With the 2026 season officially in the history books, the Minnesota Twins and the rest of Major League Baseball have their eyes set on the offseason. The landscape is uncertain because of negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement and the expected lockout that could start on Dec. 1. But the Twins have even more questions as they look to supplement a young core.
To do that, Twins owner and chairman Tom Pohlad hinted that the team will look to increase payroll this offseason. The exact amount was not revealed, but it could make Minnesota a big player in free agency and it could lead them back to one of their former stars in infielder Luis Arraez.
Arraez is coming off another strong offensive season, hitting .310/.345/.419 with eight homers, 64 RBI and 10 stolen bases on 11 attempts in 151 games between the San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia Phillies. But he also answered the defensive questions that have plagued him throughout his career. This makes a potential return to the Twins a possibility and one that could accomplish multiple goals entering 2027.
Former Minnesota Twins infielder Luis Arraez answered his biggest question in 2026
Arraez is one of the most popular Twins in recent history after coming up with the team during the 2019 season. While a team called “The Bomba Squad” was putting balls over the fence, Arraez brought a different skill set, hitting .344/.399/.439 with four homers, 28 RBI and two stolen bases on four attempts.
The rookie year wasn’t a small sample size, as the 5-foot-10, 186-pound infielder continued to hit. In four seasons with the Twins, Arraez hit .314/.374/.410 with 14 homers, 132 RBI and eight stolen bases on 16 attempts and won his first batting title with a .316 average during the 2022 season.
At 25, Arraez seemed like part of the Twins' future. But his defense prevented him from finding a home in the field, spending time at first base, second base, third base and the outfield during his time in Minnesota.
With no clear position and a potentially lucrative contract coming up, Arraez was traded to the Miami Marlins in exchange for Pablo Lopez in January 2023. The move was unpopular with Twins fans but worked out well as Lopez became the top-of-the-rotation arm they’ve failed to develop. But Arraez went on a journeyman career despite his excellence at the plate.
Arraez won another batting title with the Marlins, hitting .354 during the 2023 season and won his third while hitting .314 between the Marlins and the San Diego Padres in 2024. His time with the Padres came after the 2025 season and he signed with the Giants in part because they were willing to let him play full-time at second base and work with former Twins assistant Ron Washington.
Washington helped Arraez with pregame drills that improved his anticipation and first-step quickness, allowing him to make high-difficulty plays. As a result, Arraez, who had the worst outs above average (OAA) rating in baseball at minus-61 since his debut in 2019 through the 2025 season, logged a plus-12 in 103 games between the Giants and the Phillies.
“Every play that he’s supposed to make, he’s made,” Washington told MLB.com’s Maria Guardado last May. “He’s made plays up the middle where he just had to get rid of the ball. He’s turned tough double plays. He turned some tough, tough balls where he had to go to the hole and come back and throw to the shortstop. He’s made perfect throws. Those are the types of things that go in the work category.”
Most importantly, Arraez kept hitting. While he’s not a power bat, he still represents a high-average, high-on-base player and could fit with the Twins as they assemble their roster next season.
Luis Arraez would check several boxes for the Twins this offseason
Arraez’s return to the Twins has several dominoes that must fall. The first may be Royce Lewis's departure. While Lewis was considered a future star, he posted a career-low batter’s line of .227/.387/. 380, marking the fourth straight season his OPS has dropped.
If the Twins deem Lewis a lost cause, they could trade him and open up first base. That move could move Kody Clemens to first base and create a need at second. Luke Keaschall started the 2026 season at the position but was moved to the outfield in part because of a minus-12 OAA rating. With no prospect ready to take on second base, the team could end up in free agency, where Arraez is available.
The problem is that Arraez won’t be cheap. After playing on a $12 million contract a year ago, a rival American League executive told FanSided’s Pat Ragazzo that Arraez could land a five-year, $100 million contract next winter. With a logjam of infielders in the system, the Twins may decide to roll with what they have, signing a cheaper option and waiting for 2025 first-round pick Marek Houston to reach the major leagues and push Kaelen Culpepper from shortstop to second base.
But that also brings up some of the outside factors that are happening with the Twins. Pohlad told reporters at the end of the season that he expects their payroll to increase this offseason and that the team will “meaningfully invest” to improve the roster, per MLB.com writer Matthew Leach. A new collective bargaining agreement could also include a salary floor, which would require the Twins to spend after fielding a $111 million payroll last season.
The Twins could invest in other ways, such as signing Ryan Jeffers or agreeing to extensions with Joe Ryan or some of their young prospects, as the Milwaukee Brewers did en route to winning the World Series. But Arraez would also be an olive branch to fans who have felt jaded over the past several seasons.
Twins fans still love Arraez. His No. 2 jersey was scattered throughout Target Field when he visited as a member of the Phillies last season and while he’s turning 30 in April, it would be a feel-good return that could create some much-needed vibes surrounding the franchise.
Perhaps that’s not a good enough reason to drop $100 million to make that happen. But for a team that could need a second baseman, Arraez should be a target the Twins consider this offseason.
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