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Tom Pohlad introduced himself as the new face of the Twins on Wednesday, after Joe Pohlad was apparently forced out of his role. Tom is now the sole member of the Pohlad family who will be involved in the business; he plans to be more active; and he claims (that, at least) to understand the challenges he will face. He recognizes that his family has eroded the trust of fans, and says he wants to earn it back. What will it take to get there?
Before I dig in, I do want to give a little context. If you have read my pieces on Twins Daily, you will know I am not one to make excuses for ownership. If anything, I am quick to put them on blast for the numerous decisions they have made regarding everything from payroll cuts to tone-deaf comments to media and fans. That said, this feels different, and I’m actually optimistic for the future of the franchise. I’ll share some quotes he gave to media, including Twins Daily’s own Matthew Trueblood, and discuss what I believe it will take to earn back trust.
Self-Awareness and Effective Communication
Perhaps the place to begin is by establishing some self-awareness from the latest Pohlad. When asked why he was taking the reins from Joe, Tom said:
“When we took a hard look at things, it’s undeniable that we haven’t won enough baseball games, the financial health of the club has been put in jeopardy, and we’ve got a fan base that has lost trust in us as owners and, as a result, this organization and the direction it’s headed … I’m well aware of how upset the fan base is with our family and with this organization. I view that as an opportunity for us. They care deeply about the sport of baseball. They care deeply about this team.”
“I also think that the fan base wants to feel some sort of connection with ownership, and they want to know that ownership cares just as much as they do," Pohlad added. "And I’m not sure that they’ve gotten that sense.”
That’s pretty clear, and very accurate. It appears that Tom has ideas on how to put action behind those words. When asked how he plans to make fans like him, he had a ready answer.
“I think the work of earning back their trust comes with two things: communication and accountability. We’ve got to do a better job of telling fans where we’re going, how we’re going to get there, and why we’re doing the things we’re doing. And I commit to that going forward.”
Now, I don’t have much to add here. It seems as though Tom has correctly identified the issues, and the solution for them.
Payroll
Of course, this is an important aspect of winning back trust. In a separate interview with WCCO’s Chad Hartman, Pohlad spoke to the “right-sizing” of the payroll following the 2023 Twins breaking their playoff curse, and he fully acknowledged the impact that had.
"We made what we thought at the time was a responsible financial decision, and we obviously failed to consider the long-term impact of that decision, and the short-term impact of that decision, frankly," he said. "We sucked the air right out of our fan base, and it did significant damage to our brand and to our family from a confidence standpoint. Plain and simple, we got it wrong.”
Yeah. That. By acknowledging that mistake, it seems that he understands the correlation between trying to compete when the window is open and fan morale. Applying this to the 2026 payroll, it’s been broadly reported that the 2026 payroll is unlikely to eclipse $120 million and may be more likely to sit in the $110-115 million range. When asked directly about the budget for the year, Tom demurred.
“I don’t think … that we should put a significant investment into the team of $50 or $60 million dollars, but I don’t think we’re far off from that.”
That can be interpreted two different ways: either that they may spend an additional, say, $30 million this offseason, or that 2026 will be down, but 2027 (if all goes well) could be right back near league average. Either way, a surefire way to earn back trust and build morale would be to do exactly that: provide a payroll commensurate with the openness of the competitive window, and roughly in the middle of the league pack.
Improving the Team
When asked about the balancing act between winning back the fan base and building for long-term success, Pohlad gave the only answer of the day that sounded rehearsed—but which also appeared to be his mission statement.
“We owe the fan base something; we owe our veteran and star players something; and we owe this organization something," he said. "And that something is hope.”
Now, that’s a great place to start. Hope is, after all, what brings us as fans together every spring. But what about winning?
“I think we are certainly within reach of winning a division title this year," Pohlad opined. "And I think we’ll continue to look at moves we can make that will help us accomplish that.”
He also acknowledged that the Twins' process hasn’t been working the way anyone would hope.
“We need to rethink how we put a championship-caliber team on the field. That work begins this year," he said. "We’re laying the foundation for ultimately what we hope will be a nucleus that can be a championship-caliber team and that warrants a championship-level investment."
Finally, he spoke about the Dodgers, and alluded to looking at all avenues of improving the team—both on and off the field. Again, this shows a good understanding of the assignment, and is promising.
Now, I’m an “action speaks louder than words” kind of guy, so my optimism is guarded. However, I am impressed with a few aspects of Pohlad’s introductory interview. First, there was a noted lack of self-importance in his interviews. Second, he seems to realize that sports teams exist for the fans, not for ownership. Third, he said he wants to do the work to change the narrative, rather than just expecting fans to perceive his family as the heroes of the story.
Now, it’s time for Tom to do that work to prove to fans that ownership truly wants to win. That, more than anything else, will bring back the fans.
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