Kennys Vargas: David Ortiz's not-so-little brother

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The first time he saw Kennys Vargas, David Ortiz felt like he was looking in a mirror, albeit a charitable one that took some years off.

It was in April 2013 and Ortiz had remained at the Boston Red Sox spring training site after the season started to rehab an Achilles injury. He went to see a Class A game of the Minnesota Twins, who also train in Fort Myers.

When introduced to the 6-5, 280-pound Vargas, Big Papi realized he was no longer the largest guy around. The young man in front of him was so big, his first name was plural, as if a singular name wouldn't be enough.

"I see this huge kid at Class A and it was like seeing a body double, except bigger and stronger,'' said Ortiz, 6-3 and 260 pounds. "Then I saw him hitting and I thought, 'What an animal.' This guy is stronger than me, and a he's a good hitter.''

The next spring, Ortiz invited Vargas over to his house for dinner, a tradition he has maintained with young players over the years as a means of sharing some of the wisdom accumulated in his 18-year career.

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Both Caribbean-born players – Ortiz is Dominican, Vargas from Puerto Rico – soon realized they had a gregarious personality in common as well, and a bond developed. Now they make a point of getting together during the spring.

"He treats me like a friend from the neighborhood,'' said Vargas, 24, who idolized Ortiz before they met. "He calls me, advises me, we eat together. Our wives get together. It's that kind of relationship. He identifies himself with me when he was my age. He always tells me that. 'You're just like I was, crazy.'''

Despite the age difference – Ortiz is 39 – Twins general manager Terry Ryan sees the two players' relationship as more brotherly than father-son, and he's thrilled to see one of the game's preeminent figures take the young first baseman/DH under his wing.

There was a time when Ortiz was flashing his infectious smile and enormous power in a Twins uniform. Ryan would love to see Vargas follow suit, helping make up for one of the biggest mistakes in franchise history.

Ortiz, who was 21 when he came up with Minnesota in 1997, had varying degrees of success in parts of six seasons but had set career highs with 20 homers, 75 RBI and an .839 OPS in 2002. Concerned about the salary he might command in arbitration and unable to trade him, the Twins simply released Ortiz in December 2002. The Red Sox signed him a month later.

More than 400 home runs and three World Series rings later, Ortiz has left an indelible mark in baseball. Vargas does tend to leave indelible marks on baseballs – five of his nine home runs as a rookie last season surpassed 400 feet – but his game still needs plenty of polish.

"There really isn't anybody who can hit it much farther than Kennys,'' Ryan said. "That's nice, but you also have to be an adept hitter to put the barrel on the ball. You just can't go up there and flail away. He's going to have to learn how to hit up here on a consistent basis. That will come in time, I suspect, as he matures.''

Vargas went on a hitting tear from the moment he first stepped on a major league field on Aug. 1 – his 24th birthday – banging out 38 hits and driving in 24 runs in August, the highest totals for a player in his debut month since Joe DiMaggio had 48 and 28 in May 1936.

Vargas finished with a .274 batting average, nine homers, 38 RBI and a .772 OPS in 53 games. At a time when baseball is experiencing an offensive drought, Vargas provides eye-popping power potential from both sides of the plate, and he figures to start the season as the Twins' DH.

Those hoping to see the Twins return to prominence after four consecutive losing seasons – they won the AL Central six times between 2002 and 2010 – can envision a near future with a potent lineup featuring the likes of Vargas, Dozier, Arcia, Mauer and prized prospects Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton.

But it's not hard to look behind the alluring numbers to find out Vargas struck out 63 times and collected just 12 walks in 234 plate appearances in the majors last season. He also cooled down from a .309 batting average in August to .228 in September, although he remained a threat at the plate and homered five times.

Vargas said he focused on developing better plate discipline and improving the quality of his at-bats, especially with two strikes, while playing winter ball back home.

"You always like having that guy who can hit one over the fence, but baseball these days is about much more than power,'' Vargas said. "If I hit 30 home runs someday, I still would want to have a batting average of at least .280, because that means you helped the team in other ways than only with power.''

Manager Paul Molitor also wants to see Vargas help the club defensively when Mauer gets a break, and for that the extra-large slugger will have to improve his conditioning. Vargas arrived in camp at 290 pounds and Ryan promptly told him there would be a warm spot for him at Class AAA if he didn't get down to 275. Vargas shed 10 pounds and was working on the other five.

Vargas has trustworthy hands at first, but his size limits his mobility and impairs his stamina.

"Kennys needs to control his weight when he goes back to the island in the offseason,'' Ortiz said. "He's like me. If he gets careless, he puts on a lot of pounds. He is an incredible talent, so he needs to start sacrificing now that he's young so in 10 years he can say, 'I sacrificed, but I've accomplished what I wanted.'''

Ortiz won't be around during the season to emphasize that message, but his trusted lieutenant Torii Hunter will be.

Hunter, who was Ortiz's teammate for several years in the majors and minors and remains a close friend, returned to the Twin Cities this year after a seven-season detour. He has taken on the likes of Vargas, Sano and Buxton as his pet projects this spring and is happy that they're eager to absorb the advice he dispenses.

"People think it's just baseball,'' Hunter said. "No, it's finances, the way you carry yourself, the way you treat others, how you talk to the media, how you work hard. Don't swing 1,000 times. Swing 300 quality times. It's not quantity. So I try to tell them different things like that, eating right, staying hydrated.''

Like most people who've met both, Hunter notices the similarities between Ortiz and Vargas – often called "Little Papi'' – including a jovial nature and frequent smile, although Hunter points out Big Papi's wicked sense of humor in the clubhouse has no equal.

Twelve years after they blundered by letting Ortiz go, the Twins may have found a player with similar charisma and the potential to win over a town, provided he delivers on the field first.

"David is in his own world, but Kennys has a great personality,'' Hunter said. "He speaks very good English and has great teeth. He's a guy you can market.''

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