Royce Lewis Scratched From Lineup After Running Bases Before Spring Game

Royce Lewis was scratched from the Twins lineup on Thursday due to tightness in his right side after running the bases before an exhibition game against the Pirates. According to Dan Hayes, the Twins decided to pull him from the lineup out of an abundance of caution.

That is, quite literally, the last thing Twins fans want to hear. Lewis, the former No. 1 overall pick, has been a massive disappointment, despite showing flashes of superstar potential, due to a myriad of injuries.

Coming off of an extended slump to close out the 2024 season, Lewis began 2025 on the injured list due to a spring training hamstring strain. He came back in early May but struggled quite a bit to find a rhythm. On June 2, Lewis was hitting .127 with a sub-.400 OPS. His hope was gone. He then started to heat up in June, only to land on the IL again.

In 2024, he missed more than 50 games after suffering a right quadriceps strain after hitting a homer in his first at-bat on Opening Day. In 2023, he battled through a strained oblique and a strained hamstring. In June 2022, he tore the same ACL in his right knee that he tore in February 2021.

"I can't wait to shock everybody. Shock the world, and even shock a few of our own people in here, maybe," Lewis said last week when talking about the 2026 Twins.

"I'm facing Taj (Bradley), I'm facing Mick (Abel), I'm facing some of these pitchers, Simeon Woods (Richardson), Joe Ryan obviously, Bailey Ober, all those guys. It's not a fun at-bat, and I can't imagine the rest of the league's feeling super comfy. Seeing 98 (mph) move like that as it does, it's impressive, so I know that we're going to be alright," Lewis added.

The Twins have already lost staff ace Pablo Lopez for the season, while 2025 All-Star Joe Ryan gave fans a scare when he was scratched from a spring start with low back tightness last week. Ryan is expected to be fine and could resume starting at spring training next week, but David Festa, who was expected to compete for a starting spot or find a role in the bullpen, is now dealing with right shoulder impingement and will require an injection and several weeks of rest, according to Hayes.

Lewis thinks big numbers will follow if he's able to stay healthy.

"Get myself into the box, 700 plate appearances, and I think the stats will speak for themselves at that point," Lewis told SKOR North's Declan Goff. "My goal is to get in, get preset, get into my load properly, early and on time, and then go from there."

None of that will be possible if he can't stay on the field.