Minnesota Twins Roster
- AL Central
- Stadium
- Target Field
Minnesota Twins right-hander Jhoan Duran threw a scoreless ninth inning to nail down a 2-0 Opening Day win over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday. Duran struck out one, walked one, and did not allow a hit while earning the save. The 25-year-old reliever showed off his elite fastball in the frame with six of his 17 pitches topping 100 MPH. The Twins could take a committee approach in the ninth inning this season but Duran has the potential to emerge as the lead guy for save chances. He should be rostered in all leagues as a source of saves and strikeouts.
Minnesota Twins left-hander Pablo Lopez threw 5 1/3 innings of shutout ball in a 2-0 Opening Day win over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday. Lopez struck out eight, walked three, and picked up the win in his first start for the Twins. The veteran southpaw proved to be difficult for the Royals to make contact against as he finished with 17 swinging strikes on 85 total pitches. Minnesota has to be pleased with the early returns after they acquired Lopez from the Miami Marlins for Luis Arraez in the offseason. Lopez could finish as a top fantasy starting pitcher if he is able to stay healthy this season.
Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton will serve as the designated hitter and bat third in the lineup on Opening Day on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals and right-hander Zack Greinke. The Twins plan to ease the oft-injured outfielder in as their DH to begin the season after he had arthroscopic knee surgery late last September. Michael A. Taylor will start in center field and bat ninth on Thursday. It remains to be seen how much the 29-year-old Buxton will run in 2023 and how often he'll receive maintenance days, but when he's in there, he needs to be in all starting fantasy lineups. Buxton is still one of the most intriguing power/speed outfielders in baseball, but his problem has been staying on the field.
Minnesota Twins' fourth-ranked prospect Edouard Julien had to leave a spring training game against the Pirates after sustaining a left ankle sprain. The second baseman had a great spring with a 1.114 OPS in 23 spring training at-bats and a 1.821 OPS in the World Baseball Classic for the Canadian national team. The Twins optioned the 23-year-old to Double-A on March 14, where he put up a .422 wOBA in 2022. The Quebec native will likely see some plate appearances with the Twins this year, but the magnitude of those appearances will depend entirely on the health of the oft-injured Jorge Polanco and Nick Gordon.
Minnesota Twins shortstop Royce Lewis (knee) is taking live at-bats in Florida and will soon progress to baserunning. The Twins are potentially looking at getting him into game activity in mid-April. The team's second-ranked prospect, per MLB Pipeline, was put on the 60-day injured list in February while he continues to rehab from surgery to fix a torn right ACL. Although the 23-year-old could start playing in games in mid-April, he'll still need to be built up and will require a lengthy minor-league rehab assignment before the Twins even consider adding him to their major-league roster. Barring setbacks, Lewis probably won't make his 2023 big-league debut until sometime in June. The biggest question now is whether his elite speed will remain intact after his serious knee injury.
