Twins’ Luke Keaschall “a tick off”

Luke Keaschall watched the graphic on the Target Field scoreboard show the ball nick the very edge of the strike zone and grimaced as he fell into a squat. That strikeout, which left the bases loaded in the third inning on Friday night, was part of a tough night at the park for Keaschall in which he finished 0 for 4.

In his next at-bat, Keaschall swung at a first-pitch changeup, grounding into a double play. His final trip to the plate saw him leave two more runners on in the seventh. A frustrating night led to a postgame session hunting for answers with team hitting coaches.

“We’ll get it back. We’re a tick off. It can change quickly,” Keaschall said. “That’s what I keep on thinking and it’s going to happen soon.”

Coming off of an impressive rookie season in which he slashed .302/.382/.445, the start to his sophomore campaign hasn’t quite been as smooth. Keaschall entered Saturday’s game hitting just .211 with a .541 OPS and manager Derek Shelton moved him down in the lineup for the first time this season, shifting him from third to fifth in the lineup.

Shelton had a conversation with Keaschall about the move, and said the second baseman was very receptive.

“Luke Keaschall has hit at every level. I mean I can’t go back to his Little League stats, but I guarantee he raked there,” Shelton said. “It’s early in the season and it’s also the first year he’s started the year in the big leagues. A lot of guys put more emphasis on that.”

Moving him down in the lineup, Shelton said, was trying to take a little bit of pressure off Keaschall, who Shelton felt was putting “a little extra on himself.” As Keaschall tries to find some answers, he said his focus is trying to get the most out of each day.

“I think it’s just being in control of your movements and executing plans,” Keaschall said. “Right now, we’re not doing that the best. All you can do is get a little bit better each and every day.”

Lewis nears return

Third baseman Royce Lewis, on the injured list with a knee sprain, moved closer to a return on Saturday, beginning a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul. Should all continue to go well, he should be on track to return next week when the Twins travel to New York to take on the Mets.

“I think we thought all along this would be right at the minimum amount of time, or very close to it. His progression has gone extremely well. He did all on-field activities (Friday). He hit on the field and took ground balls with the group,” Shelton said. “Now, it’s the next step. We’re fortunate, like very few teams, because of the fact we can go right across the bridge and he can get some at-bats.”