FORT MYERS, Fla. — One of Tom Pohlad’s first declarations upon assuming the role of Twins executive chair from his younger brother, Joe, in mid-December was that he planned to be an active owner.
Tom Pohlad
Since taking over two months ago, Pohlad has flown to both coasts to meet with two of the team’s star players, parted ways with president of business and baseball operations Derek Falvey, phoned disgruntled former season-ticket holders and made a run at a top free agent starter, among other things.
Now, he’s settling in for an extended stay in Fort Myers, as he continues to familiarize himself with the ins and outs of the organization that he now leads.
“I told the players this, I told you guys (the media), I want to be active,” Pohlad said. “I told them that I wanted to get to know them, to build relationships and openly communicate. Just set a new culture for this organization going forward.”
Pohlad spoke to the group ahead of the team’s first full-squad workout on Monday, delivering a message that new Twins manager Derek Shelton said he believed “resonated with the players.” The goal of the speech, Pohlad said, was to set expectations and goals for the season and to help get players aligned with the direction of the team under new leadership.
The speech, veteran reliever Liam Hendriks said, was “impassioned.”
“That was cool to see, and there’s a lot of care behind it,” Hendriks said. “He’s understanding, ‘We haven’t been good.’ He acknowledged the weaknesses that we have, and you embrace them moving forward. I liked the accountability thing.”
Pohlad, who went to Georgia to meet with Byron Buxton and California to talk to Joe Ryan, has also recently been tapping into the knowledge of former players, including the rotating cast of television analysts.
Trevor Plouffe, for example, posted a video on social media about their conversation, saying the call was “a breath of fresh air,” and both Ryan and Buxton expressed their appreciation to Pohlad for visiting.
“I can’t outsource earning back the trust of our fans or of our employees or of the players,” Pohlad said. “I think that work’s got to be done by me. So that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Much of what he’s doing is trying to hear feedback from players and former players while also trying to express where he has seen missteps and identifying things that he can do differently.
Pohlad specifically mentioned the 2023 trade deadline — the Twins were in first place by a slim margin but essentially stood pat — and the 2023 offseason when ownership slashed payroll in response to the team’s swelling debt. That deeply-unpopular move came when the Twins were riding high after their first taste of playoff success in decades.
“I think it’s about when the time is right, being willing to invest and when there’s a window for us to be really competitive and compete in the playoffs, we’ve got to be willing to put our chips on the table so to speak and go all in,” he said.
Pohlad took over midway through the offseason for his younger brother, Joe, and what they’ve done since then — improved around the margins but not made a major splash — “is less a function of what we wanted to do, but more a function of what the reality of the market was at that point in time,” with many free agents off the board, he said.
The Twins were interested in starting pitcher Framber Valdez, and Pohlad said it would have been “fun to make a splash and show the organization and the fans that we’re committed.” But Valdez wound up signing with Detroit for a three-year deal worth $115 million.
Though payroll is expected to be significantly lower than last year’s and the years prior, Pohlad is bullish about this year’s Twins team. Told the betting line from BetMGM is just 73.5 wins, Pohlad brushed it off, suggesting the Twins would be better than that.
Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton signs autographs for fans during a spring training baseball workout in Fort Myers, Fla., Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
“We really like our team,” he said. “We think we’ve got a good mix of veterans and really talented young people who want to make a statement. I think we’re going to exceed expectations.”
Still, there’s still a long way to go to win back fans, many of whom are upset with ownership and have tuned out in recent years. Last year, the Twins’ attendance was 1,768,728, the lowest since Target Field opened with the exception of the two COVID-19-impacted seasons. Their average attendance per game was 24th of 30 teams.
In an attempt to get fans back to the ballpark, the Twins have introduced pregame $2 beer specials at Target Field. But Pohlad knows only one thing will rejuvenate the fanbase.
“I’m under no illusion that the things we are trying to do are secondary to what is most important, which is winning baseball games. I’m under no illusion,” Pohlad said. “But we have to do some of those things to get people re-engaged, and then hopefully the product on the field delivers, and we build momentum that way.”
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