Wallner is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Reds.
This breaks a string of eight straight starts for Wallner. He hit .423 with one home run, four runs and five RBI in 26 at-bats over that stretch. Andrew Stevenson is picking up a rare start in left field.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Heads to bench Monday
Rotowire
Wallner is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Rays.
Though the Twins are facing off against a right-hander (Tyler Glasnow) in the series opener, the lefty-hitting Wallner will retreat to the bench, ending a stretch of 15 consecutive starts for the rookie. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli may just want to give Wallner a day off to hit the reset button after going hitless with eight strikeouts against four walks over his last five starts.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Homers, drives in three
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Wallner went 3-for-6 with a homer, three RBI and two runs scored in Monday's 20-6 win over the Guardians.
Wallner knocked an RBI single in the seventh inning before capping off the Twins' 20-run outburst with a two-run shot in the ninth. He drove in three runs against the Rangers on Aug. 25 but had gone 3-for-24 (.125) with just one RBI in eight games since then. After Monday's big performance, Wallner is slashing .235/.354/.503 with 18 extra-base hits and 29 RBI through 181 plate appearances.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Drives in three runs
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Wallner went 2-for-4 with a triple, a double, three RBI and three runs scored in Friday's win over Texas. He was also hit by a pitch.
Wallner knocked a three-run triple in the first inning and later scored two more runs. He had been stuck in a 3-for-15 skid with eight strikeouts and no RBI since belting a grand slam Aug. 15 before snapping out of the funk Friday. Wallner is now slashing .244/.350/.528 with 16 extra-base hits and 25 RBI through 143 plate appearances.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Sitting versus lefty
Rotowire
Wallner isn't in the Twins' lineup Thursday against the Rangers, John Shipley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.
The lefty-hitting Wallner will sit out Thursday while southpaw Andrew Heaney starts on the mound for Texas. Jordan Luplow, Michael Taylor and Max Kepler will start in the outfield from left to right while Wallner rests.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Returns to lineup Sunday
Rotowire
Wallner (hand) is starting in right field and batting eighth Sunday against the Pirates.
Wallner sat out Saturday with a bruised hand after being hit by a pitch Friday, but he'll rejoin the starting nine for Sunday's series finale. The 25-year-old has an .811 OPS through 16 games this month but is hitting just .220 with a 34.5 percent strikeout rate.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Needs at least one more day
Rotowire
Wallner (hand) will sit Saturday against the Pirates.
Wallner was initially included in the Twins' lineup, but the team elected to give him one more day after he left Friday's series opener after getting hit in the hand. X-rays came back negative, but he'll rest his bruised digits Saturday while Joey Gallo handles left field.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: X-rays come back negative
Rotowire
X-rays on Wallner's right hand came back negative, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Wallner departed Friday's game against the Pirates after a pitch he swung at struck him in the hand. He's managed to avoid a serious injury, though, and is considered day-to-day. "We got lucky," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said, "and we'll take that."
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Sits in series opener
Rotowire
Wallner is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Tigers, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Wallner will be joined on the bench by fellow left-handed hitters Joey Gallo and Edouard Julien as the Tigers bring southpaw Joey Wentz to the hill for the series opener. Jordan Luplow will pick up the start in left field in place of Wallner, who appears on track to hold down a strong-side platoon role at least until the Twins get both of Byron Buxton (hamstring) and Alex Kirilloff (shoulder) back from the injured list.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Wallner has now started 18 straight for the Twins, and after his heroics from this weekend, it's unlikely to change anytime soon. He paced the lineup with a 3-for-5 performance Saturday, which included a double, and then hit a walk-off two-run homer Sunday. The ball was hit 109 mph, traveling 415 feet, which is hardly an exception for him. His hardest-hit ball in just 82 at-bats is 113.7 mph, putting him in the 89th percentile. "He's a big boy and hits the ball so hard," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "But he's under control. He's never really out of control." It's a three-true-outcomes profile that led to impressive numbers in the minors, and as long as he can keep his strikeout rate around 30 percent (it's 29 now), Wallner has a chance to succeed in the majors. If you need cheap homers, he's your guy.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Wallner has now started 18 straight for the Twins, and after his heroics from this weekend, it's unlikely to change anytime soon. He paced the lineup with a 3-for-5 performance Saturday, which included a double, and then hit a walk-off two-run homer Sunday. The ball was hit 109 mph, traveling 415 feet, which is hardly an exception for him. His hardest-hit ball in just 82 at-bats is 113.7 mph, putting him in the 89th percentile. "He's a big boy and hits the ball so hard," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "But he's under control. He's never really out of control." It's a three-true-outcomes profile that led to impressive numbers in the minors, and as long as he can keep his strikeout rate around 30 percent (it's 29 now), Wallner has a chance to succeed in the majors. If you need cheap homers, he's your guy.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Provides game-winning hit
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Wallner went 1-for-4 with a walk-off two-run homer to beat the Diamondbacks on Sunday.
Wallner delivered his first-career walk-off hit with a two-run blast off Paul Sewald to complete the series sweep for the Twins. Wallner has six homers and 12 RBI over his last 11 games. The 25-year-old has a .305 ISO in 97 plate appearances this season, which would rank third in all of baseball if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. Wallner is locked into an everyday role after the recent injury news to Byron Buxton and would seem to have a leg up on the struggling Joey Gallo even when Buxton returns.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Produces all three runs in loss
Rotowire
Wallner went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in a loss to the Cardinals on Wednesday.
Minnesota fell behind big early and was never really competitive in the contest, but Wallner continued to shine with his three-run, 431-foot blast in the seventh inning. The long ball was his fifth in his past seven games, a span during which all six of his hits (the five homers and one double) have gone for extra bases. Wallner has also struck out 10 times over 25 at-bats during that stretch, so he's the epitome of all-or-nothing at the moment.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Showcases power in loss
Rotowire
Wallner went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Sunday's loss to the Royals.
Wallner was the only lefty in the Twins' lineup facing left-hander Ryan Yarbrough and was the only hitter to do any damage. He's managed to hit five home runs over his last five games and seems to have a path to a near-everyday role after Alex Kirilloff went on the injured list with a right shoulder strain Sunday. Wallner's slashing a respectable .258/.378/.532 with nine RBI, 11 runs and a 7:21 BB:K in 74 plate appearances this season.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Homers twice Wednesday
Rotowire
Wallner went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Wednesday's loss against the Mariners.
Wallner is up to four homers this season, three of which have come in the last two days. The 25-year-old outfielder has started nine straight games as injuries continue to mount for the Twins, going 8-for-31 (.258) over that span. Overall, Wallner is slashing an impressive .294/.419/.569 with eight RBI and nine runs scored through 62 plate appearances this season. Given his current role and power upside, Wallner is worth a look in deeper fantasy leagues.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Clubs second home run
Rotowire
Wallner went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's loss against the Mariners.
Wallner plated Max Kepler with a two-run homer off George Kirby in the first inning, marking the 25-year-old's second long ball of the campaign. However, he struck out in all three of his other at-bats and has now struck out six times over the last two games. Through 20 games, Wallner is slashing .277/.414/.447 with six RBI and seven runs scored while striking out at a 27.6 percent clip.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Recalled by Twins
Rotowire
Wallner was called up by the Twins on Saturday.
Wallner is up to replace Jose Miranda, who hit the injured list with a shoulder impingement. Wallner has exclusively appeared at the outfield corners for Triple-A St. Paul, so Miranda's absence doesn't necessarily open up a ton of playing time. Wallner spent brief stints in the majors in both April and May, posting a 1.099 OPS in 11 games. He's hit .291/.403/.524 for St. Paul, but it's taken a .399 BABIP to get there. His 28.5 percent strikeout rate in Triple-A could reach problematic levels in the majors.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Dispatched to minors
Rotowire
The Twins optioned Wallner to Triple-A St. Paul on Monday.
Wallner was sent out to make room on the 26-man active roster for fellow outfielder Max Kepler (hamstring), who was reinstated from the 10-day injured list. During his six-day stint in the big leagues, Wallner appeared in five games and went 7-for-11 with a home run, a double, two walks, four RBI, two runs and a stolen base.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Heading back to minors
Rotowire
Wallner will be optioned to Triple-A St. Paul on Monday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Wallner joined the big-league club Tuesday and went 7-for-11 with a homer, a double, four RBI and two runs over five games with the Twins. However, he'll head back to the minors since Max Kepler (hamstring) and Royce Lewis (knee) are set to be reinstated from the injured list Monday.
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Twins' Matt Wallner: Four-hit game in win
Rotowire
Wallner went 4-for-4 with a homer, three RBI and one run scored in Saturday's 9-7 win over Toronto.
Wallner was called up Tuesday from Triple-A with several outfielders out (Trevor Larnach, Max Kepler, Nick Gordon), and he could force his way into the everyday lineup if he stays hot. He's 5-for-9 over his last three games.
