If the Minnesota Twins had a theme for the 2026 season, it was finding their pieces to the puzzle. The Twins had several young players who had reached the Major Leagues, but they weren’t sure where they belonged. That included Brooks Lee, who was the Twins’ Opening Day shortstop but was moved to third base when Royce Lewis was demoted in May.
The move was part of the reason why Lee had his best offensive season in the majors, hitting .253/300/.428 with 24 homers, 83 RBI and eight stolen bases. But it also could help him become a rarity as a former top Twins prospect who has gotten better as he’s acclimated himself in Minnesota.
The Twins may have found out where Brooks Lee belongs
The Twins were over the moon when Lee fell to them with the eighth overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft. A polished collegiate shortstop, Lee was praised for his offensive ability, which helped him hit .357/.462/.664 with 15 homers, 55 RBI and three stolen bases in 58 games during his final year at Cal Poly.
Lee also had a strong baseball IQ thanks to playing under his father, Larry Lee, who is a legend at the school with 752 career wins. Named after Baltimore Orioles Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson, Lee felt like a perfect fit and it caused Twins vice president of amateur scouting Sean Johnson to say he was “ecstatic” when the team turned in its selection.
“We’ve seen Lee play a lot since high school,” Johnson told Aaron Gleeman, formerly of The Athletic. “He comes from a really strong baseball family. Really good instincts, elite baseball IQ, great feel for the game. As far as makeup factors into the selection, if you had to make a list, he’s at the very top of makeup players. We’ve seen him for a long time now and it shows on the field the way he plays.”
That makeup helped Lee rise through the minor leagues quickly, but it didn’t lead to a clear position. Carlos Correa was entrenched at shortstop and Lewis, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft, was on a star trajectory at third base. It left Lee as a role player in his first two years in the majors and he produced weak results at the plate, hitting .232/.279/.357 with 19 homers, 91 RBI and six stolen bases in 189 games.
Lee’s opportunity came when the Twins traded Correa to the Houston Astros as part of last year’s fire sale, but he still didn’t look like a major leaguer – especially in the field. According to FanGraphs, Lee posted a minus-18 in defensive runs saved (DRS) in 1,203 major league innings at shortstop and after posting a minus-9 in 400 innings this season, the decision was made for him to move to the hot corner.
The defensive improvement was noticeable as Lee posted a plus-8 DRS in 939.2 innings at third base last season. But he also saw a slight improvement at the plate, hitting .250/.295/.435 with 18 homers and 54 RBI in 108 games. For his career, Lee owns his highest OPS at third base (.749) than any other position and it may be a sign that he’s more comfortable at third than anywhere else on the diamond.
The Twins may have something different with Brooks Lee
Those numbers show that the Twins may have found a home for Lee. But the next question is whether he can keep improving. This has been a challenge for top prospects in the past, as Lewis, Matt Wallner and Edouard Julien came crashing back to earth after hot starts in the majors. Even Luke Keaschall struggled at the plate to begin the year before finding his stride late and it’s a problem that’s been in the organization since Miguel Sano cratered after making his lone All-Star appearance in 2017.
If you look at Lee’s analytics, you can also see danger ahead. According to Baseball Savant, Lee’s metrics were toward the bottom of qualifying hitters including average exit velocity (88.1 mph), barrel rate (4.5%), and chase rate (35.1%). But he ranked in the 81st percentile in strikeout rate (16.2%) and whiff rate (20.8%).
Lee also has the endorsement of legendary San Francisco Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow, who played at Cal Poly while Lee’s grandfather Tom was a professor, athletic trainer and coach across multiple sports.
“He’s been a great story,” Krukow told Dan Hayes of The Athletic when the Twins played the Giants last month. “He was a prodigy at a young age, really the talk of the county for a long time. He’s going to be a real good big leaguer. …He found belief. He believes he can play here. He’s a man, now.”
Getting to the big leagues and seeing success may be one way for Lee to grow into his role. Finding a home in the field could also help Lee focus on one position heading into the offseason and help him become a more complete player.
It’s a task that has become one of the biggest challenges for Twins prospects when they reach the majors. But Lee seems like he’s on a good trajectory as he heads into the offseason.
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