Rollins- lots of hot air

[tedzan]

Since a recent comparison was alluded to in a prior post here....here is the rest of the history....
of the Yankees AL Championships vs. U.S. Presidents.

World Series Champs annotated by **


1921......Harding (Republican)
1922......Harding (Republican)
1923......Coolidge (Republican) **
1926......Coolidge (Republican)
1927......Coolidge (Republican) **
1928......Coolidge (Republican) **
1932......Hoover (Republican) **
1936......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1937......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1938......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1939......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1941......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1942......Roosevelt (Democrat)
1943......Roosevelt (Democrat) **
1947......Truman (Democrat) **
1949......Truman (Democrat) **
1950......Truman (Democrat) **
1951......Truman (Democrat) **
1952......Truman (Democrat) **
1953......Eisenhower (Republican) **
1955......Eisenhower (Republican)
1956......Eisenhower (Republican) **
1957......Eisenhower (Republican)
1958......Eisenhower (Republican) **
1960......Eisenhower (Republican)
1961......Kennedy (Democrat) **
1962......Kennedy (Democrat) **
1963......Kennedy (Democrat)
1964......Johnson (Democrat)
1976......Ford (Republican)
1977......Carter (Democrat) **
1978......Carter (Democrat) **
1981......Carter (Democrat)
1996......Clinton (Democrat) **
1998......Clinton (Democrat) **
1999......Clinton (Democrat) **
2000......Clinton (Democrat) **
2001......Bush (Republican)
2003......Bush (Republican)
2009......Obama (Democrat) **

AL Championships = 40
World Series Championships = 27


TED Z

[prewarsports]

Money CAN buy you championships.

Give the Royals Half a Billion Dollars to sign all the big free agents over the next few years and I bet they become one of the elite in Baseball.

[calvindog]

Are there any fans of any team but the Yankees that don't wish their team could and would spend all the money needed to win a championship?

[baseballart]

I can think of a few fans ;-)

[Jim VB]

Originally Posted by prewarsports

Money CAN buy you championships.

Give the Royals Half a Billion Dollars to sign all the big free agents over the next few years and I bet they become one of the elite in Baseball.

Well, when Royal fans begin to show up to the games in the numbers the Yankee fans do; when they show a willingness to pay the same ticket prices; and/or watch the games on TV and attract advertising revenue at the same rate the Yankees do; then you have a right to complain.


However, they have never done that. The team just collects the revenue sharing and luxury tax money and pockets it.

Small market teams can, and do, compete in MLB. Twins seem to do a great job of it every year.


Edited to add: http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/article/132600

Read the first article. I bet KC clears enough from MLB and revenue sharing and luxury tax money to cover their entire payroll.

Stop using money as an excuse for poor management.

[sbfinley]

Originally Posted by Jim VB

Well, when Royal fans begin to show up to the games in the numbers the Yankee fans do; when they show a willingness to pay the same ticket prices; and/or watch the games on TV and attract advertising revenue at the same rate the Yankees do; then you have a right to complain.


However, they have never done that. The team just collects the revenue sharing and luxury tax money and pockets it.

Small market teams can, and do, compete in MLB. Twins seem to do a great job of it every year.


Edited to add: http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/article/132600

Read the first article. I bet KC clears enough from MLB and revenue sharing and luxury tax money to cover their entire payroll.

Stop using money as an excuse for poor management.

You can blame poor management all day. But do not blame KC fans.

[Jim VB]

I would never blame the fans directly for the problems of the team. I only ascribe "blame" to them in that they have accepted the status quo and are still willing to allow management to continue down the same paths.

I have respect for all fans, but especially like those, like the season ticket holders of the Cleveland Browns, who try to fight back.


Back in the early 1970's, Steinbrenner bought a team that was in total disarray. They had been bad for 10 years. They lost money. They didn't sell a lot of tickets. They put a poor product on the field. He invested his own money and took big dollar chances. Some worked out fine. Some he was forced to eat. He built the Yankees back to a financial powerhouse.

Fast forward 35+ years and he has the highest revenue team in the league. They draw in the neighborhood of 4,000,000 fans a year, despite ridiculous ticket prices. They have the richest TV deal of any team. And they are a team that expects to be competitive, if not win, every year.

I've asked this before and no Yankee haters ever answer, but what should he do with the money coming in? He continues to plow it back into the team. Should he just hoard it? Should he just record the profit and move on? Or should he continue to demand excellence from his players, coaches and team administration?

He already contributes big dollars ($40.0 - $50.0 million a year) into the weaker teams in the league. Many of them (not all) just sit on it. In 2003, the Marlins used something like $10.0 million (George's luxury tax money) to bring their entire organization and their families up to NY for the World Series (two trips). Yet when the season was over, they had to break up the team for financial reasons.

Look at this spreadsheet:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?k...XT3cpPRtt9qIGw

Three and four years out, some of these teams have zero payroll obligations! Their management thinks this is the way to run a sound business? The fans should be outraged.


(By the way, this spreadsheet and many more can be found at:
http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/200...678860040.html

It's a terrific site that allows you to look, in detail at the salary set-up ov every team.)

[barrysloate]

It's hard to argue with the Yankees' success this year. They seemed to do everything right. The three big acquisitions were among the best in one season in baseball history. The team was exciting to watch and won with great regularity. Even if you don't like the Yankees, and see them as a bunch of bullies, they had a magnificent year.

And it would be nice, and in fact should be mandatory, that if small market teams collect luxury taxes from the Yankees and the like, they should not pocket that money but use it to improve the team. I'm sure the spirit of the luxury tax was to keep some semblance of competitive balance, and not just make those owners a little richer.

[Jim VB]

I agree Barry. Look at these stats.

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/33/Income_1.html

Now I know that this is from the 2005 season, but I haven't found any more recent numbers. Generally speaking, the most profitable teams are those that lose. The winning teams tend to break even or lose money.

So I guess, before we attack ownership, you have to ask, do we as fans applaud well run (read: financially profitable) businesses, or should we applaud winning.

Obviously, many owners would prefer to line their pockets, while pleading poverty and continue to lose.

[baseballart]

Originally Posted by Jim VB

...
Back in the early 1970's, Steinbrenner bought a team that was in total disarray. They had been bad for 10 years. They lost money. They didn't sell a lot of tickets. They put a poor product on the field. He invested his own money and took big dollar chances. Some worked out fine. Some he was forced to eat. He built the Yankees back to a financial powerhouse.

Interestingly (or not), this self-published book was written in 1971, when Horace Clarke and Gene Michael were in their prime. (I don't hate the Yankees, for the record) However, as has been pointed out, baseball has had the "haves" and the "have-nots" for a long time--back into the 19th century. Strange that this book was published in the middle of the Yankees' lethargy



One thought that came from Bill Veeck was that there should be no long term contracts and players should be free agents every year. I wonder if that would increase or decrease the level of competition among the teams.

Max

[Jim VB]

Max,

You're going to have to let me know how that book turns out. I just checked Amazon. They do have one copy available. Asking price is $1,000. Sorry, I don't have Steinbrenner-like money!

To Veeck's thought. I think it would be worse than ever if everything was one year deals. When the Yankee's make a mistake, and they often do, they have to pay dearly for it. That's a good thing for competition.

With all one year deals, I think there would be even more movement, and I think the primary driver for premium player movement is the desire to win. The owners may not care, but the best players do.