In a move that can’t be considered too surprising, the Minnesota Twins have fired manager Ron Gardenhire after another disappointing season for the ball club.
The #MNTwins announced today that they will replace Ron Gardenhire as manager in 2015.
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) September 29, 2014
Minnesota finished the 2013 campaign with a 70-92 clip and has lost 90-plus games in each of the last four seasons. That comes on the heels of Gardenhire leading the club to the playoffs in six of his first nine seasons with the Twins.
Gardenhire originally took over the managerial job for Tom Kelly in 2002, which means the Twins will have just their third manager since 1987 when the take the field on opening day 2015.
The moves comes with many in Minneapolis calling for Gardenhire’s job following four straight seasons that have seen the Twins finish in last place or challenge for the bottom spot in the AL Central. Some have also pointed to Gardenhire’s lack of postseason success (6-21 in six appearances) as a reason why he should have been removed long before Monday.
In any event, the second-longest tenure for a manager in Twins history came to an end on Monday, as the team looks to turn that page from the last half decade or so.
Photo: Twincities.com