Twins prospect, former No. 1 pick Royce Lewis has torn ACL
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The Twins expect prospect and former number one overall draft pick Royce Lewis to miss the entire 2021 season due to a torn ACL. He’ll have reconstructive surgery in the Twin Cities on Friday.
Click the video box on this page to watch Derek Falvey, the Twins president of baseball operations, discuss Royce Lewis’ outlook following the announcement he will miss the season due to a torn ACL
Twins president Derek Falvey announced the news Wednesday, saying Lewis reported soreness in his right knee during initial health screening at spring training. He was sent for an MRI exam, which revealed the tear.
The team expects Lewis to be out 9-12 months.
MLB Pipeline ranks Lewis the 17th-best prospect in baseball.
Minnesota Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey, left, listens as first overall MLB draft pick Royce Lewis, addresses the media between a double-header with the Twins and Cleveland Indians, Saturday, June 17, 2017, in Minneapolis.[AP Photo/Jim Mone. ]
Lewis, 21, was the first pick in the 2017 MLB Draft. His last full season was 2019, where he split time between Double-A Pensacola in the Southern League and Fort Myers in the High-A Florida State League. He batted a combined .236 with 12 HR, 49 RBI in 127 games.
He was named Most Valuable Player in the 2019 Arizona Fall League, which was his last competitive action.
Lewis was tracking toward a major league call-up sometime in 2021, and potentially being the Twins opening day shortstop in 2022.
With no minor league baseball in 2020 and now a lost 2021 season, Lewis will go two full seasons without any live, in-game action. He did participate in the Twins ‘alternate camp’ in St. Paul during the 2020 season.