Royce Lewis is Ready to Rock

For Rocco Baldelli’s Twins, Carlos Correa is back and here to stay at shortstop. He may miss time over the next handful of years, but the hope is that he remains an anchor in the lineup. That doesn’t change Royce Lewis having a focus on cracking the roster and factoring in wherever his manager can use him.

Having undergone a second ACL surgery, Lewis is now on the way back and if you ask him he’s ready to go. Just recently he started stepping in for live at bats, and watching him work for the past week showcased an impressive talent ready to show out. His physical stature looks good, and the speed tool continues to remain in place. Though he’ll start the season on the 60-day injured list, Lewis will be an option for Minnesota early this summer.

I caught up with Royce and sat down to ask a few questions about this team, his rehab, and where the coming season may take him.

Twins Daily: With this being the second time going through rehab on a torn ACL, what’s different now?

Royce Lewis: The main difference is that I started in Fort Myers and then when the hurricane happened I went to Dallas to finish there. With the city being in such a bad condition, I didn’t have the same resources so it made sense to stay in Dallas. I talked with the Twins once or twice a week. As soon as Nick Paparesta signed, he talked to me once a week himself. Minnesota wrote up the schedule and would send it to my physical therapist. He acted as the middleman and just told me what to do.

TD: You recently started hitting, or taking batting practice. How does that feel? How is the lateral movement going?

RL: As of three days ago (March 16) we’ve been doing lateral stuff. I think I could be pushed a bit more and challenging myself more. I think I could be playing today, I truly feel great. I don’t fault the team, I’m not mad at all. The doctors got together and it makes the most sense with the second ACL injury on the same knee to play it safe. It’s about the next 15 years, I’m young.

TD: With Carlos Correa coming back, has there been a mindset change about position or where you may end up at all?

RL: I haven’t been told anything about positions and I’m still training like I’m a shortstop. To be honest, me playing shortstop last year and then moving positions randomly for ten days or whatever was something I could do with ease. If you can play shortstop you can play anywhere up the middle. Short, second, center, those guys can kind of play anywhere. I feel stable, and ready to go. As you saw I’m taking live at bats, but they aren’t letting me hit, I can’t swing. I’m just tracking right now, but I do feel like I’m seeing the ball great. I’ve had a couple of check swings because I’m antsy. Tuesday (March 21) is right around the corner, so I’ll hit Tuesday or Wednesday depending on who’s throwing.

TD: With regards to the new rules, both pitch clock and bases, is there an opportunity to be more aggressive?

RL: I usually just steal when the situation is right. I think I can get it. The bases will definitely help, it feels a lot closer. We exposed the three pickoff thing a lot in the minor leagues. As a runner, they’re promoting people to run more. Our team (Minnesota) was a bit lower on that last year, but I think this year we’ll push the envelope a bit more with the help of those new rules. I can’t wait, hopefully I get some more green lights.

TD: What’s the plan from here? Do you have a destination already after camp?

RL: The only thing I know is that I’ll be down here (Fort Myers) through April. Because of the whole 60-day thing, you only have 20 games you can play before. May 29th is the last day, so you’re thinking around May 9th or 10th to go somewhere to play. I think it will depend on the weather. If it’s cold, we’re not going to send you to St. Paul. Even healthy people get stiff in the cold, so maybe Wichita.

TD: What makes 2023 a success for you? What are you shooting to accomplish?

RL: Really to come back and make the roster. Our team is so good. We have great players and depth on both sides of the ball. To be able to crack that roster you have to be playing good. I think that’s a good goal of mine. I want to be able to help this team make a playoff push. In my heart of hearts I believe this is a playoff team. We need to stay healthy. This is a World Series contending team.

TD: Why is this team different from last year? What about 2023 Opening Day looks different?

RL: Having everyone have a bit more experience and be a bit more comfortable with each other. Guys like Trevor Larnach, Alex Kirilloff, myself, there’s been debuts and people feel a bit more ready. The depth is truly a thing. Good teams like the Astros and Dodgers have depth. You see a guy like Jose Altuve out for 8-10 weeks and it’s like guess what we have so-and-so to fill in and he’s also a baller. Look at Nick Gordon, he’s the best utility player in baseball. Twins fans are going to see how good this team really is. We have health right now.

TD: Ending on a light night, new jerseys, which one is your favorite?

RL: I like the gray pinstripes, but I think the cream Twins Cities top is the best. I love that we switched it up. I wish we had one or two more in our back pocket. I loved the red and the baby blue.

There is no denying the short cameo last season was among the highlights of the year for Twins fans. Seeing Lewis play alongside Correa on the dirt this season would be great, and he remains one of the most exciting prospects Minnesota has had in quite some time.