The Minnesota Twins suffered a huge blow even before the start of the 2021 season, as the team announced on Wednesday that shortstop prospect Royce Lewis has an ACL tear in his right knee and will miss the entire season.

Lewis, the number one overall pick of the 2017 MLB Draft, will undergo reconstructive surgery to address the injury on Friday and is expected to miss nine to 12 months to fully recover.

According to MLB.com's Thomas Harrigan, the 21-year-old had been feeling soreness in his knee when the Twins players reported to camp, which was made worse after slipping on ice. The ACL tear was revealed after Lewis had an MRI exam.

Despite the injury, however, Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said that Lewis remains optimistic about his rehab and is looking forward to returning from the injury.

“While disappointing, he’s Royce, he’s got a smile on his face, knows he’s going to have a rehab year ahead, knows he’s going to have to put in a lot of work,“ Falvey said.

Lewis has shown a lot of promise in the minor leagues, hitting .266/.331/.409 with 30 homers and 68 stolen bases in three seasons, and was expected to reach the majors this year. He was named the MVP of the Arizona Fall League in 2019 and got as far as Class AA by the end of the season.

Without their top prospect, the Twins will look to bounce back from their 2020 season, which saw them finish with a 36-24 record, which was first in the AL Central Division. However, their season ended after they were swept in the American League Wild Card Series by the Houston Astros.