I think the fairest description of our point of view is that we continue to be committed to doing what s best for the long-term interest of the organization, Padres CEO Jeff Moorad said yesterday. As a result, no player is untouchable. And while we’re mindful of players’ individual popularity, we won’t put one player ahead of the long-term interests of the club.
Gonzalez is slated to earn $4.75m in 2010 and $5.5m in 2011. Are the Padres really telling us that they can’t afford THESE salaries or what his extension would likely cost? While it makes NO sense for any organization in any line of business to pay any one employee more than half of their total payroll costs, what’s the real issue here?
Is it Gonzalez’s demands (or comps, with Teixeira’s whopper leading the way)? Would he be willing to take a TRUE hometown discount because he’s from San Diego, similar to Mauer in Minnesota? Perhaps.
Or, is the ownership and market of San Diego not viable for the long term? If the total payroll for this organization is unable to materially increase over the next few years, what’s to become of the Padres? Do they sink into the “professional farm system” category for other teams, similar to what Pittsburgh (#30 last year), Florida (#29), etc. have been over recent years?
Despite my fandom, I truly hope that the true hometown guys like Mauer and Gonzalez find ways to stay with their teams. It’s better for the game, the fans, the teams.
{Maybe I just fear that Jed Hoyer will call his former boss and dump Adrian into the AL East.}
I think that's just bullshit. and the Marlins holds one of the bigger markets in the country, its just that they are ran by complete A-Holes that's more bent on exploiting the current setup for profit , when you have Hanley Ramirez and your in a division where the Mets are run by fools and the Braves and Phillies might be nearing the end of their success cycle, you don't need to spend like the Yankees to have a real chance.
The Padres have a relative small market, but just a couple years ago they were still making the playoff on a fairly regular bases. of course it helps that the Dodgers / Giants were ran by idiots back then (and to a lesser extend, still is) is it really the small market's fault that they have drafted poorly for ages now? look on their roster and they have only a few guys they drafted / developed who looks like solid players, and no one that looks like a star. this in a division that have …. Kemp / Kreshaw / Lincecum / Cain / Sandavol / Posey / Jimenez / Broxton / Kuo / Upton / Tulowitzki / Jimenez / Reynalds / Montero etc…. is it a huge wonder that they're doing poorly?
If we look at the teams with a long period of suck (Reds / Royals / Pirates /Nationals etc ) almost all of them (outside of possibly the Jays and O's due to the ALE structure) have been ran poorly for most of the duration and have legitimate chances if they were ran like a normal team, particularly the Reds / Pirates / Royals, the central have hardly been the most consistently competitive division in the majors . they're just not competing because of a lot of mistakes.
You raise some valid concerns, which I very much share. Part of the problem (though not all of it) is that it has been difficult to build a tradition in San Diego, where so many people are from other places and there is an abundance of entertainment options. It basically takes a World Series to generate interest in the Padres. If they win Game 163 in '07, there's a good chance they represent the NL and we're looking at a different picture right now. But it didn't go down that way and then things fell apart for a variety of reasons.
On another note, Garland wasn't here last year. Brian Giles was the big contract in '09.
I echo Geoff's sentiments. The Padres aren't a tradition in San Diego but more of a novelty. Transplants will attend games but maintain passion for their hometown teams. Could this trend change? Without a doubt…..if the Padres win. If they put a strong team on the field for a protracted stretch of time they could conceivably convert the San Diego transplants.
MGT says that payroll should increase to 75 million within a couple of years but even more than that sum of money it comes down to drafting and developing players. This is an area that the Padres SUCK. Although the 2009 draft was great so we'll see what happens.
ps-dig the new site design, Jason
That's because the area is too nice, the weather too perfect, the distractions many. Face it, you live in climatological nirvana..
The previous owner John Moores, went before the taxpayers a decade ago and said the Padres would be able to compete and spend money if they had a new stadium. The new stadium was approved and subsidized by the taxpayers. Now, the payroll of the Padres is lower than the payroll of the 1998 Padres.