End of television contract creates some revenue uncertainty for Twins, other MLB teams

Betsy Helfand, Pioneer Press
·3 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

NASHVILLE — It may be some time still before the Twins know where their television home is — and thus, how much revenue they’ll be getting from their new deal — creating some uncertainty for the front office as it tries to attend to the Twins’ offseason needs.

It was a relatively quiet Winter Meetings for the Twins — and much of Major League Baseball, as well — though Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said that uncertainty hadn’t changed their preparation or approach to the meetings in any way.

The Twins’ deal with Bally Sports North concluded at the end of last season and the Twins expect to get less than they received for their telecast rights — around $55 million — in their new deal. They’re certainly not the only team dealing with these issues.

“I think there are a host of clubs that are in that same conversation. We are definitely a part of that with the expiration of our deal this past offseason,” Falvey said. “There is some uncertainty. Certainly something that I know the commissioner, the commissioner’s office and the ownership level, they are all working on it. But we remain in a little bit of a period of uncertainty. I think that has an impact across the industry, no question.”

The Twins had a organization-high payroll last season of around $155 million. They’re expected to come in below that this upcoming season, though by how much won’t be known for months.

Some of that, Falvey pointed out, is the “ebb and flow,” of things — for example, the Twins expect Royce Lewis, Edouard Julien and Matt Wallner to play a big role next season, which brings down payroll naturally. Instead of paying veterans millions of dollars to fill those spots, those three players will be making near league minimum.

The Twins’ front office will leave Nashville with plenty of needs left to address — the team has yet to add a player to the major-league roster this offseason — but payroll uncertainty aside, they’re used to being patient until later in the offseason to make their splashes.

Last year, they made their two most impactful moves of the offseason in January, re-signing star shortstop Carlos Correa and trading American League batting champion Luis Arraez to Miami for ace pitcher Pablo López.

“We’re ultimately just trying to shape the roster to build off of what we did last year with the group that we’re bringing back,” Falvey said. “Now, for us that comes with some limitation from a payroll standpoint, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t find ways to add to this team in different ways.”

Rule 5 talk

While there was talk of the possibility that the Twins could select someone in Wednesday’s Rule 5 draft, the team passed in the major-league portion. The Twins have not made a selection since 2017 when they grabbed right-handed pitcher Tyler Kinley from the Marlins.

The Twins did add in the minor-league phase of the draft, grabbing pitcher Rafael Marcano from the Phillies organization, catcher Rafael Escalante from the Pirates, infielder Angel Del Rosario from the Blue Jays and pitcher Sheldon Reed from the Cubs.

They did not lose any players in the Rule 5 draft.

Briefly

The Twins plan on having Jordan Balazovic, once their top pitching prospect, come to sprint training camp competing for a spot as a reliever. Balazovic, once a starter earlier in his career, is out of minor-league options. The right-hander posted a 4.44 earned-run average across 24 1/3 innings in relief in the majors last season.

“I think our view with the best way to get Jordan to be the most effective pitcher with where he’s at with the pitch mix and otherwise is to have him in that ‘pen role,” Falvey said.

Related Articles