DocBauer

This has to be the most intriguing spot on the roster doesn't it? And of course it starts with Buxton in CF. He's proven healthy for the past 2 seasons once his knee was finally "fixed". He's an absolute stud, a difference maker, and I still believe a Twin for life...or at least the remaining years of his contract. After that, it becomes muddled, but not necessarily in a bad way. There are just so many options, and so many top prospects so close to debuting, that it might be a fluid spot. Whoever begins the season isn't necessarily who's going to finish the season. WHAT DO I WANT TO SEE HAPPEN? I want the Twins to not be afraid to follow the example of teams like the Brewers and get the TOP talent up ASAP and live with some growing pains. I WANT Rodriguez to have a good winter ball, and a healthy ST, and grab a spot DAY ONE. His clock is ticking with 2 yrs already on the 40 man. I can't wait for Jenkins to arrive. But only 21yo and and only 23 G and 102 PA at AAA, I can see him getting a month or so at St Paul to ramp up a bit. The fact that it would affect his service time is a benefit, whether anyone likes that idea or not. At some point, the dream of Rodriguez and Jenkins BOTH in the OF flanking Buxton is not unreasonable. It could/should happen at some point in 2026, possibly as early as June 1st if everyone is healthy. I doubt the Twins open the season with more than 2 rookies...or near rookies...in the OF. They are too conservative in their approach at times. That doesn't mean Roden and Fedko are SOL. As stated by Stringer, Roden shouldn't be dismissed just because he had a poor debut in a very limited number of games. And it's not hard to squint a little looking at Fedko and maybe see a young Lew Ford 4th OF. I WANT them to remove Keirsey...who didn't get a very fair chance, but they seem to have made up their mind on him...as well as McCusker...for the same reasons...and just admit to themselves that Outman is just NOT going to suddenly be "fixed" as a 29yo. My goodness, Outman's OPS for his last 30 days with the Twins was .346! Go ahead and offer MILB deals to all 3, but get them off the 40 man at this point. I like Larnach, and I've said that repeatedly. He's not a bad ballplayer. But with an expected arbitration number of around $5M for a re-tooling team with all of these OF options, where does he fit? But a career OPS of around .760 against RHP, I believe he's got value to someone else. Therefore, I think he's moved, possibly with a solid prospect, in a deal for either a pen arm from someone else, or at least a decent prospect. SO AFTER THAT? Martin has earned the right to play for the LF spot. I still have some doubts, but I'm very impressed by his improvement this season offensively and defensively. Can he continue to refine his defense enough to also be a viable CF? Hopefully. I'd still like him to work out at 2B for emergency situations. Long term, his role is 4th OF once Jenkins and Rodriguez arrive. Wallner had a very disappointing 2025. But after an OK rookie debut, he was a very productive bat in 2023 and 2024 with a combined OPS of around .880! You just can't ignore that! He's also looked much better defensively before this season. Did his injury this season affect him more than we know? While he Ideally slots in to the role of primary DH and decent backup corner OF, he's absolutely part of the OF picture for 2026. So we have Martin, Buxton, and Wallner as the initial starters barring a FO surprise of handing Rodriguez or Jenkins and opening day role. But I'd sure like to see that happen! Still plenty of AB to go around! So what about the 4th and 5th spots? Again, we just shouldn't dismiss Roden and his MILB career after less than 160 PA appearances. He's still a virtual rookie who had a bad debut. He is sorta a LH version of Martin with more power. And while Fedko is a late bloomer in his 25 age season, he's a competent OF by all reports and has speed and newly developed power with a MILB career of having a really good OB%, even if his AVG was never great. Gonzalez has reaffirmed that his top 100 prospect status when the Twins acquired him was not an illusion. His 2024 season was a downer due to injury. But similar to Jenkins, he'll oy be 22yo when 2026 begins, with limited AAA PA, and will probably spend a little more time with St Paul to ramp up. So, unfortunately, I'm starting to believe the Twins will keep Outman around to begin 2026 in the role Keirsey had in 2025; PR and defensive replacement. Big mistake, IMO! Cut bait! Let the prospects play! Want a really crazy idea? IF ownership is stupid and blind and keep the payroll at unreasonable levels, have Roden and Fedko compete at 1B. Roden has a lot of experience at the position, Fedko some. They could play 1B, AND the OF, and Clemens could continue in a possible utility role as the 13th man. You see how crazy this could be? Crazy insane, or crazy like a fox depending on what the new manager is presented with via the FO. WHAT THEY SHOULD DO: 1] Just remove Outman, Keirsey and McCusker from the 40 man for prospects and potential FA additions. Offer them MILB deals. 2] Open the OF competition to ALL of the prospects on hand. If you decide to hold someone back for service time, or more AAA time to "ramp up" and tweak a few things, great. I have no problem with that. But assuming for a moment that Larnach is actually gone, you have Martin, Buxton, Wallner, Rodriguez, Jenkins, Gonzalez, Roden, and Fedko as options for the OF and DH. That's 8 guys proven, or TOP prospects, and a recent climber who shouldn't be ignored that you drafted and developed over time. *I'm deliberately ignoring Clemens as an OF option at this point. 3] STOP being paranoid about depth. Depth is good. But Margot and Gallo are NOT depth pieces. Maybe build a better AAA roster, but maybe examine other mid market teams that recognize you have to trust in your on hand talent and give them them the opportunity to succeed. The opening day OF might not be who finishes the season. But if I might be crass, I'd tell the FO to have the balls to play the best talent and ignore mistakes like Outman, and let it fly. You can always send someone down for a month or so if you really need to. But why are the Brewers doing better with their prospects? Maybe it's opportunity?

1] SWR has had an interesting path to the ML level to say the least. He was nurses a bit in his 2024 season, then seemed to really grow and take charge, before finishing poorly when he seemed to run out of gas. Frankly, I was rather disappointed to his start of 2025. But he's a bright kid and has a fire inside of him that's fun to see. His finish to the season was excellent. And I believe he's locked in as the #4 starter for 2026. I say that as Falvey...who speaks a lot but doesn't always actually SAY anything...has stated he's planning on Looez and Ryan to be in the rotation, and hopes/expects them to be there. Falvey may be a lot of things, but I've seen him as a liar. An offseason to rest his hip should have Ober back at the #3 spot. **SIDE BAR: Sim and Bradley are both out of options. Both are 25yo. Bradley has a really live arm, but hasn't been able to harness his stuff consistently yet. If Matthews turns the corner, do they consider moving Bradley to the pen? 2] MARTIN really took advantage of his opportunity. Considering his fast start to the season, it's a real shame he was sidelined for so much of the year. The Twins never tried to make him a slugger, they just wanted more power so ML SP didn't challenge him and eat him up. I still have some concerns, but was very impressed with his offense as well as improved defense. His SLG % did go up some in '25 vs '24. But he has to at least show DBLS power, with the occasional HR, to keep ML pitchers honest. Right now, I'm encouraged and think he's the starting LF to open 2026. Long term, I think he settles in as a 4th OF if he can continue to develop his defense. I want him to focus on his OF defense. And while this might not be popular with some, I want him to continue working out at 2B as well. As of now, the INF depth isn't very strong to begin 2026 and I'd like him as at least an emergency type option at 2B. 3] CLEMENS should be the low bar we're trying to clear. He's someone we should be looking to replace. He absolutely should not be a starter anywhere. However, that being said, his LH power off the bench, and the ability to play competent defense at 4 spots is worth keeping around for now. And OPS above .700 for a bench bat does provide value. Can he repeat that? I hope so, and expect him to get a shot at making the club next season. And crazy as it sounds, he might also fill the unfortunate role of 14th bullpen arm when needed. * He's played a little 3B in his MILB and ML career. I don't believe he's an actual option you want to put out there, but I'd like him to work out there and see some ST action there. Crap happens during games sometimes, and with thin INF depth, I'd like to know he could slide there in an emergency. 4] FUNDERBURK really did step up after the deadline. His strong last 2 months had him ending the season with a 3.51 ERA after being in the upper 4's previously, IIRC. (It might have been worse). I'm hoping this wasn't an illusion as he's got good stuff, but could never find consistency previously. 5] I'll get some pushback here I'm sure, but Cole Sands was pretty mediocre in the 1st half and didn't look much like his 2024 self. I don't have numbers to present, but initially, post deadline, he looked much, much better. He started to resemble the '24 version of himself. And then he had about 5 or 6 appearances where he just imploded. But IIRC, his last handful of appearances he seemed to turn it around again. I'm only saying, he started to flash more of the potential he showed in 2024, and might end up as a solid cog in the 2026 pen.

Culpepper has way more athletic ability than Lee does. But playing SS isn't as easy as just being athletic. It still involves instincts, positioning, good hands, and the ability to make good throws, often off balance. Lee has most of those abilities. He's an OK, solid SS. Culpepper has even more range, and probably an even better arm based on reports. You can be a good team with Lee as your SS. Especially if he gets his bat under control and quits trying to make contact with crap out of his hitting zone. He has the ability to hit .270-280 with a decent .320-330 OB% with 30+ Dbls and 15-18HR per season. That potential is even better as a Castro replacement who plays all across the INF on a daily basis, including even some 1B. And he can provide a solid glove wherever he plays. That might not be the hopes we had for a #1 pick, but if he reached that outcome as an almost every day player...much like Castro...how could we argue with the final results?

See, this is very close to an earlier post I made. I just don't believe in giving up ahead of time. If they keep Lopez and Ryan...well within any logical payroll plan...you have a basis for contention simply because quality SP is the hardest thing for ANY team to find. No apologies needed. There's a hell of a lot of teams that would envy a rotation lead by Lopez, Ryan, and a healthy Ober for only just under $40M combined. And then you add in the undervalued SWR who might by on the upswing and the depth of Bradley, Matthews, Abel, Morris and others. Why in hell would you give that up? Unless things go sideways and you just feel you have to blow the whole thing up. But are we really there yet? We disagree only somewhat on Larnach. I don't believe we disagree on Wallner. The OF has Buxton as a fixture. And then we have TOP prospects like Jenkins, Rodriguez, and Gonzalez oh so close. Personally, I haven't dismissed Roden or Fedko as possibles. The INF is in flux, and depth is poor. And 1B is a blackhole needing to be addressed. We're both in agreement about a roster that doesn't have enough young, pre-arbitration talent. But you also can't build an entire roster with pre-arb players. I think we agree on that. There's a whole lot of IF'S regarding the 2026 Twins. IMO, that starts with the INF. DO they find someone to play a viable 1B and contribute offensively, or do they punt and just try out players there? Do Lewis and Lee, healthy, take a step forward? How long before K-Pepper is ready for depth or a starting position? I'm not in favor of keeping Outman AT ALL. I can't believe he or Keirsey or some other AAAA couldn't fill the same role sitting at AAA. I want younger talent getting their opportunity. But, unfortunately, I can see an opening day roster of Martin, Buxton, Wallner, Outman, and maybe Larnach. But I'm still not sure the Twins will want to spend $5M on Larnach...who I don't dislike...vs making room for a younger prospect. That's where I'd go. Agreed the pen is a totally different discussion. But I can still see a potential path where it might be acceptable?

I agree. If the Twins were smart enough, and ballsy enough to follow the Brewers MO, they'd give a job to Rodriguez for opening day, provided he gets through winter ball and ST healthy. I pick him over Jenkins only because he's a little older, and his clock is ticking. And ONE rookie being fit in at a time makes more sense. But you could also flip that scenario in Jenkins' favor as well. (But I'd sure love a 21yo getting a little more of a ramp up and additional service time added).

Baldelli wasn't the problem. But he also wasn't part of the solution either. Ownership is still the #1 problem. That's a given, IMO, and I doubt anyone would argue that. Falvey's FO ISN'T entirely poor. He's done a lot of good things behind the scenes, and out front as well. And we can't forget his bosses agreed to extensions for Buxton...well deserved and smart...as well as an extension for Lopez...well deserved...and then the sign and re-sign of Correa and Joe Pohlad making comments that he could see a $180M payroll in the future. And then all of that is pulled away suddenly. Falvey didn't do that. I/we might not like some of the things he's done and want some changes within the system, but he isn't responsible for having the magic carpet pulled out from beneath him. By his own admission, Rocco didn't have a lot to do his first couple of seasons. As the roster began to change, he suddenly got the opportunity to actually "manage" the team he was presented with. At times, I think he did well. At times, I disagreed strongly with different aspects of his management. I honestly think there were things he wanted to do, or do better, but didn't always have the roster available to do some of those things. That's on the roster the FO built, and the ownership above that limited potential moves. How much blame goes toward Rocco and his coaches for development of young players is a concern I've had. In addition to certain aspects of running a game I haven't always agreed with. We can argue all day long about young players that should have been ML ready, vs the job of ML coaches CONTINUING their development vs the coaches he was given vs how much control over selection of those coaches. WHOEVER becomes the next manager, Falvey NEEDS to relinquish some control of HIS ideas and let said manger pick coaches he trusts, with input from Falvey of course. I have no doubt Rocco will end up with a new job as soon as he wants it, whether it be in a FO capacity, or a bench coach, or as a manager again. And I wouldn't be surprised if he was a successful manager for someone else. But I do think escape goat or not, it's probably time for a different voice and a different approach for 2026 and beyond. He wasn't the problem, but he also isn't the answer going forward. My greatest concern is a manager who gets more control and isn't expected to just be a "yes" man.

Very well thought out Stringer. I tend to agree. 3B LEWIS: I really liked his defense last season. While inconsistent, being an average or somewhat above hitter for thr 2nd half offers some encouragement. The fact that he felt well enough to RUN some is what I'm hanging my hopes on. That tells me his body is feeling good. Now he has to continue the flexibility training he did last offseason and get his approach/swing down. He may not be what we hoped he'd be, but there's still a lot of talent locked inside that young man. SS LEE: There's nobody else right now. As good as Culpepper was this year, he could stand a little AAA time to just gain experience and refine his game a little more. Tougher pitchers are ahead for him. I wouldn't be shocked to see him replace Lee at some point in 2026. But I don't think he makes the roster opening day. Despite some negative reviews, I don't think Lee is bad at SS. He's by no means great, but I think he's solid. I believe he is destined to be a 3 and maybe 4 position utility player. (He's got the size and the ability to help some at 1B if needed). He's shown he's got a little HR power, but he absolutely needs to refine his approach and eliminate the weak contact in his non hot zones with the bat. He does that, he becomes a pretty solid and valuable player, even as a utility player. 2B KEASCHALL: We all see the the offensive talent and the ability to help in all areas. He's got more than enough athletic ability to get to balls. He just needs time to actually PLAY on a regular basis to refine the little things like making sure he's got the right positioning to snag the ball, and transition the ball for a throw. 1B QUESTION MARK: I've made no bones about the fact I'd love to see an investment in Josh Naylor. Despite being in a re-tool mode, he's an easy fit for the INF and the lineup. Payroll wise he's also an easy fit, unless ownership puts the screws down or there's a bidding war involved. If not him, I'm intrigued by Rhys Hoskins on a 1yr, make good deal to rebound his value. He might tank. He might suddenly get back to his 2024 level. I'd take the chance. But maybe a LH bat like Ryan O'Hearn as a cheaper version of Naylor? He still fits a need at 1B, and provides a solid veteran bat in the lineup. It gives me tremendous pain to say this, but if the budget is so tight we can't afford an option similar to those listed, I'd have Roden and Fedko bring their 1B gloves to ST and work them hard there. Roden has experience there. Fedko's experience is limited, but that's never stopped the Twins before. Yes, they both have to prove they can actually hit at the ML level. But at least there's some upside with them. Clemens is what he is, and at 30yo in 2026 I don't see a sudden rise in his abilities. Of course, Roden and Fedko also offer up additional OF depth, as does Clemens. But they need to be looking at options to be BETTER than Clemens at 1B on a daily basis. Unfortunately, unless they spend a little or make an interesting trade, there just isn't anyone waiting in the wings to help at 1B at this time. (Again, MAYBE Lee can help once Culpepper comes up?). DEPTH: This is a major issue to begin 2026. Whenever Culpepper is ready, he or Lee end up as depth one way or another. That's a positive. I still want them to look for a better option than Clemens. If I KNEW he would continue to provide power and an OPS above .700 as a 4 or 5 spot utility player, I can live with his other negatives. They will, of course sign a couple MILB FA and hope they find another Castro or Castro-lite and just be lucky. I don't know that they will have the $ to spend $2-3M for a veteran INF to help out. But maybe their traditional "wait and see for late deals" approach will offer up a surprise. But for NOW, Fitzgerald seems to be a likely 13th man who can at least provide a solid glove at SS/3B/2B and will sneak in a couple XBH here and there. Possible contributors within the system? Well, I wouldn't mind having Bride back at St Paul. He was solid for the horrible Marlins in 2024 and had a good 2nd half with the Saints in 2025. A full year removed from knee surgery, does Eeles' bat return to his 2024 form and offer a depth option? Schobel really raised his game after a poor 2024 at Wichita and then got promoted to St Paul, just in time to be injured and miss most of the 2nd half of the season. But if he picks up where he left off, he might provide some solid depth at some point. And all that being said, and agreeing with most all of your assessment, depth for the INF is a HUGE concern right now as other than Culpepper, most INF prospects would seem to be at least a half season, if not more, away from contributing. And ANYONE can see the obvious hole at 1B. Even the Pohlads and the FO can see this glaring black hole. It is my assumption that SOMEONE other than a 30yo, poor ML career individual will be brought in to help solidify the spot. Fitzgerald and Clemens to begin the season as depth pieces doesn't offer a lot of faith or hope. Hopefully they are both lucky and smart with whatever MILB deals they pass out to find someone better. At least for one spot. I'm cautiously optimistic about 3 spots. I'm also cautiously optimistic they will bring in SOMEONE at 1B to close the blackhole that sits there currently. But the depth is pretty worrisome right now, even if K-Pepper is on the advanced "Keaschall-like" trajectory.

Thank you Lucas for another amazing report. IF I'm reading this correctly, the muscle will relax, the nerve will then be free, and Festa should have normal feeling in his shoulder, if not more. Am I correct? Does he need further injections, or does the initial injection and normal therapy take care of the issue? I'm of the belief that his arm is better suited to bullpen work in the future to throw fewer innings more often, similar to Duran. What say you?

I appreciate your optimism. Blessing or curse, I also remain an eternal optimist in most things in life, including my confounding Twins. The Twins seldom spent beyond $4-5M for a BP arm due to the volital nature of the position. And if you're going to shave cost somewhere, that is the spot to do it. I do believe there's at least some sound logic to that approach. As I've stated previously in different threads, I believe the Twins aren't going to cut. And there's no reason to go over that again. I've argued since was traded a 1yr deal to bring Coulombe back for $3 or $3.5 just makes too much sense not to. After that, I thought maybe 2 more FA on ML deals. OBVIOUSLY they sign a few fliers on MILB deals to see what happens. But another $6-8M still fits in to a limited payroll. And I've often stated, again, they should be looking for "rebound" guys looking to "get right" on 1yr deals. That might be where Williams comes in to play. I don't know if they'd go $5.7. But for 1yr? Maybe. As a bridge for a young arm like Festa growing in to the role? I can see that. Makes a lot of sense. You still have room for another $2-3M for someone like a Clippard, or Romo type. Maybe slightly better if you don't keep Topa at $2M? Regardless, you're only spending about $12M on 3 pen FA all on 1yr deals. This provides a bridge for various arms on hand, prospects, and SP converts to begin to establish themselves and gain experience in the reliever role, while some will obviously be counted on to contribute immediately. Remember gang, there is no such thing as a bad 1yr contract. Lol. Of course there is, but you get the point. So a POSSIBLE 2026 pen begins with: Williams, Festa, FA, Sands, Funderburk, Ohl, Coulombe, Topa. How good is that pen? Hard to say. Williams and Festa healthy, Sands close to his 2024 form and how he looked for about 6 of the last 8 weeks in 2025, Coulombe still doing his 1 out or 1 inning, Funderburk really and truly growing and carrying that over to next season, the top 6 might actually be solid. I'm 50/50 on Topa being kept. But I actually like Ohl quite a bit. His FB now sits around 94-95 and he has a hell of a change, and has always had good control. Granted, there's some IF's in there. I'm not denying that. No predictions of greatness here, only hoping for some goodness. Who backs up this bunch? Adams, who's got OK stuff but nothing great. But is a potential Sands or Jax now that he's converted to the pen? Laweryson has paid his dues. Is he ready for more? It looks like Raya's move to the pen might be permanent. Can he take all the "stuff" we've read about and translate it to 1 IP? How about Lewis throwing as hard and well as he can and unleash that knuckleball with a couple of strikes? MacLeod had a really good season at AA but was very inconsistent in his AAA debut. Does he respond in 2026? In AA, LH Bragg and RH Paredes had great seasons. Both appear ready for AAA in 2026. Logan Whitaker blew away the competition at CR and Wichita. How soon until he's ready for AAA? Does a seemingly strong finish to 2025 get Jaylin Nowlin up to AAA now? And it's not hard to believe the Twins won't find another Thielbar, Stewart, Wisler type on a MILB invite. Their scouts seem to find one most every year. Again, a lot of IF's. I'm not denying that. And I'm not saying a playoff caliber pen can be built overnight. But can a decent, solid pen be built with a couple of adds, players on hand, and some talented young arms converting? I believe it can happen. And it's possible said pen might be better the 2nd half when some of the younger, converted arms are more "ready". Going abstract? What if Matthews turns the corner and is pitching great. Sim and Bradley don't have options any longer. If nobody is actually injured in the rotation, does one of them suddenly move to the pen for even more talent and depth? Look, I'm not blowing smoke up anyone's backside here. I may be an optimist, but I'm neither naive nor an idiot. I'm only saying a couple smart 1yr investments, some on hand arms, some solid conversions to the pen...some of which have already taken place...maybe a surprise flier signing...I am only stating that there is a legitimate path to build a decent, competent pen that might augment a potentially really good rotation to carry the 2026 team to a .500 or so record. I'm not discussing the lineup right now, that's a different discussion. I'm just talking about STEP 1 in a pen re-build that might not be so crazy.

IMO, the initial cuts are easy: Cabrera, Hatch, Misiewicz, and Tonkin are gone from the pitching side. A couple of them might be worth a MILB deal and an invite. Gasper, Pereda, Miranda, Julien, Keirsey, McCusker, and Outman are all gone. That's 11 open spots for additions. A few random thoughts: It's time to move on from Miranda and Julien unless either wants back on a MILB deal. They don't like or believe in McCusker, even when the OF has been depleted. Keirsey may not have been given a fair chance to prove one way or another he's a ML player. But they've made up their mind. Regarding Outman directly, I GET having just traded for him. But unless they want him as a temporary fill-in in the same defensive replacement and PR bench warming spot Keirsey had this past season, I think he should be gone. His OPS the past 30 days is .542. The past 15 days it was .393. Over the last week it was .346. And this is with regular playing time. If he wants to come back on a MILB, or perhaps the younger Keirsey instead, then that's fine. But he simply can't hit at all. There's not another late 20's CF/OF option out there on a MILB deal as "good" instead of wasting a 40 man spot? SURPRISE KEEPS: I'm holding on to veteran Fitzgerald for a solid glove and occasional pop as the primary backup SS and utility player unless there's an inexpensive veteran they can bring in that's better/more proven. At only $2M and not totally stinking I'm probably keeping Topa for now. REGARDING LARNACH: I've always said I kinda like him, even though he's never turned out to be the player hoped for. I think his .759 career OPS against RHP has value. I've been assuming he's gone due to an expected $5M cost, AND because the Twins are looking at Buxton, Wallner, Martin, Roden, Rodriguez, Jenkins, Gonzalez, and even Fedko as OF options for 2026. Clemens as a role player might even figure in somewhere...possibly. (he's got to make the roster first and I'd like to aim higher). The Twins might just keep him. I'm just betting they won't. Personally, I'd package him with a prospect in the late teens, early 20's, and see if I might be able to grab someone's #4 or #5 pen arm. Not saying they can, but there might be a few teams that could really use a LH DH/OF with that career .759 OPS for a questionable lineup and have enough pitching to be able to afford their #4-5 pen arm. That's just me clearing out 11 spots on the 40 man for adds, with 3 question marks in Topa, Fitzgerald, and Larnach on hand for now.

Is he in over his head? IDK. There's some interesting discussion going back and forth about hus duties/titles and how other teams very seldom combine both the business and the team side. It's just way, way too big of a job for a single person to perform. As already stated, each individual job requires long hours and additional help. So fine. Does Falvey have so many good and trusted people around him that he can split the job 50/50 and delegate duties to be done satisfactorily? Maybe he does. Maybe he's got a whole cabinet of smart and trusted people he doles out duties to and they get the job done. If so, these unnamed and unknown individuals might be poached soon from other organizations. Is DSP only hanging around until the minority owners sale goes through? I could understand that since he was still on the clock when this whole thing started. But is he gone after this? Who's running the business side, him or Falvey? Because it was supposed to be Falvey months ago. And DSP should only be a phone call or text message away if a question needs to be answered. So why is he still hanging around? Again, maybe it's just to see the minority purchase go through. But with so few sports teams giving ONE GUY all this control/power, there must be a reason right? Right? But again, maybe Falvey just had a wonderfully talented group of people around him that we just don't know. After Levine left, it was stated they weren't going to replace him as the position/title was pretty much irrelevant with Falvey the #1 guy and some trusted lieutenants below him. So after the 2024 season comes to a thunderous crash, Falvey gets PROMOTED and Zole gets PROMOTED to the GM chair that we were told didn't need to be filled. OK, maybe that changed with Falvey's promotion. But other than being told Zole is smart and has helped finalize deals in the past, and done a lot of contract work, who exactly is Zole? What are the components of his job? Does he just jump when Falvey tells him to? Or does he have real power. But if he has any real power, why isn't he mentioned by anyone, anywhere concerning the deadline deals? Why does Falvey issue all statements and perform all interviews or speak for almost the entirety of a press conference? Is that just Falvey performing duties that he thinks he should do as the #1 guy? It's all very confusing and it's really hard to see who exactly is in charge and where. And we don't need to understand it all. No business is under any obligation to inform us as to how a normal day works, and exactly who picks up the phone, and who makes the coffee. All we really need to care about is the final results. (I'm leaving ownership out of this as we all know the issues there). What's so confounding is Falvey heaping praise on his manager, and stating repeatedly that he takes personal responsibility for the team failing, while simultaneously firing said manager, and offering up ZERO honest comments concerning any sort of change that might provide real optimism. IDK, personal responsibility should mean he's out of a job if we don't begin to see changes, IMO. Asked about payroll and hopes for 2026...which might include Lopez and Ryan being kept...we hear Falvey "hopes" they'll be around and that they're part of the plan at this time, but it depends on payroll. Asked about payroll, he says he doesn't know yet until he speaks to the owners and a harder look is taken at the business side. Huh? So you can't comment honestly on the roster because you don't know what business is thinking, but you're also the #1 guy in charge of the business side? Why all the coach/political speak and just say something honest similar to: "We just don't know exactly where the payroll is going to be for next season yet. We have an idea. But there's still moving parts such as final approval of our new minority owners that have to be put in place before I can give you an accurate answer. So at this time. I don't want to give a number that might not be fully accurate." That answer stinks, but at least it's honest. But being in charge of just about EVERYTHING and saying your left hand hasn't been introduced to your right hand yet so you can't answer is disingenuous at best. Once again, we don't need to know how the product is manufactured behind the scenes. All we really need is for the final product to turn out well. But when those in charge of the manufacturing give you the impression they aren't running the business well, it's a little hard to want to have faith in the purchase of that product.

Not a game player at 1B yet and not a game played above AA. I think there's budding power potential and he's definitely got some solid bat to ball skills. But last I knew he still had around a 60% ground ball rate. That isn't going to cut it going forward. So there's plenty of work to be done. But there is some potential. Hopefully they make a veteran addition ar 1B that pays off with a large sized bat and acceptable defense. But if they stick with youth only, Roden has plenty of 1B experience and projects as a much better overall hitter than Clemens if his MILB numbers can start to translate. For that matter Fedko has some 1B experience and good results at AAA, even if it's only a couple of months. Both also offer up OF versatility. Both could be better overall bats than Clemens.

To be fair, Berrios' combined WAR the past 2 seasons is 3.6. SWR...who debuted in 2024 minus 2 brief appearances previously...has a combined WAR of 4.2 over the same 2 seasons.

We all understand and agree ownership is the #1 problem yes? We should never forget Falvey has done a tremendous job of bringing the Twins in to the 21st Century in so many ways. Some of his moves have been questionable to very bad. But he's also made some very good moves as well. No FO HITS on all of their moves. You hope you're right more than you're wrong. And we don't have to rehash all of this again, good or bad. But I can't help but wonder still what Falvey might have done for 2024, and the roster, IF ownership DIDN'T follow natural, inflationary costs, but simply KEPT the payroll the same instead of a $30M cut. They might have added a stronger bat at 1B or DH. Maybe another solid pen arm. Maybe added in a better RH bat for the OF. Those 3 moves might have deepened the club just enough to prevent the utter, confounding collapse of 2024. It's hard to say for sure, but we might not be talking about replacing Rocco today. We might not even have replaced our hitting coaches, who have found great success with Toronto this season. I don't think Rocco was a great manager. I don't think he was a poor manager. I don't think he's necessarily been the problem with the 2024 collapse, or the disappointment of 2025. But he, and his staff, certainly weren't part of a solution either. Sometimes you just need a change in voice and approach after 7 seasons. So I'm OK with replacing him going forward, especially with a collection of young arms and position players on hand, or ready to debut. But a change only makes a difference if the man in charge has at least some autonomy in selecting his staff. And a change only happens if the new manager isn't micro managed by some pre-conceived ideals from Falvey. I'd like to believe Falvey...who has a pretty solid history of hiring good people...would hire a new manager, let him pick his staff, and then kind of get out of the way. Falvey is one of the most powerful men in all of MLB in his current role running almost the entire organization. I'm not even sure how much power/control Zole even has as the GM right now. Shuffling deck chairs only? Maybe. But I'm hoping Falvey is smart enough to get out of his own way, recognize what's been happening the last couple of years hasn't worked, and will hire a quality manager and give him control of his staff and how he runs the team. If he does that, the chairs can stay where they're at, the band can take a break, and the ship just might start to right itself with talent on hand, talent set to debut, and a few solid additions to help out. We might even see fan interest return.

FACT, but not completely proven just yet. First of all, I'm just sick of the whole "pipeline" mantra. Who came up with that? And why should a "pipeline" only be concerning pitching? I also vehemently denounce the "there is no such thing as a pitching prospect" mantra I've heard for decades now. Of course there is! Pitchers are just as much of a prospect as INF and OF and C are! Some make it, and some don't. TWO quick adds: 1] Cleveland, often held up as a certain standard the Twins are SUPPOSED to emulate has acquired many of their quality arms via trades. They haven't all been draft selections. 2] Not all, but the majority of Twins pitching prospects we currently discuss were drafted in 2022, or later. Yes, a few were picked earlier, like Ober for example, but most come from '22 or even more recent. This is 2025. How many TOP arms should be embarrassing ML hitters in their 3rd season? If you don't want to include Lopez or Ryan as part of this silly, mythical "pipeline", that's your choice. But the Twins acquired and then improved Lopez. Ryan was in AAA, but he wasn't one of Tampa's TOP prospects. The Twins turned him in to an All Star caliber pitcher. Duran was a lower level arm turned in to a stud closer. Jax was a peculiarly high draft choice as a SP from Air Force and was turned in to a stud setup man. Ober was a later pick turned in to a quality #2-3 SP. Varland was a 2 time MILB pitcher of the year that just couldn't translate to the ML level on a consistent basis as a SP. But he sure turned out to be a hell of a pen arm! SWR was acquired as a 20-21yo kid with a crazy MILB developmental time table who has been turned in to a decent SP, and who's new splitter just might have him raising his game another notch going in to 2026. Festa was a late round pick who has absolutely flashed since his debut, but hasn't found full consistency yet. His shoulder probably bothered him most of 2025 in retrospect. His early prognosis is good. I think he moves to the pen as I think he can dominate there, and his arm/body are probably just a better fit there. And then comes 2022. Prielipp, Morris, Matthews, CJ Culpepper, and former MILB pitcher of the year Lewis all came out of that draft. We all know Prielipp's story, and his very successful 2025 season. Whether he remains a starter or converts to the pen is TBD. Matthews was pressed in to duty late in 2024 earlier than what he was ready for. His numbers don't look so great on the surface. But some of his numbers are intriguing, and he's absolutely flashed his potential. Berrios stunk as a rookie. So how about a little slack for Matthews at this point? Morris was almost as good as Matthews in a similar skyrocket through the system in 2024. He had a solid 2025, and a very strong finish. Culpepper has had a couple minor injuries that have slowed him slightly, but had a good 2025 and seems ready for AAA in 2026. Lewis had a season he and all of us would like to forget. But what if he moves to the pen and just throws as hard/well as he can and mixes in that crazy knuckleball for some K's? A couple more throw-ins: Raya's good stuff by lack of consistency has him probably moved to the pen now where he's got the potential to be late inning dominate in the near future. MacLeod and Nowlin are a pair of hard throwing LH that have converted to the pen as well, and might be only half a season away. Our own TD RP of the year had arms like Laweryson, Hoopes, Bragg, Parades, and Whitaker all throwing at AA...or above, even briefly...as 1 UDFA, and a collection of late round picks who might help in the pen as early as next season. UDFA surprise Klein had a great season and reached AAA at the end, with mixed results. Again, how many arms from 2022 and later should we be expecting dominating performances from at this point? And YES, I know they had drafts before that. That's where Ober, Varland, and Festa come in to play, along with Ohl, Adams, and a few more arms I've previously mentioned have reached the ML level, or are close. If we want to dig deeper, as @Dmanalready did, there's more than a handful of really good looking arms like Soto, Hill, Langenberg, Bohorquez, and others that should keep Cedar Rapids really strong next season. Heck, if you really want to stretch, you could even say this silly "pipeline" idea brought Gray to the Twins when they traded #1 pick Chase Petty to the Twins. If your idea of this crazy "pipeline" process is only about drafting arms, developing them, and turning them in to front line SP, or even mid or backend SP, I think you're misguided. Nobody does that in COMPLETE. Not even the Guardians. BTW, I haven't even mentioned recent additions such as Bradley, Abel, Rojas, Gallagher, or Horn. And I can understand not including Bradley since he's already pitched for Tampa for a couple of seasons. But then again, wasn't he acquired FOR a Twins success story in Jax? So YES, this silly "pipeline" idea is a FACT. But it's slightly unproven as of yet until we see a couple more arms like Matthews, Festa, Morris, etc, firmly establish themselves as either viable starters or important pen options. That's part of the unproven part. But improving Lopez, developing Ryan, Ober, Jax, Duran, SWR, and Varland are part of the FACT portion of any arguement.

I DON'T want the Twins to suddenly turn in to a "small ball" team. I still want them to focus on power. Power always plays. On the team now, or debuting sometime in 2026...more than likely...Buxton, Wallner, Lewis, Jeffers, Jenkins, Rodriguez, and possibly Gonzalez all have 20+ HR capabilities. Keaschall, Culpepper, and Lee all have double digit HR power. But there's also a mix of HIT ability mixed in there as well, and more speed than we've had in some time. And speed can produce some SB, as well as the ability to take an extra base. It can also assist defensively. So I want a manager who will assemble a solid staff thst will work on defense and the fundamentals. You have coaches on your staff to work with players, not just have a title. And without repetition, sometimes players csn grow lax. With no offense intended to anyone, I don't want a 70yo manager who's near the end of his career. I want someone young enough to embrace the game as it's played today, and has the ability to connect with his players. Some of the guys I'm interested in have already been mentioned. SKIP SCHUMAKER would be a great hire, but he's probably got his pick of jobs. What about 43yo RICKIE WEEKS JR from the very well run Brewers? He was in the player development office 2022, and moved to bench coach in 2023. CRAIG ALBERNAZ, 42yo, from the Guardians, who came up through the Rays system initially. SANDY ALOMAR JR, 59yo, is very well respected but has only had a shot at managing one time, for a couple weeks, at the end of the 2012 season as an interim. Still not sure why he's never received a shot at the main job. Possibly 39yo RYAN FLAHERTY from the Cubs, who is their current bench coach, and has served in that capacity for the Padres from 2022-23. All of these guys provide something a bit different in regard to playing and coaching experience, and are currently bench coaches for successful teams. All might be good fits as someone who fits the knowledge and experience and relative youth idea and might be ready to skipper a team. But I do really like the idea of 50yo GEORGE LOMBARD from Detroit, as presented by Tom Froeming. He's been in the game as a player and coach since he was 18yo! And he's still young enough to connect with today's players, have good energy, and the ability to embrace the concepts and analytical side and today's game. That's some of the options that I think fit the Twins: experienced, solid resume, young or relatively young, and all working for currently successful teams with solid managers running said teams.

Cody, no offense, but I really don't even understand the premise here. Why Clemens? I'm assuming because they each saw time at 2B and 1B. While different positions, I believe a more accurate comparison is Julien vs Larnach. Why? Both are LH and true FB first and seemingly only hitters. In MILB Julien surpassed Larnach in OB%, but Larnach surpassed him in actual AVG. Larnach made a comment a year or so ago that he hadn't seen much of anything but breaking balls and offspeed stuff since he was in the minors. But he has, more or less, adapted and turned in to a ML average to slightly above average player. Meanwhile, Julien simply hasn't been able to do so. While Julien doesn't have Larnach's pure power, he's clearly shown HR and XB power previously. Both were relatively good, patient hitters in MILB. One has made adjustments, though he's never become the hitter or power plant hoped for, and the other simply hasn't been able to make any adjustments at all. While different positions, I actually find these two to be a more accurate representation of what the Twins hoped for in Julien, albeit with a little more speed and playing 2B. That being said, NEITHER Julien or Clemens should be on the 40 man going in to next season. I'm OK with a MILB deal and a possible invite, but that's it. Period. The Twins need to shoot higher, and that's been part of their problem the past couple of seasons. Some have mentioned Fitzgerald here and there. I don't know that I'd protect him either. But at least he's a viable backup glove at SS with a solid AAA resume, meaning he hopefully won't embarrass himself at the plate. Clemens' actual numbers, save his 1st month with the Twins, are just really bad. The ability to play decently at a couple spots, provide the occasional HR, are nice. But the Twins should be looking for better than that! Everyone is so down on LH Roden. But he's younger than Clemens, and has FAR better MILB numbers and his rookie debut was just that, a rookie debut. IF the Twins don't address 1B in any sort of meaningful way, I'd much rather see Roden and Fedko at 1B rather than a 30yo journeyman with a sub everything quad slash line for his career. At least you'd have a couple 25/26yo with SOME potential and upside. And who knows, maybe they WILL address 1B. But the point is, they need to be using their imagination to put together a solid team and quit making excuses for a poor player simply due to exit velocity and a good month.

Crap rolls downhill. The owners aren't going to fire themselves. Hopefully they still sell the team thr next few years. I suspect they might depending how the next CBA changes financials, and how the TV deals with MLB change. Falvey had his legs cut out from beneath him after 2023. That limited a lot of what he might have wanted to do. I think there's a lot of broken promises made to Falvey based on comments Joe had made previously concerning the future. And I really appreciate a lot of the things Falvey has done to improve the structure of the entire organization. But there is a disconnect between MILB development and players reaching MLB. Is there a system wide issue that Falvey has been blind to? And how can he run the business side AND the baseball side? Seems to me they need a GM/President of baseball operations who has the power to actually run things and make changes. Is Zoll that guy? If not, let Falvey run the business side and bring someone else in. I didn't always agree with some of what Baldelli did. There have been times where he was handled a lump of crap instead of clay and told to make a nice ashtray out of it. But I've certainly had some issues with how he ran the team. But also, where is the blame on his staff? Has he had any say in them? Or was that all on Falvey? I do believe Rocco is a bit of a fall guy here. But I've also had enough questions and concerns about strategy, player usage, lack of defense, bizarre miscues at times, that I've begun to question he AND his coaching staff. But again, how much input did he actually have regarding his staff? It would appear the actual talent level of the team is starting to change, and hopefully improving, over the next couple of seasons. The SYSTEM should be put in place, along with good coaches at the MILB level, to prepare players. I just don't know that Falvey hasn't been blind to some changes in the SYSYEM that should have already taken place. Regardless, the manager and the coaching staff should still have the ability to work with players and tweak as necessary. Isn't that PART of their job? How many rookies come up and are just ML ready DAY ONE? And that's why I'm OK with a change at this time. A new voice just might be needed going forward. A new approach to how things are done. I can only hope whoever they bring in has a real say...if not complete control...over his staff. Said new manager has to have coaches he trusts to help bring out the best in the roster he has. If he DOESN'T have control over his staff, and his approach to working with players, then the Rocco firing truly will be a "face saving" ploy by Falvey and not much more.

Yet another honest and well done article, Nick. And yet another thank you for your hard work. All of the pitchers who ended the season on strong, positive notes is nice. At the very least, they flashed the talent they posses for future hope. At this point, you could write a rather lengthy OP about the career SWR has had from top prep selection, to a stronger push up the ladder than was maybe called for, to losing development time due to the Olympics, to helping save the 2024 rotation, to a rough-ish start to 2025, then losing 15lbs due to a parasite/intestinal issue, to discovering how good his splitter might be and a strong finish to this season. All before he turned 25yo just a couple days ago. IIRC, he's out of options. But I believe he has now firmly secured a rotation spot for 2026. I believe Bradley is also out of options as well. I believe Matthews has as much, or more, potential. What happens if he starts to put it together next season? Maybe even in ST? Do they send him down? Would they dare to move a young arm like Bradley to the pen to just keep the best young talent on hand? Maybe I've not read quotes from Ryan...or Lewis for that matter...the same way others have. I've only read snippets where they simply state they just don't know what's going to this offseason, with wonder whether they might be moved or not. That's how I've taken their comments, which all seem pretty reasonable at the end of a disappointing season and the fire sale at the deadline. What's interesting to me are various quotes from former players like Jax and Bader in a NY Times article I read today from Hayes & Gleeman in which they state the clubhouse had a positive vibe all season, even though the year didn't go well. Granted they weren't part of the team the last 2 months, but still, there was no negativity presented at all. So I'm just not reading "trade demands" from ANYONE, including Ryan and Lewis. I think everyone is just frustrated and confused about the future. Just way too early to give up on Lewis and Lee, I agree on that 100%. A strong offseason of health and hard work could see both take a positive step forward. Will they? IDK. But you'd be selling really low on a couple of former top prospects who are still quite young. K-Pepper provides some real excitement for the INF along with Keaschall. But Lewis in particular taking a step forward is important for 2026. (Not to dismiss Lee's importance at SS, or possibly a valuable utility INF. The OF is in flux, but Martin's sudden emergence is a positive going in to 2026, though it's possible his future is as a 4th OF with the pending arrivals in 2026 of Jenkins, Rodriguez, Gonzalez, possibly Fedko, and Roden hopefully taking a step forward. I believe Larnach will be gone due to salary vs performance. But Wallner's 2023-24 seasons simply can't be dismissed. There's a lot of potential and a bunch of options for an opening day OF, and one that might look different, and even better, come around June 1st. I'm quietly intrigued by Sands...up and down since the deadline...and Funderburk seeming to take a step forward given their opportunities. I think Ohl has a chance to be pretty good. Not so sure Adams doesn't offer some hope as well. Good initial debut from Lawyerson in a SSSS. But there's obviously a lot of work to be done regarding the pen this offseason. While my faith in the FO is virtually gone, I remain intrigued about the Twins OF and INF. I still like Jeffers behind the plate, but who backs him up? If they're going to spend $3M for a veteran backup, might it be Vazquez? It might be. But how much gas does he have left in the tank? I think I'd rather take a shot elsewhere, but the backup catcher is the least of my worries as of today. Falvey speaks about some development time for young players and some possible speed bumps...by no means a direct quote...but also speaks about talent on hand, depth, and depth of young talent about to arrive. He even includes Ober and Ryan when speaking about the strength and depth of the rotation. So is he just talking out both sides of his mouth? Or is he saying they both figure in to the 2026 plans but breaking in the younger arms, and the young OF, and Keaschall and K-Pepper all breaking in? Maybe he's also talking about Lewis and Lee needing to take a step forward without naming them? Or again, is he just talking out both sides of his mouth? I guess I'll reserve judgment for now. I'm still mixed on Rocco back as manager. I still don't believe full fault should be placed on his shoulders. I think the player roster is starting to round in to more of what he wants, power, (the potential is still there), but a better mix of athleticism and speed. The single biggest issue over the past couple of years has been the offense. Case on point, they have basically been the worst or 2nd worst team in all of MLB with the bases loaded over the past 5 years. And it's NOT due to K rates as the Twins have sharply declined that factor as of late, but have actually seen their production actually drop. There's been a serious disconnect with the offense. A shakeup needs to take place. With Miranda, Julien, Correa all gone, and Larnach probably gone, that shakeup is starting to take place. Martin stepping forward, and the arrival of Keaschall, are another pair of lineup changes, which also is a portion of more running, or at least taking an extra base. And a collection of really nice looking prospects about to debut adds hope, potential, and excitement. But do these recent and impending changes ignite the offense? Does it improve the defense? And how much blame do Rocco and his coaches bear? How much is on the players? Does Rocco deserve another opportunity to work with a re-tooled roster to play a different game with more speed and better defense? I really don't know. And I have no clue who would be a better choice. I have no doubt Baldelli would have a job in a different organization tomorrow if let go, whether in a FO, or on someone's bench. He's pretty well respected as a baseball guy. But maybe the Twins just need a new voice and approach? There's just too many unknowns today, with the regular season done. I do know that I'm excited about the OF, cautiously excited and optimistic about the INF, excited about the rotation and depth of arms, and those are really good places to start. But I do wonder if it's time for a new voice and approach from a new manager and coaching staff.

It does sound as if Provus is merely speculating. And I hope that's the case as I really want to see him a Twin for life. Not to mention he's still currently the best player, a class act, and someone to help lead thr younger players. I no longer trust the FO/Twins. Or at least, any trust is greatly strained. Despite speculation, there is no smoking gun regarding a trade of Ryan to Boston at the deadline. All we have is an erroneous report of a trade being made, and what appear to be actual, accurate reports that Boston came in late, asked, the Twins listened, (which they always state they do), and then rejected the offer made by the Red Sox. And Falvey seemed to indicate in his most recent interview that he sees the rotation as a strength for 2026 and included Ryan and Lopez in that discussion. That would seem to end speculation...for the most part..that Lopez and Ryan are automatically being moved as part of a massive teardown. Thus, it should also end speculation of a disgruntled Buxton requesting out. But once again, my trust in the Twins is greatly strained, if not gone. Simple logic would indicate new partners, elimination of debt with new cash flow, and a large stockpile of young talent on hand, or getting ready to debut, and room to add to the speculated post-arbitration payroll, would make ownership WANT to keep Lopez and Ryan...and Buck as a result...and try to increase what remains of trust and interest from the fans. Simple logic. But then again, my trust in the Twins is greatly strained, if not gone.

Could they have run more earlier in the season and been as successful? I think that's very much open to debate for a variety of reasons. But having nothing to lose, having Keaschall back. Lewis' legs getting stronger, Martin taking another step, would surely have added to this sudden surge. I like the ability to steal some bases. It's another way to score runs PROVIDED you can be successful at a high %. It can be a useful weapon. Otherwise, you are just giving away outs to the opposition. But frankly, I'm more interested in better team speed in regard to better defensive range, and the ability to take extra bases and score successfully on base hits. My greatest worry is a team that finished dead last in AVG and OPS last season with the bases loaded and are dead last in AVG and 2nd to last in OPS over thr last 5 years. How is that even possible? I'm just fine with more SB to have another weapon at our disposal. And it is an exciting form of baseball. But I'm more concerned with disappearing power and the worst hitting in the league over 5 years eith the bases loaded. How many games were lost right there?

Lawyerson is RH.

I was a little surprised that Logan Whitaker wasn't on the list. He had a great season. What's interesting is that everyone except for Gomez pitched a substantial amount at AA, or above, this season, or at least finished there. A few of these guys, if not all, might help in 2026 at some point. (With Whitaker thrown in).

28yo in 2026 coming off surgery and 1 good season, one great season, and then a poor season. You bet. You're 28yo coming off surgery and a poor/mediocre season before that. Is it time for you to think about a move to the pen to further your career? You have risk attached to you. How about 1 year at $3.5M with a team option for $5M? No? OK. God bless and move on.

If Lewis hits .270 next season with 34 Dbls and 25 HR this all goes away. And that's what frustrates me the most. But I really don't understand this post, Van. Where did Lewis EVER REFUSE to play 2B again? In September 2024, Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis publicly expressed his resistance to moving to second base, calling the prospect "terrifying". He explained that changing positions mid-season, especially during a playoff push, was too disruptive for him and created a defensive risk for the team. Reasons for Lewis's reluctance Mental adjustment: As Lewis put it, "The moment you have to think in this game is when the game speeds up on you". All-Star caliber players rely on muscle memory for defensive reactions. Moving to a new infield position requires re-establishing that muscle memory, which is a difficult adjustment to make on the fly during a pennant race. Defensive concerns: Lewis stated, "I don't want to mess up our defense just because we're going to try something new". He felt the team had other talented second basemen who were more prepared to handle the position. Troubling injury history: Lewis has a long history of lower-body injuries, including two torn ACLs and multiple hamstring and quad strains. His 2022 ACL tear occurred while he was playing center field, another position he was trying out for the first time in the majors. This history of injury during positional changes likely contributed to his cautious attitude. Team's perspective and resolution The Twins were looking for more lineup flexibility to field their best offensive players and create defensive alignments. Moving Lewis to second base would allow Brooks Lee to play third, his natural position. Despite Lewis's initial hesitation, the situation evolved: Late 2024: Lewis did make his first career starts at second base during September 2024, signaling a willingness to at least try the position. Offseason 2024-2025: Lewis's attitude changed considerably. According to Twins manager Rocco Baldelli, Lewis began taking practice at second base over the offseason, telling the manager he was doing so "just in case" the team needed him there. This was seen as a sign of his growing maturity and open-mindedness to a potential future transition.