Fighting in a tight race at the top of the AL Central, the Minnesota Twins have already been bit by the injury bug. All-Star second baseman Jorge Polanco has yet to make his season debut after dealing with knee inflammation.
Meanwhile, outfielder Max Kepler hit the injured list with knee tendinitis on April 8, and the same goes for Joey Gallo, who is on the IL after fighting soreness in his right side.
The Twins initially responded by calling up power-hitting right fielder Matt Wallner, who hails from Forest Lake, Minnesota. Still, with injuries mounting, they had to make another move on Tuesday.
According to Do-Hyoung Park, the Twins are also promoting top-hitting prospect Edouard Julien, who will be making his MLB debut, presumably on Wednesday, for their series finale against the Chicago White Sox.
Mostly a second baseman, Julien moves around the infield a bit, also playing some third base in addition to first base, but he’s not being promoted for his glove.
Julien tore the cover off the ball for Canada at the World Baseball Classic and is ranked as the 96th-top prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB.com. For the Twins, Julien is viewed as the fourth-best prospect in the system in MLB.com’s eyes.
While it was in just 13 at-bats, Julien led the WBC in OPS at 1.821, hitting two home runs along the way. But Julien mashing baseballs is nothing new, he’s been excellent in the minor leagues, most recently in Double-A in 2022.
- Edouard Julien stats last season: 17 HR, 67 RBI, 19 SB, .300/.441/.490/.931
Julien also handled himself well in spring training, hitting .348 across 24 plate appearances with the Twins down in Fort Myers. Now, four years after becoming an 18th-round pick, Julien is set to make his MLB debut, at the age of 24.
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