Minnesota Twins: Our General Manager Wish List
First off Minnesota Twins fans I want to introduce myself. My name is Jimmy Moberg and I am joining Puckett’s Pond as a writer for your entertainment.
I am jumping in with both feet on a topic that many fans are hoping to see solved soon.
The General Manager position for the Minnesota Twins and organization plans associated with the new hire.
The hope that I hold for our new fearless leader is that they can ultimately help us find our way to the postseason on a regular basis.
Baseball wise I hope that they can instill a want to modernize the player analysis while also still connecting with the human aspect of players and their interaction as a team.
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Many fans do not realize how much a player can disrupt a team or get them to gel and come together to support each other. The coaching staff is a huge part of that also.
I firmly believe that we need to find our way back to solid defense, great OPS, and pitching that is at least around league average.
Small ball, with smart base running, and situational pitching. With all of that said here are my top four people who I hope are being considered for the position.
Kim Ng
She has a long history of working with some of the most well-respected figures in baseball for their prowess in the building of teams. Currently she is working as Joe Torre‘s right hand at the league office.
Her official position is listed as Senior VP of Baseball Ops. She has worked for teams that are usually flush with cash but has proven to have a great mind for the game and especially the business side of things.
Personally I think that Minnesota sports could use a little more business savvy people in power as we are known for our “Minnesota Nice” persona in conducting the ugly side of the game.
She worked for Cashman for the Empire as an assistant GM at 29. She has worked in the league offices on the approval of transactions including trades, waivers, and any other roster moves.
She has interviewed for three different GM positions but has never got the nod. She is routinely retained as a top-level assistant but has made known that she dreams of being the person in charge.
I think that she could do wonders for the entire organization from the top to the bottom. I have a hard time finding anything negative regarding her future in the sport and potential as a future GM.
Jason McLeod
McLeod has been working next to Theo Epstein since their start in the league. Now where everyone knows Epstein for being the one that received all of the accolades, there has to be some reason that Jason has been there the entire time.
The only negative that I have seen here is that he is in a great situation in Chicago and might be hard to entice to leave for our situation here.
He has been in charge of drafting at his many stops, negotiations, development, you name it in baseball front offices, it seems like he has done it.
Every interview I read from him is eloquent and easy to read while containing a wealth of knowledge. He speaks of taking risks in certain situations, playing it more surely in others, all the while continuously analyzing all of the info from scouts, coaches, and even teammates.
He is another one like Ng, that you can tell just lives for the game but doesn’t seem afraid of making a change when needed.
Like I said though, the success of the Cubs will make it increasingly difficult to lure to Minneapolis.
Michael Girsch
Our next guy is different.
He has only been in baseball for a decade. He is another prospective hire that is young and looking for a first chance at being the head person in charge for an organization.
Girsch works for the Cardinals and has only worked for them.
He has moved up from writing a paper analyzing draft prospects to now being an Assistant GM.
He helped the Cards start a full-blown analytics department, uses bio mechanics to analyze players, gets the smartest people that he can to join the team, and just doesn’t seem afraid to adapt new ideals and technology as it comes to light.
He also has been promoted quickly through what is considered as one of the best organizations historically during a time that they have been very successful.
He, like McLeod, could be a challenge in convincing him to leave a great situation to undertake the job in Minnesota.
Girsch would be someone who would take some time for a majority of us Minnesota Twins fans to warm up to because his experience is decidedly more new school than what we are used to.
Nonetheless I believe that he would be another great option.
Randy Bush
Many of our fans should recognize this name. He is another one that is working with the Cubs but he predates Epstein.
He was the interim GM in between Epstein and Hendry.
He is a baseball lifer and has experience as a college coach too.
He has seen the game from every different direction and has the previous prerequisite connection to Minnesota by playing his entire professional career here.
He has two World Series rings and has seen the ups and downs of an organization.
There is markedly less about his front office career but logic says that he has done enough to work his way up in an organization that has made tremendous strides in improvement.
He was trusted enough to fill in as GM during their transition and was retained by his new boss in Epstein, who I don’t think is a stretch to be considered a Hall of Fame potential executive.
Bush would be a hire that many fans would immediately love because of his ties to the team. He is not who I would choose but someone who should still be considered and may do well in the position.
I just think Minnesota needs new blood.
Now this list is not discounting Rob Antony’s candidacy for the spot.
I just firmly think the Minnesota Twins need to change directions with their front end.
I hope that Rob can keep his spot in the organization but will also wish him the best should he part ways.
My hopes are that the new talent will help bring new school analytics, merge them with scouting, continue to develop the players that are under contract, and not hesitate to move the ones deemed expendable at this point.
I hope that the Minnesota Twins look at this hire from a different perspective than previous hires.
If for some reason that this hire is not successful, much like our attempt to move on from Terry Ryan with Bill Smith, than I hope that Dave St. Peter will be relieved of his duties.
The Minnesota Twins have too much talent in their system to not improve in the near future.
The organization is in good financial positioning to lure in an executive that will rally the fans by making the difficult decisions that need to be made, hire and add positions that need to be introduced to the team, and change the philosophy back to a team that excites and wins.
We don’t need power hitters and power starters, we need great fielders, timely hitters, and pitchers who know how to pitch, not just throw the ball.
Coaches that will tell the truth in the development of young stars, good or bad.
Now that I have rambled on about what I want from the organization, I hope that you will stay with me and let me know what you think.
Tell me that I am out of touch, too new school, not Minnesota enough to write here, or that you love the new ideas and have some yourself.
Next: Why I'm Excited About the Nunez Trade
I am happy to have fans listening to my educated thoughts, ideas, and takes on this game that we all love and cherish.