Klein is the 419th NWL alum to debut in MLB
Rochester, Minn. – Former Willmar Stingers right-handed pitcher John Klein made his Major League debut on Saturday, May 2, 2026. Klein is the 419th former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.
Klein, a native of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, played for the Willmar Stingers in 2021 and 2022 while attending Iowa Central Community College. The 6’5″ right-hander appeared in 13 games (six starts) across his two summers with the Stingers. In 2021, he pitched 7.1 innings with 11 strikeouts. In 2022, he went 3-4 with a 3.09 ERA in 35.0 innings, striking out 42 batters. He was also selected to the NWL All-Star Game. Klein signed with the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent on August 8, 2022.
Minor League Statistics by Season:
2022 (Rookie – FCL Twins): Appeared in two games, posted a 0.00 ERA in 2.0 innings with 2 strikeouts.
2023 (Rookie FCL, Single-A Fort Myers & High-A Cedar Rapids): Combined 13 games (13 starts), went 2-4 with a 4.17 ERA in 58.1 innings, striking out 61 batters.
2024 (High-A Cedar Rapids): Made 22 starts, went 8-3 with a 4.57 ERA in 100.1 innings, recording 90 strikeouts.
2025 (Double-A Wichita & Triple-A St. Paul): Split time across levels, appeared in 31 games (15 starts), posted a 7-10 record with a 3.98 ERA in 106.1 innings and 128 strikeouts.
2026 (Triple-A St. Paul): Made 7 appearances (6 starts) with a 7.48 ERA in 21.2 innings and 24 strikeouts before his call-up.
In his Major League debut against the Toronto Blue Jays at Target Field in front of friends and family, Klein pitched a scoreless ninth inning, retiring all three batters faced.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now entering its’ 33rd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 26 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 415 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion and Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (BAL) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (NYM). League games are viewable live on FloSports.tv.