Twins offer manager job to Molitor

Paul Molitor was runner-up for the Twins' managerial job when Ron Gardenhire was hired instead in 2002. Thirteen years later, Molitor is poised to succeed Gardenhire in the job.

The Twins have offered Molitor, a Hall of Fame player and a coach on Gardenhire's staff last season, a contract as the 13th manager in team history, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the search. The team plans to introduce its new manager Tuesday morning at Target Field, one source said, barring a last-minute change of heart by Twins owner Jim Pohlad and the team's front office, or a snag in negotiations over financial terms and coaching staff.

Molitor was the first candidate to be interviewed by General Manager Terry Ryan, two days after Gardenhire was fired Sept. 29, and he has been widely rumored to be the front-runner for the job ever since, despite never having managed before. Ryan has interviewed Molitor three times in the intervening five weeks, and was joined by Pohlad, whose team is making its first managerial change under his ownership, in the most recent meeting.

Pohlad also flew to Los Angeles last week to meet with Boston Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo, the other finalist for the job. The sources say that all indications, however, are that Pohlad continued to prefer Molitor, a St. Paul native, as the team's third manager in 29 seasons, and he was offered the job late this week, pending agreement on a contract.

Doug Mientkiewicz, who has managed the Twins' Class A Fort Myers affiliate the past two seasons, has been informed he will not be Gardenhire's successor, though the former Twins first baseman is expected to be promoted to one of the organization's top two farm clubs, either Class AAA Rochester or AA Chattanooga, once the major league staff is finalized. Mientkiewicz interviewed twice for the job after leading the Fort Myers Miracle to the Florida State League championship in September.

The five-week search has also included interviews, some more formal than others, with Twins bench coach Terry Steinbach, Rochester manager Gene Glynn, Cleveland bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. and Toronto bench coach DeMarlo Hale. Ryan also inquired about former Rays manager Joe Maddon, who was hired Friday by the Cubs. Maddon's predecessor in Chicago, Rick Renteria, had not been contacted by the Twins as of Saturday.

And after considering those candidates and more, the search apparently always came back to Molitor, who ended his 21-year playing career with three seasons on his hometown team. His .312 batting average with the Twins over three seasons ranks behind only Rod Carew, Joe Mauer and Kirby Puckett in team history among players with as many as his 1,700 at-bats.

As good a player as he was — Molitor was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 2004, gaining 85.2 percent of the vote — the 58-year-old former Gophers player has never managed a team at any level. He joined former manager Tom Kelly's staff as a coach in 2000-01, served as hitting coach for the Seattle Mariners in 2004, spent nearly a decade as a minor league instructor in Minnesota's organization and last winter joined Gardenhire's staff to coach bunting, baserunning and infield play. He became first-base coach in July when Joe Vavra was sidelined by a hip injury.

Molitor will become only the third manager in major league history (interim jobs aside) to be hired as manager after being elected to the Hall of Fame, joining Ted Williams and Ryne Sandberg in that elite class.

Staff writers Patrick Reusse and La Velle E. Neal III contributed to this report.