OT - I'm bored, Part Pangos & Bell!

[jstewismybastardson]

 

[pixburgher66]

Why's it a farce? They have the money, they can spend it as they wish. Giants have won 3 WS in 5 years with payrolls that ranked 10th, 8th and 7th, while the Dodgers have been in the top 5 payrolls since 2011 and have exactly 1 playoff series win in that time.

I know you won't agree with me, because you hate the cap in the NHL, but the difference between the haves and have nots is substantial and I hate that simply being in a big market gives a team a significant advantage.

 

[pixburgher66]

What effing drives me nuts is all of the same should be said about the Mets but their owners got swindled out of hundreds of millions of dollars and now they use the team purely for profit purposes and don't invest any money back into it. The biggest small market team out there.

It is a bit crazy to me hearing them talk about their worries about acquiring a big contract...you're the Mets. That team still paying Bonilla.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

Since Shero is cutting ties with everything from the previous regime/era, I would anticipate Elias being traded at some point this year. Devils will likely be out of contention, he has an expiring contract and can certainly still provide offensive help to a contender. I'm predicting he will be dealt this season.

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

I know you won't agree with me, because you hate the cap in the NHL, but the difference between the haves and have nots is substantial and I hate that simply being in a big market gives a team a significant advantage.

I can see that small market teams like the Royals, Twins, Cards and Pirates are truly struggling this year.

Wait a minute...

 

[dash]

As Mark Madden says, "ain't nothin' wrong with a Jung-Ho"

I don't mind Kang, but I voted for Kodos.

 

[evolver115]

I don't mind Kang, but I voted for Kodos.

 

[Cobiemonster]

I know you won't agree with me, because you hate the cap in the NHL, but the difference between the haves and have nots is substantial and I hate that simply being in a big market gives a team a significant advantage.

It CAN give teams a significant advantage if they use the money wisely, but what happens is that teams with so much money can also get full of theirselves(I've seen it first hand with the Phillies in the past) if they're not careful

 

[evolver115]

It CAN give teams a significant advantage if they use the money wisely, but what happens is that teams with so much money can also get full of theirselves(I've seen it first hand with the Phillies in the past) if they're not careful

It's very true.

I've watched the Cubs do it for years. They finally wised up, not surprisingly shortly after hiring Theo, and now they are developing young talent, and not always foolishly trading it for the most sought after trade chip.

 

[evolver115]

 

[dash]

Tomlin just called the Pirates dugout, he wants Cutch to join the Steelers secondary

 

[Cobiemonster]

I'm going to guess Yoenis Cespedes

 

[Cobiemonster]

 

[dare2be]

It's very true.

I've watched the Cubs do it for years. They finally wised up, not surprisingly shortly after hiring Theo, and now they are developing young talent, and not always foolishly trading it for the most sought after trade chip.

Right, it is much easier to squander away money in the form of perennial poor performance than it is to take a tight budget and make a consistent winner.

Still, since 2009 (the earliest I could go back and compile), the top 6 teams in salary are all in the top 10 in wins (Phillies were one of them).

Only 3 teams in the top 10 in salary are in the bottom half in wins (Mets, Cubs, and White Sox).

Conversely, only 2 teams (Rays, A's) in the bottom 10 in salary made it into the top half in wins.

 

[Cobiemonster]

Right, it is much easier to squander away money in the form of perennial poor performance than it is to take a tight budget and make a consistent winner.

Still, since 2009 (the earliest I could go back and compile), the top 6 teams in salary are all in the top 10 in wins (Phillies were one of them).

Only 3 teams in the top 10 in salary are in the bottom half in wins (Mets, Cubs, and White Sox).

Conversely, only 2 teams (Rays, A's) in the bottom 10 in salary made it into the top half in wins.

I think since that year or so, that's when the league started to make some changes that allowed teams to be more competitive(second wild card, new TV contracts, etc) and not only that but teams realize now that it's best to spend money on drafting and developing players

 

[Cobiemonster]

Tulo just put a ball out of it's misery

 

[dare2be]

I think since that year or so, that's when the league started to make some changes that allowed teams to be more competitive(second wild card, new TV contracts, etc) and not only that but teams realize now that it's best to spend money on drafting and developing players

Yep, which implies that MLB was even less competitive before then. My numbers still show that money is still the most important gauge for team success, followed by ownership/leadership.

 

[Cobiemonster]

Yep, which implies that MLB was even less competitive before then. My numbers still show that money is still the most important gauge for team success, followed by ownership/leadership.

No doubt, the teams who are able to field the highest payrolls are the teams who are getting people through the gate and are winning - it's hard to have a consistently high payroll every year if the team isn't winning and the fans aren't coming - plain and simple

 

[jstewismybastardson]

 

[Darkstone42]

No doubt, the teams who are able to field the highest payrolls are the teams who are getting people through the gate and are winning - it's hard to have a consistently high payroll every year if the team isn't winning and the fans aren't coming - plain and simple

It's also harder to get people to the gate when fewer people live in the gate's area, which is also plain and simple.

Plus, larger markets get bigger TV deals, because there are more people to reach on the television.

And more money makes it easier to eat mistakes, which is the big thing. The Dodgers, for example, were able to deal with a bad contract to Kemp (and then deal him, eating salary, for new assets) because they had the surplus money to fill out the lineup around him and despite him. If Rusney Castillo doesn't work out for the Red Sox, whatever, they can go out and get a new guy. And of course there's the huge benefit in the international market, where only teams with massive revenue streams can sign the top talent, because the top talent costs twice the contract they sign due to the fines for exceeding international signing budgets. (Again, see the Dodgers.)

The Pirates are succeeding because they've been able to home-grow some regulars from amateur talent sources (cheap signings on the international market, the cost-controlled entry draft, trades), and their Major League scouts have been outstanding at finding undervalued sources of production (Martin, Burnett, Cervelli, Liriano). The Athletics do a tremendous job of using roster turnover and good scouting in the high minors to remain competitive. The Royals have exploited market inefficiencies as well in building their team, predicating it on speed and defense instead of pitching and power. The Cards are a mid-market team, so they don't fit entirely into the "small market success" narrative, but they also have outstanding amateur scouting and a methodical and effective development system in the Minors. The Twins are kind of a fluke, and I don't expect them to keep this up for the rest of this year or certainly into next.

The Yankees, on the other hand, have been able to eat a lot of injury time from Tex, a massive mistake contract to Sabbathia, and still sign a guy like Ellsbury because they just have so much money. And they have room to add salary, too. Lots of it. The Dodgers can go get whatever talent they want in whatever market they want to get it. Same with the Angels, who have also eaten some rough contracts and continued to add despite it.

Imagine if the big-market teams also employed the savvy of the successful small market teams! Well, the Cubs are now, and we're about to see the fruits of it. The Yankees are, too, but they'll not peak again for a few years, I think. The Dodgers do, too, they just use it on the higher-priced markets. As the small market teams discover market inefficiencies, the large market teams will destroy them, and the small market teams will be forced to find new ones. Eventually, that will get harder and harder.