Minnesota Twins: 2015 Season Preview, Predictions and More

Mar 17, 2015; Sarasota, FL, USA; Minnesota Twins manager Paul Molitor (4) watches batting practice before the start of the spring training game against the Baltimore Orioles at

Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

The New Coaching Staff

Ron Gardenhire spent 13 seasons at the helm of the Minnesota Twins. The first nine seasons brought much prosperity to the organization. The team won the American League Central six times. Where they fell short was in the postseason, only advancing out of the first round in 2002. In fact, Gardy is the only manager in Major League history to lead a team to the playoffs six or more times to never advance to the World Series. Still, considering the struggles the franchise endured in the 1990s after winning the Series in 1987 and 1991, the success was welcomed.

Then the last four years happened. It was actually the worst four year stretch in Twins history, and the Twins have most definitely had other lean stretches in their past. As much as Gardhenhire accomplished in his time in Minnesota, it was time for a change.

Enter the familiar face of Paul Molitor. Molitor served as the team’s bench coach last season. He is a new manager, but not necessarily young, as he is 58 years old. He was actually considered a candidate for the Twins opening way back in 2002 when Gardenhire was hired.

What is important is what can Molitor bring to the table as manager? He stole over 500 bases as a player during his career. The Twins ranked 14th in team stolen bases last season. While certainly not terrible, the team also ranked 19th in home runs. any way to manufacture runs is a plus.

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Where even more help is necessary will be on defense. The team ranked 13th in fielding percentage in 2014. While far from terrible, the Twins pitching staff, while hopefully improved, can use all the help they can get. Molitor made most of his bones as a player as a Designated Hitter. Still, it is not possible to be such a great hitter without having a keen awareness of defensive positioning. He also did play infield at the start of his career with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The manager will not be the only new face in the clubhouse as the whole coaching staff has been retooled. Outside of Molitor, the most important new addition to the coaching stable will be pitching coach Neil Allen. Allen is a well-respected name in baseball. It will be his first Major League pitching coach assignment, but he has been credited with helping along many of the Tampa Bay Rays young and up-and-coming pitchers. The Twins had the second highest ERA in baseball in 2014, so Allen has his work cut out for him.

Despite struggling for so long, the Twins still find themselves on the uphill portion of their rebuild. Their brightest potential stars are still in the minors and the current Major League roster is similar to last season’s. Molitor’s first season figures to be his most difficult.

Next: The Line-up