The Minnesota Twins placed Royce Lewis on the 10-day injured list Monday with a bone bruise to his right knee suffered when he collided with the outfield wall while making a catch in the game against the Kansas City Royals.
Infielder Jose Miranda, who was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul when Lewis was recalled Sunday, was recalled to replace Lewis on the 26-man roster.
Lewis, a natural shortstop, started in center field Sunday after the Twins had him work at multiple positions in the minors so he could better contribute to the major league club. He made a spectacular catch in the top of the third inning while colliding into the outfield wall. Nick Gordon replaced him in center field in the top of the fourth inning and hit a solo home run to help the Twins prevail 7-3.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters Monday that Lewis’ injury won’t change the team’s plans to play him at multiple positions when he returns from the IL.
“I think he can handle it fine. I think it’s more of an unfortunate individual play,” Baldelli said, according to MLB.com.
He is batting .300 with two home runs, five RBIs and an .867 OPS in 41 plate appearances at the big league level this season.
Lewis, 22, was the No. 1 overall pick by the Twins in the 2017 draft. This is his first season back on the field in two years. After a year without minor league competition in 2020 due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lewis then tore the ACL in his right knee while doing an agility drill in an offseason workout before reporting to spring training last year. He sat out the entire 2021 season recovering from reconstructive surgery.