink repertoire, Culpepper can offer many different looks to get hitters out, even if he lacks any purely plus stuff. His fastball averaged around 94 mph last year and topped out at 98 mph, and he can throw his four-seamer up in the zone, then sink a two-seamer to get groundball outs. A key part in developing that part of his arsenal will be to maintain velocity deeper into outings. His low-80s sweeping slider can miss a lot of bats, and he's worked to improve his 89-90 mph cutter; blending the latter pitch with his four-seamer more will help him at the upper levels.

Culpepper's walk rate can get elevated against left-handed hitters at times, and being able to land his changeup in the zone against them more should help while giving them a softer look away. There might be more to unlock as Culpepper tweaks some things with his delivery in terms of his lower half load and being more aggressively downhill as he comes off the mound. A few more consistent ticks of velocity could help cement him in a big league rotation.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 50 | Curveball: 45 | Cutter: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 45 | Overall: 45

Culpepper spent most of his first two seasons at Cal Baptist as a reliever, saving 13 games for the Lancers in 2021, with four more in the Cape Cod League that summer. He got the chance to start in 2022 and threw well enough to capture the Twins' attention, going in the 13th round of that summer's Draft. His stuff ticked up out of the gate in his first full season, though he tired by season's end following a promotion up to High-A ball. Still, the Twins were encouraged by his step forward and think they might have another late-round pitching find on their hands, though his progress was slowed in 2024 by a forearm strain that sidelined him for nearly two months.

When everything is clicking, Culpepper has a five-pitch mix with which to attack hitters. He came out in his full-season debut with Fort Meyers throwing harder than he did in college, averaging 95 mph and touching 97 mph with his fastball, a four-seamer with good action to it. He can throw his two-seamer almost as hard to get a lot of groundball outs as well. He has excellent feel to spin both his sweepy mid-80s slider and a newer, harder cutter that he throws around 90 mph. He can mix in a slower curve, and his mid-80s changeup is an effective spin-killer.

As Culpepper progresses, he'll need to show he can maintain his better stuff over a full season's workload after his velocity dropped as his first year wore on. While he's generally around the plate, working on his pitch usage and using his breaking ball and changeup more effectively in the zone are on his to-do list. He's trending in the right direction, with the chance to be a workhorse-like starting pitcher in the big leagues.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 50 | Curveball: 45 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 45 | Overall: 45

Culpepper played his college ball at California Baptist, spending his first season-plus pitching out of the bullpen and saving 13 games in 2021 before pitching well in relief in the Cape Cod League. A move into the rotation in 2022 helped him land with the Twins in the 13th round of the Draft. After throwing just an inning in the Florida Complex League last summer, he began his pro career in earnest in the Florida State League in 2023, earning a promotion up to High-A Cedar Rapids in late June.

He went through a velocity camp this past offseason and came out throwing a lot harder during his first full season, going from averaging 90 mph last year to 95 mph and touching 97 in the FSL. His four-seamer moves like a hard cutter, and he's added a sinking two-seamer that also sits 95 mph and generates a lot of ground-ball outs. His sweepy low-80s slider misses a lot of bats, his changeup has shown a good amount of progress, he mixes in a slower curve and, as if that wasn't enough, he's been messing around with a 90 mph cutter that acts like a harder slider.

Culpepper has been around the strike zone more often than not, giving him the chance to start long-term. He needs to be tested at higher levels, but there"s an up arrow next to his name. He could be the next in a line of Twins late-round arms such as Bailey Ober and Brent Headrick.

Awards

MID Pitcher of the Week

Week	Team
05/26/2024

FSL Pitcher of the Month

Month	Team
06/2023

FSL Pitcher of the Week

Week	Team
06/25/2023

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	05/05/2026	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to St. Paul Saints from Wichita Wind Surge.
	03/05/2026	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to Minnesota Twins Prospects.
	06/14/2025	Wichita Wind Surge activated RHP C.J. Culpepper from the 60-day injured list.
	06/08/2025	Wichita Wind Surge sent RHP C.J. Culpepper on a rehab assignment to Fort Myers Mighty Mussels.
	06/08/2025	Wichita Wind Surge sent RHP C.J. Culpepper on a rehab assignment to Fort Myers Mighty Mussels.
	05/27/2025	Wichita Wind Surge sent RHP C.J. Culpepper on a rehab assignment to FCL Twins.
	05/08/2025	Wichita Wind Surge transferred RHP C.J. Culpepper from the 7-day injured list to the 60-day injured list.
	04/04/2025	Wichita Wind Surge placed RHP C.J. Culpepper on the 7-day injured list.
	08/13/2024	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to Wichita Wind Surge from Cedar Rapids Kernels.
	07/27/2024	Cedar Rapids Kernels activated RHP C.J. Culpepper from the 7-day injured list.
	06/01/2024	Cedar Rapids Kernels placed RHP C.J. Culpepper on the 7-day injured list. Right forearm strain.
	05/06/2024	Cedar Rapids Kernels activated RHP C.J. Culpepper from the temporarily inactive list.
	05/01/2024	Cedar Rapids Kernels placed RHP C.J. Culpepper on the temporarily inactive list.
	06/26/2023	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to Cedar Rapids Kernels from Fort Myers Mighty Mussels.
	06/23/2023	Fort Myers Mighty Mussels activated RHP C.J. Culpepper.
	06/15/2023	Fort Myers Mighty Mussels transferred RHP C.J. Culpepper to the Development List.
	06/15/2023	Fort Myers Mighty Mussels transferred RHP C.J. Culpepper to the Development List.
	04/02/2023	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to Fort Myers Mighty Mussels from FCL Twins.
	08/11/2022	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to FCL Twins.
	07/26/2022	Minnesota Twins signed RHP C.J. Culpepper.
	07/09/2022	College Workout activated RHP C.J. Culpepper.
	07/09/2022	RHP C.J. Culpepper assigned to College Workout.
	07/09/2022	College Workout activated RHP C.J. Culpepper.