Tom Kelly (baseball)

Jay Thomas Kelly (born August 15, 1950 in Graceville, Minnesota) is the former manager of the Minnesota Twins baseball team from 1986 to 2001. Under his tenure, the Twins won two World Series crowns in the span of five years (1987 and 1991); however, from 1994 to 1997 a long sequence of retirements and injuries (including superstars Kent Hrbek and Kirby Puckett) hurt the team badly, and Kelly spent the remainder of his managerial career rebuilding the Twins. In 1998, management cleared out the team of all of its players earning over 1 million dollars (except for pitcher Brad Radke) and rebuilt from the ground up; the team barely avoided finishing in the cellar that year, finishing just five games ahead of perennial cellar dwellers Detroit Tigers and avoiding the humiliating mark of 100 losses by just eight games. His efforts paid off the year after he retired from the Twins, with a threepeat of divisional championships in 2002, 2003, and 2004. Kelly was succeeded as manager of the Twins by Ron Gardenhire.

Related Topics:
August 15 - 1950 - Graceville, Minnesota - Manager - Minnesota Twins - 1986 - 2001 - World Series - 1987 - 1991 - 1994 - 1997 - Kent Hrbek - Kirby Puckett - Brad Radke - Detroit Tigers - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - Ron Gardenhire

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Kelly's managerial style has been described as "even-keel," emphasizing consistent performance over the span of a season rather than flashy individual game performance. Under his and successor Gardenhire's leadership, the Twins have been widely known for playing the kind of fundamental baseball that wins ball games consistently, rather than having individual superstar players, although a number of well-known stars have emerged from the Twins organization under their leadership (most notably Kirby Puckett and Torii Hunter).

Related Topics:
Kirby Puckett - Torii Hunter

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