KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Minnesota Twins promoted prospect Miguel Sano from Double-A Chattanooga and he made his debut as the designated hitter Thursday night.
Sano, 22, was a Southern League All-Star pick and hit .315 with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs since May 1. In 66 games, he hit .274 with 18 doubles, one triple, 15 home runs and 48 RBIs in 66 games.
Sano was primarily a third baseman for the Lookouts, but manager Paul Molitor said he would be utilized mostly as the DH and Terry Plouffee would remain as the regular third baseman.
Molitor said in addition to third, Sano would take ground balls at first base and do some work in left field during pregame drills.
The Twins are hopeful Sano can add some punch to the lineup. In 445 games in the minors, Sano had a .564 slugging percentage with 105 home runs and 339 RBIs.
“This is the opportunity I wanted my whole life,” Sano said. “I (will) try to stay here my whole career and never get sent down. This is a great day, you know. My goal is try to help the team win tonight.”
Said Molitor, “He is where he wants to be, but now is where you put your foot on the pedal and you go even harder. I think he gets that.”
Sano had a 9 a.m. flight out of Chattanooga, made a connection through Atlanta and arrived at 1:30 p.m. in Kansas City.
“Whatever they put me to do, I do,” Sano said.
Sano said he tries to compete with the pitcher.
“They throw me a bad breaking ball, I let it go,” he said. “The good ball in the zone, that’s what I hit.”
In his debut, Sano went 1-for-4 with an infield single in the ninth, which lead to the Twins’ second run in a 2-0 victory over the Royals.