FORT MYERS, Fla. — Royce Lewis likes to keep things simple.

He eats the same Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal upon rising each day at 6:15 a.m. in the Twins’ academy, where the 18-year-old Twins shortstop prospect shares a dorm room with fellow new draftee Ricky De La Torre.

Lewis visits the trainer’s room each morning after his second breakfast, usually an omelette, for stretching that keeps his body and his throwing arm healthy amid the grind of his first Gulf Coast League summer.

He keeps his $6.725 million signing bonus in a trust fund, living off the standard $250 monthly stipend minor-leaguers get at this stage of their careers. His most significant purchase upon signing was a protective shin guard, and even that came at his parents’ expense.

Why, the young man from Orange County, Calif., still doesn’t have his driver’s license after needing four tries just secure his learner’s permit back home. His younger sister is going to beat him to that milestone, he readily admits.

“I’m bad at taking tests,” Lewis said with a laugh. “I’ll tell you that right now.”

So, when it comes to identifying the most awkward part of this transition to a professional lifestyle, Lewis doesn’t hesitate. That would be opening the first social media accounts of his young life on Instagram and Snapchat. The marketing folks at Boras Corp. explained the benefits to him shortly after the Twins made him the first overall pick six weeks ago out of JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano.

“It’s kind of weird, to be honest,” Lewis said. “I don’t love it at all. I handle it myself, but I do get advice for it because I still don’t know what I’m doing on there.”

His parents, William and Cindy, have Twitter accounts just to keep track of their famous son’s press coverage, but Royce himself has never dabbled in Twitter or Facebook.

“He just never got it — never,” William Lewis said last month. “Some people just focus better doing their own thing and not hearing it, reading it, seeing it, watching it or whatever. It can be detrimental. You don’t want to hear all the extra, tertiary voices around you. Doing it this way helps him focus.”

Lewis keeps his posts to a minimum. Away from home for the first time, he uses the new accounts primarily to stay in touch with his friends and extended family back home.

The branding part of it feels odd to him.

“I’m not the person that likes to put myself out there for anyone or any reason,” he said. “I feel like every time you post a picture, you’re kind of saying, ‘Look at me. Look at this. Look what I’m doing.’ And I’m not really about that, although modern-day times are changing. I kind of have to get with the flow.”

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING

Eighteen games into his pro career, Lewis is handling the baseball part of his job incredibly well.

Batting .329 with three homers and a combined on-base/slugging percentage of .976, Lewis already had nine multi-hit games and had impressed teammates and coaches alike with his energy and advanced understanding of the game.

“His mentality for his age, that was one thing that put me in shock,” said Ramon Borrego, in his seventh season managing the Twins’ GCL entry. “From the first day he was so positive, asking questions: ‘Hey, what am I doing right here?’ He’s been playing so hard and so smart. I don’t even need to work much with him. It’s just game situations, game awareness.”

Lewis knocked a 3-2 pitch over the fence in his first pro at-bat. Unfortunately, the ball landed in a pond and could not be retrieved.

In his third pro game, Lewis was plunked in the eighth inning of an 8-3 win over the GCL Orioles. That was apparent retribution for the wildness of the Twins’ pitching staff, which had hit the Orioles’ first baseman four times in the first few games.

Lewis just put his head down and took his base.

“I got hit in the back,” he said. “I just kind of took it and went to first. Part of the game. Our team’s a little wild from the pitching standpoint.”

Borrego wanted to make sure Lewis understood what was going on, but there was no need for explanation.

“I was just the next batter up,” Lewis said. “There were two outs and no one on base, and that’s kind of a great situation to do it if you’re going to do it. It happens and it’s the game, and I got a better understanding of how it works.”

That incident and other eye-opening moments already have convinced Borrego he won’t be managing Lewis for much longer. In fact, the seasoned skipper who helped the likes of Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler break into pro ball has already recommended to his bosses that Lewis be promoted.

Not to rookie-level Elizabethton, mind you, but all the way to Class A Cedar Rapids in the Midwest League.

“When I had Buxton, I said, ‘Why are we keeping this guy? He needs to go somewhere,’ ” Borrego said. “It’s the same thing with Lewis. It’s the same case. I said, ‘Hey, get ready to get him out of here.’ He’s been dominating the league. The way he’s been playing, you say, ‘Wow. This kid doesn’t need to be here.’ That kid’s ready to go play in CR right now.”

EFFORTLESS LEADER

Lewis insists he isn’t getting itchy for a new challenge. He’s too busy soaking up all the knowledge and experiences he can with his first pro team.

“It’s an amazing thing. I love it,” he said. “I’m having so much fun out here working at my craft and baseball every day. It’s a dream that’s finally come true. I’m able to do that now.”

He will wait until after the season to shop for a condo in the Fort Myers area, acknowledging that “California taxes are a hassle.” Aside from establishing Florida residency, he said, “I’m probably just going to not buy anything.”

He pretty much lives at the Twins complex, making the short walk over to Hammond Stadium to watch the Miracle play Florida State League games at night. Should he need a ride around town, Lewis will use Uber or bum a lift from one of his teammates.

He has learned to deal with professional autograph hounds by personalizing his signature.

“If you’re coming out to see me, you’re putting in all the work,” he said. “If you want to really sell it, then what’s the point?”

He asked Twins player-development officials if he could enroll in Spanish-language classes, but for now he must rely on Borrego and his roommate, De La Torre, and other Latino teammates for usable phrases in his second language.

“I wish I could speak Spanish so I could understand what they’re saying,” Lewis said. “I’m learning a little bit. I’m trying. I’m working on it. I’ve got Ricky. He’s teaching me.”

Teammates will ask him, “Que lo que?” — What’s up?

“I’m always saying, ‘Tranquilo,’ “ Lewis said. “Just chillin’.”

Whether it’s greeting groundskeepers and office staff as he makes his rounds each day, or doing his part to help the female janitor clean up in the cafeteria — “I’m really good buddies with her” — Lewis is immersing himself in his new surroundings.

“This kid is amazing,” Borrego said. “He treats everybody equal. He talks with everybody. He’s trying to be a leader, but he’s not trying too hard.”

On and off the field, Lewis is taking things as they come with a cheerful determination.

“I thought it would be a little bit harder, to be honest,” he said. “Not necessarily the level of play, but the grind and the weather. I didn’t think I’d get used to the weather this quick. The only thing that bothers me is the sweat going into my eyes.”

His father suggested he wear a bandanna, but that was quickly vetoed by the young man with frosted curls atop his otherwise close-cropped hair.

“I said, ‘No, I’ve got to show off the hair,’ ” Lewis said with a laugh.

Not even a month into his pro career, Lewis is tranquilo indeed.