MILWAUKEE — When they approached teams to express interest in acquiring their players last week, the Minnesota Twins could provide a mix of prospects and the ability to take on payroll to enhance their offers.

While the Twins were always authorized in years past to make trade-deadline deals using prospects, a significant amount of cash has rarely been available to the front office.

But in an attempt to improve the roster and hopefully win back disinterested fans through aggressive moves, Twins chairman Tom Pohlad wanted to provide general manager Jeremy Zoll with sufficient resources to make meaningful additions.

Zoll quickly recognized the benefits of entering discussions with a wallet flush full of cash.

In making three deals between July 30 and Aug. 3, the Twins absorbed more than $8 million in 2026 payroll from the Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets. Being able to add payroll this season limited how much the Twins needed to surrender in prospect capital to acquire high-leverage relievers Jeff Hoffman and A.J. Minter and starting pitcher Dean Kremer.

“The ability to add payroll was huge,” Zoll said. “It was really helpful to be able to work through a wide variety of conversations. I’m really grateful for Tom Pohlad’s partnership and support along the way. We had really productive conversations leading into this deadline process about how we wanted to attack that and do everything that we could to improve the club. I felt like I was in lock step with him along the way.”

With Minter, the Mets were motivated to trim payroll rather than maximize the return on their rental reliever. Though Minter was one of the top left-handed relievers available, the Twins acquired him for what MLB graded as the team’s No. 21 prospect (Billy Amick) and 29th-best prospect (Bruin Agbayani) because they took on the rest of Minter’s $3.5 million salary.

Had they not absorbed salary, one team source who spoke on condition of anonymity to allow for candor suggested the Twins would have needed to surrender a prospect in the 10-15 range, perhaps as high as No. 8.

Knowing his team would be a buyer, Pohlad made sure to be clear with Zoll that he would have ample resources at his disposal. By the time they acquired Dean Kremer on July 31, the Twins had added $5 million in payroll. Another team source, granted anonymity to provide insight into the team’s strategy, said Pohlad offered access to more cash than the team had ever had before: “Tom’s not f—ing around.”

Pohlad said he simply wanted to make a difficult endeavor easier for Zoll.

“We were committed to giving (Zoll) the financial flexibility to make this team better,” Pohlad said. “I think the results of what happened at the trade deadline were in no small part a function of having that financial flexibility and that clarity at the outset. Now somebody has to go out and execute that, and that is a very hard thing to do, and he did that masterfully.”

Here’s what else we learned about the Twins at the trade deadline.

• Yes, the Twins expressed interest in Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto, a player they’ve been intrigued by for multiple seasons. Yet the timing of a national report Monday noting the Twins were all over Neto arrived a few days late.

The Twins reached out to Los Angeles before the weekend began to see if that team’s front office would be open to dealing Neto only to discover it would cost more than they were comfortable paying. Neto wasn’t moved at the deadline.

As evidenced by the team’s decision to promote No. 2 prospect Kaelen Culpepper on Friday, four days after the deadline, the club hoped to bolster its shortstop play.

The Twins also were in discussions for Reid Detmers and Jose Soriano, who was traded to Toronto.

• Indicating they were buying didn’t prevent teams from inquiring about catcher Ryan Jeffers, who is a free agent at the end of the season. With multiple teams pursuing catching help, Jeffers drew plenty of interest, but the Twins decided to keep their roster intact.

“He’s a big part of what we’re doing right now,” Zoll said. “We wanted to make sure we were not taking any steps backwards this year just to acquire future value to say we did. Had a clear goal of making the team better and wanted to deliver on that.”

Whether the Twins make Jeffers a qualifying offer or not depends on how he plays the rest of the season. But if the club thinks Jeffers would receive a long-term contract in free agency, the Twins seem unconcerned with making him a qualifying offer, which would net them a compensatory draft pick. While it could be perceived as a gamble to offer him a one-year deal expected to be worth at least $23 million, a source close to Jeffers said the catcher would reject the offer and be a free agent. Even if he accepted, the Twins would secure Jeffers, who’s in the middle of a career year, on a one-year deal, which would help bridge the gap to prospect Vahn Lackey’s eventual promotion to the majors.

• One person familiar with the team’s thinking who was granted anonymity to speak candidly said the Twins’ aggressive spending plan is repurposing what the organization originally intended to do beginning in 2023. When they re-signed Carlos Correa to a six-year, $200-million deal that January, the Twins were operating on a five-year plan under Derek Falvey in which payroll would increase every year to support the roster.

Only one year later, ownership pulled the plug on the plan and asked Falvey to reduce payroll by $30 million, a move Pohlad has since identified as a misstep. Team officials believe the move saved the money up front but cost the franchise far more money over the long run.

Pohlad has repeatedly said the Twins’ future payrolls would increase and that the team needs to spend more than $100 million on payroll to compete. Though it’s almost a certainty the Twins would never approach their $248 million payroll from 2023, Pohlad views the small-market San Diego Padres’ model as a positive.

“To build the business, we’ve got to win,” Pohlad said in July. “And to win, we’ve got to put a better product on the field. There does need to be an upfront investment made. But when we make an investment, we have to be successful. We have to f—ing win. If we do that, then people will come and it will all work.”

• Curious to see how the Twins front office works at the deadline, Pohlad spent time with Zoll and others in the front office and had an opportunity to see how many hypothetical possibilities arise during the process. But as the deadline neared and the work started to speed up, Pohlad left the Twins front office alone to conduct business.

Pohlad kept in contact with members of the front office via text and email over the past few days in case he was needed to sign off on a deal. One point made by Falvey last December when Pohlad took over was that the team’s new chairman would need to learn about most aspects of the business on the fly.

“It was a great learning experience,” Pohlad said. “It was a great team-building experience, particularly between (Zoll) and myself, and to some degree (Twins manager Derek Shelton). I felt like we had a very clear plan going in. I had a lot of confidence in (Zoll), and things turned out the way we hoped.”

Cavenagh was joined in the room by chief executive Jim Gillespie and shareholder Paraag Marathe.

Gillespie was asked about the appointment of McInnes, who fell just short of winning the title with Hearts last season.

“You can go for a Pep [Guardiola] style manager or a [Jurgen] Klopp style manager – we wanted a Klopp-style manager who plays on the front foot,” Gillespie said.

“Derek has been high on our list for a long time and we think he fits the style and culture of this club.”

He also confirmed the club are seeking clarification from the SFA regarding the VAR call that led to a Hibernian penalty in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat.

“It was my understanding that it has to be a clear and obvious error for the referee to be called over,” Gillespie said. “I didn’t see that as either clear or obvious.

“We need a strategy for developing referees and VAR.

“My question for the SFA would be ‘what is the strategy for improvement?’ – we have to get improvement.”

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Third-year Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Tarheeb Still is familiar with the fanfare of training camp.

When the post-practice huddle breaks, fans in attendance flock to the barriers, handing over hats, jerseys and posters they’d like to turn into souvenirs personalized by one of their favorite players. Still typically signs a few things, as was the case on Saturday, even when he didn’t participate in practice for an undisclosed reason. But for all the fans whose days Still has helped make, one from this summer stands out.

Sitting on his couch, scrolling social media during the first week of camp, Still came across a video of a fan asking for Justin Herbert’s signature. The fan said it was his third year attending camp and trying to get the quarterback’s autograph. He said his speech disability had made it difficult in the past.

Still responded to the post, saying that he would help the fan out. The next day, Still went up to Herbert before practice and asked him to sign a hat. When practice ended, Still knew who he was looking for in the crowd.

“That specific experience was kind of … it was kind of emotional,” Still said. “You could tell it really meant a lot to him. I almost shed a tear.”

tarheeb made it happen 🥹 pic.twitter.com/g8k6ZhVjw1

— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) July 29, 2026

The Chargers posted the fan’s reaction to their social media, where he cheers with excitement and then comes to the front of the crowd to meet Still. That shot of him and Still smiling together is his new profile picture.

“It was the best experience ever,” Still said. “It was an amazing feeling that I got to help him do that, and also he was so passionate and so grateful. It was just amazing.”

Still enters a pivotal third season in 2026, and in camp he’s been vying for snaps at outside corner next to veteran Donte Jackson and fellow 2024 draft pick Cam Hart. Jackson, who has played eight NFL seasons, gave props to Still for his versatility in the secondary.

“The sky is the limit for Tarheeb. He’s one of the smartest players I’ve ever played with, and that says a lot for a Year 3 guy,” Jackson said. “He’s going to be one of the guys that you see on the ticker making a lot of money.”

As a rookie, Still was eager to step up when the veteran starters battled injuries, and it turned into a standout season for the fifth-round pick. He led the team with four interceptions, one of which he returned for a 61-yard touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons.

“Tarheeb’s a player who established he belonged right away,” coach Jim Harbaugh said. “He’s in the process of seeing how far he can take it.”

Reflecting now, Still attributed his early success to a simple mindset.

“It wasn’t really much thinking, none of that,” Still said. “Just going out there, being young, having fun. Just embracing it, being in the league, but also really just trying my best to see the team succeed.”

The stats didn’t jump off the page for Still as much in Year 2. He ended the season with seven pass deflections, 53 tackles and without a takeaway, all fewer than the year prior.

“Last year, I was trying to be right about everything, instead of just being like how I was my rookie year, just limit the thinking,” Still said. “I’m prepared. I’m in the playbook. I scout the team. I know they’ve got a good feel for what’s going on. The coaches do a good job preparing us. So it’s really just not thinking, letting your ability take over.”

Still said he wants to get back to “playing more free” in 2026, combining the knowledge and confidence built in his first two years to take the next step.

The defense is also working under new coordinator Chris O’Leary, whom Still described as intentional and “super detailed.” O’Leary was the Chargers’ safeties coach during Still’s rookie season in 2024, so the chemistry was built before O’Leary returned to Los Angeles this offseason.

“We’re on him constantly about just being an ultimate competitor,” O’Leary said earlier in camp about Still. “Can you be the same guy day in and day out no matter who you’re guarding, who you’re up against, how you feel? That, to me, is the step we’re pushing him in this year. Be that guy every single day. But he’s been really good.”

For Still to unlock his potential in the upcoming year, he said it will come down to the small things: preparation, diet, habits. So, what’s success look like in 2026? And, as Harbaugh said, how far can Still take it?

“Whatever level I get myself to,” Still said. “I know that they have the confidence in me. I know they have trust in me. I know my teammates do, but really it’s just about me taking that next step to really make that big jump.”

Another new detail for Still this year: his number. He switched to No. 4 this offseason after wearing No. 29 the past two years. Still wore No. 4 during his final two college football seasons at Maryland, and he also said the number has relevance to the street he grew up on in Sicklerville, N.J.

Of course, it’s also the number Harbaugh wore during his two seasons with the Chargers organization in 1999 and 2000, but the head coach didn’t let that add any pressure, Still said.

“People that are from around that area will understand. It really means something to me where I’m from. It makes a lot of people happy back home,” Still said.

“And then, also, who doesn’t want a single digit in the league?”