Minnesota Twins DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Minnesota Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers is absent from the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals. This appears to be a routine rest day for Jeffers after he started in each of the last three games. That being said, Christian Vazquez will do the catching and bat seventh versus left-hander Cole Ragans. Vazquez has been cold at the plate with only one hit in his last 11 at-bats. He's unlikely to have much success against a tough southpaw here. Fantasy managers should look elsewhere for a streaming option on Friday.

The Minnesota Twins placed outfielder Max Kepler (knee) on the 10-day injured list on Thursday with left-patellar tendinitis and recalled rookie outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. from the minors in a corresponding move. Pitcher Kody Funderbunk (oblique) was moved to the 60-day IL to add Keirsey to the 40-man roster. Kepler had been dealing with a knee injury for a while and had only played in three of the team's last 11 games, so a move to put him on the IL made sense. The 31-year-old left-handed hitter has been a disappointment in 2024, but the Twins will likely just be looking to get him healthy for a potential playoff run now. Keirsey, who will be making his MLB debut, will likely just be a bench player in Minnesota for the time being, with most of the extra playing time in right field going to Matt Wallner. Wallner, also a lefty hitter, has batted .261 (42-for-161) on the year with 10 homers and 28 RBI.

Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton (hip) felt some more right-hip soreness before he was ejected from a minor-league rehab game with Triple-A St. Paul on Wednesday and will not rejoin the team for their series in Kansas City against the division-rival Royals this weekend. Buxton is set to be re-evaluated. The oft-injured outfielder was expected to come off the 10-day injured to rejoin the team on Friday, but that won't be happening now, and it's unclear when Buxton might be able to rejoin the big-league roster. The 30-year-old has been on the shelf since the middle of August, and depending on what the Twins find, there's a chance that Buxton could have to be shut down for the rest of the 2024 season. Until Buxton is able to return from his hip ailment, expect the Twins to continue to use a combination of Willi Castro and Austin Martin in center field.

Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis is making his first career major-league start at second base and will bat in the two-hole in Wednesday's contest against the Tampa Bay Rays and right-hander Cole Sulser at Tropicana Field. Jose Miranda will man the hot corner and hit cleanup for the Twins. Minnesota may want to transition Lewis to the keystone because of some throwing issues he's had on defense at third base recently. It remains to be seen if this is a permanent move going forward, but if it is, it will only make the 25-year-old former first overall pick that much more attractive in fantasy. Injuries have been Lewis' biggest obstacle early in his MLB career, but in just 59 games in 2024, he's already set a new career-high with 16 home runs to go along with 44 RBI in 235 plate appearances. Lewis is a must-start for his power alone in fantasy.

Minnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler (knee) is out of the starting lineup again on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Kepler will miss his second straight game after he was scratched from Monday's lineup with more soreness in his left knee. In his place, rookie Michael Helman will make his major-league debut, starting in right field and batting ninth against Rays left-hander Jeffrey Springs. It's an issue that Kepler has been dealing with recently. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. The 31-year-old German has provided very little to fantasy managers in 2024 with a .253/.302/.380 slash line with a below-average .682 OPS and just eight homers and 42 RBI in 368 at-bats. Helman, a former 11th-round pick in 2018 out of Texas A&M, got the call-up to the big leagues after hitting .283 with 13 home runs, 43 RBI and 10 steals in 63 games for Triple-A St. Paul this year.