Watsonville native Luke Keaschall, 22, a second-round draft pick by the Minnesota Twins in 2023 who was sidelined by Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in ’24, made his MLB debut on Friday night.

The injury riddled Twins (7-12) called up the 6-foot, 190-pound second baseman, a consensus top-100 prospect, from the Triple-A St. Paul Saints to provide help to their ailing lineup.

The Twins opened a three-game series at Atlanta (5-13) on Friday night. Keaschall connected on a RBI single in the second inning for his first hit.

Keaschall found out Wednesday that he was getting called up. He hugged his Saints teammates, then called his girlfriend, parents and grandparents to let them know the news.

“It was an exciting time,” said Keaschall on Thursday night, after arriving in Atlanta. “It means a lot. This is what you work for, what you dream about. At the same time, it’s just a start. I want to cement myself as a big leaguer, so this is the start of something new.”

Keaschall, batting .261 through 14 games for the Saints, has scouting grades of 60 for hitting and 55 for running. He has shown a solid combination of power and speed, especially for a middle infielder, in the minors thus far.

Keaschall left Arizona State University following his junior season to turn professional.

“Luke is the first player that I’ve coached to make it to the big leagues — I couldn’t ask for a better ‘first’ to represent everything that we try to coach into a player,” ASU coach Willie Bloomquist, a 14-year MLB veteran, told the Sentinel on Friday morning. “From the second he stepped on campus at ASU, I knew this kid is built different. Hands down, he is the most competitive, self-motivated, strong-minded kid that I’ve coached or ever been around. He will out-compete anyone. His will and desire to want to win is something that you don’t see every day. He’s special. Buckle up Minnesota, you’re getting a winner.”

Keaschall zipped through five levels in the minors. He holds a lifetime batting average of .297 in 536 total at-bats in the minors with 19 home runs and 38 stolen bases. Known for his plate discipline, he has 90 career walks against 116 strikeouts.

He said he doesn’t plan to change anything even though he’ll be wearing an MLB jersey and playing in front of considerably larger crowds.

“It’s just the same game,” Keaschall said. “I’m going to always play hard and aggressive, and be in the moment. Just know that you belong and be yourself.”

Keaschall replaced Brook Lee as the Twins’ representative at the MLB All-Star Futures Game in July 2024 and suffered his season-ending arm injury a month later. He has emerged from the injury seamlessly.

Keaschall’s also an option to play first base, in the outfield, or be used as a designated hitter. He hasn’t yet played in the outfield for the Saints.

He impressed the Twins’ coaches with his skill set during spring training. Ranked the 57th best prospect in the minors by mlb.com and No. 3 in theTwins’ farm system, Keaschall was a non-roster invitee to big-league camp and held his own. He played in 12 games and batted .238 (5 for 21) with two extra-base hits and a stolen base.

The 49th overall draft pick in the ’23, Keaschall told the Sentinel after he was drafted that he envisioned becoming a professional player while in high school. He was a first-team all-Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League infielder as a junior and was robbed of his senior season by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Admittedly, he wasn’t ready for the next level when he graduated in ’20. Keaschall, also a standout wrestler for the Mariners, grew two inches and added 25 pounds of muscle after he graduated from Aptos.

“In high school, he was towards the smaller size, but was a gamer and could hit the ball anywhere,” said Jason Biancardi, the Mariners’ head coach. “Then he got bigger and the hits turned into doubles and home runs. His work ethic was second to none. His senior year was cut short due to COVID, which was unfortunate. But I always knew he was going to make it far in baseball.”

Keaschall attended the University of San Francisco out of high school and shined for two seasons with the Dons. He was an all-West Coast Conference first-team selection both seasons.

Dons head coach Nino Giarratano was fired in March of ’22 and Keaschall, with Giarratano’s help, transferred to Arizona State for his junior season.

In one season with the Sun Devils, Keaschall batted .353 with 18 homers, 25 doubles and 58 RBIs. He was named all-conference in the now-defunct Pac-12 and was a second team All-American for Collegiate Baseball News.

Keaschall played for the Cape Cod League’s Orleans Firebirds in 2021 and ‘22.