Breaking Up with the Pohlads: Ranking the Future Options for the Minnesota Twins

[dxpavelka]

22 hours ago, CRF said:

Having the Pohlad's gone...can't happen soon enough. 

replacement(s) could always be worse

[Major League Ready]

27 minutes ago, dxpavelka said:

replacement(s) could always be worse

When people say better or worse, I get the impression that they are mostly focused on spending.  I suspect we would get about the same.  Their spending is consistent with teams of roughly equal revenue.  Also, while they are estimates, all of the published profit estimates I have ever seen suggest their profits are modest and among the lowest in the league.  I am not inclined to believe some billionaire is going to buy the team and significantly reduce what is already a modest profit. 

Where there may be opportunity to improve is revenue generation.  I would hope for a new owner that really knows how to message, promote, market, and in doing so maximize revenue.  However, I don't have the information necessary to have a good understanding of the market potential.  I suspect there is opportunity but just how much requires an in-depth assessment.  My guess is that increased spending is more likely to come from improved revenue generation than it is from getting a new owner that is willing to cut operating profit in half which by the way would mean adding about $15M to payroll which would not have much impact.

[KirbyDome89]

6 hours ago, Major League Ready said:

Are you kidding me?  Half-truths, innuendo, and misinformation have become standard operating practice for "news outlets".  Try fact checking the mainstream media sometime and online sources present whatever drives clicks.  It's really effective because people are very receptive to things they want to believe.   

Ffs....screeching "fake news," anytime you hear something you don't like has become commonplace as well. 

I'd love to hear the motive Hayes, Ken Rosenthal, and Brittany Ghiroli had for intentionally misinforming subscribers. Clicks for their article that sits behind a paywall? 

[Western SD Fan]

I am uncertain at this point how serious the Pohlads really are on selling the team.  If you choose to believe all the rumors that they want a premium price PLUS to demand that Joe Pohlad stays as Executive Chairman seems to be borderline insane for any prospective buyer.  Option #2 ONLY works if the new ownership owns 51% or more of the Twins and can be in charge of the direction of the franchise.  While it is still too early to tell what the new Orioles ownership will be, the fact is that the fanbase has clung on to them and support them in ways we haven't seen in decades is promising on what a new ownership group could do here in Minnesota.  A potential new ownership group will have to navigate the headwinds of decreasing revenue from TV contracts, a potential labor stoppage after the 2026 season as even the owners can't agree on what they should do for the new CBA and trying to revive a fanbase that has been disillusioned by the current operating of the team.  I was surprised to read an article done by a Pirates beat reporter on the state of their team and that Nutting could actually be losing money, and they have a much smaller payroll than the Twins.  I actually wouldn't be surprised that the Pohlads are not making as much money on the Twins as we would like to imagine, or as some commenters have surmised (likely also true in my opinion) that the Twins corporate entity is tied up in other ventures that are losing money so it makes it look like the Twins are losing more money than they really are.

The link to the Pittsburgh article is here:  Special report: Pirates' finances will leave you at a loss

[Jacksson]

With regard to new ownership:

The rumor going around is that the new owners will relocate the team to Emporia, KS and rename the team "The Hostess Twinkies".

[dxpavelka]

16 hours ago, Major League Ready said:

When people say better or worse, I get the impression that they are mostly focused on spending.  I suspect we would get about the same.  Their spending is consistent with teams of roughly equal revenue.  Also, while they are estimates, all of the published profit estimates I have ever seen suggest their profits are modest and among the lowest in the league.  I am not inclined to believe some billionaire is going to buy the team and significantly reduce what is already a modest profit. 

Where there may be opportunity to improve is revenue generation.  I would hope for a new owner that really knows how to message, promote, market, and in doing so maximize revenue.  However, I don't have the information necessary to have a good understanding of the market potential.  I suspect there is opportunity but just how much requires an in-depth assessment.  My guess is that increased spending is more likely to come from improved revenue generation than it is from getting a new owner that is willing to cut operating profit in half which by the way would mean adding about $15M to payroll which would not have much impact.

Baseball economics are so f^#@!( up that I don't see much chance of revenue improvement either.