Royce Lewis shows why he should be trusted in big moments during Twins' first 2026 win

During the Twins' first game of the season against the Orioles in Baltimore on Thursday, manager Derek Shelton removed Royce Lewis in favor of Trevor Larnach with the tying run on first base and two outs in the ninth inning.

Based on last year's stats, the move made sense. But based on potential, Shelton probably should've kept Lewis in the game. Larnach ended up striking out, and the Orioles won 2-1.

Lewis is known to be a "vibes guy," and the Twins probably need the best version of the 2017 first-round pick this year if they want any chance of making a surprise postseason run. Even though Larnach had better offensive stats than Lewis last year, showing confidence in Lewis, who slashed .309/.372/.548 over 58 games in 2023, in that moment may have been the best long-term decision.

The Twins' first game of the season was obviously a big disappointment. But the second game was a different story. Lewis is the reason for that.

Royce Lewis' strong offensive performance carries Twins to first win of 2026 season

Lewis gave the Twins a 3-1 lead with a two-run homer in the fifth inning, and scored on an RBI single from Kody Clemens in the seventh after walking and stealing second base as the Twins defeated the Orioles 4-1.

While it's just one game, Lewis' strong offensive performance still shows why he should be trusted in big moments. When he's at his best, Lewis can single-handedly win the Twins games. It appears that Lewis will have to earn a higher spot in the batting order, and yesterday's game was a good start for Lewis' quest to do so.

The Orioles took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a RBI single from Jeremiah Jackson.

Byron Buxton's speed led to him scoring the tying run in the fourth. The center fielder barely reached first base on an RBI single, then advanced to second on a flyout to center from Luke Keaschall. Catcher Adley Rutschman attempted to throw out Buxton at second base, but the ball went into the outfield, allowing Buxton to advance to third before Josh Bell drove him in on a sacrifice fly.

Taj Bradley made the start for Minnesota and struck out a whopping nine batters and allowed one run, three hits and three walks over 4 1/3 innings of work. Anthony Banda, Kody Funderburk, Eric Orze, Justin Topa and Cole Sands closed out the game without allowing a run.