God I hate that. Yes, the Sox may have the second highest payroll, but it's still 100 MILLION DOLLARS LESS THAN THE YANKEES! They actually care about the luxury tax and try not to go that much over it. The Yankees just keep on spending with wild abandon. There is a HUGE difference in payroll and what the two teams can afford.
Just remember that the Yankees have the highest payroll, because of all the revenue they bring in and the fans bring in. It's the biggest media market in the world outside Japan, and the prices at the stadium are obscene for a reason. To say the Sox couldn't have gotten another player is ridiculous. Not to mention it's ridiculous that people complain about the payroll. The Yanks lost to a team with a 45 million dollar payroll in 2003, and the last time they won a World Series was 2000 obviously when they were hovering around what? 110 million. It's all about how the team is kept and managed. Not the money.
Im seriously tired of hearing payroll this payroll that. It has no effect on matchups. You complain about not getting Abreu meanwhile you guys went out and got Eric Hinske and Javy Lopez for nothing.
I don't buy the Red Sox not being able to spend any more money. They have the highest ticket prices in the league, one of the top 3 largest fan bases in the nation, and are the team of a whole Northeast region.
People forget that, before the injury, Sturtze was awful and was on the verge of being DFA'd. He had a couple of good stretches in 2 years here, but he is a bad pitcher. If he is on this team next year, Cashman needs to be smacked (I'd suggest hit with a hammer, but he's overall a very good GM and I like him.)
The Sox can't complain about payroll for a number of reasons. If they started their own RSN, or worked out a better deal with NESN, that would be an incredible amount of extra revenue. They also don't have the friendships with the Asian countries that the Yankees do. Boston should make a push for Matsuzaka this off-season. He won't bring in the revenue that Matsui brings to NYY, or Ichiro brings to SEA, but it will be another big boost to their bottom line. But he'll end up with either the Yankees or Mariners because they understand the revenue the Japanese imports bring, and have established the friendships over there.
Maybe it's just me, but I didn't like the Wright move today. I know that he was available and all, but if we get into an extra innings game tomorrow, then it'd be much better to see him pitching in a 3-4 run ballgame to tomorrow, then an 8 run ball game today. Beam or that other mop up guy should've been in in the 8th. I know it's nitpicking, taking three from this series so far and the way we've done it has devastating all of Boston, not just the team. I think our whole team is going to be friggain drained after this stretch though.
First, I'm not complaining that the Sox didn't get Abreu, I didn't want him. They didn't need him and would have had to give up too much prospect wise to get him. What I'm saying is the Yankees were able to basically buy Abreu by taking his salary because they don't care how much they spend. And Hinske and Lopez are nowhere NEAR the caliber of Abreu. Lopez was pretty much demanding his way out of Baltimore and Toronto was sick of being disappointed by Hinske not living up to his potential. And we still don't know what they gave up to get him. The Red Sox own NESN basically. The reason the team was sold for a record amount was that included in that was a majority share of NESN. The Asian market thing is silly IMO. They already have a HUGE following in Latin America, so I don't think that's the issue. I agree though that they should go after Matsuzaka, but it has nothing to do with any reason other than he's an outstanding pitcher.
The Latin America market argument is even sillier. Boston's following in Latin America isn't any greater than a team like the Yankees or Mets or Dodgers. There are so many Latin players in MLB, and no team is getting revenue from sponsorship and etc. from Latin America that the Yankees and Mariners get from Japan. We're talking an extra $40-$50M in total revenue due to these teams having Matsui and Ichiro, respectively. Matsui and Ichiro are unquestionably in the top 5 in MLB when it comes to the revenue their merchandise brings in. Teams pay the incredible fee just to negotiate with a posted player because they know they'll get it back quickly in revenue. Do you think if there was a league in Latin America like the league in Japan, that some MLB team would pay double digits in the millions just to TALK to a player? Absolutely not. As far as NESN goes, all I know is in 2003 the Sox received about 15% revenue of NESN's bottom line, while the Yankees were receiving over 30% revenue of the YES bottom line. Haven't seen any updated figures since then. The Sox, if they had 100% ownership of their own RSN, would definitely pull in atleast 25% of the total value per year, which is another $20-$25M in revenue.
Who gives a shit about $. If the Yankees win games, then they win games. Plain and simple. George goes out for the players that he feels can help this team get to the WS and win the whole thing. If he spends some $, who cares, he wants his team to win.
The effect money has is that if you spend enough you can have an All Star waiting to take the place of the starting All Star who gets injured. THAT is where it gets unfair. It's like when the NCAA didn't have limits on scholarships for football and the big time programs would just go out and recruit EVERY good player they could get, and have them sit the bench, partly to keep them from other schools and partly for depth. If you can't see that spending double the money of your nearest competitor is an advantage you need to take your pinstriped glasses off.
I sort of agree with you Devil. The Yankees do have an unfair advantage. Yes, we can put All-Stars all over the place. It does help to have Abreu and shove Sheff out the door. Cabrerra taking over for Matsui is in the other direction though. The thing is, it still comes down to other factors. Take for example the mess that is the ARod situation. Torre sticks with him, and doesn't give up on him. Stuff like that matters. You should be familiar with coaches being patient. There was a time when Manny wasn't wanted in Boston. Sticking with him has worked out. How about pitching. You have Schilling, we have Randy. Advantage Sox. We have Moose, you have Beckett. Advantage Yankees, but it shouldn't be. It's not all about money. It's making the money work for you. There's no question we have a distinct advantage over say, Kansas City. I don't think the disparity is nearly as great between the Yankees and Sox. Look at it like this, honestly, who would you rather have in your 3-4 holes? We have Abreu/ARod. You have Ortiz/Manny. As much as I like Abreu and ARod, or even if Sheff or Giambi was in the 3 spot, you have a vastly better 3-4 punch. I think the biggest problem for you guys right now is that Varitek is out. When you need him the most, he is not there for you. Plus, we are holding Damon now. I don't know about recently, but I remember not too long ago Nixon was sufferring. (I actually don't even recall seeing him lately. What's up with him?) When you are talking about the richest teams in the league, you really can't factor money in anymore. Team chemistry, solid play, good managerial moves, that's what matters. Right now, as much as the Sox still have some chemistry, we have one of the components playing CF for us. The biggest component of yours is out for another four weeks. Ours is getting talk of a MVP award. We got lucky with Abreu. There was talk he wouldn't fit in, but he walked into the clubhouse, made a beeline for Mattingly, and became an instant hit in the clubhouse. The fact is, we are clicking on all cylinders right now. Unfortunately for you guys, you're starting to misfire. Let's be honest. The Red Sox, as a whole, with everyone on the club healthy and playing their best ball, have enough talent to beat the Yankees. It just isn't working out for you guys.
Sturtze was actually dominating last year, before they moved him into the rotation in emergency-mode. I don't agree he is a bad pitcher. I think if he is in the bullpen, with Proctor, Vallone, Dotel, Farnsworth and Mo, no one would have to pitch more than 3 times a week. With all of that talent, on that much rest, we are looking at a dominating pen. The biggest factor is who we have starting. Either Johnson turns that corner, and pitches well consistently, or he needs to be shown the door. Moose has to be as good as he's been this year. Wang is young, so I have no worries there. Wright and Liddle need some consistency, or they need to go. The big question mark is Pavano. Does he return, and pitch well? If not, then he needs to be gone too. I really want to make that push for Zito this offseason. I think he can anchor this staff for a few years. Edit: I originally wrote rotation instead of bullpen for Sturtze, which I didn't mean.
Sturtze was streaky before the Baltimore start. Awful in April, great in May, mediocre in June (first few appearences pitched well, then was awful, then was good again.) And then this year, even before the injury, he was another subpar performance from being DFA'd. Let's not forget that after a few solid starts when first acquired in 2004, he was awful. Tanyon Sturtze was awful before he became a Yankee, was up and down while here, and hopefully we will just be rid of him and he can continue his awful career elsewhere. I'd rather they not go after Zito, unless he comes at a ridiculously low price, which he won't. Luckily, with Cashman in charge, he'll see this year as the year to put the finishing touches on the reconstruction of the farm system. We have an incredible number of Type A and B free agents (Sheffield, Mussina, Wilson, Lidle, Villone, maybe even Bernie), a few of which will be offered arbitration, decline, and go elsewhere, and net us top 40 draft picks. We could be looking at 3-5 top 40 picks in the upcoming draft, and I don't want to give ours away AND overpay for Zito. Rather they go after Matsuzaka, who will likely overall cost equal money but won't cost draft picks.
I agree. Sturtze is not a guy who can pitch big innings every day but even if he was shaky imagine how many more quality innings we could be getting out of Scott Proctor now (and in October.) As for the question of the Yankees outspending the Red Sox, it's worth noting that John Henry is one of the richest men in America and I'm fairly certain he could outspend George Steinbrenner if he chose to. But he doesn't (which is a perfectly fair choice, btw.) In any case, the Red Sox are the last team who has a right to bitch and moan about the Yankees outspending the rest of baseball. Especially considering that they ended the Curse essentially by raiding small market teams for Curt Schilling and Keith Foulke.
