A wish list for next season
Posted: Saturday, December 22, 2007 3:58 PM
Ten things I’d like to see in 2008:
10. Marvin Miller receives his due. I know well and greatly respect several members of the new Veterans Committee. But their thinking on this topic escapes me. And it is so out of touch with the vast majority of those around the game, so much so that even Fay Vincent believes Miller was wronged by not being elected to the Hall of Fame. In an emotion-charged op-ed piece for the New York Times, Vincent wrote that the decision to overlook Miller for election was “an act of ignorance and bias.”
9. The National League wins the All Star Game. Despite the influx of good young talent in the NL (just look at the shortstop position alone), it remains far behind the AL at the top. The imbalance only worsened when the Marlins traded Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to Detroit. So, if the NL could somehow win the All-Star Game at least the league's champion would open the World Series at home.
8. Tom Glavine finish strong in Atlanta. In no way can I understand the treatment Glavine has received in New York since the season’s final day. In light of last week’s news, how many times do we have to be reminded that Glavine single-handedly caused the 2002 agreement that led to baseball’s first drug testing policy? Glavine has been exactly what Don Fehr has not: someone concerned about the greater good of the game. I want him to end his Hall-of- Fame career on a high note.
7. Baseball polices its clubhouses. The Mitchell Report fully exposed one big problem: entourages aren’t limited to players. Clubhouse managers hire assistants for low wages with little or no qualifications. No longer can baseball afford to be infected by a Kirk Radomski. All clubhouse employees should be thoroughly checked. And EVERY clubhouse employee, including the manager, should be paid TOTALLY by teams. No more tips or dues from players. Baseball must clearly state and delineate that clubhouses belong to the teams, not the players.
6. The Tampa Bay litmus test. How many years running will we hear of the young talent stockpile in Tampa Bay? We are told how many top-rated prospects are flooding out of their system into the bigs. At year’s end, they have the same disappointing result. Ten years of play, 10 years of 90-plus losses. I hope to see Tampa Bay finally achieve any semblance of success so we can determine without doubt if it is a major- league market.
5. Another great finish. Seven NL teams were still alive for the playoffs on the final Friday. Yes, the AL is the stronger league, but I wouldn’t trade the last week of the NL season for anything. Tony Gwynn Jr. spoiling the Padres is one of the great baseball stories for all times. How can we forget the “perfect storm” of joy in Philadelphia and utter disgust in New York on the last Sunday of the season?
4. Cooperation from Major League Baseball Players Association. Reading the union’s thoughts this week, as articulated in their New York Times column, leads me to worry that the Mitchell Report aftermath will find the union resuming antagonistic relations with Major League Baseball. And who wins in that scenario? Will union leadership recognize and acknowledge John Marzano’s thoughts as repeated in my last blog? Will union leadership ensure the protection of honest players? Or will they revert to the decades-old position of friction with management that led to disastrous work stoppages? Will everyone breathe deeply and understand that the meteoric growth of baseball revenues coincides with 13 uninterrupted seasons? Just a hope they will.
3. Better times in San Francisco. You think the Mitchell Report thrilled the Giants? No team was treated worse as the report displayed to the world their enabling of Barry Bonds. But I emphasize that the same ownership not only saved baseball in San Francisco, but also created a thriving franchise in a magnificent ballpark. As someone employed by the Giants for nine years of that era, I know how much joy exists within the walls of 24 Willie Mays Plaza that Bonds is gone. Their farm system is bereft of position players, a victim of the win-today mindset necessitated by the presence of Bonds as well as some poor drafting. Thus, there will be short-term pain as the team stumbles in a NL West filled with tons of young talent. Yet, I hope that this franchise looks not for quick fixes but follows a blueprint that allows its baseball department to match its wildly successful business operation.
2. More trades. The most heartening development of this offseason has been the return of the player-for-player deal. Fans relate, especially in this fantasy era. And anything that generates baseball talk while lessening the presence of dollar signs is a positive.
1. A steroid-free year. A dream, I admit, with the Barry Bonds trial now joined by the Roger Clemens saga. But I sense steroid fatigue amongst the fandom. I feel it, and I am friends of and friendly with many names in the Mitchell Report. It hit close to home and I am guilty as charged of subscribing to the “move forward” theory. But I fear there are still hunters who want more names. And I fear that MLB will counter prevailing wisdom and punish offenders outed in the Mitchell Report.
