34 thoughts on “November 8, 2023: Wheezy”

  2. There is absolutely no reason that the Twins should have a below league average payroll next year.

    2. Talking about the Strib / Athletic reports about lower payroll next year?

      Hayes includes these paragraphs:

      But following the expiration of a Bally TV deal that netted them $54.8 million last season, Falvey acknowledged the team’s payroll wouldn’t be nearly as high in 2024 as it was last season when the Twins won the American League Central and clinched their first postseason series win since 2002.

      The Twins aren’t alone in this dilemma, as more than a dozen other clubs around the league are still trying to determine what to do after their deals with Bally Sports and its bankrupt parent company, Diamond Sports Group, expired at the end of the regular season.

      As of Tuesday, the Twins still aren’t certain where their games will be broadcast in 2024, whether a short-term deal with Bally or another provider is a possibility, or whether the team itself handles the product.

      This feels like the Twins received ballpark numbers for broadcast revenue in 2024 and found it will be lower than 2023. The TV deal bubble is bursting and cable providers can't have the entire broadcast base subsidize the higher costs. Other teams have the same problem so I wouldn't be surprised if the average payroll decreases next year.

          1. yeah, except no Dick Bremer

            but Ballys going to court to not pay the Twins kind of led to the Twins not reupping the tv contract

    3. its not surprising, considering the tv deal situation, but a strong team coming off a successful season is a terrible time to cut payroll

      the Cleveland franchise model is not one to copy

      2. Maybe they need the taxpayers to build them a new ballpark to offset the drop in TV revenue.

        But seriously, if the increase in franchise valuation alone over the lifetime of the Pohlads’ ownership has been insufficient such that the second and third generation of a multibillionaire family can’t sustain a championship-level payroll for two seasons, then they need to sell the team.

        1. What puzzles me is that while the billionaire owners make good profits off of owning baseball teams, there are far more lucrative businesses they can own to exploit the public. Why bother owning a sports team if you don't want to do everything possible to win. If it has to be billionaires, give me 30 Steve Cohens who all despise each other and will do anything to stick it to each other.

          1. Show me another business with the guaranteed success of professional sports. Even the worst owners make a profit.

  3. Glendale allowed five runs in the first inning and lost to the Surprise Seguaros 8-5. Kala'i Rosario was 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs. Zach Veen pitched a scoreless inning.

  4. Bob Nightengale tweeting out a bunch of Old Friends joining Old Friend Ron Washington's staff out in Anaheim

    Bob Nightengale
    @BNightengale
    Ron Washington, the first Black manager hired in 3 years, also plans to have a star-studded diverse coaching staff:
    Chili Davis, hitting coach
    Torii Hunter, 1B
    Eric Young Sr., 3B
    Clint Hurdle, bench coach
    Ryan Goins, infield coach

    1. The Athletic says Hunter was in the mix for the job but the Angels wanted a previous MLB manager.

  5. Wolves wearing their Tony Campbell-Pooh Richardson-Doug West era kits and really they should have never left the rotation.

    2. Early on in my time at the card shop, a young kid asked for any Randy Breuer cards we had. It knocked me flat. I asked how he knew about the guy and he said “Randy’s our school janitor.” An interesting second act.

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