Breaking Down Minnesota Twins Hire of Derek Shelton

The Minnesota Twins named former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton the team’s next manager officially on Thursday.

This move ends a search that began when the team fired Rocco Baldelli, who spent seven years at the helm, with a career 527-505 record.

According to Dan Hayes of The Athletic, the finalists were Shelton, New York Yankees hitting coach James Rowson, Chicago Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty, and longtime Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais. Ultimately, the Twins went for the former Pirates skipper, who served alongside Rowson as bench coach in Minnesota from 2018 to 2019.

“We’ve seen firsthand the trust and respect he earns from players and how he helps them reach their best,” team president Derek Falvey said in a released statement. “His journey, through both the successes and the tough stretches, has given him real perspective as a leader.”

In parts of five-plus seasons with the Pirates, Shelton had a 306-440 record. However, the Pirates showed incremental improvement each year from 2020 to 2023, before finishing with a 76-86 record again in 2024. Then, after opening 2025 12-26, Shelton lost his job.

It’s hard to take the 55-year-old’s record at face value when analyzing his managerial ability.

At no point during his time in Pittsburgh were the Pirates higher than 26th in team payroll. To be fair, most of their exciting players are on pre-arbitration, but they’ve taken flack for their treatment of veterans in recent years.

Perhaps a bit of lip service, but team owner Bob Nutting said upon firing Shelton that the Pirates needed to “act with a sense of urgency” and acknowledged the first quarter of 2025 had been “frustrating and painful.”

General manager Ben Cherington also mentioned the team needed to play better, as the fans deserved better. Again, referring back to the team’s payroll it feels a bit ironic to hear those words from the GM.

“We know we need to be better,” when firing the guy that you, more or less, refused to help in six years sounds ridiculous.

That said, they were a lot better under Don Kelly. Under the interim skipper, they had the fourth-best staff ERA in baseball (3.59), as well as fWAR (15.6).

Overall, they went 59-65 from May 9 onward. It’s nothing to write home about, but a 77-win pace is an improvement on the 76 wins in 2023 and 2024.

Under Shelton, they were tied for 21st in team ERA and ranked 18th in fWAR. Not bad, more mediocre, but they played at a 51-win pace through his 38 games at the helm. Maybe a coincidence, but hard to chalk up such a drastic and immediate improvement up to that.

Regardless, it’s a fascinating hire for the Twins to say the least. Preferring someone with managerial experience, especially with a young roster, is fine. That immediately eliminates Rowson and Flaherty. Yet, it’s hard to see the logic behind choosing Shelton over Servais when comparing resumes.

Sure, you could argue the Mariners had better rosters and only making it to October once can be a stain for Servais. But the Pirates never threated October with Shelton, who got passed up for the Twins job when Baldelli replaced Molitor ahead of 2019.

What changed between 2019 and 2025 that makes Shelton the better candidate?

To be honest, the Twins changed, and they’ve been changing for the worse each day for a few years now.

Where a lot of teams might look at the 2023 season as a steppingstone, the Twins saw it as an opportunity to take a battering ram to the roster. After winning its first series since 2002, Minnesota cut tax payroll.

While $14 million isn’t much of a cut, they did let right-hander Sonny Gray leave for St. Louis that winter. They then cut payroll again ahead of 2025, from $159 million to $139 million.

All of those figures are higher than what Shelton worked with in Pittsburgh, but all signs point to Minnesota likely cutting payroll again this winter. Not only that, but they reportedly were also engaged in trade talks with the Boston Red Sox at the deadline for right-hander Joe Ryan.

While they could recoup some big-league talent in any Ryan deal, that’s a drastic decline in starting pitching pedigree.

Nothing against Shelton, a man who received high praise for his character when Pittsburgh relieved him. Unfortunately for him, this hire feels more symbolic in the times Minnesota is in.

They’re not interested in competing for a playoff spot in 2026, maybe not even 2027. As a result, they hired a familiar face that somewhat can remind Twins fans of an exciting period in their history.

It’s a shame, truly. The American League Central feels like a crapshoot annually; a couple of savvy offseason moves puts you right in the thick of contention. There’s uncertainty surrounding the Detroit Tigers and ace Tarik Skubal mixed with a perpetual lack of financial investment in Cleveland.

The Twins, despite going 70-92 in 2025, have the framework for a strong team next year. Infielder Luke Keaschall was awesome in 49 games last year; they are returning outfielder Byron Buxton and could return a two-headed monster of Ryan and Pablo Lopez in the rotation. Additionally, the Christian Vazquez contract comes off the books this winter, opening up more room to spend.

Winning doesn’t have to be so far away for Minnesota. The sad truth is it probably will be. While Shelton can certainly learn to win alongside an up-and-coming roster, the act of hiring him signifies the harsh reality of another rebuild.