Defense has been one of the quieter problems for the 2026 Twins, even if it rarely gets the same spotlight as power or strikeout totals. The early-June SABR Defensive Index picture was not flattering, and the damage has shown up in the standings in familiar ways: ordinary plays turning messy, innings dragging on, and games slipping away because the fielding wasn’t clean enough.
That’s a sharp contrast from the Twins teams that used to make defense part of the brand. Under Tom Kelly, the emphasis was always on fundamentals and avoiding mistakes.
That carried into Ron Gardenhire’s run, when Minnesota was regularly among the better defensive clubs in baseball. More recently, though, the Twins haven’t come close to matching that standard, even with Byron Buxton still roaming center field.
The clearest way to see the decline is to look back at the club’s best defensive seasons over the last two decades.
The 2017 team stands alone. No recent Twins group matched what that roster did in the field, with 67 OAA, 36 DRS, and 58.1 DEF.
Buxton was at his defensive peak, putting up 26 OAA and 23 DRS while finishing with 23.9 DEF. That earned him the American League Platinum Glove Award as the league’s top overall defender.
Brian Dozier was right there beside him at second base, posting 16 OAA and 14.5 DEF on his way to a Gold Glove. Jason Castro added 10 DRS behind the plate, and Joe Mauer contributed 15 DRS after moving to first base.
The weak spots were Miguel Sanó, at -3 OAA, and Jorge Polanco, who finished with -8 DRS on the left side of the infield, but the overall unit was still one of the best Minnesota has put together in recent memory.
Another strong defensive club came in 2021, when the Twins posted 9 OAA, 20 DRS, and 15.7 DEF despite a disappointing season in the standings. The headline addition was Andrelton Simmons, and he delivered immediately.
Long regarded as one of the best defensive shortstops of his era, Simmons produced 16 OAA and an 18.5 DEF rating. Buxton and Max Kepler each added 7 OAA, and Buxton’s 13 DRS matched Simmons even though injuries kept him on the field for fewer innings.
The main issue was Miguel Sanó, who struggled badly with -5 OAA and -6 DRS.
The 2020 Twins were solid as well, even in a 60-game season that makes every evaluation a little trickier. Minnesota finished with 8 OAA, 18 DRS, and 6.5 DEF.
Buxton led the way again with 4 OAA and 11 DRS, continuing to build his reputation as one of the game’s elite center fielders. Marwin Gonzalez’s ability to move around the field helped the roster, and he ended up with 2 OAA.
Eddie Rosario was a strange case, posting 4 DRS despite finishing at -1 OAA, while Max Kepler and Mitch Garver each chipped in 3 DRS. The biggest problem was Jorge Polanco, who struggled on the infield and finished at -6 DRS.
Go back further, and the 2010 Twins were built on the kind of defensive backbone that used to define the franchise. OAA wasn’t around yet, but the team’s 35.4 DEF tells the story.
Mauer anchored things behind the plate and led the club with 12.7 DEF while winning his third and final Gold Glove Award. J.J.
Hardy and Orlando Hudson formed a strong middle infield, with Hardy at 11.8 DEF and Hudson at 10.5 DEF, giving Minnesota one of the league’s better double-play combinations. Denard Span, Jason Repko, Justin Morneau, and Nick Punto all finished above 8.4 DEF, and Punto, Morneau, and Repko each posted 7 or more DRS.
The lineup wasn’t perfect defensively - Delmon Young finished at -11 DRS, Jason Kubel at -8 DRS, and Michael Cuddyer at -14 DRS - but the strength up the middle covered a lot of ground.
What ties those teams together is obvious: the Twins were at their best when they controlled the middle of the field. Mauer, Hardy, Hudson, Dozier, Simmons, and an elite version of Buxton gave Minnesota premium defense at premium spots. That’s what turned balls in play into outs and kept pressure off the pitching staff.
That’s not where the current team is. Buxton still gives the Twins strong defense in center, but one standout glove can’t carry everything. The infield and corner spots have been too uneven, and that inconsistency has shown up in the form of extra innings and extra stress on the pitchers.
If Minnesota wants to get back to being a steady contender, the defense has to matter again. The best Twins clubs weren’t just about pitching and clutch hitting.
They made the difficult look routine. Right now, 2017 remains the standard.
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