Tuesday's Injury Feels Like a Huge One for Byron Buxton

[NYCTK]

Just now, HarmonK03 said:

Tom is the not answer.

This was obvious since Day 1, and anyone that's ever convinced themselves otherwise was naive. 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

2 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

You still are assuming Tom is making personnel decisions, it would be good to have proof.  And if he doesn't trust Zoll which he shouldn't, Tom is the not answer.

Tom sure as heck is directing the direction and giving the ok on the transactions.  As to Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with.  

We all knew Tom wasn't the answer.  Did you just wake up or something?  

[HarmonK03]

2 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

This was obvious since Day 1, and anyone that's ever convinced themselves otherwise was naive. 

You took the answer out of context, here is the whole answer.  And if he doesn't trust Zoll which he shouldn't, Tom is the not answer.

In sports most team owners especially the successful ones are hands off, they hire competent personnel to run the operations staff.  This was the typical way the Pohlads until Joe was named Executive owner and they were primarily successful.  We don't know what Tom's role is, he stated he wanted to learn the business side which was Dave St. Peter's role when he first took over.  Everyone is assuming he is making personnel decisions and I don't believe he is, I am not sure even he is that dumb, but who knows. 

He should have brought in a Senior Advisor and a lot of these questions wouldn't be out there.

[HarmonK03]

4 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Tom sure as heck is directing the direction and giving the ok on the transactions.  As to Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with.  

We all knew Tom wasn't the answer.  Did you just wake up or something?  

Do you have proof that Tom is giving the ok on the transactions.  If that is your opinion, that is fine, but you appear to be stating it as fact.

[NYCTK]

4 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

You took the answer out of context, here is the whole answer.  And if he doesn't trust Zoll which he shouldn't, Tom is the not answer.

In sports most team owners especially the successful ones are hands off, they hire competent personnel to run the operations staff.  This was the typical way the Pohlads until Joe was named Executive owner and they were primarily successful.  We don't know what Tom's role is, he stated he wanted to learn the business side which was Dave St. Peter's role when he first took over.  Everyone is assuming he is making personnel decisions and I don't believe he is, I am not sure even he is that dumb, but who knows. 

He should have brought in a Senior Advisor and a lot of these questions wouldn't be out there.

I took it out of context because regardless of anything else, Tom Pohlad is not the answer. The Pohlad regime doesn't care about winning and that's obvious to everyone. 

So me just clipping the ending sentence was a light-hearted way to say, yes, Tom Pohlad is not the answer and this team is going to have to be successful despite his and his loser family's leadership, not because of it. 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

5 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

Do you have proof that Tom is giving the ok on the transactions.  If that is your opinion, that is fine, but you appear to be stating it as fact.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

13 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

Do you have proof that Tom is giving the ok on the transactions.  If that is your opinion, that is fine, but you appear to be stating it as fact.

You seem to be under some weird allusion that Owners can't be actively involved with the day to day.  Tom not only is involved with the day to day operations - he is also involved with the effectively any big decision.  It was clear his style is more of a micro manager.  So it is what it is.  Trying to ignore that fact seems silly.  

“It’s just my style and the way I want to run this organization going forward and what I think is best,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t think that anybody else can. … I can’t outsource earning back the trust of our fans or of our employees or of the players. I think that work’s got to be done by me. So that’s what I’m trying to do.” -  Tom Pohlad February

 

[Saxophone Joe]

21 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

regardless of what he said about his health, he wasn't fooling anybody.

Buck has at least been way more transparent about what's ailing him than Mr. Cryptic, Joe Ryan. 

[HarmonK03]

1 minute ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

“It’s just my style and the way I want to run this organization going forward and what I think is best,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t think that anybody else can. … I can’t outsource earning back the trust of our fans or of our employees or of the players. I think that work’s got to be done by me. So that’s what I’m trying to do.” -  Tom Pohlad February

Earning the trust of the fans and employees is his job, not making personnel decisions.  When has he sat on a ballfield and evaluated a player,   So he is giving direction to his employees to do that, the problem is he has incompetent employees that can't carry out his directive in a meaningful way to win back the fans.

[USAFChief]

22 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Tom sure as heck is directing the direction and giving the ok on the transactions.  As to Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with.  

We all knew Tom wasn't the answer.  Did you just wake up or something?  

Objection, your honor. Facts not in evidence. 

[NYCTK]

2 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Objection, your honor. Facts not in evidence. 

Quick question: Who's the CEO of the Minnesota Twins? 

Follow-up question: What is the role of a Chief Executive Officer? 

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

13 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Objection, your honor. Facts not in evidence. 

Fact - 

On July 10th at a conference Tom stated his intentions for the Twins to continue to be buyers at the deadline.  He stated then and 2 weeks later he had no intentions of trading Joe Ryan or Ryan Jeffers.  He then stated why do teams have to wait til the deadline to trade for players.  

I submit the following evidence

1. July 10th - No less that 24 hours later the Twins traded for Nance. 

2. Neither Joe Ryan or Jeffers were traded

3.  The Twins were buyers at the deadline.  

So @HarmonK03 and @USAFChief - how can you not see that Tom is leading this ship on much of the direction and the decision making that is occurring?  Go watch Zoll ridicule reporters after the trade deadline stating many were stating the Twins had to trade Jeffers.  Zoll said effectively you obviously haven't been listening to Tom or me.    

[William K Johnson]

We should sit him down for the rest of the year, for his sake and teams.

[USAFChief]

2 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Fact - 

On July 10th at a conference Tom stated his intentions for the Twins to continue to be buyers at the deadline.  He stated then and 2 weeks later he had no intentions of trading Joe Ryan or Ryan Jeffers.  He then stated why do teams have to wait til the deadline to trade for players.  

I submit the following evidence

1. July 10th - No less that 24 hours later the Twins traded for Nance. 

2. Neither Joe Ryan or Jeffers were traded

3.  The Twins were buyers at the deadline.  

How in heaven is the above in any way related to the post I quoted (see below)?

 

"Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with. "

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

10 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

How in heaven is the above in any way related to the post I quoted (see below)?

 

"Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with. "

If you want to isolate that specific quote then do so.  However thats not what you quoted above.  

You said "Objection your honor - facts not in Evidence" after quoting the following quote by me.  I will highlight my 1st line.  So forgive me if I gave you facts supporting my stance on that @USAFChief . 

49 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

Tom sure as heck is directing the direction and giving the ok on the transactions.  As to Buck - Tom has prided himself on increasing the communication from the front office with the ball players and Buck and Joe are the two main players we know he has had frequent discussions with.  

We all knew Tom wasn't the answer.  Did you just wake up or something?  

 

[ashbury]

57 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Tristan Gray anyone?

[Craig Arko]

Reading this thread one thing jumps out at me: asserting something as true does not make it true. It doesn’t make it false, either. Just an unproved assumption. Don’t confuse the two. Lots of red herrings have begun this way. This site is full of them.

[Woof Bronzer]

1 hour ago, bean5302 said:

REALLY?? Tom Pohlad now calling the shots on whether a player is ready to come off the IL? This is tough reading...

It's wild that you don't think Tommy is a hands on owner.  He literally tells us that he is over and over again.  

Does the buck stop at the top or not?  Does Tommy have any accountability over the decisions made by the organization he runs or not?  

[Saxophone Joe]

1 hour ago, USAFChief said:

Tristan Gray anyone?

[USAFChief]

2 minutes ago, Saxophone Joe said:

Maybe Zoll will surprise us.

Or maybe Buxton doesn't go on the IL.

Keep your chin up.

[USAFChief]

15 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

 

Tom sure as heck is directing the direction and giving the ok on the transactions. 

You are entitled to your opinion. 

The above are only that. Not facts.

I'll keep my opinion Pohlad isnt making specific personnel decisions, and absolutely isn't making IL decisions. 

Setting a budget? Priorities? General parameters? Of course. 

Edited Wednesday at 04:32 PM by USAFChief

[Woof Bronzer]

45 minutes ago, Hawkeye Bean Counter said:

You seem to be under some weird allusion that Owners can't be actively involved with the day to day.  Tom not only is involved with the day to day operations - he is also involved with the effectively any big decision.  It was clear his style is more of a micro manager.  So it is what it is.  Trying to ignore that fact seems silly.  

“It’s just my style and the way I want to run this organization going forward and what I think is best,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t think that anybody else can. … I can’t outsource earning back the trust of our fans or of our employees or of the players. I think that work’s got to be done by me. So that’s what I’m trying to do.” -  Tom Pohlad February

 

Jim Pohlad literally stepped in and negotiated the Correa salary dump.  This was barely one year ago!  The Pohlads meddle whenever they see fit.  Tommy has been telling us this since the minute he stepped in. 

Why oh why do Twins fans continue to give the Pohlads the benefit of the doubt?  This is a family that literally tried to get the team contracted out of existence 25 years ago!  I just do not get it.  

[nicksaviking]

45 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

Objection, your honor. Facts not in evidence. 

For the record, I don't think Tom is making any overt roster decisions. 

But I do think that Tom's rhetoric has made it clear to Jeremy Zoll and everyone in the front office that their jobs are tied to attendance and viewership, and therefore keeping up the illusion of 'going for it' is of utmost importance.

[jkcarew]

Buxton has been below replacement level (when available at all) since June 16, which was about two weeks before his first brief stretch of time off.

This is completely predictable, even normal, and in a way it’s absurd that we obsess about it at this point. At this point it has to be less of a distraction for his teammates…at least the veterans…than it is for the fans and media. Now it’s become past time to build a team around a new core and fit Buxton around that core as best benefits the team.

[Woof Bronzer]

49 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

the problem is he has incompetent employees that can't carry out his directive in a meaningful way to win back the fans.

Who hired those employees?  

Does the CEO have the power to replace incompetent employees with better ones?  

[Woof Bronzer]

1 hour ago, USAFChief said:

The idea Tom Pohlad is making IL decisions is next level idiocy. 

The idea that the Twins organization was powerless to stop an injured player from playing, to the detriment of both the player and the team as a whole, is perhaps the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!  That is next level dysfunction and the Pohlads should sell the team this afternoon.  

[jkcarew]

8 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

But I do think that Tom's rhetoric has made it clear to Jeremy Zoll and everyone in the front office that their jobs are tied to attendance and viewership, and therefore keeping up the illusion of 'going for it' is of utmost importance.

This.

And in doing so, the org continues to drift aimlessly…while the new face of the org makes the same tired and meaningless claims that the club will “compete” for ALC titles…but making the claims more frequently, and emphatically than his brother.

Yay.

[NYCTK]

25 minutes ago, Woof Bronzer said:

Why oh why do Twins fans continue to give the Pohlads the benefit of the doubt?  This is a family that literally tried to get the team contracted out of existence 25 years ago!  I just do not get it.  

Gotta be Stockholm Syndrome. This season was a failure on August 13, 2025 when the Pohalds announced they were no longer looking to sell controlling interest of the Minnesota Twins. 

You can also argue, as I would, that it was a failure of the CEO to refuse to sell off pieces last offseason, stopping the rebuild with the half-measure of just selling off the bullpen arms at the trade deadline. 

You guys, I don't mean to be controversial, but I think the CEO is kind of an important role in an organization! 

[Woof Bronzer]

1 minute ago, NYCTK said:

You guys, I don't mean to be controversial, but I think the CEO is kind of an important role in an organization! 

The idea that rich and powerful people have zero accountability for their anything they ever do is pounded into us day after day.  Judging by this thread it sure seems to be working.  Who knew "Leaders are responsible for the organizations they run" would someday be a subversive political opinion worthy of ridicule, but that's 2026 America for ya.  

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

1 hour ago, Craig Arko said:

Reading this thread one thing jumps out at me: asserting something as true does not make it true. It doesn’t make it false, either. Just an unproved assumption. Don’t confuse the two. Lots of red herrings have begun this way. This site is full of them.

Craig - yes at times we have to make assumptions.  However there is ample statements and facts on the record in regards not only how active Tom is involved in the decision making the process and the day to day operations.  The assumption that Tom has a laissez fair or hands off approach to decision making and delegates everything to Zoll has no basis that the factual record shows.  Tom has been clear since Day 1 he was going to be active as the face of the franchise and in the decision making process. Falvey left and stated this was the exact reason that he felt him and Tom could not work together for the future.  Falvey preferred to lead the organization with more of a hands of approach from ownership similar to Joe - and I would argue with a more realistic idea of what a successful season likely was.