*****Official 2010 World Series Thread*****

It's not irrelevant. Making the playoffs is a big deal because anything can happen.

Every teams line up changes every year, it's just the nature of the game. It's not like they bring in 25 new guys each year. The Diamondbacks brought in Adam LaRoche, Kelly Johnson, Ian Kennedy and Edwin Jackson but that's ok. But god forbid the Yankees bring in Nick Johnson, Curtis Granderson and Javier Vazquez.

 

It was actually the Padres, that I was thinking of.

Maybe there's no interest in Phoenix because the team isn't good? And hasn't really been consistently good since 2003.

Maybe Phoenix is a bad sports city in general?

 

Well one reason why the Yankees pay players so much is because of the NY state and city tax rate. It's one of the highest if not the highest in the US. For example if the Yankees offered Cliff Lee 16 million dollars and the Rangers offered Lee 10 million, he'd make the exact same money for either deal because there aren't any state/city taxes in Texas that there are in NY. Of course the main reason is because they can because they make tons of it.

But anyway why should the Yankees pay the same as other teams? They make tons of money and put it right back into the team (as well as other teams via luxury taxes). There's no cap in the MLB and what they're doing, while annoying to all non-NY fans, is not illegal or unethical.

 

Well the kids they brought up stink and that's because the Diamondbacks haven't drafted well overall in a long time and have had one of the worst systems in baseball for awhile.

You also fail to talk about the bad business decision the AZ brass made like signing bad players to long term deals (Eric Byrnes) and making poor trades. Of course these superstars you're talking about don't appear out of nowhere just to be signed by the big market teams which leads back to drafting well etc (something Tampa Bay and Minnesota continue to do very very well).

It all starts at the bottom.

And big names/superstars don't guarantee that you'll pack the stands either, just ask Met fans. The team has to be good too. On the flip side the Cubs or Angels don't have a superstar player and they still draw because of the fan base.

And again it could just be that the team is just in a bad location. Tampa Bay can't draw a dime because of their stadium/location and fan base. Ditto for the Marlins who are hoping that changes with the new park.

 

That's one of the advantages the big market teams have is that if they make a mistake they could make another move to help them, where small market teams can't do that. That's why the small market teams need to build from within. How much better would the Diamondbacks be if they kept Brett Anderson, Carlos Gonzalez, Chris Carter, Carlos Quientin, and Max Scherzer instead of giving them up for 44 million dollars in Dan Haren, Joe Saunders, Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson? Again those are all things that start at the top with the owner/GM. Tampa Bay can do it and be successful playing in the same division as the Yankees and Red Sox, ditto with Minnesota with Detroit and Chicago. It is possible to be good and spend less.

I NEVER said money isn't a factor, it's definitely an advantage, but again money doesn't buy you or guarantee you anything. The Yankees spend the most money in baseball yet they didn't finish in 1st place nor did they even get to the WS. In 2008 they spent the most and didn't even make the playoffs.

Why should the Yankees not spend money if they're able too?

 

I still think my Phillies were/are a better team then the Giants, but the Giants won it fair and square. Too many missed opportunities for the Phillies and they couldn't bring runners home. That's baseball though....the hottest team often beats the better team. I think the Rangers win it in six. I will be happy for Cliff Lee, Hamilton and Kinsler if they win it. Many people thought the Yankees were a sure thing, but you can't win it on paper.

 

They spend the money because they can, because there's no cap or rules against it. Why shouldn't they use any and every legal resource they have to put out the best possible team they can? Why should the Yankees spend less because the rest of the league does? Also the Yankees do pay luxury tax and give money back to the other teams to help them out.

If you make enough money to buy a car and you need one would you buy it even if that means your neighbors can't afford one and have to walk everywhere? Or would you walk arm and arm everywhere together just because you feel bad or guilty about it?

 

maybe phoenix shouldn't be in baseball then. if you cant compete then fold.wont be missed. there's always rodeo

 

Hence why baseball isn't also fair. Especially when a guy like Ramiro Mendoza has 3 WS rings while guys like Ted Williams or Ernie Banks have none.

 

That's possible. Not to knock them but not every city is a good sports city that can support a team.

 

i think any team that came in after free agency started cant complain about competing. they knew the rules going in and still decided to join. if they cant handle it they never should have joined. to me the team you really have to wonder about is the Marlins who every year are last or near last in home attendance. If that doesnt improve I'm not sure why you keep a team around that averages under 20,000 per home attendance every year

http://espn.go.com/mlb/attendance

 

yankees fans support the team is why. we have anywhere from 35000 to 45000 average attendance every year. compare that to teams who average 16000 to 18000 per year. i mean thats embarrassing that there are baseball teams that averaqge less attendance than basketball and hockey teams. not to mention yankees have enough of a presence that we can broadcast our games internationally. yankees deserve to be able to spend more because they have the fans both domestically and internationally that support them more

 

I guess none of that has anything to do with the fact that NY is bigger than the other cities population wise? It's just that they have better fans. I've been to plenty of Atlanta games and they have pretty good attendance relative to the size of their city. If Atlanta was a city of 8 million or so you might have a valid argument. You could say that about a lot of other MLB cities as well. Maybe MLB should just be trimmed down to a handful of mega markets. Just do away with the rest of the league.

 

well i definitely think in baseball any team that averages less than 20,000 in home attendance per year over a ten year period should be dropped. i think every sport has expanded too much and there are just some teams that shouldnt even exist

 

Could not care less which of these two teams wins it. Just happy to not see the Yanks/Phills in it.

 

It's important to have a strong fan base and I think that's the most important thing. Sure having a team in an area with a lot of people is very important but if the team is bad or has a weak fan base it does no good. Look at San Diego, they were in first place almost the whole year and in September when they were in the playoff race barely drew. I understand that fans might not have shown up in April or May but once July, August and September rolled around fans should have been going to the games to see the team play. They have the 8th most populated city in the US. Tampa had to gave tickets away to get fans into their building to clinch a playoff spot and they have been good for 3 years now. That's embarrassing and there's no excuse for that.

There are some places that just can't draw, it looks like where the Rays currently are is one of them. Oakland is another. Sometimes cities just lose interest in teams for whatever reason. It happens, that's why teams leave and relocate.

 

Sorry, the better team won. Of course you are taking the Rangers in 6. Didn't you pick the Phillies in 6? Or was it 5? Just like the rest of these "experts" at ESPN. Phillies fans continue to prove why they have the reputation they have. Booing the players celebration after the game. Boo yourselves for being some of the worst fans in all of sports. Enjoy.

 

What's wrong with picking the reigning NL Champs (past 2 years) with HF advantage to win a series? Btw, most fans are like that, not just Phillies fans (btw, I HATE Philly).

 

Idk if this has been mentioned but I just realized Benjie is getting a ring regardless the outcome...not something you see often.

 

Pretty cool huh?

 

And to think if the Giants kept Molina they might not have even made the playoffs. Baseball is a funny game.

 

Unless you're from the Tampa Bay area. And more money does not equal more fans. Winning does. More money does not equal winning. It's not that simple as there are other variables involved.

Well I'm sure if you ask the Pittsburgh owner if he cares about filling the stands while he's counting all of his profits it would be an interesting answer.

Anyway that's the complete opposite of what the Royals or Pirates should be doing and thankfully both are starting to get smart about it. Signing 1 superstar isn't going to do a damn thing for their team or product since baseball isn't basketball where 1 player can make the team better. Both the Pirates and Royals are starting from the bottom which is to build up their team via the draft and farm system. Sure the Royals have sucked from the past X amount of years but they have the best farm system in baseball and come 2012 or 2013 they're going to be the Tampa Bay Rays of the central and actually have a real shot to be good for awhile because all of those players will be cost and team controlled for 6 years and during that time they can build up their fan base and be able to sign some of those players long term.

Baseball works differently than basketball or even football. The development of players takes longer and you can't just go out and spend money for the sake of spending money to get 1 or 2 big name players. That was the problem with the Rays before they got new ownership. Instead of having a long term plan they brought in Wade Boggs, Jose Canseco, Greg Vaughn, Vinny Castilla. They spent their money poorly and for a smaller market team that's much worse than just pocketing the money. They could have used that wasted money and put it towards the draft.

By the way, those poor Royals and Pirates for the past 2 or 3 years have been in the top 4 in draft spending, clearly they're starting to get it.

No one here is saying money doesn't matter. Everyone admits that having money is a great advantage but again it doesn't guarantee anything. And obviously there are teams that don't have money that continue to be successful. Sure it's much harder for those teams but it is possible.

I'd actually argue that the talent level is pretty spread out and even around the league since there isn't 1 or 2 teams that's just head and shoulders above the rest. And obviously the different WS winners in the past decade is evidence at that.

 

Money talks always has...if Texas offers up anything close to the Yankees, he will go to Texas...

My prediction for the WS......

Rangers 4-0

5 games max....

 

Prediction time, I'm going with the Rangers in 6. Obviously the key to the series is how the starting pitching will hold up and I think Cliff Lee will be able to out pitch Lincecum . And although the Giants have a better 2-4 starters, Texas will find a way to beat them them. I think the big advantage to the Rangers is the line up over the Giant line up of flunky hitters. It should be a fun, fairly even series though.

With that being said, the Giants spend more money than the Rangers so logic would dictate that they're automatically the better team and will win. So my new official prediction is Giants in 3 games.

 

You should work for ESPN.

 

Rangers in 5

 

Giants in 5 or 6. GO GIANTS!