Pohlads Reveal Actual MN Twins Debt; Hint at Increased Spending…

The 2025 Minnesota Twins season is over… finally. On the field, they finished a forgettable 70-92, but in the history books, it will go down as one of the most impactful summers in this organization’s existence.

Not only did they trade away nearly half of their roster at the trade deadline, but the Pohlad ownership group pulled the rug out on a team sale they had announced just ten months prior. And now, fans and players go into the offseason with a thicker blindfold over their eyes than any time recently.

Yet up until this weekend, the Pohlads have remained mostly silent on most of the biggest questions facing this organization. Outside of some bogus “statement” following the trade deadline teardown, they’ve been quiet on pressing topics, the most obvious being why they pulled the Twins off the market in the first place.

Pohlad finally speaks on biggest questions facing MN Twins

In two separate articles and written (by Bill Lukitsch and Reid Forgrave) at the Star Tribune over the weekend, however, Joe and Tom Pohlad made their first real attempt to address that question, among others.

Within these articles, the Pohlad grandchildren claim they never wanted to sell the Twins, and only did so because of the massive debt building up, a number they finally revealed was up to $500 million, significantly more than any what was previously reported.

Once an offer hit the table that allowed them to keep control of the team AND pay off their debts, their decision became clear.

The decision to put the Twins up for sale was one the Pohlad family says it never wanted to make.

But in 2024, the heirs of the late financier Carl Pohlad faced a reckoning: The team’s nine-figure debt was growing as revenues from ticket sales and game broadcasts dwindled. The debt, now equal to $500 million, is about a third of the team’s entire market value.

“That was really the driver,” Joe Pohlad, the Twins executive chair, said in a recent interview, revealing a debt amount well above any previously reported estimate.

Star Tribune

In the time that’s passed since the Twins were taken off the market, we were lead to believe that the Pohlads’ debt was over $400 million, but never got an exact amount, until this interview. There were also questions swirling over where the debt came from.

Where did the Minnesota Twins’ debt come from?

Behind the scenes, the Pohlads claimed it was a combination of a decade-worth of over-spending on talent, lagging attendance, FanDuel Sports North fallout and losses from the 2020 COVID season.

Other reports seemed to suggest they were using team funds or team equity to cover losses in other parts of their business portfolio. In their sit-down with the Star Tribune, however, Tom and Joe Pohlad strongly denied those accusations.

In an interview, Tom and Joe Pohlad refuted accusations the family used the Twins as a cash machine by making trades and payroll cuts. It’s quite the opposite, they said. The brothers expressed a hunger to bring another World Series title to Minnesota. The Twins’ half-billion-dollar debt, they said, was the result of their sustained investments in the team and Target Field.

“I think there’s an idea that we take money out of the team,” Joe Pohlad said. “And we’ve never taken any money out of the team. The effort has always been to have the business sustain itself in order to win.”

Star Tribune

Pohlads hint at increase in spending?

Beyond the debt, MN Twins ownership has given little direction on their baseball plan for the future, specifically how they are going to use the newfound financial flexibility created by selling 20% and paying off most of their aforementioned $500 million in debt.

That may have changed over the weekend too, though Joe and Tom were much less direct with the Pohlads’ baseball plan going forward. While they didn’t say when a deeper investment may occur, they did state repeatedly that the Twins’ new minority investment does allow them to spend, when the right time comes along.

“I’m trying to get my head out of all the negativity,” Pohlad said. “But I am overwhelmingly confident about Twins baseball. I’m confident because we have got all the right [pieces] … And we have the resources that we’re ready to invest when needed.”

“On top of all that — and this sometimes gets lost — we want to win!” he continued. “The goal is not to compete. The goal is to win a World Series. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t come with some pain in the short term. Building a true winner comes with some challenge. Right?”

Star Tribune

Two as-yet unnamed minority stakeholder groups will help wipe the debt off the Twins’ books, offering a fresh opportunity for the Pohlads to invest in the team and Target Field, its Minneapolis ballpark.

“The fans are totally justified to think it’s unacceptable. You want to question the wisdom of our investment? Great. But don’t question [our] commitment to investing in the Twins.”

Star Tribune