You're being old school. Baldelli manages pitchers the same way every other manager in the game manages pitchers. In fact, the Twins leave starters in slightly longer than league average.
I think his primary impact on the team has to do with clubhouse chemistry. He's not a yell in your face, motivate by telling you how much you suck type guy. He encourages players, has their backs, and puts them in spots to succeed. He also has confidence (false or not) that they will succeed. That does go a long way in knowing hey, the manager believes in my skills, my role, and here's what I need to do to get better and help the team win.
For how much the Twins have been banged up, he's done a pretty good job managing who can pitch when, who can play where, etc. The Twins have already had to go what, 14 starters deep? Top 4 starters are ALL unavailable right now and the team is still in first place.