Royce Lewis was cleared for a running program over the weekend, three weeks after sustaining a moderate left hamstring strain. President of baseball operations Derek Falvey told reporters that Lewis is likely around three weeks from being able to begin a minor league rehab assignment (link via Phil Miller of the Minnesota Star-Tribune).
The third baseman’s rehab hasn’t hit any kind of snag. Rather, Falvey said the Twins always anticipated that the recovery “was going to take four to six weeks, maybe six-plus weeks.” The team didn’t provide a public timetable initially, only noting that the injury wasn’t as severe as the right quad strain that cost him more than two months at the beginning of last season.
Lewis has been plagued by injuries, particularly lower half issues, throughout his career. The 2017 first overall pick has yet to top last season’s 82 games or 325 plate appearances in an MLB season. Lewis has been very productive when healthy. He’s a .268/.327/.497 hitter with 33 home runs over 605 career plate appearances — the equivalent of one full season. He added another four homers in six postseason contests in 2023.
Losing his bat has been a blow to a lineup that has had a frigid start to the season. They entered play Monday with a .198/.266/.315 team batting line, putting them alongside the Braves and Pirates as the least productive offenses in the early going. They’ve dropped seven of their first 10 while getting outscored by 14 runs. It’s an ugly first couple weeks after last season’s September collapse cost them a Wild Card spot.
Jose Miranda and Willi Castro have divided the third base playing time. Miranda has gone 5-29, striking out 10 times without drawing a walk. Castro has been more productive, collecting four doubles and a home run among his eight hits. He’ll play almost every day while bouncing around the diamond after Lewis’ return. Miranda and Ty France, to a lesser extent, have probably seen the biggest uptick in playing time.
Brooks Lee also opened the season on the injured list. He dealt with lower back tightness late in Spring Training. Lee is much closer to a return, as he began a rehab stint at Low-A Fort Myers over the weekend. Lee, the 2022 eighth overall pick, put up a .221/.265/.320 line over 50 games as a rookie last season. He had fantastic numbers in 25 Triple-A contests (.308/.368/.606) and could take over at second base when he’s activated. That’d push Castro more firmly to third base while allowing the Twins to use any of France, Miranda or potentially Edouard Julien at first base until Lewis returns.