Report: Twins expected to hire Paul Molitor as manager

The Minnesota Twins month-long managerial search is reportedly near an official end. According to ESPN 1500’s Patrick Reusse, Hall of Famer Paul Molitor is expected to take over for Ron Gardenhire, who was fired on Sept. 29 after 13 seasons. 

An official announcement is expected next week. Once it is official, Molitor will be the Twins 13th manager all-time, but only its third since 1986. Prior to Gardenhire, Tom Kelly held the position for 15 years. He led Minnesota to World Series championships in 1987 and 1991.

It’s not exactly surprising news. Molitor, who served as a coach on Gardenhire’s staff in 2013, had been tabbed a favorite early in the proceedings. In fact, he was also considered a leading candidate to manage the team after Kelly retired in 2001. He was Kelly’s bench coach for three seasons, but he ended up declining the offer. He’s always had the support of owner Jim Pohlad though, which was likely the deciding factor in his hiring. 

Boston Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo was also considered a finalist for the job. Doug Mientkiewicz, a former Twins’ player who has been managing their Single-A affiliate in Fort Myers, was informed late this week that he is no longer a candidate for the job. The Twins were in brief contact with Joe Maddon after he opted out of his contract with the Tampa Bay Rays, but Maddon’s heart was seemingly already set on the Chicago Cubs job.

This isn’t the most enviable position for a first-time major league manager like Molitor to step into for a couple reasons. First and foremost, he has to follow two managers who accumulated over 1,000 wins each during their Twins’ tenure — Kelly (1,140) and Gardenhire (1,068) — eight combined postseason appearances. The stage isn’t set for immediate success, either, with Minnesota coming off four straight seasons of 70 wins or less. They have shown incremental improvement over those seasons (63, 66, 66, 70), but they’re still in the midst of rebuilding the major league roster. 

They also have to share a division with the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Indians, all of whom figure to be competitive in the near future. 

Working in Molitor’s favor is the loyalty and patience Minnesota’s ownership has shown with Kelly and Gardenhire in the past. It’s also clear they’ve always viewed Molitor as a similar long-term solution. Now it’s his chance to prove them correct. 

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813