ANAHEIM, Calif. — Torii Hunter is looking forward to opening up his fifth barbecue restaurant later this year. He’s involved in commercial real estate, a couple of coffee shops and a cigar lounge, too. Oh, and he’s got six young grandchildren running around.
All this to say, life is pretty busy for the former Twins outfielder these days.
While he interviewed for the Los Angeles Angels managerial position over the winter, he’s not quite ready to dive headfirst back into baseball, but it did pique his interest for potentially down the line.
For now, he’s taken a job with the Angels as a special assistant to the general manager.
“I still have so much going on,” Hunter said. “I couldn’t give my full mind, body and soul to the game just yet. I’m on probation right now. I’ve got one more year. My kids are out of the house. I’m just easing my way back in.”
Probation? Baseball probation?
“Baseball used to be No. 1, then it was my wife,” Hunter explained. “Now, it’s my wife, family, grandkids, then baseball. I’m getting back in there.”
Hunter played 19 seasons in the majors, 12 of which were in Minnesota. He previously served in a similar front office role with the Twins. He spent five years near the end of his playing career with the Angels, mentoring a young Mike Trout.
When the Angels reached out last offseason about his interest level, he started thinking about getting more involved once again. While he may not be managing yet, Hunter has done plenty to give back to young players.
That includes Twins third baseman Royce Lewis, who works with Hunter and his son, Torii Jr., in the offseason. Hunter developed a friendship with William Lewis, Royce’s father, while he was playing, and William would mention from time to time that he had a son who played baseball. Hunter eventually took on a mentorship role with the younger Lewis.
This offseason, outfielder Trevor Larnach followed Lewis down to Texas, working with Hunter and the group they have in the Dallas area.
Training with the 48-year-old, nine-time Gold Glove Award winner was a “blessing,” Larnach said.
“There’s a lot of info nowadays, and it helps to listen to someone who’s had quite the career as he had,” Larnach said.
Though Larnach had talked with Hunter in the past, he said it was a lot different than a 20-30-minute chat during spring training. Hunter would open up his place and they would chat for hours about the ins and outs of the game, Larnach said.
And while Hunter still has some probation time before jumping back headfirst into baseball, that may be in his future.
“You want to have an opportunity to build a team and manage a team, give some of these secrets in Pandora’s box and give these young men wisdom,” Hunter said. “Wisdom, I always say, will heal pain. I struck out a lot, made some adjustments. Failed a lot, made some adjustments. That’s something that I want to give back.”
Briefly
Reliever Jhoan Duran threw a scoreless inning on rehab in St. Paul, striking out a pair of batters. He threw 15 pitches, nine for strikes, and the final pitch of his outing clocked in at 102.9 miles per hour. Manager Rocco Baldelli said the Twins had not determined whether Duran would make another rehab outing before rejoining the Twins. … Carlos Correa (intercostal strain) hit on the field before Saturday’s game for the first time. He is likely to be activated during the Twins’ upcoming trip to Chicago.
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