Twins fire pitching coach Pete Maki, assistant Luis Ramirez

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins announced on Monday they fired pitching coach Pete Maki and assistant pitching coach Luis Ramirez, two of five holdovers from the former manager’s coaching staff.

Both pitching coaches were inherited by Derek Shelton when he was hired to replace Rocco Baldelli as the Twins’ new manager last October.

The Twins, who fell short of the playoffs for a third straight season, ranked 25th in the majors in ERA in 2026.

Maki took over as the team’s interim pitching coach in July 2022 after Wes Johnson shocked the club by leaving in the middle of the season to become the pitching coach at Louisiana State University. Maki was officially appointed Twins pitching coach ahead of the 2023 campaign.

From 2023-26, FanGraphs ranked the Twins 20th in ERA (4.31), tied-eighth in Fielding Independent Pitching (4.01) and ninth in Wins Above Replacement (66.3).

When Shelton took over ahead of the 2026 season, he had a hand in building out the bulk of his new staff. Under Shelton, the Twins added hitting coach Keith Beauregard, bench coach Mark Hallberg, first-base coach Grady Sizemore, assistant bench coach Mike Rabelo, bullpen coach LaTroy Hawkins and field coordinator Toby Gardenhire to the staff.

In addition to Maki and Ramirez, third-base coach Ramon Borrego and assistant hitting coaches Trevor Amicone and Rayden Sierra were the only other coaches retained after Baldelli’s ouster.

Before he took over for Johnson, Maki was the team’s bullpen coach from 2020-22. He also spent two seasons as the team’s minor-league pitching coordinator from 2018-19.

A veteran of the organization for 21 seasons, Ramirez was named the team’s assistant pitching coach in November 2021. Ramirez originally joined the Twins in 2006, spending the first part of his career working with pitchers at the team’s Venezuelan academy.

Before he left the academy, Ramirez was elevated to the Gulf Coast League Twins in 2012. He became the GCL pitching coach in 2014 and then made stops along the way at four different Twins minor-league affiliates, last serving as the team’s Double-A pitching coach in 2021.

The Twins also announced the exit of assistant athletic trainer Jason Kirkman, who was in his seventh season with the club.