The Twins fired Ron Gardenhire more than three weeks ago. At the time, GM Terry Ryan said there was no timetable for how long the process of finding a successor would take, but the best guess now is that it won't happen until after the World Series — meaning it will be at least four weeks from Gardy's firing date of Monday, Sept. 29.
How fast the Twins move ultimately won't matter. But the most recent update offered by La Velle E. Neal on Wednesday makes us wonder: are the Twins taking their time and making sure they make a thorough decision at this point, or are they stalled?
We ask because all three of the top identified candidates (Paul Molitor, Doug Mientkiewicz and Torey Lovullo) have reportedly either interviewed multiple times or the Twins have permission to do so.
And yet Ryan is reportedly open to the idea of expanding the search to new candidates, and owner Jim Pohlad hasn't yet been in on any of the interviews.
That first piece of information is a sign, at least to us, that either Ryan isn't sold on any of the three front-runners or that his preferred candidate among the three — whomever it might be, though a lot of people would presume it to be Molitor — isn't sold on the job from his end.
That second piece of information is a sign, at least to us, that the Twins really aren't that close to making a decision. Pohlad presumably will be brought in only for the final interview with the candidate Ryan wants to hire.
Again, the timing won't ultimately matter much. The process, though, is interesting and right now it's reasonable to wonder if the wheels are turning — or if they're just spinning.
