It’s only fitting that Luke Keaschall grew up in Aptos, 15 minutes outside of Santa Cruz. He’s an old-school hitter, with a swing that’s crisper than sea breeze. He was a ray of sunshine for a team with a cloudy future – a throwback player from a city frozen in time.

Keaschall hit .302/.382/.445 as a rookie last season, 28% better than the average hitter. A year removed from Tommy John surgery, he hit 14 doubles and eight homers. Keaschall produced 2.0 WAR and finished ninth in the Rookie of the Year voting.

Above all else, the most mesmerizing part of Keaschall’s game is how effortless he made it look.

Luke Keaschall just sliced an inside-out swing into the gap.

His 7th double in only 22 games.
His OPS? A smooth .943. 🔥
No big deal for Keaschall.
He’s not slowing down one bit.
His speed is ridiculous.#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/k77YI3TTBA

— Talkin’ Twins (@TalkinTwins) August 21, 2025

Keaschall’s old-school game feels fitting for a player who grew up in Santa Cruz County. The city built its famous boardwalk in 1901, and the 1994 film Pulp Fiction made UC Santa Cruz’s Banana Slug logo famous. Turn off your phone in a Santa Cruz diner, and you might feel like you’ve been transported back to a time when Rod Carew and Jim Kaat played for the Twins.

With his smooth swing, it may look like Keaschall is taking a see-ball, hit-ball approach. However, a lot is going on underneath the surface. He loves playing cat-and-mouse with the opposing pitcher.

Keaschall will adjust his foot placement or the height he holds his bat based on the feel of his swing or where the pitcher is targeting in the strike zone. He’ll look for tells in his windup, tendencies in his pitch mix. The result is an intentional swing that allows him to adjust to each pitch’s trajectory.

Luke Keaschall picks up a hit and drives in a run in his first MLB at-bat!

(MLB x @Chevrolet) pic.twitter.com/nwlhWCMcqw

— MLB (@MLB) April 18, 2025

“The goal is to be as consistent, to stay as present as possible,” he said in January. “You can reflect on the good, the bad, and all that kind of stuff. But I try and just take each step forward as much as possible, be present, find ways to get better each step.”

That’s precociously zen for a 23-year-old player. Still, he has allowed himself to think about the future. Luke Keaschall is eager to get back on the playing field. He’s excited about what he can do after a healthy offseason following his thumb surgery. He can’t wait for the chess match with each opposing hitter during his at-bats.

“Being able to ramp up like a normal baseball player [from a throwing standpoint] is awesome. Being able to hit,” Keaschall said. “Trying to get healthy is a lot different. [This offseason is] a lot more exciting, a lot more fun.”

The surgery mostly affected his defense. He didn’t throw to first base after fielding balls in spring training last year because he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. Keaschall played 41 games (360.0 innings) at second base and produced -2 outs above average, while producing a 6th percentile arm strength, according to Baseball Savant.

“Not being able to throw a baseball is really weird,” said Keaschall regarding spring training last year, “because you’re taking grounders and you’re underhanding it across the diamond.”

Now that he’s a year and a half removed from Tommy John, the Twins may move Keaschall to the outfield. There, he’ll be able to tap into his speed while not having to react so quickly to the ball. That change alone may improve his defensive production.

“I’m a ballplayer,” said Keaschall. “I’ll play wherever you want me to play. If you want to move me somewhere, cool. I’ll be able to play winning baseball there.”

Therein lies Keaschall’s essence. He’s been waiting all offseason, ready to play against live competition in Fort Myers and eventually get back on the Target Field diamond. The lasting image of Luke Keaschall last year is him standing on base, jersey muddied from sliding along the basepaths, his flowing hair unbothered.

Luke Keaschall led all hitters against RHP in 2025 with a .366 BA.

The next highest? Nick Kurtz with a .336 BA.

(min 100 AB) pic.twitter.com/hEl3eBVYmE

— SleeperMLB (@SleeperMLB) January 30, 2026

“Every time I step on the field, you’re getting everything I’ve got,” Keaschall said. “I’m going to play as hard as I can and play to the best potential I can possibly play. That doesn’t change.”

Keaschall’s game is a combination of grit and guile. He enters next season hoping his adjustments at the plate and effort on the diamond are enough to avoid the descent Royce Lewis and Edouard Julien experienced after their breakout rookie seasons.

The essence of Keaschall’s success is making something challenging look effortless. He did that with aplomb last year. Everyone’s eagerly waiting to see if he can do it again. Spring training can’t come soon enough.