Given a chance in Minnesota, Clemens continues to cash in his opportunities

ARLINGTON, Texas – Kody Clemens never wondered if he could produce in the big leagues. He just wondered if he’d ever get the opportunity.

Sometimes opportunity takes strange shapes.

On April 23 of last year, Clemens was a bench player for the Phillies and found himself the victim of a roster crunch. He was designated for assignment to make room for Weston Wilson, leaving his future in doubt. But when Luke Keaschall hit the injured list with a broken arm a few days later, the Twins had a need. They acquired Clemens for cash on April 26.

Four days later, he made his first start with Minnesota. Three days after that, he hit his first Twins homer. Less than 14 months since that shakeup, Clemens is an indispensable figure on Minnesota’s roster. He hit his 30th homer as a Twin on Tuesday, a three-run shot that was the biggest blow in a 12-2 win against the Rangers.

In roughly a full season’s worth of playing time – 557 at-bats, 617 plate appearances – Clemens has hit the round number that marks a power hitter. He’s racked up 80 RBIs for Minnesota while playing five positions (plus appearing as a pitcher), turning himself into a plus first baseman for good measure.

“I trust myself,” said Clemens. “I feel like if you look at all of my numbers, even when I wasn’t playing a lot, I was hitting four or five homers in 100 plate appearances. So I always thought, ‘Damn, if I got a chance, I could do this.’”

His homer on Tuesday was typical of what he’s done so often this year, with a knack for big hits in important situations. The Twins led 2-0 in the third inning, but with a gassed bullpen, that wasn’t a comfortable lead. After Trevor Larnach singled and Byron Buxton walked, Clemens faced off against Kumar Rocker with no one out.

He laid off a slider inside, then jumped a hanging changeup for the three-run homer that changed the complexion of the game. The Twins never looked back, winning for the fourth time in five games and taking their second straight series against a contending opponent.

It was his seventh home run in 19 games, a stretch over which he’s hit .292 and slugged .667.

“[I’m] trying to make some good swing decisions and make sure I’m swinging at good pitches,” he said. “Trying to stay within myself. I think sometimes I get too big, and that’s when I’ll swing and miss or foul one off or hit it in the air or whatever. But just trying to stay consistent and go day by day.”

Despite being the son of a baseball legend and a huge star when he was at the University of Texas, Clemens carries the “whatever is needed” attitude of a grinder who’s had to fight for his chances. Because he has. He didn’t debut until he was 26, and spent time in the Minors in each of his first three Major League seasons. He never even reached 150 plate appearances in a season until last year.

Now we know what he can do with the opportunity.

“When you're coming from Philly, as loaded as they are, and you don't have options, it ended up being a tough situation,” said manager Derek Shelton. “Last year, we did a really good job of acquiring a guy that is a really good baseball player. … Sometimes it's just an opportunity and everyday at-bats. He's a good baseball player. It's just he hasn't gotten these at-bats until he's 29 years old.”