Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Oswaldo Arcia has only been with the Minnesota Twins at the big-league level for seven career games and already he is nearing the lead in a hitting category usually led by power hitters Josh Willingham or Justin Morneau. Arcia clubbed his second homerun of the season, moving him within one homerun of the leader Willingham who has three, but the Twins could not muster any more offense and they dropped their third consecutive game, and second straight to the Texas Rangers, 4-3.
Arcia was originally called up to replace Wilkin Ramirez for a three game spot promotion while Ramirez was with his wife for the birth of their child. After Arcia’s promotion was cut short to only one game, in which he got his first career hit, Arcia was sent back down to Triple-A due to the early return of Ramirez. Yet, as fate would have it, Arcia’s stay in Triple-A was also brief as he was again promoted back to the majors following the injury to Darin Mastroianni that landed him on the 15-day disabled list. Since then, Arcia has been a mainstay in the Twins’ lineup.
Reports have indicated that Mastroinanni might be out an extended period of time that could last anywhere up to 2-3 months due to complications he is having with a stress reaction in his left ankle. This has allowed Arcia to receive extended playing time at the majors where he has so far accumulated mixed results. For the season, Arcia is hitting .167 with four hits, two HR and six RBI in 24 at-bats. Manager Ron Gardenhire has stated that he intends to play Arcia while he is up here and even stated that, “I’ve liked this kid forever and want to see him swing.”
Gardenhire has also stated that he intends to play Arcia as much as possible because he doesn’t want to stunt his development by leaving him on the bench.
All of this makes sense, but another reasonable explanation for Arcia getting extended playing time is because having him in the lineup makes the team better. Chris Parmelee is currently in a funk at the plate and is only hitting .211 with one HR and five RBI. Couple Parmelee’s struggles with the Twins’ absence of a legitimate late-inning pinch hitter and the move of Arcia into the lineup and Ryan Doumit to the bench for pinch-hitting purposes makes a lot of sense. Doumit provides a legitimate and valuable pinch-hitter off the Twins’ bench as he can hit for power and average from both sides of the plate. While Doumit may also be valuable in the Twins’ lineup on a more daily basis, he and Parmelee could develop into a platoon if Arcia begins to excel while Parmelee continues to struggle.
One thing is for certain, Arcia is a talented player who is receiving valuable experience right now playing on an everyday basis. Arcia has the potential to develop into a solid corner outfield for the Twins and a powerful run producer in the middle of their lineup. All of that can now be expedited with Arcia gaining valuable playing time at the majors. Sometimes things happen for a reason and Arcia’s latest call up to the majors may in fact be his last, as he may be here for good.
Brian Wille is a Minnesota Twins writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @BeeWill15 or “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google
