Twins position breakdown: First base

The Twins don’t have too many glaring roster holes as the offseason kicks off, but perhaps the most obvious one is at first base, where the Twins have a big question mark.

Carlos Santana, who started a majority of the games there last season, became a free agent, and Alex Kirilloff made a surprising retirement announcement last week after yet another season disrupted by a serious injury.

2024 recap

After trading away Jorge Polanco to lower their payroll and clear some space on the books, the Twins inked the veteran Santana, 38, to a one-year deal late last offseason.

It was their only free agent move last offseason that really paid off, as Santana just won the first Gold Glove Award of his career after a stellar defensive year at first and led the team in home runs (23) and runs batted in (71).

The steady-handed Santana saw a majority of innings at first base, starting 139 games there. When he wasn’t there, Kirilloff started 11 games and Jose Miranda 12, while seeing most of his time over at third base.

Kirilloff landed on the injured list on June 13 and did not return. Last week, he announced he was retiring from professional baseball at 26, following an injury-plagued last four years, three of which ended with surgery. This injury, he was told by a doctor, will likely take the next six months to a year to heal.

Kirilloff said he was “at peace,” with the decision to walk away and was looking forward to what awaited him next in life.

2025 outlook

So, who’s on first?

The Twins could try to bring Santana back on another low-cost one-year deal, but he will turn 39 near the start of next season.

Miranda should be in the mix there, but how much he’ll be there is the big question. He has played far more third base than first in his career, but the Twins have Royce Lewis, Brooks Lee and Willi Castro as options on the other side of the infield.

Are the Twins comfortable having Miranda be their primary starter there? Will he hold up over an entire season? Miranda had a strong first half but tailed off dramatically in the second, hitting no home runs and driving in just six after the all-star break. It’s not the first time his second half performance has dipped.

The Twins got second baseman Edouard Julien’s feet wet at first base in 2023, though he appeared there in 2024 for just two innings. They could revisit that idea and have him platoon with Miranda.

Or they could opt to look externally, as they did last year with Santana, and acquire someone via trade or free agency to address the position.