caulfield12

Or they can cheer for Jackson Merrill at 21 years old playing like an MVP candidate at a new position. Machado likely in the HoF. Arraez winning batting titles. Cease Darvish King and one of the best bullpens in baseball. Tatis isn't too bad, either. Pure s%*# show...nothing like the product in Chicago right now.

You're forgetting everyone here doubts that Tatis would have developed the same way with the Sox...they went all in and gutted their system last year and had the Dodgers down 2-1 and a bullpen start and let them get away. Do you want a team that's not afraid to challenge LA or one that just is perpetually rebuilding like the Rockies? Just look at the respective attendance numbers for the answer to that question ...

They would be #8 in baseball fWAR-wise based on never trading any of their draft picks or intl guys. They're especially high on deVrieze right now. The James Wood/Gore trade remains their biggest risk for Soto...that back fired because Juan underperformed in SD.

Padres are hopeless right now...just have to limp along to trade deadline still somehow in playoff convention...

Let him go to the Orioles where his father's name still means something... https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/orioles-previously-expressed-interest-in-gavin-sheets.html

I think the Twins were selling the rest of their GA tickets this past season for $5. So it’s kind of in line with your thinking. Keep in mind, they were in playoff position until mid August and won a playoff series over the NYY the previous season. “But I would think if people got in for free, they probably wouldn’t buy anything else. I could be wrong, though… or at least not enough to offset costs. So having some type of monetary value to the ticket will help ensure those willing to pay money get in, so they will be more likely to buy extra stuff once inside. If that makes sense. Edit: not all tickets are $5, but a select number are. Not sure the amount. I feel it’s their way to attract more people without making it free. I guess they have the same idea in mind: save money on tickets, spend more inside.” https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/comments/ninek6/why_dont_teams_struggling_with_attendance_make/ “Twins jumped from second most affordable in 2023 to 18th most expensive in 2024” Yes more expensive so not downplaying that, but the wording here is intentionally trying to spin it by changing the verbiage from “most affordable” to “most expensive”. The 18th most expensive per SI is the 13th most affordable if we’re using the same verbiage. So the Twins dropped 11 spots from 2nd to 13th and SI’s trying to paint it worse. Not shocking given the pile of poo SI is these days.” [–]magellanspuma 49 points 10 months ago But the price jump coinciding with a drop in payroll is straight bs. Someone noted the Pohlads (currently in the process of selling) are the fourth richest family ownership group in the majors and they’re finally getting out…

“A team with a payroll in the 20's like the brewers haven't won a world series since 2003 marlins. top 10 payroll win the world series routinely. Not just LA/NY 2023- Texas Rangers 4th 2022- Houston Astros 8th 2021- Atlanta Braves 10th 2020- LA Dodgers 1st 2019- Washington nationals 7th 2018- Boston Red Sox 1st *2017- Houston Astros 17th (cheated) 2016- Chicago cubs 5th Payroll disparity is only getting worse. I mean... Shohei Ohtani's AAV is larger than 4 current MLB payrolls (before deferred payments) His $70 million average annual value puts Ohtani ahead of the current projected 26-man payrolls of the Cincinnati Reds ($67.5 million), Kansas City Royals ($67.2 million), Pittsburgh Pirates ($49.2 million) and Oakland Athletics ($33.9 million), per Cot's Contracts. (Note as of Feb 2025 he’s “only” ahead of the Marlins’ 30th ranked payroll and barely behind the White Sox). The sport is a joke and frankly rigged for big markets from a team building/payroll standpoint. Us brewers (any small market, really) fans just lie to ourselves because no matter what, we'll cheer for them like they are our child. It sucks. But nothing will get better until all small markets turn into an Oakland A's and Miami Marlins attendance situation. Personally, I'd love to see the MLB die so it is forced to make it competitive and balanced with payroll fairness. Salary cap/floor. It's long overdue.” 2015 Royals were 13th in payroll…btw. Right now the Tigers are the 19th highest payroll at $144.3 million…so the White Sox would have to raise payroll over $100 million to actually compete legitimately for a World Series.

https://sports.yahoo.com/super-bowl-2025-eagles-best-chance-at-beating-chiefs-comes-from-a-roster-strategy-heavily-influenced-by-andy-reid-212549132.html

Chiefs 27-24 Goat

“If you ranked MLB teams by market size, the Pirates would be above the Orioles and Royals. The Brewers are in the smallest market in baseball (until the A's land in Las Vegas, where I'm sure owner John Fisher will start spending lavishly). Anyway, the Brewers have been a very successful franchise lately. They are going to make the playoffs for the sixth time in the last seven seasons (actually 7/8 now). They might even win the World Series this season. They extended Ryan Braun (twice, technically) during a career that saw him win MVP and help the Brewers snap a long playoff drought. They also gave Christian Yelich a long-term extension after his MVP season more recently. Yelich's extension was nine years and $215 million. The biggest deal in Pirates' history is Bryan Reynolds' eight-year, $106.75 million. In the last 10 years (we could go back further and it doesn't improve), the Pirates haven't ranked higher than 20th in player payroll. They haven't been higher than 27th since 2017, though. Since then, it goes 28th, 30th, 30th, 28th, 27th, 29th. In that same timeframe, the Brewers -- again, keep in mind they are the smallest-market team in MLB -- go 26th, 17th, 22nd, 22nd, 19th, 19th, 20th, 22nd. The point, Pirates fans, is that it doesn't have to be this bad. It's Nutting, not the lack of a salary cap. I suppose you can argue that it's both, but the ownership being cheap part is the main problem. Again, look at the success of the Brewers. Or the Guardians. Or the Royals. Or the A's before the owner decided he was the real life embodiment of Rachel Phelps.” https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/snyders-soapbox-on-good-owners-bad-owners-and-why-mlb-fans-should-always-root-for-teams-to-spend-more-money/ It should be noted the Brewers have lost GM Stearns, Counsell, Hader, Adames and Devin Williams and are picked behind the Cubs by almost everyone for 2025. 23rd highest payroll, $108 million Pirates are the 26th highest payroll and picked by many to be third or fourth in the NL Central, @ a $82.2 million payroll

https://sports.yahoo.com/lakers-trade-for-hornets-c-mark-williams-rescinded-due-to-failure-to-satisfy-condition-020549185.html Mark Williams trade mysterious rescinded....Knecht and Reddish back to LaL.

ACC ad Falcons fans are going to have a long memory on this one…ofc he got turned down by Atlanta for HC spot too.

https://www.milb.com/player/caden-connor-804645 That was the hitter recommended for biggest breakthrough in 2025 by Jeff Cohen...keep in mind he's already relatively old, so this year is quite important. Sam Antonacci…Jackson Appel, both received high praise. Not sure the Sox have a plan to debut Smith and Schultz.

If Drury looks really good in spring training...are they really going to choose Sosa or Meidroth over him? Or DH at-bats? Maybe Vargas gets priority unless he still looks totally discombobulated in the spring.

They've obviously run all the models and determined in this case it's better to make the product consumption cheaper/easier...from tickets to tv viewing, at least in Chicagoland. Owning the parking lots and picking off the concession and souvenir sales...closing off the upper decks for all but the big weekend and summer promotion/giveaway/fireworks nights does make sense. Ofc...the challenging part is the only way to raise ticket prices from that bottom is offering a much better product on the field, which cuts into their profit margin. Running a $167 million payroll (versus $67) loses them money now...and they lack the vision of how and why to spend $267 million in the AL Central.

And with the White Sox...rapidly diminishing attendance isn't resulting in MORE pressure on the front office. It's actually resulting in less, (which is 50% of the reason Venable probably took the job)...the decision after last year to strip it all the way down and run the lowest payroll in the league in 2025, 2026 and maybe even 2027 if the prospects don't all hit the ground running or get injured.

"Now, I always like to mention that the Bulls do have the benefit of owning the biggest arena in the league. A larger capacity obviously means an ability to welcome in more fans on any given night. With that being the case, it’s also helpful to look at the capacity percentage, which was down significantly earlier this season. ESPN has yet to report this data, however, and it’s not like those results would make these other numbers significantly less meaningful. The Bulls are still bringing in more paying customers than any other organization in the league, which I’m sure is music to this front office’s ears. Indeed, with results like these, it’s hard to believe ownership is putting any kind of pressure on the guys upstairs to change anything. The Bulls – who have gone into the luxury tax once since their inception – are all about making money. The product on the floor has sure felt like it’s come second in recent years." https://www.bleachernation.com/bulls/2024/04/15/bulls-nba-attendance-4-15/&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwiVybq32LWLAxWZkO4BHZ6rM2AQFnoECAgQAg&usg=AOvVaw13Y-HFm2NkkkPHvldcG5Og

chicagobullscentral 1d a day ago TRENDING: The Chicago Bulls have been part of 8 of the 10 highest attended NBA games this season🤯(h/t: Jay Cuda via X) (📸: via IMDb

But as Spring Training nears, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune hears from two sources that dealing Robert Suarez seems to be “the move that appears most probable.” mlbtraderumors.com

Job creators...

Any realistic answer requires at least Brewers-level free agent spending and likely a new stadium…

Imagine following a team where the best and perhaps only hope for the future is the owner dying so this his family can avoid paying capital gains taxes…that team/fandom is held hostage for a generation of fans over essentially $100-150 million. And the team’s value is falling by the day.

When you watch a game from the stands, do you focus on the players or face the owner's suite? I've yet to see a person wearing a jersey of the owner at a game.

So, Matt, you're telling billionaires how to spend their money? No, I'm absolutely not. They aren't required to follow my wishes. They can do whatever they want with their teams, within the CBA rules. I'm also allowed to shame them for being cheap and dishonest. They can deal with those insults. They should be forced to deal with them a lot more often, in fact. Please join me. They are billionaires and you are a loser sportswriter, so they obviously know more about business than you. OK, so first off, most of these owners were born into wealth, so gimme a break on those. As I've said multiple times about the A's owner, being born to parents who founded The Gap isn't a skill. You all know the analogy about being born on third base and acting like you hit a triple. Well, he was born about a step off of home plate and struts around like he hit a bomb. …. If you hate the owners, you must be a socialist. Yes, I've heard this before and it's an embarrassing take. The best players should make the most money (meritocracy) and I simply want the owners to take care of their customer base, which is a basic tenet of any business model. Bad ownership hurts the enjoyment of the fans and that's just not acceptable to me. It's weird how many small-market fans get angry at me for getting angry at ownership for not better taking care of them as fans. I'm on your side. I want the owners of your favorite teams to stop lying to you and instead try to give you a lot more fun memories. For now, my biggest hope is that I'll stop seeing fans worried about their favorite team signing a generationally great player and then I'll settle for seeing less caping for owners in general. And I really wish we could drive the Nuttings of the league out.