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Twins Owner Happy With On-Field Turnaround, But Says Work To Be Done On Attendance

The Twins are 27-23 and in a tie for first place in the AL Central with the Indians, and while Owner Jim Pohlad said the team's record is "clearly turned around" from '16, he also noted they still have to "keep working on improving attendance," according to Sid Hartman of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. Pohlad said of attendance, "We’re not happy. At one point we were almost at 3 million, so why would we be happy? We need to rebuild the brand and convince people it’s a competitive product that’s worth watching, as well as the experience at Target Field." Pohlad added that while there "wasn't a ton of offseason news," he thinks Chief Baseball Officer & Exec VP Derek Falvey and GM Thad Levine are "making smart moves." Pohlad: “It’s hard for the public because there were not a lot of additions during the offseason, but there’s a lot going on behind the scenes." Pohlad also said that money will "not be an issue when it comes to the upcoming draft and the Twins’ No. 1 overall pick" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 6/1). Through the end of May, the Twins were averaging 23,187 fans per game (29 games), down 5% from the same time period last season (24,418 through 23 games) (THE DAILY).

CASH ON HAND: In St. Paul, John Shipley noted the Twins have nearly $14.2M to "spend on bonuses for their first 10 choices in the June 12 amateur draft, more than half of which they can throw at the No. 1 overall pick." Falvey said that the Twins "still don't know who that will be," but he is "unlikely to get" the full $7.7M slotted to the top pick this year. Since baseball’s new bonus slotting rules were put in place for the '12 draft, no first-round pick has "received the full allotted bonus." For another, there is "no consensus slam-dunk No. 1 pick in this year’s class." Falvey "anticipates the Twins will end up signing about half of their 40 picks, and like any baseball executive, he’s interested in saving money on the top pick" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 6/1).

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