Is Brooks Lee the Third Baseman of the Minnesota Twins' Future?

[Cody Pirkl]

Royce Lewis suffered a hamstring strain on Sunday, 11 days before Opening Day. Originally competing for the job at second base, Brooks Lee now figures to see significant time at third. Should he just stay there?

Image courtesy of Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

By now, we know that Royce Lewis will not be ready for Opening Day after suffering an injury late in camp. After Brooks Lee had spent all of the spring competing to take over second base, he may now see significant time at the hot corner. Given Lewis’s repeated injury struggles and Lee having already proved himself capable of manning the position, would the Twins be better off viewing Lee as the long-term third baseman for the franchise?

The thing about the battle for second base this spring is that someone (potentially multiple players who deserve an extended look at MLB action) was going to miss out. Now, Lee will surely make the roster to pick up some of the recently opened playing time at third base (around and in addition to Jose Miranda), and a huge opportunity has presented itself to players like Mickey Gasper and Edouard Julien at second. Top prospect Luke Keaschall could force his way into the mix before long, too.

Some things have to go right, such as Lee performing offensively and someone grabbing the reins at second base, but if all is going well when Lewis is ready to return, it could create some difficult questions regarding the future of third base.

Lee is a versatile player, but it would be nice to see him settle into a primary position long-term. Because of his defensive prowess, there are several possibilities. He was slated second base this spring because that’s where the opportunity was when everyone was healthy. After another Lewis injury, however, that situation has changed. It’s fair to wonder whether the organization will feel they can continue to wait and invest so much hope in Lewis, or whether they need to amend their approach.

 

It’s impossible not to feel for Lewis. The former No. 1 overall pick has been through the wringer physically, with two ACL tears snowballing into repeated soft-tissue injuries as he’s reached the MLB level. His athleticism has predictably declined, causing a move from shortstop to third base, where less range is required.

Lewis played in 82 games last year, his most in a single season since 2019. By the end, he was clearly on his last legs, posting a .602 OPS from Aug. 1 forward. It was the first time he had struggled at the plate while on the field for the Twins, which may add another layer of difficulty to trusting him to fill a bulk of the playing time at third base over the coming years.

While Lee has struggled with injuries of his own, he profiles as an everyday player given his balanced plate approach and ability to hit from both sides. The offensive upside he showed at St. Paul didn’t translate to the MLB last year as a 23-year-old, but he did show that he can more than handle the position defensively. 

There’s an argument to be made that as Lee tries to adjust to MLB pitching, having a more settled defensive home could give him less to work on. He’s likely to be the backup shortstop, the position still he’s played since college, but having to shift to third base unexpectedly every season likely isn’t doing him any favors. He had made just seven appearances at third base before 2024 and logged more innings there at the position at the MLB level last year than the rest of his professional career combined. Even for a mature and developed prospect like Lee, it’s a lot to put on his plate. Because the angles and timing of plays are different at each spot around the infield, a player without a fixed position must take daily reps at each spot to which they might be called—which comes at the cost of things like reps in the batting cage, extra preparation in meetings, or precious rest.

In terms of how a full-time move to third base for Lee would affect Lewis, it’s more of a hypothetical question. Unfortunately, at this point, it’s difficult to ask where he will play when he comes back and is 100% healthy, because there’s no telling when that will be—or, more importantly, how long it will last. It’s a harsh reality that the Twins may have to begin planning for, as a competing team can’t continue to have to patch together a premium position for more than half of every season. 

If Lewis does return sometime around May, he’ll likely see plenty of days off and some time at DH. He’s still certain to see some time at third base, but expecting him to play there regularly for the remainder of the season simply cannot be the plan. While Lee is capable of being completely moved off of third base at that point and adequately filling in elsewhere, there’s an argument to be made that this wouldn’t be the best course of action for him or the team.

The unpredictability of baseball will have a lot to do with how the Twins proceed. Both the health and performance of all players involved in this equation will help guide their decision-making, but it may be time to start considering whether Lee is the third baseman of the future. Lewis still possesses an elite level of talent, but when it comes to being the trusted long-term third baseman, Lee might be the best option. Do you agree?

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[Cory Engelhardt]

They have so many young guys who have talent and need to take advantage of this opportunity. If Lee goes out and earns a full time spot at either 2b or 3b, that’s a win

[Cody Pirkl]

15 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

They have so many young guys who have talent and need to take advantage of this opportunity. If Lee goes out and earns a full time spot at either 2b or 3b, that’s a win

Agreed. I look at the system now and see more options close to the MLB level at 2B, which is why I'd argue Brooks should see the most time at 3B rather than having to bounce back and forth. 

Of course best case scenario is Royce comes back and stays healthy and pushed Lee off, I just find that hard to plan on at this point.

[Greglw3]

17 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

They have so many young guys who have talent and need to take advantage of this opportunity. If Lee goes out and earns a full time spot at either 2b or 3b, that’s a win

Agree, the emergence of the Brooks Lee we’ve heard about would be huge. Julien, at least in spring training, looks to be resurgent. I like all 3 of Lee, Julien and Gasper. Gasper is my kind of player, a Billy Beane, OBP machine!

[Cory Engelhardt]

8 minutes ago, Cody Pirkl said:

Agreed. I look at the system now and see more options close to the MLB level at 2B, which is why I'd argue Brooks should see the most time at 3B rather than having to bounce back and forth. 

Of course best case scenario is Royce comes back and stays healthy and pushed Lee off, I just find that hard to plan on at this point.

I could also see a scenario where Royce is able to be 3b, but maybe he does start to play 1b at some point. Keaschall is on his way, and we will see what position he can take a hold of. It’s always possible that Lee becomes the super utility next year that Castro is this year, a full time player at 3b/ss/2b. But if any of them can take a spot and fully own it, great. 
It feels like a good problem to have

[gmwannabe]

Doesn't Lewis have to run full speed for pop ups down the foul lines? If he can't run full speed without injuring himself, maybe he should just DH and let Lee play 3rd.

[Doctor Gast]

Right now 3B is Lewis's & 2B is Lee's. Castro is the Utility Player. Temporarily, Lee may shift over to 3B & Castro subs at 2B. But long term it's Lewis's & after that Correa will move there. Lee is our main short & long-term replacement for Correa at SS so I don't see a path for Lee to be our future 3B. I don't see Lee having problems moving around the INF. If he'd be moved to the OF then most certainly would have trouble adjusting & would affect his hitting. 

[Fatbat]

Mgmnt isnt going to let anyone just “have” a spot. Everyone earns what they get and Lee only gets 3B if he earns it. Same goes for every other roster spot. Let the kids play and see who earns their MLB job. 

[RpR]

14 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Right now 3B is Lewis's & 2B is Lee's. Castro is the Utility Player. Temporarily, Lee may shift over to 3B & Castro subs at 2B. But long term it's Lewis's & after that Correa will move there. Lee is our main short & long-term replacement for Correa at SS so I don't see a path for Lee to be our future 3B. I don't see Lee having problems moving around the INF. If he'd be moved to the OF then most certainly would have trouble adjusting & would affect his hitting. 

Lewis has to show he is a lot better at Third Base than he has so far.

[Nashvilletwin]

This article is exactly what bedevils this organization.  Is Lee our 3BOTF?  Last week it was 2B. The week before SS.

Same with Lewis. Is his home 3B, 2B or 1B (SS and CF are now off the table, but they weren’t for a while)? 

Now insert Julien, Martin, Miranda, etc., etc.

The bottom line is these kids show up in the majors and they don’t have a position they can play at an above average level.  They just don’t get the reps.  And that uncertainty probably adds to pressures at the plate.  Their heads must be mush.

 

 

[tony&rodney]

23 minutes ago, Nashvilletwin said:

This article is exactly what bedevils this organization.  Is Lee our 3BOTF?  Last week it was 2B. The week before SS.

Same with Lewis. Is his home 3B, 2B or 1B (SS and CF are now off the table, but they weren’t for a while)? 

Now insert Julien, Martin, Miranda, etc., etc.

The bottom line is these kids show up in the majors and they don’t have a position they can play at an above average level.  They just don’t get the reps.  And that uncertainty probably adds to pressures at the plate.  Their heads must be mush.

 

 

Sure seems like a pile of guys all qualified to be a DH. Brooks Lee does ok at shortstop, he has always projected at third base, but is a little short on range for second base. Willi Castro is pretty much strictly a utility player. He has played often this March and his swing looks weak. The gloves are a problem and that was before Lewis went down. The Twins are going to play the guys who hit. That's the way they roll. My stress is low about who plays where because I cannot see a difference and neither can the Twins. If they could, the decisions would have already been stated.

[sweetmusicviola16]

45 minutes ago, RpR said:

Lewis has to show he is a lot better at Third Base than he has so far.

Lee right now is the best 3B we have who is MLB ready. Period. He has a lot to prove with the bat, at 3B he does need to be able to hit. And he too needs to be able to stay healthy, hopefully his back is fully healed and responds. Lewis? I honestly don't know where he goes from here. We have a lot of problems with our infield. Beyond Correa, and his health. Maybe some of our IF mess will work its way out in 2025. Let's hope so.

[Jacksson]

John Castino had back issues that moved him off of 3B and over to 2B.  Lee has back issues

[Parfigliano]

1 hour ago, RpR said:

Lewis has to show he is a lot better at Third Base than he has so far.

Let's quit kidding ourselves Lewis has to show he can stay healthy strictly as a DH.

 

[tony&rodney]

2 minutes ago, Jacksson said:

John Castino had back issues that moved him off of 3B and over to 2B.  Lee has back issues

No comparison between these two guys. Castino was Lewis-like athletic with a lithe body. He hit triples, could run, and his defense was on a different level than Lee. Castino did have to retire due to back issues and had to have his spine fused. Castino moved on to a regular life outside of baseball. The extent of Lee's back problems have not entered the serious zone yet.

[DocBauer]

My expectations for Lee is to hit somewhere in the .260-270 range with a solid .340 OB,% with 34 DBLS and 14-15 HR for 2025. That would be damn good! I don't know if his power could be 20 ish or not in the future. Maybe. And i wouldn't doubt his AVG and OB,% might not climb. 

But his future is tied to WHAT IS THE BEST INFIELD going forward.

IF his bat is what we expect and hope for, it's possible the best possible INF is Lewis moving to 1B. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Even though this article  was well written and factually correct, it was sad to read. We all hope for a full and speedy recovery for Royce Lewis and we all hope he can finally stop this string of injuries.  

[JADBP]

4 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Sure seems like a pile of guys all qualified to be a DH. Brooks Lee does ok at shortstop, he has always projected at third base, but is a little short on range for second base. Willi Castro is pretty much strictly a utility player. He has played often this March and his swing looks weak. The gloves are a problem and that was before Lewis went down. The Twins are going to play the guys who hit. That's the way they roll. My stress is low about who plays where because I cannot see a difference and neither can the Twins. If they could, the decisions would have already been stated.

Uhhhh...play the guys who hit?  Then what were they doing late last season...because NO ONE was hitting!  

[Doctor Wu]

9 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Sure seems like a pile of guys all qualified to be a DH.

Sadly, that is starting to sound like an accurate assessment. Or as Nashville Twin said: "they don’t have a position they can play at an above average level." It just seems like so many of these young players are interchangeable position-wise, or we end up sticking them at DH, and I'm not sure that's a good thing for their development. 

[TwinsDr2021]

8 hours ago, DocBauer said:

My expectations for Lee is to hit somewhere in the .260-270 range with a solid .340 OB,% with 34 DBLS and 14-15 HR for 2025. That would be damn good! I don't know if his power could be 20 ish or not in the future. Maybe. And i wouldn't doubt his AVG and OB,% might not climb. 

But his future is tied to WHAT IS THE BEST INFIELD going forward.

IF his bat is what we expect and hope for, it's possible the best possible INF is Lewis moving to 1B. 

that would be amazing, there was only like 15 guys in the league that hit 260 or above with 34 doubles and 10 plus homers, there was only 47 guys that hit 30 or more doubles. Would love to see those stats.

The last Twins to put up those numbers was Polanco in 21 and 19,

[Linus]

The biggest problem here is we don’t know if Lee can hit MLB pitching - now and in the future.  He may end up needing to go back to AAA for a while.  

[Trov]

If Lee plays good defense at 3rd, and is hitting like we hope he will, then no way should Lewis just take over when he comes back.  He should look to take over at 2nd or even 1st.  Lewis has shown he can be a great hitter, but his defense was not good last year.  Also, with his ton of soft tissue leg issues DH or 1st might be a good spot for him at least this year.  Sadly, much like Buck, he may just be the what if he could just stay healthy kind of guy.  He will have great runs of offense but miss half seasons with injuries every year.

[LambchoP]

As long as Lee can hit well enough, I'd say yes, his best position is 3b. He can also back up Correa at SS. I think Royce Lewis eventually moves to first base to try and keep him healthier. Royce at first and Lee at third opens up second base for Keaschal. This might leave Miranda as backup at the corners and DH, but this would be the best defensive infield alignment as well as getting our best bats out there.

[LA Vikes Fan]

10 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

As long as Lee can hit well enough, I'd say yes, his best position is 3b. He can also back up Correa at SS. I think Royce Lewis eventually moves to first base to try and keep him healthier. Royce at first and Lee at third opens up second base for Keaschal. This might leave Miranda as backup at the corners and DH, but this would be the best defensive infield alignment as well as getting our best bats out there.

I think the opening day lineup has Julien at second base and Lee at third. France is the 1B and Miranda, DH, or vice versa. Miranda will get time at 1B and 3B, with Castro filling in across the infield, particularly at 2B against left-handed, pitching, and sometimes in LF. We will get a month to see how that alignment works defensively and who can hit. Chances are an injury or nonperformance will make the decision as to who hits the bench or the shuttle back to AAA when Lewis is ready to return.

[rv78]

"In terms of how a full-time move to third base for Lee would affect Lewis, it’s more of a hypothetical question. Unfortunately, at this point, it’s difficult to ask where he will play when he comes back and is 100% healthy, because there’s no telling when that will be—or, more importantly, how long it will last. It’s a harsh reality that the Twins may have to begin planning for, as a competing team can’t continue to have to patch together a premium position for more than half of every season. "

 

And yet they have been doing that in CF with Buck for what? 9 years now? 

[twinstalker]

2B Eeles  SS De Andrade  3B Lee

Doesn't seem that menacing (future = 3 yrs from now).  I do think this is a distinct possibility, and I might like Eeles and DDA more than Lee, sort of like people like the backup QBs.  You can say Eeles will be utility, but I don't know that he can actually play anywhere but 2B.  Maybe some LF, but if that's what you call utility, you'll call anything utility.  He might be good enough to play, and if you play him, it will have to be at 2B.

Lee has a lot of convincing to do.  I never thought his bat would be an issue, but I don't think that's the default anymore.  His range of outcomes is wide right now.

[Jasper]

Injuries and offensive play of others will determine who plays third. On another note, does anyone know why Eeles is not playing in any spring training games?

[ryanking61]

With the uncertainty and consistency of Royce's injuries, I don't blame the organization for wanting to have a plan in place to replace him eventually, enough is enough. 

[bean5302]

My expectation is Brooks Lee will never pan out. He won't be able to hit well enough to play full time, and his "versatility" is the same as Eddie Julien a player with the same physical skill set.

[ashbury]

16 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

My expectation is Brooks Lee will never pan out. He won't be able to hit well enough to play full time, and his "versatility" is the same as Eddie Julien a player with the same physical skill set.

A "Julien with a worse bat" is a pretty bold stance.  Lee hit at high-A as a 21-year old, he hit at AA at 22, he hit at AAA at 23.  His debut in the majors at 23 was a little worrisome and I would prefer he start the season at St. Paul again, but his track record suggests not selling him quite so short at age 24.

And I am much less nervous about Lee's glove than Julien's for that matter.