FRISCO, Texas — As he walked into the indoor cage, Royce Lewis carried three different-sized bats to the batter’s box.
For the next 45 minutes, Lewis used each bat to perform a different drill.
He’s working with more intent now, tailoring his hitting routine for efficiency.
First, he hit flipped balls. Next, he hit balls placed on a tee. Later, he lowered the tee and hit another set of balls in a different direction. Lastly, he swung at a handful of lobbed pitches.
“If I don’t have the tee, it messes up my day,” Lewis said. “My whole routine is set up to find that swing.”
The hitting session is but one part of Lewis’ revamped daily routine this offseason. Whether it’s the altered hitting program, an emphasis on movement in his physical workouts or taking grounders across the infield, including at second base, Lewis is recharged and motivated to move on from a difficult end to his first full season in the majors.
From Aug. 9 on, Lewis batted .198/.247/.281 with two home runs, 16 RBIs and 43 strikeouts in 182 plate appearances, which dropped his season OPS 290 points to .747. He also didn’t adapt well when asked to move to second base in early September. The struggles on both sides of the ball came as a 12-27 collapse prevented the Twins from making the playoffs.
“It was a mixture of everything, honestly,” Lewis said. “I’m a very emotional person. I ride off of how everyone’s feeling kind of in the clubhouse — and when you’re losing, the clubhouse is not very happy and exciting. The stress level was up. We’re trying to make the playoffs. The team as a whole kind of stopped hitting. … It was a big year to learn.”
Lewis, who will turn 26 in June, says that physically he is now closer to how he felt when the Twins drafted him first overall in 2017.
“We’re working on keeping the body loose,” Lewis said. “(I’m) back to being bouncy, electric and not as tight. Just because I can do a bunch of power doesn’t mean I need to deadlift 600 pounds. I’m kind of going away from that and back to kind of what I used to do.”
He likes how good he feels. He’s been recovering better since he and the Twins altered his physical program in the middle of the season, which helped him to appear in 58 of the team’s final 61 games.
Shortly after he returned from his Opening Day right quad injury, which cost him 58 games, Lewis suffered another injury. The frustration of a right adductor strain that resulted in 16 more missed games led to introspection.
With a growing injury history, Lewis started to realize everything he needed to do in pre-game prep to stay on the field. Whether it was twice tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee or the quad injury, Lewis’ body had begun to tighten up.
One of the areas he and the Twins focused on was movement quality, which has led to remote work sessions this offseason with former Twins employee Jennifer Reiner-Marcello. Lewis previously worked with Reiner-Marcello when he rehabbed his torn ACL.
Coupled with better eating habits in preparation for his Jan. 13 wedding, Lewis feels leaner. He’s always prioritized having a good diet, but now he’s eating less, too.
“I feel better waking up each day,” Lewis said. “This offseason just feels like it’s been probably my best working-wise.”
The Twins like what they’re seeing.
Lewis frequently sends videos of his workouts to the training staff. And, during last week’s Winter Meetings, Twins major league strength and conditioning coach Aaron Rhodes made the short drive from Dallas to Frisco to work out with Lewis and his offseason training partner, teammate Trevor Larnach.
“One of the things that really came to light was the necessity for the preparation and understanding even though he’s ‘healthy,’ these are things that he needs to stay on top of,” Twins strength and conditioning director Ian Kadish said. “It was up to us to hold him accountable to make sure he was prepared. But it was also up to him to take ownership in that and make sure that he’s prepared. I think it’s in a much better place now.”
As he worked out last offseason, Lewis hit just to hit. This year, he said there’s more purpose to his hitting sessions.
Following an electric end to the 2023 season, Lewis almost immediately began to hit again in preparation for 2024. But after the team’s collapse this September, Lewis delayed the start of his hitting program and changed his routine, taking a more thoughtful approach.
“Maybe I did too much hitting (last year),” Lewis said. “I just wanted to go out there and hit and I was antsy. Not that I don’t feel that this year. … I’m just very intentional with my work. I have a meaning behind it. Each bat is differently used for a certain drill. I’m just being more diligent, taking my time in between pitches if need be, just to think about what I did right, wrong.”
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli isn’t surprised by what Lewis revealed about his thought process. He and bench coach Jayce Tingler also traveled to see Lewis and Larnach during the Winter Meetings and came away pleased.
Baldelli isn’t sure if there’s one factor that led to Lewis slumping for nearly two months. But he does believe Lewis is applying what he learned through adversity.
“It tempers you,” Baldelli said of Lewis struggling for the first time in the majors. “It changes you. Then the next time you’re dealing with those things, you treat them differently. You figure out ways to handle things, people to talk to, directions to go in that he didn’t probably do this time around but that he will do the next time around. He has a great support system. … I think we’re going to see a different guy … whether that’s April, May, June, or at the end of the year, when he runs into a little rut, I think he’ll treat it in a totally different manner.”
Lewis has thought a lot about what contributed to his struggles. The 1.7 mph dip in average bat speed from his June hot streak to August suggested fatigue played a role. But Lewis thinks the longest slump of his career stemmed from a number of factors.
“Between all that losing, long season catching up to the body and also just some swing mechanical stuff that, like, gets lost when you get tired like that,” Lewis said. “You try to find other ways in your body. Our body adapts to things and is trying to find a way to get to positions I needed to get to to hit the baseball and it was creating a bad habit. … When you figure things out at the highest level, that’s what makes you better. So I think it’s motivating. I’m really excited for this year because of the ending there.”
So long as it’s on the infield dirt, Lewis is open to playing the position, including second base. He still loves playing shortstop, but Lewis recognizes that’s not an option with Carlos Correa at the position.
Yet as he suggested during the season, Lewis’ mindset about playing on the right side of the infield is much better than it was with a postseason berth on the line.
Approached about the possibility of playing second base in late August and early September, Lewis said he was “terrified,” calling it akin to removing a baby from a crib. Lewis said he was worried about adding a new set of logistics to a growing list of stressors.
“I just needed some time,” Lewis said. “It’s hard to make a transition like that in the middle of the year. When you’re in the playoff hunt, I was already like dealing with the stresses of trying to hit and figure out how to play through fatigue at the end of a season. It was my first time going through that in like five, six years. I wanted to focus on some of those things rather than (second). It’s a totally different side of the world. I know a ground ball is a ground ball. But it’s the little things — coverages, footwork, double plays, worrying about my knees running in the outfield. … That’s why I was hesitant at the time.”
The Twins haven’t informed Lewis where they want him to play next season. With a slow start to offseason roster construction, the Twins don’t yet know what they’ll look like on Opening Day.
Though there’s been no definitive answer, the Twins have prepared him for the possibility of playing second, with Lewis describing it as a “better conversation.” Baldelli said he’d like to let Lewis and his teammates know where they’ll be playing by the start of spring training, which opens on Feb. 11.
“I’d like to figure that out sooner than later, and I’m sure he would too,” Baldelli said. “But at this point in the offseason, we probably can’t answer that question quite yet. He can do it. He can do it.”
Just about everyone believes Lewis can succeed at second.
Last month, Lewis’ agent, Scott Boras, said the budding star has Ryne Sandberg-esque qualities. Like the Twins, he thinks Lewis could flourish at second base.
With Brooks Lee and Jose Miranda needing time at third base, Lewis seems like a natural fit at second. He sounds like one as well.
“I take ground balls at short, second and third — all three because I’m trying to be available,” Lewis said. “If (second base) needs to happen, it makes sense. That’s fine. I could play wherever really, as long as it’s on the dirt. It’s a good thing for us.”
(Top photo: Matt Krohn / Associated Press)
