Free agency is open, and the Twins have a roster to sort through if they want to put themselves in position to compete in 2027. The bullpen still needs attention after a rough 2026 season.
Catcher could also become a question, depending on what Ryan Jeffers does with the qualifying offer he received. And then there’s first base, where Minnesota can’t really afford to settle.
Right now, Royce Lewis is the default option there. The bat has the kind of upside that can change a lineup, but the production hasn’t made it easy to picture him as the everyday answer.
If Lewis is still the starter at first when 2027 rolls around, it would be hard to call the offseason a win. Minnesota could chase a traditional first baseman in free agency.
Or it could take a different route, move Kody Clemens to first, and look for help at second base instead. If that’s the path, one name jumps out: Luis Arraez.
Arraez is hardly a mystery to Twins fans. He was a favorite in Minnesota almost from the start, carving out a reputation as one of baseball’s best contact hitters and a steady leadoff presence over four seasons.
He won the American League batting title in 2022 before the Twins sent him to the Miami Marlins in the Pablo López trade after that season. The hits kept coming after that.
Arraez won batting titles again in 2023 and 2024, then spent time with the Padres and Giants before ending up with the Philadelphia Phillies.
The offensive profile is still familiar. He hits for average, almost never strikes out, doesn’t bring much power, and keeps turning in above-average seasons.
His 110 OPS+ in 2026 fits that mold. But there’s a major wrinkle now compared with the player Minnesota traded away: Arraez has changed defensively.
Back in Minnesota, he started at second base before his defense pushed the club to move him to first full time. After the trade to Miami, he went back to second, and the glove was still an issue with the Padres.
Then 2026 happened. Working under Ron Washington, Arraez looked like a different player in the field and became a real asset at second base.
The stat line is eye-opening. From 2019 through 2025, Arraez posted negative Outs Above Average at second base every year, often landing at -8, -10, or even -11.
In 2026, he flipped all of that and finished with 12 Outs Above Average, fifth-best among second basemen in baseball. That’s not a small improvement.
That’s a total reset.
And for the Twins, that matters. Minnesota’s offense was good enough in 2026 to finish ninth in baseball in runs scored, but the lineup still went quiet for long stretches and had trouble stacking quality at-bats.
Arraez is built to smooth out those kinds of droughts. He puts the ball in play, works at-bats, and gets on base.
He’s not going to hit a bunch of homers or drive in a ton of runs, but he would give the Twins a reliable top-of-the-order bat who can help set things up for the hitters behind him.
The defense might be the bigger swing, though. Minnesota finished 22nd in baseball in infield Outs Above Average in 2026, and second base was especially rough.
The Twins ranked 26th at the position with -6 OAA. Arraez’s 12 OAA in 2026 would be an 18-out upgrade over what Minnesota got there this past season.
That’s a huge difference at a spot where the Twins clearly need help.
There’s a money angle here, too. Arraez doesn’t have the same star billing as some of the other offensive names on the market, like Randy Arozarena or Seiya Suzuki, which could make him a more manageable target for a team that has to be careful with its spending.
ESPN projects him for a three-year, $54 million deal. For a 29-year-old who posted 4.1 WAR in 2026, that looks reasonable.
He wouldn’t fix everything. He’s not a power bat, and bringing him back wouldn’t erase the need to address the bullpen or possibly add another catcher.
But if Minnesota decides Clemens is the better first-base solution, Arraez makes a lot of sense. He’d fill a need, stabilize the lineup, and bring defensive value that would have seemed hard to imagine when he left town.
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