Twins Righthander Casey Legumina Poised For Breakout Year

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Class A hitters managed to hit just .203 against Casey Legumina in 2021, pretty good evidence that the 24-year-old righthander is adept at avoiding line drives when he’s on the mound.

Now, if he can only do the same in the dugout.

Legumina, the Twins’ eighth-round pick in 2019 from Gonzaga, was sitting on the bench in Fort Myers last June when a foul-ball screamer smashed into his pitching arm.

“It wasn’t fractured,” as initially feared, said Twins farm director Alex Hassan. “But there was some pretty decent bruising on his arm.”

That bruise was enough to sideline Legumina for a full month. But when he returned, he authored an impressive eight-game run.

Legumina allowed just six runs over his final eight appearances and 27.1 innings for Low-A Fort Myers. He posted a 1.98 ERA that came with 31 strikeouts and seven walks.

“If he had been healthy, there would have been an opportunity to move him along,” Hassan said. “He’s at the age, he’s got the stuff, and he’s performed so well at the low levels—those are usually pretty good ingredients for being ready.”

The Twins’ patience may be paying off, in other words. They drafted the 6-foot-2, 195-pound Legumina despite a history of arm trouble at Gonzaga, and he had Tommy John surgery just two months after the 2019 draft. He finally threw his first pitch as a professional last April.

“He’s a guy we’re excited about. We really like his fastball, changeup and slider. All three are good pitches,” Hassan said. “His average fastball was 94 (mph) last year and there might be a little more in the tank.”

Legumina was closer in college, and the Twins believe he can some day make the majors as a starter. Three straight impressive outings of five-plus innings to close his time at Low-A before making one starts for High-A Cedar Rapids added to their confidence.

And he’ll likely be more attentive in the dugout, too, after that scary line drive.