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The Worst Owner in Sports? The case for Jerry Reinsdorf


Kyyle23

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12 hours ago, Tnetennba said:

We can talk about wasting Trout's prime, and never winning with two all time greats, but Moreno has spent serious money trying to win. Meanwhile Jerry had a team in first place, coming off an AL West title and an ALCS berth, with the regining AL MVP in the prime of his HOF career, the reigning Cy Young winner, with a legit shot at reaching the World Series, and he shut it all down over money. Winning doesn't matter if it costs too much.

This might be the post of the year on this site!

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On 10/22/2025 at 5:14 PM, Bob Sacamano said:

Exactly. He’s allowed the GM to spend money to try to compete. The deals haven’t worked out. Does that fall more on the guy building the team?

 

On 10/22/2025 at 5:06 PM, 77 Hitmen said:

The argument is whether Moreno is worse that Jerry Reinsdorf, not whether he's a bad owner.  I don't see anyone suggesting Arte Moreno is a good owner for the Angels.   I have a hard time concluding that he's actually worse than Jerry Reinsdorf.

The perfect argument that a GM does in fact matter. Not the token “we can’t criticize Getz because Jerry won’t let him spend” argument.

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On 10/22/2025 at 2:10 PM, WBWSF said:

Fisher also moved the team out of Oakland. There were investors ( Bill gates and Reggie Jackson) who wanted to buy the team and keep it in Oakland. Fisher moved the team and stabbed the Oakland fans in the back.

Not sure that the city deserves much loyalty. They have a sparse record of supporting the franchise. Not really a major league city perhaps. 

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3 hours ago, pcq said:

Not sure that the city deserves much loyalty. They have a sparse record of supporting the franchise. Not really a major league city perhaps. 

There were years where Oakland drew over 2 million fans a year. The present owner (Fisher, a multi billionaire) could of done the decent thing by selling the team to local owners. Both Bill Gates and Reggie Jackson wanted to buy the team and keep it in the Oakland area. Gates would have built  a new stadium with his own money.There is  speculation that Fisher will sell the team after the first  few years its in Vegas. He should have sold the team to people who wanted to keep it in  the Oakland area.

Edited by WBWSF
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16 minutes ago, WBWSF said:

There were years where Oakland drew over 2 million fans a year. The present owner (Fisher, a multi billionaire) could of done the decent thing by selling the team to local owners. Both Bill Gates and Reggie Jackson wanted to buy the team and keep it in the Oakland area. Gates would have built  a new stadium with his own money.There is  speculation that Fisher will sell the team after the first  few years its in Vegas. He should have sold the team to people who wanted to keep it in  the Oakland area.

I hate billionaire owners as much as the next guy and wear out the FieldofSchemes.com link. However, Fisher made the investment to get free land, infrastructure and tax breaks to build a little tourist village. Oakland offered him something like that, but it wasn't his preferred location. He bought to fleece the city. There's no concept of "doing the right thing" and selling before he got his money pump.

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On 10/23/2025 at 1:04 PM, WestEddy said:

I can't imagine the howling that would follow a White Sox pitcher dropping dead from asphyxiation after a fentanyl/oxycodone cocktail provided by team sources. The White Sox had a bad clubhouse with coach/spies throughout the org. Not saying the Sox are squeaky clean, but I don't think they've reached those depths. 

Just win, baby

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5 hours ago, WestEddy said:

I hate billionaire owners as much as the next guy and wear out the FieldofSchemes.com link. However, Fisher made the investment to get free land, infrastructure and tax breaks to build a little tourist village. Oakland offered him something like that, but it wasn't his preferred location. He bought to fleece the city. There's no concept of "doing the right thing" and selling before he got his money pump.

I was living in the Bay a couple years ago when this ordeal was going on, the city council voted to invest like $1bil in an A's stadium/'village' at Howard Terminal and give them the land for free. Prime waterfront location that everyone was in agreement about...besides Fisher and the Union Pacific railroad company. The environmental remediation was too expensive or something. UP's concerns were more reasonable that the adjacent tracks might pose a threat to pedestrians.

The Coliseum is out of the way and outdated. Oakland is the little brother to the Giants in the way the Sox are to the Cubs, but people probably would've showed out to Jack London Square from all across the East Bay (easy commuter rail and BART access and even San Francisco. It's a cool place. A ballpark there would've been perfect.

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2 hours ago, nrockway said:

I was living in the Bay a couple years ago when this ordeal was going on, the city council voted to invest like $1bil in an A's stadium/'village' at Howard Terminal and give them the land for free. Prime waterfront location that everyone was in agreement about...besides Fisher and the Union Pacific railroad company. The environmental remediation was too expensive or something. UP's concerns were more reasonable that the adjacent tracks might pose a threat to pedestrians.

The Coliseum is out of the way and outdated. Oakland is the little brother to the Giants in the way the Sox are to the Cubs, but people probably would've showed out to Jack London Square from all across the East Bay (easy commuter rail and BART access and even San Francisco. It's a cool place. A ballpark there would've been perfect.

Well, except for the territorial rights "invasion/encroachment"...

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2 hours ago, nrockway said:

I was living in the Bay a couple years ago when this ordeal was going on, the city council voted to invest like $1bil in an A's stadium/'village' at Howard Terminal and give them the land for free. Prime waterfront location that everyone was in agreement about...besides Fisher and the Union Pacific railroad company. The environmental remediation was too expensive or something. UP's concerns were more reasonable that the adjacent tracks might pose a threat to pedestrians.

The Coliseum is out of the way and outdated. Oakland is the little brother to the Giants in the way the Sox are to the Cubs, but people probably would've showed out to Jack London Square from all across the East Bay (easy commuter rail and BART access and even San Francisco. It's a cool place. A ballpark there would've been perfect.

I stayed down the street from the Embarcadero, took the BART, and hopped off right outside of Oakland Coliseum. Easy peasy. I think the owner of the OKC Thunder did the same thing to Seattle. He's accused of moving out of spite, and he did, but I think he also wanted his free tourist village. 

It's important to keep saying that Ishbia isn't buying the team because he loves us, the fans, and wants us to be able to walk down the street, drunk, every November, high fiving strangers during yet another Championship celebration. He's buying it to hold Chicago hostage in his own way, cheat us out of our tax dollars, and then start his own rocket ship company to colonize Venus. 

There's no such thing as a "good" team owner. 

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3 hours ago, WestEddy said:

I stayed down the street from the Embarcadero, took the BART, and hopped off right outside of Oakland Coliseum. Easy peasy. I think the owner of the OKC Thunder did the same thing to Seattle. He's accused of moving out of spite, and he did, but I think he also wanted his free tourist village. 

It's important to keep saying that Ishbia isn't buying the team because he loves us, the fans, and wants us to be able to walk down the street, drunk, every November, high fiving strangers during yet another Championship celebration. He's buying it to hold Chicago hostage in his own way, cheat us out of our tax dollars, and then start his own rocket ship company to colonize Venus. 

There's no such thing as a "good" team owner. 

RDS — Reinsdorf Derangement Syndrome.

There are owners that actually want to win and make money.

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I read where the Members of the Pittsburgh City Council want to meet with the Pirates owner. They want to discuss if he has any intentions of improving the Pirates. I don't think  he has responded to their request. I wonder if some council members  from Chicago will request a similar meeting with JR to see  his intentions of  improving the White  Sox and Bulls.

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23 minutes ago, WBWSF said:

I read where the Members of the Pittsburgh City Council want to meet with the Pirates owner. They want to discuss if he has any intentions of improving the Pirates. I don't think  he has responded to their request. I wonder if some council members  from Chicago will request a similar meeting with JR to see  his intentions of  improving the White  Sox and Bulls.

Talk about an absolutely worthless thing to do.  These guys do not care, man.  Lmao what are they gonna do?  Write a strongly worded letter demanding that they do better?

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9 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

Talk about an absolutely worthless thing to do.  These guys do not care, man.  Lmao what are they gonna do?  Write a strongly worded letter demanding that they do better?

Right? And even toss in about how they should be allowed to interview for the GM job? Craaaazy

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6 hours ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

RDS — Reinsdorf Derangement Syndrome.

There are owners that actually want to win and make money.

Billionaire Daddy Syndrome. The belief that billionaires will ride in and save you. Winning is a by-product. 

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And I'll add to that - Reinsdorf has become the person he loathed - Bill Veeck. No, he'll never be anywhere near as beloved. But now JR's the guy who made a string of bad/weak decisions, the game has moved to a place where he can't get to in his short time left on Earth, and some other big daddy billionaire has to swoop in and save the franchise from his relative poverty. 

I just wonder how, in today's climate, Bill Veeck would be perceived if his answer to a decade of losing was letting a clown hand out balloons in the stands and signing a bunch of retreads who might or might not put together a "magical season" and finish in third place. Maybe he'd even introduce a new milkshake and have a bunch of giveaway promotions. The beloved John Allyn Bobble-head doll. 

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2 hours ago, Bob Sacamano said:

Right? And even toss in about how they should be allowed to interview for the GM job? Craaaazy

To be fair, I doubt WBWFS could do any worse than Hahn and Getz have done over the years.  Afterall, Getz actually set the futility record.

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2 hours ago, WBWSF said:

I read where the Members of the Pittsburgh City Council want to meet with the Pirates owner. They want to discuss if he has any intentions of improving the Pirates. I don't think  he has responded to their request. I wonder if some council members  from Chicago will request a similar meeting with JR to see  his intentions of  improving the White  Sox and Bulls.

Short answer: No.

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6 hours ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

Sure, because expectations always increase, but he did a whole lot better than the Tribune did for decades in a few years.

I think they have made the playoffs now five times in the past 10 years.

As a Sox fan I'd give a lot for that. 

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1 hour ago, Lip Man 1 said:

I think they have made the playoffs now five times in the past 10 years.

As a Sox fan I'd give a lot for that. 

Counterpoint: No you wouldn't. You'd b**** as loudly as you did for the last 30 years. 

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