ST. LOUIS – Brooks Lee, the Twins' 2022 first-round pick, moved a step closer to the big leagues Thursday when he was promoted to the Class AAA St. Paul Saints.

Lee, a 5-11, 205-pound shortstop, hit .292 in 87 games at Class AA Wichita with 11 homers and 61 RBI. He led the Texas League with 31 doubles, was sixth with 102 hits and eighth with 63 runs scored. Angels shortstop Zach Neto is the only first-rounder from last year's draft to debut in the major leagues.

The 22-year-old Lee was named the organization's minor league player of the month for July after he hit .365 with five homers and 20 RBI in 20 games while totaling as many walks (10) as strikeouts. Lee is rated as Baseball America's No. 2 prospect in the Twins' farm system behind recent draftee Walker Jenkins and No. 34 overall.

Lee, the No. 8 pick last year, started his first full professional season at Class AA, which many scouts viewed as an aggressive assignment because he was playing at Cal Poly one year ago in a mid-major conference. After recording a .778 OPS through the first two months of the season, Lee has registered a .901 OPS since the start of June. He stood out with his plate discipline and line drive approach.

He has played all but one game at shortstop this season with one start at third base. He committed 13 errors in 711 innings at his primary position.

The Saints are in Columbus through Sunday, and return home on Tuesday against Louisville.

Also promoted to the Saints were outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. and infielder Yunior Severino. Keirsey had 13 home runs at Wichita, second best on the team to Severino's 24.

Outfielder Mark Contreras, who played late last season for the Twins, and infielder Alex DeGoti were released.