Incredibly, no satire, irreverence, or other humor involved this morning.
In an out-of-nowhere Thursday morning news drop, the Pohlad family have announced their intention to sell the team.
The Pohlad family’s statement on today’s news: pic.twitter.com/bHyTEAkLsL
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) October 10, 2024
Coming in the same week as finalizations of new radio and direct-to-consumer television contracts, and on the heels of the departure of general manager Thad Levine, this little morsel is by far the biggest news fans of the team are likely to receive all winter, if not all decade.
An oft-repeated talking point, the team was sold from the Griffith family to the Pohlad family for under $50 million in the mid-80’s; the present-day valuation sits somewhere between the $1-2 billion dollar mark. Per the Minnesota Star Tribune, a sale to a third party would mark the first time since 1919 since the franchise was free of either family.
The news, which is still breaking, was delivered to Target Field employees at a team meeting this Thursday morning, before an official press release dispersed the revelation to the general public.
For a myriad of reasons, the official language is “exploring” a sale, but barring an Arte Moreno-esque blindside, the distinction would appear more semantic and business-related. Any such decision would be quite some time in the making already, and the timeline going forward is anyone’s guess, between bidding, agreement, and sale approval by Major League Baseball.
More details will come, certainly — but for now, a stunner, especially for the diehard fans beating the “sell the team” drum after last season’s midwinter payroll slash. Turns out, you CAN always get what you want.
Twinkie Town will be holding a poll to see what we want to manifest next.