Twins likely to stay flexible with DH spot

FORT MYERS, FLA. — Signing Nelson Cruz was one of the best free-agent moves the Twins have ever made. So great, in fact, that the Twins did it twice, in 2019 and 2021.

Would they like to make that connection a third time? Cruz, after all, is a free agent once again, coming off a three-year stretch in which the veteran designated hitter hit more home runs than any American League player.

But as much as the Twins enjoyed writing the name of the Edgar Martinez Award winner in their lineup, the position is currently filled, Derek Falvey said Saturday. It's filled by Brent Rooker and Miguel Sano and Josh Donaldson and Luis Arraez and probably a half-dozen other guys, too.

"When we look at our team and ways we can mix and match [against] lefthanded, righthanded, and fit different opportunities to rest a guy," Falvey said, the Twins concluded that giving one hitter 90% of the DH at-bats is not a smart policy. "We've talked about the benefits to Josh in getting a day [off], and maybe get a guy off his feet for a day but keep the bat in the lineup. Those are the types of things we'll definitely consider, so that's more likely our outcome."

It's the policy of many teams, even as the National League adopts the DH rule this year. Last season, only five teams started any player more than 100 games at DH.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa said he decided to hyphenate his last name as a tribute to his parents' common-law marriage. Besides, for a baseball player, what could be better than sharing a name with a Hall of Famer?

But the new Twins shortstop is apparently connected to longtime Pirates slugger Ralph Kiner, who led the National League in home runs for seven consecutive seasons from 1946 to '52, in more than just the name. "I'm related to him," Kiner-Falefa said.

That's what his grandfather always told him as he grew up, and last year, with Kiner-Falefa in his fourth season in the major leagues, the family decided to find out. They hired a genealogist to research the family history, and while the direct connection couldn't be confirmed, the report concluded that his direct ancestor Sarah "married a Kiner from Perry County," Pa., an ancestor of the Hall of Famer, in the mid-1850s.

"That would make Ralph Kiner, baseball great, and Isiah fourth cousins, probably," the report read.

Kiner-Falefa said the Rangers never asked him about the name, so he never mentioned it. "I literally was just waiting to get traded to let my new team know," he said.

Five major league Twins took batting practice on Saturday, and three pitchers worked out in the outfield, a training session that was soon ended by midday rain and high winds. That storm also complicated travel plans for several other players.

But the Twins are expecting almost everyone to report to camp on Sunday, joining early arrivals Max Kepler, Ben Rortvedt, Luis Arraez, Alex Kirilloff, Royce Lewis, Bailey Ober, Cody Stashak and Randy Dobnak for the first full day.

The Twins have only four days to prepare for the Grapefruit League season, which begins Thursday against the Red Sox at JetBlue Park. The Twins will play 19 exhibitions in 20 days before flying home for the season opener on April 7 at Target Field.