Following an 83-79 record which left the Twins three games out of an AL Wild Card spot, club Owner Jim Pohlad "is more upbeat about where his team is headed," according to La Velle Neal III of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. Pohlad: "That was the objective of the season, to play meaningful games late in the season. So it was very enjoyable. It was like old times. After four years, you almost had forgotten what that was like." Neal notes the Twins yesterday completed their annual organizational meetings, and one thing that "came to light" is that the '16 payroll could reach $120M, "fueled partially by raises and arbitration eligible players." Pohlad said, "Once you get competitive you want to take the next step, which is to make the playoffs. Then you get there and you want to take it to the next step, which is the World Series." He added, "We’re willing to do whatever it takes. I will tell you that I’m not a huge fan of long-term contracts." Regarding attendance, Pohlad said, "We exceeded our budget, not to say our budget was aggressive. There was still a decline from other years. We said all along it would happen, of course we didn’t anticipate four years of a poor product, and you could feel the renewed excitement." He added of the expected season-ticket response, “The question is what is normal for a franchise like ours, that is what we are trying to assess. I think it will bounce back" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/15).
