Minnesota’s Next Wave is Built on Infield Versatility

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of Ed Bailey, Wichita Wind Surge (Photo of Kaelen Culpepper)

The Twins have been methodical in building an infield pipeline that could anchor the franchise for years, and the 2026 season marks the first true step toward that plan becoming reality. Brooks Lee will open the year at shortstop with Luke Keaschall alongside him at second base, while Kaelen Culpepper continues his climb after a breakthrough season in the minors. Their development is intertwined, and Minnesota is preparing for multiple scenarios where all three could play significant roles.

Keaschall’s positional path is already expanding, and Derek Falvey made clear that the organization views him as more than just a second baseman. Falvey explained that Keaschall’s broken forearm last season paused their original plan to explore outfield reps earlier.

“For Luke specifically, obviously got a ton of time at second. With the way his season went with the broken forearm, it kind of screwed up our plans for exploring the outfield more like we were originally going to do this past year,” he said.

With Keaschall now past his arm rehab, the Twins are revisiting that developmental track.

“That’s something that from a throwing program perspective this offseason, we’re going to spend more time making sure he’s building out to get some reps out there in the outfield,” Falvey said.

The Twins see Keaschall’s versatility as key to fitting all their pieces together. Falvey said the organization will be having more conversations with him about what that transition will look like and emphasized that both he and Derek Shelton believe it can benefit the club.

“We think it could be a real opportunity for him to keep finding as many ways in the lineup that help the group as we try to fit all the pieces together and slide other guys around, too. It could be really valuable if he could run out to left field or center field along the way.”

Unstated, there, is the other major reason the team is considering that move: Keaschall looked bad at second base in 2025. He probably doesn't have the fluidity or the hands to play on the dirt on an everyday basis, though the club hopes he can stay there at least part of the time.

Culpepper remains a step behind Keaschall and Lee in terms of timeline, but his stock continues to rise. After splitting the year between High A and Double A, he solidified himself as one of Minnesota’s most promising prospects.

“Yeah, Kaelen had an awesome year," Falvey said. "Really could not have asked for it to go much better.”

Culpepper played shortstop most of the time, but also saw early work at second and third base as the organization began expanding his defensive profile.

“He’s getting some work, you know, early work at second base, third base, a little bit of game exposure in those spots. And we’ll let that continue to play out as we get through spring training into the season,” Falvey noted.

If all three players are healthy at the same time (a big if when it comes to Twins top prospects), Minnesota has several intriguing defensive configurations. The most straightforward setup would feature Culpepper at third, Lee at shortstop, and Keaschall at second. That alignment keeps all three in the infield, while still allowing Keaschall to move into the outfield when needed.

Another scenario emerges if Culpepper arrives ready to take over second base. In that case, Keaschall’s growing experience in the outfield becomes even more critical. Lee would remain at shortstop in that alignment, giving the Twins a strong defensive foundation up the middle.

There is also the possibility that early-season struggles or injuries force a different arrangement. If Lee has a problematic defensive start, Culpepper has the skill set to take over at shortstop, sliding Lee to second base. The Twins value the ability to shift players around as needed, and this trio gives them more flexibility than they have had in years.

Whatever alignment Minnesota ultimately settles into, Lee, Keaschall, and Culpepper will be central to the organization’s future. Their versatility allows the Twins to adapt to performance, injuries, and roster construction in a way few clubs can match. The next step is seeing how quickly all three can grow into the roles the Twins envision for them.

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How will these three players fit into Minnesota’s long-term plans? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[Riverbrian]

If you are going to accumulate talent. You need flexibility.

If you don't have flexibility... talent accumulation can't happen.

If you can't accumulate talent... you will live and die by the health and performance of a thin layer. 

[mikelink45]

With prospects nearly ready I still question the acquisition of Bell.  Keaschall could end up at 1B.  We have too many good OF prospects to put him there.  

[Jeff K]

I don't view Lee as a long term SS, so not sure why you would move Culpepper off SS so that Lee can stay in the position.

[mickster]

48 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

With prospects nearly ready I still question the acquisition of Bell.  Keaschall could end up at 1B.  We have too many good OF prospects to put him there.  

This accumulation hopefully will lead to some trades for proven players at some point.   

[mnfireman]

3 is not a pipeline, even more so if they are viewed as utility types.

[Riverbrian]

We have to start producing actual major league talent before any of this applies to anything.  

As long as we are bringing in Kyle Farmer types on one year deals. We are paper thin in regards to the infield. 

 

 

[DJL44]

Brooks Lee was "versatile" if you mean equally bad at every infield position. They don't need players to move between the infield and the outfield. They need someone who can actually play shortstop.

[bunsen82]

I think the ideal future infield involves Lee at 3rd,  Culpepper at SS,  and Keashall at 2nd.    Lee needs to improve defense and OPS this year in a meaningful way.  You still have some options internally that could allow Lee to be traded or used as a utility player.  

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Why has there been no mention of Royce Lewis in this article, nor in the comments so far? Has Royce been traded and I didn't know about it? Lewis is 26 until June 2026, Lee will be 25 in February 2026, Keaschall will be 24 in August 2026 and Culpepper will be 23 this month. I submit that Royce Lewis should be part of these future infield projections. As Lou Costello used to say: "Who's on first?" 

[DJL44]

7 minutes ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

Why has there been no mention of Royce Lewis in this article, nor in the comments so far? Has Royce been traded and I didn't know about it? Lewis is 26 until June 2026, Lee will be 25 in February 2026, Keaschall will be 24 in August 2026 and Culpepper will be 23 this month. I submit that Royce Lewis should be part of these future infield projections. As Lou Costello used to say: "Who's on first?" 

Lewis is clearly the most talented player in the infield, but he gets ignored in all of these articles.

[USAFChief]

Glad to see "anybody can play anywhere" is still firmly in place and survived the managerial swap.

Meanwhile, Twins brass cant seem to figure out why the team always struggles to play defense.

[Rod Carews Birthday]

At best, combining Lewis (the most accomplished so far, I guess, but. . . ), Lee (still waiting. . . . ), Keaschall (extremely SSS), and Culpepper (still in MiLB) seems like it could be an adequate infield.  Calling it anything like a pipeline at this point is premature.  IF all of those work out, we could be OK in the infield.  So far we don't have any true stars there. 

As fans, sometimes we forget that almost every player that experiences a few years of success in the majors was not just good in the minors, but often a big star in the minors.  Even then, they don't all work out.  Every team has guys just like these guys.  The teams that are successful are the ones where they work out or who trade for or sign guys that do.  My fingers are crossed, but let's stay realistic as well.

[NYCTK]

9 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Glad to see "anybody can play anywhere" is still firmly in place and survived the managerial swap.

Meanwhile, Twins brass cant seem to figure out why the team always struggles to play defense.

Glad to see people complaining about baseball players being asked to play baseball has survived the managerial swap. 

 

[Nashvilletwin]

1. Lewis is going to get every chance to prove he’s the 3B of the future or at least part of the future core (1B?)

2. Lee is going to have a similar opportunity this year to prove he too can be part of the future (more likely though at 2B or utility).

3. It’s possible we draft Lebron at #3 this June and our core future infield is Culpepper and Lebron handling 3B and 2B, Houston at SS and ideally Keaschall and Lewis at 1B and DH.

4. Flexibility is great (and the infield in point 3 with Lee in the utility role exemplifies that), but should not be the end all goal.  Ideally the kids learn to play one position at an exceptional level and come to the park each day knowing that is where they are going to play.  That alone will do wonders for their confidence and performance both in the field and at the plate. 

[LastOnePicked]

50 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

Glad to see people complaining about baseball players being asked to play baseball has survived the managerial swap. 

That's a silly strawman and I'm guessing you know it.

Every IF position has unique challenges and players have unique skills. The issue is whether or not the organization is giving young players a chance to maximize their skills by having them hold down a position long enough to build comfort, skill and expertise.

So far, what they're doing isn't working. 

[NYCTK]

6 minutes ago, LastOnePicked said:

The issue is whether or not the organization is giving young players a chance to maximize their skills by having them hold down a position long enough to build comfort, skill and expertise.

I think this concern is completely fabricated, absolutely nonexistent. 

It's not like they're asking Wallner to play 2B which is how many people act here. 

[Elliot]

If a player excels at a position, you are not looking to move them around. The players with versatility are generally passable at a number, but not good anywhere. 
Lee is not a SS. Leaving him there ensures he doesn’t excel anywhere. Is he a 2B? Maybe, but no one knows yet. It sounds as if they know already that Keaschel is not a 2B, and probably not an infielder other than 1B. Get him to the OF if that is his best home. Play a SS at SS. That may be a glove first guy they bring in, or take a shot with Culpepper or Houston. 

[rv78]

Making players utility players ISN'T always the answer. Playing the same position long enough to get good at it requires repetition and consistancy. Ever since the Twins had Marwin Gonzalez and used him everywhere it seems they have this notion that they can make every player a Marwin. It's time to move on and let each player play where they are best at and be done with it.

[rv78]

50 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

I think this concern is completely fabricated, absolutely nonexistent. 

It's not like they're asking Wallner to play 2B which is how many people act here. 

Who decided to move Miguel Sano to RF? 

[Rod Carews Birthday]

54 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

 

It's not like they're asking Wallner to play 2B which is how many people act here. 

Now there's an idea!

[HerbieFan]

There may be a world where Lewis is the 3B, Culpepper the SS, Lee at 2B and Keaschall in LF.

[LA Vikes Fan]

2 hours ago, HerbieFan said:

There may be a world where Lewis is the 3B, Culpepper the SS, Lee at 2B and Keaschall in LF.

 

4 hours ago, DJL44 said:

Lewis is clearly the most talented player in the infield, but he gets ignored in all of these articles.

I agree. I'm not sure why we can't acknowledge what appears to be the obvious - Royce Lewis the is the Twins primary 3B unless he shows he can't hit. He did not hit well last year, although better post ASB (.723 OPS) vs. pre ASB (.585 OPS). He hit well in 2023, not bad in 2024. He hit well in the 2023 playoffs so he's shown some ability to hit under pressure. Lewis will get 2026 as the primary 3B and probably 2027 unless his hitting falls off a cliff.  Lee, on the other hand, has not shown that he can hit well enough to start on a MLB team. He will get a shot at SS, mostly because we don't really have anybody else for the start of the season, and maybe he gets better and locks down the position. Lee is much more at risk of falling out of the infield mix in becoming a UTL than Lewis is.

Let's stop ignoring the obvious and projecting an infield with anyone other than Lewis at 3B. They are talking about Keaschall in the OF because we may get to a position where Culpepper shows he can handle and needs to be in a starting spot. If Keaschall can play well in the outfield, that opens up the possibility of him playing RF or LF to keep his bat and speed in the lineup, while giving Culpepper a spot at either SS or 2B to get him in the lineup. Alternatively, Lee can go to the bench which is where his bat plays unless it improves (I think it will). We also have Austin Martin, and the host of AAA OFs who potentially could have an OF spot -GG, Emma, Jenkins, and Fedko. Oh, and let's not forget that Matt Wallner is actually the incumbent RF even if he really projects more as a DH/5th OF, and that's assuming he can actually hit.235 or better rather than the lousy .202 he had last year. Having all of these guys available potentially for the SS/2B/RF/LF and DH spots is actually a good thing for a team that needs to get better. We need to have lots of candidates who have a shot at being the guy for a spot.

I do think we need to get one thing straight at least for 2026 - absent injury, Royce the is the everyday third baseman. Let's not concoct scenarios where he somehow disappears or moves to another position, particularly if those scenarios are designed to find a place for Brooks Lee to play. That ain't happen unless Lewis falls off the cliff at the plate.  

[USAFChief]

2 hours ago, NYCTK said:

Glad to see people complaining about baseball players being asked to play baseball has survived the managerial swap. 

 

I think learning to play one position well at the highest levels of the game is difficult enough.

[TheLeviathan]

I'm fine with the team pushing versatility....but then you need athletes who can pull that off.  Drafting slow-footed middle infielders isn't the way to build that kind of roster.

Also....now that we've had dust settle, people are recognizing that nothing they hated about Rocco was actually Rocco right?  Like, clearly those of us who were screaming at you to realize it was Falvey have to be making sense to you finally now right?

[Jim H]

Here's the thing about versatility, virtually any player who makes the majors can likely play any position on the field, except maybe catcher, at least for a few innings. If you are good enough offensively a team will a find way to get you in the lineup, somewhere. Killebrew played 3b, 1b and lf almost equally over about a 5 year period.  They thought it made the team better to get the best bats in the lineup and maybe give up something defensively at 1 or more or positions. 

The Twins did this with Polanco when they played him at short and left Dozier at 2nd. Teams do this all the time. The problem with this strategy is that you have to get enough offense out a particular player to make moving him to other positions worth it. Particularly if he is subpar defensively. A lot of bad defense doesn't really show up statistically, throwing to the wrong base, turning a double play into a single out, etc.

It is not really clear to me at this time whether any of these guys are good enough offensively to be forced into the lineup at multiple positions. If they aren't good enough offensively to hold down one position full time, forcing them into multiple position roles seems counter productive. 

The goal here should be finding as many full time starters as possible. You should have a couple of utility guys, maybe a couple of platoon type guys,if can't find enough full time starters. You shouldn't really have more than 1 guy whose best position is dh unless the offense is suberb.

[bean5302]

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

3 hours ago, USAFChief said:

Glad to see "anybody can play anywhere" is still firmly in place and survived the managerial swap.

Meanwhile, Twins brass cant seem to figure out why the team always struggles to play defense.

Jack of all trades, master of none.

[bean5302]

[NYCTK]

4 hours ago, rv78 said:

Making players utility players ISN'T always the answer. Playing the same position long enough to get good at it requires repetition and consistancy. Ever since the Twins had Marwin Gonzalez and used him everywhere it seems they have this notion that they can make every player a Marwin. It's time to move on and let each player play where they are best at and be done with it.

How terrible is this team, how traumatized is this fanbase, that they have the fans deriding positional flexibility, an undeniable asset, as some sort of weakness? 

2 hours ago, Jim H said:

If they aren't good enough offensively to hold down one position full time, forcing them into multiple position roles seems counter productive. 

I swear you guys forget how long a season is, and how fortunate it is to be called upon to play in major league baseball. 

I promise you, there's nothing wrong with the manager of the 2026 Minnesota Twins asking Luke Keaschall to play some games at 2B and some games in LF, and maybe some innings in CF. He will survive, I can guarantee you that. 

I can also promise you the terrible crime of Rocco Baldelli asking Royce Lewis to play 8 innings at second base didn't derail his career, nor his defense at 3B. 

4 hours ago, rv78 said:

It's time to move on and let each player play where they are best at and be done with it.

This is a luxury reserved for good players. If you're good enough, you get to pick your position. And if you're extra good, you can be Mookie Betts and bear that terrible awful burden of playing multiple positions to be an MVP and then help your team win back to back World Series. 

This crusade by many here against the Twins having players take reps at mutiple positions is truly baffling to me. It honestly sounds like it comes from people who have never actually watched or played the sport. Which is obviously not the case.