'They're so broke': A.J. Pierzynski rips Twins owners after Polanco trade
Former Minnesota Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski is not a fan of the Twins trading Jorge Polanco to the Seattle Mariners.
On Monday the Twins traded the longtime second baseman to the Mariners for right-handed starter Anthony DeSclafani, right-handed reliever Justin Topa, outfield prospect Gabriel Gonzalez and right-handed pitching prospect Darren Bowen.
Pierzynski, reacting to the trade on Tuesday's episode of Foul Territory, ripped the Twins owners, the Pohlad family,
"It seems like they're getting rid of a lot of good players," Pierzynski began, noting that starting pitchers Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda also left Minnesota as free agents.
Host Scott Braun brought up the Twins' lack of a TV deal, which has led to lost revenue and therefore a reduction in payroll, and that triggered Pierzynski to fire up the "Cheap Pohlads" bat signal.
"They're so broke. The Pohlads are worth billions and billions of dollars," Pierzynski scoffed.
Even after the Polanco trade the Twins are still the favorite to retain the AL Central crown in 2024.
"It's just interesting to me because the Twins could take this division easily if they just spent a little bit of money," continued Pierzynski. "It's like nobody in the Central wants to win the division right now. The Guardians, they don't want to win, they haven't signed anybody. The White Sox are low-end bottom-feeding right now. The Royals are trying a little bit. The Tigers have done some stuff. But the Twins, the team with clearly the best roster going into the offseason, have nickeled and dimed it. If I'm a Twins fan I'm a little bit concerned."
"The Twins could take this division easily if they just spent a little bit of money"
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) January 30, 2024
@aj_pierzynskiFT dishes on the Twins trading away Jorge Polanco.
▶️ https://t.co/cKx0ueQR0P pic.twitter.com/b3w1nO288Q
The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal joined the show moments later and pushed back on Pierzynski, saying, "I would never call it a [salary] dump when they got four guys back."
Rosenthal noted the trade gives the Twins flexibility to make another move to help out the current roster, which falls in line with what Twins general manager Thad Levine told media after the trade on Monday, when he touted Minnesota getting $8 million in cash along with the four players from Seattle.
"We’re trying to find a way to add to ’24," Levine said. "We still think there are ways that we can utilize some of that money to address other ways to improve the club. That was our goal."
