The Minnesota Twins are holding their breath after Royce Lewis exited the game with an apparent injury in the eighth inning of Minnesota’s 7-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds Tuesday night.
Royce Lewis left the game with trainers during his at-bat in the 8th inning pic.twitter.com/KvUHkxWriI
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) September 20, 2023
The injury appeared to occur when Lewis swung at a pitch. He grimaced after the swing and had a significant limp. He was subsequently removed from the game and was obviously frustrated walking off the field and into the dugout, though he did leave under his own power.
The Twins said after the game that Lewis is “day-to-day with left hamstring tightness.”
After he appeared to run gingerly in his previous at-bat, Royce Lewis tweaks himself again during an 8th-inning plate appearance and is exiting the game. #MNTwins
— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) September 20, 2023
Lewis getting injured would be awful news as he’s been one of baseball’s best hitters since returning from an oblique strain in mid-August. It also comes on the heels of Carlos Correa exiting Monday’s game after aggravating the plantar fasciitis he’s been playing through this season.
Correa was not in the lineup Tuesday and indicated before the game that he may need to rest in order to be healthier for the playoffs.
"If I keep pushing through this it's not going to get any better."
Carlos Correa spoke earlier about his injury.#MNTwins | @Audra_Martin pic.twitter.com/Ofnht91veN
— FanDuel Sports Network North (@FanDuelSN_NOR) September 19, 2023
The Twins beat the Reds behind outstanding pitching from starter Kenta Maeda, who allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out eight in five innings. The bullpen allowed just three additional hits the rest of the night.
Minnesota’s magic number to clinch the AL Central is down to four, though if the Royals hang on to beat the Guardians the magic number will be down to three.
