There is a nuanced way to explain the differences between what the Twins and Vikings have done in the past few weeks, but a lot of sports can be reduced to simpler binary truths like this:
RandBall: Wishing the Twins spent money like the Vikings
It’s baseball and football, different league structures and a good bit of apples to oranges. But that doesn’t change the contrast in recent approaches between the Twins and Vikings.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
August 20, 2024 at 4:36AM
The Twins, with a chance to accelerate toward a playoff spot, did next to nothing at the trade deadline even with a starting rotation that was thin (and ended up getting even thinner with an injury to Joe Ryan).
The Vikings, with a marginal chance to make the playoffs as they enter the rebuild part of their competitive rebuild (14.1% to reach the postseason, more specifically, if you check ESPN’s projections), spent at least $7 million and as much as $10 million to add veteran corner Stephon Gilmore over the weekend — a move Patrick Reusse and I talked about on Monday’s “Daily Delivery” podcast.
The nuance (I promise it’s coming) sits next to this nagging feeling, even if it isn’t entirely realistic: I wish the Twins spent money like the Vikings.
I think it even though I know the Twins are 11-6 in August, including some impressive performances in key spots by the young pitchers who are being given chances instead of hypothetical veteran additions.
I say it even though I agreed with Twins boss Derek Falvey when he said recently, “We weren’t going to be able to replace a Joe Ryan-type pitcher at the deadline for sure.”
I believe it even though the Vikings are still probably the fourth-best team in the NFC North and likely headed for another 7-10 type season even with the addition of Gilmore.
And I certainly know the even larger context is that comparing the spending of the two teams has to take into account league financial structures (salary cap vs. no salary cap) and that envying any NFL vs. MLB spending is basically saying, “It sure would be nice if baseball had the sort of TV/media deals that spread money evenly and allow teams to print money, like football teams do.”
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred would like that, too.
Alas, I know that isn’t the reality. We know the Twins (and other teams) are taking in less money from local TV this year than they did last year, and we know the future of that revenue is volatile. The Twins start a series Monday against the Padres, whose games are produced, distributed and streamed by MLB — a path the Twins could very well choose in 2025.
The Twins’ approach to the final two months might prove to be both prudent and competitively successful. The Vikings’ decision to sign Gilmore might do little else than move them a little closer to the NFC North’s third-best team.
But we still want every team to go for it, no matter what “it” is.
The Twins didn’t and the Vikings did.
Here are four more things to know today:
- It’s a big week for the Lynx: Two games against the Las Vegas Aces, one of the WNBA’s premier teams and a squad Minnesota is battling for playoff position, plus a rematch vs. Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever on Saturday on the same night they retire Maya Moore’s jersey at Target Center.
- Mark Craig had an excellent several days of coverage of the Vikings from Cleveland, including this perspective on 2022 first-round pick Lewis Cine.
- I received an email this morning suggesting a survey of MLB fans found that Twins mascot T.C. Bear is the fourth-worst in baseball. First, I don’t know who takes the time to answer that kind of survey with any sort of knowledge. Second, I won’t stand for this T.C. slander.
- Jon Marthaler is expected to join me on Tuesday’s podcast for some Minnesota United talk. The Loons are back this week with a revamped roster for the home stretch of the MLS season.
The Loons have built-in disadvantages because of Minnesota’s weather, but their new regime has placed a clear priority on building from within after ranking last in MLS.
