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A-Rod Bought the Timberwolves at the Worst Possible Time. Here Is Why It Worked.

CoinDesk Podcast Network

CoinDesk

Business News, Daily News, News, Tech News

4.7698 Ratings

🗓️ 7 June 2026

⏱️ 25 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Alex Rodriguez joins the Consensus Main Stage for a candid conversation on life after baseball, building a championship organization, and the lessons that shaped him. From buying the Minnesota Timberwolves during COVID to applying AI and real-time technology to the fan experience, A-Rod breaks down what it actually takes to turn around a franchise. He also opens up about growing up without a father, the mentors who changed the trajectory of his life, and why showing up with full attention is still the most underrated competitive advantage. - Timecodes: 00:00 - Alex Rodriguez at Consensus Miami 2026 01:06 - The 2004 Red Sox-Yankees Series and Baseball's Big Moment  04:00 - Buying the Minnesota Timberwolves and the NBA's Global Growth  06:56 - Building the Timberwolves from the Ground Up  09:39 - The Jump App and Applying Tech to the Fan Experience  12:18 - Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, and Building a Championship Team  15:41 - Family, Faith, and the Importance of Being Present  19:50 - The Power of Mentors: Buffett, Magic Johnson, and Giving Back  23:50 - NBA Playoffs Predictions and Parity in Pro Sports

Transcript

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0:00.0

I don't care where you went to school, I don't care who your family is.

0:02.0

I'm going to do business with you for two reasons.

0:05.0

If I trust you and I like you, and don't overthink it, right?

0:09.0

Of course you have to have a good product and all of that.

0:11.0

But assuming that everyone has a good product, if I like you and I trust you, I'm going to do business with you.

0:16.0

17-year-old me in Bowie, Maryland, in Prince George's County, who woke up and all he did all day, every day was either think or play or train for baseball and aspired to be like my contemporary Alex Rodriguez from Westminster Christian

0:41.8

High School cannot believe that I get to sit here. I scraped for every bit of information

0:49.1

that I could. I knew his whole life story and was absolutely fascinated and continue to be to this day.

0:55.8

So when I had the opportunity to moderate this panel, it took me about one second to say

1:01.2

yes.

1:02.2

It's great to be here with you.

1:04.0

Great to be here.

1:05.0

Hello, everyone.

1:06.0

For my money, the most excited I've gotten about professional sports, at least since I was a little kid, in the last 25 years, were those Red Sox Yankees games.

1:16.6

There was nothing more exciting than Pedro on the hill.

1:20.6

And man, the time went by so slowly, just waiting for those games to start.

1:25.6

What many of you may not know is Alex Rodriguez,

1:29.3

the mortal enemy of the Red Sox for those series,

1:32.3

was actually traded to the Red Sox.

1:36.3

In 2003, I think it was.

1:38.3

He was traded and the trade got de-Qed.

1:41.3

And he ends up on the Yankees and the rest is history.

...

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