Game-Changer: Pohlad Family Announces They Will Explore Selling Twins

[Jocko87]

51 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Certainly a surprise to wake up to! I'm not the biggest fans of the current owners.... So I'm cautiously optimistic. 

Pretty much guarantee no real new spending, though. I wonder if Levine knew about this?

Levine absolutely knew.  It makes sense that starting over with a new owner and the transition stuff would be less appealing to him.

I would say DSP, Falvey, Levine and other relevant SVPs have known for quite a while.  What I think people are underestimating is how far down the road this discussion is to be announced publicly.  This isn't a posting on LoopNet.

This makes all the budget talk make sense, they can't do that without the core knowing.

It also illustrates how little reporters know, "insiders" only know what they are told.  Every organization keeps the real stuff quiet when they need to.

[CCH]

21 minutes ago, roger said:

2040 is a lot closer than you may realize. 

You think someone is saying, I'm going to buy the Twins and can't wait 16 years to move the team? lol

[Jocko87]

5 minutes ago, Musk21 said:

If they lose their arbitration case versus Glen Taylor, I see no reason why ARod & Marc Lore would not be a fantastic pair to buy the Twins. 

Not following the T-Wolves at all, what would make them a good pair? 

A-Rod would be way, way down the list of people I'd be interested in being involved.

[Vanimal46]

23 minutes ago, Craig Arko said:

And clauses can be bought out. Just like Santa.

The clause at the Metrodome, ruled by a judge, is why the team isn’t contracted today. Those leases are pretty iron clad. 

[Woof Bronzer]

22 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

DSP updating his resume...

The Pohlads love DSP for the profits he consistently delivered.  He's getting a golden parachute out of this sale and will ride off into the sunset without a care in the world.

[Mike Sixel]

Just now, Woof Bronzer said:

The Pohlads love DSP for the profits he consistently delivered.  He's getting a golden parachute out of this sale and will ride off into the sunset without a care in the world.

Agreed. It was a joke from the picture

[C-Gangster]

Wow! Lets hope we get better owners and we stay in Minnesota.

[Woof Bronzer]

Some wild comments here about relocation.  First of all, the Pohlads have apparently so brainwashed fans into believing the Twins are a small market team that fans actually believe it.  MSP is a top 15 market in the country.  If the Twins are a business, and MLB is driven by revenue disparities, why would an intelligent owner want to move to a smaller market?  

Second, and most importantly, do folks really not remember that the Pohlads not only tried to move the team once but ALSO TRIED TO CONTRACT THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE OUT OF EXISTENCE?  My goodness.  A new owner guarantees nothing, of course.  But we KNOW the Pohlads are terrible.  (Reminder:  1 divisional series win in three decades.) Good bleeping riddance!

[LastOnePicked]

Is anyone here a lawyer? According to the third paragraph, it sounds like we're already the co-owners. We all better get a chunk of the sale price.

[Rufus]

2 hours ago, snellman said:

As Gleeman and the Geek talked about recently, it is time to pool our money together! 🤣

Yeah everybody that has been calling the Pohlads cheap.  Time to put your money where your mouth is and pony up.  Find out the reality owning a baseball team.  Form a Co-op and buy the team and show us how it's done.

[bean5302]

I think this may be a necessary move at this point, even though I've been bearish on the change because of risk of getting a legitimate "bad" owner. The Pohlad's must be aware of how much anti-Pohlad sentiment there is in the metro. They've destroyed their brand as a family 2x now. Getting fans back on board won't be so easy. There's also the broadcast rights situation. For a family hell bent on not losing money on a business, operating the Twins in a manner where they could both be profitable and successful isn't a likely scenario for the next year or two.

All that said, the Pohlad's have really, really messed up over the past 2 years, but they're not "bad" owners in terms of the rest of MLB. The teams I would definitely categorize as significantly worse are:
Rays, Guardians, White Sox, Angels, Marlins, Pirates, Rockies. There a group of teams who have owners I don't think are substantially better than the Pohlads as well (who I think are middle-back tier right now).

When it comes to the future ownership groups looking to purchase sports teams, they're are almost always committed to winning and improving the team, not just buying the team to let it sit as a .500 ball club forever. Owning a sports team is as much about dreams as business for most owners. The Pohlad family has long been committed to a base goal of .500, and a reach goal of division winning rather than the World Series. It's a seemingly unique viewpoint.

Most owners are looking to win a World Series, and some are just interested in profit (Rays) or entertainment (Rockies). Still, some are... I don't know what the hell they're doing (Marlins).

We'll have to see how this plays out... but Jim is feeling an awful lot like his dad, Carl, back in the mid 90s right about now. It's not a good look, and it's not a good feeling as a Twins fan.

[C-Gangster]

Maybe Someone here can buy it?

[mrcharlie]

1 hour ago, Dave Overlund said:

If there was a city ready for a team to relocate, the A's would already be on their way. Instead, they are going to play in a minor league park on artificial turf this season in Sacramento. 

The Twins aren't going anywhere. 

Then they are going to Vegas.  Relocation is Not out of the question.  The lease agreement at Target Field could be a court battle given change in a party who agreed to it.  I do think it very unlikely but there are at least two cities ready for MLB (Montreal and Nashville).

[chpettit19]

MLB is looking to expand. That's just as big a reason as any to expect the Twins, or some team, will be in MN. Nashville, Montreal, San Antonio, whatever city you want to name is going to be a smaller market, but the owners are also going to get some real nice expansion fees from new owners. Relocating the Twins won't be what the other owners want. They want their infusion of expansion cash.

The interesting twist on that is that the Rays and As have figured out their stadiums which has been the holdup on expansion. Do new owners prefer expansion teams or the Twins? Does this help or hurt the Pohlad's asking price?

[Fire Dan Gladden]

Macro - Change is a comin.  New ownership will probably want their guys in key positions.  St. Peter, Falvey down to Rocco are all currently in a state of limbo.  Good or bad, it is the way of things.   New owners may be "bad", but they will be different.  Remains to be seen how that effects the organization.

Micro - Any discussion of spending $$ this offseason effectively comes to a halt.  No large contracts, no long contracts.  Also, no major changes either.  Until a purchase becomes public (meaning it is close), the team is currently in a holding pattern.

My POV:  There is zero chance the Twins will be moved.  Between existing contracts, Pohlad legacy, and alternate city options, this is not going to happen.

I personally would love to see a Cuban-type jump in, but the baseball old-boys network would never approve a sale to this type of owner.

[cmoss84]

Rumor has it a Robert Zimmerman-led group is knocking on the Pohlad's door. 

[Fire Dan Gladden]

24 minutes ago, Musk21 said:

If they lose their arbitration case versus Glen Taylor, I see no reason why ARod & Marc Lore would not be a fantastic pair to buy the Twins. 

You forget the articles saying the first thing ARod and Lore are going to do is cut payroll...

[Craig Arko]

1 minute ago, cmoss84 said:

Rumor has it a Robert Zimmerman-led group is knocking on the Pohlad's door. 

As in the boy from Hibbing?

[roger]

10 minutes ago, CCH said:

You think someone is saying, I'm going to buy the Twins and can't wait 16 years to move the team? lol

No, I am just saying that 2040 will be here before you know it.  

You see I don't dislike the Pohlad family like so many of you.  I appreciate owners who run their teams like a business, thus, increasing the likelihood that the team won't be on the brink of financial destruction.  I expect the biggest reason the Pohlad's are considering a sale is because of the ill will that has expanded both on sites like this and also traditional media,.  

If they do complete a sale, I pray that it is to another local group who cares about the Twin Cities and not an outside group who has zero ties to the Twin Cities.  As for someone buying to relocate, I suspect there are many mega-billionaires living in places like Nashville, Indianapolis, Charlotte, Austin, Portland and other cities who would love to own their own major league baseball team.  Should one of those end up buying the team, I fear for Twins fans in the Twin Cities.

[Woof Bronzer]

15 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Agreed. It was a joke from the picture

A little slow on the uptake over here!

[howeda7]

2 hours ago, ashbury said:

True. But.

I Am Not A Lawyer, as they say, but with business at this level I view all signed contracts as mere starting points for discussion when someone becomes dissatisfied.

At a smaller scale Correa has a non-trade clause and yet we're discussing trading him, for example.

Any contract can be broken, but there would be massive penalties, the stadium is still in great shape, MSP is still a top 20 market and the team still draws decently. They're not moving.

The new owners aren't going to magically pump the payroll to $200 million and lose $60 million/year. But I don't think anyone's expecting that. Just be engaged, try to win when you're in a window and act like you give a $%^ about being competitive.

[TheLeviathan]

I understand the caution.  However, the Pohlads have set an exceptionally low bar.  It would take a Herculian effort to be worse than them.  Could it happen?  Sure.  But what's the difference?  We go from sucky to suckier?  Meh.

This could finally be non-sucky.  For the first time in the lives of any Twins fan.  Be optimistic, when else will you have that chance?

[nicksaviking]

35 minutes ago, roger said:

2040 is a lot closer than you may realize. 

John Fisher bought the A's in 2005 and ran them into the ground so he could move them in 2025. That was 15 years. Also, come 2040, Target Field will be as old as the Metrodome was when the Twins left it.

However, I see very little chance the Twins are moving in 2040 as relocation is MLB's biggest threat to get new stadiums. The other owners aren't going to let the new guys in the club jump in line and steal their best leverage to improve the stadiums that actually are outdated. The Coliseum in Oakland was already a terrible stadium in 2005, and like the Coliseum, the Metrodome was ALWAYS a cut-rate stadium that didn't match up to it's peer venues. Target Field still ranks as one of the best in the league.

 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

A couple comments.   

1. The Pohlads have already put out the feelers for anyone interested.  Instead of the Angels or Washington, they have already gaged the interest.  The Pohlads and Twins hold on to information as long as they can.  Just look at contracts for Falvey and Baldelli.   My guess is a reporter was going to break the story and this is pretty far along.   

2.  The change in TV revenue is showing it was a major implications for the budget,  for profits,  but also likely much more uncertainty and a lower price that the Pohlads can get in selling the team.  They have a solid team and prospects though which is currently a valuable asset for someone wanting to purchase a team to be set to win right away with good long term prospects.  

[Fire Dan Gladden]

So.... Anything newsworthy happening today?

[bean5302]

1 hour ago, nicksaviking said:

I'd really not like to get a Derek Jeter led group like the Marlins got. Which should also be a cautionary tale for anyone hoping A-Rod decides to buy the Twins instead of the TWolves.

Derek Jeter did not lead that group. Bruce Sherman led the group, and he lied to Jeter about resources. Jeter said enough of that and jumped ship.

[Schmoeman5]

1 hour ago, ashbury said:

 

At a smaller scale Correa has a non-trade clause and yet we're discussing trading him, for example.

Who is we're? That's just fans talking. Has the FO mentioned that? Sure, a lot goes on behind closed doors. No one knows if that's part of a plan except them.

[JD-TWINS]

2 hours ago, NYCTK said:

Stockholm Syndrome in full effect. People were saying this exact same thing about Zygi and now everyone loves him.  

While I agree with essentially everyone here that this will be a positive move ……… difficult to imagine anyone or any group spending north of $1.5 billion and not be pressed from within to spend to win at some higher level than the Pohlad’s……..the “careful what you wish for……” thought popped into my head immediately & may be real.

There are many of us that remember the Griffith Family ownership & they were “baseball people”………..tight as one could imagine!!! Hope this goes the right way - pretty confident it will. STILL need sound organizational people and some players to succeed.

Here’s to the new buyer!

[mrcharlie]

6 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

I think this may be a necessary move at this point, even though I've been bearish on the change because of risk of getting a legitimate "bad" owner. The Pohlad's must be aware of how much anti-Pohlad sentiment there is in the metro. They've destroyed their brand as a family 2x now. Getting fans back on board won't be so easy. There's also the broadcast rights situation. For a family hell bent on not losing money on a business, operating the Twins in a manner where they could both be profitable and successful isn't a likely scenario for the next year or two.

All that said, the Pohlad's have really, really messed up over the past 2 years, but they're not "bad" owners in terms of the rest of MLB. The teams I would definitely categorize as significantly worse are:
Rays, Guardians, White Sox, Angels, Marlins, Pirates, Rockies. There a group of teams who have owners I don't think are substantially better than the Pohlads as well (who I think are middle-back tier right now).

When it comes to the future ownership groups looking to purchase sports teams, they're are almost always committed to winning and improving the team, not just buying the team to let it sit as a .500 ball club forever. Owning a sports team is as much about dreams as business for most owners. The Pohlad family has long been committed to a base goal of .500, and a reach goal of division winning rather than the World Series. It's a seemingly unique viewpoint.

Most owners are looking to win a World Series, and some are just interested in profit (Rays) or entertainment (Rockies). Still, some are... I don't know what the hell they're doing (Marlins).

We'll have to see how this plays out... but Jim is feeling an awful lot like his dad, Carl, back in the mid 90s right about now. It's not a good look, and it's not a good feeling as a Twins fan.

I recall an observation some years ago that makes good sense to me.  MLB teams make more money finishing second (in the playoffs) than winning it all.  The difference being the raises and bonus $ paid out after a WS win.  However, that is not to say a WS victory is not profitable, but just maybe some ownership may not be so concerned about a WS title.

[Unwinder]

27 minutes ago, Jocko87 said:

Not following the T-Wolves at all, what would make them a good pair? 

A-Rod would be way, way down the list of people I'd be interested in being involved.

Well, first of all, A-Rod has plenty of experience owning the Twins.