Royce Lewis’s comeback has hit another obstacle as the Minnesota Twins placed Lewis on the 10-day injured list with an oblique injury on Sunday morning.
Lewis was injured in the third inning of Saturday’s victory over the Baltimore Orioles as he was running out a ground ball. While Lewis looked fine initially, he grabbed his left side midway to first base and he was thrown out on the play. Lewis was later shown slapping the dugout wall before making his way to the clubhouse.
It’s another frustrating development for a player who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft but has faced a long list of injuries. Lewis tore his ACL during an ice storm in February 2021 but recovered to make his major league debut last season before tearing his ACL again after crashing into the wall while playing center field in May 2022.
Lewis underwent a pair of procedures to strengthen the knee and returned to the majors on May 29, hitting .326/.354/.474 with four home runs and 15 RBI in 26 games this season.
“There’s no real conversation to be had about it,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said after Saturday’s game. “It’s tough. He’s worked hard to get back and he’s playing well right now. But he’s going to have to get healthy, and right now, we’re going to get him healthy.”
The Twins are hopeful that Lewis will only miss a minimum of 10 days with the injury, but for now, they have recalled Jose Miranda from Triple-A St. Paul.
Miranda has faced his own obstacles this season, beginning the year as the Twins’ starting third baseman but getting sent down after hitting .220/.275/.318 with three homers and 13 RBI in 35 games this season. Miranda struggled initially with the Saints but rebounded to hit .308/.378/.467 with three homers and 18 RBI over his past 26 games.
