Royce Lewis' impending return to roster gives Twins more options

PHILADELPHIA – He's not ready to announce a plan of action, but Rocco Baldelli "has spent a fair amount of time thinking about it," he said. Third baseman Royce Lewis appears ready to return to the Twins roster, perhaps as soon as Tuesday, perhaps next weekend, and that will create a crowd in the lineup.

Second baseman Edouard Julien, who has posted a team-high .857 OPS in his 70 major league games, has almost certainly graduated from the minor leagues for good. Jorge Polanco, the Opening Day second baseman, has made a reasonably sound transition to third base and batted .250 on last week's road trip. He drove in two of the Twins' three runs Sunday. Carlos Correa is entrenched as the Twins shortstop and has shown signs of emerging from a season-long funk, batting .370 since Aug. 5. Willi Castro has played second and third base, Donovan Solano has been a solid contributor as a utility player and Kyle Farmer and Joey Gallo are in the mix, too.

The solution? More lineup lottery, basically.

"Guys are going to have to move around, and we're going to have probably some people playing in different spots," said Baldelli, who has made out 115 batting orders in 119 games. "The versatility we have will help."

So will a vacancy at designated hitter, for as long as Byron Buxton is out with a hamstring strain. But Buxton is eligible to come off the injured list Tuesday, though it's unlikely the Twins will activate him that soon.

But given that it's mid-August and the Twins are in a race for the American League Central Division title, maybe giving guys an extra day off here and there — as he did with Correa on Sunday, to help reduce the soreness in his heel — is a good thing, too, the manager said.

"Having some guys getting a day [off], it'll allow us to make out nice lineups and not have to force anything," he said. "We can move guys around."

Lewis, who has missed seven weeks because of a strained oblique, went 2-for-3 Sunday and has two home runs, three singles and three walks in four games in his rehabilitation assignment with the Class AAA Saints. Baldelli said he's confident he will find plenty of at-bats for the rookie infielder and former first overall draft pick.

"We always do," he said.

Castro sat out a second straight day with a strained lower back but said he was feeling better Sunday. Meanwhile, Solano returned to the lineup with a flourish, collecting three hits while serving as the DH and leadoff man.

"I'm feeling pretty lucky to have him already back. Initially, I was thinking he's probably going to be going on the IL," Baldelli said of Solano, who sprained his right ankle and knee while stumbling to get back to first base on Tuesday. "But he's recovered well. He's moving pretty well. Is he 100 percent? He's still sore. I think his ankle is still a little sore, and his knee might even be a little sore. So he might not be moving at 100 percent, but good enough to hit and DH today."

With lefthander Ranger Suárez on the mound for the Phillies, Baldelli chose to bench Gallo a day after his 4-for-4 day and give catcher Christian Vázquez his first start of the season at first base.

"Christian's a pretty good infielder. He gets work in every day, so I have confidence that he can go over there and handle that position well," Baldelli said. "He takes balls at third — he takes balls all over the place, actually. If he has to make a play, he's done it before, and he can get it done."

With 12 career starts at first base while with Boston from 2019 to 2022, Vázquez was actually the more experienced starting first baseman in Sunday's game. With Bryce Harper limited to DH while fighting off injuries, former Twins outfielder Jake Cave manned the position, his fifth career start in the infield.

Jordan Luplow didn't notice his teammates jumping and cheering for him when his home run disappeared over the center field wall Sunday, but it didn't surprise him. His career as a Twin, now 10 days old, has been nothing but positive, he said.

"I feel great. I love being part of this team," said Luplow, who has batted .281 with three RBI since being claimed off waivers from Toronto. "From literally the first hour I got here, it felt like I was welcome. I fit in with these guys. They were very welcoming to me, and the energy in this locker room, from the coaches to the players and everyone, it's been amazing."

Austin Martin hit a three-run homer, but the Saints couldn't pull off a six-game sweep of Louisville, losing 8-6 to the Bats in a game that was halted by rain with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning at CHS Field. The Saints' Carlos Luna, making his second start at Class AAA, gave up eight runs on seven hits and one walk in 2 ⅔ innings.