HAYES: Twins to Hire Wes Johnson as Pitching Coach

OK, well that is stepping out of the box. Seems like an interesting gambit that the braintrust is gambling on. Hope it works.

Interesting he was selected for pitching coach. With his background, I could see the FO hiring him to be minor league pitching coordinator. He has some new challenges ahead - an MLB season is a lot different than college. Congratulations to Wes Johnson and hope it all works out for the best!

He may undoubtedly have some challenges at the pro level, but I fully believe that you can either coach or you cannot (much like leadership, you either have the ability or you do not).   There is little in between.  

Good luck Coach Johnson, I bid you welcome to our little pond.

I don't care if they hire Dr. Seuss if he can help pitchers get better and reach their potential.

It will be interesting to see how the veteran pitchers on the roster respond to someone with no pro coaching experience.

I don't see this being an issue. Players, at any level, realize very quickly if their coaches know what they are talking about or not. 

If nothing else, its a interesting hire

Didn't our Timberwolves draft him over DeMarcus Cousins?

Similar pedigree to Brewers (now Reds) pitching coach Derek Johnson. Johnson did a pretty good job with a Brewers staff that lacked a true ace.  

Given recent history, he might want to rent instead of buy.

He must have an overwhelming ability to sell both his view on pitching and himself. I agree with Chief, this is an all in choice. Nowhere to hide if it fails. This seems another indication that the first two years were look, learn, and evaluate. Now it's time to implement.

This comes completely out of left field! It could be a HUGE reach, or a new-age brilliant move. I will tell you that Arkansas head coach Dave VanHorn is outstanding and well respected. He re-built the Husker Basball team here in Nebraska to a nationally ranked program and his then pitching coach RB Childress, (I believe he's at Texas A&M now but can't recall clearly), built quality staffs and had several guys drafted. Since moving back to his almamatter at Arkansasm that program has been excellent and IIRC, has sent more than a couple guys to the draft. I have a lot of respect for Dave VanHorn, so I'm going to be looking at Johnson as a good hire.

Completely unrelated, but now I know why they keep Eddie Rosario in left field--he fulfills the prophecy of this old metaphor perfectly.

Twins hire a teacher as pitching coach.

From the videos, he's plugged in and ready to teach, help, critique and learn.

What's not to like?