Dave Kaplan wrote a post on the CSN Chicago site where he poses the question: Will the Cubs follow Marlins’ blueprint?
I clicked on it because I thought maybe, just maybe, he would have some information from speaking with Jim Hendry or Tom Ricketts or anyone within the Cubs organization that would indicate the Cubs were actually considering such a strategy. Instead, it was just a bunch of stuff telling us what we already know if we’ve ever heard or read anything from Kaplan before.
I’ll paraphrase.
Soriano is useless and doesn’t hustle and he has to go. Ramirez is a waste of money and Kaplan will dance a jig when the Cubs don’t pick up his option for 2012. Castro is a superstar on the horizon that shows the Cubs farm system is getting better and Darwin Barney is a fine player as well.
After five full paragraphs (not Telanderesque one word paragraphs, mind you) there really was no mention of any blueprint for success from the Marlins or from anywhere, really. Finally at the end, after mentioning all the salary that will come off the books from expiring contracts, he ends his piece:
After watching the Florida Marlins win the World Series in 1997 then blow their roster up and rebuild it and win another title in 2003 the Cubs have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
The end.
I have seen the Cubs compared to lots of things… the Keystone Cops, a steaming pile of dung, and a gang of thieves, but I’ve never heard them compared to the 1997 Florida Marlins before.
The thing is, the 1997 Florida Marlins had a boatload of talent, but not enough money to pay them to continue to be Marlins, so they were sold off for parts. Below is a quick summation of the players they traded shortly after the 1997 World Series, including the total WAR accumulated by the player for the rest of their career and how many of those remaining years were at a level of 2 or more (everyday starter value).
| Player | WAR | Years of 2+ WAR | Players received |
| Gary Sheffield | 42.5 | 8 | Mike Piazza and Todd Zeile |
| Devon White | 3.8 | 1 | Jesus Martinez (minors) |
| Moises Alou | 22.1 | 7 | Manuel Barrios, Oscar Henriquez, PTBNL (Mark Johnson) |
| Bobby Bonilla | -4.8 | 0 | Mike Piazza and Todd Zeile |
| Edgar Renteria | 27.9 | 6 | Alfredo Almanza, Braden Looper, and Pablo Ozuna |
| Jeff Conine | 11.9 | 3 | Blaine Mull (minors) |
| Charles Johnson | 13.5 | 3 | Mike Piazza and Todd Zeile |
| Kevin Brown | 30.2 | 6 | Steve Hoff (minors), Derrick Lee, Rafael Medina |
| Al Leiter | 24.9 | 7 | Robert Stratton (minors), AJ Burnett, Jesus Sanchez |
| Robb Nen | 11.8 | 3 | Mike Pageler (minors), Mike Vilano (Minors), Joe Fontenot |
It should also be noted that Piazza was a Marlin for about as long as it took me to get the above table to load correctly on this site. He was quickly traded for Preston Wilson, Ed Yarnall, and Geoff Goetz (minors). Todd Zeile lasted a bit longer, but was also quickly traded for Daniel DeYoung and Jose Santo.
So what can we learn from that? Well, for one, the Marlins had a whole bunch of players that were quite good and were still good. Do the Cubs have anyone like Gary Sheffield, Kevin Brown, or Al Leiter on the team? The guys of that quality that are still reasonably priced could be Geovany Soto, Carlos Marmol, and Matt Garza. Kap doesn’t say if they should be included in the fire sale, but I think 90% of the Cubs fan base would be against that.
Second, Bobby Bonilla and Devon White were the only real contributors that they dealt that didn’t wind up having multiple productive years for other teams. The Cubs whole roster is loaded with Bobby Bonillas and Devon Whites. Ryan Dempster? He’s starting to show his age. He may have a few halfway decent years left, but given his salary expectations going forward and what he has left in the tank, he’s not bringing much. Carlos Zambrano? Probably the same thing. Aramis Ramirez looks like he is done. The power is gone. And MB has made his case that the Cubs might actually be better off by just cutting Alfonso Soriano. That isn’t someone who is going to bring anything in a trade.
The window for the firesale that is actually somewhat productive is probably all but closed. They could have gotten something decent for Marlon Byrd last year, or even at the trade deadline this year, but now he’s hurt and his future is very uncertain.
Dempster was more tradeable in the offseason as well. Granted, he has no-trade rights and probably would have vetoed any deal since he likes Chicago and his little girl’s doctors and support system are all here, but that doesn’t change the fact that dealing him now will bring less than if they had been honest with themselves last year.
Fukudome won’t bring much. His skills aren’t sexy. If he’s anyone on that list, he’s Jeff Conine and Conine brought back a minor leaguer that never amounted to anything.
Lastly, the Marlins sold off 44 productive major league seasons for a total of 183.8 WAR at an almost All-Star average rate of 4.2 WAR per productive season and basically got Preston Wilson, Derrek Lee, A.J. Burnett and Braden Looper in return. That’s OK, but the fire sale isn’t what netted them Miguel Cabrera, Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, Dontrelle Willis, Ugueth Urbina, Juan Pierre, Pudge Rodriguez as the other key pieces to the 2003 World Series team.
The rebuild is going to take more than just unloading the current members of the team that we don’t like. It is going to take gutting it of just about anybody that won’t be a part of a Cubs World Series contender once the rebuild is complete. That’s pretty much anybody over 25 years old. And it is going to take a few years. 2003 is six years separated from 1997. That’s 2017 if the Cubs start right now and also rebuild as well as the Marlins (which is unlikely), and the Cubs aren’t bitten by the small sample sizes of the playoffs again once they are good enough to get there (you never know).
I’d personally love for them to take that route, but they never will. They can’t sell $70 bleacher seats for a team featuring flailing prospects that don’t know balls from strikes and pitchers that can’t throw strikes for the next six years. I don’t know how much more the TV ratings could fall after a season like the one we are currently going through, but I bet we would find out really fast if they gutted the roster.
So it’s all well and good for Kaplan or us bloggers to say the Cubs should burn the roster down and start over, but the Ricketts are in a financial position where they can’t be cavalier about falling revenues. They have debt obligations to meet. They have serious renovations that need to be done to Wrigley. Not the cosmetic, revenue-building kind either. I’m talking about strengthening the foundations so the place doesn’t start to cave in on itself in 20 years or so.
Personally, I’d love to see it happen with a new front office calling the shots, but I’m not the one making the debt payments and trying to figure out how to be financially viable in an ancient park with bitchy fans that don’t like any change to their utopia. It is a far more complicated situation than two sentences tacked onto the end of a blog post seem to give it credit.
Comments
(dying laughing) FLA built a team that could win a World Series before they rebuilt.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
If a “firesale” means trading Demp or Z, Marmol, ARam, and Byrd or Fukudome. Then yes, let’s do a firesale.
I’m gonna be really pissed off when Marmol is making $12m/year and he’s regressed his K rate so much that he can’t overcome his walk rate.
jtsunamiQuote Reply
After watching Michael Dell use his knowledge of computers to create an multi-million-dollar empire after dropping out of college, other college dropouts have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]After watching Michael Dell use his knowledge of computers to create an multi-million-dollar empire after dropping out of college, other college dropouts have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?[/quote]
At this point, the run-of-the-mill fan will tell you that Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg and probably those guys who run Google did it too, so why can’t you?
Rice CubeQuote Reply
After watching George Clooney act in films like Oceans 11 and Batman and Robin then use the money he earned to create masterpieces like Good Night, and Good Luck, high school drama students have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Rice Cube]At this point, the run-of-the-mill fan will tell you that Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg and probably those guys who run Google did it too, so why can’t you?[/quote]
After watching Page and Brin build Google and sell it for $4 billion, Yura Faget and Jack Meyoff have a chance to do the same with http://www.findyourdick.com. But will they?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
(dying laughing)
(dying laughing)
I love when new memes are born so we can beat them to death.
Aisle424Quote Reply
Do you really think our search engine has that kind of potential?
Yura FagetQuote Reply
After watching Jiroemon Kimura celebrate his 114th birthday last month, fruit flies have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
By the way, I’m not clicking the link in comment No. 6.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]After watching Jiroemon Kimura celebrate his 114th birthday last month, fruit flies have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?[/quote]
(dying laughing)
Aisle424Quote Reply
After watching Joey Chestnut eat 103 Krystal Burgers in one sitting a few years ago, Ethiopians have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
This is a really good article, 424. The Cubs could have gone the fire sale direction after 2009 and probably have still been as good as they were last year. They just don’t have the players now, but I’m with jts in that the Cubs better not hold onto Marmol until he’s making $12 to $15 million per year.
mb21Quote Reply
After watching Bao Xishun grow to 8 feet, 1 inch tall, Verne Troyer has a chance to follow that blueprint. Bill will he?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
After watching Brett Favre stop doing something fun, I have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will I?
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]This is a really good article, 424. The Cubs could have gone the fire sale direction after 2009 and probably have still been as good as they were last year. They just don’t have the players now, but I’m with jts in that the Cubs better not hold onto Marmol until he’s making $12 to $15 million per year.[/quote]
Mainly, this is going to be a process and that is if they went all out. By half-assing it the way they have, they are stretching out the time they need to get better by wasting assets on lost seasons.
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]Mainly, this is going to be a process and that is if they went all out. By half-assing it the way they have, they are stretching out the time they need to get better by wasting assets on lost seasons.[/quote]
It’s pretty plain to see that the Ricketts et. al. have not figured out the concept of marginal wins
8volumesthickQuote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]Mainly, this is going to be a process and that is if they went all out. By half-assing it the way they have, they are stretching out the time they need to get better by wasting assets on lost seasons.[/quote]Exactly. Pick a plan. I don’t really care which. My preference would be to rebuild from scratch even if, as you say, it’s impossible for the Cubs to do. That’s definitely not the only way the Cubs can get better, but doing what they’re doing isn’t one of them. Allowing the older players to get older and not adding any draft picks is a failure. The Cubs have this idea that they sign a guy and have to keep him for the duration of his contract. The idea should be to maximize the value at the front-end of contracts. So you sign a player for 4 years and find a way to trade them two years in. Basically, do what they did with DeRosa. Just do it more frequently. And stop paying non-Mariano Rivera relievers any more than you have to. In other words, pay relievers the minimum amount because Mariano Rivera won’t play for any team other than the Yankees.
mb21Quote Reply
Also, the Marlins benefitted in the draft by sucking for a few years. They lost 108 games in 1998. That’s insane.
Then they lost 98 more in 1999. They were never over .500 again until 2003. I know the season ticket wait list gives a bit of cover, and the Cubs might actually slow the attrition rate by undertaking a strategy of going down to bare bones and showing people they are truly are rebuilding (instead of pretending to contend), but that would take its toll on attendance and ratings.
The Marlins went from averaging 29,000 in 1997 to about 10,000 in 2002. That’s an ungodly drop and they didn’t have that far to fall.
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=8volumesthick]It’s pretty plain to see that the Ricketts et. al. have not figured out the concept of marginal wins[/quote]I also don’t think they care. I expect a baseball owner to care first about the bottom line. I wouldn’t go buy a baseball team if making money didn’t matter. I’m going to do whatever I can to make the most money I can if I bought a team. There are different ways to do this, but even Ricketts hasn’t figured out a way to maximize the profit, which is what most concerns me. If he had a fire sale and didn’t invest any money in free agents, at least that would make sense. More money for him. But watching the team have lower attendance while keeping the same payroll is just stupid.
mb21Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]Also, the Marlins benefitted in the draft by sucking for a few years. They lost 108 games in 1998. That’s insane.
Then they lost 98 more in 1999. They were never over .500 again until 2003. I know the season ticket wait list gives a bit of cover, and the Cubs might actually slow the attrition rate by undertaking a strategy of going down to bare bones and showing people they are truly are rebuilding (instead of pretending to contend), but that would take its toll on attendance and ratings.
The Marlins went from averaging 29,000 in 1997 to about 10,000 in 2002. That’s an ungodly drop and they didn’t have that far to fall.[/quote]I still think for the Cubs you’re looking at basically 20,000 as the floor and I think they could easily be there within 5 to 7 years if they keep things as they are right now. I understand that the Cubs can’t or at least refuse to rebuild, but I’m not convinced it’s accurate.
The one thing the Cubs have that the marlins didn’t is money. The Cubs can fix a lot of problems with that money and they can do it in a hurry as we saw after 2006.
The Marlins had to wait until the team was better. They couldn’t spend any money. The Cubs won’t be a 108 loss team even if they had a fire sale. They’d still pick up guys for cheap to fill in where the Marlins brought up unqualified minor leaguers to fill in.
That being said, it’s not going to happen.
mb21Quote Reply
That being said, it’s not going to happen.[/quote]
8volumesthickQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]Exactly. Pick a plan.[/quote]
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
I feel like the bolded part is their biggest obstacle.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]After watching Brett Favre stop doing something fun, I have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will I?[/quote]
Your talking about sending pics of his junk to Jenn Sterger, right?
XoomwaffleQuote Reply
Harold Camping is awesome: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13516796
mb21Quote Reply
Does he realize that he fully deserved to be mocked and scoffed and cursed at?
mb21Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]the Cubs might actually slow the attrition rate by undertaking a strategy of going down to bare bones and showing people they are truly are rebuilding (instead of pretending to contend), but that would take its toll on attendance and ratings.[/quote]
Isn’t this what the Royals are doing? I don’t know what their attendance numbers are like, but their fans seem to have bought into this. Granted their farm system is stocked, but could the Cubs get there?
XoomwaffleQuote Reply
[quote name=Xoomwaffle]Isn’t this what the Royals are doing? I don’t know what their attendance numbers are like, but their fans seem to have bought into this. Granted their farm system is stocked, and the Cubs have a chance to follow that blueprint, but will they?[/quote]
/meme’d
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=Xoomwaffle]sending pics of his junk to Jenn Sterger[/quote]
Good idea…
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]Harold Camping is awesome: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13516796%5B/quote%5DThat gives me plenty of time to schedule days off work for October.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]Good idea…[/quote]Why do you have pics of Brett Favre’s junk?
mb21Quote Reply
[quote name=Suburban kid]That gives me plenty of time to schedule days off work for October.[/quote]I’m buying earthquake insurance.
mb21Quote Reply
I can’t feel any sympathy for those who wasted their money on this nonsense.
mb21Quote Reply
Yeah, I don’t feel bad for idiots believing in idiotic things.
We’re talking about Cubs fans, right?
MishQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]I still think for the Cubs you’re looking at basically 20,000 as the floor and I think they could easily be there within 5 to 7 years if they keep things as they are right now. I understand that the Cubs can’t or at least refuse to rebuild, but I’m not convinced it’s accurate.
The one thing the Cubs have that the marlins didn’t is money. The Cubs can fix a lot of problems with that money and they can do it in a hurry as we saw after 2006.
The Marlins had to wait until the team was better. They couldn’t spend any money. The Cubs won’t be a 108 loss team even if they had a fire sale. They’d still pick up guys for cheap to fill in where the Marlins brought up unqualified minor leaguers to fill in.
That being said, it’s not going to happen.[/quote]
Agreed that they have more money than the Marlins, but part of the Marlins problem back then, if I recall correctly, was an owner that was overextended. Does that sound like anyone who might own the Cubs now? I hope not, but they so far overpaid for this team, I don’t know how they fight their way out of it given the talent they have left.
They are practically dependent on the over-amped crowds that bought into the W Flags and all of McDonough’s other bullshit while showing them a flashy team with a short shelf life and an extended payment schedule to pay them off.
I don’t think the Ricketts are there yet, so they will probably do the faux-contending plan and cross their fingers they play above expectations once in a while to keep the pump primed. I honestly don’t think they have balls to do it any other way.
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=Mish]Yeah, I don’t feel bad for idiots believing in idiotic things.
[/quote]I pity their idiocy but laugh at their dumbassery.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]Why do you have pics of Brett Favre’s junk?[/quote]
Uhhhhhhhh, so I can send them to Jenn Sterger, obviously.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]I’m buying earthquake insurance.[/quote]
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]Agreed that they have more money than the Marlins, but part of the Marlins problem back then, if I recall correctly, was an owner that was overextended. Does that sound like anyone who might own the Cubs now? I hope not, but they so far overpaid for this team, I don’t know how they fight their way out of it given the talent they have left.
They are practically dependent on the over-amped crowds that bought into the W Flags and all of McDonough’s other bullshit while showing them a flashy team with a short shelf life and an extended payment schedule to pay them off.
I don’t think the Ricketts are there yet, so they will probably do the faux-contending plan and cross their fingers they play above expectations once in a while to keep the pump primed. I honestly don’t think they have balls to do it any other way.[/quote]The debt is a really good point
mb21Quote Reply
Been awhile.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]Been awhile.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE3KdcTgrno%5B/quote%5D
I don’t know what the hell was going on there, but that was hilarious.
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]I don’t know what the hell was going on there, but that was hilarious.[/quote]
Blow it out your ass.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]Blow it out your ass.[/quote]
Who the fuck is this? I want all of you to write down your names! I am going to fucking fuck you up you fucking piece of shit!
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]Blow it out your ass.[/quote]
I’ve got balls of steel.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
What do you think?
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/24/bryan-stows-family-to-sue-the-dodgers/
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=Rice Cube]What do you think?
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/24/bryan-stows-family-to-sue-the-dodgers/%5B/quote%5D
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]
[/quote]
So reading that article was like getting a Dremel stuck in your hair?
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]
[/quote](dying laughing) people are retarded
mb21Quote Reply
I think ricketts has a semi-gutting of the team occur to appease the fans as it’s obvious they would rather not watch soriano and Ramirez. If it’s a bunch of young players they’ll think it’s another 2008 Rays team. In addition Ricketts will try to bring in Pujols to have a strong marketing campaign all while having payroll down in the 90s.
I do think the cubs are a long-shot for Jose Reyes and move Castro the 3B. He hasn’t developed the power yet but the yearn for a “true lead-off” hitter needs to be appeased.
JManQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21](dying laughing) people are retarded[/quote]
http://www.theheckler.com/2011/05/23/bullsapologetic-noah-says-he-feels-totally-retarded-about-gay-slur/
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=mb21](dying laughing) people are retarded[/quote]
http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=chc
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
Any of you doing a Bulls game thread? I can’t imagine a situation where the Heat win this series if the Bulls pull their heads out of their asses. A Heat win would be un-American.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=JMan]I think ricketts has a semi-gutting of the team occur to appease the fans as it’s obvious they would rather not watch soriano and Ramirez. If it’s a bunch of young players they’ll think it’s another 2008 Rays team. In addition Ricketts will try to bring in Pujols to have a strong marketing campaign all while having payroll down in the 90s.
I do think the cubs are a long-shot for Jose Reyes and move Castro the 3B. He hasn’t developed the power yet but the yearn for a “true lead-off” hitter needs to be appeased.[/quote]
Well, they certainly aren’t going to get Reyes and Pujols and keep their payroll in the $90 million range.
I also don’t see how the Cubs can sell their prospects effectively yet since we’re going to see a bunch of what we have in the system as the season wears on and so far, Castro and Barney aside, there hasn’t been much to get excited about.
Plus, you can’t cut your payroll by $50 million in this economy and then ask your customers to keep paying Yankees and Red Sox prices for tickets. I wonder if that would push even Al too far. Probably not, but it would for many of the folks I know who have been begrudgingly renewing and crossing their fingers that this crap is more short-lived than a trend.
Aisle424Quote Reply
Berselius is a lazy bastard so I did the preview. That will be posted in a couple hours.
mb21Quote Reply
[quote name=Rice Cube]Any of you doing a Bulls game thread? I can’t imagine a situation where the Heat win this series if the Bulls pull their heads out of their asses. A Heat win would be un-American.[/quote]
After watching Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and LeBron James dominate the last two games, Kyle Korver, CJ Watson, and Kurt Thomas have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?
Aisle424Quote Reply
Money back guarantee that my preview is better than Berselius’s.
mb21Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]After watching Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and LeBron James dominate the last two games, Kyle Korver, CJ Watson, and Kurt Thomas have a chance to follow that blueprint. But will they?[/quote]
Alvinian.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]Alvinian.[/quote]
It just might work.
Aisle424Quote Reply
MB, this is about comparing UBR and EqBRR:
http://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2011/5/24/2187777/comparing-ultimate-base-runs-to-equivalent-base-running-runs
MishQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=chc[/quote](dying laughing) Thanks to a link from JG, of all people, we learn that Lou Montanez has been called up. Nice one, JG. We know how much you care about the Cubs 2011 25-man roster.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
Anyone else excited for the montanez era? I would have never guessed he played a big league game for the cubs
bubblesdachimpQuote Reply
[quote name=mb21]Money back guarantee that my preview is better than Berselius’s.[/quote]
Only if you did it AC style.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
kagee 1908 has constructed an unbeatable Cubs lineup, Quade has a chance to follow that blueprint. But will he?
melissaQuote Reply
Lineup against Niese (who is left-handed)
CF Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed
2B Barney
SS Castro
3B Ramirez
1B Peen-ya
LF Soriano
RF Montanez (our savior)
C Captain Fundamentals
P Dempster
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=melissa]kagee 1908 has constructed an unbeatable Cubs lineup, Quade has a chance to follow that blueprint. But will he?[/quote]
That was serendipitous.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=Suburban kid](dying laughing) Thanks to a link from JG, of all people, we learn that Lou Montanez has been called up. Nice one, JG. We know how much you care about the Cubs 2011 25-man roster.[/quote]
If I ain’t delivering breaking Cubs news, I ain’t happy.
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=bubblesdachimp]Anyone else excited for the montanez era? I would have never guessed he played a big league game for the cubs[/quote]
Dr. Aneus TaintQuote Reply
[quote name=Jame Gumb]If I ain’t delivering breaking Cubs news, I ain’t happy.[/quote]
It’s about time they started calling up some of the young prospects in this organization
8volumesthickQuote Reply
Wells —> Saturday start for big Cubs
Rice CubeQuote Reply
[quote name=8volumesthick]It’s about time they started calling up some of the young prospects in this organization[/quote]
Someone in the Levine chat called him a youngster. At least Levine did mention that he’s not young anymore.
Aisle424Quote Reply
Finally a post on this site that uses the Robb Nen tag.
The WreckardQuote Reply
I don’t know if it’s been mentioned here yet but Geo is supposed to be back on Saturday too.
melissaQuote Reply
The Cubs have the ability to get cheap quick. Be the lovable losers in 2012, marketed as a cheap team battling to break .500 and lower the ticket prices to reflect that. Sell the narrative of needing to see what these young guys have to offer at this level, taking stock of what we have and what we need.
Bubba BiscuitQuote Reply
[quote name=Bubba Biscuit]The Cubs have the ability to get cheap quick. Be the lovable losers in 2012, marketed as a cheap team battling to break .500 and lower the ticket prices to reflect that. Sell the narrative of needing to see what these young guys have to offer at this level, taking stock of what we have and what we need.[/quote]
I don’t think they will lower ticket prices. Not appreciably. It would be too hard to re-raise them after they get good again. The ticket prices we see today did not happen over night. It happened in 10% increments over the years. Taking a $70 ticket down to $63 to watch the minor league misfits isn’t going to cut it. They’d have to cut deeper than that and then, what will they do? Double the prices the moment the Cubs break .500 again? That’s hard to pass off as fan-friendly.
So you do what they’ve been doing, keep the dopes in line for the Season Tickets on the hook for the full priced, Yankee-tier pricing, and then discount the shit out of the non-selling single game seats. From a business standpoint, they are doing exactly what they need to do with their ticket strategy. They didn’t need to lower the overall prices to keep Al and his ilk on the hook, so why leave that revenue on the table?
Aisle424Quote Reply
BTW, since RC asked, here is the Bulls game thread on Unobstructed Views: http://obstructedview.net/unobstructed-views/general/all-of-the-united-states-except-miami-vs-miami-game-4.html
Aisle424Quote Reply
[quote name=Aisle424]I don’t think they will lower ticket prices. Not appreciably. It would be too hard to re-raise them after they get good again. The ticket prices we see today did not happen over night. It happened in 10% increments over the years. Taking a $70 ticket down to $63 to watch the minor league misfits isn’t going to cut it. They’d have to cut deeper than that and then, what will they do? Double the prices the moment the Cubs break .500 again? That’s hard to pass off as fan-friendly.
So you do what they’ve been doing, keep the dopes in line for the Season Tickets on the hook for the full priced, Yankee-tier pricing, and then discount the shit out of the non-selling single game seats. From a business standpoint, they are doing exactly what they need to do with their ticket strategy. They didn’t need to lower the overall prices to keep Al and his ilk on the hook, so why leave that revenue on the table?[/quote]
So, has Al caved and decided discounts are good for the organization yet? I can’t see him actually confronting his buddy Tom over this.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
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mb21Quote Reply