The Twins keep sliding deeper into a September mess, but the bigger issue around the franchise might be even more obvious than the standings: there’s no one on the roster who truly feels like the face of the team.
That absence has made the past couple of months feel flat. The games have lost their juice as Minnesota drifts out of American League playoff contention, and the problem goes beyond payroll complaints or frustration with ownership.
The Twins need a player who gives fans a reason to show up, someone worth the price of admission and capable of pulling teammates and supporters into the same orbit. Right now, that player just isn’t there.
There are still recognizable names. At Target Field, fans wear Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan and Byron Buxton jerseys.
Royce Lewis has his followers too. But being liked is not the same thing as carrying a fan base.
Every team wants that one player who grabs the whole building, and Minnesota has gone a long time without him.
Pete Alonso offered the latest reminder of what that looks like on Tuesday night, when he hit his 300th career home run while playing for the visiting Baltimore Orioles and sent New York Mets fans into a frenzy with a no-doubt shot to left field. Alonso spent eight seasons with the Mets and remains the franchise’s all-time leader with 264 home runs.
Even after leaving in free agency last season, his shadow still hangs over a club that has slogged through a brutal 69-82 season. Sean Manaea said he was confused by the fans’ reaction, though Alonso’s relationship with the fan base was on full display as he thanked supporters for tracking down his milestone ball, signing jerseys, balls and bats, and even offering them tickets to come see him with the Orioles.
That kind of pull is exactly what Minnesota lacks. Buxton may be the closest thing the Twins have, but his injuries make it hard for a big chunk of the fan base to fully attach to him.
Ryan is a two-time All-Star, yet his future in Minnesota could also be uncertain if the team makes major moves this offseason. Lopez is popular, but he, too, could be dealt.
Lewis brings energy, but the momentum that once made him look like a future franchise cornerstone late in the 2023 season has faded in a strange way.
The Twins have also tried to manufacture some personality around their roster, and it often comes off as forced. Trevor Plouffe’s “Bearded Nightmare” label for Bailey Ober and the “The Moose” nickname for Matt Wallner are part of that effort, but those kinds of tags do not create the kind of connection a true star does.
If anything, the crowd seems more fired up when former Twins return to Target Field. Jhoan Duran drew a standing ovation, and Luis Arraez jerseys showed up in force when the Philadelphia Phillies came to town.
That says plenty. The fan base is still ready to react - it just needs somebody in a Twins uniform to react to.
So who is supposed to fill that role? After last year’s fire sale at the deadline, the list is short.
Taj Bradley has shown enough flashes to be mentioned as a possibility, and at 25 he’s young enough to stick around if he signs an extension. But Minnesota has also been reluctant to hand out big contracts to pitchers, which could make his stay in town shorter than fans would like.
Brooks Lee and Luke Keaschall could grow into popular players over time, but neither projects as more than average right now, and that may leave their Twins legacy defined by the Immaculate Grid. The more realistic answer might come from the next wave: Walker Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez or Kaelen Culpepper. If one of them is going to become that player, it will have to happen the old-fashioned way, the way Joe Mauer, Torii Hunter and Kirby Puckett became central to the franchise.
That is the uncomfortable truth hanging over Minnesota. The Twins haven’t been to the playoffs since 2023, and they’ve done plenty to alienate fans since then.
Ownership may draw most of the blame, but the players still have to supply the bond that keeps a team alive in a city. Right now, that bond is missing.
In Other News...
Walker Jenkins Is Running Out Of Time To Break Through
Walker Jenkins first stretch in the majors has been a reminder that even elite prospects can hit a wall once the league gets its first look at them. The Twins top prospect has opened his career in a slump, going 0-for-16 over his last five games and managing only four hits in 53 plate appearances, a line that has tested the patience that usually comes with a young players arrival. Even so, Jenkins and the coaching staff have kept pointing back to the same themes: the process is sound, the approach is there and the mental makeup has held up under the early pressure.
The next decision, though, may tell the story of how the Twins want to handle him from here. They sat Jenkins against a left-handed pitcher, a sign they are being careful with matchups while he searches for rhythm, but there is still a chance he could get back in there against another lefty in the following game. For a team that believes in his future, the question is no longer whether he belongs in the conversation - it is how long the organization can afford to wait before the breakthrough starts showing up on the scoreboard. [Read more 🡒]
Twins Suffer Another Rough Night As Rookie Infielder Exits Early
Max Fried finally snapped a long winless stretch, working seven innings and giving up one run as the Yankees beat the Twins 8-1 on another frustrating night for Minnesota. Cody Bellinger and Spencer Jones added home runs to back the effort, while New York kept pace in the AL East chase and stayed 3 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay.
Minnesotas bigger concern went beyond the score once rookie shortstop Kaelen Culpepper had to leave with left hamstring tightness. For a club already trying to piece together offense and stability, any early exit from a young infielder adds another layer to a rough night and leaves the Twins waiting to learn how much time, if any, they might have to manage without him. [Read more 🡒]
Twins Just Took Another Brutal Hit In Their Stretch Run
Kaelen Culpeppers arrival on Aug. 7 gave the Twins a fresh jolt at shortstop, and the top prospect looked the part right away over his first 31 big-league games. For a club trying to keep its stretch run alive, getting steady production from a young infielder was one of the few encouraging developments as the offense continued to sputter after the break.
Now Minnesota has lost that momentum, too. Culpepper has landed on the injured list with a hamstring injury, and the likelihood is that his season is over, leaving the Twins to keep searching for answers in a lineup that has already made their second-half climb much tougher than it needed to be. [Read more 🡒]