The Twins Have a First Base Problem

[Greggory Masterson]

It’s been how many years since a Twins’ first baseman was a middle-of-the-order bat?

Image courtesy of © Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

I’m just going to cut to the chase: Justin Morneau in 2009. That’s the last time that a Twins’ primary first baseman has been a scary dude in the middle of a lineup. Seriously.

Technically, Morneau was also a lethal bat in 2010, but because of the midseason concussion that cut short a potential MVP campaign and altered the course of his career, Michael Cuddyer technically logged more appearances at first base than Morneau did that year, and a 15-year drought sounds more significant than a measly 14-year drought.

But whether you prefer to be technically right or technically wrong doesn’t matter; the first base situation does. First base is a place you can put nearly anyone—in theory. It’s the lowest position in the field on the defensive spectrum, meaning that the value of having a good defender there is lessened. You can get away with putting some schlub there that you wouldn’t dream about sticking in center field or at shortstop--or, to put it another way, you can take just about anyone who can play a passable center field, or third base, or catcher, and they're likely to be ok with the glove at first.

As such, first base has historically been seen as a home for big bats. It’s a position that features players around whom a team builds their lineup. Since 2010, the average first baseman has been about 5 to 20% better than an average hitter, with very few years in which the position as a whole is less than 10% better than average. But for the Twins, it’s been closer to just another bat.

The Twins have not been among the top 10 in MLB in first baseman OPS+ since a combination of an injury-riddled Morneau, Cuddyer, Luke Hughes, Chris Parmalee, Joe Mauer, and Trevor Plouffe ranked 10th in 2011. A Carlos Santana-led 2024 group (José Miranda and Alex Kirilloff both had a dozen appearances) nearly cracked the list, ranking 11th.

But alas, Santana’s time as a Twin is likely over, and it would be difficult to count on a man in his age-39 season to match his age-38 production, even though his numbers weren’t eye-popping themselves. Santana was about 10 to 15% better than league-average as a hitter last season, and in a down year for first basemen (their lowest wRC+ as a group in decades: 107), that’s enough to almost propel the group into the top 10, but it’s still right around average for the position historically.

Prior to Santana, the Twins spent a couple of years with a revolving door at first base. In 2023, Donovan Solano—a utility infielder—got a very slight majority of the time at first base, appearing in just over half of the team’s games (85). He was also about 10-15% better than an average hitter, which was average among first basemen that year. Kirilloff had a slightly better offensive year than Solano, but he was held to just 88 total games by injury, splitting his appearances between first base and the outfield. Joey Gallo also saw time there early in the season (when he was swinging the bat well), raising their level of production but not cracking the top 10.

In 2022, Miranda played a plurality of games at first base (77 appearances), followed by Luis Arraez (65 appearances), and a dozen or so games from Miguel Sanó and Kirilloff. Despite good years from Miranda and Arraez, the group barely made it into the top 20 among the league’s first-base groups.

Sanó was the primary first baseman in 2021 and 2020, and he clubbed 43 home runs in 170 games during that stretch (which included the 2020 shortened season), but he did little else, grading out as, at best, a league-average first baseman during that time—more of a sixth or seventh hitter in the order than a third or fourth—and the rest of the plate appearances went to a mediocre Kirilloff and Willains Astudillo performing like his post-2018 self.

In 2019, everyone was hitting the ball across the league. Relative to the league, first-base production was a bit down, mostly because everyone was up. CJ Cron manned the position admirably until a thumb injury that substantially hampered his performance, as he had an .814 OPS before the injury and a .702 mark after it. In his absence, utility players Marwin González, Ehire Adrianza, and Astudillo got the lion’s share of the work, and they hit like utility players.

Prior to those years, Mauer and Morneau held down the position. Both were (seemingly) held back by the brain trauma that they suffered in the earlier part of the decade. We don’t need to go back that far, but it ties the story together. This has been an ongoing problem.

And looking forward, it’s unclear how exactly it’s fixed. The Twins are in a great position right now, with players like Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa providing good offense while playing defense-first spots and other players that the organization hopes can be relied on for offense, but they don’t have a full-time first baseman right now.

On the current depth chart, infielders Miranda and Edouard Julien seem to be the heirs apparent. They are suboptimal defenders at third and second base, respectively, and show flashes of having plus bats that can rank among the top 10 first basemen in the league. However, both have been inconsistent early in their careers.

Corner outfielders Matt Wallner and Trevor Larnach turned in good 2024 campaigns, and with the likes of top outfield prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez knocking on the door to the majors, it would be sensible to convert one of the two to first base, but the team has previously shown no interest. The former first baseman of the future, the oft-injured Kirilloff, has been inconsistent offensively and a poor defender, which has led to him being labeled a non-tender candidate this offseason.

Right now, the position—the spot where offense should come the easiest—is in flux for the third straight offseason, with no clear internal fix and a seemingly limited payroll. Hypothetically, it should be an easy problem to fix, but the Twins have shown themselves incapable of finding a middle-of-the-order first-base bat for a decade now. Sometimes that can be offset by defense, like Santana in 2024 or Mauer in 2017, but for a team that has struggled to produce consistent offense in recent years, finding that big bat could be more vital than ever.

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[mikelink45]

I would love to see McCusker get a chance - he seems like the ideal 1B - power and good bat (I don't like the Ks) and he has the height that makes him a good target.  He and Miranda seem like the best duo right now.

[TwinsDr2021]

5 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

I would love to see McCusker get a chance - he seems like the ideal 1B - power and good bat (I don't like the Ks) and he has the height that makes him a good target.  He and Miranda seem like the best duo right now.

Agree, I am all for giving another 27 year old minor league player a shot, It usually works.

[dxpavelka]

I hate to bring it up but it almost feels like getting rid of the most entertaining Twins hitter in a decade did nothing to improve the team......

[dxpavelka]

Correa, Lewis & Lee.  If you're not going to commit to one of them at each of 2B, 3B & SS you might as well move one to 1B.

[Doctor Gast]

We have tremendous potential at 1B in-house, so again it doesn't make sense to go outside, especially with the salary crunch. 1st we have Miranda & Kiriloff, both profile well there, the only problem is injuries. If allowed to be focused at 1B, that'd help the process of recovery from surgeries & improve their defense. We have Severino on the 40-man, McCusker or someone like Lewis that might be transferred from 3B.

I was a big advocate of trading Julien. Not because I didn't like him but because FO wasn't going to play him at 1B, his future wasn't 2B, his trade value peaked & we had big needs to be filled. Now the league has the book on him, they have taken away his HR edge & he'll be a SO king unless he adjusts totally to a different approach. Although his range has improved at 2B, his stats have dipped because he's not making the plays. He has always been low on the 2B totem pole but now it's obvious even to his fans. Julien should have been traded last season at a high trade price but now he no longer profiles well at 1B because his HR edge has been taken away & it's more obvious to most that he shouldn't be considered at 2B. He's no longer should be considered as part of the Twins' future & should be traded while he still has some hype value.

I really have great expectations for both Miranda & Kiriloff if finally given the opportunity to be the mainstay at 1B. Don't trade either of them until then & don't try to fill 1B again outside the organization.

[Cory Engelhardt]

37 minutes ago, dxpavelka said:

I hate to bring it up but it almost feels like getting rid of the most entertaining Twins hitter in a decade did nothing to improve the team......

I’d say that brought a playoff series win no?

That had nothing to do with the collapse at the end of this season. 

[William K Johnson]

Either Wallner or Larnach needs to bring a first baseman's mitt to spring training.

[Otaknam]

If Larnach or Wallner added first base as a position they could competently play, they would get more at bats. Makes sense to me. 

[rv78]

35 minutes ago, William K Johnson said:

Either Wallner or Larnach needs to bring a first baseman's mitt to spring training.

With the departures of Kepler and Margot they'll both be needed in the outfield. 

[TwinsDr2021]

3 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

We have tremendous potential at 1B in-house, so again it doesn't make sense to go outside, especially with the salary crunch. 1st we have Miranda & Kiriloff, both profile well there, the only problem is injuries. If allowed to be focused at 1B, that'd help the process of recovery from surgeries & improve their defense. We have Severino on the 40-man, McCusker or someone like Lewis that might be transferred from 3B.

Don't you think every team can say that about every position? (tremendous potential)

Miranda has a better OPS against Right and Left handed pitchers, so it seems Kiriloff is unnecessary. Severino is already 25 hasn't been to the majors and is on the 40 man, seems like a guy you don't need to protect on the 40 man anymore. McCusker will be 27 on May 22, any time people suggest a solution to a problem with a guy at that age in the minors (that isn't from Japan or Cuba) it isn't a serious solution for a team actually trying to win, unless of course it is for the 25/26 man off the bench, a late developing catcher or a relief pitcher.

I do like the idea of Lewis at first.

[Cory Engelhardt]

This MIGHT be a crazy thought. Just throwing it out there.

IF Royce is having issues throwing from 3rd, and he had leg issues which caused his bat to drop off in the 2nd half (that is probably what happened, right?) why not look at trying him at 1st ongoing? He certainly has the power profile for a position like that too. 

Have to get him right either way, just thought I'd throw it out there. Maybe it is crazy, but in my head I could see this.

Get Lee healthy too. His back stuff last spring along with his shoulder stuff in August didn't help his season. Hopefully he is fully healthy come spring. 

[Trov]

I would point out the Twins are not alone in this issue.  There are very few big bopping first base hitters anymore.  Yes, there are a few, Freeman, Vlad Jr., Harper.  There are few middle of the road guys, Matt Olson, Josh Naylor, Pete Alonso.  

There just is not that many MVP type first basemen out there anymore.  I think it mostly is a shift in how teams look to draft.  If a guy is a 1st base only guy unless they are insane hitter, they normally will drop a ton in the draft, or if not they have not come up and crushed. 

Many actually started at a different position then shifted to 1st because their defense was too weak anywhere else, but they could hit.  Harper was a catcher when drafted, moved to OF, played there until shifting to 1st.  Vlad was up as 3rd his rookie year.  

We have tried to draft a bat first guy, Sabato and he failed.  Very few teams could point to having MVP type hitter at first, the Twins are not alone. 

[Trov]

8 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

This MIGHT be a crazy thought. Just throwing it out there.

IF Royce is having issues throwing from 3rd, and he had leg issues which caused his bat to drop off in the 2nd half (that is probably what happened, right?) why not look at trying him at 1st ongoing? He certainly has the power profile for a position like that too. 

Have to get him right either way, just thought I'd throw it out there. Maybe it is crazy, but in my head I could see this.

Get Lee healthy too. His back stuff last spring along with his shoulder stuff in August didn't help his season. Hopefully he is fully healthy come spring. 

It is not a bad idea, and the team may do it if they have little other choice.  That is how a lot of guys end up at 1st is they are becoming more limited at every other position. 

[JD-TWINS]

1 hour ago, dxpavelka said:

Correa, Lewis & Lee.  If you're not going to commit to one of them at each of 2B, 3B & SS you might as well move one to 1B.

I’m a proponent of Lee at 3B & Lewis at 1B. Problem is they still have no solid proof that Lee will hit enough after seeing ‘24……,& Julien doesn’t give a warm and fuzzy feeling on offense nor defense.

My assumption is that unless Lee is tearing cover off the ball in Spring, he starts out at AAA. Julien is a long-shot at 2B w/o an offensive resurgence. Seems until Keaschall or someone can solve 2B issues, Castro will be the central figure there daily.

Lee - Correa - Julien/Keaschall - Lewis has nice “potential” as a unit. Castro & Miranda for depth………guys gotta hit though or defensive alignment is moot.

[chpettit19]

I'd say the Twins just have a middle-of-the-order-bat problem, but 1st and/or DH are places they could definitely use to fill that hole. The problem is they don't have any money to spend so it's really just about finding whatever offense they already have in house or making trades to try to improve the lineup. I hope they don't sell too much of the future, but there could be some savvy trades to be made.

The Twins have plenty of guys who lack athleticism who they could hand 1B gloves tomorrow and tell them to get to work so I'd prefer their additions be at other positions if they're bringing guys in. Don't like the idea of moving Wallner there and taking away his best defensive asset in his arm. But Larnach could make sense. I'd prefer they just teach Lewis to throw a baseball instead of putting one of their best athletes at 1B, but if he can't figure out his throwing motion then he'd be an option. Miranda and Kirilloff are options, but all 3 of those guys (actually all 4 with Larnach included) have had health problems most, or all, of their careers.

The Twins have a first base problem. But mostly they have a health and talent problem. Those are all connected, but the health problem is the biggest problem, and it can no longer be looked at or treated as a "bad luck" problem. You've built a roster of injury prone guys or you've built a training and rest and rehab program that leads to increased injuries. Either way it's hurting your performance. The Twins have some guys in house they can move to 1B. In fact, they have a lot of guys in house who's best position probably is 1B. The problem is they lack guys who can fill the positions they're currently in. Get healthy, talented players and 1B will figure itself out.

[Fire Dan Gladden]

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

We have tremendous potential at 1B in-house, so again it doesn't make sense to go outside, especially with the salary crunch. 1st we have Miranda & Kiriloff, both profile well there, the only problem is injuries. If allowed to be focused at 1B, that'd help the process of recovery from surgeries & improve their defense. We have Severino on the 40-man, McCusker or someone like Lewis that might be transferred from 3B.

I was a big advocate of trading Julien. Not because I didn't like him but because FO wasn't going to play him at 1B, his future wasn't 2B, his trade value peaked & we had big needs to be filled. Now the league has the book on him, they have taken away his HR edge & he'll be a SO king unless he adjusts totally to a different approach. Although his range has improved at 2B, his stats have dipped because he's not making the plays. He has always been low on the 2B totem pole but now it's obvious even to his fans. Julien should have been traded last season at a high trade price but now he no longer profiles well at 1B because his HR edge has been taken away & it's more obvious to most that he shouldn't be considered at 2B. He's no longer should be considered as part of the Twins' future & should be traded while he still has some hype value.

I really have great expectations for both Miranda & Kiriloff if finally given the opportunity to be the mainstay at 1B. Don't trade either of them until then & don't try to fill 1B again outside the organization.

Sorry, but I am not buying it.  If the twins felt so strongly about their internal 1B options, why did they go out and spend money on a 38 yr old washed up 1B last season to shore up the position? Now... Santana was arguably the best FA signing by any team last offseason, but the signing did not reflect well on the internal options for the team.

Kiriloff probably needs to be traded, as his stock in the organization is extremely down.  Miranda is showing reason for optimism, but we have been here with him before and I am not yet ready to hand him the full-time reigns again.

As this team will not spend any substantial money this offseason, re-signing Santana at another 1y/$6m probably makes the most sense.  Even if the bat takes a dive, the glove will be there.  He provides great insurance if Miranda falls off the cliff again.

Also, I hope they make an early decision on Lewis this offseason, instead of throwing him to to the wolves like they did this year at 2B.  If the Twins are going to give him time at 1B this year, tell him now so he can prepare for it all winter.

[DJL44]

32 minutes ago, Trov said:

There just is not that many MVP type first basemen out there anymore.  I think it mostly is a shift in how teams look to draft.

Adding the DH to the National League changed first base expectations. There are only so many elite bats who you want to hide on defense. Now that you can use 15 more players at DH the player at 1B has to be able to field the position.

[Greggory Masterson]

33 minutes ago, Trov said:

I would point out the Twins are not alone in this issue.  There are very few big bopping first base hitters anymore.  Yes, there are a few, Freeman, Vlad Jr., Harper.  There are few middle of the road guys, Matt Olson, Josh Naylor, Pete Alonso.  

There just is not that many MVP type first basemen out there anymore.  I think it mostly is a shift in how teams look to draft.  If a guy is a 1st base only guy unless they are insane hitter, they normally will drop a ton in the draft, or if not they have not come up and crushed. 

Many actually started at a different position then shifted to 1st because their defense was too weak anywhere else, but they could hit.  Harper was a catcher when drafted, moved to OF, played there until shifting to 1st.  Vlad was up as 3rd his rookie year.  

We have tried to draft a bat first guy, Sabato and he failed.  Very few teams could point to having MVP type hitter at first, the Twins are not alone. 

This is something I considered going into a deeper discussion on. It seems like the position has been dropping off in recent years, perhaps because big plodding mashers just don’t cut it anymore for some reason or another. It’s reflected in the wRC+ for the position, in that 20 years ago 1st baseman were around 15-20% better hitters than league average but recently it’s more in the 107-115 range.

That’s part of the reason I focused on the Twins’ rank at the position rather than the raw numbers. It’s understandable that not every team will have a guy who’s 2004 Shawn Green (126 wRC+, 10th among first basemen, minimum 200 PA) in modern baseball. But the Twins have gone 13 years without cracking the top 10, and their first basemen have tended to be more or less merely slightly above league-average hitters in their best years

[Blyleven2011]

The twins have obvious problems on defense , the problem will be to find a solution to them ....

We don't quite know how the 40 man roster will look like until November or December  , players will get non tendered or be leaving as free agents ....

Miranda's the obvious choice to give first base too , one last chance to prove he belongs in a defensive position  , righthanded  is a need to  , got to stay healthy too ...

 

[stringer bell]

On the premise that no immediate help will be brought in, my Plan A would be for Miranda to get a lot of at-bats as the DH and 1B, with perhaps Kirilloff in a platoon. Plan B would be to move Lewis to first base. Plan C would be to giver Severino a shot. 

On Lewis, in the years since he broke in, he seems to have widened out to the point that he's not an option in the middle infield. Until his second half swoon, the bat would play anywhere. His main problem defensively has been throwing, so a move to first base could get an infielder across the diamond where the throwing wouldn't be much of a problem. If playing first would limit injury risk, that would be a bonus, but Lewis' injuries haven't come as a result of playing at short or third base. The corollary here is that I think Brooks Lee already is the Twins best option as a third baseman not named Willi Castro and with a little more experience, he would probably be a very good to elite option at the hot corner. 

On Miranda, a long time ago I post something about him needing to be a plus-plus hitter because of his tool kit. He isn't defensively gifted, he doesn't have (any) speed and his power is also below average. When all is going well, the hit tool makes up for that as we saw for a while in 2022 and 2024. I think Miranda will be okay at first, but he doesn't hold a job unless his bat plays well above average. 

Kirilloff has prospect pedigree and flashes (briefer than Miranda) of being a very good hitter. Because he has an option, I believe he gets one more chance at age 27 to establish himself. I've always been a big fan, but AK has frustrated me probably more than any other Twin of recent vintage. 

[bean5302]

41 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

This MIGHT be a crazy thought. Just throwing it out there.

IF Royce is having issues throwing from 3rd, and he had leg issues which caused his bat to drop off in the 2nd half (that is probably what happened, right?) why not look at trying him at 1st ongoing?...

Lewis had 1 error over his last 27 games, and the leg issues were with him all year from the severe quad strain. The slump was probably mental, IMHO.

Good time to repost positional adjustment values.
C = +12.5
SS = +7.5
CF = +2.5
2B = +2.5
3B = +2.5
RF = -7.5
LF = -7.5
1B = -12.5
DH = -17.5

Moving Royce Lewis from 3B to 1B erases 15 runs of value. Lewis will still be 25 years old for opening day next year. Across his career, Royce has just about 1 full season at 3B and he's graded out average there.

[Cory Engelhardt]

3 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Lewis had 1 error over his last 27 games, and the leg issues were with him all year from the severe quad strain. The slump was probably mental, IMHO.

Good time to repost positional adjustment values.
C = +12.5
SS = +7.5
CF = +2.5
2B = +2.5
3B = +2.5
RF = -7.5
LF = -7.5
1B = -12.5
DH = -17.5

Moving Royce Lewis from 3B to 1B erases 15 runs of value. Lewis will still be 25 years old for opening day next year. Across his career, Royce has just about 1 full season at 3B and he's graded out average there.

I get that, where Royce (who wants a large contract someday) would be more valuable to himself playing anywhere but 1B. That's why it seems crazy.

Who do you think is a better fit at 3b next year, assuming good health? Lewis or Lee? Heck, throw Miranda in there too?

I also am fairly bullish on Keaschall, at least by May or June 2025, to be a mlb regular. Maybe that's at 2b? 1B? Lots to figure out this offseason. Just throwing out that Lewis I think could handle 1B well, but if he is healthy and can play better at 3B or 2B, that's a good problem to have right?

[bean5302]

Jose Miranda is the clear 1B for next year if the Twins don't do some roster shuffling. Miranda will either be at 1B or DH. As far as 1B being studs at the plate, there were really about 4 of those in MLB. Jose Miranda (wRC+ 115) and Carlos Santana (wRC+ 116) were both within 10% of the #5 ranked hitter with 300+ PA at 1B, Nathaniel Lowe (wRC+ 123).

I don't see why having a good hitting 1B instead of an MVP caliber hitter at 1B is a "problem."

We have a "problem" at 2B since neither Lee nor Julien were MLB caliber hitters last year, and Castro likely isn't returning.

[Cory Engelhardt]

5 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Jose Miranda is the clear 1B for next year if the Twins don't do some roster shuffling. Miranda will either be at 1B or DH. As far as 1B being studs at the plate, there were really about 4 of those in MLB. Jose Miranda (wRC+ 115) and Carlos Santana (wRC+ 116) were both within 10% of the #5 ranked hitter with 300+ PA at 1B, Nathaniel Lowe (wRC+ 123).

I don't see why having a good hitting 1B instead of an MVP caliber hitter at 1B is a "problem."

We have a "problem" at 2B since neither Lee nor Julien were MLB caliber hitters last year, and Castro likely isn't returning.

Well, and hopefully whatever also happened to Miranda the last 2 months of the year can be fixed too. Curious if that is an injury or something else. He was also really good (like a lot of the roster) until he wasn't. We'll see. 

[bean5302]

2 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

I get that, where Royce (who wants a large contract someday) would be more valuable to himself playing anywhere but 1B. That's why it seems crazy.

Who do you think is a better fit at 3b next year, assuming good health? Lewis or Lee? Heck, throw Miranda in there too?

I also am fairly bullish on Keaschall, at least by May or June 2025, to be a mlb regular. Maybe that's at 2b? 1B? Lots to figure out this offseason. Just throwing out that Lewis I think could handle 1B well, but if he is healthy and can play better at 3B or 2B, that's a good problem to have right?

Brooks Lee's arm is significantly weaker than Lewis'. I actually don't see much defensive upside with Lee, who proved the scouting reports correct with as a very slow runner so I'd put Lewis ahead of Lee at every single position on the field from a potential standpoint, though Lee looked smooth out there... until he didn't.

[TopGunn#22]

The thought of moving Lewis to 1B fulltime has crossed my mind as well.  On one hand, the idea of moving a guy like Lewis to 1B just slaps me in the face.  This is a guy who we drafted to be a SS with an athletic profile of being one of the fastest guys in our organization with a cannon for an arm that, if SS didn't work out, was a can't miss CF prospect.

Fast forward a couple of years and Lewis can't run and he can't throw.  He's always had "durability" issues throughout his time in the Twins organization, but for a guy in his mid 20's he seemed like he was in his mid 40's last year.  He couldn't throw.  He was instructed not to run hard on any ground balls he hit in the infield so he just jogged to first base, often times not even appearing in the TV picture as the first baseman caught the ball.  Tom Kelly had to be just grinding his teeth. 

But last season aside, the Royce Lewis Twins fans saw in 2023 and in the playoffs made him seem like the Twins version of Derek Jeter...with more power !! Clutch hit after clutch hit, Lewis was electric !!  THAT'S the Royce Lewis I want to see.  THAT'S the Royce Lewis EVERY Twins fan wants to see !!  If we have to move him to 1B to keep him healthy I'm all for it.  If playing 1B means Lewis plays in 140 games per season with 550 AB's I'm all for it !! 

But why does it have to come down to that?  Why does an ultra athletic 25 year old look like a 45 year old on the field for the Minnesota Twins?  Didn't we hire a new trainer to figure all this stuff out???  

Miranda and Kirilloff are the In-House candidates to play 1B for the Twins.  Neither can stay healthy (and both are not even 30 years old yet).  They could form an effective platoon but would they?  Would we be better off trading Kirilloff to the Angels for Jo Adell??  

Neither Kirilloff or Miranda inspire a lot of confidence for 2025.  I agree, Falvey missed a golden opportunity to trade Julien for something significant when his value was at its highest.  The Twins should have determined that with Correa entrenched at SS, Lewis at 3B and Brooks Lee deemed the better prospect than Julien by far, a trade of Julien would be inevitable.  They should have traded him at his peak.  Now his value has cratered.  I'm not sure what they could get for him now. 

I've said in another thread that Carlos Santana should not be in the mix at all for 1B in 2025.  Take the "win" you got in 2024 at his age 38 season.  Do NOT gamble that he can come close to doing what he did in 2024 for his age 39 season in 2025.  

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, William K Johnson said:

Either Wallner or Larnach needs to bring a first baseman's mitt to spring training.

My choice would be Larnach and Miranda bring the mitt.

[Cory Engelhardt]

10 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

Brooks Lee's arm is significantly weaker than Lewis'. I actually don't see much defensive upside with Lee, who proved the scouting reports correct with as a very slow runner so I'd put Lewis ahead of Lee at every single position on the field from a potential standpoint, though Lee looked smooth out there... until he didn't.

I'm curious what Lee will look like in the spring. Last spring he had a herniated disc and back spasms, and then when he did come back in August eventually he had to have cortisone shots in his shoulder for some issues there too.

A healthy Brooks Lee is a better defender than the one you describe (at least in my opinion.)

[bean5302]

6 minutes ago, TopGunn#22 said:

... But why does it have to come down to that?  Why does an ultra athletic 25 year old look like a 45 year old on the field for the Minnesota Twins?  Didn't we hire a new trainer to figure all this stuff out???...

The quad strain would have taken 6 months to completely heal and for all Lewis' strength to come back. The hip adductor was related to the quad strain, and Lewis was advised of his elevated risk, but the Twins and Lewis didn't want him to miss the whole season from the quad injury. It was healed up to the point that Lewis could play, but the Twins did put restrictions on him to reduce the risk of injury. The quad strain is linked to the 2nd torn ACL... which was possibly linked to coming back too soon from the previous torn ACL.

Basically, everything kind of tracks back to the first torn ACL and Lewis pushing hard to get himself back on the field. Hopefully (not holding my breath) Lewis is truly 100% for next year.