Minnesota Twins: Bench Coach Options
By Nate Palmer
Dusty Baker
Dusty Baker just came off of what would be considered by many as a successful season and successful tenure before being dismissed by the Washington Nationals. The Nationals won 97 games in 2017 and went 192-132 during Bakers time at the helm, but the Nationals early exit in the playoffs was reason enough to dismiss Baker and his 1,863 career managerial wins from the team.
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In reality, to see Baker at the age of 68 accept any role in a clubhouse besides manager seems unlikely. He does make based on the facts that he is unemployed and does have a connection to Twins coach Gene Glynn as mentioned earlier. The reality is the veteran manager will likely stay home and retire from baseball or wait for the right managerial opening before stepping back into a clubhouse in a lesser role one might assume.
John Farrell
If the Twins wanted to make a splash, this would be the hire. The former manager of the Boston Red Sox, John Farrell, was also a splashy name some had mentioned should be a Twins target for the pitching coach position. With another Twins coaching position open, here is another opportunity for fans to dream big.
Much like Baker, Farrell had good success with the Red Sox winning 93 wins in each of the past two seasons. It was an earlier than desired exit from the playoffs that resulted in Farrell being shown the door in Boston. Farrell may choose to take the season off rather than jump right back into the grind of a major league baseball season.
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With all these options the Twins have plenty of great candidates to choose from for the next Twins bench coach. If Falvey and Levine’s short history in hirings says anything, it seems likely that the next bench coach isn’t on this list. In fact, many of us may not even recognize the name of the eventual hire for this position. Who would be the list of candidates you would want to interview for the next Twins bench coach?