Barely a week after the elimination of the Twins, Édouard Julien is back home, with mixed feelings. Disappointed with his team’s exit in the playoffs, but proud of his first season in major league baseball, he intends to devote the next few months to working to solidify his place in the big league.
• Read also: The season of Édouard Julien and the Twins is over
So many emotions for the 24-year-old from Quebec in recent months! A first game in the majors on April 12, a first home run at Yankee Stadium the next day, a presence in the playoffs, a sweep against the Jays, then another memorable home run against the Houston Astros before being eliminated. fateful. Phew!
It is easy to understand that at the end of such a whirlwind, having barely returned to earth, Julien still feels somewhat dizzy.
Édouard Julien took a little media bath upon his return to Quebec, a few days after the end of the Minnesota Twins season. Photo Stevens LeBlanc
“I haven’t really had time to think about it yet. It’s been a week since it ended and I’m still disappointed with the defeat we experienced. When I look back, I enjoyed my season, I had a lot of fun and I learned so much.
“The season more than lived up to my expectations. It’s something I dreamed of, but I had no idea what the Major Leagues were. There are lots of new things that I have experienced. Being successful on the biggest stage is positive for me, but I have a lot to learn,” commented the Quebec slugger, reconnecting with the media in his city.
A place to keep
Photo Stevens LeBlanc
The dust has not yet settled and Julien is already thinking about the next campaign. After all, that’s the reality of being a major league baseball rookie.
Even when this rookie finished first in fielding average (.381), third in batting average (.263), sixth in home runs (16) and second in the points counted (60).
It would be a very poor understanding of Julien to imagine that he takes pleasure in his performances and good statistics.
“My goal is to work all offseason to arrive at camp ready and demonstrate to the Twins that I have my place and solidify it. I will never take my position for granted.
“I want to show that I can help the team win a World Series. When you’ve tasted the life of a major league player, seeing how everyone treats you as a professional player, you don’t really want to go back to the bottom,” he said.
A beautiful climb
The rise has been meteoric for the man who was the 18th round pick, the 539th overall in the 2019 draft, by the Twins.
After a period of adaptation at the start of the season, Julien took his time to go and never looked back. He says that after the All-Star break, he really started to feel more in his shoes.
“I understood that I really had a chance of staying and that I had my place in the majors. I felt like the guys respected me. The biggest thing for me is having the respect of my teammates,” he said.
A game to refine
Getty Images via AFP
Obviously, feeling good in his place does not mean that Julien thinks he has succeeded. The one who mainly patrolled the second cushion has more of a head for the task in front of him than for anything he experienced this summer in Minnesota.
“I’m not someone who likes to talk about myself and what I’ve accomplished. I’m proud of what I’ve done, but when I look back, most of all I think about what I could do better and what I could improve at. That’s what drives me in the off-season.
“I would like to improve all facets of my game. In the last three years, we have talked about my defense. Today I want to be better at hitting shifts, curves and high rapids. I want to arrive in training camp in good shape and work on all my little injuries so that I can be healthy when the season starts,” he summarized.
A notable stint in the playoffs
Édouard Julien had every reason to celebrate his home run in the playoffs against the Astros, a moment he describes as notable in his young career. Getty Images via AFP
If Édouard Julien’s season was punctuated by unforgettable moments, none was more memorable than the successful home run at the expense of the Astros, in the sixth inning of the fourth game of the American League division series.
On this occasion, Julien became the first Canadian rookie player in history to catapult a ball to the other side of the fence in an elimination duel.
“There was all the pressure, in a moment that counts. You can’t really describe it. When I hit the ball to the opposite field, I didn’t know if it was going to come out, but I had a good idea.
“Seeing the fans stand up in the stands and scream your name while you’re running around the bases, you’re not really able to think about anything. When it happens, it’s surreal. At the same time in my head, all I was thinking was that it was 3-2, we were still losing by one run and my next at-bat was going to be the most important appearance of the year,” he said. he recounted, looking back on the feat.
Difficult to accept
Moreover, it is easy to see that Julien still has not digested the elimination of the Twins, even if he had a brilliant run in the playoffs on an individual level.
“It’s hard to take when you’re so close. You are one point or one hit away from tying the game or taking the lead. We don’t expect to lose when we’re there. We think we’re going to win the World Series. When I see the Astros playing on TV against the Rangers right now, it’s difficult because I know we had success against them during the season and we believed in our chances,” he said. he points out.
That said, he is delighted that the Twins have won the Central division with 87 victories and believes that it is only postponed for a longer run in October.
“I am very optimistic that the Twins will win a World Series in the next few years,” he assured. We are very young and I believe that our young players have demonstrated that they can play in the Major Leagues. We also have a very good mix of veterans who will stay with us for a long time.
Against the Jays
Another highlight of Julien’s season was his baptism of the playoffs against the team he idolized growing up, the Toronto Jays.
“I grew up watching the Jays, with Jose Bautista doing the bat flip. That’s kind of what got me into playing baseball by giving me the desire to play at the next level. To say that we beat the Jays in two games and that it had been a long time since the Twins had won, it’s incredible to me,” he smiled.
2023-10-19 16:16:04
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