Chin Music w/ Roy Smalley, LaVelle E. Neal III & Jim Souhan - Minnesota Twins Podcast · Talk North Podcast Network

On the Twins' big news

·23 min·1 clip

Tom Polad said, "if we win, we'll raise payroll."

1. Chin Music w/ Roy Smalley, LaVelle E. Neal III & Jim Souhan focuses on Derek Falvey stepping away from the Minnesota Twins. 2. Jim Souhan and LaVelle E. Neal III are Star Tribune baseball writers on TalkNorth.com, and Roy Smalley is normally the third host but is out for his "A job." 3. The episode asks what Falvey's exit, Tom Polad's new power, and the front-office reshuffle mean for the Twins' next few years. 4. Jim says he was on a Zoom meeting with Tom Polad and Derek Falvey when the change was announced, and LaVelle compares it to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah being fired the same day. 5. The hosts describe the announcement as one of the strangest days in Minnesota sports history and note that Falvey's departure was more surprising than Kwesi's. 6. LaVelle says the Twins' problems include payroll cuts, the Correa contract move, and the later fire-sale approach that he says was "initiated by the family." 7. Jim argues that Falvey may be better off not being around this version of the Twins because the next couple of years "are definitely going to be messy." 8. The discussion turns to the Twins' 2019 through 2023 stretch, when the club won three division titles in five years. 9. Jim points out that the Twins won 101 games, set a home run record, and made moves he calls savvy, including Nelson Cruz, Joe Ryan, and Carlos Correa. 10. LaVelle says the organization had been stable because Dave St. Peter, Falvey, Thad Levine, Rocco Baldelli, and hitting coaches James Rousen and Popkins all fit together. 11. Jim says Tom Polad's statement that payroll would rise "if we win" ignores the problem that the team may need to spend before it can win. 12. LaVelle responds that promising competitiveness after trade-deadline moves and a poor second half looks more like hope than a plan. 13. Jim compares Tom Polad with earlier owners and says his father Jim Polad still ran a good organization even when the payroll could have been higher. 14. LaVelle says Carl Polad, Bob Polad, and Joe Polad each handled the family ownership differently, but he views Tom with skepticism. 15. The hosts discuss Tom Polad's background as a Major League Baseball intern who spent the rest of his career on the business side rather than in baseball operations. 16. LaVelle says the Twins need a true baseball-operations layer and suggests handing the keys to Jeremy Zoll without another experienced executive may be risky. 17. Jim and LaVelle talk about how the current version of the show is a two-man version because Roy Smalley is at his A job, and they keep the pace conversational. 18. The episode shifts into a lighter end segment when they talk about Buddy Guy winning a Grammy for Ain't Done with the Blues at age 89. 19. Fans following Twins front-office changes, payroll strategy, and baseball operations will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting game recaps or player-by-player analysis may skip this front-office debate.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Chin Music w/ Roy Smalley, LaVelle E. Neal III & Jim Souhan - Minnesota Twins Podcast