ORLANDO – Former Twins manager Rocco Baldelli, two months after his exit from the organization, is joining the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Baldelli is taking a front office role with the Dodgers, two people familiar with the hire told the Minnesota Star Tribune. Baldelli has a long history with Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations, from their time together with the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Twins fired Baldelli with one year remaining in his contract after the club missed the playoffs for the fourth time in the last five years, finishing the 2025 season with a 70-92 record.
Baldelli, 44, had a 527-505 record (.511 winning percentage) in seven seasons with the Twins, which included a playoff series win in 2023 and three American League Central titles. Baldelli was named the AL manager of the year in 2019.
Baldelli worked as a special assistant for Friedman in Tampa Bay immediately after his playing career was cut short in 2010 because of a mitochondrial disorder.
Many of the coaches on Baldelli’s staff who didn’t return to the Twins after the team hired Derek Shelton landed similar jobs elsewhere: Jayce Tingler (Giants bench coach), Matt Borgschulte (Nationals hitting coach), Hank Conger (Orioles bullpen coach), Tommy Watkins (Braves third base coach) and Colby Suggs (Rangers bullpen coach).
