Around the horn: Two starting-caliber options at 2B

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It was fair to have some concerns when the Twins traded away reigning batting champion Luis Arraez last offseason and longtime stalwart Jorge Polanco continued to battle injuries -- but the Twins’ faith in their organizational depth ultimately proved astute.

That’s because Edouard Julien proved a revelation in his first taste of the Majors, with the keen-eyed French Canadian rookie immediately becoming an impact leadoff hitter that helped the at-times-inconsistent Minnesota offense gel into more of a force down the stretch. In fact, he was so effective that the Twins moved Polanco to third base late in the season.

But Polanco has long been one of the Twins’ most underappreciated and quietly productive players, a fixture at or near the top of manager Rocco Baldelli’s lineups since the skipper first arrived to Minnesota in 2019. And the results of the third-base experiment were decidedly less than pretty -- that’s now Royce Lewis’ position, anyway.

The Twins still haven’t made any significant trades this offseason, leaving two starting-caliber second basemen on their roster. That’s true especially with how Julien showed himself to be at least an adequate defensive option at the keystone for now, despite initial questions and concerns about whether he could make it work.

With Spring Training less than a month away, it’s still unclear how those pieces will fit together.

Where things stand

Current MLB depth (with 2023 stats):

• Polanco (age 30, 80 G, 2.0 WAR, 118 wRC+, 14 HR, .255/.335/.454)
• Julien (age 24, 109 G, 2.6 WAR, 136 wRC+, 16 HR, .263/.381/.459)
• Kyle Farmer (age 33, 120 G, 1.7 WAR, 101 wRC+, 11 HR, .256/.317/.408)
• Nick Gordon* (age 28, 34 G, -0.2 WAR, 30 wRC+, 2 HR, .176/.185/.319)

Also on the 40-man:

• Austin Martin (Triple-A, age 24, 67 G, 7 HR, 19 SB, .260/.381/.398)
• Yunior Severino* (Double-A/Triple-A, age 24, 120 G, 35 HR, .272/.352/.546)

\ - Not primary position*

The Twins boast an army of potential options at second base, but the two who are currently lined up for the majority of the playing time -- Polanco and Julien -- both come with concerns.

Though Polanco had been the model of consistency for much of his 10-year Twins career, he missed significant time for the second straight season with lower-body issues, this time with knee, hamstring and ankle injuries that opened the door for consistent playing time for Julien.

And while Julien didn’t need any adjustment time to immediately become one of the team’s most productive hitters, that production came with a huge caveat: His .898 OPS against right-handed pitching was fantastic, while his .447 OPS against left-handed pitching wasn’t pretty -- and the Twins made every possible effort to only play Julien with the platoon advantage.

There’s probably still room for the Twins to mix things up in this current roster configuration by rotating both Julien and Polanco through the DH slot, but that also requires Byron Buxton to be healthy enough to regularly play the field this season. While that’s the stated plan, the Twins will still have to see whether that’s fully realistic once the games start.

The Twins have a ton of depth behind them, too, starting with Farmer -- who could act as a right-handed platoon partner if Polanco isn’t around. There’s also Gordon, seeking to bounce back from a lost 2023 season, to the contact-oriented Martin and power-packing Severino, both newcomers to the 40-man roster who should crack the Majors at some point.

Key question: Will Polanco still be around for 2024?

This remains one of the primary questions that will dictate the overall direction of the Twins’ offseason -- and has been since the start.

If the Twins want to bolster their roster via trade, Polanco would be a logical candidate to move considering his track record of success, the club’s depth at the position with Julien ready to step in, the relative scarcity of middle infielders on this market and Polanco’s remaining club control (the Twins hold an affordable $12 million club option for 2025).

By no means do the Twins have to trade Polanco. Their position player depth, in fact, was among their biggest calling cards in 2023, and with a healthier Buxton, there’s probably enough at-bats to go around to accommodate both Polanco and Julien with a freer DH spot. But if the Twins want another impact starting pitcher to fill the gap left by the departures of Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda, this could be a logical place to find a fit.

The same question goes for Farmer, who is important depth and a possible platoon partner for both Julien and the left-handed Alex Kirilloff at first base. The Twins and Farmer recently agreed to a one-year, $6.05 million deal to avoid arbitration -- but with the team looking to hold back on payroll in ‘24, a veteran bench player might be a potential place to trim if needed.

In the pipeline (with MLB Pipeline rankings):

No. 2 Brooks Lee (Triple-A St. Paul)
No. 7 Tanner Schobel (Double-A Wichita)
No. 11 Luke Keaschall (High-A Cedar Rapids)

The biggest name in the mix is Lee, the Twins’ first-round pick from the 2022 MLB Draft, who appears almost certain to make his MLB debut at some point in ‘24 after finishing his first professional season in Double-A and pushing up to Triple-A to end his ‘23 campaign.

Lee’s bat took a step back in Triple-A, but he still controlled the strike zone well and posted an .829 OPS in September, leaving him a step away from impacting the Majors if a consistent opportunity were to present itself. That could perhaps be at shortstop in the event of a Carlos Correa injury, at third base to fill in for Lewis or at second, if needed, which is looking like his best bet at a near-term fit on this roster moving forward.