Pohlad’s Debt Load Scared Off Potential Minnesota Twins Buyers: Report

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The Pohlads didn’t keep the Twins because they wanted to. They kept them because nobody wanted to buy a franchise drowning in debt and bleeding fans, according to new reporting from The Athletic.

The Twins are carrying more than $425 million in debt, one of the worst income-to-debt ratios in Major League Baseball.

That crushing liability was enough to scare off multiple serious bidders, who balked when told they’d have to absorb the debt on top of paying the Pohlads’ asking price of about $1.7 billion, reports Dan Hayes and Brittany Ghiroli.

A Minnesota-based billionaire-led group reportedly offered $1.5 billion, but walked when they saw the terms. Another group was still scrambling for financing the morning the Pohlads abruptly announced they weren’t selling.

Twins face bleak outlook

• Attendance is collapsing
  • The Twins are on pace to draw just 1.8 million fans, the lowest record ever at Target Field
• No secure media rights deal, threatening future revenue.
• Fan anger is peaking after a $30 million payroll slash last year and a trade deadline purge that shipped out 10 players in a massive salary dump.

The only fresh cash is coming from two new minority investor groups, who together bought more than 20 percent of the team. That money will go toward paying down debt, not improving the roster. And unlike typical large investors, they have no path to ever taking control.

Read more at The Athletic.