After Do-Hyoung Park's departure, MLB reveals new Twins beat writer

Matthew Leach will begin covering the Twins on Jan. 1.

Matthew Leach / @MatthewHLeach via X

It didn't take long for MLB.com to reveal its new Minnesota Twins beat reporter after Do-Hyoung Park announced he is leaving the position on Saturday.

In fact, it was just a matter of hours after Park announced that he's exiting the job after six seasons for MLB.com to hand the reins to Matthew Leach, who introduced himself in a debut article.

"I’m new to the Twins, but not to covering baseball," Leach began. "From 2002-2011, I was MLB.com’s Cardinals beat reporter. I was a national reporter for about two years after that, but over the last 11 years I moved into editing and management. As I got farther and farther from the game on the field, I missed the daily rhythm of the game, the challenge of working a locker room, the excitement of trying to do a great game justice, and the familiar atmosphere of the press box.

"So here I am, back in one of the most difficult, taxing and best jobs on the planet."

Leach is a Florida native who says he hasn't spent much time in the Twin Cities.

"I know it’s beautiful, I know it’s colder than where I live now (Athens, Georgia), I know it’s a great place for sports, and I know you have a top-notch ballpark. I know you have one of the greatest musical legacies in America, and it’s killing me not to drop a reference here to semi-local band The Hold Steady, but I’ll resist," Leach continued.

What kind of reporter is Leach?

"What I hope you’ll see in my coverage is passion and enthusiasm for the sport, a commitment to fairness, and respect for both you the reader and for the people I cover. I’m not an attack dog but I’m also not a lapdog," he wrote.

Leach will start covering the Twins in earnest on Jan. 1.