Email a copy of 'NL Notes: Nashville, Phillies, Maeda, Perez, Pagan' to a friend
Loading ...
By Jeff Todd | at
Email a copy of 'NL Notes: Nashville, Phillies, Maeda, Perez, Pagan' to a friend
MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com
hide arrows scroll to top
Dale
Yes, and the A’s will make it a priority to have a winning AAA club…
Jeff Todd
Actually, Beane has some pretty strong comments quoted in the article indicating that it is a priority. Now, it could be that the way the A’s structure their development/big league support system just lends itself to winning at Triple-A, but the whole situation is all the more interesting given what he said.
sam valenti
It’s even more interesting when you see that the brewers fought to get them a new stadium… only to get kicked to the curb…
Dale
I did see that, interesting comment. I don’t see what a major league club is going to do to make winning at AAA a priority. Maybe holding off on September callups until the season is over. Maybe it’s in the game strategy. But I assume you if a rash of injuries hit the A’s, they’re going to decimate their AAA team.
rct 2
What kind of money does the parent club receive from their affiliates? In other words, does it make fiscal sense to have a solid AAA team that makes a lot of money (ie is well attended)?
StevePegues
I don’t know the answer to this question, but there was an article several years ago about Warren Buffet investing in a minor league team because they tend to be extremely profitable. If I remember correctly, pretty much every major team and park expense is fronted by the parent club and the minor league affiliate is close to turning a profit before the first ticket is even sold.
So, given that the MLB team is paying such expenses, I’d be surprised if they get any cut of the minor team’s profits at all.
rct 2
Wow, that’s really interesting. I suppose MLB teams get a little ‘free’ advertising in whatever town their affiliate is. Therefore, having a team far away and outside of your traditional market might make a little sense (ex: the Mets in LV, Oakland thinking about Nashville).
tesseract
There is no correlation between winning an attendance at the minor league level. Owners like to believe so
paqza
None whatsoever? I’m not so sure about that. I know creative promotions have lots to do with it but I doubt that the correlation is zero between winning and attendance.
tesseract
You are right maybe I should rephrase that to “little” correlation
Karkat
Sure hope the A’s never seen a same-day callup for a home game. Not quite as bad as Las Vegas to Toronto (now LV to NY) with the timezones, but still, seems weird that having AAA nearby wouldn’t be a priority.
sam valenti
Speaking to that, I was hoping there was a way the brewers could just make the timber rattlers their AAA squad and find some other A ball team (maybe in a warmer climate?).
Pei Kang
yeah, I find it weird logistically speaking, the AAA allegiances don’t really make a whole lot of sense. And, I’m still used to the old associations, like Norfolk with the Mets-Myrtle Beach with the Braves… (haha, shows how old I am).
paqza
The Mets messed up badly on that one but are doing the best they can to rebuild credibility; Vegas has been one of the best teams in MiLB since becoming a Mets affiliate.
Brewhawk
The Brewers have plenty to worry about with their big league club. At least their offseason gets started a few days earlier.
randomtrades
Wonder if the A’s are moving to Nashville to explore the market, finally gave up on SJ.
windwalker
Phillies fans can only dream RAJ’s international flights were one way affairs.
raltongo 2
I don’t hate Ruben as much as most of the fan base; I try to give him the benefit of the doubt from time to time…but putting “RAJ” and “scouting talent” in the same article is laughable
Jeff Todd
I’m not really sure how to read this comment, but I’ll just note for the record that neither Gelb nor I used the term “scouting talent.”
raltongo 2
I just meant the general idea of Ruben Amaro as a talent scout is laughable, not any knock against the writers.
joe 43
The purpose of minor league baseball is to develop players for the major leagues. That has to be the main priority. If you win, well that’s a bonus.
paqza
That’s partly true. The purpose of MiLB for the Major League team is to develop players. For the MiLB affiliate, the purpose is to make money through entertainment.
paqza
It’s a shame the Mets didn’t get in on this. Their AAA has been very strong the past two years and Binghamton, their AA team, just won the Eastern League championship – meaning the AAA team will be very strong next year too.
8791Slegna
Winning at any minor league level is nice because it can build a culture of winning among future major league teammate. However, it isn’t the priority.
Minor League cities serve at the pleasure of their Major League parent club. In the return, they get the benefit of briefly having Mike Trout, Felix Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw, and even Michael Jordan (1994 Birmingham Barons) for a season or two. It stinks in one sense, but it is what is.
I’ve been to a couple of Inland Empire 66ers games in San Bernardino, an Angels affiliate, which is fun because those guys could be playing at Angel Stadium in a few short years, or we may see a rehab appearance by one of the Angels at a 66ers game. Also enjoy because there’s a little more trash talking towards the visiting team that wouldn’t be tolerated at the MLB level.
joe 43
The best entertainment is good baseball. The minor League teams have little control over the talent on the field
They are at the mercy of their parent teams. What the teams have control over is promotions. This is where they attract the casual fan.
Wooltron
The Giants need to start looking at other center field options this offseason. Pagan is incapable of playing a full season.