Minnesota Twins: Luis Arraez aims to maintain production in Year 2

Luis Arraez had an excellent rookie year for the Minnesota Twins in 2019. Can he repeat it in 2020?

Several Minnesota Twins players had career seasons in 2019, so we wanted to take a look ahead for what those player’s seasons might look like in 2020. We started off the series with players such as Byron Buxton, Mitch Garver, and Josh Donaldson, and we continue with Luis Arraez.

Arraez broke onto the scene as a rookie last year, hitting .334 in 92 games, a mark that would have placed him second in the MLB had he been eligible. Here’s his stat line from 2019:

• 92 G, .334 BA/.399 OBP/.838 OPS, 4 HR, 28 RBI, 1.8 WAR

That’s a really good stat line for a rookie. Here’s what that line would look like over 162 games:

• 162 G, .334 BA/.399 OBP/.838 OPS, 7 HR, 49 RBI, 3.2 WAR

With Jonathan Schoop heading off to Detroit, Arraez is in position to take over as the primary second baseman for the Twins. The question becomes: Can he repeat his success in 2020? Or was his success a mirage?

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First, the bad. Arraez was never a highly touted prospect, finishing no higher than 15th in MLB.com rankings, despite hitting well for average at every level. He only ever had one plus tool, and an ACL tear in 2017 didn’t help.

Now the good. At every single level, Arraez has hit. He hit .331 over all levels of Minor League and Fall/Winter League baseball, with his worst average being .298 during his first taste of Double-A baseball.

Arraez also never hit more than three homers in a season in the minors, so there’s an opportunity for growth there as well. An incredibly strong offense should help his RBI numbers as well.

If Arraez can just maintain his excellent eye for contact and getting on base, he could end up having just as good of a season as he did last year, solidifying his spot as a cornerstone of the Minnesota Twins organization.