Rainy conditions altered Royce Lewis’ plans this week.
The Twins third baseman was unable to run the bases before Wednesday’s game at Target Field, but he was cleared to start a rehab assignment Friday with the Class AAA St. Paul Saints.
Lewis, on the 10-day injured list because of a left hamstring strain since June 15, is expected to serve as the designated hitter during Friday’s minor league game at CHS Field. The Twins haven’t determined an ideal length for the rehab assignment, manager Rocco Baldelli said, but it’s possible Lewis could rejoin the roster next week.
“He’s in a good spot right now,” Baldelli said. “This is what we were probably hoping for when it first happened. This was pretty close to an ideal situation to this point. We still treat it as a guy recovering and that’s why he’s going on a rehab assignment and why he’s going to get some at-bats.”
It’s been a disappointing season for Lewis, who missed the first month of the season with a more severe strain in his left hamstring. On the field, he was batting .202 with two homers, four doubles and nine RBI in 30 games.
“Royce, to his credit, over the course of 30-40 plate appearances before he got hurt, it kind of felt like we were starting to see the tick up,” said Twins president Derek Falvey. “Like some real clicking offensively. It’s tough when you lose core members of the team that you’re counting on.”
Lewis, 26, felt like he was close to game-ready at the beginning of the week. He took on-field batting practice, participated in defensive drills and increased his running intensity.
“Mentally, with everything, resilience is what I try to stand for now,” Lewis said. “Just keep having fun, being myself and I just want to go out there and have fun playing the game that I love. Looking forward to coming back this time.”
