Lewis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-3 win over the Mariners.
Lewis extended his hitting streak to six games with his seventh-inning long ball. He has gone 6-for-22 during the streak, adding four RBI and a steal. The homer Friday ended a 13-game power drought for Lewis, though he still hasn't logged a multi-hit game since July 11. For the season, the infielder is batting .216 with a .690 OPS, 11 homers, 34 RBI, 37 runs scored, 10 steals, 13 doubles and a triple over 76 games. While the bat is still a little light, Lewis has proved his value through defensive versatility in the Twins' infield.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: On bench Tuesday
Rotowire
Lewis is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Royals
Lewis started the Twins' previous eight games and will hit the bench after going 5-for-28 with two doubles and four steals during that stretch. Victor Caratini is getting the start at first base Tuesday for Minnesota.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Logs 10th theft
Rotowire
Lewis went 1-for-5 with one RBI, a stolen base and one run scored in Sunday's 11-8 win over the Athletics.
Lewis is up to 10 steals on the year, including four over his last four games. The infielder has struggled at the plate a bit since the All-Star break, going 5-for-32 (.156) over his last nine games, though he's also drawn six walks. Lewis is still batting a mere .212 with a .672 OPS, 10 home runs, 31 RBI, 35 runs scored and 13 doubles over 72 contests this season, and he looks to have a fairly secure starting role in the Twins' flexible infield.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Out with sore hamstring
Rotowire
Lewis isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Cubs due to left hamstring soreness, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.
Manager Derek Shelton said Lewis has already begun to feel better since reporting to the ballpark Saturday, but the Twins will keep him on the bench as a precaution. His absence will put Josh Bell at first base, moving Ryan Jeffers to the DH spot and giving Victor Caratini a start at catcher.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Swats homer No. 10
Rotowire
Lewis went 2-for-4 with a double, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Angels.
The first baseman got the Twins on the board in the second inning by taking Ryan Johnson deep, then came home with the winning run in the seventh after a leadoff double. Lewis is still struggling to put together a true hot streak, but over his last 12 games he's batting .255 (12-for-47) with four doubles and three of his 10 homers on the season.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Posts steal Sunday
Rotowire
Lewis went 1-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Diamondbacks.
Lewis went 4-for-25 (.160) with a 3:9 BB:K during the Twins' six-game road trip. Two of those hits went for extra bases, but his consistency has faded a bit after a strong initial showing when he returned from a stint with Triple-A St. Paul. Lewis is batting .203 with a .662 OPS, five steals, seven home runs, 21 RBI and 19 runs scored over 180 plate appearances this season.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Goes deep in loss
Rotowire
Lewis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 9-5 loss to the Diamondbacks.
Lewis has four homers over 12 games since he returned from a stint with Triple-A St. Paul. He's also hitting .283 (13-for-46) in that span, which suggests his time in the minors helped him reset. For the season, Lewis is sporting a .200 average, .655 OPS, seven homers, 21 RBI, 18 runs scored, five doubles and four stolen bases over 43 contests at the big-league level.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Keeps raking Saturday
Rotowire
Lewis went 2-for-4 with a double and a solo home run in Saturday's 9-6 loss to the Cardinals.
The 27-year-old continues to rake since returning to the majors in early June. After an 0-for-3 showing in his first game back, Lewis has hit safely in six straight contests, batting .435 (10-for-23) with two doubles, three homers, four runs and four RBI. Five of those seven starts have come at first base, and that appears to be Lewis' new defensive home while Brooks Lee remains at third base.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: First homer since return to majors
Rotowire
Lewis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Tigers.
Lewis hit the second-longest home run (444 feet) of his career to left-center field in the second inning off of Framber Valdez. The 27-year-old Lewis has gone 4-for-15 with a home run and a double since returning to the big leagues after a brief stay with Triple-A St. Paul. The former top prospect slashed just .163/.261/.279 across his first 31 games of the year to earn the demotion, but he had a 1.303 OPS in 15 contests at Triple-A to secure a spot back on the MLB roster.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Recalled from Triple-A
Rotowire
The Twins recalled Lewis from Triple-A St. Paul on Saturday, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.
Lewis was sent down to Triple-A in mid-May but has officially earned a spot back on the major-league roster after slashing .340/.417/.868 with eight home runs, 19 RBI and 12 runs scored in 13 games with the Saints. It's unclear whether he'll reclaim the primary third baseman job from Brooks Lee now that he's back with the Twins, but Tristan Gray seems likely to be the player most affected by Lewis' return. James Outman was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Raking at Triple-A since demotion
Rotowire
Lewis is slashing .341/.413/.927 with seven home runs and a 3:10 BB:K in 10 games for Triple-A St. Paul since the Twins demoted him May 19.
After Lewis posted a career-worst .540 OPS over 119 plate appearances with the big club to begin the season, the Twins sent him to Triple-A so that he could implement changes to his swing in a low-pressure setting. Over the past two weeks, Lewis has done his part to prove that he's deserving of another look in the majors. Along with tapping into more power with St. Paul, Lewis is making contact at a steady rate; he's struck out at a manageable 20.8 percent clip in the minors, down over 10 percentage points from his mark with the Twins. Minnesota also plans to give Lewis exposure to some different positions during his time at Triple-A. Lewis will start at second base Thursday, and Twins manager Derek Shelton added that the 26-year-old will also get some work at first base at some point, per Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com.
Lewis is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Astros.
After recently making the tough choice to demote Matt Wallner to Triple-A St. Paul following a rough start to the season, the Twins could be facing a similar decision with Lewis. The 26-year-old has generally stayed healthy this season, but after going 2-for-11 with six punchouts during the Twins' weekend series versus the Brewers, he's now slashing an abysmal .163/.261/.279 with a career-worst 31.1 percent strikeout rate over 119 plate appearances. Tristan Gray will step in at third base Monday in place of the struggling Lewis.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Second straight day off
Rotowire
Lewis is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Nationals.
It's the second straight day out of the lineup for Lewis, who is slashing just .122/.159/.195 with a 1:15 BB:K over 11 contests since coming off the injured list. Tristan Gray will again handle third base in Thursday's series finale.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Sitting amid tepid start to season
Rotowire
Lewis is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Nationals.
He had just received a day off Saturday, but after making two straight starts, Lewis will get another breather Wednesday and give way to Tristan Gray at third base. Aside from a minimum-length stint on the injured list in April due to a knee sprain, Lewis has been able to stay healthy this season, but his production has fallen off. Over 89 plate appearances, Lewis has produced a .582 OPS and has struck out at a 30.3 percent clip, with both representing career-worst marks for the 26-year-old.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: First homer since return
Rotowire
Lewis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run during Friday's 6-2 loss to the Rays.
Lewis has had a slow start since returning from the injured list, entering play Friday with just one hit and five strikeouts in eight at-bats in the last two games. After starting Friday 0-for-3, the 26-year-old launched a ninth-inning home run, his third of the season, to give the Twins a second run. On the season, Lewis is slashing .208/.333/.438 with nine RBI in 15 games played.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: On bench for series finale
Rotowire
Lewis is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mets.
Lewis started the first two games of the series after returning from the injured list, going 1-for-8 with five strikeouts. He will get some rest for the series finale before likely returning to the lineup Friday in Tampa Bay. Tristan Gray will play third base and bat ninth for the Twins on Thursday.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Returns from injured list
Rotowire
The Twins reinstated Lewis (knee) from the 10-day injured list Tuesday.
The 26-year-old landed on the shelf after suffering the knee sprain April 9, and he's back with the Twins after a two-game rehab assignment. Lewis has an .822 OPS with two homers and two steals through 45 plate appearances this season, and he carried that hot bat into his rehab stint with a long ball in each contest.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Beginning assignment Saturday
Rotowire
Lewis (knee) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A St. Paul on Saturday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.
Lewis has been on the injured list since last Saturday due to a sprained left knee. The Twins haven't revealed how long they plan to keep the 26-year-old in the minors, but the fact that he's been cleared to play in games just a week after suffering the injury could point to him returning when eligible Tuesday.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: Officially placed on IL
Rotowire
The Twins placed Lewis (knee) on the 10-day injured list Saturday.
Lewis suffered a left knee sprain while playing in Thursday's game, and although the Twins haven't announced a firm return timeline for the 26-year-old, he'll be forced to sit until at least April 21. Tristan Gray will likely receive the bulk of starts at third base while Lewis is out, and Ryan Kreidler will come up from Triple-A St. Paul to provide depth.
... See More... See Less
Twins' Royce Lewis: On base three times in win
Rotowire
Lewis went 2-for-3 with two RBI, one walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's 8-6 win over the Tigers.
Lewis posted his first multi-hit effort of the season, and he's now walked seven times over his last five games. The improvements for getting on base should help him keep a starting role at third base. Lewis is batting just .219 on the season, but he's getting on base at a .390 clip thanks to an 8:11 BB:K across 11 games. He's added two home runs, two stolen bases, eight RBI, six runs scored and two doubles through 41 plate appearances.
