Would the Twins Make a Shakeup at Hitting Coach?

Normally, I would say it is way too soon to viably have this conversation, knowing the tendencies of this Twins front office and baseball operation. They tend to not make rash, reactive decisions. Firing the hitting coach, who was handpicked by this same regime only 18 months ago? That would certainly qualify.

However, there are a few different factors in play here that, from my view, at least raise this possibility as a somewhat realistic one. For example:

David Popkins doesn't have a much of a track record to fall back on.

Much like they did with Wes Johnson when they plucked him out of college (or Pete Maki when they elevated from from an analyst role, for that matter), the Twins based their evaluation of Popkins more on projection and potential than concrete proven experience. 

When the Twins hired him after the 2021 season to replace Edgar Varela, Popkins had been the hitting coach for Los Angeles' Single-A team. That was his highest level of coaching experience. Popkins is only 33 years old and frankly there seems to be a reasonable chance he's in over his head, based on the evidence.

The offense did not perform particularly well last year, in his first season on the job, but that was pretty easy to excuse amid the onslaught of injuries. There were some decent signs for Popkins, such as the improvements certain hitters made during the season, and the (related) positive reviews he was getting from players.

This year, it's a very different story so far.

There aren't many excuses for the ongoing struggles of the offense.

No one could reasonably fault Popkins for failing to elevate an absolutely ravaged lineup in the second half of last season. The greatest hitting coach in baseball history isn't going to weaponize an outfield comprising Mark Contreras, Gilberto Celestino and Jake Cave.

This year, however, the Twins have been quite healthy – at least in terms of keeping players on the field. When you've got a batting order filled with established quality hitters who are all getting lost in these ongoing funks, failing to find answers or step to the plate with confident plans, it doesn't reflect well on the guy charged with guiding them through it. 

This is especially striking in a few specific cases.

Young talented hitters are getting completely overwhelmed.

To be clear, I'm writing this article from the standpoint that Popkins could be on the hot seat, not that I necessarily think he should be. But this is probably the biggest factor that would compel me to consider it a valid course of action. 

Seeing Trevor Larnach, Jose Miranda, and Nick Gordon all just completely fall flat on their faces has been really tough to watch. Developing these kinds of emergent MLB-ready bats – helping them navigate challenges and combat adjustments that come along with the sport's harshest transition – strikes me as one of the most vital responsibilities of a hitting coach. Based on results, it's hard to see how Popkins could be faring worse in this regard. 

In many of these cases, there are seemingly clear flaws holding these hitters back, be it Larnach's susceptibility to offspeed pitching or Miranda's hitchy swing that beckons opponents to blow him away with high fastballs. 

I'm not saying these are easy things to fix, but ... they're not getting fixed. At all. None of the issues plaguing hitters throughout the lineup seem to be getting addressed in a meaningful way. And while it's still early in the season, it's not THAT early. We're coming up on the quarter-mark, and ...

This team has high expectations and heavy pressure to perform.

I perceived the past offseason as an emphatic statement from Twins ownership and executives: We're going to pump money into this franchise – ambitious rebranding, ballpark enhancements, Correa – now we better see some results that make a clear impact on the fanbase and revenue.

So far the crowds have been fairly sparse at Target Field, owing partially to cool spring weather but also to a product that is failing to energize and erase lingering skepticism from last year. The Twins are leading a hideously bad AL Central and hanging above .500, sure, but the bar is higher than that. It needs to be. And right now this underperforming offense is the clear and undeniable culprit in keeping them short of it, as the pitching staff continues to go above and beyond.

Now that Miranda's been sent out, there aren't really any remaining roster changes to be made at the moment. The Twins' lineup kind of is what it is for the time being. The question is whether they'll stick with the status quo or seek to shake things up and bring in a new voice. 

That would beg the question of "who," which of course is really the burning question here. Finding a new coach at this point of the season is not easy, though I suspect they have some candidates they like internally. 

Moving on from Popkins would not necessarily be an admission that the Twins were wrong to believe in him, but perhaps that they were a little early on him. There is risk attached to the upside of targeting up-and-comers and pushing them right into the big chair (e.g. Wes Johnson). Popkins is one of the youngest hitting coaches in baseball.

He hasn't had a whole lot of time to establish himself and find his footing. In some ways it feels very unfair that this discussion is even taking place. But it feels like a pivotal time in the Twins' high-stakes season: ascend to the top tier or trudge toward mediocrity. Much is on the line and things are trending badly. Right now Popkins is a simple, semi-credible scapegoat, which puts him at risk.

Such is life with the most volatile job in baseball.