Comments on: Blast from the Past: Random Bits of November

By: Tom Waits

Tom Waits — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:58:41 +0000

#4@Stephen: My take (not speaking for anyone else) is that the “sitting on the offer” excuse is pure political CYA. By their own admission the team DID hear from Hoffman’s agent, asking for a meeting with the actual key decision maker to find out about where Hoffman fit in their plans. The front office may not have liked it, but that WAS their counter-proposal.

I find it highly unlikely that the team would have continued to negotiate if Hoffman and his agent had countered at 5 million.

The payroll cutting may be largely out of the front office’s hands. If your boss tells you to cut, you cut or you find other work. But the handling, as even such pro-Padre observers as Canepa and Sullivan have noted, could be a business school lesson in how NOT to relate with your public. It’s quite similar to the Peavy situation. There are solid baseball reasons to trade almost anyone. There are no solid business reasons to flub the public relations side so badly, so often.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 04:55:39 +0000

#3@bullpener:

What’s your take on the agent sitting on the offer for about four weeks, so says Alderson? Leaking the $ figure … I guess you can see where I’m going. It was easy to blame the Pads FO at first but after listening to Alderson’s interview yesterday and then reading Sullivan’s column, I’m not so sure the FO deserves to be vilified.

By: bullpener

bullpener — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 01:50:30 +0000

Eight years ago this month I bought my first season tickets. Yesterday I cancelled them. I will continue to love baseball and root for the Padres players but cannot support the current organization and the way they do
business, as they call it. There is no justification for their treatment of Trevor, it is callous and classless. And shopping Jake Peavy for little return but a dumping of salary!

By: LynchMob

LynchMob — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:26:19 +0000

I doubt I’ll be the first … and pretty sure not the only … to post this link about possible / likely Peavy trade …

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=Au6VxWsDGCgg6P02NfUVcw8RvLYF?slug=ti-padres111208&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

… which I think is a very balanced presentation of the situation.

Bottom Line: trading Peavy is not all about payroll and trading Peavy is not essential, but the best way to get better fast.

… which is well said, imo.

By: Coronado Mike

Coronado Mike — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 17:01:13 +0000

Thanks for reprinting that 2006 discussion Geoff…fun to read the back and forth on Zito/Soriano and others…also good to know that I actually feel good about what I said over 2 years ago. How often does that really happen?