The Minnesota Twins have been up for sale since October and it wasn’t long after that Justin Ishbia was connected as a potential suitor for the franchise. While the pending sale has had twists and turns, Ishbia’s name has been the one constant. And if he doesn’t get the team, it won’t be for a lack of effort.
The Athletic’s Dan Hayes was the latest to pound the drum regarding Ishbia’s interest in the Twins, citing that he is “very, very serious” about buying the Twins. According to Hayes’ report, Ishbia also believes he has the financial wherewithal to buy the club to the point the team has already done a deeper dive into him in case he wound up purchasing the club.
Ishbia has an estimated worth of $5.4 billion according to Forbes and while his minority share in the Chicago White Sox is an obstacle, Ishbia seems more interested in the Twins, who are estimated to be worth $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion according to Forbes and Sportico.
Justin Ishbia continues to be the presumed frontrunner in the Twins sale
There hasn’t been a confirmed report, but Ishbia feels like the frontrunner to buy the Twins. Hayes reported Ishbia’s initial interest in buying the team in December. Hayes later reported that the team sale could happen as soon as Opening Day, but did not list Ishbia outside of his previous interest in that report.
KSTP’s Darren Wolfson and the Minnesota Star Tribune’s LaVelle E. Neal pushed back on the idea that the sale would be completed by Opening Day. But both agreed the identity of the buyer could be revealed by then with Neal estimating the sale could be finalized by May or June as “double-digit suitors” and former players have shown interest in purchasing the team.
Whenever the sale is finalized, Twins fans have a good reason to hope Ishbia buys the team. Ishbia currently is a part majority owner of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury with his brother Mat and also owns a minority stake of Nashville SC of Major League Soccer.
Mat has taken a fan-friendly approach to sports ownership with the Suns, putting the team’s games on free TV and lower concession prices. But most importantly to Twins fans, Mat has shown a “go big or go home” philosophy toward winning, putting money into the team’s payroll to field a winning product.
This has been an issue in the final years of the Pohlad family’s ownership as they shed $30 million before last season and haven’t signed a major league free agent this winter.
Hayes says a potential sale is unlikely to affect the front office’s philosophy ahead of the 2025 season. But it would be interesting if it affects how the team if they’re in a position to add pieces at this year’s trade deadline.
In effect, Twins fans are back to square one. But it’s a positive place to be if Ishbia winds up buying the team.