John Bonnes

Join us and have Uncle Pat entertain you with his baseball recollections and insight. Please, for the love of gawd, find a way to not miss this. Last winter, when we all still couldn’t gather, Patrick Reusse joined the Gleeman and the Geek podcast to discuss the biggest fights in Minnesota Twins' history. The response from our listeners was amazing - because the discussion was amazing. So we’re getting the gang back together. Reusse, of course, is a legend in this state. He was inducted into the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame in October 2019. He’s written for both the Pioneer Press and currently writes for the Star-Tribune. He’s done radio and podcast work with KSTP-1500 since 1980. He was also a 20-year panelist on The Sports Show which aired on WUCW-TV, Fox Sports North, and Victory Sports One. You can join him and 300+ Twins fan media members, Twins execs, and many more at The Pourhouse in Downtown Minneapolis on Saturday, January 28th from 5 – 8. It’s just a couple blocks from Twins Fest, where you’ll likely be anyway. We'll talk about tangent after tangent after tangent, as only Reusse can do. We’ll also be joined by a Twins alum who we’ll announce tomorrow. Plus, you’ll get a Twins Daily Winter Meltdown Pint Glass (with this year’s fantastic design), two complimentary local craft pints from 612 Brew, a chance at winning our Twins Bobblehead collection door prize, and all the Hot Stove chatter and camaraderie you can handle. So how do you get tickets? The plan is to offer them to the public on Monday, 12/19, for $40 apiece. However, it’s possible Twins Daily’s Caretakers, who get first dibs, could snap them up first. If you want to guarantee a ticket for you and three friends, you can become a Twins Daily Caretaker. Caretakers get special perks for supporting Twins Daily and our writers. Each caretaker gets a free ticket to the Meltdown. Caretakers (who sign up by Thursday 12/15) can buy up to three additional tickets early, on Friday 12/16. Those additional tickets will be available at a discount price of $20. Finally, caretakers get early access to the event, starting at 4:00 for a “thank you” happy hour with Twins Daily’s writers and founders. If there are still tickets available after that, we will release them to the general public on Monday, 12/19. But if you do join, you can do so for as low as $4/month and you get exclusive content and other benefits too, as well as support our writers, editors, moderators and tech team. We would LOVE to have you join our exclusive little club. Tomorrow we’ll announce our headlining guest, and Caretakers will be able to start snapping up tickets at 8 AM. So stop by tomorrow for sure, and maybe follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more news as it’s released. View full article

If you’re a bobblehead collector, let me introduce you to heaven. If you’re not ... well, you are now. Door prizes have never been the focus of the Winter Meltdown. Usually, they're something we like to include in between our great guests. There’s just so much more: meeting Twins greats, craft beer, the collectable pint glass, camaraderie, Aaron Gleeman’s bubbly personality … the list goes on and on. But this year is different. This year we have the ultimate Minnesota Twins bobblehead collection. It includes all 34 members of the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame who were inducted through the 2021 season. It's no longer for sale; you’ve got to attend the Winter Meltdown to get your mitts on it. It’ll be just a couple blocks from Twins Fest at The Pourhouse in Downtown Minneapolis, just a couple blocks from Twins Fest, on Saturday, January 28th from 5 – 8. We’ll be joined by a Twins player (who we're announcing Friday) and 300+ Twins fans, media members, Twins execs and many more to celebrate the upcoming season. Not only will you get to gather with Twins Daily writers and members and talk Hot Stove, but we’ll include a Twins Daily Winter Meltdown Pint Glass with this year’s fantastic design, and two complimentary local craft pints from 612 Brew. Tickets could be tricky. The plan is to offer them to the public on Monday, 12/19, for $40 apiece. However, it’s possible Twins Daily’s Caretakers, who get first dibs, could snap them up first. If you want to guarantee a ticket for you and three friends, you can become a Twins Daily Caretaker. Caretakers get special perks for supporting Twins Daily and our writers. Each caretaker gets a free ticket to the Meltdown. Caretakers (who sign up by Thursday 12/15) can buy up to three additional tickets early, on Friday 12/16, starting at 8 AM. Those additional tickets will be available at a discount price of $20. Finally, caretakers get early access to the event, starting at 4:00 for a “thank you” happy hour with Twins Daily’s writers and founders. If there are still tickets available after that, we will release them to the general public on Monday, 12/19. But if you do join, you can do so for as low as $4/month and you get exclusive content and other benefits too, as well as support everyone who works on the site. We would LOVE to have you join our exclusive little club. We’d also suggest you follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more news as it’s released. Tomorrow, we announce the first of our special guests. It’ll be his inaugural visit to the Meltdown, and I guarantee he’ll entertain you. In the meantime, set aside the date, gather your Twins friends, and get a plan together for tickets. We’ll see you tomorrow. View full article

It’s been a long winter. It was also a long season. We’re commemorating that (I guess?) with an inspired Winter Meltdown pint glass design. You’ll get your free pint glass at Twins Daily’s 2023 Winter Meltdown. As we announced yesterday , it’ll take place at The Pourhouse in downtown Minneapolis, just a couple blocks from Twins Fest, on Saturday, January 28th from 5 – 8. But not only will you get the free glass, but you’ll also get two free 612 Brew craft beers, and entry into our door prize raffle, including the greatest grand prize we’ve ever given, which will be announced tomorrow. But that’s not all. We’ll have some special guests who we’ll be announcing later this week, including a Twins alum who will answer questions from Aaron Gleeman and John Bonnes, and then will stick around a bit to meet our community. Plus, of course, there will be loads of Hot Stove give-and-take as we get geared up for the start of the 2023 season. The $40 tickets go on sale to the public on Monday, 12/19, provided we still have some. However, if you want to guarantee a ticket for you and three friends, you can become a Twins Daily Caretaker. Caretakers get special perks for supporting Twins Daily and our writers: Each caretaker gets a free ticket to the Meltdown. Caretakers (who sign up by Thursday 12/15) can buy up to three additional tickets early, on Friday 12/16. Those additional tickets will be available at a discount price of $20. Finally, caretakers get early access to the event, starting at 4:00 for a “thank you” happy hour with Twins Daily’s writers and founders. If there are still tickets available when the Caretakers are done getting tickets for themselves and their friends, we will release them to the general public on Monday, 12/19. Will there be any tickets left? We don’t know. This is the first year we’ve had Caretakers. If you would like to join Twins Daily’s Caretakers, you can do so for as low as $4/month and you get exclusive content and other benefits too, as well as support our hard-working writers, moderators, and tech guys. We would LOVE to have you join us. We’d also suggest you follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more news as it’s released. Plus, we’ll see you tomorrow when we reveal our grand door prize. I honestly didn’t know something like this existed. If you’re a Twins fan, you won’t want to miss it. View full article

Friday morning at 8:00 AM. Caretakers will have through Sunday to get their tickets before we release them to the general public.

We've missed you all SO MUCH. Let's light this candle. Image courtesy of Twins Daily It’s been three long years since we were able to gather in true Twins Daily Hot Stove fashion, so yeah, we’re jonesing a little. Judging from all the DMs asking about the event, so are you. So we’re going big – but tickets are limited, so read to the end to find out the best way to get them. We'll be talking about the Winter Meltdown all week! Today – We’ll tell you where and what and when and how you can get tickets. Tomorrow (Tuesday) – We reveal the (truly inspired) 2023 Winter Meltdown Pint glass design Wednesday – We reveal the greatest raffle grand prize we’ve ever given at a Winter Meltdown. Thursday – We reveal our first guest speaker. Friday – We reveal our Twins alum guest speaker AND tickets to on sale for Twins Daily Caretakers only. Next Monday – Tickets are available to the public. When and Where The event will be Saturday, January 28th from 5-8 PM at The Pourhouse (10 S 5th St) in downtown Minnneapolis. That is the weekend of Twins Fest, and it's just three blocks from Target Field, so you can attend Twins Fest and walk over for the icing on the cake. What Each guest who has a $40 ticket gets: 1. Two free craft beers from 612 Brew. 2. A free Winter Meltdown pint glass with our 2023 design. 3. Entry into our door prize raffle, including the greatest grand prize we’ve ever given. 4. Just loads of Hot Stove camaraderie (or commiseration) as we get geeked up for the start of the 2023 season. 5. Aaron Gleeman and John Bonnes will interview at least two guests on stage, who will also take some time to visit with our community. The most recent previous guests included Kent Hrbek, Trevor Plouffe, Joe Nathan, Michael Cuddyer, and Latroy Hawkins. We’ve been throwing this event since 2012. It started in a nearby bar, but it’s grown so much that we’re actually having trouble finding spaces big enough to accommodate us, so let’s get to the ticket conversation. How/Tickets We’ll only have 300 tickets available, with a base price of $40 apiece. However, we’re giving our Twins Daily Caretakers four advantages in securing them: 1. Each caretaker gets a free ticket to the Meltdown. 2. Caretakers (who sign up by Thursday 12/15) can buy up to three additional tickets early, on Friday 12/16. 3. Those additional tickets will be available at a discount price of $20. 4. Finally, caretakers get early access to the event, starting at 4:00 for a “thank you” happy hour with Twins Daily’s writers and founders. If there are still tickets available when the Caretakers are done, we will release them to the general public on Monday, 12/19. Will there be any tickets left? We don’t know. This is the first year we’ve had Caretakers and we have well over 100, so we’ll see. The Caretakers take care of Twins Daily, and we want to take care of them, so we are guaranteeing all of our Caretakers will get the tickets they need, provided they get them before they go on sale to the general public. If you would like to join Twins Daily’s Caretakers, you can do so for as low as $4/month. You get exclusive content and other benefits too, as well as support our hard-working writers, moderators, and tech guys. We would LOVE to have you join us. Become a Caretaker here! We are absolutely stoked to reveal the logo, grand prize, and both guest speakers throughout the rest of this week. Make sure to set aside the date, gather your Twins friends, and get a plan together for tickets. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more news as it’s released. Plus, stop by tomorrow for our pint glass reveal! View full article

Aaron and John talk about MLB's wild, billion-dollar Winter Meetings, what it all means for the Twins and Carlos Correa, the ongoing search for a veteran catcher, Dansby Swanson, Carlos Rodón, and other fallback plans, and which Twins could be on the trade block. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. View full article

Those are some good insights. Attaching "innovation" to Joe seems spot on. It seems like a value that drives him. I also appreciate the insight about Jim. From the outside, we only seemed to hear from him once or twice per year. I guess your point that "he doesn't get in the way" seems to be about right, but I also didn't get the sense that he was driving change, as much as managing the organization (effectively, I think.)

In a letter today, Jim Pohlad informed Minnesota Twins team employees that he will be stepping down from day-to-day operations of the team. Joe Pohlad, his nephew, will be taking over those responsibilities effective immediately and the role of Executive Chair. So where does that leave the Twins? Image courtesy of TwinsCentric, LLC Joe Pohlad has been involved with the Twins since 2007, working in areas of the organization that were preparing him for this leadership role. Most recently, as Executive Vice President, he was involved in the rollout of the new Twins branding, logo, and uniforms, including introducing the changes to the media and fans at the Mall of America earlier this month. He has also been involved in marketing and ticket sales areas within the Twins, and oversaw the Pohlads' media company Go Media. He's also been on the Pohlad Foundation's Board of Directors. Joe Pohlad has been more visible as a fan of the team than Jim Pohlad, who was viewed as generally hands-off. Joe Pohlad even attended Twins Daily's Winter Meltdown several years ago, and has confessed to being a Gleeman and the Geek podcast listener. He has discussed Twins Daily with me as well, admiring the passion and detail that is contributed by our writers and community. Joe Pohlad has often been involved in several of the Pohlads' and Twins' more aggressive initiatives, such as Go Media, which included acquiring two radio stations and BringMeTheNews.com. He served as the Executive VP of Brand Strategy and Growth for the Twins, which explains the involvement with the recent rebranding. In that role, he also oversaw the launch of the Minnesota Twins Accelerator by Techstars, an effort to develop startups in technology, sports, and entertainment. What this means for the direction of the team is anybody's guess. In his letter, Jim Pohlad said he will remain involved as the Control Owner, which suggests at a high-level (including budget, cough, cough), he'll still be involved. However, Joe Pohlad's track record with the Twins suggests he is more likely to be focused on growth than status quo, perhaps aggressively. View full article

Aaron and John talk about the Twins' ongoing efforts to re-sign Carlos Correa, why they're also making a push to bring in a veteran catcher, and the belief that the AL Central looks as winnable as ever right now. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. View full article

Aaron and John talk about the Twins trading for shortstop Kyle Farmer, trading away third baseman Gio Urshela, bringing back reliever Emilio Pagan, and unveiling new uniforms. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. View full article

We're starting to get hints of exactly how expensive a contract Carlos Correa might sign this winter, and how unrealistic his return to the Twins might be as a result. However, Twins fans' hopes have been bolstered by talk of the team being willing to work out a "creative" contract with Correa. What might that look like? Image courtesy of © Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports In a recent story on his substack, Matthew Trueblood laid out an excellent example of what a creative contract entails, and I'd like to unpack that. But before we do, it's essential to understand what a baseline contract looks like for comparison purposes. Fortunately, Trueblood speculates on that, too. It's intimidating: nine years at a $37M average annual value (AAV) totaling $333M. That deal is a "Bryce Harper" contract, meaning it has a no-trade clause for the player and no player opt-outs for the team. Both sides are making a long-term commitment that also gives Correa and his agent, Scott Boras, a record-setting contract AAV for a position player. Is that too much? I like the way Trueblood responds to that concern: "Those numbers sound gaudy. Tough. Get used to it. That's the reality of the sport right now, and Correa is going to get that kind of payday somewhere." (There is one additional factor that raises Correa’s price tag beyond just being a great, young player: unlike many other premier free agents, the Twins can't give him a qualifying offer. So there are no draft picks attached to signing him.) Even if the Twins have indeed offered Correa the biggest contract in Twins history - say, a 10-year, $270M deal - it would come nowhere close to that deal. It would likely finish in third place. Hell, he turned down a deal like that last year before he even signed with the Twins. So what about something more creative? That's a route Boras has gone before. Trueblood (you can sign up for his free newsletter here) lays out a somewhat complicated contract structure that gives Correa a record-setting deal but contains less guaranteed money overall. Here's an overview: It starts with a 4-year deal for $175M, which gives him a record-setting AAV of $43.75M. After that third year, there is a team option. Either the team can extend the contract for another five years, paying Correa $25M annually through his age 36 season. Or they can be on the hook for just the fourth year, but then…. At some point after the team decision, Correa has a player option. He can choose to extend the contract for three years for $60M or become a free agent. Similar to Correa's deal with the Twins, this provides him with insurance. There's a lot to unpack here. One way to break this down is to parse what the contract looks like on the extremes and in the middle, and compare it to the baseline contract. Worst-case scenario - Correa goes downhill fast. With $175M up front, and a $60 player opt-in, Correa gets $235M guaranteed in this deal. That's worse than he would get with the baseline contract, but he ends up with a seven-year deal that averages about $33.5M AAV. Meanwhile, the team has protected itself on the back end by committing more money on the front end. Best-case scenario – Correa thrives and continues to increase his value. Odds are the team opts to extend him, meaning they have him for $300M over nine years, which is also a little bit better than the baseline deal for the team (and worse for Correa) but still is worth ~$33M AAV over nine years. Middle Scenario – Correa thrives in his prime and then gradually falls off. Then both sides have decisions to make. The middle ground is that Correa makes $175M and then gauges the free agent market again after his 31-year-old season to see how it values him. He knows he's worth at least $60M over three years by opting back into his contract. We can diddle about the details; the structure is the most exciting aspect of it to me. I'd suggest that Correa should probably get more AAV up front and try to make the final numbers closer to an average AAV of $36M, but we can debate that in the comments. But the biggest takeaway is that even if the contract is "creative," it's still likely to be painful to those who are fiscally conservative. The Twins can be aggressive. They can be creative. But ultimately, they will have to be borderline crazy to land a prize as big as Correa. OK. Then call me crazy. I'm in. But let's not kid ourselves about what the Twins will be signing up for. View full article

Aaron and John talk about the free-agent pitching market and whether the Twins should go all-in for someone like Carlos Rodon, why Gio Urshela is no sure thing to be on the team next week, and the state of the 40-man roster as the offseason kicks into gear. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. View full article

Aaron and John discuss what kind of contract they would offer to Carlos Correa, the free agent shorstop market, John being a jinx at the World Series, and Miguel Sano's Twins' legacy. You can listen by downloading us from iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio or find it at GleemanAndTheGeek.com. Or just click this link. View full article