Minnesota Twins manager Paul Molitor finished in third in the voting for the American League Manager of the Year award.
Molitor received 33 votes for the award finishing behind winner Jeff Banister, of the Texas Rangers, and Houston’s A.J. Hinch. Banister received 112 votes to Hinch’s 82.
Molitor led the Twins to an 83-79 record and second place finish in the American League Central during his first year as the team’s manager. It snapped a four-year stretch of 90-loss seasons that brought Ron Gardenhire’s tenure as Twins manager to an end.
But the Twins failed to make the playoffs after they were swept in their final series of the regular season by the eventual World Champion Kansas City Royals.
Molitor was able to help turn the Twins around despite dealing with some big challenges. CBS Sports notes, including:
- Losing Ervin Santana for the first half of the season due to a suspension
- A 1-6 start after being outscored 45-16 in those first seven games
- Giving 226 starts to rookies Eddie Rosario, Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton
- And an offense ranking 14th in the A-L in average, 15th in on-base percentage and 12th in slugging, while the pitching staff ranked 10th in ERA.
