MN Twins Repositioning Royce Lewis for Call-Up?

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Royce Lewis and Kody Clemens celebrate in infield: Detroit Tigers at Minnesota Twins
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Minnesota Twins are going for their second-straight victory on Tuesday night. If they can get the job done, they’ll clinch their early-week series against the Chicago White Sox, before swapping out AL Central opponents for the weekend, when the Kansas City Royals come to town for a four-game set.

In all likelihood, Royce Lewis will not be in the lineup for any games this week, no matter the opponent. That’s because he is across the river in St. Paul, trying to get his game right at Triple A with the Saints.

So far, so good. Since his demotion on May 19, the Minnesota Twins 2017 No. 1 overall draft pick has played in 11 games with the Saints. In his 49 plate appearances so far, the flailing young infielder is nowhere to be found, hitting .318 with a 1.252 OPS built on 7 home runs, 3 doubles and 13 RBI.

Royce Lewis fighting his way back to MN Twins faster than anticipated

In fact, Lewis has been playing so well during his short time down in Triple A that it’s forcing the Twins to consider bringing him back up sooner than anticipated, per Bobby Nightengale (Star Tribune).

“I do think it was good for [Lewis] to take a couple of days for a breather,” Zoll said. “He came in ready to go. If you just look at the quality of swings he’s put on the ball … I think there are some really positive strides and improvement there.”

Lewis, who will turn 27 on Friday, is on the path toward returning sooner rather than later if he keeps hitting at his current pace.

Star Tribune

Again, it’s unlikely Lewis’ call-up happens this week, barring an unforeseen injury. Because the last thing Minnesota wants to do is call Royce up, just to have him get right back on the big league struggle bus.

It wasn’t that long ago that Lewis couldn’t find his way off that damn thing. Through 31 MLB games (119 plate appearances) this season, Royce Lewis is hitting .163 with a .539 OPS, a 53 OPS+ and -0.3 bWAR.

But the soon-to-be 27-year-old’s issues go back much further than Opening Day 2026. Since the start of 2024, Royce Lewis has played in 219 games for the Minnesota Twins

In that time, he is hitting .225 with a .682 OPS, 88 OPS+ and 191 strikeouts vs only 65 walks — a far cry from the organizational game-changer Lewis was once drafted to be.

And there’s another issue with bringing Royce back up. As more proof that the MN Twins didn’t expect Lewis to fix his swing down in St. Paul this quickly, they’ve already permanently moved Brooks Lee to third base, where he is a much more natural fit than he was at shortstop.

Royce Lewis moving to the right side of the infield?

Of course, the position thing is less of a concern than Royce Lewis fixing his swing. That’s why, given how well he’s been playing since being demoted, the Minnesota Twins are already getting their former first round pick some reps on the other side of the infield.

According to Declan Goff (SKOR North), who was at Saints practice on Tuesday, Lewis took ground balls today at both second and first base down in St. Paul, as he gets prepared for what will likely be a different type of role when he is eventually recalled.

“Royce Lewis — not only is he on fire at the plate — Royce is getting work now on the right side of the infield. He got some work in at second base, got some work in at first base. It kind of feels like, at this point, if Royce is to come back up to the Twins, that the right side of the infield — having regular playing time there — is gonna be his path.”

Declan Goff – Video Above

Related: Royce Lewis Gives Cringe Interview After MN Twins Demotion

Projecting forward, first base is probably his fastest way back to the big leagues, unless the MN Twins do something with Luke Keaschall — who is batting .244 with a .639 OPS through his first 56 games this season.

If Royce Lewis can continue to hit the ball across the river, like he has been since slipping a Saints jersey back on for the first time last month, there’s little doubt he’ll be back up with the big club in no time.

And if he is already starting his shift to the other side of the infield, then really, his call-up could happen faster than expected, for sure before the month of June is over… possibly much sooner.

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