Austin

Martin

It’s a well-deserved day of rest for the 33-year-old slugger who has been a staple in the middle of the Twins’ lineup this season. Bell is having a decent year overall, slashing .244/.301/.397 with nine homers and 51 RBI in 322 plate appearances for the Twins. Byron Buxton will get a chance to get off of his feet and serve as the designated hitter on Sunday while Austin Martin draws a start in center field and bats eighth against Ryan Feltner and the Rockies.

Martin, who is hitting .193 (21-for-109) with one homer and four steals over his last 30 games, has been moved to the top of the order to face Tigers lefty Framber Valdez with Byron Buxton hitting second. The other notable lineup development for Minnesota involves Royce Lewis making his third consecutive start at first base.

It appears to be just a routine day off for Martin, who is sitting against White Sox RHP Davis Martin while Kody Clemens gets some reps in right field. Martin is hitting just .220/.270/.339 in his last 16 games as a (mostly) full-time starter after the Twins optioned out Matt Wallner.

Martin will be the biggest beneficiary of Matt Wallner’s demotion, and he should have a chance to play nearly every day until the Twins decide Emmanuel Rodríguez or Walker Jenkins is ready (both are actually on the Triple-A IL at the moment) or wants to give Wallner another chance. Martin’s exit velocity numbers remain weak, but he’s batting .333 anyway, and his 18/22 K/BB in 130 plate appearances is exceptional. As a decent source of batting average, steals and, potentially, runs scored, he’s an option in deeper mixed leagues.

Wallner has really struggled to begin the season, striking out in 37 percent of his plate appearances and forging a .172/.274/.290 slash. The 28-year-old outfielder will get a break with Austin Martin getting the start in right field against Logan Gilbert and the M’s.

Martin plated Brooks Lee with a sacrifice fly off of Brandon Williamson in the fifth inning that got the Twins on the board and pulled them to within a run at 2-1. That would be the extent of their offense. Martin also singled and drew a walk in the contest. For the season, the 27-year-old is hitting an exceptional .325/.500/.450 with a homer, four RBI and two stolen bases in his first 56 plate appearances.

Martin typically starts only against lefties, but lucky for him, the Twins faced southpaws in 11 of 19 games thus far, giving Martin quite the chance to impress. He’s hit .294/.489/.353 through 52 plate appearances. Today’s homer, his third in 428 career plate appearances since he debuted in 2023, left his bat at a season-high 102.6 mph. Unfortunately, there’s probably not much more power on the way, and he might have lost or be on the verge of losing his green light on the basepaths by getting caught on three of his five steal attempts so far. He probably wouldn’t be much of a mixed-league outfielder even as an everyday player.

With left-hander Trevor Rogers on the mound for the Orioles, the Twins will use Martin in left field instead of Trevor Larnach. Martin dealt with a concussion in the spring, but also hit .353/.476/.353 with four steals in 16 games. He likely won’t play enough to be fantasy relevant in most formats, but the speed could be a nice perk. The full Twins lineup is: LF Austin Martin, CF Byron Buxton, 2B Luke Keaschall, C Ryan Jeffers, RF Matt Wallner, DH Josh Bell, 1B Victor Caratini, 3B Royce Lewis, and SS Brooks Lee.

Martin suffered a concussion during Monday’s game against the Pirates, so it’s encouraging news that he’s already cleared to begin baseball activities. It may still be tough for him to be ready in a week for Opening Day, but there’s certainly a chance.

His Opening Day would seem to be in jeopardy. Martin was expected to make the Twins as a fourth outfielder starting against most or all left-handers. Eric Wagaman would be the obvious candidate to replace him as a starter against lefties, but he’s not nearly the outfield defender that Martin is.