MINNEAPOLIS -- Former American League MVP Award winner Justin Morneau is set to officially retire at a news conference at Target Field on Wednesday and join the Twins as a special assistant.
Morneau, a four-time All-Star who played 11 seasons with the Twins, will join a front office that includes former Twins players Michael Cuddyer, Torii Hunter and LaTroy Hawkins. Morneau already joined the Twins last week at their annual organizational meetings in Fort Myers, Fla. He'll be joined at Wednesday's news conference by Twins president Dave St. Peter and chief baseball officer Derek Falvey.
Morneau, 36, finished his 14-year career with 1,603 hits and 247 home runs, holding a .281/.348/.481 slash line. In addition to his four All-Star selections and his 2006 AL MVP Award with the Twins, he won the NL batting title in '14 with the Rockies.

The last appearance of Morneau's playing career turned out to be with Team Canada in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He remained a free agent for the duration of the '17 season, and he will now join the front office of the organization with which he spent the first decade of his career.
It's likely that Morneau will also serve as a Spring Training instructor like Cuddyer, Hunter and Hawkins. Morneau, who was a clubhouse leader throughout his Major League career, can help serve as a mentor for the club's younger players while also dispensing advice on hitting and defense at first base.
Morneau is essentially a lock to join the Twins' Hall of Fame, and finished his 14-year career hitting .281/.348/.481 with 247 homers and 985 RBIs in 1,545 games with the Twins, Pirates, Rockies and White Sox. He dealt with injuries late in his career, including a concussion suffered in 2009 that caused him to miss the rest of the season, with symptoms lingering for the next two years.