Minnesota Twins Hire Familiar Hitting Coach From Out of AL East

The Minnesota Twins didn’t make a lot of changes this offseason, even after a complete failure down the stretch this season. Rocco Baldelli was always going to return . Pitching coach Pete Maki is still here too.

GM Thad Levine became the main fall guy. The rest of the blame was laid on Twins hitting coaches David Popkins, Rudy hernandez and Derek Shomon (and infield coach Tony Diaz). To replace them, the Twins looked to the Baltimore Orioles organization for a familiar face.

Matt Borgschulte is back for the Minnesota Twins

Matt Borgschulte held the title of co-hitting coach for the Baltimore Orioles last season, alongside Ryan Fuller. He now returns to an organization he knows well, this time as their hitting coach. Prior to joining Baltimore, Borgschulte was a minor league hitting coach in the Twins organization.

Related: 4 Surprising Minnesota Twins Non-Tender Candidates

At the time of Borgschulte’s departure from Minnesota, he was among multiple coaches (including Tanner Swanson and Jeremy Hefner) that were poached for promotions, before it made sense for the Twins to do it internally. Now, he returns to an organization that he helped develop. The Twins’ 26-man roster is packed with hitters he has previously worked with.

Minnesota’s bats became a serious problem down the stretch . Yes, the pitching performances weren’t good for most of this season. But no doubt it was their inability to produce at the plate that really sank the Twins down the stretch into 2024. Yes, the Orioles faded a bit late this year as well, but offensively they produced the fourth-most fWAR across all of Major League Baseball.

This move is a significant win for the Twins. Not only do they get someone with familiarity, but Borgschulte is choosing Minnesota, even though it’s mostly a lateral move. The Orioles have young stars like Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser, Jackson Holliday, and Gunnar Henderson.

Related: Aaron Gleeman Trashes Minnesota Twins Ownership AGAIN

For Matt Borgschulte, he can now be the guy , working with Royce Lewis, Brooks Lee and Edouard Julien, guys he’s worked with in the past..It seems likely that the Twins will hire additional coaches to supplement Borgschulte. He will probably speak into an assistant of some sorts. This could be the end of Baldelli having two equal hitting coaches operating in tandem though.

More must-reads:

• Are the 2024 New York Jets a Reincarnation of the 2010 Minnesota Vikings?
• Minnesota Vikings Injury Updates – Latest on Hockenson, Risner, Jones and Cashman
• Minnesota Twins Utility Player a Surprise Finalist for Somewhat New Gold Glove Award