Pohlad family plans to sell Minnesota Twins after 40 years of ownership

The family has owned the franchise since 1984.

Jul 22, 2017; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins owner Jim Pohlad watches a 30th anniversary celebration for the 1987 World Series Champion team prior to the game with the Detroit Tigers at Target Field. / Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The Pohlad family plans to sell the Minnesota Twins after 40 years of ownership, they announced on Thursday.

“For the past 40 seasons, the Minnesota Twins have been part of our family’s heart and soul," executive chair Joe Pohlad said in a statement. "This team is woven into the fabric of our lives, and the Twins community has become an extension of our family. The staff, the players, and most importantly, you, the fans – everyone who makes up this unbelievable organization – is part of that. We’ve never taken lightly the privilege of being stewards of this franchise."

“However, after months of thoughtful consideration, our family reached a decision this summer to explore selling the Twins. As we enter the next phase of this process, the time is right to make this decision public."

The Pohlads purchased the Twins from Calvin Griffith for $44 million in 1984.

Earlier this year, the Baltimore Orioles were sold at a valuation of $1.725 billion. It was the third-highest price paid for a franchise in MLB history and came as Sportico ranked the Orioles as the 18th-most valuable team in the majors. The Twins ranked 19th in Sportico's valuations at $1.7 billion.

"We truly respect and cherish what the Twins mean to Minneapolis, St. Paul, the great state of Minnesota, and this entire region," continues Pohlad's statement. "Our goal is to be as informative as possible with the team, staff, and you, the fans. You deserve that, because in so many ways, this team doesn’t belong to any one family – it belongs to all of you. It’s our objective to find an ownership group who all of us can be proud of and who will take care of the Minnesota Twins."

“After four decades of commitment, passion, and countless memories, we are looking toward the future with care and intention – for our family, the Twins organization, and this community we love so much."

The Twins won World Series titles in 1987 and 1991, then went 30 years with just one playoff series victory before breaking that streak last year. After the season, the ownership group infamously reduced payroll by around $30 million. That set the stage for the Twins' epic collapse to miss the postseason this year.