The Minnesota Twins traded first/second baseman Edouard Julien to the Colorado Rockies this past offseason. After a strong 2023 season, Julien struggled in 2024 and 2025, making the 27-year-old infielder seem like a perfect change-of-scenery candidate. Unfortunately, moving teams didn't help revive Julien's career, as the Rockies announced they designated him for assignment on Wednesday.
In 2023, Julien looked like a future star. The Twins drafted him in the 18th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Auburn University. He quickly surpassed expectations, posting an OPS north of .900 in each of his first three seasons in the minors (2021-23). He went back and forth between Triple-A St. Paul and the Twins in 2023, but he stuck with the team for the remainder of the season and the playoffs after being recalled on June 10.
Julien posted strong numbers in his rookie season (2023), slashing .263/.381/.459 with 16 home runs, 16 doubles and 37 RBI across 109 games. He impressed in the playoffs as well, going 5-for-17 with one home run, two doubles, five walks and two RBI across six games.
Oh my Canada! #WeBelieveinTC pic.twitter.com/jmHUQ6zv16
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) October 12, 2023
Then the regression began. He spent much of the last two seasons with Triple-A St. Paul. In 2024, Julien hit just .199/.292/.323 with eight home runs and 21 RBI over 94 games with the Twins. The next season, he slashed .220/.309/.324 with three home runs and 12 RBI across 64 games.
Minnesota made the Julien trade this past January, receiving minor-league right-hander Jace Kaminska and cash in exchange for the infielder. The Twins also sent right-handed reliever Pierson Ohl to the Rockies in the deal. Unfortunately, Ohl underwent Tommy John surgery last March.
Former Twin Edouard Julien has had inconsistent season with Rockies
Julien had a strong start to the year with Colorado, hitting .304/.396/.443 through April. He hit an astonishingly low .082 in May before bouncing back with a decent June (.288/.422/.365). Then the infielder hit just .132 in July and went 0-for-6 in Aug. before the Rockies cut him loose. Overall, Julien has slashed .208/.322/.292 with three home runs and 20 RBI across 88 games this season.
There are reasons to believe Julien can return to form. Notably, he has a solid .338 xwOBA compared to a .286 wOBA. He hits the ball hard, with an average exit velocity of 90.8 mph (77th percentile) and a hard-hit rate of 49.7% (90th percentile). Even though he has had a rough season, he has an elite walk rate of 14.1% (94th percentile) and a chase rate of 18.6% (99th percentile).
Because of Julien's underlying metrics, there's a good chance he will receive an opportunity with another team.
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