3 Twins thoughts from Patrick

[DocBauer]

Some very interesting ideas. I would not be surprised at all with Ryan stepping down/retiring. This is his second term, the losing has to wear, he's had health issues previously, and no insult, but he's get older as well.

 

Part of me says pride would make him stay another year in an attempt to further the team along, see more of his coveted prospects reach the majors, and leave with a feeling of satisfaction. On the other hand, there are all the factors I've already listed above, and a sense that no matter what, with all the proslects, (struggling this season or not), at the ML ,evel, in AAA, AA and below, he could walk away feeling he's done what he truly set out to do: rebuild the farm system and leave the organization in a better place than when he came back, with a brighter future. His legacy would be all this upcoming and arriving young talent.

 

I wonder, what wouled make him more likely to walk away; the team continuing a poor season/record, or, a better second half filled with more young talent getting their shot and moving up closer in the milb ranks?

[nicksaviking]

Even if Hoyer won't leave because they want to finish what they started in Chicago, there are plenty of other opportunities to do something similar. John Mozeliak in St. Louis or Neil Huntington in Pittsburgh could be considered assuming that to get an existing successful GM the team would be promoting them to Team President. They may not be a good fit, but they c/w/sh-ould be considered.

 

I'd say the chances of the Pohlad's doing something drastic are less than 50/50, but I also think all bets are off if attendance continues to dwindle. I think last year's surprise team saved some jobs, another backslide with the much heralded prospects we were all told to be patient with could easily be justification for wholesale changes. Success now, with these guys is what Ryan and the front office were pinning their entire campaign on through the "rebuilding" period.

[USAFChief]

 

Even if Hoyer won't leave because they want to finish what they started in Chicago, there are plenty of other opportunities to do something similar. John Mozeliak in St. Louis or Neil Huntington in Pittsburgh could be considered assuming that to get an existing successful GM the team would be promoting them to Team President. They may not be a good fit, but they c/w/sh-ould be considered.

 

I'd say the chances of the Pohlad's doing something drastic are less than 50/50, but I also think all bets are off if attendance continues to dwindle. I think last year's surprise team saved some jobs, another backslide with the much heralded prospects we were all told to be patient with could easily be justification for wholesale changes. Success now, with these guys is what Ryan and the front office were pinning their entire campaign on through the "rebuilding" period.

concur.

 

Unless there's some sort of miracle turn around, and quick, I think ownership realizes they HAVE to make significant change.  They are bleeding attendance, they are on the verge of falling off the front page of the sports section, and the Vikings open camp in a couple months, which will further remove them from the average sports fans' consciousness.  As it stands right now, they will lose further season ticket sales base over the winter.

 

What they do is anyone's guess, but I'd actually be surprised if they did nothing significant.  Replacing TR is the logical move.

[Mike Sixel]

Ticket sales are usually based on last year's results.....so next year is going to be very, very bad.

 

And, I hope it is very, very bad. Until they start having money issues, I don't see massive changes.

[rghrbek]

 

I'm not really a basketball guy, but it seems like while Thibodeau is an encouraging hire, he is something less than an elite hire, like Hoyer as GM would represent.  (Or Maddon as manager would have represented last winter.)  Thibodeau was fired from his last coaching job less than a year ago.  Does he even have any front office experience?

 

And it's a lot harder to hand over complete control of a baseball franchise than it is for a basketball franchise.  How big is a pro basketball organization?  All Taylor really had to do was give Thibodeau the same job that Saunders already had and displace an interim coach.  And there's a salary cap.  Pohlad would have to push Ryan out, possibly St Peter and others, the new hire might have to push out Molitor, the field staff, more front office staff, etc.  And without a salary cap, any new hire is invariably going to ask for assurances about payroll budget, which Pohlad may provide verbally but might not be convincing due to our record in the matter.

 

Thibs was an elite hire.  He got fired because of a feud with the GM.      I would not give too much credit to Taylor though.   He's driven the franchise into the ground since he's had the team.   The fact he chose to do the most obvious thing, to everyone in the country, should only be met with surprise not praise.

 

I would however agree with your takes on the basketball/baseball comparisons.    They just are not apples to apples.

[DocBauer]

You know, there is a completely different dichotomy of opinion concerning the Twins ownership. Some of that is the simple fact that we are all simply different people with different attitudes, thoughts, etc. And some of it stems from geography. I was born and raised initially in Brokings South Dakota, Twins country to be sure, and not all tnat far from the Minnesota border, but have lived most of my days in central Nebraska, (Kearney), and Omaha. As I have previously stated, I'm 50, and have been following the Twins since I was 5 yo on transistor and car radios, cable TV at grandma's house, reading the Tribune, every other baseball publication I could get my hands on, and in more recent years, obviously, the internet. Decades of winning and losing, tons of players, different owners, a variety of different managers, I've kind of seen it all. But I never lived in the Twin Cities, much less Minnesota. And I'm sure actually living in either must offer different perspectives, through public sharing and various media outlets, that I am not, and have never been, privy to.

 

I believe Carl Pohlad loved the Twins. I think he and his management group absolutely did the best they could to put a competitive team on the field. And in truth, despite some really hard times, they had winning seasons, made moves, and won 2 World Series. There is NO WAY I could hope to comprehend what it is like to be a billionaire, or part of a family that is. Frankly, it goes way beyond any of my personal "win the lottery and be set for life and what would I do and how would I live" fantasies. I think it's safe to say that is true for all of us.

 

But despite this, simple perspective, even against such an outlandish and outrageous world of professional sports, I've never begrudged the Twins still being run as a business. Yes, I have questioned payroll and the such in my days, but despite the incredible gap in perspective, I still never felt it was the Pohlad's obligation to spend "out of personal pocket" to make the Twins better. I've always felt it OK, smart and prudent to work within an intelligent means to run a model franchise. (At times they've done this).

 

The world has turned. Baseball has changed. Target Field brought about change for the organization as well, though Minnesota will still never be the market that NY, Chicago, LA, etc has and will be. Carl cared. I don't know if Jim has the same passion or not. Again, different perspectives.

 

But, if Jim cares, or is simply a business man attempting to run a successful franchise in his father's name, the end result is still the same: win, make money, and be successful. The greater the success, the more ego fulfilling and wallet filling. Either way, unless Jim honestly doesn't give a crap, he'd want success, yes?

 

We can debate all we want to about the drives of ownership. We can debate at length about 4 consecutive losing seasons, (still small in the context of many, many teams including the WS winning Royals), and how the first couple of those seasons played out in regard to responsibility vs disappointment. But public opinion, money, butts in the seat and profitability matter regardless of ownership's motives. At this time, despite a fun 2015 season, despite regression in 2016, the future of the franchise is in question. And again, if their truly is no caring, things could be tough.

 

But whether Jim has a passion for baseball, or merely the bottom line, any kind of decent businessman would realize change of some sort is important. There simply isn't any clear cut, obvious choice to be a successor to Ryan. Further, no matter his success in rebuilding the milb system, something is still missing. I don't think it would be a stretch at alL to see the Twins go outside the organization to find new blood, the way Carl did so many years ago.

 

Now, to me, the issue would be the who that is.

 

I'm on a soapbox here I know. It's just a perspective that I thought should be examined.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

But whether Jim has a passion for baseball, or merely the bottom line, any kind of decent businessman would realize change of some sort is important. 

The Twins will be making money regardless of whether Pohlad makes a change.  Why would a decent businessman feel compelled to change in that case?  And with no change, Pohlad can avoid all the difficult decisions/discussions with TR, St. Peter, Rob Antony, Molitor, Gardy, and the whole rest of the crew that he has known and operated beside for his entire Twins tenure.

 

There is zero evidence so far that suggests Pohlad is going to meaningfully shake things up soon.

[alarp33]

 

I'm not really a basketball guy, but it seems like while Thibodeau is an encouraging hire, he is something less than an elite hire, like Hoyer as GM would represent.  (Or Maddon as manager would have represented last winter.)  Thibodeau was fired from his last coaching job less than a year ago.  Does he even have any front office experience?

 

 

Thibs was an elite hire - the comparisons to Hoyer aren't great, since Hoyer has a job with a great org, Thibs was out of work, etc.  But the Wolves after years and years of being a "1st Ave Country Club" did go outside the box and hired the best possible candidate.  Which, if Hoyer was at all interested in stepping out of Theo's shadow, he would be as well.  

[markos]

 

Hoyer already had that opportunity, to some degree, in San Diego for several years.  It appears he put a priority on working with preferred colleagues and under aggressive ownership when he moved to Chicago.  Going to Minnesota would almost be a backwards career move for him.  Pohlad would have to do a complete 180 degree turn on finances and "loyalty" to even get Hoyer to listen here, I think, and the suddenness of such a turn would suggest a lack of confidence and a great degree of instability by itself.  Like a boyfriend that quits his job and moves his home to convince you he's a stable partner.  I'm not even sure there is anything that Pohlad could do or say in the next 6 months to convince a new GM that they would really, truly have the level of control and resources they want.

Yeah, you are right on all of this, and I certainly don't have any special insight into Hoyer's hopes and dreams. Though I would counter by pointing out that he was only in SD for 2 years (Oct 2009 to Oct 2011), and I'm not sure how much autonomy he had there. He retained (or had to retain?) the existing manager (Bud Black) and Josh Byrnes was brought in as a the "senior vice president of baseball operations" a few months after Hoyer was hired. I'm not sure how much say Hoyer had in that hire - the Padres CEO at the time of Byrnes's hire was Jeff Moorad, who was part of the management group that hired Byrnes in his first GM stint in Arizona. And then Byrnes immediately was promoted to GM after Hoyer left. So there is some smoke that he didn't have full leeway. 

 

My hope would be that the Pohlads could entice him by offering control from the top down. And personally I don't think that a change in "loyalty" would necessarily be a sign of instability. The Pohlad's have provided tremendous support and control to Terry Ryan (and his baseball management team) for almost two decades now. I don't think it would a disingenuous for them to say that they would extend that same loyalty to a new regime.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

My hope would be that the Pohlads could entice him by offering control from the top down. And personally I don't think that a change in "loyalty" would necessarily be a sign of instability. The Pohlad's have provided tremendous support and control to Terry Ryan (and his baseball management team) for almost two decades now. I don't think it would a disingenuous for them to say that they would extend that same loyalty to a new regime.

How does that look when a long-time "mom & pop" organization suddenly puts all their kids on the chopping block?  That suggests to me that ownership doesn't have a clue how to do things or what to expect, and I wouldn't want to step into that.  It's just another downside of being so conservative and insular for so many years -- you can't make a clean break from it while making it look like normal smart  business activity.

[markos]

 

How does that look when a long-time "mom & pop" organization suddenly puts all their kids on the chopping block?  That suggests to me that ownership doesn't have a clue how to do things or what to expect, and I wouldn't want to step into that.  It's just another downside of being so conservative and insular for so many years -- you can't make a clean break from it while making it look like normal smart  business activity.

How does it look? Depends on your perspective. As someone who watched a multi-generation mom & pop company shutter offices and fire long-time employees in a desperate attempt to avoid bankruptcy during the last recession, I would give the organization the benefit of the doubt that they did everything possible to make things work, but that things got so bad that there were no other options. And if I thought that the problems with the organization were outside of ownership's direct control and temporary, I would still consider working for that organization. So I think context matters a lot in this case. I don't think this would be a "sudden" move - the team has been mediocre-to-downright-terrible for 6 straight seasons. What is the old saying about bankruptcy? Something like, "gradually, then all at once." Cleaning house after another unsuccessful season would be hardly be outside the norm of business activity.

 

If you think a clean break signals desperation and cluelessness, what moves can the Pohlads do at this point to enact change in a smart manner? Or has that ship sailed?

[Shaitan]

 

This from the bottom of a column on the Gopher Basketball program that Reusse had online this morning.

PLUS THREE FROM PATRICK

*Hoyer will blow up the baseball operation, including the on-field staff. Next manager: Torey Lovullo.

 

 

Didn't they interview him before last year?

[jimbo92107]

There are plenty of examples in the long history of baseball how to manage young players. Some of them need more work in the minors to really nail down their mechanics and mental approach, and that is what I think the Twins see as Berrios's problem. They want him to be sure of his approach no matter what happens, whether the first guy strikes out or hits a home run. 

 

Berrios clearly fell apart right after the first guy hit a home run on the first pitch. A major league pitcher cannot let that happen. Alex Meyer has the same problem, falling apart after something goes wrong. You can't let the outcome affect your core confidence. 

 

The good news is, some very fine Twins pitchers have had that problem with they first came up. Rookie Frank Viola would blow his top if he allowed a couple runs. Point is, Berrios will be fine, but while he's getting his head straight, the team might as well see if guys like Rogers and Dean can get guys out at the mlb level. This is the year to find out, when we're already out of the playoff hunt. 

 

Terry Ryan has seen this before. He is trying to ensure that the team's young stars don't get too traumatized by the wild oscillations of their rookie experience. Some of them can take it; maybe Rosario will be able to grind his way through his rough first quarter. Pretty sure Sano can take it, and I don't see any particular problems with Polanco. Duffey has learned to channel his harsh self-criticisms in a positive way. 

 

All these guys need to learn the same thing: They can do pretty good if they keep their heads right between the helmet. 

[Mike Sixel]

No idea how you can judge Polanco, he never plays......

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

How does it look? Depends on your perspective. As someone who watched a multi-generation mom & pop company shutter offices and fire long-time employees in a desperate attempt to avoid bankruptcy during the last recession, I would give the organization the benefit of the doubt that they did everything possible to make things work, but that things got so bad that there were no other options. And if I thought that the problems with the organization were outside of ownership's direct control and temporary, I would still consider working for that organization. So I think context matters a lot in this case. I don't think this would be a "sudden" move - the team has been mediocre-to-downright-terrible for 6 straight seasons. What is the old saying about bankruptcy? Something like, "gradually, then all at once." Cleaning house after another unsuccessful season would be hardly be outside the norm of business activity.

 

If you think a clean break signals desperation and cluelessness, what moves can the Pohlads do at this point to enact change in a smart manner? Or has that ship sailed?

That's kinda what I was getting at -- I think that ship has sailed.  I'm not sure there's anything that the Pohlads can say or do in the next 6 months that will satisfy all of the conditions required to get an elite hire like Hoyer:

 

- clear out the old stale regime for Hoyer to start anew

- look more proactive and aggressive, rather than reactive and desperate

- convince anyone they will be willing to spend more aggressively

 

The Cubs, for example, changed ownership in 2009 before hiring Epstein and Hoyer in 2011, and had been a top 10 payroll team for a decade (#3 before the 2009 sale, even).  Selling the team is probably what Pohlad would have to do to bring a comparable hire to the Twins this year.

 

Now, Pohlad could probably bring in a worthy lesser hire, like assistants from St. Louis, Pittsburgh, and Oakland that have been mentioned by others.  Someone whose primary concern is a promotion, an incremental step up from their current job, and not the market or the optics.  Just probably not someone like Hoyer, who would be a Maddon-level GM prospect this winter.

[Thrylos]

 

  As losses pile up this Summer, the public pressure is going to mount, both on the Pohlad's and on Terry Ryan.  

 

What public pressure?  Ryan has had teflon for 22 years.  Remember "Ryan's magic wand" during the one and out seasons in the 2000s?   Like going belly up every time they played the AL East was something they wore in pride...

[SweetOne69]

 

There are plenty of examples in the long history of baseball how to manage young players. Some of them need more work in the minors to really nail down their mechanics and mental approach, and that is what I think the Twins see as Berrios's problem. They want him to be sure of his approach no matter what happens, whether the first guy strikes out or hits a home run. 

 

Berrios clearly fell apart right after the first guy hit a home run on the first pitch. A major league pitcher cannot let that happen. Alex Meyer has the same problem, falling apart after something goes wrong. You can't let the outcome affect your core confidence. 

 

The good news is, some very fine Twins pitchers have had that problem with they first came up. Rookie Frank Viola would blow his top if he allowed a couple runs. Point is, Berrios will be fine, but while he's getting his head straight, the team might as well see if guys like Rogers and Dean can get guys out at the mlb level. This is the year to find out, when we're already out of the playoff hunt. 

 

Terry Ryan has seen this before. He is trying to ensure that the team's young stars don't get too traumatized by the wild oscillations of their rookie experience. Some of them can take it; maybe Rosario will be able to grind his way through his rough first quarter. Pretty sure Sano can take it, and I don't see any particular problems with Polanco. Duffey has learned to channel his harsh self-criticisms in a positive way. 

 

All these guys need to learn the same thing: They can do pretty good if they keep their heads right between the helmet. 

Excellent post Jimbo, you should re-post it in the Berrios optioned thread.

[DocBauer]

The Twins will be making money regardless of whether Pohlad makes a change.  Why would a decent businessman feel compelled to change in that case?  And with no change, Pohlad can avoid all the difficult decisions/discussions with TR, St. Peter, Rob Antony, Molitor, Gardy, and the whole rest of the crew that he has known and operated beside for his entire Twins tenure.

 

There is zero evidence so far that suggests Pohlad is going to meaningfully shake things up soon.

I respect your opinion. Part of my post was the fact that we all share different ideas and perspectives for different reasons. Also, living geographically closer to the situation offers different information and perspective as to the owners, who they are, their care and process, etc.

 

You are correct, if I interpret your post correctly, that a franchise owner could still make money...most of the time probably...without really caring about his product. However, I would argue a pair of counter points, while knowing nothing of the Pohlad's really.

 

1} For a family worth billions, (still, right?), the Twins are not going to be some huge golden investment in comparison to their other wealth. Apathy could be an issue, but I don't see them, or any other modern day sports owner, hitching his financial wagon to his team and deliberately penny pinching every dollar for his huge assets.

 

2} Even if it WAS the goal of the Pohlad's to milk the franchise for profit, wouldn't a better team, a better more exciting product bring a better return than a boring, losing one in which there was much negative publicity and dwindling attendance and merchandise sales?

 

I think the biggest problem with the Pohlad's not making changes would be one of fear. Fear of change and fear of the unknown. "We've always done it this way" thinking.

[Guest]

Reusse has a great plan, but it will require much more than TR's retirement. If Hoyer or anyone else comes in, they're going to want to turn over dozens of people. The Pohlads won't stomach that.

[old nurse]

Hoyer had one good team in Arizona his  second year there, not with players he acquired. Hoyer's time in San Diego was marked by low risk, high reward free agent signing. Sounds kind of familiar to the current pattern here. He managed to get a lot of prospects. Not sure how they turned out, though he briefly had Kluber and Rizzo. He was smart enough to get Rizzo for the Cubs. Does the blame for San Diego not progress fall to his assistant Byrnes who was promoted after he left and continued the same practice? Does Hoyer lack something that having Epstien oversee him makes up for? I really can't say that Hoyer would be a good hire.

[Rigby]

 

Hoyer had one good team in Arizona his  second year there, not with players he acquired. Hoyer's time in San Diego was marked by low risk, high reward free agent signing. Sounds kind of familiar to the current pattern here. He managed to get a lot of prospects. Not sure how they turned out, though he briefly had Kluber and Rizzo. He was smart enough to get Rizzo for the Cubs. Does the blame for San Diego not progress fall to his assistant Byrnes who was promoted after he left and continued the same practice? Does Hoyer lack something that having Epstien oversee him makes up for? I really can't say that Hoyer would be a good hire.

I was going to post something similar. Fully recognizing that change is necessary, I'm not completely positive Hoyer is the answer. Impossible to know his level of influence in Boston, his tenure in San Diego is the only thing we can reasonably consider (although again, was he given free reign?). He moved a productive AGon for Rizzo and others. Would have looked somewhat better had SD kept Rizzo, Traded for Jason Bartlett. Signed or re-signed familiar names Correia, Stauffer,Deduno,Kielty & Neshak. Two first round selections - Kharsten Whitsen & Cory Spangenberg. A productive season or two of Maybin for Webb & Mujica. Would hope Hoyer, or anyone for that matter would be able to pull high level scouts and instructors with them. 

Thoughts of change would first have to be preceded by active and knowledgeable ownership. Unfortunately it appears Pohlad's baseball acumen has been gleaned entirely from the Twins management family and he has always been completely reliant on their opinion for "his" decisions. Does not bode well for attracting high level management from other organizations,

[DaveW]

Yeah Carl Pohlad cared about the Twins so much he actively was trying to get them contracted.

 

Please.

[Mr. Brooks]

Didn't Patrick write a column out of Spring Training titled, "what's not to like"?

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

Reusse has a great plan, but it will require much more than TR's retirement. If Hoyer or anyone else comes in, they're going to want to turn over dozens of people. The Pohlads won't stomach that.

Good point.  Even if TR retires in September like Reusse says, everybody else is still in place -- Molitor, Antony, St. Peter, Gardy, Smith, everyone.  And not only is it hard to Pohlad firing all those people, it's also hard to see an elite GM candidate wanting to come in and have to fire all those people as the first order of business.  (Back to my mom & pop store analogy, it would be like the mom & pop hiring you to be the manager to fire all of their kids who have been working there 20+ years, because mom & pop are too afraid to...)

[Otto von Ballpark]

And I don't know if Hoyer would really be all that great, I'm sure his record has flaws, but he is going on 5 years as GM of the team which won 97 games (3rd best in MLB) and a playoff series last year, and has the best record in baseball so far this year.  He would be an elite GM candidate this winter, probably regardless of whether the Cubs win the world series.

[nokomismod]

I will take Jim P over Carl as owner of my beloved Twins any day. Jim is willing to spend money on this team, but unfortunately he has placed too much trust in Terry Ryan and maybe Dave St. Peter. I am not sure what it is going to take to inject some new leadership, but I am guessing a 120 loss season may do that.

 

 

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

I will take Jim P over Carl as owner of my beloved Twins any day. Jim is willing to spend money on this team

Carl would have spent more if he had lived to see the opening of Target Field.  Actually, Twins payroll increased steadily throughout the 2000s as the team improved and as Target Field approached, all while Carl was still alive.

 

It's not like the post-2009 Twins have aggressively stretched their budget for payroll, given the new stadium.  I suspect payroll would have proceed exactly the same under Carl or Jim.

[jimmer]

 

Carl would have spent more if he had lived to see the opening of Target Field.  Actually, Twins payroll increased steadily throughout the 2000s as the team improved and as Target Field approached, all while Carl was still alive.

 

It's not like the post-2009 Twins have aggressively stretched their budget for payroll, given the new stadium.  I suspect payroll would have proceed exactly the same under Carl or Jim.

Baseball salaries have just increased so much in the last 10-15 years.  Baseball salary inflation has been ridiculous.  Like you said, I doubt we'd still be sitting in the 50-70K salary range if Carl was alive.

[Taildragger8791]

 

I respect your opinion. Part of my post was the fact that we all share different ideas and perspectives for different reasons. Also, living geographically closer to the situation offers different information and perspective as to the owners, who they are, their care and process, etc.

You are correct, if I interpret your post correctly, that a franchise owner could still make money...most of the time probably...without really caring about his product. However, I would argue a pair of counter points, while knowing nothing of the Pohlad's really.

1} For a family worth billions, (still, right?), the Twins are not going to be some huge golden investment in comparison to their other wealth. Apathy could be an issue, but I don't see them, or any other modern day sports owner, hitching his financial wagon to his team and deliberately penny pinching every dollar for his huge assets.

2} Even if it WAS the goal of the Pohlad's to milk the franchise for profit, wouldn't a better team, a better more exciting product bring a better return than a boring, losing one in which there was much negative publicity and dwindling attendance and merchandise sales?

I think the biggest problem with the Pohlad's not making changes would be one of fear. Fear of change and fear of the unknown. "We've always done it this way" thinking.

 

With revenue sharing, tv deals, and favorable stadium deals some owners can make a lot of money off of bad teams. Especially if the roster is cheap enough or the fans are still filling up the seats. That's why Loria in Miami is so reviled in Miami for his multiple firesales where he drove the team salary down to $30-$40 million and raked in the profit sharing money. If a team can float around 75-85 wins most years they can sell enough hope to sell tickets and TV deals while keeping the payroll profitable and fans placated.

 

I don't think Pohlad's goal is to wring every penny out of the franchise like Loria. But I also don't think he particularly gives a damn about the team as long as they're earning a consistent profit. If this team were still floating in the 75-85 win category and getting stomped in the playoffs like the mid 2000s you'd never hear from him, because that's enough to keep fans engaged and money rolling in. But even he knows that a product this wretched won't be profitable for long, which is why he felt the need to say something I guess. He knows it's approaching the threshold where it'll be difficult to get people back into the stadium we bought him to buy his $10 beers. Hopefully it won't take getting to that point to step out of his comfort zone and make a move.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Obviously we're all just speculating, but I don't think it's true that Pohlad cares only about the bottom line, or that he doesn't care about winning.  (The opposite isn't true either, obviously, that Pohlad is willing to spend whatever it takes to win.)

 

From what I can tell, I would guess that Pohlad cares more about the prestige of pro sports ownership, and "the club" of his longtime friends and colleagues in the Twins front office.  More than maximizing wins or profits. That's kinda the vibe I get from a lot of the front office -- they just like being part of this club.  Even sometimes the field staff and player decisions feel that way too.

 

Which is admirable in a way, but frustrating when they're willing to tolerate so much losing and so many mistakes just to keep the club together.