Vahn Lackey has hit some memorable homers in his baseball career, but his latest dinger is one he won’t ever forget.
MLB’s No. 19 prospect showcased his 60-grade power as he slugged his first professional homer in Single-A Fort Myers’ 7-6 loss against Palm Beach at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium on Friday night. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft has now reached base safely in 12 of his first 14 games as a pro.
“It was special,” said Lackey. “I'm glad to see it too because I have been struggling at the plate and we’ve been putting in a lot of work in the cages, so it was good to see that work show up on the field.”
After flying out to right in the first, the Twins' No. 2 prospect dug back into the box and looked to do damage in the third.
Falling behind 0-2 to right-hander Jan Cabrera (Cardinals), Lackey barreled a changeup in the lower third of the zone and sent it over the wall in left-center. The blast left Lackey’s bat at 106.2 mph per Statcast.
“It was a good pitch, but I just told myself to put the barrel on it and see what happens. I thought at first it was just going to be a double in the gap, but it kept carrying,” Lackey said with a laugh.
Given it's his first professional dinger, Lackey was able to get the ball back. However, he won’t be keeping it -- that ball will be going to dad.
"My dad has been there for me throughout my whole baseball journey, so I feel like I gotta give it to him," said Lackey.
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Considered a late bloomer as a Georgia high schooler, Lackey’s power didn’t flash consistently until he arrived at Georgia Tech. After limited playing time as a freshman, Lackey exploded in his final two collegiate seasons with the Yellow Jackets, tallying a combined 26 homers and 60 extra-base hits, including his monster junior season where he posted a slash line of .397/.519/.772.
“The way we did things at Georgia Tech is honestly very similar to how we do things here [with the Twins]. It was a pro atmosphere,” Lackey said. “There we had [head coach James] Ramsey, who was giving us insight on pro ball in little doses and I definitely think it prepared me and guys like [Athletics first-round pick Drew] Burress and [Athletics fifth-round pick Alex] Hernandez for pro ball.”
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While his power has popped, Lackey is far from being a strictly slug-first bat. The backstop sports a 60-grade hit tool, and while he’s batted just .212 in his first 52 at-bats at Single-A, he entered Friday with an 80 percent in-zone contact rate and a 17.7 percent walk rate.
“Early, I’m really trying to get my swing off on pitches I can do damage on, then I let the ball get deeper and deeper the further I get into counts," said Lackey. "Really, I just trust my hands and trust myself to lay off pitches I need to lay off of."