Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
The Minnesota Twins got their 2026 regular season underway on Thursday afternoon in Baltimore. It was Derek Shelton’s first game as manager, after replacing Rocco Baldelli this offseason.
He leads a Twins squad mixed with old and new faces, following last summer’s trade deadline teardown. One of the familiar faces is at third base, where for the second-straight season, former No. 1 overall draft pick Royce Lewis is written into the starting lineup.
But if Thursday was any indication of what to expect from the 26-year-old this summer, Lewis’s current standing in the organization is quite a bit different than what it was two or three years ago, when he was projected as a core piece to whatever the MN Twins future puzzle looked like.
On Opening Day, Lewis wasn’t at the top or in the middle of the Minnesota Twins lineup. Instead, he was written into the 8-hole, which wasn’t a surprise after the Twins teased the same lineup during this week’s Grapefruit League finale.
Royce Lewis fighting for favor with Minnesota Twins
What was somewhat surprising, however, was in the 9th inning, when Shelton decided to pinch hit lefty batter Trevor Larnach against Orioles (right-handed) flamethrowing closer, Ryan Helsley, instead of letting Royce Lewis hit for himself in that spot.
After the game, Shelton defended his decision with reporters. Essentially, Royce Lewis isn’t seen as a good enough hitter to pass up an opportunity to get lefty on righty with a chance to knock one out of the park, like Larnach can when he makes good contact.
“It’s a challenging choice, but we’re really lefthanded on our bench. Helsley, he’s got good stuff. I mean, you see him rushing it up there 100 [mph]. This ballpark, maybe Trevor gets a chance to clip one, the ball gets up and goes. It’s challenging, but there are going to be situations where we’re going to have to hit for guys. That’s nothing that any of our guys should or will take personally, but that’s just how the game goes.”
Derek Shelton – via the Star Tribune
In a vacuum, Shelton’s position is defensible. The problem is Trevor Larnach being your lefty option, in that scenario. Royce Lewis owns a career .766 OPS against right-handed pitching. Despite having the handedness advantage vs righties, Larnach’s OPS of .758 is actually lower than his right-hitting teammate.
Besides his lack of platoon success for the situation, Larnach is a 29-year-old former fringe top 100 prospect who now has 1,600 big league plate appearances under his belt. Thus, we know who he is — a below-average outfielder with a career 101 OPS+.
Meanwhile, Royce Lewis is a post-hype 26-year-old coming off a mediocre season, who still has talent left to prove. What in the world did Trevor Larnach offer the MN Twins late in the game yesterday, that Lewis did not?
MN Twins missing Mr. Grand Slam
It’s a long season, and there will be more opportunities, but the message Shelton sent out of the gate certainly won’t help lift the confidence of his young, struggling infielder.
It’s probably not lost on Royce Lewis that the 83 OPS+ he posted last season isn’t what the Minnesota Twins are looking for. Hell, even his 107 OPS+ in 2024 wasn’t good enough. Still, we aren’t that far removed not all that far removed from the 148 OPS+ and multiple grand slams he launched during his first two seasons though.
Another day, another Royce Lewis grand slam for your timeline. 😳 pic.twitter.com/8mVPEm6TPD
— MLB (@MLB) September 4, 2023
Lewis put in work this offseason hiring a personal hitting coach and looking to fine tune his approach. One game won’t define what that results in. Not even a 6-for-45 Spring Training should be considered indicative of future results. He needs to show he can find it again, but that may be easier with belief thrown behind him.
The Minnesota Twins aren’t projected to be very good this season. If they learn something from it though, there’s value in the process. Predetermined outcomes for necessary building blocks isn’t a great way to ensure that. Shelton made his choice on Opening Day. It’s one he should reconsider the rest of the way, at least until Lewis forces him not to.
Mentioned in this article: Derek Shelton Royce Lewis
More About:Minnesota Twins
Add MinnesotaSportsFan as a preferred source on Google.