The Minnesota Twins were the most aggressive seller before Thursday’s trade deadline, and the franchise itself is inching closer to being sold. There is “momentum” toward a sale, reports Front Office Sports. The Pohlad family put the Twins on the block in October and they are reportedly seeking $1.7 billion. The franchise was valued at $1.5 billion in March.
“I know some things that you don’t know,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said during the All-Star break when asked about a potential Twins sale. “I can tell you with a lot of confidence that there will be a transaction there, and it will be consistent with the kind of pricing that has taken place. There will be a transaction. We just need to be patient while they rework.”
How Twins’ ‘shocker’ of a fire sale came together, and why Red Sox were so quiet at the trade deadline
Julian McWilliams
Justin Ishbia, one of the owners of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, appeared to be the favorite to purchase the Twins earlier this year, though he instead pivoted to increasing his stake in the AL Central rival Chicago White Sox. As part of his White Sox deal, Ishbia now has a path to replacing longtime owner Jerry Reinsdorf as the team’s primary owner.
Carl Pohlad bought the Twins for $44 million in 1984. Jim Pohlad, Carl’s son, took over as chairman following Carl’s death in 2009. The Twins ran a franchise record $167 million payroll in 2023. In part due to uncertainty with the regional sports network landscape, payroll dropped to $133 million in 2024 and projects to fall into the $136 million range following the team’s trade deadline fire sale this year.
Most notably, the Twins sent Carlos Correa back to the Houston Astros, and agreed to pay $33 million of the $104 million remaining on his contract to facilitate the trade. Rentals Harrison Bader, Willi Castro, Danny Coulombe, Ty France, and Chris Paddack were traded, as were controllable relievers Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, Brock Stewart, and Louie Varland.
All told, Minnesota traded away 10 of the 26 players on their active roster at the deadline. They enter play Friday with a 51-57 record and six games behind the third wild card spot, with six teams ahead of them.
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