What is a Slumpbuster? Royce Lewis Couldn’t Tell You.

By Ted Schwerzler |

Updated: Jun 21, 2024

When the Minnesota Twins kicked off the 2024 Major League Baseball season, they did so with Royce Lewis in the lineup for the first time of his career. He homered in his first at bat and then hit the injured list following his second. Even with the time missed, he has been nothing short of exceptional, and he knows it.

With Royce Lewis now back in the lineup, the Minnesota Twins finally seem to be firing on all cylinders offensively. Carlos Correa is one fire, and Carlos Santana has picked up his production as well. Even Buxton has shown signs of life. But it’s Royce Lewis who has caught everyone’s attention, and for good reason.

Royce Lewis tells Minnesota Twins fans how it is

If you have missed it at all (and you’d be missing out) Royce Lewis is producing at a historical pace. Through 15 games, he has nine home runs. He has accumulated 1.5 fWAR and is playing at a level Barry Bonds rarely achieved.

How do you see your name mentioned with some of the best young heroes of baseball lore? You hit bombs and rarely get out. And you, for sure, do not go on slumps. Slumps don’t happen when you are Royce Lewis, as he explained earlier this week after getting out (gasp) five times in one game.

Speaking with reporters, Lewis said, “I pride myself, I told Pop today (hitting coach David Popkins), I go, I don’t do that slump thing, that’s not a real thing for me. I understand that that’s a thing and baseball is going to go in a slump or whatever, but for me I don’t have that mindset. Each day is a new day.”

Incredible Royce Lewis quote when asked about rebounding from an 0-for-5 yesterday:

“I told [hitting coach David Popkins] today: ‘Hey, I don’t do that slump thing. That’s not a real thing for me.’”

I checked. Lewis has had consecutive hitless games only 3 times in his career. pic.twitter.com/wHKDgBi8DY
— Do-Hyoung Park (@dohyoungpark) June 20, 2024

Going hitless in back-to-back games has happened just three times over the course of his career. Being able to not get too high or too low is something the best baseball players do, and despite being just 25 years old, it seems as though the Twins third baseman already has the confidence of a superstar who’s been dominating this league for a decade.

Minnesota Twins announcer gets got by Royce Lewis

With how well Lewis is going, it’s hard not to think that every single at bat is going to produce something magical. Closing out the series against the Rays, and needing a comeback win, Lewis stepped in and hit a ball that looked to be well-struck off the bat. Unfortunately it got broadcaster Cory Provus a bit too excited, and the routine fly out settled into a defender’s glove.

Oh no!

Poor, Cory Provus.

But to be fair, with the way Royce Lewis has been playing lately, that looked true… pic.twitter.com/0bXBnauprZ
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 20, 2024

It’s hard not to feel for Provus though, and the moment would have just been another in the growing litany of events that Lewis continues to produce. Minnesota hasn’t had solid representation when it comes to All-Star Game voting thus far during 2024, but one would think that Major League Baseball would be best served by getting Royce Lewis to Texas.