Justin Ishbia, one of the owners of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, had in recent weeks looked like a favorite to buy the Minnesota Twins from the Pohlad family. Instead, it appears that he might be shifting his priorities to becoming the successor of White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf.
Justin and his brother, Mat, emerged as suitors to buy the Twins in December, a few months after chairman Joe Pohlad — whose father, Carl, purchased the Twins for $44 million in 1984 — announced that the family would explore options to sell the ballclub.
Now, Ishbia has, according to The Athletic, “abandoned his bid for the team to instead acquire the” White Sox. He’s already the owner of a small stake in the White Sox, but now is looking to grab a controlling interest, which would mean becoming the top owner of the team over Reinsdorf.
Things appeared to get down the road enough these last several weeks with the Twins that Ishbia’s interest in grabbing the controlling stake in the White Sox means the Twins are “hustling to regroup,” left them “stunned” and that now “everything’s on the table,” per The Athletic.
Part of the “everything” there would be the possibility that the Pohlad family simply retain ownership and decline to sell the Twins. We’ve seen both the Angels and Nationals owners in recent years explore the possibility of selling their team only to turn around and decide to halt those potential sales.
The prospective new Twins ownership group was never expected to be in place by opening day, but the reports indicate the vetting process with Major League Baseball and Ishbia was down the road enough that a change could’ve happened this coming season. Instead, it appears his priorities have shifted to the White Sox.
The Ishbia brothers have owned the Suns since late 2023. Reinsdorf bought the White Sox in 1981 for just $19 million. They are the 15th-most valuable franchise in baseball at an estimated $2.05 billion, per Forbes. In that same estimation, the Twins are 21st at $1.46 billion.
While it’s only February, this is the first weekend with a full slate of (spring training) baseball games. It certainly feels like spring is in the air. The 2025 Major League Baseball season is actually less than a month away, given that the Cubs and Dodgers square off for two games in Japan on March 18-19.
There might be some drama brewing in the AL Central, as a possible Twins owner has become a possible White Sox owner. Full story here.
In other news …
Astros, Arenado talks back on? Back in December, news broke that the Cardinals and Astros agreed to a trade that would have sent All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado to Houston. Arenado used his no-trade rights to veto the deal and both sides moved on. They appear to be circling back, though.
The Astros have “renewed their interest” in Arenado, who “could now be willing to waive his no-trade clause” for a deal to the Astros, according to MLB.com.
It’s a bit shocking to see this level of reversal now during spring training. The Astros ended up trading for third baseman Isaac Paredes in the deal that sent Kyle Tucker to the Cubs. There was still flexibility, but then the Astros signed Christian Walker to play first base. It looked like the Astros’ infield was set.
In the midst of the talks to possibly re-sign Alex Bregman, however, word was that the Astros might move Jose Altuve to the outfield, which would then allow Paredes to shift to second base and open up third. This means there would be room for Arenado to play third in this alignment.
Arenado is set to make $32 million this season, though the Rockies are still handling $5 million of that and presumably the Cardinals would pay some of the remaining amount down as well. He then makes $27 million next season (again, the Rockies are paying $5 million of that) and $15 million in 2027.
As a 33-year-old last season, Arenado hit .272/.325/.394 (101 OPS+) with 16 homers, 71 RBI and 2.5 WAR.
Could Anthony Rizzo retire? Anthony Rizzo is 35 years old and remains unsigned. He wants to keep playing, but also realizes it might not be a possibility. Via The Athletic:
“I’ve definitely thought about it. I think I have a lot to give to the game still.
“But at the same time, if teams are not going to want to pay a few million dollars for veterans, I’ve seen it the last 10 years of my career. It’s what happens to the older guys. They kind of get squeezed. You’ve seen it happen more and more. I’m not naive to it. It could be it.”
Issues stemming from a concussion in 2023 and then a fractured forearm last season cost Rizzo a significant amount of time while on the injured list. In his 92 games last year with the Yankees, he hit .228/.301/.335 (81 OPS+) with just eight home runs. He hit 32 homers in 2022 with a 130 OPS+, so he isn’t too far removed from being greatly productive at the plate.
There aren’t really any likely contending teams out there with a glaring need for a lefty bat, especially in this era when everyone carries 13 pitchers. Rizzo has a limited enough skill set that he’s dead weight for most rosters. If there were an extra spot, certainly someone would pony up for a player with his pedigree and playoff experience.
Rizzo has played in parts of 14 seasons, having hit .261/.361/.467 (123 OPS+) with 338 doubles, 303 homers and 965 RBI. He’s a three-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glover and World Series champion. He’s played in the playoffs eight different years, three times for the Yankees and five for the Cubs.
Brewers OF Perkins out 3-4 weeks Brewers center fielder Blake Perkins has suffered a fracture in his shin after fouling a pitch off himself in batting practice. The tough-luck injury will cost him 3-4 weeks, according to manager Pat Murphy (via MLB.com).
Perkins, 28, hit .240/.316/.332 (81 OPS+) last season, but he’s an outstanding defender and baserunner. He stole 23 bases and posted 1.8 WAR.
With Perkins out, the Brewers will cover the outfield with Jackson Chourio (RF), Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, Caleb Durbin and Brewers Hicklen, but Manuel Margot could also see an increase in playing time. Christian Yelich remains an outfield option, but given his history of injuries, particularly the back injury that ended his 2024 season, he would be best served to mostly be a designated hitter.
Juan Soto signed a record 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets this past offseason. Spring training games have just gotten started and while they don’t count, there’s always going to be great fanfare when a player this caliber finally steps in the batter’s box with his new team.
Soto didn’t disappoint the Mets fans who gathered in Port St. Lucie’s Clover Park on Saturday. He went deep on a 2-1 pitch, homering off Astros lefty Colton Gordon. Take a look:
Though most of his home runs are pulled to right field, it was cool to see him hit one to left-center like that because Soto will use all fields (just check out the spray chart here).
We should stop short of saying something like, “that was the first of many!” because it wasn’t actually the first. The spring games are exhibitions and obviously don’t count. It was just a cool highlight and will stand to just make Mets fans that much more excited here in the spring.
Soto, 26, finished third in AL MVP voting last season with the Yankees. He hit .288/.419/.569 (178 OPS+) with 31 doubles, four triples, 41 homers, 109 RBI, 128 runs and 7.9 WAR. He’s a career .285/.421/.532 hitter and is the active leader in on-base percentage.
The Mets are coming off an 89-73 season that saw them make a miracle run to the NLCS. They come into 2025 as a title favorte and not an underdog.
The Los Angeles Lakers are 14-12 to start the season and, for the third year in a row, appear destined for the NBA Play-In Tournament. Los Angeles is 4-6 over their last ten games, and during that stretch, they are 20th in assists and 15th in turnovers.
It’s safe to say that the Lakers need a refreshed game plan, and first-year head coach JJ Redick, despite showing his knowledge on the Mind the Game podcast, can’t playcall his way out of a slump. That much has been proven, and the Lakers are out of the “honeymoon phase,” according to one writer, which is their most “alarming trend” as of late.
“During the first month of the season, there were many positive signs for the Los Angeles Lakers who made the bold move of hiring J.J. Redick to be their new head coach,” wrote FanSided’s Michael Saenz on Monday. “However, now that there is a larger sample size, I wouldn’t say the results are all that promising.”
“If the Lakers are going to snap out of this downward spiral, there has to be some sort of mid-season upgrade that takes place at some point before the NBA Trade Deadline. The problem is, I’m not sure how equipped the Lakers are to make that happen.”
If the Lakers can’t replace Redick, and there is no indication that they even want to, adding a true floor general is a must, and no one is better equipped to serve as an on-court coach more than Chris Paul.
The 39-year-old “Point God” is still elite at running an offense, as demonstrated by his 8.4 assists per game this season with the San Antonio Spurs. He has lost his scoring punch, scoring only 9.6 points a game, but between LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers don’t need a volume scorer.
Are the Spurs even looking to flip Paul? Probably not, as they are also in the thick of the playoff hunt after losing 60 games last year. However, both Tre Jones and rookie Stephon Castle look comfortable handling the rock, so if the Lakers were to overpay, the Spurs could be swayed.
The Spurs, with little motivation to lose their veteran leader, should run a hard bargain. A package of D’Angelo Russell, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2026 pick swap should be enough to pry away Paul and Malaki Branham, but as the Spurs surge and the Lakers fall, Victor Wembanyama might be kept happy by keeping his table-setter in the lineup.
In all likelihood, Schröder will serve as a replacement for De’Anthony Melton in the backcourt, who was ruled out for the season with an ACL injury. That doesn’t fix the Warriors’ lack of size. Between centers and forwards Draymond Green, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Kevon Looney, the Dubs don’t have a player taller than 6-foot-9.
The Warriors, in an effort to shore up the frontcourt, have been linked to Robert Williams III. He is also only 6-foot-9, making him a bit undersized for the position, but he is an adept rebounder and shot-blocker who could slot into Steve Kerr’s starting lineups.
“There have been some whispers that the Golden State Warriors were interested in acquiring a starting-caliber center that could help take some of the frontcourt pressure off on Draymond Green on a consistent basis,” wrote FanSided’s Michael Saenz on Sunday.
“While there could be a plethora of centers the Warriors could target before the NBA Trade Deadline, I do believe Robert Williams III could be an intriguing option for the team.”
“RWIII is prototypically a center that would fit right in with the Warriors. He can get up and down the floor with ease, is a strong defensive force at the rim, and doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be effective on the offensive end of the floor. RWIII has a knack for just fitting in.”
The Portland Trail Blazers have three starting-quality centers on their lineup between Williams III, Deandre Ayton and rookie Donovan Clingan, and with them going in a younger direction, the future in the Pacific Northwest belongs to Clingan.
Portland recently dropped the asking price for Jerami Grant, so the Warriors should be able to afford Williams III, even after trading Melton’s salary away.
“We want to have that fifth guy be a complementary piece…A guy that doesn’t need the ball in his hands, he’s gonna play hard, he’s gonna pick up full court, can shoot 3s.”
Christie shot two shots from behind the arc and made one of them. He is by no means an All-Defensive level player, but he is solid and has had some good outings this year. According to Redick, the effort Christie gives is the exact type of play the Lakers need in the starting five.
However, the Lakers had a better version of Christie in their starting lineup from 2017-21: Alex Caruso. Caruso emerged as one of the league’s premier perimeter defenders and wanted to re-sign with the Lakers in 2021, but the Chicago Bulls offered a four-year, $36.9 million deal that the Lakers refused to match, which is a choice that has aged like milk.
Since leaving Los Angeles, Caruso has twice received Defensive Player of the Year votes and has averaged 7.6 points on 37.2% shooting from deep to go with 3.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and an elite 2.3 “stocks.”
Had the Lakers simply kept him, which he wanted, Redick would have the point-of-attack defender and starter who doesn’t need the ball (but can still hit shots!) that he’s dreamed of.
Neither Dario Šarić nor DeAndre Jordan have been a good enough backup to help the Nuggets contend, which might convince Denver’s brass to go out on the trade market and acquire a center with some playoff experience.
That’s why it wouldn’t be shocking to see the Nuggets go after former Boston Celtics and current New Orleans Pelicans center Daniel Theis, who has played in many a big game for the Celts.
On Monday, Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz mentioned Theis as one of his top three suggested trade targets for Denver.
“The search continues for a reliable backup center behind Nikola Jokić, as free agent Dario Šarić has either been hurt or ineffective (3.4 points on 30.0 percent shooting overall),” Swartz said.
“Theis is a low-cost ($2 million) backup center option that would allow Denver to keep DeAndre Jordan (minus-15.2 swing rating) off the floor.”
What Theis lacks in size (he’s only about six-foot-eight), he’s always made up for with effort, length, and high basketball IQ. That’s exactly the kind of player you can rely on to spell Jokić.
“How much do the Houston Rockets want to meddle with a young roster that’s off to a 17-8 start to the season?” Swartz said.
“The next two months will certainly give us this answer, as the Rockets may want to add another vet if they want to make any sort of playoff run.”
“The Rockets made Butler’s reported list of potential destinations, and a homecoming would make sense for the Texas native. He fits the hard-nosed culture that head coach Ime Udoka has built.”
“(Julius) Randle is another Texas guy who would be an upgrade at power forward over Jabari Smith Jr.”
Randle is in year three of a four-year, $117 million deal (player option next season). He’s averaging a very solid 20.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists this season for the Minnesota Timberwolves, but things haven’t fully clicked for the new-look Wolves, for whatever reason.
Minnesota may determine it would be mutually beneficial to part ways with Randle.
In either case, Butler went off. The 35-year-old finished with 35 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists, four steals, and zero turnovers in 44 minutes. He was 12-for-21 from the field.
Forbes Sports’ Evan Sidery made an excellent point about Butler shortly after the final whistle.
“When Butler is locked in, he’s still one of the more dominant two-way wings in the NBA,” Sidery said.
“Butler put together a dominant performance tonight in an overtime loss to the Pistons.”
Butler was averaging 18.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game entering Monday. Each of those figures either ties or exceeds his career averages in the respective categories.
He’s been linked recently to the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets, among plenty of other teams.
Maybe Miami will end up holding onto him until this summer. Butler’s team has indicated that he will be opting out of his player option for 2025-26.
