First baseman Ty France is not the Twins’ best player by any means, but he has nonetheless provided Minnesota with hits when it matters.

Twins first baseman Ty France seems to only hit when it matters

France, who signed a one-year contract worth $1 million with Minnesota in the offseason, is slashing .251/.313/.361 (89 OPS+) with four home runs, eight doubles and 29 RBI while being worth 0.1 fWAR this year.

Despite France’s overall poor offensive performance this season, he holds an impressive .392/.418/.451 slash line with runners in scoring position. And even though there were no runners on second or third base, he hit a two-run, walk-off home run against the Kansas City Royals Friday night to give the Twins a 3-1 win.

Underlying metrics suggest France’s stats should improve

While the Twins certainly will not want to cut ties with France unless they fall out of postseason contention, they may want to upgrade at first base before the July 31 trade deadline or utilize Kody Clemens at the position more often.

However, France’s Baseball Savant page and his clutch hitting suggest the former Mariner infielder has much more to offer with his bat than his standard statistics show.

France has an xwOBA of .356, while his wOBA is .302, suggesting he has had bad luck at the plate this year. His xBA is .276, xSLG is .482, and he has an elite 14.4 K%.

Additionally, France has been an above-average fielder for the Twins, providing 1 Out Above Average (OAA) after putting up an abysmal -12 OAA the previous year.

According to FanGraphs, France has been worth $0.7 million this season, meaning Minnesota is on the verge of already seeing a return on their $1 million investment. As long as France continues to put up good at-bats, his overall stats should improve, and he could be a key factor in a playoff run down the road.

Twins set to play Tampa Bay Rays

The Twins are slated to begin a three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays at 6:05 p.m. CT on Monday. Game 1’s scheduled starting pitchers are righties Chris Paddack for Minnesota and former Twin Zack Littell for Tampa Bay.