What The?!: Derek Falvey to Depart Minnesota Twins Front Office

[Blyleven2011]

3 hours ago, bunsen82 said:

Kwesi fired today now too.  There may be something more at hand here which signifies the odd timing on both.   

Do the Pohlads own the Vikings too ??? 🤣

[rv78]

The Pohlads came to the conclusion that Falvey wasn't capable of building a winner within their payroll restrictions and Falvey came to the conclusion that the Pohlads were never going to give him the huge amount of payroll he'd need to cover up his mistakes and still be a winner, 

That my friends is the mutual understanding and agreement they arrived at. Period.

[bunsen82]

1 minute ago, rv78 said:

The Pohlads came to the conclusion that Falvey wasn't capable of building a winner within their payroll restrictions and Falvey came to the conclusion that the Pohlads were never going to give him the huge amount of payroll he'd need to cover up his mistakes and still be a winner, 

That my friends is the mutual understanding and agreement they arrived at. Period.

Lets just be clear,  this isn't a mutual decision.   Pohlads told him he was fired and here is your departing package if you agree and this is stated as a mutual parting.   

[stringer bell]

33 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

I'm glad he's gone but the timing isn't quite right , reminds me when our pitching coach left to go back to college coaching ...

Maybe Zoll will show some guts and add something worthwhile for the lineup  ...

Did Falvey clash with leadership Tom  , tom trying to be the alpha dog when falvey wouldn't have none of it , falvey wanted to do it all , im reallysurprised he never went to the dugout to manage when we all knew all the yes men had to follow Falvey's plan ...

Shelton hopefully can manage footloose and fancy free ...

It's also good for the players ( i hope ) it also allows them to play the game with a Shelton plan and not a falvey plan  , Zoll will have to follow him out the door ( falvey clone ) as soon as a new president of operations is hired and changes GM's ...

It's a good day for the team and fans , baseball just got alittle more exciting , now the players need to play like professionals and I think they will with nothing holding them back now  ...

 

I think it’s far more likely that established players will be traded. If ever a GM gets slack to tear it down, it is when he is appointed. 

[bunsen82]

Here is where it gets interesting.  So Joe Pohlads force Falvey to tear down the bullpen and trade Correa.  Had they had a decent end to the season,  Does Falvey and Joe still have a job?   The process is just odd.  

[h2oface]

Good riddance. If Falvey had a spine at all he would have resigned at the trade deadline instead of agreeing to decimate this team. These guys like Falvey are hired guns only interested in their own career and are temporary while caring fans are permanent. Who’s the next stranger to come in and pretend they know it all and say they love the Twins? (How about all those top of the line pitchers he promised?) The sad thing is their character can’t be to keen if they will work for Pohlad. 

Tom Pohlad is like the new guy in the grocery store’s hierarchy that comes in and wants to make his mark so he has the guy under him rearrange the location of everything (firesales the best parts) and makes the employees (feckless FO) do all that meaningless extra work only to piss off the customers (fans) because they can’t find anything anymore (a team full of new less talented and cheaper strangers). 
 

[AceWrigley]

4 hours ago, LA Vikes Fan said:

You have to wonder what Dereck Shelton is thinking. The guy who he knew in 2019 and who hired him now just got fired. Is he safe and if so, is that just for now? this could rapidly spin out of control unless someone does some serious triage. Here's looking at you, Tom.  

Jeremy Zoll is the GM and will be the GM, no change there. Shelton is ok.

[Pykkman]

The dumpster fire started by the Polhads continues to burn.   Causalities mounting.    Fans, players, coaches, front office paying the price.  

[KirbyDome89]

5 hours ago, Twins_Fan_in_NJ said:

I'd like to think this marks a big shift or change in direction (in a good way) but I don't see Zoll doing anything differently - at least not enough to move the needle. Until the franchise (Tom Pohlad) develops a different philosophy, the Twins are kind of stuck in neutral.

Concur, promoting Zoll and taking over the business side yourself doesn't equate to a big shift. If anything it's pretty much status quo for this organization. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

5 hours ago, LewFordLives said:

This organization does everything ass backwards. Don't get me wrong, he needed to go. Now you are trying to hire someone who will knowingly inherit Falvey's mess of a roster and hand picked manager. Who's gonna want this job?

I'll take it. I have a degree in economics from UNC and a law degree from UNC and have run a successful law firm for 50 years. Plus, I love the Twins. Hey wait a minute, maybe I'd better not do this, since I'm no more qualified to do this than I am to be president of the United States. Hey, wait a minute.... 

[AceWrigley]

The State of Minnesota might consider a new slogan: "Minnesota, what a mess."

[Riverbrian]

Regardless if any of us like or dislike Falvey. 

The timing could not be worse. 

Who knows how the power structure actually works. To my understanding (which isn't worth much) Falvey was in charge of everything from the price of hot dogs to the staffing to the rosters. Everybody answers to Derek. He's not leaving if the staff working for him is insubordinate or disagrees with direction. 

That leaves only one level above him where direction can be questioned. Sure sounds like we have a directional disagreement at 1 Twins Way because the timing couldn't be worse. 

I don't know what direction the winds are blowing out of Tom Pohlad and the ownership group. I don't know the direction of the winds that were blowing with Joe Pohlad and I don't know what direction the winds are blowing with Derek Falvey. 

Is it Derek that wants to go for it? Is it the Pohlads that want to go for it? Someone said we are keeping Joe Ryan and going for it?

Who is the driving force behind Keeping Ryan and going for it?

Is that person still in the building? 

Regardless of the answer... The timing sucks as the Off-season is winding down.

If they are changing plans on January 30. What a WASTE of October, November, December and 29 days of January.  

All we can do is watch comes next. Player movement or lack of movement as we head toward Fort Myers. 

All I know... the club is still lumpy. The club isn't complete. Rob Zoll has to carry on. But what direction Rob? What Direction? Whatever the answer... it must be coming from above. 

[KirbyDome89]

5 hours ago, JD-TWINS said:

The fact that spending was cut/has been cut at the severe level we’ve seen & then to bitch about the FO’s inability to have an effective roster is nuts!

They were literally the worst team in baseball after the deadline last year. They've done next to nothing to raise that floor. The roster is pathetic. That doesn't happen only because spending was curbed. The development side has been an abject failure. Poor decision making in trades/FA have compounded the issue, and yes, cutting payroll hurt as well, but this club has missed the postseason 4 of the last 5 years in what's undeniably the worst division in baseball. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

5 hours ago, SF Twins Fan said:

What I do wonder is, will they be able to pluck a good candidate from a well-run organization this late into the offseason?  Also, with the Pohlad's still potentially selling after the new CBA comes into effect would someone want this GM spot knowing they may have a new boss in a few years?

I'll take it.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

8 minutes ago, AceWrigley said:

The State of Minnesota might consider a new slogan: "Minnesota, what a mess."

I think that slogan has already been adopted by the United States.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

22 minutes ago, Pykkman said:

The dumpster fire started by the Polhads continues to burn.   Causalities mounting.    Fans, players, coaches, front office paying the price.  

Chaos. We've already got enough chaos in our lives. Even though we love the Twins and want them to win, this is very minor compared to the chaos in our country right now. I will not allow this situation to bother me. I will not.  You folks in Minnesota are especially in my thoughts and prayers, as is our whole country.

[KirbyDome89]

5 hours ago, Richie the Rally Goat said:

Bingo! From Gleeman via @jharaldson ‘Tom Pohlad says he "will immediately begin a search for a president of business operations who, along with GM Jeremy Zoll, will report to me."‘

"Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story indicated the team would begin an immediate search for a new president of baseball operations. During his press conference, a reporter asked Pohlad about that search, and Pohlad corrected the record: Zoll will be in charge of baseball ops. The team is not pursuing a replacemeny for Falvey outside the organization at this time."

I'm too lazy to piece the timeline together. Are they seeking a replacement or simply eliminating the role and putting Zoll in charge? 

[KirbyDome89]

It was time for Falvey to go. It probably should've happened before now, but whatever. Call me a downer, but I think there's a lot of wishcasting going on with regards to Tom Pohlad's motivation(s) right now. I too hope he saw the god awful roster and the piss poor on field performances this club has been turning in, but I also have zero faith in that family giving a **** about the on field product.

I'm curious whether it was a power struggle and Falvey didn't want to relinquish control of the business side, or maybe it was personal, Idk, either way I kinda doubt it matters. Zoll sliding into Falvey's old chair is just another half measure from an organization feebly attempting to tell us that they don't do half measures and the business is being run by a family that's a walking PR nightmare. 

Two things can be true at once; I can be glad the Falvey era is over and simultaneously feel zero optimism for this club based on the current power structure. 

[Richie the Rally Goat]

22 minutes ago, KirbyDome89 said:

"Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story indicated the team would begin an immediate search for a new president of baseball operations. During his press conference, a reporter asked Pohlad about that search, and Pohlad corrected the record: Zoll will be in charge of baseball ops. The team is not pursuing a replacemeny for Falvey outside the organization at this time."

I'm too lazy to piece the timeline together. Are they seeking a replacement or simply eliminating the role and putting Zoll in charge? 

Me too, and agreed, my read is they’re going back to a business lead and a GM and eliminating the POBBO

[CoachDW]

FINALLY! Both Falvey and Baldelli should have been fired after the epic collapse down the stretch in 2024; not doing so was a big mistake. When Baldelli was ousted last October, Falvey should have been shown the door as well. The Twins have totally wasted this entire off-season, and the timing of this move is very strange, coming just a few weeks before pitchers and catchers report - but better late than never. 

[KirbyDome89]

3 minutes ago, Richie the Rally Goat said:

Me too, and agreed, my read is they’re going back to a business lead and a GM and eliminating the POBBO

That definitely dampens what enthusiasm I had for parting ways with Falvey. 

[DJL44]

54 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

Rob Zoll has to carry on. But what direction Rob? What Direction? 

I think his answer would be "My name is Jeremy".

[sweetmusicviola16]

1 hour ago, Riverbrian said:

Regardless if any of us like or dislike Falvey. 

The timing could not be worse. 

Who knows how the power structure actually works. To my understanding (which isn't worth much) Falvey was in charge of everything from the price of hot dogs to the staffing to the rosters. Everybody answers to Derek. He's not leaving if the staff working for him is insubordinate or disagrees with direction. 

That leaves only one level above him where direction can be questioned. Sure sounds like we have a directional disagreement at 1 Twins Way because the timing couldn't be worse. 

I don't know what direction the winds are blowing out of Tom Pohlad and the ownership group. I don't know the direction of the winds that were blowing with Joe Pohlad and I don't know what direction the winds are blowing with Derek Falvey. 

Is it Derek that wants to go for it? Is it the Pohlads that want to go for it? Someone said we are keeping Joe Ryan and going for it?

Who is the driving force behind Keeping Ryan and going for it?

Is that person still in the building? 

Regardless of the answer... The timing sucks as the Off-season is winding down.

If they are changing plans on January 30. What a WASTE of October, November, December and 29 days of January.  

All we can do is watch comes next. Player movement or lack of movement as we head toward Fort Myers. 

All I know... the club is still lumpy. The club isn't complete. Rob Zoll has to carry on. But what direction Rob? What Direction? Whatever the answer... it must be coming from above. 

The positional roster is a mess. Almost everyone knows this. The bullpen is a mess. Almost everyone knows this.  Yes what a waste of an offseason. What we don't know is if Falvey's hands were tied to make better moves or if he is extremely incompetent. My honest guess is it's both. What hasn't changed as of today is that this team looks very bad and very poorly put together. 

[Cris E]

OK, just read Dan Hayes' piece in The Athletic.  Very informative, still leaves a little shadow in the corners but pretty clear about the basics, including a great history of the highs and lows of the past three years. Read it if you can find it. 

Falvey and Tom Pohlad were not going to get along. It sounds like Tom is going to be more hands-on than Falvey was comfortable with, maybe because he likes being his own guy or maybe because Pohlad knows nothing about baseball. In the context of the parting this morning it really doesn't matter much, but what it means for Zoll and the club going forward is quite another matter. 

There were a couple vague comments in the article that left me unclear what was going on, but it does look like Pohlad is now the one who claims they can win in 2026. That's probably good for fans. OTOH the odd line below about the deadline fire sale seems to indicate that some Pohlad was the one pushing for the sell off. Either it was Joe and he's gone or it was Tom and he's having a change of heart, but either way Falvey sounds a little POed at the constant changes. 

Quote

Pohlad described the 2026 season as critical. To regain fans’ trust, Pohlad perhaps naively is insisting the Twins will contend even though the bullpen is only minimally rebuilt after the trades of Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Louis Varland and Brock Stewart. The club’s estimated payroll is $109 million, down from $142 million in 2025. Pohlad said he believes there’s still “room for investment” into the roster between now and Opening Day.

Faced with another change of direction from ownership after the front office was implored to rip apart the roster before the Aug. 1 trade deadline, Falvey and Pohlad instead began discussions over the past two weeks about the team president’s exit strategy.

There was no indication of a specific match that started the fire, so more stories may be forthcoming, but this is a case of personalities and direction changes rather than bombshells on the ownership or CBA front.

[Western SD Fan]

It also seemed odd that Baldelli, the large majority of his staff, and even Joe Pohlad was fired from their respective positions and Falvey survived.  We all questioned the idea when Dave St. Peter retired from his position as President of the Twins and Joe gave Falvey St. Peter's position as well.  I saw many comments on this site when Levine and St. Peter left that there's now nowhere for Falvey to hide on his decision-making when it comes to the team.  It does look to me that Joe Pohlad had no clue what he was doing as overseeing the Twins and gave Falvey all of the power without any meaningful oversight. 

Tom took over just over a month ago.  If he had no knowledge of the situation prior to taking over, it would be reasonable that he would take some time to get up to speed before making major decisions.  From reports coming out of 1 Twins Way (your mileage may vary), Tom called season ticketholders and asked why they did not renew.  He flew to Georgia to talk to Buxton, same to CA for Ryan, and visited Lopez at TwinsFest, similar to what Shelton did when he was hired as the Manager.  It is quite possible that Tom ended up having questions for Falvey about how he was running the team that Falvey could not answer.  If Falvey tried giving Tom one of those same lengthy discussions as he gave to the media and us fans, Tom probably wasn't going to put up with it.  It's possible that Tom came up to the same conclusion that us fans did at least two years ago, that Falvey was in over his head.  Rather than take a demotion, Falvey just left.

None of that leaves the Pohlads off the hook for blame.  The Pohlads as a group created the problem, but Falvey was not skilled enough to ride the wave through to smooth out the bumps that the Pohlads were creating.  The Correa contract made sense when they were operating at $150M+ payroll.  When Falvey was forced to cut payroll, the downfall started and hamstrung Falvey.  Even if you consider it lip service, Tom even admitted that it was bad business to slash payroll immediately after the most successful season in Twins history in over 20 years.  Falvey did a great job in getting out of the Donaldson contract when it started to look bad.  All this adds up to that Falvey likely needed to go and should have been gone after the season.  It just took a new sheriff in town to make it happen.

 

Edited January 31 by Western SD Fan
Hit submit before I finished the post.

[Riverbrian]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

I think his answer would be "My name is Jeremy".

Rob takes much less time to type. 

I can be efficient sometimes. It's a dry sense of efficiency. 

 

 

[Riverbrian]

47 minutes ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

The positional roster is a mess. Almost everyone knows this. The bullpen is a mess. Almost everyone knows this.  Yes what a waste of an offseason. What we don't know is if Falvey's hands were tied to make better moves or if he is extremely incompetent. My honest guess is it's both. What hasn't changed as of today is that this team looks very bad and very poorly put together. 

This just looks like the ole difference of direction discussion. The timing of it suggests... the difference of opinion wasn't going to resolve and the timing also suggests... it has been festering. This isn't a move you make at this point of the off-season. 

What ever this was. One reasonable assumption I'm going to make is this. Tom Pohlad is in charge. This is one of those end results where it is declared through action... I'm in Charge

[Eris]

1 hour ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

The positional roster is a mess. Almost everyone knows this. The bullpen is a mess. Almost everyone knows this.  Yes what a waste of an offseason. What we don't know is if Falvey's hands were tied to make better moves or if he is extremely incompetent.

I think the challenge is there are too many holes to fill mostly due to under development of prospects. Trading Ryan or Lopez or both for top 20 MLB prospects which seems like a reach will not make the team substantially better as there 5 + positions that need serious upgrading and most of these position players from last year are still on the team. Several of these players are best suited for DH and describing them as position players is being generous. 

[mluebker]

8 hours ago, Cris E said:

Falvey probably isn't as good at business as he is at baseball…

Or worse, he is.

[KirbyDome89]

1 hour ago, Cris E said:

OK, just read Dan Hayes' piece in The Athletic.  Very informative, still leaves a little shadow in the corners but pretty clear about the basics, including a great history of the highs and lows of the past three years. Read it if you can find it. 

Falvey and Tom Pohlad were not going to get along. It sounds like Tom is going to be more hands-on than Falvey was comfortable with, maybe because he likes being his own guy or maybe because Pohlad knows nothing about baseball. In the context of the parting this morning it really doesn't matter much, but what it means for Zoll and the club going forward is quite another matter. 

There were a couple vague comments in the article that left me unclear what was going on, but it does look like Pohlad is now the one who claims they can win in 2026. That's probably good for fans. OTOH the odd line below about the deadline fire sale seems to indicate that some Pohlad was the one pushing for the sell off. Either it was Joe and he's gone or it was Tom and he's having a change of heart, but either way Falvey sounds a little POed at the constant changes. 

There was no indication of a specific match that started the fire, so more stories may be forthcoming, but this is a case of personalities and direction changes rather than bombshells on the ownership or CBA front.

An owner being more hands on and trying to force a "winning," season with one of the worst rosters in baseball seems like a disaster but YMMV. Falvey might have wanted out before too much of the organizational stink got on him, not that he isn't also culpable for the mess that is the Minnesota Twins.