This is the first edition of Warne Out, which will be a column where I’ll go a bit more opinion-based or a little more off the rails than what I usually do analysis-wise.

A hot topic resonating from this terrible Twins start has been the alignment of the defense. Or at least the deployment of the defense. Miguel Sano has by no means been good in right field, and it has led a lot of people on social media and elsewhere to question why he was put out there in the first place.

And it makes sense. Of all the moving parts in the corners, Sano is the one perhaps most ill equipped to handle this sort of move, and probably has the strongest future equity on the team. But because he’s the youngest and cheapest, he gets pushed to the backburner — literally? That seems strange.

I’ve gotten this question in various forms all season long:

@Brandon_Warne hey I just listened to your pod w Matt of. Bball pro, 1. I loved it. 2. Has Mauer ever said if he’d be willing to try the OF? — Marc Simon (@saysmarc) May 13, 2016

@Brandon_Warne just wondering who has issue with it, I assume, like Matt, that it’s the FO.. but maybe it’s Mauer?? — Marc Simon (@saysmarc) May 13, 2016

Why not move Mauer to the outfield? Why is Mauer so married to first base? The questions aren’t just about Mauer — some people want to see Trevor Plouffe out there — but they all seem to center around the idea that Sano in the outfield is a “square peg, round hole” situation. It just makes sense foundationally.

But Mauer in the outfield? I mean, he’s athletic enough. He seemed to hold his own out there when he had to play right field in a pinch back in 2011 when Luke Hughes couldn’t get to Target Field in time after missing his flight from Lehigh Valley. Of course, that’s five years ago. That’s pre-concussion. That’s pre-spending the last three years at first base. He was in his late 20s then; he’s 33 now.

The public line — at least as far as I’ve heard — is that the Twins have never even asked Mauer to move to the outfield. And while you can hem and haw with regards to how you feel about that, it’s pretty clear the Twins haven’t even considered it. Unlike batting Joe leadoff — which was talked about even late in Ron Gardenhire’s tenure as manager — there haven’t even been a whisper of moving him to the outfield.

I have a theory why, and it’s not all that complicated: The Twins only view this as very, very temporary.

Moving Sano to right field makes the move to third base an easy one once Trevor Plouffe is out of the picture. Very little changes in that situation. Sano to third, and someone else takes over in right field. And with Max Kepler close, Oswaldo Arcia hitting a bit better or perhaps the potential of a pop-up prospect in the near future — Daniel Palka comes to mind — it’s pretty obvious Sano’s time in right field is very, very limited.

If you move Mauer to the outfield, who plays first base? The common answer seems to be Sano. Well in that case, if Plouffe isn’t long for Minneapolis, you end up moving Mauer back into the dirt at first, Sano back across the infield to third and then inserting let’s say Kepler in right.

That’s a lot more moving pieces than you need, and that’s before even considering whether or not the Twins would mess with their $23 million man. For better or worse, a position change in his 13th big league season just doesn’t seem all that likely.

Plus, with Sano in right field you can at least keep him in a spot on the defensive spectrum where a jump back to third base isn’t completely nuts. At least he’s still moving around and he’s still throwing. All of this is a long-winded way of saying I think the Twins view Sano as the third baseman of the future, Mauer as the first baseman of the future and one of the kids as the right fielder of the future. So the 2016 season was always destined in the eyes of the Twins brass as one of growing pains.

I’m not saying I do or do not endorse it, and I’m not saying the Twins are 8-25 because of “growing pains.” I’m just telling you all what I think the blueprint was here. It’s a decision that is magnified like everything else in what has been a disastrous season for the Twins.