With the offseason now in full swing, the Minnesota Twins have been working towards sorting out their new coaching staff. After Rocco Baldelli was fired , and Derek Shelton was brought in , there was guaranteed to be turnover for the new skipper.
Jayce Tingler left for the San Francisco Giants , and Tommy Watkins went to the Atlanta Braves . We already knew about LaTroy Hawkins , Grady Sizemore , and Keith Beauregard joining the staff. Now it's complete with a big position and big name filled.
Shelton's bench coach was always going to be a key role needing to be filled. There was desire to tab James Rowson for the job , but instead it will be Mark Hallberg. The other significant name rounding out the staff is a promotion for Triple-A manager Toby Gardenhire.
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Introducing our 2026 coaching staff! pic.twitter.com/O0I2GyC49T
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 14, 2025
Hallberg is a 39-year-old former 9th round pick . He played 509 minor league games but never reached the majors. He has coached first and third base for the San Francisco Giants since 2021.
Toby Gardenhire is the son of former Minnesota manager Ron Gardenhire. He has been considered in managerial searches previously, and takes over as the Twins field coordinator. Gardenhire played 533 games in the minors for Minnesota, and started coaching in the organization as the Cedar Rapids Kernels manager in 2018. He has managed the Saints since 2021.
Mike Rabelo also is joining the Twins staff as an assistant bench coach. He comes to Minnesota after working with Shelton on the Pittsburgh Pirates staff.
With Toby Gardenhire earning a big league promotion, the manager position with the St. Paul Saints is now up for grabs. The minor league coaching staffs aren't typically announced until later in the winter.
Carlos Hernandez and Jonas Lovin served as pitching coaches last season for the Saints. Shawn Schlecter was was the hitting coach. It's possible any of them could be named the manager.
Former Twins big leaguer Brian Dinkelman managed Double-A Wichita last season . He has served in the organization for quite some time, and a promotion to Triple-A may make sense as well.
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