Joe Pohlad's Comments on Non-Sale of Twins Are an Affront to Fans' Intelligence

[Matthew Taylor]

Image courtesy of © Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

On Wednesday, the Pohlads announced they will remain the principal owners of the Minnesota Twins, selling only a minority stake in the team. Joe Pohlad opened his remarks, as quoted in Phil Miller’s Star Tribune piece, by saying, “I don’t think we could have imagined a better outcome than where we landed.” For a fanbase that has spent nearly a year hoping for new leadership, new philosophies, and an ownership group willing to invest more aggressively in winning, this is a slap in the face. It's tone-deaf at best and deliberately insulting at worst, as if we are all supposed to smile and nod at the idea that this was the best possible result.

Pohlad’s entire interview with the paper was filled with the kind of corporate speak that pretends everything is fine, even when it clearly is not. He spoke as though keeping control was a universally positive development, praising “alignment” with the new minority partners and expressing faith in the “future of baseball in Minnesota.” It's empty PR fluff, designed to paper over the reality that nothing meaningful has changed; the same ownership group is still in charge; and the fans who wanted a new voice have been strung along for months. The expectation seems to be that we will all just buy whatever he is selling.

On the trade deadline fire sale, Pohlad claimed the decision to deal 10 players on July 31 “took him by surprise” and that the moves “had little to do with saving money” and were “primarily baseball decisions.” That is simply not credible. In addition to the other nine trades (which were likely financially motivated as well), the Carlos Correa trade was a pure salary dump, the very definition of a move made for financial reasons. Multiple reports say it was ownership, not Derek Falvey, who pushed the trade across the finish line. To tell fans this was “primarily” about baseball is to assume we are too gullible to connect the dots.

He also addressed criticism by saying that being booed is “part of the role” and that he would “rather have passionate fans than fans who are disengaged.” That is not just tone-deaf; it's a lie. This fanbase is already incredibly disengaged, as evidenced by the Twins being on pace for the lowest attendance in Target Field history this season, a pace set long before this ownership news. Saying boos mean all is well ignores the fact that many fans are not booing; they are simply not showing up.

Then came perhaps the most outrageous claim, that the Twins have taken on “significant debt,” up to $400 million, since the summer of 2020. This from a franchise that receives lucrative national media rights money, revenue sharing, and has run average to below-average payrolls for years. We are supposed to believe that, somehow, they have lost nearly half a billion dollars in four seasons. It defies logic. And Pohlad’s follow-up only made it worse:

“As far as I’m aware, that debt was not a hindrance in this process… but with this transaction, we’re going to be paying that debt down," he said. In this context, “process” meant selling the team in full, and claiming that the debt was not an issue in doing so is just not true. It's clear the Pohlads were seeking extra money beyond a reasonable valuation, so they could pay off that debt and still walk away with the payday they wanted. The fact that he frames this as if it had no impact on the outcome is yet another example of how little regard this ownership has for fans’ ability to see through the spin.

In the end, the most disappointing part is not just that bad owners are staying put. It is that they are doing it while acting like Twins fans are too naive to see through the contradictions, spin, and corporate word salad. We were promised change. Instead, we are told this is the best possible outcome, that money is no object, and that ownership is as committed to winning as we are. Their words say one thing, their actions say another, and they expect us to believe them, anyway. That's not just frustrating. It is insulting.

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[TheLeviathan]

This is the mentality of so many billionaires in our society today in a nutshell:

We've allowed them to accumulate so much wealth that they act (and in some ways do) live on a different plane of existence than the rest of us.

We the Plebs are barely worth their actual consideration except when they feel it necessary to emerge from their Ivory Towers to condescendingly "address" us while they rob us of all we hold dear.

[terrydactyls]

Damn straight!

[Brock Beauchamp]

Thank you for this piece, Matt.

Everything Joe said makes me believe this idiocy will continue, which checks me out of the team even further (continuing a process of checking out that started in the 2023-2024 offseason). I find myself watching more and more Brewers games, and fewer Twins games.

And I run a ****ing Twins website. If I'm checking out, the team has a big ****ing problem on their hands. Pretending it doesn't exist is exactly how we got this point. He's running the franchise into the ground, and doing decades of damage to the brand.

[Dave Borton]

The worst part continues; Joe Pohlad is in charge. He has never worked outside the Pohlad umbrella. That he could maneuver both the business and baseball ends for the Twins is the ultimate long bet.

[Vanimal46]

At first when I read the letter I thought there’s no way they are that oblivious about the fans’ perception of them. Then I realized Joe was born into a billionaire family and has never had real responsibilities in his entire life. So of course they’re this delusional. I guarantee they’re surrounded by yes men who only tell them they’re doing a great job and it’s the fan base who are wrong. 

Well done Matthew. Don’t believe a single word the Pohlads say or issue to the press. It’s all lies. 

[Mike Sixel]

If you are losing 80 million a year, you'd be happy to unload the team for nothing...... There is no chance they are losing that much. Unless he's playing himself like. 150 million a year. 

Typical third generation billionaire. A failure at every business he's run. 

[mnfireman]

Found the original draft of the letter before AI "fixed" it... (wink, wink, (sarcasm))

[jmlease1]

100% all of this. The only person this is a good result for is Joe Pohlad, because he's going to get to stay in charge of the Twins for the Pohlad Family. Under no other circumstances does he remain in any kind of decision-making role with a major professional sports team. (I'm quite certain that the idea of Joe remaining on to "guide" the team after a sale as was floated was a total non-starter with anyone serious about taking majority ownership. Wyc tried this with the Celtics sale and they pretended it was going to happen...and now that the sale is done, he's out as Governor. And Wyc was a GOOD owner.)

I'm stunned at how consistently tone-deaf and out of touch this team's ownership is. Screw them.

Everything they say makes it easier to not buy tickets.

[Nshore]

Joe should go ride his polo pony, sail his yacht, raise the martini flag, and repair to his mahogany study.  He should occasionally get his picture taken in a suite at the ballpark with mustard on his chin, and never make a public statement again.

[The Great Hambino]

Even if Joe truly has the best intentions of running the team as best he can, the fact that the Astros owner went over his head to Jim to make the Correa deal happen tells us who's really running this team.

Even if he wants the Twins to win, he wants even more to prove to his uncles that he's a big boy

[ChermesZ]

I’m hoping the fan base interest crashing is used as leverage to lower the offer price the next time the pohlad$ put the team up for sale.

 

after all, it’s going to take a tremendous amount of work and money to correct this imbecilic sequence of events.

[David HK]

Spot.

On.

I'm old enough to remember Calvin's parsimonious ways and that dark, dark night in Waseca in 1978, that eventually cost us the core of a good team.  

The pohlads' word vomit statement is nowhere near as egregious, but every bit as condescending and tone-deaf.  These cakeeaters live in a brightly tinted bubble filled with their own gas.

[FlyingFinn]

Reverse course Pohlad's. SELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mikelink45]

Our world is in a place where the truth no longer matters - just keep saying the same thing until people believe it.  We do have a vote - buying tickets, but if we give them reason to leave we are the only ones who will lose.  What a terrible outcome this is. 

[Road trip]

2 hours ago, David HK said:

Spot.

On.

I'm old enough to remember Calvin's parsimonious ways and that dark, dark night in Waseca in 1978, that eventually cost us the core of a good team.  

The pohlads' word vomit statement is nowhere near as egregious, but every bit as condescending and tone-deaf.  These cakeeaters live in a brightly tinted bubble filled with their own gas.

Great article.

I actually think the Pohlad's word vomit statement and their operation of the team is worse.

Calvin's parsimonious ways were not unusual in his era, and he was arguably a spendthrift compared to Charley O Finley.  There were many long time owners who didn't immediately come to terms with the new free agency era 1970s.  Griffith was a baseball man to his core, unlike the current generation of Pohlads.  Plus, the Griffiths had no other wealth beyond the MLB franchise, so he kind of had to keep the Twins profitable.  He was severely undercapitalized compared MLB's new generation of baseball owners like Steinbrenner, 

The Pohlads, at best moderately knowledgeable baseball people, will die wealthy no matter how badly they run the Twins... and yet are still only interested in gaining more money because the payroll absolutely has to be "right-sized".  Greed is a horrible disease...

[palmspringstwinsfan]

A big question to me is how this team managed to run up such a huge debt, given the extraordinary amount of money they receive every year from MLB. Some things I’ve read suggest those payments are far more than the payroll. I understand that the local TV money is way down, as is attendance, and there is debt service to pay. But I have to conclude that the 12 or so Pohlads who own the team must be getting big dividend payouts. No wonder they didn’t want to give up their gravy train. 

[LastOnePicked]

Not a penny to this organization while the Pohlads are still involved. Not. a. single. penny.

Their inability to say even a single thing about this team that rings with even a modicum of reality is stunning. Seriously. 

These are not the smartest people in the room. This is one of the worst run organizations in MLB, and this was supposed to be the Target Field "Golden Age" of Twins baseball.

At this point, I'd rather see this team contracted than in the hands of a Pohlad.

Not. a. penny.

[Doctor Gast]

During the All-Star period, it was stated that it could be weeks before the sale. After a couple of weeks, I'd wake up every morning & think, maybe today the team will be sold. Only to be sucker-punched. 

Thank you for expressing what we all feel. That the Pohlads are delusional. They think they know the problem with the team. They don't. They think they know the solution, They don't. They think they know what fans want. They don't. They think the fans are stupid. We aren't. They think they can offer us a bunch of BS & we'll eat. We won't. Just because we are patient & try to be nice, they think they can walk all over us. There is a limit, and they have reached it. Do the right thing.

[AceWrigley]

DanHayesMLB  @DanHayesMLB

Sources: The 20% portion of the #MNTwins that sold went for a higher valuation than the $1.7b estimate provided by Sportico.

 

What? That doesn't seem even remotely possible but if true, no wonder they didn't sell the team outright.

[purplesoldier4u]

16 minutes ago, AceWrigley said:

DanHayesMLB  @DanHayesMLB

Sources: The 20% portion of the #MNTwins that sold went for a higher valuation than the $1.7b estimate provided by Sportico.

 

What? That doesn't seem even remotely possible but if true, no wonder they didn't sell the team outright.

So, the two groups combined to pay a greater amount than the $340 million for their collective 20% share was worth?

Sounds to me that the over-inflated purchase vs. percentage was probably close to the debt amount, and that those two ownership groups have a vested financial interest in a "more profitable" Minnesota Twins organization.

It's hard not to be a fan of the Brewers and Padres. Two teams that approach building a roster in different ways, but continue to be successful.

[CRF]

6 hours ago, mnfireman said:

Found the original draft of the letter before AI "fixed" it... (wink, wink, (sarcasm))

This is HOF material. A classic!

[HerbieFan]

Everything the Pohlads, and to a degree Falvey, say is an affront to fans' intelligence.  They are completely TONE DEAF to their fan base.

[CRF]

Kudos to Mr Taylor. You've put into words, very eloquently, what most of us are thinking and feeling. Fantastic article! We've all been fed a pack of lies, and to say we've been insulted doesn't even come close. If you consider yourself a Twins fan...and I certainly consider myself one, we just had a dumpster full of sh*t shoved down our throats by little Joey boy and the rest of the slime-balls in charge. It sucks. 

[Linus]

The Twins have been a PR nightmare for a long time. This episode falls right in line with that history. You know the old business saying “know your customer “?  They don’t. 

[rv78]

The Pohlad family keeping control of the Twins is bad enough. Pretending it’s good news is worse.

Joe Pohlad opened his remarks, as quoted in Phil Miller’s Star Tribune piece, by saying, “I don’t think we could have imagined a better outcome than where we landed.” 

 

It IS good news. It's good news for the Pohlads and Joe tells us that in his remarks. Don't be fooled that he meant it for Twins fans. They don't give a rats A$$ about the fans, only themselves. Joe is happy. Falvey is happy. Rocco is happy. 

Anyone who thinks this is going to result in any change that will be meaningful to the fans is a fool.

Attendance Thursday night was 24,000. In the picture it looks like they had 23,000 no shows.

[D.C Twins]

5 hours ago, LastOnePicked said:

Not a penny to this organization while the Pohlads are still involved. Not. a. single. penny.

Their inability to say even a single thing about this team that rings with even a modicum of reality is stunning. Seriously. 

These are not the smartest people in the room. This is one of the worst run organizations in MLB, and this was supposed to be the Target Field "Golden Age" of Twins baseball.

At this point, I'd rather see this team contracted than in the hands of a Pohlad.

Not. a. penny.

This is the key... people need to vote with their feet.

A true and sustained mass exodus of the fan base will hurt the Pohlad's financially and that is all they will listen too. 

If they 'take their toys and go home' by selling the team outside of the state... so be it... we do not need to be held hostage to a rotten franchise. 

[Woof Bronzer]

Billionaires think they can do and say whatever they want without consequence....because they can.  

[markymark12]

Scourge.....

[NotAboutWinning]

4 hours ago, AceWrigley said:

DanHayesMLB  @DanHayesMLB

Sources: The 20% portion of the #MNTwins that sold went for a higher valuation than the $1.7b estimate provided by Sportico.

 

What? That doesn't seem even remotely possible but if true, no wonder they didn't sell the team outright.

This makes no sense whatsoever. Why would anyone pay above market price to hitch their wagon to this s***show? Without a controlling interest and no path to one? 2 groups were willing to do this, somewhere in the neighborhood of $400m? There has to be more to this!