After hitting above .300 against minor league pitching throughout the past month, Matt Wallner is back in the major leagues.
The Twins added Wallner to their active roster Saturday after they placed third baseman Jose Miranda on the 10-day injured list because of a shoulder impingement. Wallner, the 25-year-old outfielder from Forest Lake, reached base in eight consecutive plate appearances with the Twins in May before he was demoted due to a roster crunch in the outfield.
Wallner will vie for playing time with lefthanded-hitting corner outfielders Joey Gallo, Max Kepler and Alex Kirilloff, and switch hitter Willi Castro, but it was hard for anybody to ignore his production at Class AAA St. Paul. He hit .308 with seven homers, 31 RBI and 34 runs in his last 36 games while lowering his strikeout rate by a significant margin.
"I just feel like I've been consistent since I left," Wallner told reporters in Oakland. "I've hit the ball well. The biggest thing is that I've put the ball in play more than I ever have, so I feel good about that part."
This is Wallner's third time with the Twins this season, spending time on the active roster from April 8-15 and May 23-29.
"He's been doing a good job," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "We can probably find some ways to get him in there and get him some at-bats, but there is no direct way to get him in there for regular ABs right now," noting the presence of other lefthanded-hitting corner outfielders.
Miranda was scratched from Friday's lineup because of his shoulder injury, which stems from spring training, and apparently didn't improve with time off during the All-Star break. His stint on the IL is retroactive to Wednesday. Called up on July 2, he went 1-for-10 with a strikeout.
It's been a disappointing season for Miranda after he showed promise as a rookie last year. Miranda is batting .211 through 40 games with a .263 on-base percentage and seven extra-base hits in 152 plate appearances.