A torrid spring appears to have erased any doubt that Byung Ho Park will make the Minnesota Twins' Opening Day roster.
Park, whose stock had declined to the point that he was left off the 40-man roster before spring training, hit his fifth Grapefruit League homer in Tuesday’s 1-0 win over Tampa Bay.
The Korean slugger is hitting .362 this spring and Kennys Vargas, another option at designated hitter, continues to be bothered by a bruised foot, so “it’s difficult to imagine Park heading anywhere this weekend but Target Field,” writes Phil Miller of the Star Tribune.
At this pace, Park could be the DH for the Twins when they open the season against Kansas City southpaw Danny Duffy on Monday afternoon, suggests John Perrotto of FanRagSports.
Signed to a four-year, $12 million deal in December 2015, Park struggled to a .191/.275/.409 slash line in 2016 before finishing the season at Triple-A Rochester.
-- Doug Mittler
