How Best to Build a Sustainable MLB Organization

I am fascinated with people who believe that the best way to build a championship is by spending more than any other team.  They contend that LAD ownership values profit more than winning.  Hogwash.  I understand how disappointed and frustrating it can be. I am the one who came on and stated the Dodgers need to go BOLD. What I did not realize is that to some only Cole/Strasburg/Rendon means bold. Strasburg and Cole were never going to be Dodgers. The picture for the article is of a young Gerrit Cole showing his allegiance to NYY. That means only signing Rendon could have been considered going BOLD to many. I do not know why AF got the impression that Rendon did not want to play for LAD, but they did. We will undoubtedly never know the real reason.

The offseason is not done, but no matter what, to some AF and the owners have failed because they did not spend on Cole/Strasburg/Rendon. BS. There are other moves the Dodgers can make that will signify going bold, but it will not be enough to many of you. To them, the only way to win a WS is to buy it. Some of you will be angry when the Dodgers win the WS but do not sweep the 11 games. It is your nature to always look at the negatives. William said this is baseball and not cancer research. Agreed, but then why so angry? Baseball is entertainment and I have been entertained by LAD since 1958. Save your anger for those who are not saved because cancer has not been eliminated.

Every owner and GM/President of Baseball Operations wants to win. Those of you who think otherwise cannot be helped if you are that delusional.  Even if profit was their primary motive, there is more profit in winning a WS, so why wouldn’t a team just pay for super FA’s every year if that guaranteed them the WS championship. 

Smart ownership groups look at how to build an organization that is sustainable.  They resist paying outlandish salaries that many fans think they should spend because after all it is not their money and the owners are trillionaires.  At least one person has said that the Dodger ownership group is a trillion dollar corporation.  Nope.  When Mark Walter, Todd Boehly, Magic Johnson, Stan Kasten, Peter Guber, and Bobby Patton bought the Los Angeles Dodgers, they paid $2.1 Billion assuming all of McCourt’s debt.  How the cash portion of the purchase was financed has been scrutinized over and over, and created a lot of early financial concerns and some apparently considerable debt compliance issues. 

Bill Shaikin of the LA Times is probably the most read and researched journalist when it comes to MLB debt compliance issues.  While there have been multiple articles written by Shaikin on the subject, I often refer to a November 26, 2016 article discussing the early financial concerns and the need to get Dodger salaries down to $200MM by 2018 (which they did).  The team may lead MLB in revenues (or near MLB lead), but that does not connote profit. If anyone believes otherwise, please go back and take a beginning accounting class. The Dodgers heavily reinvest in their development and analytics. H E A V I L Y.  They believe that is the best way to create and sustain a perennial contender.  So far they have been right.  Unfortunately it has not led to a WS championship.  Their best chance was 2017, however their dreams were dashed by the cheating Astros.  If Doc Roberts manages differently in the 8^th inning of Game 5, who knows what might have happened in 2019.

For those who care, below is the Bill Shaikin article:

https://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/la-sp-dodgers-debt-payroll-20161126-story.html

For those who refuse to believe about the debt compliance concerns, I cannot possibly begin to persuade you otherwise.  And frankly, I do not care.  Your disdain for rich MLB owners will never be extinguished.  Why the Dodgers did not win with a $300MM payroll in 2015 cannot be explained.  The Dodgers showed a loss for the first three years of the new ownership. They are not allowed to make that back? I do not have access to the Dodgers financial statements, and I have no idea what their debt structure is.  Nor does anyone else on this site.  But I am certain that it was at one time a concern, and still may be to a smaller degree.  If you believe the original ownership group sold off additional minority shares to four new owners because they were nice, I cannot help you.  You just want to believe the worst in Mark Walter, et al.  A more likely scenario is that the organization needed an infusion of cash to retire some debt.

But that is enough preaching from me on the subject.  Some of you just like being angry and hating on rich owners.

William wrote, “I just find these quick and inevitable pivots which the Dodgers make every year to be frustrating, and they look like the Dodgers are in another economic class than the Yankees and Angels.

First let’s look at the Angels history:

In 2002, the Angels won their only WS with Bengie Molina, Adam Kennedy, Troy Glaus, Garrett Anderson, Darin Erstad, Tim Salmon, Jarrod Washburn, Ramon Ortiz, John Lackey, Troy Percival, Scott Schoeneweis, and Scott Shields.  All home grown.  Others acquired via trade were Brad Fullmer and Kevin Appier.  Picked up off waivers were David Eckstein and relievers Al Levine and Ben Weber.  Reliever Brandon Donnelly was released 6 times before the Angels signed him as a FA. Scott Spezio was the only FA position player.  Aaron Sele was a FA who pitched so poorly that he did not make the playoff rosters.  But the one big FA they did have under contract was one of the worst FA contracts ever issued.  Mo Vaughn signed a 6 year $80MM deal to begin in 1999.  He didn’t even play in 2002. 

Subsequent to their WS championship year, the Angels decided to go big.  Some other memorable FA contracts for LAA:

Gary Matthews Jr. – 5 years $50MM

CJ Wilson – 5 years $77.5MM

Albert Pujols – 10 years $250MM

Josh Hamilton – 5 yeas $125MM

How did those work out?  Even the one FA that was productive did not get the Angels any closer to a WS Championship…Torii Hunter.  So the Angels signing Anthony Rendon makes them WS caliber?  With that pitching staff? The Angels forgot how to build a WS team.  To this day, their farm system is one of the worst in MLB.  Andrelton Simmons has one more year before he is a FA.  What will they do with him then?

The one big FA playing in the 2002 WS was playing for the SF Giants…Barry Bonds.  We all know who won that year. But SF later changed their approach and later earned 3 WS Championships in 5 years.

In 2010, home grown Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval, Nate Schierholtz, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, MadBum, Jonathan Sanchez were joined by peripheral FA Aubrey Huff (1 year), Juan Uribe (1 year), Pat Burrell (mid-season 2010), and Aaron Rowand.  Freddy Sanchez was acquired via trade.  Their one big time FA didn’t even make the 2010 playoff roster…Barry Zito.

In 2012, the home grown players were joined by additional home grown players; Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford and Ryan Vogelsong.  Freddy Sanchez was replaced by 1 year FA, Ryan Theriot, and an OF made up of Melky Cabrera, Angel Pagan, and Hunter Pence, all acquired via trade.  Pence was a trade deadline acquisition.  This time Zito did make the playoff roster and did pitch relatively well in three games.

In 2014, home grown Joe Panik replaced Theriot, and journeyman FA Mike Morse replaced Cabrera.  The starting pitching was starting to age but was relatively intact with Cain, Lincecum, Vogelsong, and MadBum.  Barry Zito was replaced by Tim Hudson (2 year FA at end of career),  The Giants also added Jake Peavy in a trade at the trade deadline.

So for three WS championships, the Giants had ONE big time FA, Barry Zito, and he was not a factor

I also need to chuckle at those who continue to spout that the Yankees bought their WS championships in 96, 98, 99,00.

While 96 was sort of an interim season for them, the only significant player FA was 37 year old Wade Boggs who signed a 2 year $4MM deal with a 3^rd year option.  He signed a 3 year $11MM contract for 93-95 that did not deliver any WS appearances. Pitching wise, Kenny Rogers would qualify, but he was certainly not a factor. Nor was veteran short term FA,  Doc Gooden.  Jimmie Key was not a big time FA, and neither was David Cone at that point in his career.

Tino Martinez was traded to NYY before the start of the season and was an integral part of those WS runs.  Paul O’Neil was a trade acquisition in 1993 and was also with the team throughout their WS run. John Wetteland was acquired via trade in 1995.  Ruben Sierra was a trade deadline acquisition. But let’s not forget the home grown talent…Jim Leyritz, Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Andy Pettite, Ramiro Mendoza, and Marian Rivera. That was the CORE of those NYY teams.

Things began to take shape for a 4 year WS run (3 championships) in 1998.  Still the core of the team was Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Andy Pettite, Tino Martinez, Paul O’Neil, Ramiro Mendoza, David Cone, and Mariano Rivera.  Jorge Posada was home grown and was the new catcher, and Orlando Hernandez (home grown) joined the rotation.  Chuck Knoblauch, Scott Brosius, and Chad Curtis were acquired via trade.  The one new FA was David Wells who signed a three year $13.5MM deal for the 1997 season, the one season they did not make the WS.  Certainly not a big time FA contract.  Boomer was on the team in 98 before getting traded after the season.

In 1999, the primary position players remained intact except home grown Ricky Ledee replaced Chad Curtis.  Pitching was still intact with the exception of Roger Clemens replacing Boomer Wells, via trade.

In 2000, home grown Shane Spencer was part time DH and shared those duties with David Justice after he was acquired via trade at the deadline. Denny Neagle joined the back end of the rotation was acquired via trade.

In 2001, there were one position player change.  Alfonso Soriano (home grown) replaced Knoblauch at 2B.  Knoblauch moved to the OF.  But they also moved out of their home grown and strategic trade and hold realm by signing Mike Mussina to a 6 year $87MM deal.  Before coming to NYY, Mussina was top 6 vote getter in CY in 7 of the 10 years he pitched in Baltimore, with reaching 2^nd one year.  Note – NYY did not win the 2001 WS, the year they spent big dollars on one of the top pitchers in MLB.  2001 was the last year Mussina received any CY votes. 

But wait, the Yankees were not done.  For 2002, NYY doubled down on another big time FA.  They signed Jason Giambi for 7 years and $130MM.  Neither Mussina or Giambi ever won a WS with NYY, and only Mussina made it to one.  No, I think home grown Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Andy Pettite, Jorge Posada, Ramiro Mendoza, and Mariano Rivera, with key trades for Tino Martinez, Paul O’Neil, and Roger Clemens were the impetus to their WS run, and not one single big time FA.

Maybe Gerrit Cole will get them to the WS, but maybe not.  Right now, NYY is at $257MM in payroll; a full $9MM past the most onerous penalty level of $248MM.  Nothing would please me more than to see NYY fall on their faces.

The 1996-2001 run for NYY and the 2010-2014 WS run for the SF Giants were done with primarily home grown players/pitchers.  The only large dollar FA contract on either team that won the WS was Barry Zito, and he was not a true factor.  And for all of this talk about how smart the Angels were for signing Rendon, almost every other one of their multiyear large dollar FA contracts back fired and have never got them to the WS, while their one championship was done almost entirely on home grown players/pitchers.

I still believe the Dodgers will do something, but it may be on the periphery (bullpen).  Or it may be for attitude (MadBum or Donaldson).  Or it may be nothing else at all.  Dodgerrick believes as it is, this team is not as good as the 2019 team, and he may be right. But it does not need to be to win the NL West. First order of business get to the playoffs.  I doubt they will win 106 games, but I doubt they would win 106 with Ryu, Hill, and Garcia.  IMO, a full year of Verdugo, a full year of Seager being able to work out and condition instead of rehab, a full year of Smith over Barnes, a healthy JT, a year removed from KJ’s heart surgery, Urias and May in the rotation, Gonsolin and Treinen in the pen, and a promising Gavin Lux, all give me reason to believe this team can win.  Also let’s see where this team is at the trade deadline where AF is more apt to do something significant.

If you cannot see the positives I am sorry for you. Be miserable for the 2020 season. But I am going to enjoy it from ST Game 1 to their WS Championship.