The Twins have a deeper pool of prospects than they did when Trevor Larnach was picked 20th overall in the 2018 amateur draft, so Minnesota fans can be forgiven for wondering if Larnach had missed his chance to find a permanent place on the big league roster.
Larnach, in fact, acknowledges that he used to spend time looking around the organization at comparable players and wonder where he stacked up.
Too much time.
“I’d get caught up in who’s where, who’s doing what, how I’m doing — the whole comparison thing,” Larnach said. “But after going through a couple years of the business and the game, and learning what it’s like, I don’t get caught up in that at all.”
Whatever Larnach’s approach, it seems to be working.
The big outfielder was batting second on Monday, behind Edouard Julien, in a lefty-dominated lineup against Seattle Mariners right-handed starter Luis Castillo at Target Field. It was Julien’s first game at the top of the order since April 21 against Detroit.
“Eddie was going to work his way back into the leadoff spot sooner rather than later. For me, that wasn’t much of a decision at any point,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “Larnach’s been swinging the bat good, too.”
That last part is a bit of an understatement.
Larnach, 27, started Monday hitting .381 with a pair of home runs and nine RBIs in 13 games since being recalled from a Single-A rehab stint for turf toe in mid-April. In those 13 games, the Twins went 12-1.
Larnach was the Twins’ first-round pick in the 2018 draft out of Oregon State, where in his final season he hit .348 with 19 home runs and 77 RBIs in 68 games for the NCAA champions. He has shown bursts of power in the majors but struggled to find a place on the big league roster, playing a total of 188 games in parts of his first three major league seasons.
Last year, rookie Matt Wallner essentially took Larnach’s spot in the outfield, and this spring it was Wallner, 26, who made the major league roster out of training camp. But the Forest Lake native was 2 for 25 with 17 strikeouts in 13 games when he was swapped for Larnach.
By then, Larnach had his head down and was going about his business.
“I’m not gonna waste my energy thinking about what another guy’s doing, or comparing myself to the other guy, or whatever it may be,” he said. “Or even something like trades, or whatever. I can’t do that. Frankly, I don’t give a crap about it. All I can do is prepare and try to stay healthy.”
Polanco returns
Jorge Polanco made his first appearance at Target Field since being traded to Seattle on Jan. 29, starting at second and batting third for the Mariners. He received a nice round of applause before his first at-bat, a strikeout looking against Twins starter Simeon Woods Richardson.
Polanco, 30, had been a Twins mainstay, playing 832 games in parts of 10 seasons for Minnesota, first debuting in 2014. He hit .269 with 112 homers, 447 RBIs and a .780 OPS in those games, but the Twins got four players in return, including two major league pitchers in starter Anthony DeSclafani and reliever Justin Topa.
“It was a little surprising, but you know this is a business,” Polanco said before Monday’s game. “We always think about that for the moment. It doesn’t matter what part of the offseason, we always think about that. It was a little bit of a surprise, but it was OK.”
Polanco was hitting .193 with five home runs and 13 RBIs in 34 games heading into Monday for the Mariners, who started the night first in the American League West.
“I wasn’t trying to really think a lot about it, but I was always going to come here,” Polanco said. “I knew it was going to happen, so I’m just happy to be here.”
Briefly
DeSclafani, 34, is out for the season after having surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his right forearm. Topa, 33, started the season on the injured list with tendinitis in his left knee but Baldelli said the right-hander’s rehab has been going well.
“All of his progression has been very positive,” Baldelli said. “We’ll take it.”
