The 6 Most Likely Former Twins to Become Part of the New Ownership Group

I think it's a great idea to have a former player with baseball smarts to guide the owners in major baseball decisions. Ignorant owners are at the mercy of their FO. If the FO is bad the team goes nowhere for too long. 

My guess would be Roy Smalley, the conditions seem right, he's baseball smart from his own experience & gleanings from Gene Mauch who was a great baseball mind and he appears to have the money. Mauer was a great hitting catcher but IMO & I could be wrong, he doesn't have the baseball smarts that you normally link to catchers or out-spoken enough to voice his opinions, So maybe someone who could straighten out our catching dilemma, who could be an option if he has the money is Tim Laudner who is also a Minnesotan.

You missed Dick Bremer.  We have to keep the TV crew together, don't we?  🤭

Okay, seriously......I would go with Dr. Gast on this one; I would love to see Smalley join the group if he would have any actual say in the FO operation end of the business.  Very sound baseball man.  And keep Joe away from ownership; he does just fine as a team ambassador, so to speak, but other than that........ (I wouldn't object to Tori though, if he has the interest).

Just my nickels worth.  🫠

Hmm. I kind of think of this differently. These aren't going to be Ambassadors (Hrbek, Oliva, etc.) being regular 'faces' at events and such, they are investors who know the game, and also as a plus, are ex-Twins. Of course they will appear at some functions, give interviews and such, but they aren't going to be doing a Derek Jeter level type gig.  So, why wouldn't a Big Papi, or AJ be interested? They are still in the public eye doing media type things. Jack Morris is another. Roy Smalley for sure.  How many baseball owners complain about "losing money"? Look at what the Pohlad's will be walking away with. Why wouldn't guys like/want that opportunity? 

I think the most obvious guy to become part of the ownership group is Kent Hrbek.  Local guy, who won 2 world series titles and told everyone he'd never play for the Yankees no matter how much money they paid him.  He'd be outspoken enough to light a fire under peoples assess but also be Minnesota nice at the same time.  

The amount of money any of these players have to contribute would e a drop in the bucket of an over $1.5 billion sale. The groups may like a former player involved to help be the face of the ownership group. Maye the fans will still be nice to them after a few years 

1 hour ago, Original_JB said:

Hmm. I kind of think of this differently. These aren't going to be Ambassadors (Hrbek, Oliva, etc.) being regular 'faces' at events and such, they are investors who know the game, and also as a plus, are ex-Twins. Of course they will appear at some functions, give interviews and such, but they aren't going to be doing a Derek Jeter level type gig.  So, why wouldn't a Big Papi, or AJ be interested? They are still in the public eye doing media type things. Jack Morris is another. Roy Smalley for sure.  How many baseball owners complain about "losing money"? Look at what the Pohlad's will be walking away with. Why wouldn't guys like/want that opportunity? 

Considering what their likely stake would be, they're much more likely to be Ambassadors than Investors, really. The new ownership group wants someone with ties to the community, ties to the team's past success (even if it's individual rather than team success) who can stand with them and help them transition into the ownership. Maybe they'll have some advising responsibilities, but it's more like that it's a way to get a bigger name Twin to hang out with and help the community think of them as One Of Us sooner rather than later.

Hrbek and Mauer both make a lot of sense. (I'm presuming Hrbek has the money; he's done enough commercials that he shouldn't have blown all of his money on beer, hunting supplies, and fishing boats unless he got ripped off by a financial manager like so many athletes) Smalley is a good fit too; he wasn't playing when the big money hit, but he's well-known to be a very sharp financial operator, a super nice guy, and good team ambassador. The actual amount of their stake will probably be 1% or less (unless it's maybe Mauer and Joe wants to drop some of his money into a safe holding with the team). you can have 0.02% and still be an "owner".

It was an interesting read with humorous responses  ...

Not shocked, but I would be quite surprised if any former Twins actually are 1% investors in the next ownership group.

Smalley is at a phase in his life where he keeps busy with projects of a personal nature. Mauer is the least likely to want any scrutiny. Morneau could be a small "representative" part but he is a busy guy.

Why would any of these players want to be burdened with any duties beyond their broadcasting, coaching, and advisory roles?

The Twins have not had an ARod or Jeter personality. So, sure, some player may be tapped in a minor role requiring less than a 1% investment. It just seems unlikely.

1 hour ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

The Yankees have "owned" the Twins ever since Pedro Ramos left the Senators/Twins. Ramos used to beat the Evil Empire regularly. 

I remember & long for those days.

I could see many former players chipping in 5-10 million to have a minority stake in the team.  I doubt they are looking for a former player to dump over 100 - 150 million or so into ownership of the team to get them to the 10% ownership level giving them a bigger interest in the team's success.  and we wouldn't want that anyways as that could hinder the team from going all in if a former player has gone all in with his wealth on ownership.    

I didn't read the comments in detail but Paul Molitor?

I still get pissed when I see Tom Herr's name. 

It's a rough time to buy in. The revenues are falling and there's going to be a war between owners to figure out a new revenue sharing plan that'll buy a peace like the one we've seen since the 1994 shutdown. The new CBA has to be agreed to after the 2026 season and I don;t think anyone expects it to go well.  Hunter might be up for those types of interviews in the shadow of a lockout, but I can't see the "nice guys" wanting to sign on for that sort of duty on their own dime.

I think everyone has missed the obvious choice.  I wonder if they take PayPal.

23 minutes ago, ashbury said:

I hope you invested the $5.151M that b-r.com says you earned in your career, wisely, and are ready to step up to the next level!

I had a really good weekend at Mystic Lake.

So you're ready to jump in with both feet....uumm with both arms extended.