Two weeks after the Twins fired manager Rocco Baldelli, the club is reaching the interview stage with at least a few candidates.
The Twins are expected to conduct interviews with New York Yankees hitting coach James Rowson, former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton and Boston Red Sox bench coach Ramón Vázquez.
Rowson, 49, spent three years as the Twins hitting coach, which included the 2019 Bomba Squad. He was also a bench coach for the Miami Marlins and a hitting coach with the Detroit Tigers before joining the Yankees for the 2024 season.
Shelton had a 306-449 record (.410) in a little more than five seasons managing the Pirates with zero playoff appearances. Shelton, 55, was a Twins bench coach for two seasons, from 2018-19.
Vázquez, 49, has been with the Red Sox since 2018, a part of a World Series champion team in his first year. He has worked as Alex Cora’s bench coach over the last four years. A major league infielder for parts of nine seasons, he has three years of coaching experience in Houston’s minor league system and he was a part of San Diego’s major league staff in 2017.
The New York Post first reported the Twins requested permission to interview Rowson and Vázquez. The Twins are one of eight teams with a managerial opening this offseason.
Two teams, the Texas Rangers (Skip Schumaker) and Pirates (Don Kelly), already filled their managerial jobs this offseason without conducting an external search. Schumaker was in the Rangers’ front office and Kelly was Pittsburgh’s interim manager after it fired Shelton in May.
The Twins interviewed around a dozen candidates during their last managerial search before hiring Baldelli, who lasted seven seasons.
