The Minnesota Twins in the next few days are expected to wrap up negotiations with manager Ron Gardenhire on a contract extension and sign the coaching staff for at least one more year, according to a person with knowledge of the talks.
Gardenhire, whose current contract expires following the 2009 season, arrived in Fort Myers, Fla., on Wednesday as the club prepares for its annual organizational meetings that start later this week.
Gardenhire is expected to huddle with general manager Bill Smith and hammer out an extension -- although Gardenhire historically makes sure his coaching staff is taken care of before he addresses his deal.
The members of the coaching staff -- bench coach Steve Liddle, hitting coach Joe Vavra, pitching coach Rick Anderson, bullpen coach Rick Stelmaszek, first base coach Jerry White and third base coach Scott Ullger -- were told late in the season that they were wanted back in 2009.
Smith would only confirm Wednesday that Gardenhire was coming to town and that they would speak to each other.
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But earlier in the week, Smith said: "You know how highly this organization thinks of Ron Gardenhire and the entire coaching staff."
