A Tale of Two Infielders: Making the Most of Your Opportunities

[Greggory Masterson]

Jose Miranda and Edouard Julien both started the season on the periphery of the Twins lineup. One of them has taken advantage of the opportunity early this season, retelling one of the oldest stories in the game.

Image courtesy of © Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images

It’s still far too early in the season to start talking definitively, and the Twins have a ton going on right now, but I think this is a notable enough development to write about. Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda came into 2025 with shockingly similar stories, and they’ve quickly embarked on diverging paths.

Let’s actually start with where they differ. Although they both have a significant offensive shortcoming, they’re almost the complete opposite—to boil it down to its most basic form, Miranda needs to stop swinging so much, and Julien needs to swing more.

"When an aggressive hitter gets even more aggressive, then there’s probably overaggressiveness," Rocco Baldelli said of Miranda on Sunday. "But he’s always gonna be a guy who’s gonna be looking to swing the bat. That’s just by nature, who he is and who he’s always been. It’s part of the good version of Jose Miranda, too. It’s a guy that when he gets a good pitch, he hammers it right away. He’s not gonna be up there waiting around, taking pitches in the zone that he thinks that he can barrel up. So I think finding a level of patience at the plate—that’s a relative term, when it comes to hitters. But no matter who you are, everyone has a point of passivity, and also overaggressiveness. So I think he just wants to do something so badly that he’s wanting to swing the bat before he knows what he’s swinging at."

The only other big difference is that Julien has settled in at second base and Miranda is a third baseman, but even their defensive profiles share similarities: they’re both below average. Julien is at second base because his arm doesn't work anywhere else, and Miranda is at third because his range doesn't work anywhere else. Both could be said to profile long-term at first base, though the Twins seem squeamish to move either there. I mean, they signed Ty France for $1 million to move both off of the position. Both have also played a game at shortstop during blowouts in the last year, even.

Both have had short stretches looking like significantly above-average big-league hitters, but both have had stretches where they’re unplayable. Both face uncertainty as to what sort of role they will fill this year, and the Twins face uncertainty over which version of each will be available to them this year. And both need to be the good versions of themselves, because they’re at risk of being pushed out of the infield picture entirely, with Royce Lewis, Brooks Lee, Carlos Correa, and Luke Keaschall all looking like potential mainstays on the dirt.

They both made the Opening Day roster in reduced roles. Miranda was given the third base job only due to an injury to Lewis. Before that, the plan seemed to be that he would play some third, some first, and some DH, but instead, he got everyday consistency. Julien only got a spot on the roster at all because Lee began the year on the injured list. There was something of a position battle at second base this spring, and until his injury, most assumed Lee would get the job.

I think that pretty well sets the scene. Julien didn’t play the first three games of the season, and although Miranda started those games at the hot corner, he batted eighth in all three games, slotting ahead of only Harrison Bader and Christian Vázquez. Admittedly, Julien was ill for those games, so it’s unclear what his usage would have looked like under better circumstances.

But both have played quasi-regularly to this point in the season, forming a three-spots-for-two-men rotation with Bader (who starts in left when Trevor Larnach is the DH). Through the first 14 games of the season, they had received nearly identical playing time. Miranda had started eight games and played in 11, registering 35 plate appearances, compared to Julien’s 36 plate appearances, starting nine games and playing in 12.

Miranda had a miserable .143 batting average and an OPS of .371 (over 80% lower than average). Julien had a more respectable, but not great, .273 average and .697 OPS—right around the league average. But then Saturday’s game happened.

Julien started the 15th game of the season and registered a hit in two plate appearances, but he was lifted in the eighth inning for Miranda to face a lefty reliever. Miranda also got a hit, but he was then tagged out in one of the more boneheaded baserunning gaffes the Twins will have this season (I pray).

 

On Sunday, Julien started at DH and homered, pushing his season OPS up to .769.

Miranda was demoted to St. Paul after Saturday’s game to make room for Lee, who also started Sunday.

"I had a pretty thorough conversation with Jose Miranda when we sent him out—when we optioned him," Baldelli said. "Obviously, I’m not gonna dive into the details of that conversation, but I had a couple of different messages for him, and it’s time for him to go down, play well, and get his season rolling."

There’s no telling what the rest of the season holds, but Julien is taking advantage of the opportunities he has. It’s not a unique story, but it is one that defines a ton of players’ careers. Wally Pipp has gotten the bad break of living in historical infamy for it, but this happens all the time. Two players get a shot. One seizes it.

If you just read that and think I said “Edouard Julien and Lou Gehrig are comparable,” please let me stop you. It’s just the quickest example. A player only gets so many opportunities to show a team, or the league, that he’s worthy of playing time—or even instructional time. There are only so many plate appearances—or hours in a coach’s day— to go around. And when there’s a looming infield crunch, every opportunity matters.

Miranda now seems to be somewhere around eighth on the infield depth chart, ranking behind Julien, Correa, Lewis, Lee, France, Willi Castro, and maybe even Keaschall (if he proves he’s healthy). I mean, Mickey Gasper is also still on the roster (but destined for a much smaller role, so we can probably ignore him for this conversation).

Fifteen games to start a season is a small sample. Matt Wallner opened the season dreadfully in 2024, but by rate stats, he ended up being the second-best batter on the team. Sometimes in baseball, though, that second (or third) chance never comes. You can get passed by by guys who do take advantage.

In 2019, Luis Arraez leapfrogged Nick Gordon due to Gordon’s injury—and then proceeded to hit .400 for two months, preventing the Twins from ever sending him down again. Rob Refsnyder parlayed about 20 games of very good play for the Twins in 2021 into a decent little four-year career with the Red Sox as a role player. These small samples have a huge effect on guys’ careers.

Julien has taken advantage of the small opening on the Twins roster. He might even settle into the regular leadoff spot, like he did Sunday, if he keeps hitting.

"Eddy looks really good right now. I think he's very comfortable at the plate," Baldelli said after Sunday's win. "I think he's seeing the ball very well, I think he's looking for pitches in different parts of the zone. He's on heaters; he's on offspeed pitches. He drives the ball really well to the opposite field, and when you see him doing that, you know he's feeling it."

Of course, again, I’m not crowning Julien, and I’m not calling for the banishment of Miranda. Who knows? Miranda might show back up in July and lead the team in batting average for the rest of the year, and Julien might fizzle out in May and spend the rest of the year in St. Paul.

But right now, one has done what he needs to, and one hasn’t. I think the dichotomy is worth recognizing.

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[thelanges5]

Edouard Julien is starting to rule again and that is great news for the Twins!

[mikelink45]

With Lee and Keaschall I think that Eddie should feel the pressure and if he does great - maybe we can pull an Arraez type trade with him.  When Lewis comes back.  I am assuming Gaspar is done, but could be surprised.

Next look at Larnach.  He started at clean-up, but he seems to be going the opposite direction of Julien right now.

[stringer bell]

Good article and good comparison. Unfortunately, both Julien and Miranda are guys that need to hit well above average to be assets on a major league team. Can or will either guy hit enough to be a DH or carry a glove that over the long run will hurt the team? These factors make their upside marginal and make it very hard to increase their role.

It sticks in my mind that at the start of 2024, both José Miranda and Trevor Larnach had no chance of making the major league team ahead of Julien or Matt Wallner and a few months later their positions were reversed. Now things have shifted back, but there appears to be no push to demote Larnach at this point. It seems to me that the players' flaws will keep them on the edge of everyday status rather than being a trusted regular. 

In 2025, Julien has reduced his K rate to an acceptable 23.8%, while also reducing his walk rate. Miranda has increased his K rate to 36.1% and hasn't drawn a walk in the early season. I think those numbers tell the story for right now. 

[stringer bell]

10 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

Next look at Larnach.  He started at clean-up, but he seems to be going the opposite direction of Julien right now.

Larnach is only striking out 11% of the time, but his exit velocity is down. He sustained success over basically all of the 2024 season, so I think giving him more rope is in order. As stated above for Julien and Miranda, his flaws would seem to limit his upside and make it hard for him to become a core player (or everyday regular). 

[DLPaul]

Note to Jose Miranda: You are NOT going to stay on the roster batting .167. 

[Trov]

Both are the perfect example of not getting too hyped over a rookie.  Both had huge rookie years and were essentially given jobs out of a spring the next year.  Both fell flat on face in second year.  Miranda had a short bounce back in his third year where he helped carry the offense for a month plus last year, but after the break he fell flat on face again.  Eddy is getting a shot again and so far doing enough to warrant more time.  It will be most interesting when Lewis comes back, as long as Lee is doing well what happens with Julien.  

[Doctor Gast]

Indeed a tale of 2 INFers. One, Julien, who can stink both defensively & offensively & make bonehead plays, but that's OK because management has your back, just relax & try to get back some of your mojo. Other Miranda, 1B should have had been his the last 2 years but management said nope, we want anybody but you. We don't care if you got hurt while playing a position you had no right playing you still had to rake! You made a bonehead play so your out, it doesn't matter that you got a PH hit prior to your demotion. 

Julien can't play 2B. Our greatest liability is our right side of the INF. To greatly resolve this problem, Julien. Gasper & France needs to be remove from their steady position. The time I have seen Miranda at 1B he seemed passeable. If he had plenty of reps at 1B, he'd be a healthy hitter & good 1Bman. A beloved, heart & soul of the team (Polanco) was sacrificed to make room for incompetent Julien. An expensive outsider was obtained to boot Miranda off 1B, again this year a hack at 1B was obtain to keep Miranda off 1B. Twins do everything in their powers to instill confidence in Julien & to humiliate Miranda. 

Julien should have been sent down to AAA to learn 1B (because he's terrible at it) until he profiles into a 1Bman. Miranda should have given the 1B job to learn on the MLB level. I don't have anything against France, I hope he continue his hitting as a DH & 1B only in an emergency. If both players were handled the same, the outcome would be adverse & Twins would be in a lot better situation.

[Karbo]

I believe that if Julian can show he's capable of hitting with at least some power, he could be the 1st baseman next year. Of course, that also depends on how some of the youngsters down on the farm do this year. 

If it was up to me, I'd move Lewis to 1st, Keaschall at 2nd, (I think he's the real deal) Lee at 3rd and of course C4 at short. Lewis has good size, and seems to hit more like a 1st baseman is supposed to.

[mikelink45]

5 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Larnach is only striking out 11% of the time, but his exit velocity is down. He sustained success over basically all of the 2024 season, so I think giving him more rope is in order. As stated above for Julien and Miranda, his flaws would seem to limit his upside and make it hard for him to become a core player (or everyday regular). 

I would certainly like to see Larnach succeed but his career so far has been erratic and at times he just seems lost. I was hoping after last year that he had really figured things out. And based on the fact that we used the him and clean up to start the season. The club must also have high hopes. It's not like I want him cut.  But I do see him being vulnerable as we look at the outfielders that are coming up through the minors. They're not quite ready but by the end of the year they'll be pushing hard

[Guest]

Both are head cases.  I'm glad to see Julien head in the right direction, well beyond my expectations.  Miranda had it figured out.  Hope his St. Paul reset works.

[nicksaviking]

"When an aggressive hitter gets even more aggressive, then there’s probably overaggressiveness," Rocco Baldelli

[jmlease1]

It's great to see Julien make the necessary adjustments and start to hit hit again. The peripherals have been looking good this season even when the results weren't there, so it's good that he's been able to stick with the change and start getting the result he and the team might have expected. I do think he's taken his struggles at the plate out into the field with him at times, so while I don't expect him to be a plus defender I think we might see improvement still at 2B. But frankly the team can handle him being below average defensively if he's putting up an OPS+ in the 110-125 range. I would expect pitchers to adjust to him again; if he can keep from chasing it wouldn't surprise me at all to see the walk rate start climbing back up, even if the K's go back up a bit more too.

Miranda has some work to do. Previously when he's struggled in MLB it's been more injury related; there really doesn't seem to be that issue for him right now. He's just a mess at the plate in every way, swinging at everything, while not getting the barrel on the ball like he needs to. You look at his launch angle and it shows a player who needs a big ol' reset. Hopefully he can go back down to Saint Paul and find himself again. He's never going to be a player that takes lots of walks, but he can be a guy who makes lots of good hard contact. It's interesting, since he doesn't appear to big fighting an injury this time, to see whether he can get himself out of this. Wallner pulled it off last season and when he returned he was a damn good hitter for the Twins. Hopefully Miranda can as well.

[Linus]

I give Julien credit - he obviously is trying to make adjustments and he certainly looks better than last year. 
Both guys have a similar problem in that they have to hit - a lot - as they don’t offer anything else. 
I was of the opinion that Falvey should have given Miranda the first base job this year. I’m glad he didn’t listen to me. France is just ok and he is light years better than Miranda. 

[MGM4706]

Ok article but you forgot one thing! RANGE! Julien has a range at 2nd of 2 feet left and 2 feet to the right. Just awful!!

[Fatbat]

I would have bet that they both burned out this season or next. So far, I am batting .500. I would prefer batting 0.00 but Miranda hasn’t figured out how to watch a pitch go by that he doesn’t like. 🤦‍♂️

[tony&rodney]

26 minutes ago, jmlease1 said:

It's great to see Julien make the necessary adjustments and start to hit hit again. The peripherals have been looking good this season even when the results weren't there, so it's good that he's been able to stick with the change and start getting the result he and the team might have expected. I do think he's taken his struggles at the plate out into the field with him at times, so while I don't expect him to be a plus defender I think we might see improvement still at 2B. But frankly the team can handle him being below average defensively if he's putting up an OPS+ in the 110-125 range. I would expect pitchers to adjust to him again; if he can keep from chasing it wouldn't surprise me at all to see the walk rate start climbing back up, even if the K's go back up a bit more too.

This ... particularly the part of taking poor at bats into the field. A big problem for the Twins is that they have targeted/signed/rostered players who are not particularly athletic and have ceilings of average at best on defense. If a player doesn't hit, they are nearly unplayable.

The Twins have two catchers and nothing below them at the moment so these two escape much in the way of criticism. Look around the remainder of the team though. Correa and Buxton have big contracts = untouchable = they play until injured. Bader has been a good CF and is improving as a corner OF (nice catch yesterday). Will Bader hit? Lee makes the plays but has limited range at 2B and SS and the bat is a question. France, Miranda, Julien, Castro, Lewis, Larnach, and Wallner need to hit. Lewis has had a few shining moments and his absence is making him a superstar because of the expected glory of his return. Can he ever sustain any performances beyond a month? Is he a DH? 

The article focuses on Miranda and Julien. Miranda only path back is if France totally fails at 1B, Lewis cannot play 3B, and Lee and/or Castro are unable to provide the offense needed at the hot corner. Jose is between a rock and a hard place. There really isn't any place for him on the Saints team either. Julien will need to maintain his current batting lines to maintain his position. Despite the hate mail concerning Julien's defense, we do see him making the plays when he is hitting. Julien has an awkward hitch in his transfers and throwing which makes it seem like every play may result in an error. He is also awkward on ground balls. I'm not a fan of Julien but he does make most of the plays. An area where people get it wrong on Julien versus the others who have played second base is range. Castro is about the same but the others are not close. Unlike a number of folks I don't see Julien as being capable as a first baseman. His awkward twitches and the necessity to make quicker decisions while managing footwork doesn't portend a future at 1B. If Julien hits (OPS 750-800), controls the Ks and has good at bats, he is the guy for 2B on this team. Can he maintain over the course of the season? I'm not sure and my doubts were one reason I suggested trading Julien (and Lewis) after the 2023 post season when the value was high. Now? I'm hopeful Julien (and Lewis) can be consistent offense while playing close to average defense. It is a fair expectation.

[mluebker]

I'm trying to think of a Twins team that won the pennant without having an infield made up of solid regulars at each position. You maybe could say 1965, because Killebrew was out for nearly seven weeks giving Don Mincher more time at first. 

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, DLPaul said:

Note to Jose Miranda: You are NOT going to stay on the roster batting .167. 

That's Gasper's spot.

[joefish]

Larnach has to be next to step up. He is not contributing much on the offensive side of the ball. 

[Heistyman]

Julien is a light hitting DH.  He needs to go.

[jmlease1]

24 minutes ago, mluebker said:

I'm trying to think of a Twins team that won the pennant without having an infield made up of solid regulars at each position. You maybe could say 1965, because Killebrew was out for nearly seven weeks giving Don Mincher more time at first. 

What counts as a regular? In 1991 Pagliarulo only made 112 starts at 3B. Also, Gladden played a lot, but wasn't very solid...

[tony&rodney]

4 minutes ago, Heistyman said:

Julien is a light hitting DH.  He needs to go.

Heh, you might be right but if so then everyone else but France and Wallner needs to go too. France and Wallner are best at DH too, but this leaves the Twins with 2 players alternating at DH and 8 open spots in the lineup. Currently teams are required to bat 9 players. Using the current rules, Julien is in the lineup as of now.

[DJL44]

3 hours ago, stringer bell said:

Larnach is only striking out 11% of the time, but his exit velocity is down. He sustained success over basically all of the 2024 season, so I think giving him more rope is in order. As stated above for Julien and Miranda, his flaws would seem to limit his upside and make it hard for him to become a core player (or everyday regular). 

I think Larnach has over-adjusted to breaking stuff and is letting fastballs go by in the zone. He needs to take a hack at some of the get-me-over fastballs he's seeing, especially early in the count.

[jmlease1]

8 minutes ago, Heistyman said:

Julien is a light hitting DH.  He needs to go.

3rd on the team right now in OPS+. yeah, we better rid of him.

[RpR]

Some one told Julien to not let the bat just sit on his shoulder; he still goes down two strike watch the ball go across the middle of the plate , but, he then figures it is time to swing the bat, which has worked for the past three games.

[DJL44]

I like Miranda and Julien as bench players. I think Miranda can come back and fill a role like Donovan Solano if he plays up to his talent. As starters, you'll always be looking for someone else to take the job on defense.

[LambchoP]

What is scary to me is that Miranda's offensive numbers are basically the same as Correa's:(. Really need to get him going and soon. At least Julien looks like he's found his swing. As long as Rocco doesn't put him out at second base to collect errors, he could be a boon to this lineup. Just keep him at DH or first base.

[Jeff K]

As others have noted, the Twins have a lot of infielders whose upside is not high enough to warrant regular play on a good major league team.  Lewis should be.  Keaschel...we hope...please?  I do like that Miranda was sent down the day he stopped running the bases.  Martin would be up now if not for his injury, but let's face it; he isn't the answer either.

[Blyleven2011]

Right now Julien is the better player of the 2 , they both are head cases as they both have mental lapses  ...

But alot of our better players that hit and play better have mental lapses too ( base running , swinging at pitches they cant identify , defense , errors that are costly ) ...