The Twins may have spent most of the season fighting through a defense that was, at best, uneven. But one move changed the look of the infield, and now Brooks Lee is getting recognized for it.
Lee is a finalist for the 2026 Rawlings Gold Glove Award at third base after settling in at the hot corner and thriving there for Minnesota. He started the year as the Opening Day shortstop, batting ninth and handling the position in the first game of the season. After 45 games, the Twins shifted him to third base for good, with only a few spot starts back at shortstop mixed in.
That switch proved to be the right call. In 400 innings at shortstop in 2026, Lee had -9 DRS, -6 OAA and -5 FRV.
At third base, those numbers swung all the way to 8 DRS, 6 OAA and 5 FRV across nearly 940 innings. The gap is hard to miss, and it tells the story of a player who found the right defensive fit.
Rawlings listed Lee among the American League finalists at third base alongside Caleb Durbin and Nick Loftin. Lee may not be the favorite to take home the award - Boston’s Caleb Durbin has the stronger numbers - but the finalist nod still marks a big step.
The reason fits the eye test, too. Lee’s not a burner, clocking a 26.3 ft/sec sprint speed, and he doesn’t bring the strongest arm.
That made life at shortstop tougher than life at third. At the hot corner, his instincts and quick reactions matter more, and he’s shown he can read the ball well, charge it cleanly and make throws on the move.
The Twins also saw enough on the offensive side to believe there’s more coming. Lee hit .253 with a .728 OPS this season, and his bat improved as the year went on. If he can keep the pop he showed with 24 home runs while trimming down the strikeouts - 102 strikeouts against 37 walks - his overall profile gets even more interesting.
Minnesota’s defense was below league average for much of the season and was especially rough early, though it did improve after a few in-season changes. The club had already brought home Gold Gloves in each of the previous two MLB seasons, both at first base. Ty France won last season’s award for the Twins, even after being traded with Louie Varland to the Toronto Blue Jays midseason, while Carlos Santana won the same award for Minnesota in 2024.
France is back in the Gold Glove mix again, too. Now with the San Diego Padres, he is a finalist at first base in the National League and the favorite to win it there.
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