diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel/Utilities/FrameworksExtensions.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel/Utilities/FrameworksExtensions.cs
index 2c5fcac6e..6cbab643c 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel/Utilities/FrameworksExtensions.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel/Utilities/FrameworksExtensions.cs
@@ -22,6 +22,10 @@ namespace NuGet.Frameworks
             }
 
             var versionPart = original.Substring(index);
+            if (versionPart.Length >= 2)
+            {
+                return original;
+            }
 
             // Assume if the version part was preserved then leave it alone
             if (versionPart.IndexOf('.') != -1)