Gurnee native Shelton thankful to get second chance at managing in major leagues

Most sequels aren't as good as the original, but second chances are a different story.

If experience is the best teacher, then a major-league manager will be smarter the second time around.

Gurnee native Derek Shelton will second that opinion. He was let go by the Pirates last year on May 8, early in his sixth season. But now he's back in the dugout, leading the Minnesota Twins, and he was in town this week taking on the White Sox.

“Yeah, it's humbling, it's gratifying,” Shelton said. “I got to spend all summer at home last year, so I think my wife was ready for me to get the heck out of the house, No. 1.

“But I think the most gratifying thing is there were a lot of managers that were fired last year, and I got a job. That speaks a little bit to what the situation was, but hopefully it speaks to a little bit how people feel about me.”

There's a similar example in Chicago. Shelton's former NL Central rival, David Ross, is doing podcasts and still waiting for that second chance to manage after four years with the Cubs.

Shelton, 55, had a solid connection with the Twins, having served as bench coach from 2018-19, under both Rocco Baldelli and Paul Molitor. He went from that job to manager of the Pirates in 2020.

It was a challenging spot, not only dealing with the shortened pandemic season right out of the gate, but the Pirates were in clear and obvious rebuilding mode. The goal was to load up the farm system, and the team lost 100 games in each of Shelton's first two full seasons. The payoff is starting to be felt this year in Pittsburgh.

During those tough times Shelton impressed by keeping the atmosphere light, by staying positive through the losing seasons and by connecting with players. That's likely a reason the Pirates stuck with him as long as they did, and the Twins came calling last October.

“The first year you manage, you're drinking from the fire hose,” Shelton said. “Not only that, it's COVID and there's all the regulations.

“I will take that out of it — I didn't know what I was doing. I don't think any manager the first year, and I thought the fact I was with Roc, and as much as he let me do, that you're prepared. You're never prepared until you do it.”

Given a chance to reflect last year, Shelton admitted he might have gotten lax on the attention to detail. He mentions that as a task he's hoping to correct in Minnesota.

“From my space, I wanted to make sure if I ever did get the next opportunity, that I would stay more on top of it,” he said. “And I would build a staff that stays on top of it.”

One of his hires in Minnesota is Grady Sizemore, now the Twins' first-base coach. Sizemore served as White Sox interim manager in 2024 after the team fired Pedro Grifol, then stayed with the Sox as an assistant last season.

The Shelton-Sizemore connection goes back to Cleveland, when Shelton was the hitting coach during Sizemore's peak playing years from 2005-09.

“It's great. I mean, it's unbelievable,” Shelton said of having Sizemore on his staff. “I was fortunate to coach Grady Sizemore, not the other way around, because he was such an elite player. But there's so much in there.

“The wealth of knowledge, he's so humble. Some of my favorite times are when I get him out for breakfast, out for dinner, and it's just he and I, and you get him talking about the game, because he sees so much.”

Talking baseball comes naturally for Shelton. He grew up in that environment, since his father, Ron, was the longtime varsity coach at Warren Township High School.

Ron Shelton is retired in Florida, and the Twins' spring training home is in Fort Myers, so he got a second chance to be a committed fan during spring games.