Twins outfielder Austin Martin began the year in a platoon role, mainly starting against left-handed pitching. He quickly forced his way into the starting lineup regularly , slashing .333/.454/.429 (154 wRC+) with one home run, seven doubles, 15 RBI and seven stolen bases in 130 plate appearances through May 14, the day outfielder Matt Wallner was optioned to Triple-A . With Wallner's demotion, Martin essentially assumed the starting right fielder duties . Unfortunately, that didn't last long. Since May 15, Martin has struggled immensely, hitting .133/.213/.204 (17 wRC+) with one home run, four doubles, six RBI and one stolen base in 108 plate appearances.
On the plus side, Martin has had a strong defensive season, recording +6 Defensive Runs Saved and +2 Outs Above Average. Still, his rough stretch at the plate should be enough for the Twins to consider sending him down to Triple-A for a reset.
Luckily, Wallner has been absolutely raking with the Saints since being optioned , slashing .279/.350/.541 (123 wRC+) with eight home runs and 29 RBI in 137 plate appearances over 30 games. It seems like an obvious move for Minnesota to swap Wallner and Martin. In 2024, the Twins sent Wallner to Triple-A on April 16 after a rough start to the season. Minnesota recalled him in early July, and the outfielder finished the year by posting an outstanding .282/.386/.559 (168 wRC+) slash line with 12 home runs and 33 RBI over 228 plate appearances. Hopefully, Wallner just needed another Triple-A reset to get his career back on track, and that's also what Martin needs.
The one downside of demoting Martin for Wallner would be that the defense would worsen. While Martin has been great defensively this year, Wallner has been terrible in right field. Despite being in the minors for over a month, Wallner's -8 DRS is the worst among MLB right fielders.
Also, it may be tough for Minnesota to find room for Wallner to start regularly at this point. Josh Bell has swung the bat well lately, proving he deserves to hold down the designated hitter position for now. Meanwhile, Trevor Larnach and Byron Buxton have left field and center field locked down, respectively. Kody Clemens has been one of the Twins' top hitters lately and is playing more right field while Royce Lewis plays first base and Luke Keaschall plays second. Therefore, there isn't much space for Wallner to start regularly, but the Twins still may consider swapping Martin for Wallner and figuring out a way to work Wallner into the lineup regularly. If Minnesota believes it doesn't have room for Wallner now, an injury could be what leads to his return to the majors.
This article was originally published on www.puckettspond.com as This Twins outfielder's roster spot is suddenly in jeopardy after hot start to season .
