Dave St. Peter likes the Twins' chances of landing the 2014 All-Star Game but doesn't expect an answer from Major League Baseball for several months, the team president said Friday.
The Twins, in conjunction with the City of Minneapolis, delivered their formal bid for the 2014 event during the quarterly MLB owners meetings this week in Phoenix.
"I am hopeful that at some point, maybe in the early part of the 2012 season, that we might be in a position to have something announced, but that timetable's all MLB," St. Peter said. "It isn't driven by the Twins, and MLB hasn't even announced the 2013 game yet, officially, so we're subject to the pace MLB wants to move."
This year's All-Star Game will be in Kansas City, and it's been widely reported that MLB plans to let the New York Mets be host of the 2013 event. The only other known suitor for the 2014 event is the Chicago Cubs, who would like to tie the All-Star Game into the 100th season at Wrigley Field. However, based on the current rotation, the 2014 event would go to an American League market.
Owners do not vote on All-Star sites -- the decisions are made by the Commissioner's office. In other words, this is basically Bud Selig's call, and he was a very close friend of late Twins owner Carl Pohlad.
"It'll be a process," St. Peter said. "I'd expect we'll engage with MLB. They're going to have questions. We're feeling pretty hopeful. We've had a rich history in this community of hosting major events. The All-Star Game hasn't been here since 1985, and obviously with the opening of Target Field, we think we're well-positioned."
JOE CHRISTENSEN
