Minnesota Twins Hire 37-Year-Old Rocco Baldelli, Youngest Manager In Majors

English: Rocco Baldelli with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Date 10 May 2007 (Wikipedia Commons. Author: Keith Allison)

The Minnesota Twins ushered in a new era in the Twin Cities Thursday morning by hiring 37-year-old Rocco Baldelli, the youngest manager In Major League Baseball.

Twins Hire Youngest Manager In MLB

Baldelli is a former player for the Tampa Bay Rays and sees his first managerial position with Minnesota. Baldelli saw several positions with the Rays, including first-base coach and field coordinator before the full-time hire Thursday. The hire, though in line with many of the young core and direction of the team, comes as a bit of a surprise considering the previous manager, Paul Molitor, won the 2017 Manager of the Year Award.

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The long-time Ray amassed ten career Wins Above Replacement, though he doesn’t exactly see the advanced metrics movement as a revolutionary tactic despite his youthful disposition.

“Analytics is just a word,” Baldelli said about advanced metrics. “Really, all we’re trying to do is put players in better position to succeed. It’s a huge asset to have more information and the ability to use it. The info doesn’t do anything in and of itself. It’s having people who can use that info.”

This is the first time the Twins have hired a manager from outside the organization in over three decades.