Famed baseball writer Murray Chass takes Reinsdorf to task (that's

[caulfield12]

http://www.murraychass.com/?p=7831

 

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/08/...count-the-ways/

 

[witesoxfan]

Murray Chass is an insufferable nitwit who needs to go away.

 

Also, related, to show how much of a troll Chass has become: http://deadspin.com/murray-chass-is-everyt...ll-o-1493277221

 

I'm not even going to bother reading the article. Chass can pound sand.

[ptatc]

Murray Chass is an insufferable nitwit who needs to go away.

 

Also, related, to show how much of a troll Chass has become: http://deadspin.com/murray-chass-is-everyt...ll-o-1493277221

 

I'm not even going to bother reading the article. Chass can pound sand.

Actually, I agree with everything he said. However, my point of view is that Reinsdorf is acting in the best long term interest of MLB. A salary cap and floor like the other leagues is the best way to keep the league viable in the future. While Manfred has done many good things for baseball, he has avoided this topic because he knows it will create a work stoppage. I don't see this changing and it could cause financial problems down the road.

[witesoxfan]

Actually, I agree with everything he said. However, my point of view is that Reinsdorf is acting in the best long term interest of MLB. A salary cap and floor like the other leagues is the best way to keep the league viable in the future. While Manfred has done many good things for baseball, he has avoided this topic because he knows it will create a work stoppage. I don't see this changing and it could cause financial problems down the road.

 

I did read the article and it wasn't bad, but good journalists do not open an article like this:

 

How is Jerry Reinsdorf a loser? Let me count the ways

 

You're a professional jounalist, you can think of a better word to use there.

[southsider2k5]

I did read the article and it wasn't bad, but good journalists do not open an article like this:

 

 

 

You're a professional jounalist, you can think of a better word to use there.

 

And seriously... every single sports owner these days is pretty much a billionaire. None of these guys made assloads of money by backing down from challenges. The fact that a guy who is an alpha male in an arena of alpha males fought to get his way shouldn't be shocking or surprising. I am honestly more surprised that most owners seemingly accepted their fates, versus fought to get "their guy" into the top position. Jerry wants the guy who is going to best protect his ~billion dollar team. Well no s***.

 

Baseball writers who don't get that are either ignorant of what they are covering, or pretending to be stupid to write a sensationalist piece. I know which one I would vote for.

[LittleHurt05]

And seriously... every single sports owner these days is pretty much a billionaire. None of these guys made assloads of money by backing down from challenges. The fact that a guy who is an alpha male in an arena of alpha males fought to get his way shouldn't be shocking or surprising. I am honestly more surprised that most owners seemingly accepted their fates, versus fought to get "their guy" into the top position. Jerry wants the guy who is going to best protect his ~billion dollar team. Well no s***.

 

Baseball writers who don't get that are either ignorant of what they are covering, or pretending to be stupid to write a sensationalist piece. I know which one I would vote for.

 

Agreed. My one issue with this coverage is that the other owners have been portrayed as Robin Hood while Reinsdorf is the only one protecting his own finacial interests. It's 30 very very wealthy men in control of a pot of billions and billions of dollars.

[Eminor3rd]

Murray Chass is a complete piece of s***.

 

That said, he isn't the only guy who has issues with how Reinsdorf has wielded his political power inside baseball. Personally, I have no idea what happens and what doesn't happen, and I wouldn't presume to judge without hearing both sides of the story.

 

My current boss has been in the industry for decades and told me a couple Reinsdorf stories that painted him as a pretty vindictive guy. Who knows.

[flavum]

Sometimes it's better not to know how the sausage is made.

[caulfield12]

 

A couple of things we do know about Reinsdorf:

 

1) He's loyal, sometimes to a fault

2) He prefers to have coaches from within the White Sox "family" if at all possible

3) He has the best record in hiring minorities in the game

 

I think the vote against Manfred was more of a "we're losing the next generation of baseball fans, and Werner has a background in tv/media, therefore he "gets it" more than a consummate insider type like Manfred.

 

It's partly about creative and envisioning how to market the game in the future, vs. continuing to do things the way they've been the last twenty years (and of course that's led to a $7 billion increase in revenues and team values, etc.).

 

Because of the strike (which of course JR is accused of causing), lots of people in their thirties and forties now turned away from baseball to the NBA and more specifically football and NASCAR, along with golf due to Tiger Woods.

 

How do you change and grow the game in the future with those now under 40 in mind, as the average age of an avid baseball fan is now up to 53.

 

Also, how do you use technology to draw in those young people and continue to make the game relevant? I'm 44 and was 24 when the strike struck...I feel like 85% of the posters here are younger than me, so that provides some sense of hope for the future, but not everyone here goes to games and of course there's the attendance debate, pricing of tickets, concessions, souvenirs, parking, etc., no longer being affordable for "middle class" families.

 

Finally, with the Dodgers and other teams starting to struggle mightily with monstrous t.v. packages, how can the new commissioner work to make sure there's not a decrease in franchise values...repairing some of the current situations like with the Dodgers and Astros, and continuing to increase the broadcast rights revenue pools.

 

Then you have the issue with the fact that Manfred's unlikely to undo the All-Star game tie-breaker thing (because of his close relationship to Bud, not unlike the relationship JR and Bud had previously), which isn't logical and is only SLIGHTLY better than it alternating year by year.

 

 

[chitownsportsfan]

It's funny Murray Chass WAS one of the most respected baseball writers. Then he got old, the NYTs fired him, and he became incredibly bitter and silly. His writing is generally awful but this piece actually has some good info.

 

He still has good sources and he can put together a story when he wants.

[ptatc]

I did read the article and it wasn't bad, but good journalists do not open an article like this:

 

 

 

You're a professional jounalist, you can think of a better word to use there.

I agree. that's why I said I actually agreed with him on the points but have a different take on them. He is pandering to the over reaction and drama people with the first part of the article.

[cabiness42]

Actually, I agree with everything he said. However, my point of view is that Reinsdorf is acting in the best long term interest of MLB. A salary cap and floor like the other leagues is the best way to keep the league viable in the future. While Manfred has done many good things for baseball, he has avoided this topic because he knows it will create a work stoppage. I don't see this changing and it could cause financial problems down the road.

 

An alternative to the "guaranteed to cancel at least one season" salary cap is to move to 100% sharing of local TV revenue. Salary cap and salary floor won't work as long as the Yankees are getting billions more in TV revenue than the Astros.

[kitekrazy]

I did read the article and it wasn't bad, but good journalists do not open an article like this:

 

 

 

You're a professional jounalist, you can think of a better word to use there.

 

Reader comment: "Any article that begins by calling a Billionaire with championships in multiple sports a “loser” doesn’t sound like it is worth reading."