Twins

Royce Lewis: What You Need to Know About the Minnesota Twins' No. 1 Pick

For the third time in Minnesota Twins history, the club held the No. 1 overall pick. If it turns out anything like the last time, that’s a good thing. The Twins took Joe Mauer No. 1 overall in 2001, and he was on the Hall of Fame path until concussions took him out from behind the plate and sapped some of the strength in his bat. On Monday night, the Twins turned some heads by taking shortstop/outfielder Royce Lewis, the top prep position player ranked by MLB.com.

Lewis is a recent graduate of JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, Calif. and turned 18 just last week. With the selection of Hunter Greene No. 2 overall to the Reds, southern Orange County was well represented early in the MLB draft. Greene is no stranger to the Twins or to Lewis.

Greene, the shortstop and right-handed pitcher hybrid widely believed to be the best player available in the draft, played with Lewis on U15 and U17 teams in recent years, and they even shared a phone call earlier in the day. Lewis called prep outfielder Jordon Adell from Kentucky — who went 10th overall, ironically enough to the Angels — and chatted with him and Greene, as both were among those at the draft in person at MLB headquarters in Secaucus, N.J.

“I called them on Jordon’s phone because I knew they were together,” Lewis explained. “I just said ‘Good luck guys, I wish you the best. I know it’s going to be a great day for you guys especially.’” Lewis said the young men gave him the scoop on the scene out east, as they had taken in Citi Field (Mets home stadium) and got to see New York City. “I was proud of them and excited,” Lewis said.

“California is back, baby!”

Lewis takes a lot of pride in the first two picks coming from the same area in California. JSerra Catholic and Notre Dame High — Greene’s alma mater — are separated by just a 69-mile drive down Interstate 5. “I think it just says that southern Orange County and California, in general, is back, baby!” Lewis exclaimed with a youthful chuckle. “We’re bringing back the talent. All the power is coming from southern Orange County, and I love it.”

On a more serious note, Lewis said the competition level in California was incredible, and it’s something he’s proud of. “I know out here the (competition level) is super high,” Lewis said. “It’s amazing. Each and every game I played in, there was some sort of prospect or Division I athlete on every team. You can go up and down throughout California, and you’ll find so many talented guys. I think this year is just proving that. I was just excited, like I said, to go out and prove that, and help prove that for California.”

Despite the stacked talent level, Lewis’ trophy case is not short on hardware. Lewis, who played third base and center field earlier in his varsity career before settling in at shortstop this year, was named this year’s Gatorade Player of the Year in California, as well as Trinity League Player of the Year for the third straight season. Lewis generated Los Angeles Times High School Player of the Year honors as a junior in 2016, and was also named MVP of the 2016 Under Armour All-American Game at Wrigley Field, where he hit a home run. He was named MVP of the Perfect Game All-American Classic, which was played at Petco Park in San Diego.

Lewis also was a member of the gold medal-winning USA U18 team that defeated Cuba in October for the COPABE Pan American AAA Championship.

“I feel like I haven’t even grown into my man strength yet”

Lewis was especially proud of the home run at Wrigley Field, and feels that’s indicative of the power he still will be able to eventually grow into. “I feel like I haven’t even grown into my man strength yet,” he said. “I just turned 18 last week. So being young like this, it’s pretty amazing knowing that I still have a lot of potential I haven’t even tapped into yet.”

While a lot of the pre-draft chatter was regarding whether or not Lewis could stick at shortstop long-term, Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey was quick to say the team views him as a shortstop, and will proceed that way, at least to start.

“We view him as a shortstop,” Falvey said. “We think he has every bit of ability there. You talk about how much of a team guy he is, he went and played center field, he played third base and eventually moved over to shortstop, because there were other guys on the team that could play those positions, and he’s such a good athlete that he could play just about everywhere on the field. We know he’s gonna be a leader the second he steps on the field. We’ll let the baseball play take care of itself.”

The leadership really stands out from Lewis as well, Falvey said. “I think one thing that stands out when Royce is on the field is how much of a leader he is — and you can tell from the get-go,” he noted. “You know those young players when you watch them on the field, and the way they were interacting with the other guys across the board. He’s got tools. He’s got athleticism. We know he has the ability. But I think he has that special quality that he will go on to be a leader for us.”

Just how important is the leadership factor, though? “It’s a factor,” said Mike Radcliff, Vice President of Player Personnel. “It’s not the most dominant factor, but when you see it, and it’s obvious and it’s there, and we certainly validated it with all the different teams he’s played on, junior team, it’s an obvious trait he has — not many guys have it. And so when you add that on top of the skill and toolset, it just makes him very attractive.”

They aren’t just interested in him for leadership and where he’ll play on the defensive side, of course. The Twins view him as an offensive threat in the future as well.

“I love playing shortstop”

“It’s immense,” Falvey said of Lewis’ offensive potential. “He’s got big-time power. We were watching his little clip there after he got selected of whom he compares himself to, in terms physical upside and strength. There are some guys at the major-league level that are stronger shortstops and have the ability to drive balls all over the ballpark.

“I love playing shortstop,” Lewis said. “I’d love to play there in the future. I was just glad to have the opportunity. Whatever anyone would like, I’m totally appreciative of again getting the opportunity.”

Lewis said he wasn’t totally sure where he’d go as he was settling in with his family to watch the draft, though he had heard some pre-draft buzz that he could go early. “Once my name was called, it was amazing and a great feeling,” he said.

Well, kind of. Lewis said he never really heard his name called, actually. His entire family was gathered at his grandparents’ house, a place big enough to accommodate his extended family. Once Rob Manfred began to announce Lewis’ name as the No. 1 pick, his family broke into a frenzy around him.

“I didn’t even hear my full name being called,” Lewis said. “My family was all over it, they heard the ‘Ro….’ and before the ‘y’ even came in there, I was like “Oh my Gosh” and I kind of broke down and started crying. It was a special feeling.”

Lewis has athletics in his bloodlines. His father William played football at Fullerton College and Chico State, while his mother Cindy played softball at U.S. International and San Jose State. Lewis’ dad owns The Winery Restaurant and Wine Bar with locations in Tustin, La Jolla and Newport, and in the process struck up an interesting friendship: then-Angels outfielder Torii Hunter.

“My dad always served [Torii Hunter], and they connected”

Hunter, who is now one of the key advisors for the Twins and clearly involved in their draft preparation which includes but is not limited to being one of the suits in the draft room, met Mr. Lewis while playing for the Angels and became a regular patron of his.

“Torii used to come in there when he was an Angel and eat at the restaurant,” Lewis said. “(Torii) said it was amazing. My dad always served him, and they connected. It’s just a baseball connection.” Lewis hasn’t had a lot of experience interacting with Hunter outside of posing for a picture with him when he was 10, but said that Torii and his father exchanged texts earlier this year.

“He texted my dad saying: ‘Hey, your son is actually pretty good!’” Lewis said. “My dad and I were laughing. He’s a great guy. He’s always given advice to my dad about how to go about things. It’s been really nice, having that major league assistance if it’s ever needed. It’s been needed today.”

The first call from the Twins on Monday night came from General Manager Thad Levine, or as Lewis called him, “Mr. Thad.”

“That was awesome,” Lewis said. “I was happy to get the call and really excited of course that they picked me first overall in the major league draft. He just said ‘I think your sister has some pretty big shoes to fill.’ My mom always talks about how my sister is the more athletic of the two of us, so we’ll see what she ends up doing.”

Not only is Lewis considered a dynamic player with high-end speed and tools for days, but he’s considered mature for his age and a great leader with everything a team could ask for make-up wise.

“It’s like Draymond Green says, ‘Heart wins over anything’”

“It’s like Draymond Green says, ‘Heart wins over anything,’” Lewis noted. “At the end of the day, I feel like I have more heart than many of the kids and players out there. Just to give it a go, it’ll be a lot of fun. As far as what people don’t talk about (regarding what Lewis brings to the table), it’s the mental side of things going into the game. I’m looking 4-5 plays ahead.

The approach at the plate is changing, pitch-by-pitch, game-to-game in high school, because you play many different teams. For me the way I can hold my maturity level…my mom says it a lot, I’m a lot older than most kids even though I’m at the same age level. It’s just been a lot of fun to prove that. Of course, today, going No. 1 overall, it’s been amazing. Very special.”

Lewis says he doesn’t know when he’ll make the big leagues, or even when he’ll sign, but he’s excited no matter what lies ahead. “I can tell you right now I can’t wait to put on the jersey and get out there and start playing,” he said. “Whether that’s tomorrow or in a couple months. Whatever it is, I’m ready to go. Hopefully, it’s sooner rather than later.”

How much of an old soul is Lewis? Well for one, he shirked playing other sports in high school to specialize in baseball since sports are an all-year affair in California. All sports, that is, except for one.

Bowling.

Really?

“I played everything,” Lewis said when asked about what sports he gave up when he moved into high school. “Bowling is my favorite, though. I’ll tell you that. I still bowl to this day. I average like 180. So I’m an average bowler. Right in the middle. But I have a lot of fun doing it and I don’t get hurt. That’s a key component.”

So how is Lewis going to celebrate his No. 1 overall selection, now that all the hugs and kisses and immediate fanfare are over?

“I might go bowling. Eat some cake with the fam”

Again….bowling. “Yeah, I might go bowling,” he said. “Eat some cake with the fam. I’m definitely going to go jump in the pool right now though. Those are the three things on my mind right now. I already gave hugs and kisses to the family. That’s all I can do, hang out with them and spend as much time as I can with them.”

Mr. Lewis may want to provide a birth certificate for the Twins, because he sure seems to be wise and mature beyond his years. The Twins will send him out to Rookie ball like they do with virtually all high school picks, Radcliff said. But he should be able to move out of that level by next year and move forward from there.


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