Twins At Crossroads: Team Sale, Media Shifts, and Rising Competition

The Twins are facing a triple dose of uncertainty this offseason due to an impending franchise sale combined with rising turbulence in the regional sports media business and sharply improved competition within their division.

The club already had plenty of questions to answer after an ugly 7–18 finish to the 2024 season spoiled what had looked for months like a surefire playoff campaign, instead ending in a fourth-place finish with an 82–80 record. Amplifying those questions is a recent decision to part ways with the bankrupt Diamond Sports Group and instead have the Twins’ local games produced and distributed by Major League Baseball. 

Just days later, the Pohlad family that owns the Twins made the surprising decision to put the club up for sale, ending a four-decade run that had become one of MLB’s longest-tenured ownership groups. 

So it came as little surprise that Derek Falvey, Twins president of baseball operations, acknowledges that dealmaking this offseason to reshape the roster carries some unique challenges—even as he attempts to keep things “pretty much business as usual.”

“My job is to continue to try and build the team the best we can and make decisions that are hopefully in the short-term and long-term interest of the team,” Falvey said at MLB GM meetings happening this week in San Antonio. 

Money Matters

The Twins’ 2025 payroll is expected to be about $130 million, right in line with the club’s 2024 spending. The number is down from 2023’s $156.1 million—which happened before the club returned to DSG this past season at a reduced rights fee and then parted ways with the FanDuel Sports Network parent company. 

The club, however, is already moving toward that $130 million figure with nearly $97 million committed for 2025 and more than a dozen players due for potential raises in arbitration and contract extensions. The Twins, meanwhile, are also now competing in a long-weak American League Central division that has suddenly become arguably MLB’s most competitive, with the Guardians, Royals, and Tigers all reaching this year’s playoffs and each bringing back much of their key talent next year.

A buyer for the Twins is not likely before the start of the 2025 season, given franchise sales processes that typically require at least six months. But already, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is lamenting the forthcoming departure of the Pohlads.

“I think it’s a loss for the game,” Manfred said last week on SiriusXM. “The Pohlad family have been great stewards in Minnesota. They put a competitive product on the field, and they’ve got a great new stadium. They really have been an important part of the game for a really long time. … The family came to a decision that it was best for them. They’ll be missed.”

Crosstown Traffic

In another potential ownership transfer in Minnesota pro sports, the long-simmering dispute regarding the NBA’s Timberwolves is moving closer to a conclusion.

Soon after current minority owners Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore made a deposit of more than $940 million in an escrow account, the pair have been in arbitration this week with current controlling owner Glen Taylor. The hearing before the three-person panel, also involving the WNBA’s Lynx, is expected to last much of this week, with a binding decision expected next month. Rodriguez and Lore have been attempting to complete a three-stage takeover of both teams at a $1.5 billion valuation—a figure originally agreed to but far less than their current worth. 

A decision in favor of Taylor would end the matter, while one in favor of Rodriguez and Lore would compel a sale of the controlling stake and move the transaction to the NBA Board of Governors for approval.