Shushkewich: From WBC to (both) Twin Cities, Julien barrelled up
National team alum Edouard Julien (Quebec, Que.) received a Special Recognition Award from Baseball Canada at their annual Awards Banquet & Fundraiser on Saturday night.
January 17, 2024
By Tyson Shushkewich
Canadian Baseball Network
Only two Canadians made their major league debuts last season.
Both were with the Minnesota Twins.
One was right-hander Jordan Balazovic (Mississauga, Ont.), who made 18 relief appearances splitting time between Minneapolis and the other half of the Twin Cities at triple-A St. Paul. The other was Edouard Julien (Quebec, Que.), who got a brief taste of the big leagues in April before becoming a mainstay on the Twins’ everyday roster after being recalled for a second time in mid-May.
For Julien, the road to the big leagues involved a stop at almost every level in the minors, including a trip to the Arizona Fall League in 2022, before finally breaking through after a strong start with St. Paul.
“It was awesome, I dreamed my whole life to become a pro ball player and looking back, I never thought I would be able to do that,” said Julien, speaking to the Canadian Baseball Network. “It was an unbelievable year and just to get to play in the majors fulfilled every dream I ever had.”
In the TV league, Julien authored a .263/.381/.459 slash line while collecting 16 doubles, 16 home runs, and an .839 OPS through 109 games and 338 at-bats. He finished the year first on the team in on-base percentage, second in OPS, third in average, sixth in home runs, and seventh in doubles while ranking in the middle of the pack in terms of at-bats.
At the plate, Julien was a menace against opposing pitchers, as the left-handed batter ranked in the 100th percentile in chase rate and walked at a 15.7% rate (64 walks, a team high), putting him in the 98th percentile at the big league level in his rookie campaign. The Quebec product earned two points to rank seventh in AL Rookie of the Year voting last year, one point ahead of shortstop Anthony Volpe of the New York Yankees.
Injuries opened the door for Julien but it was his play that kept him the lineup. He finished with the most reps at second base on the Twins squad. He also spent some time in the DH role when he wasn’t on the field, which makes sense considering his plus bat. But the Auburn University product held his own at second, putting forward a .991 fielding percentage and a zero outs above average.
“Last year I was really working on my defence, and while I am always working on my fielding ability, I am also working on my body and looking to stay healthy with respect to my hitting,” said Julien. “I want my body to be healthy all year long and to be a better athlete overall.”
In his rookie campaign, the Twins captured the AL Central title and met the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL Wild Card series. Julien was 1-for-6 at the plate with one walk and one run while batting in the leadoff spot, with his one hit coming off José Berríos in Game 2, a single to left field.
After defeating the Blue Jays, the Twins went on to face the Houston Astros and Julien settled in nicely, going 4-for-11 (.364) at the plate collecting two doubles, a home run, and four walks as the Twins bowed out to the Astros in four games. Julien’s first postseason homer was an opposite field knock off of José Urquidy in the sixth inning of Game 4 to bring the Twins within one, although it fell short of keeping Minnesota alive in the playoffs.
“It was different playing in the postseason,” said Julien. “The atmosphere around the stadium, everyone is on their feet and cheering so loud. You have to deal with the pressure on the field and every play and every pitch is bigger than the regular season. It is super fun to play in that atmosphere when everything is times one thousand, you have to show up and drive, and now that I have a taste of it, I want to win it all.”
On top of a stellar rookie campaign, Julien started the year with Team Canada at the World Baseball Classic, where he turned heads with his bat. The Junior National Team alum led the team with two home runs and five walks (tied with Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, B.C.)) while going 7-for-13 at the plate (.538), finishing the tournament with a 1.821 OPS. This effort, combined with his play during the regular season, saw Julien leave with some hardware at the Baseball Canada Awards banquet on Saturday in the form of a Special Recognition Award.
“It was awesome, and whenever you get a chance to wear Team Canada across your chest it is always a great experience,” Julien said. “You get to play with guys you watched growing up and guys you played with growing up. I am looking forward to the next WBC.”
Looking towards 2024, Julien is in a good spot to become a regular player for the Twins. Minnesota is looking to shed some payroll and could move Jorge Polanco before the start of the year, who also spent time at second last year, leaving room for Julien to lock down the spot for the club this season and beyond.
While some questioned where the Quebec product would end up defensively at the big league level, it appears that Julien has found a home on the right side of the Twins’ infield for the foreseeable future.