Minnesota Twins Prospect Retrospective: Brooks Lee

[Cody Christie]

Brooks Lee has showcased his strong hitting abilities to start his big-league career. Let’s look back at his time in the Twins farm system, to see how he got to this point.

Image courtesy of Rob Thompson, St. Paul Saints

The top of the 2022 MLB Draft didn’t play out as many expected. The Twins were surprised and ecstatic when Brooks Lee fell to them with the eighth overall pick. He was the back-to-back Player of the Year in the Big West, and many evaluators considered him the top collegiate hitter in his draft class. Lee has come as advertised during his professional career. 

"We were hoping to get a player who would make it to our pick who maybe we didn’t think would absolutely get there," Twins scouting director Sean Johnson said. "Brooks Lee fits that bill. Our room was thrilled when we were able to select him, that he made it down that far. You just didn’t know how the board is going to fall."

The Twins signed Lee for $5.675 million and began promoting him aggressively through tbeir system. Lee got his feet wet with four games in the Florida Complex League, where he went 6-for-17 (.353) with two doubles. Minnesota quickly promoted him to High-A Cedar Rapids, where he hit .289/.395/.454, with four doubles and four home runs across 25 contests. Wichita was headed to the Texas League playoffs, so Lee advanced to Double-A for the stretch run. He helped Wichita qualify for the Championship Series, before losing to the Frisco RoughRiders. It was a memorable professional debut that established Lee as one of the game’s best prospects. 

Entering the 2023 season, Lee was a consensus top-50 prospect according to the three national top-100 lists. Minnesota sent him back to Double-A, where he had ended the 2022 campaign. In 87 games, he hit .292/.365/.476, with 31 doubles and 11 home runs. In early August, the Twins promoted Lee to Triple-A, where he was over four years younger than the average age of the competition in the International League. There, Lee struggled for the first time in his professional career, as he hit .237/.304/.428 with 16 extra-base hits in 38 games. He knew something needed to change entering the 2024 season, and used the offseason to fix his flaws. 

As a switch hitter, Lee’s left-handed swing has always been his better side. During the 2023 season, he posted an .806 OPS as a lefty and a .603 OPS as a righty. He spent the offseason refining his right-handed swing to make it more closely match his left-handed swing. In spring training, Lee started to show off his improved mechanics, but a herniated disc in his back put him on the IL to begin the year. Back injuries can be tricky and have long-term impacts, but the Twins decided on a course of action that didn’t include surgery. Lee worked through his rehab and made his first appearance with the Saints at the beginning of June. 

Lee quickly made it difficult for the Twins to leave him in the minors. In 20 games with the Saints, he hit .329/.394/.635, with five doubles and seven home runs. His right-handed swing entirely changed, as he went 13-for-38 (.342) against lefties with eight extra-base hits. For some perspective, he had seven extra-base hits in 109 plate appearances against southpaws last season. If healthy, Lee would have likely been called up earlier in the season, but his performance shows that he was knocking down the door to the big leagues.

Defensively, Lee has continued to play shortstop regularly, but will get limited reps at that position in the majors. Royce Lewis’s injury means that Lee will regularly play third base, a position he has only started ten times as a professional. The Twins have also given him a lot of pre-game reps at second base, which might be his long-term position. 

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Lee moved quickly through the Twins system, but that can be expected for an advanced college bat. What stands out about his professional career? What have you noticed during his first few games in the majors? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[thelanges5]

So far he looks like the real deal. Love our infield once Lewis gets back. The future is bright with this group. 

[Karbo]

He has looked very good so far. If he keeps hitting I can't see him going back down. When Lewis comes back I would put Lee at 2nd, move Castro to OF or anywhere someone needs a break. Castro is so valuable!

[wabene]

This is the place for this opinion which I will attempt not to repeat after posting this time. Don't want to beat a drum incessantly. Lee is better at 3rd than Lewis and he has shown that in his short stint. He can get to the same balls as Lewis and the arm is much more reliable. His baseball instincts are also better. It is likely Lee will be available which is something Lewis has yet to prove even a little. At this point I would leave Lee right where he is and also let him back up Correa at short. Lewis can move to second and or left. He could also back up 3rd along with Miranda. The Twins might agree since they have not played Lee at 2nd. 

Can you even plan on Lewis in your lineup this year? Starting next year? If he comes back in August and is able to play the remainder of the year including a possible playoff run, perceptions might change somewhat. I mean healthy not just DHing in the playoffs like last year.

This is not a slam on Lewis, I'm rooting for him. This is being realistic. 

I'm guessing this will be unpopular.

[Rod Carews Birthday]

14 minutes ago, wabene said:

This is the place for this opinion which I will attempt not to repeat after posting this time. Don't want to beat a drum incessantly. Lee is better at 3rd than Lewis and he has shown that in his short stint. He can get to the same balls as Lewis and the arm is much more reliable. His baseball instincts are also better. It is likely Lee will be available which is something Lewis has yet to prove even a little. At this point I would leave Lee right where he is and also let him back up Correa at short. Lewis can move to second and or left. He could also back up 3rd along with Miranda. The Twins might agree since they have not played Lee at 2nd. 

Can you even plan on Lewis in your lineup this year? Starting next year? If he comes back in August and is able to play the remainder of the year including a possible playoff run, perceptions might change somewhat. I mean healthy not just DHing in the playoffs like last year.

This is not a slam on Lewis, I'm rooting for him. This is being realistic. 

I'm guessing this will be unpopular.

I think you are probably right about the defense, and I also agree that Lewis’ availability is a question mark at best. EXCEPT, I’m not ready to jump on the Brooks Lee train yet. He’s a rookie still in his honeymoon phase.  We’ve only seen the best of Brooks Lee so far. The inevitable slump will help us figure out whether he is the long term piece that we hope he will be. Remember, Miranda was good, then very bad, and now very good. That could happen with any of the young players and some of them never get back to being good again.  

[MinnInPa]

still laughing at so called "experts" throwing Lee's name in to potential trade talks.. untouchable..you are darn right he is. Kid will be a Twin for next 10 years

[srlarson]

Need to move some of the old guys out and get the young guys the reps.....liking what the IF looks like Lewis, Correa, Lee, Miranda/Santana (1st/DH)......let Castro fill in for all w a start a week in the OF....

[CCHOF5yearstoolate]

2 hours ago, wabene said:

This is the place for this opinion which I will attempt not to repeat after posting this time. Don't want to beat a drum incessantly. Lee is better at 3rd than Lewis and he has shown that in his short stint. He can get to the same balls as Lewis and the arm is much more reliable. His baseball instincts are also better. It is likely Lee will be available which is something Lewis has yet to prove even a little. At this point I would leave Lee right where he is and also let him back up Correa at short. Lewis can move to second and or left. He could also back up 3rd along with Miranda. The Twins might agree since they have not played Lee at 2nd. 

Can you even plan on Lewis in your lineup this year? Starting next year? If he comes back in August and is able to play the remainder of the year including a possible playoff run, perceptions might change somewhat. I mean healthy not just DHing in the playoffs like last year.

This is not a slam on Lewis, I'm rooting for him. This is being realistic. 

I'm guessing this will be unpopular.

Seems more popular than you thought!

I agree in the very small sample we've seen so far, Lee just seems to have a really solid floor at 3rd. I wouldn't put Royce in the OF, though, given that most of his injuries have been lower body.

Lee - Correa - Lewis/Julien - Miranda/whoever seems like the ideal IF positioning for the next few years, with a ton of flexibility for guys to swap in as-needed. 

[TwinsDr2021]

48 minutes ago, CCHOF5yearstoolate said:

Seems more popular than you thought!

I agree in the very small sample we've seen so far, Lee just seems to have a really solid floor at 3rd. I wouldn't put Royce in the OF, though, given that most of his injuries have been lower body.

Lee - Correa - Lewis/Julien - Miranda/whoever seems like the ideal IF positioning for the next few years, with a ton of flexibility for guys to swap in as-needed. 

Honest question is Left field worse for injuries than second base?

[RpR]

4 minutes ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

Honest question is Left field worse for injuries than second base?

Lewis does not have a strong enough arm for Left Field, and if he makes a difficult catch, where he ends up on the ground , he may not get up.

Lee , so far , has shown he has the arm for 3rd base, it will be interest to see how this turn out by mid August.

He can hit well, but how well he adapts to pitchers finding his weak spot is what counts.

[CCHOF5yearstoolate]

1 hour ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

Honest question is Left field worse for injuries than second base?

Just a gut feel that more running/opportunities for sprinting would be worse for his legs, at least for the next couple years.

Can't say with confidence one way or the other, though. 

[Mike Sixel]

54 minutes ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

Honest question is Left field worse for injuries than second base?

I can't find anything on line about the "danger" of different positions, which is weird. I'd guess no, not at all. Lots more knee work at 2nd, lots more sprinting in the OF.....

[RpR]

41 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

I can't find anything on line about the "danger" of different positions, which is weird. I'd guess no, not at all. Lots more knee work at 2nd, lots more sprinting in the OF.....

A lot more walls in the outfield!

[JD-TWINS]

2 hours ago, CCHOF5yearstoolate said:

Seems more popular than you thought!

I agree in the very small sample we've seen so far, Lee just seems to have a really solid floor at 3rd. I wouldn't put Royce in the OF, though, given that most of his injuries have been lower body.

Lee - Correa - Lewis/Julien - Miranda/whoever seems like the ideal IF positioning for the next few years, with a ton of flexibility for guys to swap in as-needed. 

I like Lee at 3B with Correa next to him….seems very solid for another 2-3 years at a minimum.

Miranda seems to be a lock going forward at 1B.

Question #1 is, how good will Julien play/hit? 

Question #2 is, where does Royce fit in defensively?

My preference, in a perfect offensive world is getting ALL the good bats in the line-up and that takes compromise & flexibility in thinking.

Lee & CC on left side regularly……Julien & Castro at 2B with Castro as the RH hitting side of a platoon.

Miranda at 1B maybe 50% of the time.

Now the sticky part…….Lewis in LF when Castro goes to 2B, v. LH pitching……Lewis at 1B 30% of the time - shared with Miranda……Lewis at DH 35% of the time. Harmon Killebrew & Greg Luzinski & Orlando Cepeda all played LF……Lewis is at risk every time he crosses the white lines but LF seems like a pretty safe bet - coupled with time at 1B. Not that I care, but his bat profiles as a LF or 1B or DH.

Larnach can DH v. RH pitching - he can spell Castro in LF as well.

Wallner in RF…….Martin or other RH hitting guy to platoon with Wallner v. lefties.

[TwinsDr2021]

1 hour ago, RpR said:

Lewis does not have a strong enough arm for Left Field, and if he makes a difficult catch, where he ends up on the ground , he may not get up.

Lee , so far , has shown he has the arm for 3rd base, it will be interest to see how this turn out by mid August.

He can hit well, but how well he adapts to pitchers finding his weak spot is what counts.

So what I am hearing is Lewis should only play DH?

[Mike Sixel]

4 minutes ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

So what I am hearing is Lewis should only play DH?

hahahaha. No. Not even close.

[Mike Sixel]

11 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

I like Lee at 3B with Correa next to him….seems very solid for another 2-3 years at a minimum.

Miranda seems to be a lock going forward at 1B.

Question #1 is, how good will Julien play/hit? 

Question #2 is, where does Royce fit in defensively?

My preference, in a perfect offensive world is getting ALL the good bats in the line-up and that takes compromise & flexibility in thinking.

Lee & CC on left side regularly……Julien & Castro at 2B with Castro as the RH hitting side of a platoon.

Miranda at 1B maybe 50% of the time.

Now the sticky part…….Lewis in LF when Castro goes to 2B, v. LH pitching……Lewis at 1B 30% of the time - shared with Miranda……Lewis at DH 35% of the time. Harmon Killebrew & Greg Luzinski & Orlando Cepeda all played LF……Lewis is at risk every time he crosses the white lines but LF seems like a pretty safe bet - coupled with time at 1B. Not that I care, but his bat profiles as a LF or 1B or DH.

Larnach can DH v. RH pitching - he can spell Castro in LF as well.

Wallner in RF…….Martin or other RH hitting guy to platoon with Wallner v. lefties.

Keaschell may also be a 2b......or CF or LF. He might be ready in 12 months.

[CCHOF5yearstoolate]

21 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

Question #1 is, how good will Julien play/hit? 

Question #2 is, where does Royce fit in defensively?

My preference, in a perfect offensive world is getting ALL the good bats in the line-up and that takes compromise & flexibility in thinking.

Lee & CC on left side regularly……Julien & Castro at 2B with Castro as the RH hitting side of a platoon.

Miranda at 1B maybe 50% of the time.

Now the sticky part…….Lewis in LF when Castro goes to 2B, v. LH pitching……Lewis at 1B 30% of the time - shared with Miranda……Lewis at DH 35% of the time. Harmon Killebrew & Greg Luzinski & Orlando Cepeda all played LF……Lewis is at risk every time he crosses the white lines but LF seems like a pretty safe bet - coupled with time at 1B. Not that I care, but his bat profiles as a LF or 1B or DH.

Larnach can DH v. RH pitching - he can spell Castro in LF as well.

Wallner in RF…….Martin or other RH hitting guy to platoon with Wallner v. lefties.

I still believe in Julien on both sides of the ball. A very high OBP player would be another dimension for this lineup, and he was playing a good 2B before the (deserved) demotion. 

Royce is definitely a question mark, I could see him being the RH side of the platoon with Julien and spelling anyone else in the IF & DH. I have my doubts that he will ever see the OF again, and I'd rather have Castro out there anyway.

I'd trade one of Larnach or Wallner and give Kiersey Jr a shot - better defensively and just feels like a hitter who is less prone to prolonged slumps.

I wonder how long they'll be able to afford Castro. If he ends up with 4+ WAR this season, I could see him getting in the neighborhood of 10M in his last year of arbitration. It would be a big jump, but he's been incredibly valuable and it's not out of line with some recent comps in Edman/Adames/Arraez. After that, he might not be affordable in free agency depending on the tightness of the purse strings.

It's a good problem to have, but I'm very interested in how they work out the logjam of young players who can't really stay in St. Paul all that much longer. 

[bean5302]

Lee is a poor runner (limited range), and his arm isn't as good as Lewis.

Royce Lewis max throw speed 85.8mph this year, averaged 84.4 last year.
Brooks Lee max throw speed 81.7mph. 

I loved the play Lee made with his off balance, bare hander of a throw the other day, but he simply doesn't have the physical tools Lewis does. Lee seems smooth and polished in the field, and he might be better than Lewis when it comes to errors, but you guys are really underestimating Lewis or overestimating Lee here.

A little nitpick. Virtually nobody thought Brooks Lee was going much before #8.
Keith Law, #7
CBS, #7
MLB, #5
Fangraphs, #8
ESPN, #7
Bleacher Report, #6
Prospects Live, #7

[bean5302]

17 minutes ago, CCHOF5yearstoolate said:

...I wonder how long they'll be able to afford Castro. If he ends up with 4+ WAR this season, I could see him getting in the neighborhood of 10M in his last year of arbitration. It would be a big jump, but he's been incredibly valuable and it's not out of line with some recent comps in Edman/Adames/Arraez. After that, he might not be affordable in free agency depending on the tightness of the purse strings...

Generally, arbitration looks at the previous 2 years. Since Arraez started his salaries much higher 2.1 -> 6.1 -> 10.0, he had a better starting point than Castro. With Castro at 3.3MM this year, more than doubling his salary in his final arbitration year gets tougher. I don't think Castro would make more than $8MM or so at 4 WAR. He is setting himself up for a potentially big free agent payday in 2027, though.

[RpR]

1 hour ago, bean5302 said:

Lee is a poor runner (limited range), and his arm isn't as good as Lewis.

Royce Lewis max throw speed 85.8mph this year, averaged 84.4 last year.
Brooks Lee max throw speed 81.7mph. 

I loved the play Lee made with his off balance, bare hander of a throw the other day, but he simply doesn't have the physical tools Lewis does. Lee seems smooth and polished in the field, and he might be better than Lewis when it comes to errors, but you guys are really underestimating Lewis or overestimating Lee here.

 

Lewis vs Lee as infielder (now Lee's numbers that count are SS and Lewis' are 3rd base though he was no better at SS) Lee is not a good infielder but his numbers ar better than Lewis.

Arm strength that swift play by Lee was not way over at 3rd base but much farther in , yet even at that Lewis' throws to first bounce there as often as not.

Too early to make any real judgements but right now Lee is still the one I would want fielding.

[mickster]

8 hours ago, Karbo said:

He has looked very good so far. If he keeps hitting I can't see him going back down. When Lewis comes back I would put Lee at 2nd, move Castro to OF or anywhere someone needs a break. Castro is so valuable!

Sounds like Lewis and Martin may be out until the end of August - so may keep all of them with the Sept 1 extended rosters

 

[bean5302]

23 minutes ago, RpR said:

Lewis vs Lee as infielder (now Lee's numbers that count are SS and Lewis' are 3rd base though he was no better at SS) Lee is not a good infielder but his numbers ar better than Lewis.

Arm strength that swift play by Lee was not way over at 3rd base but much farther in , yet even at that Lewis' throws to first bounce there as often as not.

Too early to make any real judgements but right now Lee is still the one I would want fielding.

https://www.mlb.com/twins/video/jose-ramirez-grounds-out-third-baseman-royce-lewis-to-first-baseman-edoua

Lewis is a fielding work in progress, but he has the tools to be an outstanding 3rd baseman. It's going to take reps. We haven't seen enough of Lee to say how good he'll be, but his ceiling is quite a bit lower than Lewis.

[chpettit19]

2 hours ago, bean5302 said:

Lee is a poor runner (limited range), and his arm isn't as good as Lewis.

Royce Lewis max throw speed 85.8mph this year, averaged 84.4 last year.
Brooks Lee max throw speed 81.7mph. 

I loved the play Lee made with his off balance, bare hander of a throw the other day, but he simply doesn't have the physical tools Lewis does. Lee seems smooth and polished in the field, and he might be better than Lewis when it comes to errors, but you guys are really underestimating Lewis or overestimating Lee here.

A little nitpick. Virtually nobody thought Brooks Lee was going much before #8.
Keith Law, #7
CBS, #7
MLB, #5
Fangraphs, #8
ESPN, #7
Bleacher Report, #6
Prospects Live, #7

Lee has 9 throws. Do you have minor league data on his arm? That'd be interesting. 9 MLB throws to reach a conclusion that his max throw is 81.7 is an awfully limited data set. 

[bean5302]

4 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

Lee has 9 throws. Do you have minor league data on his arm? That'd be interesting. 9 MLB throws to reach a conclusion that his max throw is 81.7 is an awfully limited data set. 

Feel free to add your data...
@wabene You too.

[wabene]

2 hours ago, bean5302 said:

Lee is a poor runner (limited range), and his arm isn't as good as Lewis.

Royce Lewis max throw speed 85.8mph this year, averaged 84.4 last year.
Brooks Lee max throw speed 81.7mph. 

I loved the play Lee made with his off balance, bare hander of a throw the other day, but he simply doesn't have the physical tools Lewis does. Lee seems smooth and polished in the field, and he might be better than Lewis when it comes to errors, but you guys are really underestimating Lewis or overestimating Lee here.

A little nitpick. Virtually nobody thought Brooks Lee was going much before #8.
Keith Law, #7
CBS, #7
MLB, #5
Fangraphs, #8
ESPN, #7
Bleacher Report, #6
Prospects Live, #7

People's eyes glaze over when confronted with elite athleticism. They dream on potential. They love dunks over beautiful playmaking. 130mph serves over the artistry of Borg vs McEnroe. Lewis is an elite athlete. Things have come easier for him than others. His play at short in the minors had the look of an athlete that had to work on his skills. He still does. 

Lee is a coach's son. He's been drilled on the fundamentals his whole life. Right now he is a better 3rd baseman than Lewis. As you say in another post Lewis is a work in progress. He needs reps you say. Ok maybe he can get better than Lee at 3rd. Will he? Will he get the consistent reps? Lee is my 3rd baseman, Lewis needs to prove he can be counted on.

[chpettit19]

15 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Feel free to add your data...
@wabene You too.

Well here's some sprint speed doesn't equal in field range data...sprint speed 41st percentile, range 84th percentile. That's one Correa, Carlos.

And the point about the arm strength is that you don't have any data either. 9 throws is not even remotely close to enough data to even start talking about how strong his arm is. I mean Baseball Savant itself is telling you neither of those players have enough throws to make a statement on as they don't even rank them. Lewis didn't have enough throws in 2022 either. When your source isn't willing to make a statement on their arms it probably means something.

[CCHOF5yearstoolate]

Regarding arm strength, for what it's worth the latest MLB Pipeline scouting grade (I know the grade isn't necessarily just arm strength but it's all we've got) for both guys have them at a 55. Fangraphs had Lewis at 50 & Lee at 55. 

[Chachi]

Please extend Lee.  Even better if you can get something done before the all-star break.

[bean5302]

5 hours ago, wabene said:

People's eyes glaze over when confronted with elite athleticism. They dream on potential. They love dunks over beautiful playmaking. 130mph serves over the artistry of Borg vs McEnroe. Lewis is an elite athlete. Things have come easier for him than others. His play at short in the minors had the look of an athlete that had to work on his skills. He still does. 

Lee is a coach's son. He's been drilled on the fundamentals his whole life. Right now he is a better 3rd baseman than Lewis. As you say in another post Lewis is a work in progress. He needs reps you say. Ok maybe he can get better than Lee at 3rd. Will he? Will he get the consistent reps? Lee is my 3rd baseman, Lewis needs to prove he can be counted on.

Kirilloff is a coaches son. Should we stick him at SS if Correa needs some time on the IL? So I think the whole "coaches son" thing is probably a little overblown.

That said, Lee is super smooth and polished out there so I could understand why people would want to see him playing every day at a set position. He looks like he's a veteran fielder while Lewis looks like he's trying to force plays to be a hero too frequently. Pushing Royce into a utility role or another position? I just don't think that's realistic atm.