Twins Video
The injury bug once again burrowed its displeasing proboscis into star third baseman Royce Lewis, sucking up some of the vigor fueling the Twins' otherwise promising start to the season. Lewis came up lame rounding second base on a double by Carlos Correa and quickly exited the game following a consultation with athletic trainer Nick Paparesta. The team later relayed that Lewis had suffered a quadriceps injury and underwent an MRI as the contest progressed. (As of this writing, the results of the MRI have not been revealed.)
The quadriceps is the primary muscle group of the thigh, and is comprised of four different muscles (hence the name). Their purpose is to forcefully extend (i.e., straighten) the knee, particularly during powerful movements such as sprinting and swinging. Without a fully functional quadriceps, completing athletic movements becomes difficult, if not impossible, especially at the level needed to play major-league baseball.
Quadriceps strains are fairly common in baseball, with 68 having occurred between 2016 and 2023, according to Baseball Prospectus’s Recovery Dashboard. The average number of days missed following a quadriceps strain falls between 21 and 30 days, or approximately four weeks. However, the severity of the strain (as well as how Lewis responds to rehabilitation and ramping back to full baseball activity) will determine how much time he misses. Grade 1 strains—the least severe—tend to sideline athletes for a couple of weeks; Grade 2 strains may linger for a couple of months. Regardless, it seems as though a trip to the injured list is in the cards for Lewis.
As a result, expect the Twins to call up either Austin Martin or Jose Miranda should Lewis land on the IL. Brooks Lee would likely have been first in line for a promotion following a solid spring, but the former first-round pick is expected to miss the first month of the season as he recovers from back spasms, according to St. Paul Saints manager Toby Gardenhire. Martin played third base extensively during his college days at Vanderbilt but has not appeared at the hot corner during his minor league career; should he get the call, he will likely primarily appear at second base with Kyle Farmer shifting to third. Miranda rose up the minor league ranks and made his MLB debut as a third baseman, however, he has been transitioned to first base following a shoulder injury and corresponding surgery.
Unsurprisingly, Lewis—who is known for his glass-half-full disposition—was his typical positive self after the win, reflecting on how cool it was to be in the big leagues on Opening Day for the first time in his career. He also mentioned that he was relieved that his latest injury did not directly impact his twice-surgically-repaired right knee.
Speculation will run rampant about whether Lewis’s two ACL ruptures caused, or at least contributed to, his quadriceps strain. The true answer is that it’s almost impossible to know, despite the seemingly clear correlation. Athletic injuries are complex and multifactorial. As such, there is never a clean explanation for why they occur, or if they were even preventable. Correlation does not equal causation, despite how logical the correlation may look on paper.
Regardless of how much time Lewis misses, this is not an injury that should hamper his future outlook, either this season or moving forward. As he has shown all too often, Lewis is perhaps the most resilient player in MLB. The big questions are whether and how much the Twins prove to be resilient after losing him, for some period of time.
Follow Twins Daily For Minnesota Twins News & Analysis
- Kenny Powers, Fatbat, chinmusic and 19 others
-
22
Recommended Comments
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now