Refreshed Kirilloff living up to his power potential

CHICAGO -- The real Alex Kirilloff has made his triumphant return.

When the Twins first called up their former No. 2 prospect for the first time during the 2020 Wild Card Series, they did so in such a meaningful situation because they had faith in Kirilloff’s ability to hit the ball hard all over the field at the game’s highest level. He simply hadn’t had the chance to do that consistently for the Twins due to his nagging wrist issues across the last year.

Following a cortisone injection and a chance to reset in Triple-A, Kirilloff is back at it in the Majors -- and if his 3-for-4 performance with two opposite-field homers on Tuesday was any indication, he’s seemingly well on the way back to being the productive, hard-hitting version that the Twins are counting on to anchor their lineup for many more wins like their 8-2 triumph over the White Sox on a rainy Tuesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

“I think that we’re seeing what a healthy Alex Kirilloff looks like,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “This is the way he actually swung the bat before the injury, before he felt this in the first place, so we want to keep him going and keep him playing like this, because he’s doing a phenomenal job.”

Kirilloff’s pair of blasts to left-center field were among the five homers the Twins hit off Chicago pitching, which also included a solo shot from Max Kepler, a two-run homer by Jose Miranda and the second birthday homer of Jorge Polanco’s career.

The first of Kirilloff’s shots came in the fifth inning off Michael Kopech, when he followed Polanco’s solo blast to right by knocking a center-cut slider an estimated 417 feet to the bleachers in left-center field. The next came off Vince Velasquez, who threw a changeup on the corner, low and away, but saw Kirilloff still reach out and drive it to left-center with authority. And don’t forget how he drove in two insurance runs in the 10th inning of Monday’s victory by clubbing a sinker through the left side of the infield.

With all that in mind, his eyes light up when he sees a shifted infield.

"Yeah, it's inviting,” Kirilloff said. “Just because I know I can hit it over there pretty well. It's nice when there's only one guy over there."

Before Kirilloff took time away to find his swing again in the Minors, he didn’t have an extra-base hit through his first 10 games of the season, a span that included time on the injured list to address the wrist again. In 18 games since he was recalled from Triple-A St. Paul on June 17, he has hit .306/.328/.548 (an .876 OPS) with all three of his homers and six doubles, with a more “connected” swing, Baldelli observed.

"Same mind,” said hitting coach David Popkins. “Just, physically, he's capable of actually doing everything he wants to do. Nothing really different from a mindset standpoint. He's just healthy, you know? When he's healthy, it's very fun to watch."

The brunt of the issue arose, of course, from the torn ligament and worn-down cartilage in the wrist that required surgical repair, ending his ‘21 season after only 59 games in which he struggled to manage the wrist. His buildup from that procedure has been marred by setbacks, including another cortisone shot during his IL stint that spanned from mid-April to early May.

Following his return, the Twins insisted that there was nothing structurally wrong with Kirilloff’s wrist and sent the 24-year-old to Triple-A with the understanding that he’d just need to learn how to play -- both physically and mentally -- with the new reality of his wrist, the state of which he said has remained fairly consistent since the most recent shot.

It sure looks like he’s figured a few things out while crushing Triple-A during his month-long reset.

"I felt like when I had the injury, in the back of my mind, I would try to overcompensate, maybe muscle up, because I felt like it was weaker,” Kirilloff said. “I felt maybe there would be a pain associated with it. I think just realizing that I don't have to do that and trusting that more is pretty important. Trusting my hands, trusting my wrists."

Kirilloff says he’s still learning -- and the foundation now looks quite promising.

“This is who he is,” Popkins said. “A very, very good hitter. He can hit anything. That version of him is pretty special."