FORT MYERS, FLA. — The Pohlad family is in its sixth month of exploring a sale of its No. 1 asset: The Minnesota Twins.
And I expect it will take as long as another six months before a new owner assumes control of the team.
That’s the sense I’m getting here at spring training after speaking with several people with at least some knowledge — including some with direct knowledge — of the sale process.
What I have learned is enough to still believe that the Twins will be sold, despite some outside rumblings that the club, valued by Forbes at $1.46 billion and by Sportico at $1.7 billion, is not getting the offers the family seeks. Sources maintain that there remains interest in the club from within and outside of the Twin Cities.
Back in January, the Twins had hoped that a new owner would be identified by Opening Day. Then, following more vetting, background checks, paperwork, etc., the deal would be consummated by the middle of the calendar year. The process began in earnest in January under the assumption that franchise sales normally take around six months to complete and hand over the keys and key fobs.
With Opening Day now two weeks away, the Twins and Allen and Co. — the firm selected by the Twins to handle the sale — won’t have a winning bidder identified by then. So, yes, it does appear that they haven’t heard the number they’ve wanted to hear or the right group hasn’t been formed.
But a source with direct knowledge of the process said the Twins still believe a sale could be completed within that six-month time frame. That sounds more ambitious to me with each passing day. That’s why I’m predicting this to be final by August or September.
By then, there will be revised valuations of the franchise by Forbes and Sportico. Who cares? The franchise is worth what the Twins can get for it at that moment.
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