The Minnesota Twins are promoting top prospect Walker Jenkins ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Chicago White Sox, a team source who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a move that hasn’t yet been announced told The Athletic.

Ranked the No. 16 prospect in baseball by The Athletic’s Keith Law, Jenkins is expected to take over in center field while Byron Buxton rests a sore right hip that caused him to leave Tuesday’s game early.

The No. 5 overall pick of the 2023 draft, Jenkins entered Thursday hitting .308/.407/.532 with 12 home runs in 307 plate appearances for Triple-A St. Paul. Since Jenkins’ return to AAA from his most recent injury — a Grade 2 AC joint sprain in his left shoulder from running into the outfield fence while making a catch — he’s been on a heater: .335/.413/.607 in 44 games with 10 homers.

Jenkins, the Twins’ highest-rated prospect since Royce Lewis, hit eight of his 12 homers in August. The power surge demonstrates he’s getting closer to reaching the final stages in his development.

With Buxton banged up since the All-Star break, fans have been clamoring for Jenkins. He’s a five-tool athlete who’s looked the part when he’s been able to play. But injuries have limited Jenkins to 92 games since he arrived at St. Paul a year ago.

Invited to big-league camp for the first time this year, Jenkins missed most of spring training while recovering from a Grade 1 left hamstring strain. Jenkins returned in time for Opening Day, but sprained his left shoulder weeks later. He sat out nearly all of May before returning to the field in mid-June.

Because of previous ankle and hamstring injuries, Jenkins has never played more than 84 games in a season. But he’s been an impact bat when he has been able to play, posting a career .303/.404/.490 slash line through Wednesday.

Anticipation for Jenkins’ arrival has been high since the Twins moved up in the draft order in MLB’s first draft lottery in December 2022. They used the No. 5 pick to nab Jenkins. He was a star of the summer prospect showcases and a favorite of legendary Twins scout Mike Radcliff, who died of pancreatic cancer four months before the draft. Radcliff marked the highest grades you can give a player for Jenkins on the original scouting report he submitted before his death, just so he could make sure his voice was heard when a decision was eventually made.

Jenkins, who works out in the offseason with Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers in North Carolina, is more than just a baseball stud. He seemed to cement his place in the hearts of fans when he caught a fainting child on the field during a Saints pregame promotion at the end of June.