GM Terry Ryan and manager Paul Molitor received a vote of confidence Thursday.
GM Terry Ryan and manager Paul Molitor received a vote of confidence Thursday. (USATSI)

A year ago the Twins came out of nowhere to win 83 games and remain in the postseason hunt until late September. Many pundits, myself included, expected them to finish in last place.

Things are not going as well this year. The Twins lost their first nine games of 2016 and they will go into Friday with the AL's worst record at 8-20. They're bad, folks. They've looked every bit as bad as their record.

Despite the slow start, owner Jim Pohlad gave both general manager Terry Ryan and manager Paul Molitor a vote of confidence while speaking to Chip Scoggins of the Star Tribune. Pohlad called Ryan "the right guy" for the job, and had this to say about Molitor:

"No, Paul has our total support," he said. "I don't believe that that's the problem. I believe that somebody on this team has to step up as individuals and start winning some games for us. I don't mean the team. I mean individuals have to step up and win games. They do on other teams. We've got to do it for our team."

Pohlad called the team's rough start a "total system failure," and he's right. The Twins haven't done much of anything well so far this season. They're not hitting, they're not pitching, nothing. You don't go 8-20 by accident.

It's not uncommon for a vote of confidence to be followed by a firing -- there's a reason it's called the "dreaded vote of confidence" -- but I don't think that will happen here. The Pohlads have been loyal to Ryan for years (and years and years), and Molitor did a nice job last season. I would be surprised to see a change.

Now, does that mean keeping Ryan and Molitor is the right move? Not necessarily. Ryan has been running things in Minnesota for a long time, and it might be time to bring in a new voice. An outside voice with fresh ideas and an unbiased view of the organization. A fresh start, basically.

As for Molitor, well, firing him accomplishes little. The problem is the roster, not his managerial style. That said, the manager is often first to go, not the GM.