Lee taking shift from short to third in stride

This story was excerpted from Matthew Leach’s Twins Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO – Every big leaguer takes pride in his defense, but certain positions carry a little extra cachet. It means more to be able to say you’re a Major League catcher, or center fielder… or shortstop.

It was with that in mind that Twins manager Derek Shelton approached his starting shortstop, Brooks Lee, to talk to him about a position shift. With Royce Lewis optioned to the Minor Leagues, and two highly regarded shortstops set to gain the most playing time in Lewis’ absence, the Twins took a look at their options and decided to make an adjustment.

Lee would move from shortstop, where he has started since last July’s trade of Carlos Correa, to third base. And Orlando Arcia and Ryan Kreidler would get the bulk of the playing time at short. And while the decision caught Lee off guard, especially after he spent the offseason putting in long hours to improve his defense at short, he accepted it without protest.

“No. 1, he handled it extremely professionally,” Shelton said. “No. 2, anybody that plays shortstop or center field, the first thing they think is, ‘I want to stay there.’ He and I had a very open and honest conversation. He asked me some good questions. I gave him some thoughts. His last comment to me was, ‘Whatever was going to be best for us to win.’ That’s exactly what you want a player to say.”

Lee rarely seems fazed by much, and he’s embracing the challenge of moving to his right. It’s not as though he’s never played third before – he started 32 games there last year and 10 as a rookie in 2024 – and he’s bounced around plenty. But he’s a shortstop by trade, and after the Correa trade, it appeared the position belonged to him.

Now he’s moving again.

“I don't think any of it is promised,” Lee said. “In the meantime, I'm just getting my reps at third. You never know what happens. It's nice to have a home over there. Just to have a home anywhere in the infield and in the lineup, that's the most important thing.”

The decision is a layered one, and it suggests a few different things about the short- and medium-term future of the Twins’ infield. For one thing, it’s an indicator that Lewis’ stay in the Minors will likely not be short. When Lewis went on the injured list earlier this year, Lee didn’t move. The organization would almost certainly not bother moving its starting shortstop if it was only expected to be for a few days or even a couple of weeks.

Additionally, it conceivably opens the door for one of the team’s top prospects. Kaelen Culpepper, the organization’s No. 2 prospect and No. 39 on the MLB Pipeline Top 100, is primarily a shortstop – though ironically some scouts view his long-term future as being at third.

Culpepper is having a solid though not spectacular start to his first season at Triple-A St. Paul, hitting for power but a relatively low average. If the club viewed him as ready, he’d probably already be on the roster, but the hope is that he isn’t far. And with Lee already moved, if they decide Culpepper’s time has arrived, they can call him up without moving either player.

What no one is saying yet is whether the position switch is permanent. Neither Lee nor Shelton is much for speaking in those kinds of terms, so for now all we know is that it’s what they’re doing currently. After all, the hope is that at some point, Lewis will return, at which time Lee would have to move back or find another home on the diamond.

But for now, he’s the primary third baseman.

“I'm a little more grown up [than I used to be], where I'm satisfied with being on the field every day,” Lee said. “It is what it is. But I think they know and they trust me with playing third base, and they think I can do it really well. I thought I proved myself at shortstop with the plays I made. For them to think I can be even better at third is a plus.”