Twins Daily Hitter of the Month - May 2024

[Ted Schwerzler]

After a slow start to the season, the Minnesota Twins found a way to get their foot on the gas pedal, and a May with more wins than the month before is in the books. Many bats in Rocco Baldelli’s lineup have yet to catch fire, but there are a few doing the heavy lifting.

 

Some new faces carried the load for Rocco Baldelli’s Minnesota Twins in the month of may. After Ryan Jeffers, Edouard Julien, and Alex Kirilloff commanded attention in April, that trio found the last flip of the calendar to be quite challenging. Being without Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton, and Royce Lewis at times the past few weeks didn’t help either, but there were a few players who stepped up.

Honorable Mention #3 - Jose Miranda
Maybe no one needed this May more than Jose Miranda. After a shoulder injury slowed him to start last season, he never got going and ultimately his sophomore campaign was a lost year. Looking to find a way into the Twins lineup on a consistent basis, nothing he did during 2023 was going to provide those answers.

While Miranda didn’t light the world on fire during May, he hit for a solid average and got on base. Dating back to spring training this year, quality of contact has been an issue. Miranda did launch a pair of home runs in May, but his 23.2% hard hit rate is a career-low, and brings cause for concern. The expected stats aren’t pretty, and maybe regression comes, but for now he’s making a case to get more run.

Honorable Mention #2 - Willi Castro
Continuing to provide value as a utility player, Castro has been thrown into the Twins lineup all over the place while being very good in that role. His 1.5 fWAR is third-best among position players for Minnesota this season, and his two triples in May tied Carlos Correa for the team lead.

How Baldelli uses Castro as the lineup gets healthy remains to be seen, but the expectation should be that he’ll see most of his run in the outfield. Having been acquired at a young age after being jettisoned by the Tigers, Minnesota seeing Castro continue to grow has been a fun part of the process. He swiped five bases in May as well, which easily led the team.

Honorable Mention #1 - Carlos Correa
What a difference a year can make. Now healthy and with the bout of plantar fasciitis behind him, Correa is becoming everything the Twins believed they signed up for. Somewhat of a slow-starter traditionally, Correa returned from his intercostal strain and hit the ground running.

His ten walks were a team high, and he looks more locked in than ever at the plate. Correa also has motored around the bases for a pair of triples, and had seven doubles in May as well. The home run swing hasn’t really been prominent thus far, but three longballs is a respectable number and canrise monthly as the weather turns warmer.

Hitter of the Month - Max Kepler
Following a brief stint on the injured list after fouling a ball off his leg, Kepler returned and looks healthy while absolutely crushing the baseball. From being a potential DFA candidate early last season, to what he has done since, it’s hard not to wonder if he’ll be around for longer than initially expected.

Although being utilized in platoon spots, Kepler led the team with 11 doubles in May, and he cracked three home runs as well. His ten RBI matched Correa’s total, and his approach at the plate looks dialed in. While some of his teammates have yet to get it going, Kepler keeping up this run will be vital if the Twins are going to chase down the Cleveland Guardians any time soon.

Who do you think was the Minnesota Twins best hitter in the month of May? Leave a comment below to start the conversation.

 

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[Dave The Dastardly]

Gotta agree, Kepler is the man. He's hot and should be playing everyday.

No worries about Miranda. Historically he's been a slow starter every season and he's just warming up. He's also an RBI machine. Put a man on base in front of him and he rises to the occasion more so than some other Twins "hitters" who can't seem to handle the extra pressure.

Willi Castro is a "find". Gotta keep him on the field somewhere.

Correa... well, he's just being Correa. Great to see him healthy and earning the big bucks.

A guy could almost get giddy over the Twins lineup...

[Patzky]

Was gonna say Correa because no was Rocco sits the Hitter Of The Month every other game!

 

Then.. the pitcher of the month jinxed Joe Ryan Saturday.. 

[LambchoP]

How about Jeffers? He's been our best power hitter this year, and it's not even close.

[Dman]

1 hour ago, LambchoP said:

How about Jeffers? He's been our best power hitter this year, and it's not even close.

Good point.  As best I can tell Jeffers had an .831 OPS in May.  That seems better than most of the group listed.  Granted his .214 BA was low, but when you are slugging .536 it doesn't matter that much.  I think he must have been overlooked somehow to not make the list.