If the Minnesota Twins are going to do what feels improbable -- bordering on impossible -- over the last six games, they'll have to do it without Max Kepler.
Minnesota has been without its starting right fielder since early September when Kepler hit the IL due to knee tendinitis. He received a cortisone injection for hip soreness last weel which not only didn't help but pretty much summed up how physically broken he is.
The Twins need all the help they can get to try and overcome the situation they've put themselves in, one that has Minnesota a game out of the final Wild Card spot with six games left. Detroit keeps winning, which means the best path forward seems to be hoping the Kansas City Royals continue to drop off.
It's a strategy that isn't unlike the one that the team had for Kepler, which is to send out the strongest possible wishful vibes and hope that things turn out better than they look.
Max Kepler not expected to return this season, which might be the end of his time with the Twins
Max Kepler is not expected to return before the end of the regular season.
— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) September 24, 2024
Chris Paddack and Justin Topa are still somewhat in flux, based on how they feel the next day or two.
Truthfully, wishing-and-hoping thing has been a strategy since the winter. Ownership slashed $30 million out of the payroll, cutting the front office out at the knees and making it nearly impossibleto navigate the market in a way that meaningfully improved the roster. The result is what we're dealing with now, as the Twins are cratering hard at the worst possible time.
Kepler not returning is a bummer on a few different levels, not the least of which is that we might have already seen him play his last game with the Twins. He's in the final year of his contract and given how frugal Minnesota is expected to be this winter it's unlikely that the team will match whatever offer he gets in free agency.
There's doubt that the team will even make a qualifying offer, both because of their cheapness but also because Kepler hasn't had the season everyone was hoping he would. Overall his numbers are perfectly mediocre, as he'll finish the year hitting 253/.302/.380, which are an improvement on how things started.
Kepler's year began with him getting hurt in the first game and then hitting an unplayable 050/.095/.050 with a .145 OPS. He went on the IL for the first time this year not long after that, and bounced back rather fantastically when he returned to the lineup. In May he had a .819 OPS and in July, by far his best month, Kepler hit .320/.374/.387 which was unsurprisingly came at what appears to be the peak of Minnesota's season as a whole.
There wasn't enough consistency, though, which might end up being the difference maker when it comes to whether the Twins bring him back.
He was a valuable piece of the lineup when healthy, but the Twins' nickel-and-diming the payroll probably means Kepler's days in Minnesota are over. If the Twins make the postseason, there's a chance Kepler returns for one last rodeo. All signs point to that being it, though, as his days in Minnesota are numbered and nearing and end.
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