Minnesota Twins: An Ode to the Lovable La Tortuga

As we search for ways to enjoy the rest of Twins season, there’s one Minnesota Twin player that some fans enjoy more than most in the affable La Tortuga Willians Astudillo. Before he escapes the confines of the great North and the Minnesota Twins I wanted to give him a little shout out.

As much as we love him, there’s a business side to baseball, which puts him in a tough spot. Next season Willians is eligible for arbitration which will qualify him for a slight pay increase. Will the Twins re-sign him? That’s very hard to say.

Why we Love Him as a member of the Minnesota Twins

The Tortuga is very jovial with reporters, teammates and fans. He plays the game with a lot of hustle and enthusiasm. His body shape is very identifiable to the common adult baseball fan with MLB dreams as a youth. This endears him to the Twins fan base, he even earned a bobblehead you can order!!

His defensive versatility makes him as asset a bench player. He can literally play all positions on the field if you count his entertainly slow pitching outings. He literally does all that’s asked of him.

His bat can also be fun. He’s a free-swinging contact hitter which always make his at bats fun to watch. His best success as always been in small sample sizes making him a true bench guy and the underdog we root for.

His future

We all love La Tortuga and he will likely have a spot as a journeyman MLB back up. Will that be with the Twins? Maybe. But the odds are slim he stays on the 40 man roster past this season. For now, enjoy his presence in St. Paul and Minneapolis while we still have him at our doorstep.

The long term sample size on WIllians isn’t exactly eye-popping. When you break it down his offense is average at-best in nearly all categories. His defense, though versatile, is mediocre at-best at any position.

However that isn’t my purpose as we’re here to pay homage to Willians. Let’s check out some of his top highlights as he heads down to the minors.

Pitching Highlights

Highlight Reel

Astudillo, you will be sorely missed.