No Royce Lewis, Byron Buxton in lineup for key game in Cleveland

Lewis is out of the lineup a day after an awkward check swing.

Sep 17, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis (23) fields a ground ball in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Twins have another huge game Wednesday night in Cleveland and they'll attempt to beat Guardians ace Tanner Bibee without Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton in the lineup.

Willi Castro, after slugging a two-run homer in the eighth inning to help the Twins win 4-1 in Cleveland Tuesday night, is leading off and starting in center field. Carlos Correa is back in the lineup at shortstop after resting Tuesday night, but the middle of the order is without Lewis at Buxton.

The Twins have said that Buxton and Correa, both dealing with their own wear and tear injuries from the long summer of baseball, would be in and out of the lineup and be rested as needed. Buxton being out is no surprise, but Lewis missing the game does raise some concern after he appeared to tweak his left hand on a check swing in the eighth inning of Tuesday's game.

Lewis stayed in the game at third base but the trainers exited the dugout to check on him before he finished the at-bat and was later seen going down the tunnel from the dugout with a trainer.

Lewis could also simply be getting the night off to regroup. In his past 54 games he's slashing .205/.262/.363 with six homers and 19 RBIs, which is a huge reduction in production after his first 17 games saw him smash 10 homers and slash .371/.437/.903.

No word just yet from the Twins about why Lewis is out of the lineup, but stay tuned for updates.

Game 3 in CLE! pic.twitter.com/A40RCtoxqY

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) September 18, 2024