Too Much Versatility Is Hurting the Minnesota Twins

[Matthew Lenz]

Image courtesy of IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Minnesota Twins have built their roster around a simple idea: availability is the best ability. It is a philosophy that traces back to the Derek Falvey-Thad Levine front office, and for years it worked. Guys like Marwin Gonzalez, and later Willi Castro, and now Kody Clemens thrived by playing multiple positions and giving the team flexibility. However, watching this 2026 club, I think we have found the exception to that rule. An overabundance of versatility is not making this team better. It is holding it back and blocking the prospects who should be helping to move it forward.

In the outfield, Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez (to a lesser extent and for different reasons) are knocking on the door. In fact, I think Jenkins should already be up in the big leagues. Instead, he is stuck behind a group of outfielders who all do a little bit of everything but nothing exceptionally well. A group of serviceable veterans is blocking both players in an outfield that is below average defensively, and (aside from Buxton) average offensively.

However, that is just one part of the larger core issue with this roster. The Twins have too many players who can capably fill in at multiple spots, and while it looks like a strength on paper, it has been less than ideal on the field.

Look at what has happened at the infield corners this season. Brooks Lee opened the year at shortstop while Royce Lewis manned third base. That pairing did not work for either player, so the Twins shuffled them around the infield. Lewis slid over to the right side of the infield, and Lee moved to third. That shuffle then forced Luke Keaschall to the outfield, a position group that was already crowded before he ever got there. One move created a chain reaction, and none of the resulting fits looked ideal.

First base has been its own carousel. Josh Bell and Victor Caratini have gotten time there, and so have a few other options who can technically play the position without excelling at it. Shortstop, meanwhile, was a rotating door between Tristan Gray and other fill-ins before the promotion of Kaelen Culpepper (who also may not be a shortstop long-term). Frankly, neither of those stopgap options gave fans much to be excited about.

Then there is the outfield beyond Jenkins and Rodriguez. Of course, Byron Buxton is the primary center fielder when healthy, and Trevor Larnach is in the middle of a career year, so those two spots are locked down. But after Matt Wallner was sent down to Triple-A, the Twins turned to a rotating mix of players who could serviceably cover the outfield grass without anyone truly claiming the job. It has been useful in a pinch, sure. But useful is not the same as good, and the difference shows up in the numbers.

By defensive runs saved, the Twins currently rank third worst in all of baseball at -25 runs, trailing only the Athletics and Mariners. That is not a coincidence. When you build a roster full of players who are passable at several positions instead of excellent at one, the defense suffers, as does the pitching.

I understand the appeal of building a roster this way. It is genuinely helpful to have players who can slide around the diamond when injuries hit or when a young player like Wallner needs more seasoning in the minors. That kind of flexibility has bailed the Twins out more than once this season. But there is a cost to it, and right now the Twins are paying that cost on defense, in the win column, and in playing time for prospects who have earned a real shot.

The Twins do not need more players who can capably fill in everywhere. They need players who are genuinely excellent somewhere, even if that means committing to a defined role and letting the versatile depth pieces support from the bench instead of starting every night. Until that changes, expect the shuffling, the defensive miscues, and the frustration from fans watching top prospects wait behind a roster of jacks of all trades.

Do you think the Twins’ defensive struggles trace back to too much roster shuffling and a lack of true standouts at each position? Let me know what you think in the comments!

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[nclahammer]

Very interesting read and good perspective.

[Paul Walerius]

I don't disagree to an extent. I think the issue is Larnach right now.  He is good offensively but average at best fielding. Roden/martin are maybe good 4th OF.  I do think with some offseason work Keaschall will be good out there though (not CF). 

[thelanges5]

💯  a Swiss Army knife can do many jobs but it is seldom the best tool for any job. 

[Over The Hill Again]

This has been the lament of many on this board. The “Anyone can play anywhere” approach theoretically gives the team more flexibility but doesn’t allow/encourage anyone to really be good. That philosophy coupled with the extremely flawed approach of roster construction in recent years has really degraded the product from this fans perspective. 

[Carnealio]

Man this hits the nail on the head. So frustrating to watch major league ballplayers make poor plays and lousy decisions. I sort of feel sorry for them (Keaschall, for instance) but mostly I'm just tired of watching them hand over 4-5 out innings once or twice each game.

[Bangkok Twins Fan]

I like versatile players, Willy Castro being one such good example. But sometimes I think this concept of switching players around from position to position, platooning, or whatever, certainly CAN hurt their development or play with their heads. Where I am playing this week? Players like Royce Lewis, Keaschall, Martin, and even Brooks Lee and Clemons seem adrift in the grand scheme of things. I really don't know the answer, but it seems like most players would like to know which position they are going to play for the next couple of years and stick with it, rather than trying to take on a new role. 

[The Great Hambino]

It's an interesting thought, but it doesn't really prove anything if you don't look at how versatile other teams are in comparison to their defensive rankings.  A single data point is not a trend.

There's also a chicken-or-the-egg aspect to it.  Guys who are lockdown defenders at their position don't get moved around.  Buxton doesn't get moved around.  The good version of Correa didn't get moved around.  Are they bad defenders because they get moved around, or are they getting moved around because they aren't good enough to lock down a position?  That certainly raises questions about your scouting and development practices, but that's a discussion for different thread

Then there's simple roster math.  With the expansion of pitching staffs, teams just don't have the position-player depth that they used to be able to have.  Back in the day, there was a 25 man roster, a 10 man pitching staff, and no DH.  Take away a starting and backup catcher, and you had 13 players to cover 7 spots.  Now, with a 26 man roster, a 13 man pitching staff, and a permanent DH spot, you have 11 players to cover 8 spots.  Increased versatility is a necessity, and I don't think this gets acknowledged enough

[Road trip]

One utility infielder/outfielder for the bench is a good and necessary thing.  Two could be useful.  Three is an overabundance. 

The Twins have at different times rostered, um... 8? (Lee, Keaschall, Kreidler, Lewis, Clemons, Martin, Gray, and I'll even throw in Caratini due to all the time at 1B).  Way too many.  Perhaps two of them are above average fielders.

[HarmonK03]

19 minutes ago, Bangkok Twins Fan said:

I like versatile players, Willy Castro being one such good example. But sometimes I think this concept of switching players around from position to position, platooning, or whatever, certainly CAN hurt their development or play with their heads. Where I am playing this week? Players like Royce Lewis, Keaschall, Martin, and even Brooks Lee and Clemons seem adrift in the grand scheme of things. I really don't know the answer, but it seems like most players would like to know which position they are going to play for the next couple of years and stick with it, rather than trying to take on a new role. 

Clemens was a fringe type guy when we got him, if he wants to stay in the major leagues, his best chance is as a utility player, which he does well.  He is a streaky player and right now similar to April he is almost unplayable offensively.  I am not giving a regular spot to Clemens, he needs to move around to be valuable.

[HarmonK03]

20 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

.  Are they bad defenders because they get moved around, or are they getting moved around because they aren't good enough to lock down a position?  That certainly raises questions about your scouting and development practices, but that's a discussion for different thread

But are they giving them enough time to become better defenders.  Lee and Keaschall each had just over 120 games at their positions and Lewis had 200 after moving from SS.  So barely a season's worth of games and they have made the decision, then they keep moving them around still. Is it the player or the organization, it could be a little of both.  But I remember TK was great at putting players in a position to succeed, moving players around as much as they do is accomplishing this.  Lewis does not look comfortable, why do they keep forcing it.

And I don't know if those three would have become adequate or not at their positions, but it is a fair question, were they given enough of a chance.

[Patzky]

50 minutes ago, Over The Hill Again said:

This has been the lament of many on this board. The “Anyone can play anywhere” approach theoretically gives the team more flexibility but doesn’t allow/encourage anyone to really be good. That philosophy coupled with the extremely flawed approach of roster construction in recent years has really degraded the product from this fans perspective. 

We have a Stalinist team. 

[ToddlerHarmon]

28 minutes ago, The Great Hambino said:

It's an interesting thought, but it doesn't really prove anything if you don't look at how versatile other teams are in comparison to their defensive rankings.  A single data point is not a trend.

There's also a chicken-or-the-egg aspect to it.  Guys who are lockdown defenders at their position don't get moved around.  Buxton doesn't get moved around.  The good version of Correa didn't get moved around.  Are they bad defenders because they get moved around, or are they getting moved around because they aren't good enough to lock down a position?  That certainly raises questions about your scouting and development practices, but that's a discussion for different thread

Then there's simple roster math.  With the expansion of pitching staffs, teams just don't have the position-player depth that they used to be able to have.  Back in the day, there was a 25 man roster, a 10 man pitching staff, and no DH.  Take away a starting and backup catcher, and you had 13 players to cover 7 spots.  Now, with a 26 man roster, a 13 man pitching staff, and a permanent DH spot, you have 11 players to cover 8 spots.  Increased versatility is a necessity, and I don't think this gets acknowledged enough

I agree with the defensive woes mostly being about roster construction than use of the roster. Moving Lewis off third and Keaschall off second were good decisions for the defense, but we were already hiding too many bad defenders elsewhere.

As for roster sizes necessitating multiple utility players, the Twins have enough utility players that our 13th best hitter, whether Outman or Fedko or Gray, just rides the bench.

"Defensive flexibility" is a red flag, not a recommendation, for either a player or a roster.

[djvang]

Keaschall is a problem. His arm is a huge liability in the OF and his glove is a huge liability in the IF.

[Riverbrian]

Necessity is the mother of invention. 

[jorgenswest]

They haven’t drafted for defense. Drafting players that play second or third in college like Keaschall, Julien, Encarnacion-Strand and Steer aren’t going to play up the middle in the majors. Corner guys like Wallner, Larnach, Rooker and Sabato are going to have a hard time playing a corner in the majors. The draft priorities may have changed in the past few years but defense was not a priority in the drafts that are fueling this team.

It was clear that the infield Shelton was given in 2B Keaschall, SS Lee and 3B Lewis wasn’t going to work. What choice does he have other than hope moving the pieces gets them a little closer to adequate?

[Cris E]

48 minutes ago, jorgenswest said:

They haven’t drafted for defense. Drafting players that play second or third in college like Keaschall, Julien, Encarnacion-Strand and Steer aren’t going to play up the middle in the majors. Corner guys like Wallner, Larnach, Rooker and Sabato are going to have a hard time playing a corner in the majors. The draft priorities may have changed in the past few years but defense was not a priority in the drafts that are fueling this team.

It was clear that the infield Shelton was given in 2B Keaschall, SS Lee and 3B Lewis wasn’t going to work. What choice does he have other than hope moving the pieces gets them a little closer to adequate?

This is the whole thing. The Twins draft for hitters the way some teams draft for fastballs. For example their second rounder this year is a giant Texas catcher who hits like a lumberjack, but no one has said much about his glovework. As first rounders Lewis and Lee may have been a SS long-term, but Royce's injuries derailed that and Lee always had 3B or LF legs, so eventually they had to be moved. You draft a glove like Houston and you're drafting a SS that you hope hits enough to stick. You draft a glove like Sabato or Ganzalez or Kirriloff or Wallner or Larnach and you are hoping he keeps hitting enough to make you keep him on the roster. The Twins' high choice of Houston was noteworthy because of how out of character it was. 

But the larger hypothesis that the article tried to address is wrong.  The flexibility is not the problem because it was never the goal.  Sure Kreidler and Grey were picked up as utility guys, but no one else was. Those other guys were all acquired to play specific positions, positions that many of them really couldn't handle better than poorly. 

The theory has always been that you play guys at the hardest position they can handle to leave room for other, better hitters that can't play defense as well. Leave LF open for a Ted Williams or Greg Luzinski, Jeter can play SS well enough, Bobby Bonilla is so bad at 3B they have stationed an EMT in the first base box seats  so it's time to move him, etc. This is just a stubborn, slow walk through that process that was delayed a long time before Shelton began moving guys down the spectrum. The bad D numbers cited have improved a lot month over month, and it's due to not wasting more innings or SS Lee or 2b Keaschall. 

So the flexibility thing is false when measured in terms of roster construction, but in terms of filling injury holes it is a real challenge, and one that every team has to face when they don't have enough depth at some positions. For example they have had trouble covering CF for Byron this year because they did not acquire the usual high quality (Harris/Bader) caddy for him, and inhouse subs (Clemens, Keaschall, Martin, etc) were not up to the task whenever Kreidler was at SS. But they did have a ready sub when Jeffers wrecked his hand. 

So in conclusion, what? I guess we go with Bart Simpson: Libya is a land of contrasts. Thank You.

 

[Pykkman]

Shelton has done well with what he was given in terms of roster…..

The future looks brighter with Jenkins, Rodriguez, Houston, Lackey, Culpepper?  Lewis looks like he may become pretty good at first?   

[mnfireman]

Keaschall has been brutal in the field, but is still an exciting player to watch. Give him an IF glove this winter and a paid trip to Ron Washington's house, he's done wonders with Arraez. So far his problems have not cost him at the plate, see Eduoard Julien

Keaschall becoming a full-time DH is not the worst thing, though he will have to find a little more power, 25 HR a season or so power. This would also stop the team from taking flyers on washed up veterans in hope they work out, kudos to Josh Bell though, he's been better than expected.

If he becomes playable/passable at 2B, an IF of Lewis at 1B, Keaschall at 2B, Culpepper at SS, and Lee at 3B until Houston arrives should do well enough. 

[Major League Ready]

I used to complain about them drafting unathletic marginal defenders pretty much every year.  They have had more defensive emphasis the last few years but it takes a while for those changes to impact the ML team.  Look at the position players drafted in the early rounds over the past 3 years.  Lackey this year.  Houston last year and Culpepper and DeBarge in 2024.  They also took Young and Amick in early rounds and they were not drafted for defense.  I guess it's possibly Young could become a decent 3B with that arm.   Jenkins, Keashall, and Winokur in 2023.  The defensive competence should steadily rise over the next couple years.

[Patzky]

2 hours ago, djvang said:

Keaschall is a problem. His arm is a huge liability in the OF and his glove is a huge liability in the IF.

I wonder how his changeup is.

[ToddlerHarmon]

50 minutes ago, mnfireman said:

This would also stop the team from taking flyers on washed up veterans in hope they work out

An underrated aspect of how we got here. Build for playoff success, not mediocrity. That means that you only bring in someone like Bell when you've got 3 or 4 proven elite hitters in the lineup, and you're trying to fill the last gap. Bell's good performance this year has got us where? Clinging to hope for a playoff spot, while we play 2 or 3 DH's in the outfield and wait to find a roster spot for Jenkins.

[HarmonK03]

14 minutes ago, ToddlerHarmon said:

An underrated aspect of how we got here. Build for playoff success, not mediocrity. That means that you only bring in someone like Bell when you've got 3 or 4 proven elite hitters in the lineup, and you're trying to fill the last gap. Bell's good performance this year has got us where? Clinging to hope for a playoff spot, while we play 2 or 3 DH's in the outfield and wait to find a roster spot for Jenkins.

And to think Bell was actually signed to be the first baseman not the DH.  Think of the planning going into that.

[NYCTK]

Royce Lewis is a great example of why complaining about roster flexibility is just complaining for the sake of complaining. 

He didn't get moved off of 3B because of some sort of organizational adherence to making everyone a utility infielder. He lost his 3B job because he couldn't hit and was demoted, and while he was down in AAA someone else stepped up and won that position. 

Calling him back up was the right decision, but why would the Twins then shift back to their old (significantly worse) positional alignment for the sake of positional familiarity of the guy who was just demoted? He fully epitomizes how a good player gets position security and a fringe player doesn't, and shouldn't. 

[mnfireman]

Detroit has 6 OF on the IL, 2 since Max Clark was recalled.

NYY has 4 OF on the IL, 5 if you count Stanton, and Spencer Jones has been recalled and demoted several times.

Jenkins isn't the only prospect waiting promotion, and there is no guarantee he'll be good enough to stick when he is recalled. In a perfect world he is, and gives the team 7 years of HOF production, more if they can convince him and Boras to sign a long-term extension. History says it won't happen, but hope and optimism are part of the beauty of baseball.

[Linus]

1 hour ago, Patzky said:

I wonder how his changeup is.

Unfortunately that’s his only pitch. 

[HerbieFan]

Agree 100%.  Just because a player CAN play a position, doesn't mean he SHOULD.  

[mikelink45]

Nice and thought provoking.  

Defense has always seemed an afterthought since the 1991 team. 

[tony&rodney]

Talent plays. Mookie Betts has played CF, RF, 2B, and is now a SS. He does ok.

When a team is a little short on talent they must scramble and make the best with what they have on the roster. 

[HarmonK03]

5 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Talent plays. Mookie Betts has played CF, RF, 2B, and is now a SS. He does ok.

When a team is a little short on talent they must scramble and make the best with what they have on the roster. 

I think someone by the name of Dustin Pedroia moved him to the outfield.  The Dodgers moved him back to the infield somewhat out of necessity but I read that was also his preference.