FORT MYERS, Fla. — Nearly 20 years ago, Rocco Baldelli was finishing up high school at Bishop Hendricken in Warwick, having proved to be one of the best baseball players in the country, going sixth overall to the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2000 Major League Baseball draft. Now, he’s fielding questions from reporters as manager of the Minnesota Twins, taking over for Hall of Famer Paul Molitor.

Baldelli dealt with only a small group of reporters on Thursday, though there [...]

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Nearly 20 years ago, Rocco Baldelli was finishing up high school at Bishop Hendricken in Warwick, having proved to be one of the best baseball players in the country, going sixth overall to the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2000 Major League Baseball draft. Now, he’s fielding questions from reporters as manager of the Minnesota Twins, taking over for Hall of Famer Paul Molitor.

Baldelli dealt with only a small group of reporters on Thursday, though there was a fair amount to cover with the Twins lighting up the scoreboard in a 12-1 win over the Red Sox. But Baldelli still handles each question with poise and a calculated approach, while still mixing in some humor; at one point, he jokingly accused a reporter of peeking at one of his note cards.

Though he doesn’t give everything away, like most managers, Baldelli does not dance around the questions regarding each of his players. For example, he was asked about former Yankee Ronald Torreyes’ versatility and what he projects his role to be.

“Well, he’s capable of doing many different things,” Baldelli said. “He’s got the baseball player gene inside him, as well, where you could put him in any situation and he has the ability to figure out a way to make it work. You can put him all around the infield. He has a nice compact bat, line-drive hitter. Likes to hit and run — it’s his personal preference, actually, which is kind of interesting. But he does all of these things that has — he has the ability to do it and also makes the guys around him better because he’s a great teammate and a great guy, as well. There’s not a lot to be critical of. The way he takes care of business every day, it’s a pleasure to be around him and makes you want to keep complimenting him because he does all these things. He is the definition of a versatile guy who can do a lot of different things to help you.”

While Baldelli is quick to compliment Torreyes and other players on his roster, he’ll need to have a difficult conversation with a few of them in the coming days, with the first round of cuts approaching in the next couple of days.

“It’ll be new. It’ll be different than anything that I’ve kind of been a part of before,” Baldelli said. “But in one regard, sometimes there are disappointing parts of those conversations, but I think there are also really constructive parts of those conversations that come up and actually help a lot of guys when they do return to the minor leagues with the hope of, of course, getting back to the big leagues. Those are the kinds of conversations you hope you can actually turn into a positive and a constructive back-and-forth between us and the player. I’m sure there’s certainly an aspect of them that are not particularly fun. You don’t wait for these days. These are not the most fun days, but I think there can be positives that can come out of them.”

Those decisions won’t be the last that Baldelli makes as manager, but he’s dealt with plenty of challenges leading up to this point. Whether it be first breaking into pro ball fresh out of high school or the mitochondrial channelopathy that cut his playing days short, he has plenty of experience dealing with adversity that can help him guide players through their tough times, as well as battle through his own as manager.

“I feel like in some ways, although some times are difficult to deal with at the moment, and even going forward, that the lows and highs that I’ve experienced and that we’ve all experienced are what gives us perspective and what gives us the ability to relate to others and makes us who we are.

“I wouldn’t trade any of the trials or anything negative or difficult that’s gone on in my life," he said. "I wouldn’t trade any of that away for anything. As tough as it was, I think it’s helped me in a lot of ways.”

The Twins manager is not the same kid from Woonsocket who made his pro ball debut at the rookie level with the Princeton Devil Rays in West Virginia at the ripe age of 18. Looking back, his younger self might be surprised to see him sitting in a manager’s office, making decisions that affect the success of an MLB club.

“I would think so, actually. I mean, that’s a pretty deep thought right there, trying to look back and see what is going to happen,” Baldelli said. “At the time I was in high school, I didn’t really, I didn’t know what I was thinking. I was more worried about — you know, one thing I did know was I wanted to play baseball.”

One thing that’s perhaps remained the same since his days at Hendricken is Baldelli’s appreciation for the food in and around Rhode Island. Though, that’s not what he misses most about the Ocean State.

“The people first, and the food second. I love going home and I love eating out there, too. But my friends and family, of course, are the reason why I love being home.”