Winning more than 100 games for the first time in 54 years was a big deal to Twins fans, and earning their first American League Central title in a decade made a lot of people cheer. And all those fans add up _ in the stands, in front of their televisions, and on the bottom line.
The Twins are worth approximately $1.3 billion, according to Forbes magazine's annual calculations, which are considered authoritative but not definitive. That's an increase of $100 million in value from Forbes' 2019 estimate, an 8% jump in overall worth that was exceeded by only the Yankees, Nationals and Orioles.
The Twins, inherited by Pohlad brothers Jim, Bill and Bob from their father Carl Pohlad, now rate as the 19th most valuable franchise in Major League Baseball, up from 23rd a year ago.
The reason? All those Twins fans who became so enamored of the team, they spent their time and money on them. Attendance at Target Field jumped to 2,229,152, the largest total gate since 2013 and a 16% increase over 2018. And TV ratings soared, with Fox Sports North registering a 6.33 rating, higher in its market than every team but the Cardinals, Indians and Brewers. That's a whopping 63% increase over the FSN's viewership in 2018, when the Twins went only 78-84 and finished 13 games out of first place.
Add it up, and Forbes calculates the Twins took in $297 million last season, $79 million of it from ticket sales, and earned $43 million after expenses (except taxes and interest). That's an additional $38 million taken in last year, a 14% increase, and according to Forbes' analysis, the Twins' operating income more than tripled from $14 million in 2018.
