Twins manager Rocco Baldelli says moving Royce Lewis to second base a possibility

DALLAS – As Royce Lewis had lunch with manager Rocco Baldelli, bench coach Jayce Tingler and teammate Trevor Larnach on Monday, he revealed he’s open to a positional change if the Twins want to move him across the infield.

The Twins won’t make a final determination until closer to spring training, when their roster is settled, but they are actively considering moving Lewis to second base.

“Royce actually said he’s been taking balls on both sides of second base,” said Baldelli, who trekked about a half-hour from the site of the winter meetings with Tingler to meet the two players who train at a nearby facility. “That tells you a little bit about where his head is. He’s like, ‘Yeah, I’ve been getting some work done at second, just in case.’”

Moving the 25-year-old Lewis to second base would accommodate playing time at third for Brooks Lee and possibly Jose Miranda. Lee is viewed as the better defender — Lewis was plagued by some throwing errors last season — and Miranda could receive time at third if the Twins add a full-time first baseman through free agency or a trade.

Lewis detested the idea of playing second base last September, fearful of making defensive mistakes while learning a new position during a playoff race, but he was always open to switching positions with an entire spring training to adjust to it. He made one start at second base last season.

“Whatever we go with at the beginning to start spring training, I’d really hope to be able to just go with that and allow him to prepare for his season in that spot, not move guys around,” Baldelli said. “We have Willi Castro, so it shows what we’re always open to doing with players, but with Royce, I think finding a good spot for him and letting him settle in, prepare, get ready confidently and play. That is what we’re looking for.

The Twins aren’t worried about Lewis’ ability to handle second base. He came up through the minor leagues as a shortstop, and his range was fine at third. Scott Boras, Lewis’ agent, compared him to a Ryne Sandberg-type player in terms of athleticism and power.

“If he has time to prepare and get ready for this — he has the second half of an offseason and spring training to get ready — he has the skill set and he has the ability to handle that,” Baldelli said. “I have very little doubt that he can do that.”

First base is the biggest question on the Twins’ roster. Miranda and Edouard Julien represent the top internal options, but neither has much experience at the position. The Twins remain interested in a reunion with free agent Carlos Santana, who won an American League Gold Glove at age 38.

“Our defense wasn’t exactly a strength of ours last year,” Baldelli said. “I wouldn’t say that that was the meat and potatoes of how we were winning games, but [Santana] was one of the guys that was carrying us on that part of the field.

“Losing that part of it is probably the hardest part to lose, if we’re not able to bring him back. I don’t know if we’re going to bring him back … that’s still a possibility.”

Changing Lewis’ defensive home would be a vote of confidence in Lee’s value for the upcoming season. Lee struggled offensively with a .221 batting average and a .265 on-base percentage in 185 plate appearances, but the Twins are confident he will become an impact player.

“He’s a fairly ready-made young player defensively,” Baldelli said. “On the offensive end, understanding the zone going forward will be good for him. Making gains there, which pitches he’s offering at, which pitches he’s trying to do what with.

“Really tightening it up offensively will help him, but he has a lot of ability. He’s going to be a good major league player.”

The Twins anticipate their infield to be a strength next year, particularly with a healthy Carlos Correa at shortstop and a bounce-back offensive season from Lewis, who slumped badly over the final six weeks of the season.

“Going through those [slumps] at the major league level for the first time, it kind of changes you,” Baldelli said. “We’re going to see a different guy, whether that’s April, May, June, or at the end of the year, when he runs into a little rut, he’ll treat it in a totally different manner.”