Alex Kirilloff is Becoming a Question

I suspect the only reason why he was brought up was because Luis Arraez got sidelined due to Covid. He needs to go back down to AAA and stay there until he gets his groove back, if it is possible. If not, his days of playing professional baseball are numbered. I definitely hope that is NOT the case.

If Larnach was healthy I bet Kirilloff would be down in AAA trying to figure out how to hit with his wrist.  When I read that he had pain all off-season and had pain again this season without any new damage that can be fixed with surgery it raised huge red flags for me.  Last year when he first came up the average was low, but he was hitting the ball hard all over the field.  Since the wrist injury he has not had that same pop.  

I am very concerned he will not have that pop again, or at least not for awhile.  I think he will need to go down to AAA and learn to hit with his issue.  If the wrist cannot be "fixed" he will need to learn how to play with it.  If he cannot he will never be a MLB player.  It is sad, because he looked to have all the makings of a top hitter for years to come.  However, you need your wrists to hit well. 

His few games back he has had weak ground ball contact for the most part. I hope he can figure it out, but if he is always in pain either he will have to learn to live with it, or retire. 

4 minutes ago, wsnydes said:

Wrist issues are always problematic for baseball players.  Until he's healthy, I worry that he'll have concerns with the bat.  I don't know what the answer is, but he probably should be in St Paul, but I understand that isn't really an option at the moment.  Hopefully he's able to find his groove wherever he's playing.  

And I think he should be playing every day if he's able.  No sense sitting on the bench unless his wrist is the issue, but then he should probably be back on the IL.

I've had wrist issues too.  They don't seem to go back to normal.  If there is no structural damage he might just have to deal with this new normal.  It's not what he's used to, so hopefully he can adjust and succeed.

Out of the three young outfielders, he needs to spend the most time back with the Saints getting regular work at first base. 

Or maybe Miranda needs to go back. If the Twins are to contend, they can't have too many guys working thru injuries or learning on the job.

As the great Axl Rose sang, "All we need is just a little patience."

Personally, I was never sold on Kiriloff entirely. His numbers didn't suggest he was a candidate for skipping AAA. He missed a year, really almost 2. He adds little defensively. And as corner/1b, I was leery he would be above replacement. 

His classic swing generated power to all fields. He's a pleasure to watch swing. However, his use of all fields didn't necessarily translate numbers wise. Lefties who pull with power are seeming to have more success on average these days. Of course, many players develop pull power as their careers advance. Jacque Jones and AJ come to mind.

The wrist injury may force him into being a punch hitter for awhile. Too bad. He had a ton of promise and already came back after 1 serious upper body injury.

Alex Kirilloff is not a major league player right now, and shouldn't be in a Twins uniform.

First step is to option him to St Paul, or put him on the IL to shut him down for a month of physical therapy/whatever-might-help. (And if the IL route is picked, then send him down for rehab, and don't recall him until he is hitting even if it means optioning him later.)

Forget playing him at first in the meantime, because the last thing the Twins need is a .200/no-power 1B. And clear spots on the 40-man so we can bring up the players we actually need.

(Including another bat so Buxton can go on the IL where he belongs. Letting him turn a minor strain into a chronic one would be a great way to torpedo this season.)

It's evident by his swing that he's still having pain in his wrist. The place to work thru that is AAA not MLB, he should of stayed at AAA until it's resolved not brought up.

I agree with other posters to send him to St Paul to work this out.  I see they had the original physician look at his wrist.  I’d also suggest a second opinion by somebody else.

I'm hoping they are out there getting 2nd and even 3rd for 4th opinions on his wrist.  I'm sure we have great doctors - but sometimes just need something looked at by new eyes.  Hopeful he can make a full recovery.

I do not see Kiriloff contributing this year - although the heat of summer might be what he needs.  What concerns me is whether this is going to ruin a promising career. 

Having gone through hip and knee replacements and back surgery I find arthritis finds those screws and parts quite quickly.  I wanted to see what others said about recovery and found this on sports-health.com, "

44 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

I do not see Kiriloff contributing this year - although the heat of summer might be what he needs.  What concerns me is whether this is going to ruin a promising career. 

Having gone through hip and knee replacements and back surgery I find arthritis finds those screws and parts quite quickly.  I wanted to see what others said about recovery and found this on sports-health.com, "

"How long does the pain last after wrist surgery?

After the cast is removed, it's normal for the wrist to be stiff for 1 to 2 months. For some patients—such as those who are older, have osteoarthritis, or were victims of a high energy break such as from a car accident— this stiffness may last up to 2 years."

My wife had this same surgery in Dec '20. She still has some pain and is still working through the scar tissue. She claims she is 85%. It bothers her more in the damp and cold, and at night. She went through this phase 6 months ago of thinking something was wrong, but it was healed up just fine. It has slowly gotten just a little better each day. This was a bad deal. No surprise Kirilloff is still hampered, and thinking something may still be wrong. I have heard of many ending up with carpel tunnel after this injury - but that is more the older folks like us.

I also read somewhere that the problem and pain is from scar tissue, not a structural wrist problem.  Continue to believe in AK as a potential future star.  Now the Twins docs need to get him there.  Have no knowledge of how or clue as to how long it will take.

Scar tissue tearing away is INCREDIBLY painful.....he had a hit last night and smoked a ball that the SS made a great play on.   Maybe that's positive sign.

2 hours ago, In My La Z boy said:

My wife had this same surgery in Dec '20. She still has some pain and is still working through the scar tissue. She claims she is 85%. It bothers her more in the damp and cold, and at night. She went through this phase 6 months ago of thinking something was wrong, but it was healed up just fine. It has slowly gotten just a little better each day. This was a bad deal. No surprise Kirilloff is still hampered, and thinking something may still be wrong. I have heard of many ending up with carpel tunnel after this injury - but that is more the older folks like us.

My knee has never come back all the way.  I feel for him.  

If I have to watch that guy ground out on a two-hopper to 2nd base one more time, I swear. 

He's an automatic out right now. He's not getting robbed, he's not hitting lasers that are being caught, he's rolling over and chopping the ball to the infield. I turn the channel when he's up just so I don't have to watch anymore.

He's gotta go to St. Paul, should have been there after the A's series.

27 plate appearances this season at MLB.

Only 35 plate appearances at AAA and 258 plate appearances in his entire MLB career. 

I don't see Kirilloff as any more of a question mark now than he was at the beginning of last year. It is pretty clear he's struggling (pressing?). I feel like it would be worthwhile for him to spend a couple months in AAA to get things ironed out and build some confidence and the Twins certainly have the depth to move him there.

There is no doubt AK needs to be sent to St. Paul until he heals and gets his stroke back.  He isn't doing himself or the Twins any favors playing here at this point.  What to do with Buxton?  Put him on il if he's not well.  We are all growing accustomed to seeing him on the IL instead of the field anyway.  Lots of injuries on this team. Not surprised Buxton is one of them.  That's been the norm for him for 7 seasons.

Wrists are so important to hitting. David Ortiz had persistent wrist trouble as a Twin. It would have been reasonable at the time to believe that they would persist through his career. Finding a solution to the wrist has to be priority one. It might mean another lengthy IL stay.

Wrist damage can really be tricky. I busted a wrist bone when I was 25 and wore a cast for 6 months. Every time I switched the cast, the x-ray revealed it was healing. During the last round of casts, I was expecting to be rid of cast. Instead, the surgeon said, it is now worse than the original x-ray. I went the surgery route, but lost strength in my wrist and it sometimes still aches. The problem is blood flow to the wrist area is poor (that's what the surgeon said).

I hope that Kirilloff doesn't damage it further. I also think he should get more opinions!!

This may be all he ever was; Cave came up and looked good, for awhile; Rooker came up and looked good, for awhile....