When Trevor Larnach was growing up, his maternal uncle, Brian Cabral, the special teams captain of the 1985 Chicago Bears, came over flashing a Super Bowl ring. A few years later, Larnach’s bat helped Oregon State clinch a College World Series title. Yeah, winning championships seems to be a family thing.
A 1st round pick in 2018 (20th overall), Larnach shot up the Twins minor league ladder, hitting .292/.375/.451 in 188 games. After a lackluster 79-game big league stint in 2021, the California native got out to a hot start this year, posting a slash-line of .313/.365/.448 in 74 plate appearances before landing on the 10-day Injured List on May 8 with a groin strain.
I caught up with the young outfielder last week during the Oakland series to discuss this season and his family’s winning ways…
DZ: Well, this is year two for you. You’re off to a pretty good start with the bat. How are you feeling about things?
LARNACH: Great. Yeah, I feel great. This team is fun to play with, and we’re having… I think we’re all having fun. Trying to win every game, staying in the battle. We just keep the energy up.
DZ: Cool. What was it like making opening day roster for the first time?
LARNACH: I didn’t actually. I didn’t make it opening day. I got sent to St. Paul and then, I think AK (Alex Kirilloff) got hurt with his wrist, and then they called me up.
DZ: OK. My bad. Yeah, so what’s that like, when the roster cut downs is coming (at the end of spring training)? Are you nervous about it? Do you think about it a lot, or…?
LARNACH: No, I just do my job, man. Everything else will take care of itself whether it’s fielding, hitting, everything. I just stick to what I need to do and everything else will take care of itself.
DZ: Cool. How much did having that experience last year, help you come into-
LARNACH: Helps a lot, yeah. Yeah, I learned from last year. Everything that happened, I learned from it. I took it into this year, and now I’m doing things a little differently, and going about my business a little differently, and I’m… Yeah, I think it’s been great.
DZ: Had that ‘awe’ factor kind of gone away too after you’ve… You know, the first time you get here, I’d imagine it’s a little overwhelming…
LARNACH: Just the first day. The first day is because you’re not used to all this stuff. I mean, I think probably up until the first day and the first everything, that’s just how it goes. I say I learned from it and enjoyed it, but enjoying it more now.
DZ: You won the College World Series (with Oregon State) about four years ago. What stands out from that? What do you remember most about it?
LARNACH: If I’m being honest, it’s probably the closest atmosphere to playing in the big leagues. You know, not every game is packed right now, but every game back then was packed, almost to a full stadium. It was loud and intense…You take that factor and the winning factor and everything that it took to get there, and you kind of put the same principles in line for this level.
DZ: Just one last thing. I read that you have a uncle that played in the NFL. He was on the ’85 Bears, actually. Which I know you don’t remember, but I do. That was great, all-time team. (Did your uncle) have any good stories about that team?
LARNACH: …When I was younger and (my uncle) would come visit me and see the family. He’d wear his ring. I never had an understanding of what that was, but as I get older and I’m playing on a really high level, I understand it takes a lot to get to that point. The more I see him, the more I’ll be able to ask him questions about certain things on what he did, or what the guys he played with did and everything. Because it might be a different sport, but it’s still the highest level for their sport. So, there’s some commonalities.
DZ: Yeah, it’s good to have it in the family. Does he talk about Walter Payton, Jim McMahon, The Fridge, any of those guys? Interesting stories?
LARNACH: Yeah, my mom and my uncle both, would talk about how just great of a guy Walter Payton was. How he would go about his business and his presence and all that stuff, you know, so… You take that stuff into account and you want to learn and be like those guys, just for baseball.
-David Zingler
Minnesota Score Magazine and Radio 