Months after the Pohlad family halted its exploration of a team sale and announced it would instead add limited partners to the ownership group, the deal is finally complete.

After more than four decades of the Pohlad family being the sole owner of the team, it was announced Wednesday that Wild owner Craig Leipold, Glick Family Investments and George G. Hicks “investing alongside several prominent Minnesota business leaderships,” were approved by Major League Baseball as limited partners.

Additionally, there will be change at the top of the organization’s leadership structure.

Tom Pohlad, who has most recently served as the executive chairman of Pohlad Companies, will take over as the team’s executive chair from his brother Joe Pohlad and oversee the team. With MLB approval, Tom Pohlad would also take over for his uncle Jim Pohlad as the organization’s Control Person.

“It is a profound honor to have the opportunity to continue a legacy that has been part of my family — and this community — for the past forty years,” Tom Pohlad said in a statement. “My uncle and brother have led this organization with integrity, dedication and a genuine love for the game. As I assume my new role, I do so with great respect for our history and a clear focus on the future — one defined by accountability and stewardship in our relentless pursuit of a championship.”

As he steps away from his day-to-day responsibilities with the Twins, Joe Pohlad called the role “one of the greatest responsibilities and privileges” of his life. Joe Pohlad was named the team’s executive chair in late 2022, taking over for his uncle, Jim.

He oversaw the team when it advanced further in the playoffs in 2023 than it had in decades. But immediately after, the Twins made significant payroll cuts ahead of the 2024 season to help address significant debt accrued over recent years, and his comments about right-sizing the payroll were sharply criticized by a fanbase which has become increasingly critical of team ownership.

A staggering late-season collapse in 2024 left the Twins on the outside of the playoffs looking in, after which Joe Pohlad defended the “difficult business decision” that he had made. Weeks later, in October, the family announced it was exploring a sale of the team, which had originally been purchased in 1984 by Carl Pohlad.

That process ended in August with the addition of these limited partners, which Joe said would allow the family to “pay down some debt and kind of reset our financial picture in order to more forward.”  The team’s debt — believed to be between $400 million and $500 million — had swelled in recent years. A decline in television revenue and ticket sales, beginning with the COVID-19 pandemic, were among the factors.

Maintaining ownership of the team, Joe Pohlad said in August, was “truly the best-case scenario” for the family. While the Twins are welcoming in minority investors, the Pohlad family maintains a controlling interest.

Leipold is no stranger to sports ownership, first buying the Nashville Predators in 1997 before selling them and purchasing the Wild in 1998.

Leipold was described as a “limited partner,” while Hicks and Glick Family Investments were described as “principal investors.” Hicks, co-founder and co-executive chair of global investment firm Värde Partners, described himself in the statement as a “lifelong Twins fan.” New York-based Glick Family Investments is overseen by Simon Glick, the son of Louis, who built the family’s wealth in the diamond-trading industry.

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