There has been a lot reported about the fact that the General Manager with the worst record in the Twins' history, is history himself and a lot of it has to be digested. I promise that I will write extensively what I think about this, when things have settled a bit, but here is my reaction:
More on this later, these are just my first thoughts on the subject...
- Despite feeling that Terry Ryan should not be the General Manager of my favorite team, since he architected the miserable teams to support daddy Pohlad's contraction plans (and, yes, lot's of people who are reading this do not remember that, because they were not following the Twins back then - and I don't blame you,) I did not have Champagne to celebrate his firing.
- Been there, done that. Ryan went away, said that 21st century baseball is way over his head and was hired back 5 years after the fact, and after a hiatus from baseball, presumably making it way way over his head. And that hiring worked really well for the Twins and Ryan. It made Ryan the General Manager with the worst winning record since the Twins moved to MN. Actually with the worst record ever, because until Andy MacPhail was hired, the Twins/Senators did not have a GM, but the owner acted as the GM.
- That press release read way too much like a retirement thing and the Twins have already been there done that with Ryan. And then he came back. Like Michael Corleone in Godfather III. People give too much kudos to Ryan for choosing harakiri now vs. firing in the off-season (and he had a freaking month to make that choice, in addition to have the choice ??!!) Selfish move. His way was the highway. But he wanted it to be his way (pretty sure that someone car write a C&W song for that, and David St Peter might even his/her concern hosted at Target Field.)
- And everyone in the press is exalting Ryan and saying that he will be hired by someone else soon. And: a. we have seen this before with Gardenhire (who was only hired by the person who fired him, the aforementioned Ryan, who just got fired), b. I hope he gets hired by an AL Central team and c. How good is he with a broom?
- Rob Antony is on the spot. Do or die role. Probably the only GM (acting - which is about right) in the MLB whose only qualification is Public Relationships. He's got to do, otherwise the new GM will send him Ryan's way. Hope he surfaces and trades everyone he should trade (Mr Plouffe, Dozier, Santana, Suzuki, Santana, Nolasco, Milone, Abad, Kintzer, etc, that's you.)
- Molitor's interview after the fact was enlightening. And the Twins' reporters did not report it in its entirety. Among other things he said that: a. he wants to be part of the solution (but he said it in a way too weak way) and b. that now he can do some things that he wanted to do. Which makes the obvious more obvious: Molitor and Ryan never saw eye to eye. And Pohlad imposed Molitor to Ryan. And likely the Sano to RF idiocy was imposed to Molitor by Ryan
- But I would not read too much into the Pohlad vote of confidence for Molitor in 2017. In so many words he told the press that Ryan will be the Twins' GM for as long as he wanted to, the same time he was informing him that he will be gone next season. About a month ago. And he did the same for Gardenhire in the middle of the 2014 season. So Pohlad's word are worth... well not so much. His vote of confidence is more akin to a dagger in the back.
- And you will hear a lot about the "great relationship between Terry and Paul" Look at actions, do not believe at words
More on this later, these are just my first thoughts on the subject...
