Twins lose again; Royce Lewis headed to 10-day IL; Jose Miranda back?

For the seventh time since he made his MLB debut in 2022, Royce Lewis is headed to the injured list. After pulling up lame when running to first base on Friday night, Lewis is going on the 10-day IL with what the Twins are calling a mild left hamstring strain, according to multiple beat reporters. The move is expected to be made official on Sunday morning.

Lewis suffered the injury while running out a single in the ninth inning of Friday's blowout loss. Making it hurt more for the Twins is that Lewis hit his second home run of the season earlier in the game. With the single in the ninth, he'd gone 11 for 28 with 6 runs scored and 6 RBI in nine games since June 3. But right as his bat was starting to heat up after a mostly rough season, Lewis will now be out for a while — presumably at least until July.

In his four-year career, Lewis has played in a total of 182 big-league games. The 26-year-old has required multiple IL stints in each of the last three seasons.

Royce Lewis IL trips

2022: 1 (torn ACL)
2023: 2 (oblique strain, hamstring strain)
2024: 2 (quad strain, adductor strain)
2025: 2 (two hamstring strains)

That doesn't include his first torn ACL, which caused him to miss the minor league season in 2021. Despite his struggles late last season and for much of this season, Lewis has displayed immense talent when he's been on the field. The former No. 1 overall pick just hasn't been able to stay healthy.

Miranda rejoining Twins?

We'll have to wait and see what the Twins' corresponding move is when Lewis officially lands on the IL on Sunday, but it sounds like Jose Miranda might be rejoining the big-league club for the first time since he was sent down to Triple-A in mid-April. Miranda was not in the St. Paul Saints' lineup on Saturday, which could be an indication that he's coming back up.

Miranda was 6 for 36 this season before getting demoted. He has struggled in Triple-A, hitting just .217 with a .627 OPS, but he did have a bit of a recent hot streak from May 31-June 7. In need of a third baseman and right-handed bat, the Twins may feel like Miranda is their best option at the moment. He was a productive hitter for Minnesota in 2022 and 2024 and has a career .719 OPS in the big leagues.

Twins' skid continues

The Twins dropped their second straight game in Houston on Saturday and have now lost seven of their last nine. Closer Jhoan Duran gave up a walk and two hits in the bottom of the ninth inning, including a walk-off single by rookie Cam Smith in a 3-2 Astros victory. Minnesota is 36-34 and tied with the Guardians for the final wild card spot in the AL.

Saturday's game was quite the pitcher's duel between Hunter Brown and Joe Ryan. Both starters went seven strong innings, allowing just a two-run homer apiece. Ryan struck out seven batters and only allowed two hits, but one was Yainer Diaz's home run in the third inning. Brown struck out a career-high 12 and gave up just three hits, but one was Brooks Lee's game-tying homer into the Crawford Boxes in the fifth. The score remained knotted at 2-2 until Smith walked it off for Houston. Twins batters struck out 17 times on the day.

Also concerning for Minnesota is that star Byron Buxton departed the game with a left elbow contusion a couple innings after being hit by a pitch.

The Twins will look to avoid a sweep in Sunday's series finale at 1:10 p.m. CT. It'll be Simeon Woods Richardson on the mound for Minnesota against Astros lefty Brandon Walter.