Let’s blindly reach into the bag to find a replacement for Paul Molitor
After a disappointing season, Paul Molitor is out as Minnesota Twins manager. So who could replace him?
After four seasons as Minnesota Twins manager, multiple reports surfaced early Tuesday afternoon that Paul Molitor has been fired with a press conference announcing the move to come.
Molitor succeeded Ron Gardenhire, and had 305-343 record over the last four years. His tenure was highlighted by 2017’s second half run to the AL Wild Card gGame, as he won AL Manager of the Year and got a contract extension. But a disappointing 2018 (78-84), with multiple factors out of Molitor’s control to foster what only wound up being a seven win drop-off, put a little heat under his seat and it came to fruition two days after the season ended.
Team president Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine inherited Molitor, with a declaration from ownership that he would stay in the dugout after a 59-103 record in 2016. But now Falvey and Levine can hire “their guy” as manager, whatever that means and for whatever that’s actually worth.
In a truly Twins-esque move, with two years left on his contract, Molitor will be offered a different role in the organization. But it’s worth wondering if he’ll now surface as a candidate to manage the Toronto Blue Jays, who will be replacing John Gibbons.
FOX-9 Sports has confirmed through sources that #MNTwins manager Paul Molitor has been fired. He will offered a position in the organization since his contract he signed still has two more years on it.
— FOX 9 Sports (@Fox9Sports) October 2, 2018
Falvey and Levine’s past ties to the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers organizations stand to inform their managerial search. But here are five candidates to be the next Twins manager.
5. Joe Mauer
I’ll start with kind of a fun one, before getting into more serious candidates. All indications are Mauer is done as a player after a fitting send-off on Sunday, and he may well be done with all things baseball with a wife and two young twin daughters to go home to.
But he may want to be in the game as a coach, if not right away than possibly down the road. An immediate conversation could be had about the managerial opening. As someone with no previous managerial or coaching experience, Mauer would not stretch the current MLB movement in managerial hires that much.
Now let’s look at some more serious candidates to be the next Twins manager.