MINNEAPOLIS — He’s “living and dying” with every pitch, breaking television remotes after the Twins lose and isn’t proud of how, overnight, he’s developed into a superstitious fan. New Twins controlling owner Tom Pohlad is apprehensive enough about changing his team’s fortunes that he sat through miserable rain for all nine innings on Monday night because he refused to vacate his front-row seat after the offense started scoring runs.
As he navigates his first season as the club’s executive chair and CEO, Pohlad knows he has much to learn about navigating the ups and downs of a baseball season.
A month in, Pohlad regrets he wasn’t in place at the start of the offseason to instill an aggressive mindset as the club’s roster was assembled. Pohlad, who took over in mid-December, hopes the Twins will have an opportunity to add to the roster at the trade deadline and that the team remains competitive.
In the meantime, Pohlad likes how the Twins didn’t hesitate to quickly promote pitching prospects like Connor Prielipp, Kendry Rojas and Andrew Morris to try and address shortcomings on the roster.
“It’s been a learning curve trying to manage my own emotions and understand what a winning streak means and doesn’t mean, and understand what a losing streak means and doesn’t mean,” Pohlad said. “I also want to make sure we have a sense of urgency on things. I want to make sure we’re building on momentum, and I also want to make sure we’re finding ways to improve.”
The consensus across baseball was, if the Twins intended to compete this season, they needed to improve the bullpen after trading five relievers at the deadline last July.
On Tuesday, a bullpen bolstered by minimal offseason additions again struggled, as the Twins lost for the 10th time in 12 games, this time 7-1. Through 30 games, Minnesota’s bullpen is 4-7 with a 5.13 ERA, the sixth-worst mark in the sport.
This season, the Twins are relying on in-house options, like Kody Funderburk, to fill the bullpen. (Matt Krohn / Getty Images)
The poor performance is a sticking point with fans dismayed by the team’s low payroll. Three seasons removed from a club-record $153 million, the Twins have dropped to $106 million, per Cot’s Contracts.
The bullpen’s struggles aren’t surprising after last season’s trades of Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax and Louis Varland, a trio largely replaced with in-house options, free agent signee Taylor Rogers and veteran Anthony Banda, who the Twins traded for after the Los Angeles Dodgers designated him for assignment in February.
For much of the offseason, the Twins’ front office didn’t know which direction the team was headed or what its payroll would be. The group had to wait for the close of a partial sale of the club, one that wasn’t finalized until Dec. 17.
Though Pohlad instantly came in with an aggressive mindset, most of baseball’s top free-agent relievers had already signed, thanks to a rapidly moving market that materialized at MLB’s Winter Meetings.
The only notable signings after his arrival were Pete Fairbanks, who was placed on the IL on Tuesday, and Seranthony Domínguez, who has a 4.50 ERA this season. Outside of Banda, the Twins didn’t make any notable bullpen additions via the trade market, either.
Yet, as dismayed as fans may be, Pohlad, who’s been seated in the front row of the Champions Club next to the Twins dugout for most games this season, hasn’t heard a ton of pushback.
There was an incident with a fan wearing a “Sell The Team” beanie earlier in the month that gained some traction on social media, but Pohlad described 99 percent of his fan interactions as positive. Even when he has heard from angry fans, he understands why they’re upset.
“While I might take issue with how some fans choose to display their displeasure emotions, I think it’s rooted in a pretty good place,” Pohlad said. “They want this team to be successful and we haven’t done our job as of late to fulfill what these fans want from this organization. That motivates me and I can understand where they’re coming from.”
A full participant for the first time in his life, Pohlad’s own Twins fandom has grown far more than he ever anticipated. Initially, Pohlad wondered how many games he’d attend and if he’d watch when the Twins were on the road.
On Tuesday, Pohlad, who was in Baltimore for Opening Day, said he’s attended all 15 of the team’s home games and has watched every road game, too. He was so bummed for the clubhouse after the Twins rallied from five runs down in New York last Thursday before falling 10-8 that he broke his TV remote.
Recognizing he’s a newcomer to the grind of a 162-game schedule, Pohlad is relying on general manager Jeremy Zoll, manager Derek Shelton and communications leader Dustin Morse to keep him honest. While he wants the Twins to be aggressive to stay competitive, Pohlad is allowing the baseball people to make measured decisions and is staying out of the way.
“I’m surprised at how intense it is and how much I love being a part of every single out and at-bat,” Pohlad said. “I do have those impulses. But I know my place and I know what I don’t know and trust the people that have been here and have seen this before. I have to take them at their word that, ‘Hey, this will turn. This player will get going or we’ll go on a winning streak.’ But I also think, me having the conversation with them, they hear the sense of urgency.
“Somewhere in there, we find the middle and the right thing to do at the right time.”
Despite the team’s shortcomings, Pohlad remains upbeat about Minnesota’s chances. He likes how the clubhouse is operating under Shelton’s leadership. Describing Zoll’s decision to promote three of the club’s top four pitching prospects as more aggressive than in years past, Pohlad thinks the Twins are doing what they can in the moment to improve the club.
Now, he’s hoping the Twins can stay relevant long enough to make an impact in July.
“We’ve been aggressive, we’ve been creative,” Pohlad said. “We’re doing the best we can with what’s in our control at this moment in time. As we go throughout the year and more opportunities present themselves for us to put action to words, so long as we do that, I’ll be happy. … We owe it to our fan base as much as we owe it to (Shelton), (Zoll) and the players, to do everything we can to improve our team at that point.”