Scoggins: What makes a good sports team owner? ‘Be hands on, but hands off.’

Attention Marc Lore, Alex Rodriguez and whoever might be the next Twins owners.

Pay attention to the words below. Take notes. Embrace what is being shared.

Minnesota is on track to have two new team owners with the Twins and Timberwolves/Lynx in the process of changing hands.

I asked more than a dozen former pro athletes a simple question: From a player’s perspective, what makes a good owner?

Some answered in a text, some called to talk.

I exchanged anonymity for honesty. Their responses:

“A good owner is someone who genuinely prioritizes the people in the organization — players, coaches, and staff — creating a culture of trust, accountability and support. That means investing in player development, facilities and well-being, but also being visible, engaged, and showing they truly care about the team’s success beyond just the business side.

The best owners also understand the balance between leadership and delegation. They empower the right people to make personnel decisions rather than micromanaging, but they’re still present enough to provide stability and a winning vision."

“I have had owners that I saw once or twice or a year and owners that we saw every week or two and were more involved. I believe good ownership shows their face often to show support rather than a figure that is never seen. Owners are good when they are very transparent in everything they do. We are grown men and we get the business side of everything. We just never like to be lied to.

Another great trait of great ownership is making sure to take care of wives and families. Whether it takes better planning budget-wise or whatever, great teams have great owners that put families first to make sure they are taken care of throughout the long season.

Also, not tanking. We know how much is being made and we as players love when winning is a priority for the fans rather than tanking all the time to make a few bucks short term."

“A good owner is one that continually tries to improve the team and organization. One that makes the organization feel like family and not one that sits high and looks low.”

“Willing to win, take care of his employees and have a basic understanding of what it takes to perform on the field. Basically, surround yourself with people who have experience with the sport. For every business person, you need someone who understands the field aspect. Surround yourself with winners.”

“I always valued our owners because they got to know their players on a more personal level, rather than looking down on them. They were clearly willing to move the organization forward and strive to win games. They were also wanting to develop through the draft and reward draft picks with new contracts. I liked that they were involved but didn’t hover.”

“Our owner was so great because whatever the players wanted, he was very apt to give the players the resources. I always remember him being available to the players and he was present and was always at the facility.

On the flipside, there is a case of being too heavily involved. Some owners are so over-involved and make these emotional, rash decisions. I think there is a chain effect. It affects the front office, affects the coaching staff and players. You have to have a pretty defined structure of what the role is and what the power might be in decision-making.”

“I would say get the right people in the right seats and get out of the way.”

“A lot of the owners at the end of the games always meet the team in the locker room. I remember vividly our owner gave everyone a hug when they came into the locker room. Either a hug or handshake. He has relationships with certain guys, but he knew everyone’s name, too. He wasn’t just someone who was upstairs that no one saw. He knew who was playing for his team.”

“I was able to play for two different sports organizations so I got to compare and contrast. One place, you never saw the owners. They weren’t around. And the other team, you saw the owners every day. You stood in line in the cafeteria. You’d go in for lunch and they would be in line right behind you. You’d say, ‘Hey, do you want to go in front of me?’

I say that because to be involved, you need to be involved. You’re making important high-level decisions for your franchise and if you’re not around, you don’t have a pulse of how things are going or what the vibe is or just on an individual basis of, who is this player?

Obviously, owners still have some say in personnel, but you hired these guys to do a job. Trust them to do the job. There’s got to be a little bit of separation there. There’s a big difference between an owner being around and saying hi and checking in on things and an owner standing in that same lunch line telling a player, ‘Hey, you need to do this and that better.’”

“Be hands on, but hands off. There’s a balance. The owners I played for let the GM and head coach run the show. Everything starts at the top, but they don’t over-manage. They trust who’s there. They have to make hard decisions when people get let go. But it falls in line from the top to the manager to the coaches.

Guys make a lot of money. They don’t want to be spoiled, but you want facilities to be elite. Every organization is different with how many people they have on support staff. It’s such a grind that you want to have the amenities. When guys are free agents, there are different things that come into play: Is it a good team, the city, what’s the tax bracket? But the amenities are a must.”

“No. 1 is hiring the proper people to make sure the organization does everything first-class. Creating a positive and healthy work environment from the top down. Hiring people with vision and understanding. Taking the athletes' needs and desires and likes into consideration.”

“Our owner was really good about trusting the general manager and coach [saying], ‘You run your team how you want to run it.’ We always knew he was around, but he never really got in the way. He made sure that players knew that he cares as an owner. But he also let it be known that, ‘Hey, I handle the business side. As far as football goes, that’s why I hired the staff that I hired.’ But you go as far as your ownership takes you.”