There's now a report out that the MLB Players’ Association are considering filing a complaint against the Minnesota Twins due to comments the team's Executive Chair, Joe Pohlad, said on WCCO Radio last week.
The union claims those comments violated a "reservation of rights clause with the use of media in the collective bargaining agreement.”
Pohlad was a guest of WCCO Radio's Jason DeRusha last Tuesday in Fort Myers during Twins Spring Training. When asked if the Twins were in the market for some of the bigger name free agents that were still available, Pohlad said the team was at their budget, and would not be signing any of them.
"No. No," he told DeRusha. "The reason I say no is just because we're going to live pretty much where we are right now. But what I will say about some flexibility is, when Derek (Falvey) and his team think that there is the right opportunity in front of us, we don't live hard and fast by a specific number."
Pohlad added they "we're not going to go out and spend $30 million on a player right now," and that there may still be players out there the team would look at that can add value to the team.
Twins President Dave St. Peter, speaking to Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News, said the team is just moving forward.
"I'm not concerned about any of that, I think that's just a lot of bluster," said St. Peter. "We're just getting ready for the season. That's where our focus is."
St. Peter added that he believes in the players on the roster right now.
Twins President of Baseball Operations Derek Falvey told the WCCO Morning News with Vineeta Sawkar that he sees it as a positive that the comments by Pohlad gathered so much attention.
"When I look at it, people are talking about Twins Baseball, and fans are talking about it and they're passionate about it," says Falvey. "They want us to be as good as we can possibly be. That's a great sign. Fans are out there wanting the Twins can be great. We believe we have it. Yes, we'll continue to round out around the edges, figure out how we add to the team."
The players union's beef notwithstanding, many Twins fans were in an uproar of hearing flat-out that their favorite team isn't interested in spending any more money.
Not that Falvey wouldn't like to go out and get whatever player he wants.
"Every person sitting in my seat in baseball is always, like, what's the next level of depth," he said. "It's the fatalistic nature of us that we have to think about what might happen. You're always wanting to looking to add."
Falvey was quick to point out that the team already has a good number of premium players on the roster. He rattled them off... Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton, Royce Lewis, and Pablo Lopez.
"Key stars and dynamic players in the game," he said. "This is a group that, we feel, can win."
And...
"And, ultimately we're going to build on it."
The particular clause the Player's Association is referencing says:
"Similarly, none of the Covered Parties may make comments to the media about the value of an unsigned free agent, or about possible or contemplated terms for an unsigned free agent, regardless of whether discussions have occurred. The prohibitions apply equally to comments that are on and off the record, as well as to comments that are provided on the condition of anonymity or published without identifying the source (e.g., "an industry source").
The following is a non-exhaustive list of prohibited comments:
• "Player X won't receive anything longer than a one-year deal."
• "Player X is seeking more than Player Y received."
• "We are out on Player X."
• "Player X is worth at least $Y million."
• "Player X has contract offers from multiple Clubs."
• "We are unwilling to forfeit a draft selection to sign Player X."
• "We have concerns about Player X's physical condition."
• "Player X is not worth more than $Y million, nor should he receive a contract greater than Z years."
At this point, it is just an investigation and there's no word if anything formal would be filed against the Twins for the comments.