The Offseason Baseball Thread

[Imran Siddiqui]

I'm sure if Washington doesn't build it, someone else will. That is, after all, why Washington has an option of getting the team, Montreal wouldn't build a new stadium.

After all, most owners buy the team, not the stadium. They can just move the team to an area it would be more profitable (ie, with a good stadium).

[DanS]

That's right. Like I said, I think the mayor has a good and sophisticated argument about why it makes eminently good business sense for Washington to have a publicly-funded stadium whereas a traditional economic analysis for other cities will invariably say publicly-funded stadiums are money losers. This is a town that thrives on tourism and if you can encourage tourists to stay just a little longer, it is hugely profitable for the city. New York is probably the only other city in the US with a similar cluster of things to do that attracts a lot of tourism dollars (broadway, shopping, museums, skyscrapers, Ellis Island, etc.).

[Moral Hazard]

Re: Womack
2 Million is chump change for the Yankees plus I don't think they looking for a great 2nd baseman. They want someone to fill the hole. Their money is going after Beltran and Pitching. I think Womack offers more speed and a slightly better glove than Cairo, I could be wrong considering that last season was the first year Cairo has had full time responsibilities since he played for the DRays, So I don't know too much about him.

[BustaMike]

LoA - For all intents and purposes Randy Johnson is the BEST pitcher in baseball. The only reason he didn't win the Cy last year was because the DBacks sucked. Even if he only stays good for 2 years, I can't see how picking him up is bad for the Yankees. He pitched a freakin' perfect game last season, lead the majors in KOs, and had a 2.7 ERA. The Yanks would be crazy not to sign him, especially with the money they have to throw around. Signing Randy is most definitely NOT getting screwed over.

[Lawrence of Arabia]

LoA - For all intents and purposes Randy Johnson is the BEST pitcher in baseball. The only reason he didn't win the Cy last year was because the DBacks sucked. Even if he only stays good for 2 years, I can't see how picking him up is bad for the Yankees. He pitched a freakin' perfect game last season, lead the majors in KOs, and had a 2.7 ERA. The Yanks would be crazy not to sign him, especially with the money they have to throw around. Signing Randy is most definitely NOT getting screwed over.

dbacks dont want they money, they want prospects and young players, and they want a lot of them from the yanks (vazquez, $4million, a minor league 3B, flash gordon, and a PTBAL. thats not worth two years if the yanks are smart. you consume less now to have more tomorrow.

[BustaMike]

But the Yankees have a seemingly limitless amount of money to pay free agents with. They don't care about prospects, they care about winning now. They can buy the players from other teams once they become good. The rest of the league is essentially the Yankee farm system.

[Imran Siddiqui]

And that's the attitude that has gotten the Yankees into trouble recently. Their great late 90s team was a large part built from within. When Steinny started getting involved and buying every big name, they haven't won it since.

[Brundlefly]

Julio Franco, 46, signs a 1-year, $1 million contract with the Braves. 46.. Damn! I think the fact that this guy is still a viable major-leaguer at 46 is more impressive than some of the steroid-enhanced feats we've seen from other players recently. I can see the endorsements lining up for him: Geritol, BenGay, Viagra, Ensure, Depends...

I have a 1973 Phillies yearbook that has a picture of a 15-year-old Julio Franco playing shortstop under the section titled "Phillies of the Future". Well, the most he played for the Phils was in a few September callups until he was traded to Indians in '83 for the immortal Von Hayes..

31 years in professional ball. Amazing.

[Brundlefly]

Originally posted by DanS
That's right. Like I said, I think the mayor has a good and sophisticated argument about why it makes eminently good business sense for Washington to have a publicly-funded stadium whereas a traditional economic analysis for other cities will invariably say publicly-funded stadiums are money losers. This is a town that thrives on tourism and if you can encourage tourists to stay just a little longer, it is hugely profitable for the city. New York is probably the only other city in the US with a similar cluster of things to do that attracts a lot of tourism dollars (broadway, shopping, museums, skyscrapers, Ellis Island, etc.).

Its going to take a lot of spin to get people to focus on that argument as opposed to 'stadium money vs. money for schools' or 'stadium money vs. money for more police and firemen'...

[-Jrabbit]

If Julio Franco was 15 in 1973, the Phillies were in violation of child labor laws. If he was 18, that means he's actually 49 by now.

bfg, what makes you think Franco is drug-free?

Latin America is where all the good body enhancement drugs are easy to get. Just ask Sosa...

[Imran Siddiqui]

Yeah, there may be something fishy about Franco.

And -JRabbit, he could have been 15 in '73, but lied about his age back then. That has definitely been known to happen with Latin players.

[SpencerH]

I dont care whether they all have constant infusions of the latest designer drugs. The thing that bugs me about the Bonds-drug issue is his bull**** comment that he didnt know what he was taking. Talk about implausible deniability!

"Yeah, this anti wrinkle cream and vitamines are really great. Its just coincidence that I've put on 20lbs of muscle."

*******

Yesterday after finishing my leg workout I had some (obviously steroid taking) ex-jock comment that I should get off Bonds back, that using steroids didnt effect his hand-eye coordination, and that he would have hit those homers anyway.

I didnt point out the obvious fallacies with his comments. What do you expect from a drug abuser anyway?

[Brundlefly]

Originally posted by -Jrabbit
If Julio Franco was 15 in 1973, the Phillies were in violation of child labor laws. If he was 18, that means he's actually 49 by now.

bfg, what makes you think Franco is drug-free?

Latin America is where all the good body enhancement drugs are easy to get. Just ask Sosa...

There were probably no child-labor laws in Dominican Republic in 1973.. He had signed some sort of promise to play for Phillies but was still actually in D.R. playing Latin ball.

I dont know if he is drug free, that's true.. He doesnt appear to be juiced but I suppose he could be taking something else that hasnt been detected.. Or he could just have excellent genetics..

[Ming]

While steroids don't effect hand-eye coordination... I just laugh at some of the Sammy at bats last year... He would stand at the plate thinking he had hit a homer, but his now non juiced up body just couldn't hit them as far, and they were now just long fly ball outs...

I think Bonds would still hit for percentage, and hit a lot of homers... but you wonder how many might have just been long outs instead of dingers

[Brundlefly]

I think Washington could sell public funding of a stadium better if the MLB and the team agreed to a team reorganization that creates a board of directors with one or more seats given to publicly elected officials who influence team decisions with the public interest in mind... Something like that is needed to prevent arrogant sports owners from holding cities hostage by threatening to move a team out of town if they dont get state and/or municipal money for a stadium..