Twins infielder Royce Lewis continues to show he has an affinity for coming up big in the right moments after he hit another grand slam in the team’s 5-3 win over the Boston Red Sox on Friday.
If it was the regular season, it would have been the sixth grand slam of his very young career. As it is, he already holds the record for hitting five grand slams within the first 66 games of a career, according to MLB.com.
“I think these guys are just like, ‘What the heck, man, I don’t know what’s going on,’” Lewis told MLB.com “I said the same thing. I really don’t [know]. I just enjoy it. Take advantage of the opportunities when they come because they’ll go away soon. You just take advantage while you get them.”
Like all Twins fans, I hope this continues, or more specifically, I hope for Lewis this is more than just luck, but is somehow built into his DNA. Although the Twins had enough success last season to win the Central, I know that far too often I was reading box scores that showed the team struggling to score with runners in scoring position and leaving men on base. It would be great if Lewis becomes the clutch hitter this team really needs.
Meanwhile, a regular season-looking Twins lineup took the field on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays and showed some pop in a 4-4 tie.
The Twins banged out 13 hits, getting two hits apiece from Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa and Kyle Farmer. Max Kepler hit a two-run dinger and Lewis and newcomer Manuel Margot each had a hit with an RBI.
On the mound, Simeon Woods Richardson turned in another scoreless appearance, as did closer Jhoan Duran, who got knocked around in his previous appearance.
Extra innings …
-Although Lewis hit an impressive grand slam, perhaps the performance of the weekend came from Twins starting pitcher Bailey Ober, who struck out seven over three innings on Saturday in a 3-2 loss to the Phillies. Thirty of his 38 pitches landed for strikes.
-Deadhead Joe Ryan was not as sharp in the Friday win, allowing two runs on three hits over two innings. When a good pitcher gets hit hard in spring training or the minor leagues, I am reminded of an Ervin Santana quote about the experience.
“Down there, they see anything white, they swing,” Santana told MLB.com in 2016. “In the Majors, they take more pitches. Down there they are swinging.”
It’s a reminder that during exhibition play, veteran pitchers have to face a lot of guys who are hungry to get their shot at the highest level of professional baseball.
-Another Friday performance worth mentioning: Eddie Julien had two hits, including a home run, scored two runs and drove in one more.
-Speaking of Santana, he spent four seasons with the Twins and was 16-8 in 2017 with a 3.28 ERA. He led the majors with five complete games and three shutouts and earned the second All-Star nod of his career.