A promising rookie campaign for Plum High School graduate and Minnesota Twins outfielder, Alex Kirilloff has come to an abrupt end. Betsy Hefland of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported on Wednesday afternoon that the 23-year old Kirilloff will undergo surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist this week.
The Twins have placed Kirilloff on the 10-day injured list, but he will remain inactive long after those 10 days expire. Kirilloff’s recovery timetable is roughly eight weeks, meaning the earliest he could return to baseball is the week of Sept. 13.
After surgery he will rehab at Minnesota’s Spring Training Facility in Ft. Myers, Florida before moving up to play with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, the Twins’ High-A minor league club.
Twins skipper Rocco Baldelli said that Kirilloff could rejoin the team late in the season so that he could spend time around teammates and be evaluated by big-league coaches. The club believes that Kirilloff’s surgery is season-ending.
Kirilloff — a former first-round pick and the highest slotted draftee in Plum High School history — has grown into an everyday starter for Minnesota. Of 66 games played this season, he’s started 55 and played the entire contest in 43. Serving primarily as corner outfielder and middle-of-the-order hitter, Kirilloff owns a slash line of .251/.299/.423 with eight homers and 34 RBIs in 215 at bats.
Minnesota has replaced him on the Major League roster with 28-year old utility infielder Willians Astudillo, who has become a fan favorite for pitching appearances made in mop-up duty.
