Joey Gallo doesn't like batting leadoff for Twins; Rocco Baldelli doesn't care

LOS ANGELES – It was Mookie Betts Bobblehead Night at Dodger Stadium on Monday, which helps explain why the Twins played before their largest crowd of the season thus far.

But there were more important reasons the day was special for a handful of Twins.

Kenta Maeda, for instance, was back at the park where he appeared in a couple of World Series for the first time since being traded to Minnesota in 2020. Kyle Farmer was back on the field where he debuted as a major leaguer with a walkoff double in 2017. And Joey Gallo was back at the plate where he hit a long pinch-hit home run against — oh, this is awkward — current teammate Griffin Jax last season, what the slugger describes as probably the highlight of his two-month tenure as a Dodger.

"Jax reminds me about that every once in awhile," Gallo said with a laugh. "I don't bring it up."

Gallo isn't nearly as tactful with his opinion on Rocco Baldelli's latest lineup contortion. With Max Kepler on the injured list, Byron Buxton more suited for the middle of the lineup, and Edouard Julien back in St. Paul, Baldelli last weekend turned to Gallo as his leadoff hitter.

There was no reluctance on the manager's part — "We had to get creative," Baldelli said — but Gallo, though acquiescent to his boss' wishes, doesn't hide his objection, either.

"It's not that I don't want to," Gallo said before Monday's game, his third career start in the leadoff spot, "but I don't want to."

The lefthanded slugger prefers to consider as much information as possible before stepping into the box, one reason why he frequently skips the on-deck circle and stands almost uncomfortably close to the plate while the batter in front of him hits.

So the idea of facing a pitcher without watching what that opponent is throwing strikes him as ill-advised.

"That's the hardest part for me," Gallo said. "It's not what I'm used to, going up there and being the first guy to attack, to see what a pitcher's doing. That's what's so different for me."

Gallo is the seventh Twins player to be atop the lineup this season; no other team has shuffled through more than five, and two teams, the Braves (Ronald Acuña Jr.) and Rangers (Marcus Semien) have had the same leadoff hitter in every game.

And while their 10 home runs from the leadoff spot, including blasts from Gallo on Saturday and Sunday, leave them one behind Tampa Bay for the league lead, Minnesota's leadoff hitters also rank last in the AL in batting average (.210), and 13th in on-base percentage (.287).

But Gallo is well-suited for the job, Baldelli said.

"He's obviously got the strength and the power and he's swinging the bat good right now. But he'll also take some pitches and some walks," the manager said. "Sometimes just shaking the lineup up and seeing how some different skill sets kind of work together, is something we have to do. … If you like judging results by seeing a guy that's hitting the ball real well and having great at-bats, he's done a great job of it."

Even if he doesn't like it?

"He'll be fine," Baldelli said. "His thoughts are always welcome, but right now, they're not going to be taken into account."

Royce Lewis went 2-for-6 with a double, and he even stole a couple of bases in two games with Class AA Wichita. As expected, the Twins have promoted the former overall No. 1 draft pick to Class AAA St. Paul to continue his rehab assignment as he recovers from surgery to repair a torn knee ligament.

Scott Boras — agent to Lewis, Gallo, Carlos Correa and three other Twins — said he is encouraged the Twins are limiting Lewis to shortstop and third base, and not returning him to the outfield, where the latest injury occurred.

"I want to make sure that he knows every move he makes, wherever he's at on the field, is something he's already practiced," Boras said. "If he were to [play outfield], he would need a lot of practice to get comfortable with his stride length, adjusting to the wall, all those things you think about when you have knee operations."

Righthanded pitcher Dereck Rodríguez, who recorded two outs for the Twins on Friday, was claimed off waivers by Atlanta and optioned to Class AAA Gwinnett.