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The Twins are still carving out a spot for second baseman Edouard Julien in their long-term plans, but the young slugger will have to take some lumps in the minor leagues for the time being. With star third baseman Royce Lewis being activated from the injured list after a two-month absence due to a quad strain that he suffered on Opening Day, Julien ended up the odd man out of the club’s 26-man roster.
It’s a disappointing development for the 25-year-old Quebecois, but his last month of underwhelming play necessitated a move. Since May 1, Julien has hit .147/.282/.200, with just one extra-base hit and a brutal 36.2% strikeout rate. He follows the unfortunate footsteps of a few other rookies from last year who were also optioned to Triple-A after rough starts to their 2024 campaign. Matt Wallner and Louie Varland (both of Twins Daily Winter Meltdown fame) were each in a similar position about a month ago, and their demotions have benefited the big-league club since then.
Of course, the best version of this Twins team would include all three of these players being on the roster and contributing at the high level that each displayed in the second half of last season. But there can still be positive ripples that come out of disappointing developments. With that said, here are a few silver linings that can come out of the decision to send Julien on the Green Line to St. Paul.
Royce is a Difference-Maker
It would be one thing if Julien was yielding a roster spot and playing time to a marginal player who was coming back from a prolonged injury. If it were Kyle Farmer coming back from a strained quad and the team still decided Julien was the player who needed to be sent down, more outrage would be well warranted.
But Lewis was counted on to be the heart of the lineup (and, frankly, the clubhouse) for years to come, and his outlook hasn’t lost that shine despite his lengthy absence. Through his first 71 games of action in the major leagues, the young face of the franchise has impressed mightily, hitting at a .313/.369/.564 clip with 18 home runs and 58 RBIs. In his admittedly small sample size, he’s done nothing but thrive at the game’s highest level, and it doesn’t appear to be a mirage.
Getting Lewis back in the fold will be worthwhile, even if it comes at the immediate expense of Julien as his offensive numbers continue to tumble.
The Post-Hype Prospects Continue To Hit
As Lewis began his rehab assignment two weeks ago, many started to speculate what the corresponding roster move would be upon his official return. The go-to answer was the safe assumption that these questions usually answer themselves with yet another injury elsewhere on the roster. But this time, the Twins had to make an imperfect move to address the rare problem of having a roster that’s just too damn healthy (*furiously knocks on wood*).
The Twins have shown a hesitancy to pull the plug on struggling veterans in the past, so an early-season designation for the likes of someone like Manuel Margot or Farmer in this instance never felt realistic, as underwhelming as their play has been so far in 2024. That left a small handful of names under team control as potential demotions. Along with Julien, this included former top prospects Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach and José Miranda.
But each of those three have been hitting the snot out of the ball over the last few weeks. Since May 20, Kirilloff and Larnach each have an OPS nearing 1.000, and Miranda has an impressive .832 OPS himself, while providing huge results in clutch situations. In that timeframe, the 25-year-old hit an otherworldly .409/.417/.909 in medium- and high-leverage situations, with three home runs and nine runs batted in.
In short, it stinks when an exciting young player gets demoted after the only significant month-long slump in their entire career. But it’s easier to swallow when three other young players are stepping up like we’ve seen in recent weeks.
Julien Could Be Back Up Shortly
Even after Julien’s brutal month of May, he still grades out as an above-average player on the year, thanks to his hot stretch in April and his surprisingly solid defense all season long. No question, he’ll have some things to work on in Triple-A--namely his ability to drive off-speed and breaking balls while maintaining his elite immunity to chasing out of the zone. But there’s a sense that his demotion is different from that of someone like Wallner or Varland, who never got on track from the get-go.
It’s reasonable to expect that Julien goes down and mashes for a few weeks, forcing the Twins’ hand into a harder decision with some of their underperforming veterans (which many critics of this move seem to be craving at this moment), rather than kicking the can down the road.
It’s also reasonable to expect Julien to be the first name called if there’s an injury to the major-league roster, especially if he’s replacing a fellow left-handed hitter. (Austin Martin would likely be the replacement for Byron Buxton or Margot.) Because Julien’s demotion had more to do with the other names that are on the Twins roster than with his own need for a harder reset, he’s more likely to be available for a swift return to the MLB roster.
What do you think? Do these silver linings to Julien’s demotion make up for the disappointment of sending him down? Where do you think he fits into the team’s long-term plans? Let us know your thoughts in the comments, and as always, keep it sweet.
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