This is has been something that I have been thinking about since the signing deadline passed. I’m going to break from the mold that I typically have here where I attempt to be as even-keeled as I can when it comes to the happenings with the Nationals farm system.
This has little to do with not signing Aaron Crow but is more general in nature.
The Nationals have made it abundantly clear to us (their fan base) that the plan is to rebuild the team from the farm system on up. They have not signed any major league free agents of note and the results are clear on the field. However, many fans were willing to cut them some slack because they believed there was budget being invested in the farm system.
In last year’s draft, the Nationals were among the overall leaders in MLB with nearly $8 million invested in the 39 players they brought into the draft. That, to me, was a clear indicator they were investing in the minor leagues.
Now that the dust has settled on the 2008 draft, how much have the Nationals spent on bonuses for draft picks?
These are the bonuses we know …
- Destin Hood $1.1 million (overslot)
- Danny Espinosa $525K (overslot)
- Graham Hicks $475K (overslot)
- Adrian Nieto $376K (overslot)
- Paul Demny $110K
- Dan Killian $100K
- Ricardo Pecina $100K
- J.R. Higley $150K
- Tommy Milone $65K
- Marcus Jones $150K
- J.P. Ramirez $1 million (overslot)
- Nick Arata $35K
That would be $4.186M. There are an additional 18 players where we do not know slot bonus numbers. It’s only a guess-timate, but I’ve figured $1 million total for those remaining players, which averages out to $55K per player. That means the Nationals spent slightly more than $5 million on bonuses in 2008.
That is simply not enough for a team claiming to be rebuilding through the farm system.
The World Series champion Boston Red Sox and the Kansas City Royals both broke the $10 million mark in signing draft bonuses. And the Nationals are only halfway there.
I’ll say it again. That is unacceptable.
Before anyone assumes this means I think the Nationals should have given Crow whatever he wants.
It doesn’t. The Nationals have every right to put a limit on what they value any individual player is worth to them.
What it means is I do not want to read this comment from Jim Bowden:
“[Ramirez] was done at one minute ’til midnight at the end. Here was a guy that, we were holding on to that because we didn’t know if we had enough money in our budget to get Ramirez. We had enough money to get Ramirez because we didn’t sign Crow. So that was done right there at the end. Because, OK, the money is sitting there and he’s a first-round talent. We took him like McGeary late but we didn’t think we could sign him. He wanted $1.6 million and we negotiated all summer with him, but at the end of the day, we didn’t think there were enough dollars. We wanted to save our money in case we could save Crow. That was what we were trying to do. Our scouting budget that we had to sign players - we were saving it for Crow. When he fell apart, we picked up the deal and closed it at the last minute.”
That is ridiculous. The Nationals should have had the budget to go to their limit on Crow and sign J.P. Ramirez. It should not have been an either/or!
To me, they should budget no less than $8 million on their draft class and spend every penny. Just like they spent in 2007.
I know it’s easy for me to say that since it’s not my money, but the Lerners knew they’d need to spend when they purchased the team and made the decision to rebuild the foundation.
If they were not going to break the bank for Crow, where was the money for Louis Coleman, Nick Akins, Scott Silverstein, Bryan Harper, Cory Mazzoni, or Chris Heston?
They need to show a commitment to the farm system if they are going to forgo the present for the future. And, $5 million is simply not enough of a commitment when other teams are out there spending double that.
It is not acceptable that they restrict the investment in the farm system.
Where are the international free agents?
The July deadline has come and gone and we have not heard anything about anyone being signed out of Latin America. Part of that, I’m sure, is dictated by the ongoing investigations there. But we have not heard word one from them about that.
I try to avoid getting up on a soapbox here, but I am extremely disappointed in the results of 2008.
/end vent
Andrew S. | 17-Aug-08 at 5:20 pm | Permalink
Cheers!
theredskin | 17-Aug-08 at 5:22 pm | Permalink
great analysis as usual Brian…i am very dissapointed in the Nats organization and i for one am cancelling my club season tix in boycott
Brian H | 17-Aug-08 at 5:26 pm | Permalink
Couldn’t agree more.
EdDC | 17-Aug-08 at 5:30 pm | Permalink
First of all, it is not a vent. You in particular put in lots of time on the Nats. We expect the Nats to honor their promises to their fan base, and they just are not doing it..
A $10 million budget for the draft is no huge deal when it means so much for the future of the Nats. This rather small commitment to the Plan means the Nats could have signed Ramirez and Crow and stayed within budget. The Nats should be able to keep up with Kansas City and Boston in this regard. DC is the 8th most populous region in America. Boston is 10th. Kansas City is not in the top 25.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_metropolitan_area
This franchise is way too restrained in its budgets. That’s a good analysis, Brian.
John | 17-Aug-08 at 5:34 pm | Permalink
I sent Kasten an email about IFAs and using the money saved on Crow towards that, but there was no response.
I’m going to give them a pass on the Crow thing. What I’ll be watching is next year. If they don’t draft Strasburg or don’t sign him, I’m done with this team. I’ll know they’re not serious about winning.
I plan to prepare an email before the draft next season stating such and hope to have as many people sign on with me as possible.
J-dog | 17-Aug-08 at 5:38 pm | Permalink
Jim Bowden has said from the start if we dont sign the first round pick we well sign a international free agent i would really like to see if they sign anyone good cause if they dont they are begging to look like a low class organization that should have stayed in montreal. any thoughts
Tom | 17-Aug-08 at 5:47 pm | Permalink
I’d say you way over estimate the amount spent on the remaining players. I’d say the majority (let’s say 25) got the basic $1,000 bonus and the opportunity to play professional baseball contract. The rest maybe got up to $10,000 (that 12 more). Let’s really say they rest of the signings cost $150,000 not $1 million. So the team really spent under $5 million total on the draft this year.
JD | 17-Aug-08 at 5:48 pm | Permalink
Brian,
Outstanding post and I couldn’t agree more. The thing I like about your site is that you don’t jump to conclusions and try to take an analytical approach and give well thought out analyes.
I hope the Nats front office is reading!
Andrew S. | 17-Aug-08 at 5:52 pm | Permalink
JD, I hope they’re reading and preparing to rebuild themselves! Without Stan resigning.
Scott | 17-Aug-08 at 5:54 pm | Permalink
Sorry to say it, but I no longer will take Stan Kasten, Bowden or Lerner at their word. They say one thing but do another.
I believe Crow’s agent overplayed his hand and was sticking it to the Nats. However, the Nats are not in the position to let quality players get away. They should have bit the bullet and paid the extra $500,000 or so. That is the price you pay when you are dealing from a weak position. Let’s face it, they have limited talent in the overall organization and need to overpay until they are on better footing.
Now, they better step up, give Ryan a solid contract and not keep delaying it to save the extra year payment. If they jerk him around, they could lose a significant portion of their fan base.
JD | 17-Aug-08 at 6:01 pm | Permalink
Outside of last years draft, is there another circumstance that showed the front office’s commitment to building a winner — and I don’t mean a few players going overslot on? If they aren’t going to invest in free agents (correctly in my opinion) they should be in the top half of amatuer spening EVERY year. Whether its their fault or not, where have this organization invested money to build a winner?
Ric | 17-Aug-08 at 6:07 pm | Permalink
I had flagged that same Bowden comment yesterday. Ridiculous. They better budget a lot more money for 2009, when they’ll need $10 million or more just to sign their two first rounders. MLB payroll next year should be about $40-50 million (would be a lot less except for the $10.5 invested in the chronically injured Johnson and Young and $18 million invested in Guzman, Kearns and Belliard); I’d like to see at least $25 million budgeted for the draft and international free agents.
Hendo | 17-Aug-08 at 6:08 pm | Permalink
They’d have had the money if they hadn’t pissed it away on Lo Duca, Estrada, et al.
What the excuse will be next season, one can only wonder; the offseason signing panic is many months away.
Steve | 17-Aug-08 at 6:08 pm | Permalink
Strasburg’s agent now is in powerful position for next year. The Nats now HAVE to sign him(or whoever they pick first) or look like a totally bush league org. I think they made a huge mistake not signing Crow for this and other obvious reasons. BTW, Why didn’t they send a rep to Dallas for hands on negotiations? And as I and many others have said here before, they need to start at Bowden and make some major changes, this season is just way out of hand and some people have go to go.
Steven | 17-Aug-08 at 6:25 pm | Permalink
Absolutely without question.
And we should have been willing to give Crow $4.4m.
estuartj | 17-Aug-08 at 6:43 pm | Permalink
I hate to be a FO appologist, but I think we’re going overboard here. If they had signed Crow at the last minute, and I think they were probably 5-10 minutes from closing a deal, we would be right about 8-9 million.
I don’t think that it was a Crow vs Ramirez decision. As they realized Crow was likely not to sign they decided to get more aggressive in signing Ramirez, and if they had signed Crow at 11:40pm then maybe Ramirez wouldn’t have signed, but saying you have a budget doesn’t mean you couldn’t or wouldn’t have signed both if the opportunity arose.
Also, if and when they spend 10-12 million to bring is Strassburg AND the #10 draftee plus the rest of their draftees up to about the level of ‘07 will we all send Stan pictures of us eating our hats (I was going to say crow, but that was too bad a pun, even for me).
Other Marc with a C | 17-Aug-08 at 7:00 pm | Permalink
estuartj - JimBlow said it was a Crow OR Ramirez decision, and that is what has most of us upset.
I don’t mind them having a budget. There job is to value the player when the draft him, based on the market and his ability. If they valued Crow at 3.5M and were not going to go above it, so be it. Given what happened in the draft, I think they were probably right.
Had they signed Crow for 3.5M and not signed Ramirez they would have been at about 7.5M, according to Brian, much closer to what we all would have found acceptable. If they do nothing with that 2.5M then it is really a joke.
Next year their budget is going to have to be 8-10M for the first round alone, plus 4-5M for the rest of the draft, for the plan to be real. We will see what we will see, but the Plan is at a make or break time with the fans who care, and they need to show us that it means something.
EdDC | 17-Aug-08 at 7:01 pm | Permalink
Yeah, right, wait’ll next year, we will all see how wrong we are about this organization.
All we have to go on is what they have done, how they make their little budgets and don’t spend outside their little boxes. It is amazing Kasten is still on board. I wouldn’t be surprised if he soon cites family reasons for leaving. He is a quality guy stuck in what appears to be a bad organization.
BTW, Bowden said it was Crow or Ramiriez, no one is making that up. Those were quotes.
And as to the poster who said the Nats pissed away their budget on the 2008 draft because of the Lo Duca and Estrada contracts? That is true enough. Not signing those two would have yielded the funds.
However, please keep in mind that those guys were really cheap signings compared to what the other clubs do in the off-season. It can’t be Lo Duca OR Crow! This is the major leagues. You just can’t have small major league payrolls AND small budgets for draftees and expect to be successful in the future. This organization is letting us down.
The Lerners are creepy to me.
Other Marc with a C | 17-Aug-08 at 7:05 pm | Permalink
EdDC - why do you say the Lerners are creepy. That is a particularly non-baseball assessment.
Roberto | 17-Aug-08 at 7:07 pm | Permalink
I’ve been patient; I’ve spent thousands of dollars every year supporting this team for the past four years. No more. It’s not just the Crow fiasco and it’s not just the disheartening, soul-sucking performance on the field — it’s the nagging, can-no-longer-be-ignored impression that this organization takes fans like me for suckers and fools.
Next year, I will attend some games with my son because I want to attend them with him. I will buy single-game tickets which, given the depths to which this franchise has sunk, shouldn’t be too hard to get. But they will not get a commitment from me until I get a commitment from them: actions, not words.
Of course, given the sweetheart stadium deal, the guaranteed MASN money and revenue-sharing, they may not feel it. I will. I’ll have lots more discretionary funds to do something other than support this sham.
/end vent
SlowPitch63 | 17-Aug-08 at 7:08 pm | Permalink
Brian,
You are so right.
I’m guessing $15M would have allowed them to sign all of their top 32. If they had signed 2-32 including Silverstein I could accept and even support the Crow decision. By not signing 1, 14, 20, 26, 29, 31 and 32 they have shown their true colors.
If you are playing poker with strangers and haven’t spotted the sucker at the table after 30 minutes, the sucker is you, my friend.
Nats fans, look around the table. Have you spotted
the sucker yet? Oh, let me help. Here’s a mirror.
Am I still a Nats fan? Yes, because I lived without baseball for 33 years. Do I trust the FO? Pleeeease.
Let’s play two
Andrew F | 17-Aug-08 at 7:10 pm | Permalink
Thank you, Brian.
The 2008 draft has amounted to a disconcerting 180 from an encouraging and promising 2007 draft. There’s an overall picture being painted here that looks to be rather unsettling. While I believe a less arrogant GM probably gets the Crow deal done, JimBo simply may have been playing the consummate company man and towing the company line. If so, that’s extremely disappointing.
Unfortunately, the casual fan, which seems to be this organization’s focus, will never care. Of the people that actually do care, more than half of them are the type that will say they’re just happy to have baseball back in town after 33 years. They’re useless. The rest of us comprise the voice that most likely will never be heard.
Keep fighting the good fight, Brian.
Andrew F | 17-Aug-08 at 7:12 pm | Permalink
And, of course, SP63 makes me look like an a-hole. You’re not useless, SP63. But please don’t remain content simply because there’s a team back in town. You deserve more than that.
EdDC | 17-Aug-08 at 7:41 pm | Permalink
Other Marc with a C,
To answer your question:
One problem with the Lerners is their budgets. I buy the small major league budget. I don’t buy the small budget for draftees where they let Crow go for $700 to 900,000. The guy with a 98 MPH fastball would have been the #1 prospect in the Nats’ system. The Lerners allowed Kasten to say there is this Plan but then they put together this minuscule budget for draftees. Very deceptive. Kasten, a quality guy, really needs to talk sense to the Lerners.
And how about suing the city for not delivering to them a perfect stadium on time? DC does a lot for this region. For example, for little or no appreciation, DC combats the poverty other jurisdictions have zoned out. On top of that, DC provides a stadium to the entire region, despite the howls of protest from DC residents who are concerned about twisted priorities.
I have friends who are minority businesspeople who really need to be on a small budget. Because their business is wholesale, they pay huge sums on the gross receipts tax needed to fund the stadium (the tax is based on gross not net proceeds, so wholesale is the hardest hit). But they do it because they are civic-minded as well as because they have to pay their taxes. And for DC to be sued by the Lerners is just creepy to me. DC does handstands for the Lerners, and what do they get in return?
SlowPitch63 | 17-Aug-08 at 7:43 pm | Permalink
Andrew F,
We share a passion.
Life is good.
Let’s play two!
Gus | 17-Aug-08 at 7:44 pm | Permalink
Nice work Brian, as always, you’ve come through with the goods. As the great Eric Cartman once said “Screw you guys, I am going home”
Kevin Flynn | 17-Aug-08 at 7:57 pm | Permalink
The Nats are becoming their own worst enemy and having Jimbo around only adds to it.
I don’t know if the people in charge of the organization appreciate the anger that is building up in the fan base.
My wife and I hane been season ticket holders from day one. If this keeps up we can spend my money on something else.
Tom | 17-Aug-08 at 7:58 pm | Permalink
Time to watch the new younger players that are now on the team or will be in the next two weeks. They should get plenty of playing time since the Nats can’t use the excuse that we need to play the first team so we don’t affect the outcome of the pennant race by not playing the regulars. The regulars are on course to loose 105+ games. That is not competitive.
MikeS | 17-Aug-08 at 8:06 pm | Permalink
Brian,
Thanks for putting this together. While they went over slot in some cases, slashing the total budget speaks volumes.
Other Marc with a C | 17-Aug-08 at 8:08 pm | Permalink
EdDC:
“where they let Crow go for $700 to 900,000.”
There is always a line where you let someone go. If we offered him 6.3M and said we would not offer 7M, does that make the Lerners “creepy”? Of course there is a number where $700,000-$900,000 is not acceptable. I really don’t have a problem if they set their number for Crow at 3.5M and stuck to it (not exactly what I think happened by the way), even if “all” Crow was asking for was 4.4M.
My issue is with all the other players they could have drafted and signed, guys who would have cost another 1M, but were worth 1M, such as what the Red Sox did throughout the draft, drafting guys and paying more because they are worth more then where they were drafted.
The stadium deal was pre-Lerners, but to call them “creepy” for saying that they wanted it to be what was promised, and not just say, well DC, you made a bad decision to fund this thing so we will let these other things slide, seems inappropriate. They are not “creepy” for that, they are businessmen. Do I wish they were more sensitive to public opinion in DC proper - hell yes I do, but they did write a pretty big check and whether we think MLB should have been able to blackmail the city into making gift of a stadium or not, they are entitled to what they paid for.
Saying the stadium is a bad deal because minority business owners pay an unfair tax is fine, but saying the Lerners are “creepy” because of it is not. Is the stadium tax less unfair to non-minority business people who pay it? By the way, those business people who are not civic-minded also pay the tax because it is the law.
I am not comfortable with the word “creepy” in this context. It has nothing to do with baseball, business or any of the things we discuss here.
If you think Ted Lerner bought the team to screw over DC and area baseball fans and run the team to only make a profit and not to put a winning organization together, then you can say that - perfectly appropriate criticism based on the evidence. I would say you are wrong and that you don’t really know anything about the man and his family, but it is appropriate criticism.
But calling him creepy really isn’t.
Nats Fan | 17-Aug-08 at 8:28 pm | Permalink
Great post - the Nats’ lack of urgency is completely unacceptable.
Other Marc with a C | 17-Aug-08 at 8:34 pm | Permalink
Nats Fan - I love that - I think it really sums it up.
They have a lack of urgency. That really nails it.
Garrett Trump | 17-Aug-08 at 8:48 pm | Permalink
I went to the game today (god only knows why). I was lucky enough to see the tenth in a row. Odalis wasn’t bad except for the three-run homer. Milledge was impressive again. He absolutely crushed the ball all day. In the first he crushed a ball down the left field line that was foul by a couple of feet. He then hit a double that rolled to the wall. Later in the game he hit an RBI ground role double and in his last at bat he crushed the ball to the warning track. I have been very impressed by what Lastings has been doing this month. I have been disappointed in Emilio Bonifacio. I think it was because of Jim Bowden talking him up. He said he was one of the fastest players in the league and a spark plug. Jesus Colome proved again to me that he is an absolute bum. The only other positive thing in this game besides Lastings was Shell who went an inning walkin the first 2 on 9 pitches, but got out of it with two very good pitches and Joel Hanrahan going an innings not allowing a base runner and striking out one.
Dave | 17-Aug-08 at 9:25 pm | Permalink
they gave first round money to a 15th round pick with 5th round talent ONLY after not signing the #9 pick overall.
this draft was an unqualified flaming failure.
Lerners ARE Cheap | 17-Aug-08 at 9:56 pm | Permalink
Awesome post, Brian, well said. I’ve been making the same general point on NJ the past couple days, and I’m glad to see someone like you who has really studied this situation and invested a lot of time and effort into the Nats to be shouting it out too.
In addition to Ramirez, the point about international players is a good one. Last year we heard the Nats threaten that if they couldn’t sign Brugess, Smoker, etc., they would sign international players instead. I thought it was a negotiating tactic, but guess what? They signed those guys, and we didn’t hear about any international signings. Then this year we heard the international signing threat again, and now we’ve got concrete proof that the Nats had a pretty small budget that limits their amateur signings. But there’s no reason it needs to be that way, and it doesn’t need to be an either/or proposition: why not set the budget at $10 or 15 million, and maybe not hit it? That doesn’t mean sign Crow for any price he demands. But it does mean sign value guys like Ramirez when you think the price is fair, and then go after international guys also and sign them if you like the deal. What happened to Kasten’s vow to become the premier team on the international front, and all the embassy contact crap? It is a big snow job.
Whoever said lack of urgency is exactly right. Lack of commitment too. The Nats are being lapped by tens of millions on the big league payroll side of things. OK, we can deal with it for now. But why not really commit to the ability to lap the other teams on the amateur signing side of things, if the talent is there? The marginal amount of money the team would need to do that is so relatively small, yet the reward can be so great. Instead, they’re taking us all for a ride with a bogus Plan.
Andrew S. | 17-Aug-08 at 10:06 pm | Permalink
When the major league payroll is below $50 million (or is it a little bit over?) they can afford to budget more than $5-6 million on the draft.
Mama B | 17-Aug-08 at 10:38 pm | Permalink
While the present state of affairs in the Nats organization leaves me disgusted, I do think passing on Crow was the right move. Don’t any of you wonder why his agents didn’t let him have an MRI? For once Jimbo might have done the right thing.
The Lerner’s apparent commitment to the bottom line will doom this team forever. I understand being a good businessman, but profit cannot rule product. The challenge is to spend the money wisely to put out a good product. The present front office seems unable to do so. Does anyone really know if we need a major housecleaning or just a few changes?
Andrew F | 17-Aug-08 at 10:40 pm | Permalink
With the hometown Padres sitting in the #2 or #3 slot, I can already see Strasburg pulling an Elway or an Eli next summer and making it clear prior to the draft that he won’t sign with the Nats. That will be devastating.
hartmanbirge | 17-Aug-08 at 11:32 pm | Permalink
Brian - I disagree completely with your post. Last year the Nats went out of their way to go above slot - McGeary especially was special. That was all just only 12 months ago. If Crowe signs then we’re sitting at around $8-9 million this year and right in there with the other teams you mentioned. Crowe didn’t sign so we’re sitting here at $5 million. My own impression is that this Nats draft was lousy - only a few of the picks leave me excited. I’d like to see an international signing but before we bash the Nats I’d like to know just what sort of talent is really out there - I think you’d agree that you wouldn’t want the team to just start throwing money around the international market if the market isn’t there. Who’s there that’s worth millions? Unless we know I think it a bit premature to criticize. I do agree that I don’t like to hear the word - “budget” when it comes to the draft. If Ramirez is so damn special than he should be signed - period - regardless of whether we sign Crowe. It shouldn’t be A or B - especially for a triffling amount of $1 million on a franchise that is making money and healthy despite fielding a AAA team and losing every night.
huh? | 18-Aug-08 at 12:27 am | Permalink
“Brian - I disagree completely with your post.”
“I do agree that…”
Brian Oliver | 18-Aug-08 at 4:32 am | Permalink
hartmanbirge - The problem I have with the draft class is that if Crow had signed and we are to believe Bowden’s quote, it would have been closer to $6M spent on the draft because Bowden’s implication is it was Crow or Ramirez. As for your comment regarding the international market, I never said they needed to throw around millions. They haven’t announced any international signings since the July signing deadline. Not one.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I have not seen enough of a commitment so far in 2008 and thus the posting.
Louis J. | 18-Aug-08 at 7:48 am | Permalink
I’m a member of 12 person season ticket group with a combination of Home Dugout, Infield Club and Diamond seats and we spend approx. $80,000 in tickets, reserve parking, food/drink and merchandise. We are frustrated with the caliber of play of the team on the field and can’t understand why the Nats can’t improve both the farm system and field a better ML team. With their current payroll, their annual “revenue streams” and $8Mil annually in draft choices, there should be enough $$$ left to sign 2/3 quality free agents for the next 2 years even if they loose draft choices as compensation. Since they retain their 1st RD choice for 2009, signing 2 of the following players - Sabatia, Sheets, Texiera or Burnett (if he opts out of his contract)- would be a good beginning.
P.S.- Our group was more interested in the Nats drafting Justin Smoak (the power-hitting switch-hitting 1B) who did sign with the Rangers.
P.S. #2 - Also, our group DOES NOT believe that Zimmerman will sign with the Nats and will either be traded in the next two years or declare free agency after the 2011 season. He will test the arbitration route after this season and see what his worth is (like Chad Cordero did) and things will be said, by the Nats,at the arbitration hearing about his performance that will not please him. Remember, the Nats (Lerner, Kasten, Bowden & Acta) have declared him their franchise player and he expects Ovie $$$ which the Nats wouldn’t pay.
J. Cole | 18-Aug-08 at 7:58 am | Permalink
“they are begging to look like a low class organization that should have stayed in montreal.” #6 above. At least the Expos actually developed SUPERSTAR talent (though they didn’t have the money to keep them) that kept the big club competitive for many years. Not too many 100 loss seasons when you have Vlad, Larry Walker, Moises Alou, Vidro, Wetteland, etc. for 4-5 years at a time. When will the Nats develop somebody that puts up stats like Vlad? That’s what I want to see. Wish the sitaution would have gone differently and the organization could have kept Vlad, at least then we would have a superstar to root for. Vlad’s a f’ing man, not like these sorry fools that can’t even get a sac fly with bases loaded and 1 out.
EdDC | 18-Aug-08 at 8:27 am | Permalink
This is for Other Marc with C, regarding why I find the Lerners creepy.
OK maybe I am too mad at them– it is just baseball after all.
But look at Abe Pollin. What a guy! Funds the Verizon Center with his own dough. Revitalizes 7th Street. My hero forever.
By comparison, you have the Lerners who get a free stadium out of DC residents who have tons of other obligations. Next step is to raise ticket prices! Put up an ugly garage in left field.
The Lerners do not have to be grateful. But they should forge a partnership with DC. Maybe you don’t like the example of my friends the minority businespeople, who do live within a tight budget but pay serious money for the stadium. OK I understand that. But my point is that real DC people fund this stadium, not just multinational corporations housed in DC. Withholding rent payments to DC ( a small amount relative to the value of the asset, but an amount DC had planned on and needs) is bush league, as is suing the city. If you don’t like the word creepy, please replace it with a more kindly word like backstabbing.
On the baseball side, I have been a member of three season ticket groups. No more. The reduced comitment is mutual. (I may stay in for a half share of one, 5 games.)
This team broke their compact with their fans. The deal was, you the fans support us as we field lousy teams who essentially play AA vs. MLB exhibition games. In return, we the team will give you a bright future. The Lerners have some ’splainin’ to do about their little budgets for the future.
Jeff | 18-Aug-08 at 10:47 am | Permalink
If we would have budged on Crow’s rediculous demand of almost 4.5 million we would have spent about 9 million. That money will got towards international players, MLB level players, etc. and we will, in turn, have the #10 pick next year. Why the whining and moaning? To panic and overpay for guys is a bad thing. Especially when Strasburg is sitting there at #1 anyway next year. The thing that bothers me in the first place is that we didn’t just go for a MLB ready bat like Smoak in the first place. Aside from that, I’m OK with not budging to a guys crazy demands. Let him rot in the international league and drop his stock. He’s gonna lose money and the Nats can maybe find another Dominican gem like Smiley. If not, spend at the MLB level and have that extra pick next year to work with.
Analogy | 18-Aug-08 at 11:24 am | Permalink
That money will got towards international players, MLB level players, etc. and we will, in turn, have the #10 pick next year. Why the whining and moaning?
Paramedic: Sorry you’ve been shot in the gut, sir. We’ve got an ambulance to pick you up, but the price of gas is too high right now. Better to wait for tomorrow. You’ll like tomorrow’s ambulance. It’ll deliver you even faster to the hospital when it gets here tomorrow.
Patient: groans
Paramedic: Why the whining and moaning?
Jeff | 18-Aug-08 at 11:36 am | Permalink
Good stuff LOL
stats freak | 18-Aug-08 at 12:08 pm | Permalink
Have any of you given thought to the possibility that they don’t care nearly as much about winning as we do? It wouldn’t be the first time a professional franchise put making money far, far, far, far above winning.
In 1975 you could talk about a “plan” because in those days, it might take 3-5 years to build a major league team.
It’s now 35 years later, and it no longer takes that long. The Rays haven’t been building this major league team for years and years, just the last three, through doing things correctly. You really want to emulate the Rays, then see how they develop players. They don’t have guys playing at three levels in one season.
Not only do that Nats do poorly in the major leagues… they have done poorly with signing draft picks this year… and they have done a fairly poor job at developing players.
And before everyone brings up all the youngsters in the majors, being young and in the majors doesn’t mean you’ll be a “star.”
And before any of you bring up John Lannan, ask yourselves just how many major league teams he’d be a starter for right now!??! That number isn’t very high…
The whole thing needs to be blown and started from scratch with significant front office changes. The ENTIRE organization needs to be on the same page and there actually needs to be a plan they are adherring to, and not knee-jerk decisions.
mjames | 18-Aug-08 at 1:05 pm | Permalink
J. Cole
I agree with your comment. Say what you will about Montreal but they had the best farm system for several years.Even up to the end they were developing first class talent such as Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips, Grady Sizemore, Jason Bay, Chris Young, Cordero etc. until they were ruined by Minaya. Now Bowden is destroying what is left. This is a real mess.
Dave B. | 18-Aug-08 at 1:30 pm | Permalink
If the Nats had the same budget as last year for draft signings ($8 million), then it would be a reasonable assumption that they were indeed reserving $4 million to sign Crow (based on your excellent analysis). As the last offer from the Crow camp was for a minor league contract with a $4 million bonus, I do find it a bit odd that the Nats walked away from that deal.
Jeff | 18-Aug-08 at 1:51 pm | Permalink
Per estuartj - “Also, if and when they spend 10-12 million to bring is Strasburg AND the #10 draftee plus the rest of their draftees up to about the level of ‘07 will we all send Stan pictures of us eating our hats (I was going to say crow, but that was too bad a pun, even for me).”
Good stuff. This is my point. What if it is more about Crow not being worth 4.4 million in bonus money than about being cheap? It shouldn’t all be about panicking and doing whatever it takes to sign any and everybody because our farm system stinks. We can still realistically get better by obtaining the #10 overall pick next year and drafting accordingly. What if there are guys in the ‘09 draft class that our scouts admire? This guy Crow could fall on his face and NEVER see that kind of money again and dissapear into oblivion for all we know. Who’s to say the guy is worth a full 1.2 million more than the most MLB ready pitcher in the draft, LHP Matusz? Come on… The panic level is at a dangerous level.
J. Cole | 18-Aug-08 at 3:14 pm | Permalink
mjames - #49. Minaya raped the organization, but in a way he had a reason. He tried to make the big league club better in the short-term and go to the playoffs because there was a possibility the team would be contracted. The Chris Young trade, as well as Jason Bay both made no sense. Young was just starting to come into his own at Harrisburgh when they traded him for a bum (honestly don’t even know).
Mark | 18-Aug-08 at 9:12 pm | Permalink
Another misstep by the organization, all this means is we have to waste our top pick next year on a pitcher instead of addressing the infield needs like the Rays and White Sox did in this past draft!!!!
Jeff | 19-Aug-08 at 11:13 am | Permalink
“Waste” our pick on a pitcher? I’m sorry but Steven Strasburg is a LOCK to go #1. I’d MUCH rather have Strasburg than Crow. I’d rather go with Strasburg and whoever we get with the #10 pick (Preferably a bat) than to have Crow and his bloated rookie signing bonus and a guy like HS SS Mychal Givens next year who would take another 5 years to develop… Screw Crow and his money demands. I don’t think, no matter how great of an organization, you panic and give in to contract demands because you “have to” get things going. It’s a long process, rebuilding… Giant steps were taken in ‘07 with a great draft and some nifty trades. In ‘08 we don’t sign our 1st rounder, sure… We did, however, sign 2-5 and some guys late who were pretty much guaranteed to not sign… We’re compensated with the #10 overall pick in next years draft. It looks like #1 overall is also a possibility and with that comes Steven Strasburg a flame thrower with a wicked slider who K’d 23 guys in a game last year… A surefire #1 guy. I can’t understand all of the frustration like giving Aaron Crow 4.4 million, 1.2 million more than the most MLB ready pitcher, Brian Matusz who’s a LHP got with the O’s was some good idea just “because our organization stinks.” You still have to run this the right way. Getting pushed around in future negotiations isn’t the way to go. Now that you’re compensated when a guy doesn’t sign, it’s not the end of the world.
Will | 19-Aug-08 at 11:52 am | Permalink
Jeff, but you’re only compensated for so long (1 year). With the #10 pick next year, we will be forced to overpay, or make a pick based off signability (not talent). Whomever we pick at #10 will know full well that if we don’t meet his contract demands, we will forever lose that pick. We have no fall back option, it’s meet his demands or look like cheap chumps.
On top of that, Strasburg is going to be asking for a ton of money. I can’t see any scenario where we don’t have to spend less than $10mil on just our two first rounders. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Strasburg want $9+mil and our #10 want $4+mil.
Jeff | 19-Aug-08 at 2:33 pm | Permalink
The Nationals will pay the #1 guy #1 guy money. They won’t, however, vastly overpay for a guy they don’t see as close to a #1 guy. Crow fits that bill. He’s the guy losing out in the end. Now he has to risk not making that money next year (or ever), injuries, etc… It’s a two way street…
J. Cole | 19-Aug-08 at 4:41 pm | Permalink
2 top 10 picks in 2009, 2 top 5 picks in 2010.
Jeff
“The Nationals will pay the #1 guy #1 guy money.”
Do you believe that deep down? They only spent $5 million this year; $8-9 million last year on a “great job” draft. Do they sign Strasburg and nobody else, or most everybody else and not Strasburg, I’m inclined to think the latter, unless he doesn’t demand as much dough as people think.
dian | 19-Aug-08 at 6:53 pm | Permalink
Hey Brian…I feel your pain. Thats exactly what us Cleveland Indian fans have been feeling for YEARS!!!!!! Always “WAIT TILL NEXT YEAR”. It’s become a joke!
Jeff | 20-Aug-08 at 8:13 am | Permalink
Hey, Dian… The Cleveland Indians have fielded competative teams throughout the past decade and beyond. Don’t compare that with being a Washington Nationals fan……… EVER. Thank the miserable Expos for Cliff Lee, OK?
J. Cole… I do believe that the team will spend to bring in the #1 pick and the #10 pick next year. They could be targeting a certain guy and didn’t want to break the bank on Crow and his rediculous demands. You can look at it like they only spent 5 million. You also have to look at the fact that they didn’t go way over slot to sign the 1st rounder. They did, however, go over slot with numerous picks in this draft and got a lot of guys signed. Let’s not act like 1st round draft picks in MLB drafts are some sort of exact science of greatness anyway. If this guy turns out to be a bum then can you really criticize Bowden in hindsight? Think about it. Criticize him when he gives the prospect that doesn’t necessarily pan out 4.4 million up front.
dian | 20-Aug-08 at 10:51 am | Permalink
jeff. your point well taken. I think the point im trying to make is that its hard to be a Cleveland Fan of any sport here. And trust me, you can ask ANY Clevelander. While its true that in the past few years we have fielded a pretty decent team, the fact remains we never make it to “the dance”. Then the off season is spent doing nothing as far as going out and getting that piece to perhaps make the puzzle fit. Every Cleveland Indian fan is in agreement if your read the papers and that is the the Lerners never should have bought this team if they dont want to put the money into and go out and get some free agents, etc etc.
Jeff | 20-Aug-08 at 3:46 pm | Permalink
Understood. What’s not understood. What on earth are you doing on a Nationals minor league board? lol
dian | 20-Aug-08 at 9:42 pm | Permalink
Trying to meet some guy named Jeff I guess!!! No seriously i LOVE baseball. Always have since i was…lets just say since I was younger!!! Brian’ a website it tight! I wish he lived here so ‘i could maybe recruit him to do a site on our High School Fottball Team. We have ALOT of interest here for that. Anyway, love those Sun, and Nats but most espcially those senators, O.Castro, E Baez, Carlos Martinez. I’m pulling for these guys to maje it along with LD (Leonard Davis) LOVE those guys!!! And much, much luck to them!
dian | 20-Aug-08 at 9:44 pm | Permalink
sorry about the mispells!
Geez!!!