Twins Ownership Transition Goes from Quiet Money Move to Extremely Minnesotan Palace Intrigue

[Woof Bronzer]

18 minutes ago, rdehring said:

Don't know where you are reading reports that the debt is from Covid/Carousel.  I recall reading a piece in the Strib business section this past summer.  Or maybe it was spring.  Anyway, the professional reporter was clear that 100% of the Twins debt was from the Twins operations, including money they have invested into Target Field over the years.  But I guess you will choose to believe what you read here and elsewhere opposed to a professional business reporter.

Please link the piece, I'm interested in reading.  

[sweetmusicviola16]

Want real change? Fire Falvey. 

[tony&rodney]

1 hour ago, amjgt said:

I'm going to go back to the framework of a trade that I just can't shake. Pablo for Jarren Duran (we would probably need to include a prospect).

This type of thinking is what the Twins should be considering if they are serious about being competitive as opposed to just rolling back a 72 win team that played with pretty good luck (Bader, France, and Coulombe) as well as above average health from the roster in terms of days missed due to injuries.

I'm not sure what options exist or what players should be involved but I still maintain that there are options. The longer the Twins sit on the sidelines the fewer their options.

Using amigt's proposal as a baseline, one can wonder if Jarren Duran is available for Lopez, Charlee Soto, and Ryan Jeffers? The loss of Jeffers necessitates finding a catcher, which will cost about the same (Caratini-?) and perhaps not be as good. Ask Boston what pushes the deal over the line.the trade adds to a glut of LH corner outfield bats. It does shed about $28M while adding back roughly $15M (Duran-$7.75 + catcher-$7M). There are options. Lopez for someone like Jonah Tong clears $21M probably works. 

The Twins signed a DH in Josh Bell. Yes, he could grab a glove a couple of dozen games despite the obvious danger. Trevor Larnach could be traded for a relief pitcher. With Bell and Duran Trevor doesn't have a spot. Bailey Ober could be traded for Jordan Lawler. Maybe the Twins add Kyle DeBarge to Ober. The outfield too jammed by adding Duran? Trade Wallner to Pittsburgh for Jared Jones. Twins could add Tanner Schobel to entice the Pirates. Wallner should be enough though. I like all these Twins but the team is severely unbalanced.

There is now a hefty bit of room beneath a $110M payroll budget. Budget $120M? Great. More room.

The point is simply that there are options. Picking apart who and for whom is pointless unless the returns are more DH's or guys who just don't belong in MLB. Pick a lane and get to work. There is still time.

[amjgt]

5 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

 

Using amigt's proposal as a baseline, one can wonder if Jarren Duran is available for Lopez, Charlee Soto, and Ryan Jeffers? The loss of Jeffers necessitates finding a catcher....

I thought we were going big or going home....

Call the Orioles about Adley Rutchmann

[tony&rodney]

1 minute ago, amjgt said:

I thought we were going big or going home....

Call the Orioles about Adley Rutchmann

Almost impossible for the Orioles to trade their catcher unless it is for Joe Ryan. That is not a good idea. Samuel Basallo is a work in progress behind the plate. He will catch more than 50 games but DH more often and maybe spell Alonso a half dozen times at first base. Catching is thin league wide. I'm not opposed to your idea but will stress that it is support for the general idea that change can take place.

[rdehring]

1 hour ago, Woof Bronzer said:

Please link the piece, I'm interested in reading.  

Was in the Strib business section.  Think it was early summer, maybe late spring.  Don't have any way of finding it and linking.  Was a lengthy piece in the business section.

[JADBP]

I’m just soooo glad to see Joey gone!  
 

now Falvey….

[Parfigliano]

4 hours ago, Woof Bronzer said:

Tom said he's not about half-measures.  He's a "go big or go home guy".  So far they are doing a half measure.  If we are to believe Tom, who says he thinks the team will compete, he'll inject about $50m to the payroll immediately.  If not, we will know he is lying and isn't actually a "go big or go home guy" at all.  

He has said a lot of bold things that are going to live on the internet for a long time.  You cannot come out and call yourself a "go big of go home guy" and then go out and sign Josh freaking Bell and a couple scrap heap relievers.  

He wants to show it's a completely new direction and it's "go big or go home"  fire Falvey.

[amjgt]

1 hour ago, tony&rodney said:

Almost impossible for the Orioles to trade their catcher unless it is for Joe Ryan. That is not a good idea. Samuel Basallo is a work in progress behind the plate. He will catch more than 50 games but DH more often and maybe spell Alonso a half dozen times at first base. Catching is thin league wide. I'm not opposed to your idea but will stress that it is support for the general idea that change can take place.

In my previous 2-piece Duran/Rutchman ideas, Jeffers was an ancillary piece going to the Orioles. 
 

Lopez + good prospect for Duran

jeffers + elite prospect for Rutchman. 
 

Anyway… I’ve strayed off topic. New front office needs to make some sort of big splash and it doesn’t necessarily have to mean some huge jump in payroll. 

[TopGunn#22]

Palace intrigue indeed !!!  On the surface, after all the bloviating has been done, this "could" be a positive development.  Many posters have made great points.

1.  How hot is the seat Derrick Falvey is sitting on?  I'm not sure I have a handle on how "close" or "far apart" Falvey's plan for this coming season (and anything since the end of the 2023 season) is to what Tom Pohlad's vision is.  I've heard some strong words from Tom.  But how aligned is he with Falvey?

2.  It's been debated here on TD since the trade deadline selloff and this entire off season, that there are two clear directions for this franchise to take.  Add on the fringes-keep the core together-compete in 2026.  Or go for a full blown rebuild with 2027-2028 the goal for contention. Teams that intend to compete NOW don't use a Rule 5 pick on a solid catching prospect (Susac) who could have facilitated a trade of Ryan Jeffers before he walks with no roster enhancement, and then within minutes, make a trade for a 17 year old catcher, who could turn out to be a better catcher than Susac, but in 4-5 years.  

I don't think the Twins can do BOTH.  Meaning compete in 2026 without harming an effective rebuild. The Falvey reign is replete with examples of head scratching moves.  How does Tom Pohlad feel about those past seasons with Falvey in charge?  

I don't think the Twins will get as much for Ryan, Lopez, Ober, Jeffers at the deadline as they would this winter.  If Bell is just a DH and the Twins truly want to get better defensively then a trade of Wallner, who has very good value, needs to happen as well.  Tom Pohlad says he's a "Go Big or Go Home" kind of guy.  The kind of trades tony&rodney laid out, and that I've suggested many times, would be doing just that.

[tony&rodney]

7 hours ago, The Great Hambino said:

He can say whatever he wants.  His actions thus far suggest nothing is changing in how they operate. 

Sadly, this appears to be the case.

4 hours ago, Rhyno006 said:

Time will tell, and the team on the field will be the barometer.

This always works, but waiting until the results are in for a third straight year seems a little bit insane. My guess is that Time has already told but someone wasn't paying attention as time passed them by and the barometer has been thus far ignored despite the storm clouds of ineptitude.

Yet, still, we hope.

[sweetmusicviola16]

2 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

This type of thinking is what the Twins should be considering if they are serious about being competitive as opposed to just rolling back a 72 win team that played with pretty good luck (Bader, France, and Coulombe) as well as above average health from the roster in terms of days missed due to injuries.

I'm not sure what options exist or what players should be involved but I still maintain that there are options. The longer the Twins sit on the sidelines the fewer their options.

Using amigt's proposal as a baseline, one can wonder if Jarren Duran is available for Lopez, Charlee Soto, and Ryan Jeffers? The loss of Jeffers necessitates finding a catcher, which will cost about the same (Caratini-?) and perhaps not be as good. Ask Boston what pushes the deal over the line.the trade adds to a glut of LH corner outfield bats. It does shed about $28M while adding back roughly $15M (Duran-$7.75 + catcher-$7M). There are options. Lopez for someone like Jonah Tong clears $21M probably works. 

The Twins signed a DH in Josh Bell. Yes, he could grab a glove a couple of dozen games despite the obvious danger. Trevor Larnach could be traded for a relief pitcher. With Bell and Duran Trevor doesn't have a spot. Bailey Ober could be traded for Jordan Lawler. Maybe the Twins add Kyle DeBarge to Ober. The outfield too jammed by adding Duran? Trade Wallner to Pittsburgh for Jared Jones. Twins could add Tanner Schobel to entice the Pirates. Wallner should be enough though. I like all these Twins but the team is severely unbalanced.

There is now a hefty bit of room beneath a $110M payroll budget. Budget $120M? Great. More room.

The point is simply that there are options. Picking apart who and for whom is pointless unless the returns are more DH's or guys who just don't belong in MLB. Pick a lane and get to work. There is still time.

I like your ideas tony. I like your GM direction more than the present. With your proposals we'd also have some available money to delve into the dwindling FA market. With the loss of Pablo I'd propose signing a guy like Zach Littel to a FA deal to steady the young rotation. Yes he's a step back from Pablo but he's been productive, and can use up innings. 2/25 And he can be traded at the deadline too.

Changing direction does not have to be a dumpster fire.

[lukeduke1980]

500 million of debt is what gets a Pohlad brother replaced by another.  I think 'the core' gets a half season due to low trade value of Lopez off injury, and relatively low salaries of Ryan, Buck.  If things go south the tear down commences.

[h2oface]

This teams ownership is a total joke. So is the feckless Falvey, who would have resigned long ago if he had a backbone. And this just continues the joke.

Hope?

Only to be more paralyzed by hope.

The only thing he got correct is that the Pohlads have lost the fanbase. Tom is just more loss coming.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

I wounder what Christmas dinner will be like at the Pohlad's this year?

[The Great Hambino]

24 minutes ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

I wounder what Christmas dinner will be like at the Pohlad's this year?

Joe will definitely have to play Boar On The Floor (IYKYK)

[TNtwins85]

On 12/17/2025 at 10:26 PM, tony&rodney said:

Until Derek Falvey is removed from all baseball-related decisions, nothing will change. 10 years is enough. Great guy who may serve the franchise well, running the numbers side. He cannot be left on the baseball side of the ledger. That has been tried already.

Really? Can we stop this already. Falvey isn’t getting fired. If anything he’s now bought himself another 2-3 years. Y’all can thumbs down this post but that’s the reality. I believe he was hamstrung by the old Pohlad regime. Plain and simple. If he had full reign to do what he wanted I believe it would’ve been more of what got them to 2019 and 2023 rather than what has happened since. It was a long time ago but remember where this franchise was on the field and in the FO 10 years ago? They were the Rockies now essentially. No analytics department. Old school thinking baseball system. A pitching pipeline that had struggled to develop even one playoff caliber starter in decades and down right awful baseball. Remember Terry Ryan? Retread central,pitch to contact, bad trades because of outdated thinking, bad drafting when handed multiple top 10’s, company man who never shook things up when he could've( he had Pohlad trust), had pride in bringing in a payroll under the budget he got. Falvey revamped the whole analytics department, has built a pitching pipeline( not one that produces “Aces” but one that continually can supplement depth. That’s a pipeline), made strategic moves to get the Twins to 2017 and 2019 playoff appearances when it should’ve taken a few more years. Some moves weren’t the best but show me another FO who makes good decisions every time. Compared to Ryan, Falvey is on another level and what this franchise needed in order to not be the Rockies of today. I don’t agree with him on a lot. Maybe we should see what happens when he’s not trying to execute a team plan with his hands tied behind his back so much financially wise. Also, he’s not being fired. 

[TNtwins85]

On 12/18/2025 at 4:11 PM, Parfigliano said:

He wants to show it's a completely new direction and it's "go big or go home"  fire Falvey.

Not gonna happen. Everyone’s lucky that for some reason and stroke of sheer luck they went outside the org for Falvey and didn’t just settle on Rob Antony or the Bill Smith style line of succession. Let the man work without being blindfolded on a plank with both hands tied behind his back. Let the thumbs down commence!

[TNtwins85]

On 12/18/2025 at 3:34 PM, amjgt said:

I thought we were going big or going home....

Call the Orioles about Adley Rutchmann

I thought there was a path to Rustchman but after they traded Caden Bodine yesterday I think the line of succession goes to Basallo in a few years if they don’t just outright extend Rustchman at this point. I was of the thinking that a trade like Pablo or Ryan paired with Jeffers bringing back Rustchman, Mayo, Bradfield and 1 or 2 close to ready prospects to backfill the rotation/bullpen really fit is seemed to have crashed and burned. I take it the Twins and Orioles have discussed something along these lines the last few weeks and they couldn’t figure out a path. I believe the line to the Orioles as a trade partner has died or we for sure would’ve seen them pull the trigger on something as they matched up well. They have clearly pivoted going in their own division to get Baz. I take it the Rays weren’t their ideal trading partner which I think means the Twins weren’t impressed by whatever they were offering.

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, TNtwins85 said:

Not gonna happen. Everyone’s lucky that for some reason and stroke of sheer luck they went outside the org for Falvey and didn’t just settle on Rob Antony or the Bill Smith style line of succession. Let the man work without being blindfolded on a plank with both hands tied behind his back. Let the thumbs down commence!

He's been working with TC since 2016.

[TNtwins85]

58 minutes ago, Parfigliano said:

He's been working with TC since 2016.

Right, that’s when he was hired. Outside the organization. Who succeeded Andy Macphail? Terry Ryan=internal. Who succeeded Terry Ryan? Bill Smith=internal. Who succeeded Bill Smith? Terry Ryan=internal. Who succeeded Terry Ryan? Rob Antony=internal. Who succeeded Rob Antony? Derek Falvey=external. This team could have gotten another internal candidate in which case the Twins could be the Rockies of today. For all the Falvey hate around here I get it but I don’t get it. All I ask is for some semblance of intelligence. Instead of “Fire Falvey” every other comment. It’s like the 15th century around here with people wearing armored helmets holding pitchforks and torches yelling “kill the king”. Can we at least use a portion of our brains? Sheesh.

[JADBP]

On 12/19/2025 at 7:46 AM, tarheeltwinsfan said:

I wounder what Christmas dinner will be like at the Pohlad's this year?

OMG, that’s precious!  I can just imagine everyone looking at each other asking “Where’s Joe?!!!???!?! “. 
 

Joe is gonna be in Singapore or anyplace other than Dad’s house!!!

[JADBP]

10 hours ago, TNtwins85 said:

Right, that’s when he was hired. Outside the organization. Who succeeded Andy Macphail? Terry Ryan=internal. Who succeeded Terry Ryan? Bill Smith=internal. Who succeeded Bill Smith? Terry Ryan=internal. Who succeeded Terry Ryan? Rob Antony=internal. Who succeeded Rob Antony? Derek Falvey=external. This team could have gotten another internal candidate in which case the Twins could be the Rockies of today. For all the Falvey hate around here I get it but I don’t get it. All I ask is for some semblance of intelligence. Instead of “Fire Falvey” every other comment. It’s like the 15th century around here with people wearing armored helmets holding pitchforks and torches yelling “kill the king”. Can we at least use a portion of our brains? Sheesh.

Right on!  I say FIRE FALVEY!!!

But the problem is he can NOT!  At least not right now. At this moment he needs Falvey to put together some sort of team. There isn’t really time right now to go through the hiring process.  And still sign, trade, draft, and plan, etc.  so he’s stuck with Falvey for now, prob most of the season.  
 

On the other hand, if he stays stuck with Falvey, he bakes in another year of the same-o same-o BS plans from Falvey that Falveys been running out there for the last 7-8 yrs.  Falvey ain’t gonna change his stripes.  So Tom is Double-secret-stuck!!! 
 

I believe Tom believes he’s a take charge kind of boss.  Let’s see if he really is.  Let’s see how he handles Double-Secret-Stuck!

[Woof Bronzer]

On 12/20/2025 at 9:04 AM, TNtwins85 said:

Not gonna happen. Everyone’s lucky that for some reason and stroke of sheer luck they went outside the org for Falvey and didn’t just settle on Rob Antony or the Bill Smith style line of succession. Let the man work without being blindfolded on a plank with both hands tied behind his back. Let the thumbs down commence!

We're lucky to have a GM who is on year 10 with 1 ALDS game win to show for it and no playoffs for 4 of the past 5 years, and should never fire him because he was an external hire?  This might be the hottest take I've ever heard on this site and that's saying something!  Have a nice Christmas Derek!

[Woof Bronzer]

On 12/20/2025 at 12:42 PM, TNtwins85 said:

This team could have gotten another internal candidate in which case the Twins could be the Rockies of today. 

I am truly sorry to be the one to tell you this, but the Twins ARE the Rockies of today.  The Rockies were the only team worse than the Twins after the deadline selloff - but it was close.  Before the selloff happened the Rockies won the season series from the Twins.  The Twins ended 2025 on a 57-win pace.  Again, it cannot be stressed enough how terrible this roster is, and it all happened under Falvey's watch.  

[TNtwins85]

6 minutes ago, Woof Bronzer said:

We're lucky to have a GM who is on year 10 with 1 ALDS game win to show for it and no playoffs for 4 of the past 5 years, and should never fire him because he was an external hire?  This might be the hottest take I've ever heard on this site and that's saying something!  Have a nice Christmas Derek!

Well, considering the absolute mess he’s been handed by ownership twice now it could sure be a lot worse. Do I think he’s doing an A+ job? Absolutely not. This is ownerships fault and I give them 80% blame while giving Falvey 20%. Frankly I’m surprised he’s still here. Not because I think he should be fired but because I think he has and will get opportunities to go elsewhere. I also think he would be smart to for the state of how the Pohlads have handled things in his tenure. I don’t think many remember how bad the state of the team and FO was when he arrived and he turned things around quick just to make them even competent in terms of analytics, scouting and modern. This is probably gonna get thumbs down but may I suggest this.

1.Tell everyone who you think he should be replaced by.

2. Are the Pohlads capable of hiring another competent PBO?

if you can’t do that then maybe you should be thinking a bit harder before just saying “Fire Falvey!” Because at that point you’re just mindlessly commenting the same thing as everyone else and you’re just another miserable pessimistic fan. And if my comment makes you more mad maybe you should just go comment on politics. Another fruitless sport that you truly can’t control. It will add to your misery but you can follow everyone else in repeating the same things and it will make you feel better hopefully. 

[Woof Bronzer]

19 hours ago, TNtwins85 said:

1.Tell everyone who you think he should be replaced by.

2. Are the Pohlads capable of hiring another competent PBO?

if you can’t do that then maybe you should be thinking a bit harder before just saying “Fire Falvey!” Because at that point you’re just mindlessly commenting the same thing as everyone else and you’re just another miserable pessimistic fan. And if my comment makes you more mad maybe you should just go comment on politics. Another fruitless sport that you truly can’t control. It will add to your misery but you can follow everyone else in repeating the same things and it will make you feel better hopefully. 

1.  Billy Smith.

2.  They hired Billy Smith once already, didn't they?

"I'm not mad, you're mad!"

Seriously, it's all in good fun.  Have a great Christmas.

[tony&rodney]

On 12/20/2025 at 9:04 AM, TNtwins85 said:

Let the man work without being blindfolded on a plank with both hands tied behind his back. Let the thumbs down commence!

Apparently you are unfamiliar with the Twins rosters and payrolls in the last 9 years and not familiar with the current roster. It is nice of you to champion the current regime, but one has to actually have some knowledge of what players were instrumental in winning games. The Twins are now down to one position player that would be a consensus average or above average position player. Naturally, there are people who can make cases for two week stretches or future hopes for multiple other guys including all of: Jeffers, Jackson, Bell, Julien, etc. (one can fill in the remainder of the roster). Byron Buxton was drafted and developed by the prior front office. That's the Twins sole player worth a mention for now.

The Twins have spent more money on payroll under the current front office than all of their division foes as well as spent considerably more money on players than Milwaukee and Tampa Bay among other clubs. In short there has not been a shortage of funds available for the current front office unless one insists on comparing the Twins to the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, and Phillies. The financial resources have been plentiful.

Any outside evaluation of the Twins organization from 2016 to today easily concludes that the aging of players developed under Ryan/Smith/Anthony combined with poor roster decisions and an absence of successfully bringing talent from the minor leagues to the major league team (failure to develop pre-arb players) has resulted in the September 2025 Twins squad. The decline has been a combination of neglect, inability to evaluate talent, a risk adverse mindset, and some bad luck. The Rockies are as good as the Twins right now.

There is always hope and the Twins have opportunities if they are interested in change. I remain hopeful for change. Everyone is capable of change for the better.

[TNtwins85]

1 hour ago, Woof Bronzer said:

1.  Billy Smith.

2.  They hired Billy Smith once already, didn't they?

"I'm not mad, you're mad!"

Seriously, it's all in good fun.  Have a great Christmas.

The fire Falvey narrative is so old and beat to death. The guy has done some good things. He took a franchise in 2017 that had just lost 103 games and got them to the playoffs with some pretty precise moves. 2019 was brilliance. He turned some low level guys into difference makers with smart moves that Twins fans hadn’t seen since the Pierzynski trade a decade earlier. He helped orchestrate Josh Donaldson and Correa signings which were monumental for a franchise that hadn’t touched even a mid level FA ever. Made a trade for Maeda to get an impact starter. Made an impact trade for Sonny Gray. Both places 2nd in Cy Young voting. Something nobody had seen since Santana. Made a challenge trade for Pablo. Did all the things highly capable FO’s do. Then the Pohlads pulled the rug out. Is he culpable? Yes. But the Pohlads did this. He went along with it and played the good soldier but I don’t believe he deserves to be fired. If not for him the Twins would be the Rockies. Saying the Rockies are better is so stupid if you analyze all the moves he’s made to make this franchise better and modern and saying he’s stupid is stupid. It shows no intellect whatsoever to just parrot things that aren’t true just because you’re angry. Fire Baldelli, Fire Falvey, Fire the Pohlads. That’s so stupid and shows the character of people here. If he’s so stupid then why is he the PBO and not anyone here? Because it’s a hard freaking job. He’s not stupid. If he was he’d be on here telling everyone else that the GM of his favorite team should be fired. But he’s not. He’s actually doing it. He’s in a put up or shut up position. If he fails this test then yeah he probably should be fired. 

[Woof Bronzer]

15 minutes ago, TNtwins85 said:

He turned some low level guys into difference makers with smart moves that Twins fans hadn’t seen since the Pierzynski trade a decade earlier. He helped orchestrate Josh Donaldson and Correa signings which were monumental for a franchise that hadn’t touched even a mid level FA ever. Made a trade for Maeda to get an impact starter. Made an impact trade for Sonny Gray. Both places 2nd in Cy Young voting. Something nobody had seen since Santana. Made a challenge trade for Pablo. Did all the things highly capable FO’s do.

This is the saddest thing I have ever read here. The Pohlads have damaged us all, my friend.  On that we agree.