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On day two of the Twins offseason, news has come out that the team has fired manager Paul Molitor.
The move is a bit surprising (to say the least), considering the Twins signed Molly to a three-year extension just about one year ago. Molitor was the 2017 AL Manager of the Year.
Least you be upset, hold on just one more moment! Though fired as manager, Molitor is not leaving the organization. Stop me if you’ve heard this one, but apparently the Twins are going to move Molly into a new and different front office role. I assume they can just put his desk right next to Tom Kelly’s desk.
The #Twins have had "productive conversations'' with Molitor about transitioning to a different role in the organization, according to sources. So it appears he could be staying with the team in a different capacity. https://t.co/7hHUqvaxlO
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) October 2, 2018
Maybe the Twins can give Molitor Ron Gardenhire’s old desk, the one he used when he got a front office job after the Twins fired him in 2014.
If we assume the Twins are truly transitioning Paul Molitor to a front office role (which I wouldn’t be against, considering how high his baseball IQ is), it would mean the first time since 1984 a Twins manager has been removed and not entered the front office. Both Tom Kelly and Ron Gardenhire joined the front office as special assistants after their tenure as Twins managers. In fact, TK is still a special assistant to the front office. Gardy, of course, is currently the manager of the Detroit Tigers.
The Twins ended the 2018 season with a 78-84 record.
Who will take over as the next Twins manager? I honestly can’t say. Maybe there is a recently retired catcher slash first baseman out there up for the job — but who knows.