It's important not to put too much stock into spring training stats. Often, players have strong spring training performances and then fail in the regular season, and vice versa.
But when a player struggles in spring training to the point that people take notice after failing to meet expectations in recent years, it's difficult not to be a bit concerned. Unfortunately, the player I'm talking about is Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis.
Lewis began spring training hot, going 2-for-2 with a homer during his first game of the 2026 Grapefruit League season. He was then scratched from what was supposed to be his third game of the spring with right side tightness. Luckily, an MRI revealed no significant injury, and he collected one walk, a stolen base and two sacrifice flies in his first game back after his injury scare.
It seemed Lewis, 26, was going to have a great spring, especially since he had worked with Houston-based hitting coach Jeremy Isenhower during the offseason, according to The Minnesota Star Tribune's Bobby Nightengale. Isenhower was recommended to Lewis by Kansas City Royals star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and former Twins infielder Jorge Polanco.
Unfortunately, the hype surrounding Lewis this spring quickly faded.
Twins fans concerned about Royce Lewis' poor spring training stats
Since his first game of the season, Lewis has collected just one hit, a homer, in 32 plate appearances. Not a great look for someone who many viewed as an MVP-level player less than three years ago.
I usually don't care about Spring training stats but he's hitting .100 with almost no hard hit outs and it's following a season where he pretty much looked the same..
— Minnesota Sports Fanatic (@VikingsFBchat) March 18, 2026
Lewis posted a .921 OPS with 15 homers and 52 RBI in 58 games during the 2023 regular season, then followed with a strong postseason where he hit four home runs in six games.
After his breakout 2023 season, Lewis slashed .233/.295/.452 (107 OPS+) in 2024 before slashing .237/.283/.388 (83 OPS+) the following year. Due to injuries, Lewis appeared in just 82 games in 2024 and 106 in 2025. If he had succeeded during the last two years, it'd be easy to ignore his spring struggles. Unfortunately, the first pick from the 2017 MLB Draft still appears to be lost at the plate.
The Twins should still place Lewis high in their batting order at the beginning of the season. Although a postseason berth for Minnesota this year is possible, it's still unlikely. Therefore, the Twins may as well try to see if Lewis can work through his struggles. He seems like the type of player that needs confidence from his organization, and having him bat in the top half of the lineup is one way to do that.