Twins Fantasy Fix (4/23): Can the Bats Bounce Back?

Welcome back to Twins Fantasy Fix! The Twins are in their first true rough patch of the season. After a promising start in New York, they lost the last two games of that series before losing two out of three in Boston. They then lost the first two at home against the Nationals as of this writing. Even with the struggles, there have been some noteworthy fantasy developments, including the long-awaited return of Jorge Polanco. Let’s look at some key injury updates, plus which Twins have their stock rising and falling from a fantasy perspective due to results from the past week. I’ll also take a look at the week ahead and highlight some matchups to target and avoid.

Twins Injury Updates

Kenta Maeda
Expected return: Wednesday

Maeda took a liner off his ankle in his last start Thursday and left the game after only two innings. He’s set to test the ankle on Monday but the team is cautiously lining him up for Wednesday's start against the Yankees. He's probably not a great match-up there anyway. Bailey Ober was called up to make his season debut on Sunday but so long as Maeda tracks to stay in the rotation it's probably just a spot start ... for now. Ober has proven to be a capable MLB starter, so he could merit fantasy attention if he can find himself a full-time spot.

Alex Kirilloff
Expected return: May

Kiriloff has been on a rehab assignment in St. Paul and has looked good at the plate. He’s eligible to come off the injured list next week, but it sounds like the Twins may choose to option him to the minors and keep him in Triple-A for a while. Hard to imagine that lasting long if their offense continues to scuffle. Keep a close eye on Kirilloff's production in St. Paul and be ready to jump if he gets promoted because he'll likely immediately land in a run-producing lineup spot.

Twins Fantasy Player Trends

Stock Rising: Jorge Lopez
ESPN ownership: 32%

Lopez only has one save in the early going but that doesn’t tell the story of his fantasy impact. The righty has logged 8 ⅔ scoreless frames with eight strikeouts across nine appearances so far. He’s also recorded a win and four holds. The Twins seem willing to use him in high-leverage spots at different points in the game, and Jhoan Duran remains the primary closer, so his opportunities for saves may be sporadic. However, Lopez could continue to rack up some wins and holds. If he does that and maintains solid ratios, he’ll be a strong fantasy asset. Lopez is the 11th-rated reliever in ESPN leagues at the moment, so his ownership percentage should likely be higher.

Stock Falling: Edouard Julien
ESPN ownership: 2%

This is stock falling purely from a current fantasy perspective. Julien remains a strong prospect for the Twins and a good target in dynasty formats. However, he was optioned to Triple-A with the return of Polanco on Friday. With Kirilloff likely also returning in the near future, the Twins infield will be a bit more crowded, and DH is unavailable as long as Byron Buxton is occupying it. Julien should do well with the Saints and may get called up again down the road, but there's just no room for him at the moment, so for now his fantasy value takes a hit.

Upcoming Week Matchup Notes

• 3 Games vs New York Yankees (Jhony Brito, Nestor Cortes, Domingo German)
• 4 Games vs Kansas City Royals (Zack Greinke, Jordan Lyles, Brad Keller, Brady Singer)

It’s another full week for the Twins and an interesting rematch against the Yankees. Brito started Minnesota’s most memorable game to date when they scored nine times in the first inning en route to an 11-2 win. German also started during the series and ran into controversy for having some rosin on his hand, though he ultimately wasn’t ejected while Rocco Baldelli was. After the New York series, the Royals come to town, and all four matchups look inviting.

Two-Start Starting Pitchers 

Sonny Gray and Joe Ryan are both set for two starts, which is music to the ears of fantasy managers. They’ve both been very good this season and should continue to keep rolling. Plug them in with confidence.

Twins Fantasy Hitters to Watch

The Brito matchup has my attention after the rout last week. A number of Twins hitters were impactful in that contest, but Carlos Correa and Michael A. Taylor stand out with home runs. Christian Vazquez also had three hits in the game.

It’s fair to avoid Cortes in daily formats if you want, but German could be worth targeting, particularly if you think the Twins will be playing with any added motivation to send him packing early. Polanco, who wasn’t active for the last matchup, has a home run against German in six career at-bats.

The four-game set against Kansas City seems like a get-right series for the Twins. The Royals are scoring a tick above three runs per game and allowing nearly six runs per game. Of the probable starters, Singer has been the worst this season with an 8.14 ERA and .306 batting average against. He’s also allowed five home runs in only 21 innings. Greinke has allowed five long balls as well, while Lyles has given up four home runs. You could target any of the matchups in daily leagues, but if you want to go after the struggling Singer, both Polanco and Max Kepler have two career home runs against him. Singer has also allowed single home runs to Byron Buxton, Willi Castro, Joey Gallo, Nick Gordon and Trevor Larnach. In short, Minnesota hitters have crushed him to the tune of a 1.041 OPS across 101 total at-bats.

How are we feeling about the Twins from a fantasy perspective? Let me know in the COMMENTS, plus share your thoughts on the matchups this week.