Twins pitchers and catchers report to spring training Tuesday, and the fact is that this is going to be one of the most anticipated baseball seasons in the Twin Cities in some time after the team won 101 games last season, the second most in franchise history, and added former AL MVP Josh Donaldson to the roster.
Twins owner Jim Pohlad explained how the front-office team of Derek Falvey and Thad Levine approached him with the plan to sign a player like Donaldson to a four-year, $92 million deal, the richest in club history.
"From my standpoint, you hear all of these names right after the season ends. You hear all the names of potential marquee free agents, and of course he is clearly one of them," Pohlad said. "Then you just see how the process goes. I would say they were interested in all of the marquee free agents, but as discussions go along, some stick and some don't. We were really lucky to get Josh."
Was there ever a thought of turning down the front office for the kind of contract needed to sign Donaldson?
"No," Pohlad said. "I mean, it comes with the recommendation of Derek, so that's my main judgment point, if they recommend it. I know what his discipline is and all of that, so if he feels good about it, we feel good about it."
World Series contender?
The Twins were once again swept in the postseason by the Yankees last season, meaning you still have to go back to 2004 to find a time when the team won a playoff game, but Pohlad said the goal isn't to build a roster that can just beat the Yankees.
"What do we have to do to win the World Series? It's not about beating the Yankees," Pohlad said. "They're a really good team, and there's a bunch of other really good teams in there. We have to be better than any of them, because we could face any of them and we'll have to face all of them, basically, in order to get to the World Series and win it."
The Twins went from a 78-84 record in 2018 to 101-61 in 2019 under the leadership of Rocco Baldelli in his first year as manager.