Is this fair? Dodgers manipulate the system...

[bbkobabe]

OKAY, Baseball fans...

The Otanhi sweepstakes is over, and the Dodgers win it.

But did you see the conditions of his contract? All the deferred money? The way he "dodges" paying CA income tax? The way he allows the Dodgers to get more players since his salary next year is just $20 mil?

Is this really fair play?

Should MLB investigate?

I'm crying FOUL BALL!

What do you think?

 

[bbkobabe]

What I'm hoping for is that the Dodgers get sold before the contract runs out and the new owners say to Otanhi "We didn't sign that contract... and we're not paying it". That would serve him right!

It's a business, after all...

 

[Tin Ear]

The business side of baseball is nuts. All the crazy money and taxpayers have to chip in or fund the ballparks the teams play in. We just got done paying extra sales tax for the Brewers ball park built in 2001. Now it needs improvements, etc. So more taxes or the team might have had to relocate... Tax deal struck again so they will stay. The park looks great - 20 years old and suddenly its not good enough - bull crap.

Teams can pay a roster with multiple, multiple millionaire players but cant fund the building of ballparks ???

 

[bbkobabe]

Teams can pay a roster with multiple, multiple millionaire players but cant fund the building of ballparks ???

Seriously! I went to Dodger stadium back when my age was a single digit... IT"S STILL EXACTLY THE SAME! Oakland couldn't get there act together and lost their team. The Angel's owner was just indited for fraud for his attempting to bribe the city to build him and his team a new park...

What is going on here?

 

[rainbow21]

You will be happy to hear that the Dodgers just signed Yamamoto for another $325M for 12 years.

I am glad that I really do not follow baseball too much. Of the pro sports, baseball appears to have no interest in fairness or competitive balance. So the Yankees and Dodgers pretty much get dibs on the best players and outspend other teams by ridiculous amounts. There is no salary cap (just a luxury tax penalty) so the Dodgers could (and did) spend $1B (!!!!) dollars for two players this month.

 

[badhabits]

The deferred payment was reportedly Ohtani's idea...

 

[bbkobabe]

The deferred payment was reportedly Ohtani's idea...

Maybe... it might just be a publicity tactic to make him more likable...

To be fair, these sort of deals have been around for a while... but not with these astronomical figures!

There is no salary cap (just a luxury tax penalty) so the Dodgers could (and did) spend $1B (!!!!) dollars for two players this month.

Totally true... the need for competition is becoming lost to the richest owner's ability to spend. Parity is a thing of the past. Nothing will change until viewership and attendance start falling again...

 

[badhabits]

... it might just be a publicity tactic to make him more likable...

 

[bbkobabe]

So if you think its all too much money, stop spending the money on MLB and use it for something else. And then the money wont be there for the MLB, and you might be investing your time into something that makes you money, instead of the MLB?

Well... I haven't been to a game since pre-pandemic, and I listen at home on the radio so I can work on other things at the same time... and I practice my ukulele during commercials. I buy my caps at thrift shops and I don't own a jersey... It's possible to love baseball without spending any money!

But if it gets to the point where the season is decided before it starts, it will get boring for the rest of us who are not a Dodger fan...

 

[bbkobabe]

It makes no difference if you don't listen to the commercials, the radio station still gets the money, and the seller still adds the cost into the purchase price.

You are right of course... even if I uke right through them I'm still a part of this economy...

why not ditch the radio and join a local baseball club

There are many of these here where I live, but I'm getting a bit old for that. I played volleyball in the higher level "REC" leagues for many years, and I am the assistant VB coach at the school I teach at. We are also working up a basketball team and are exploring a Track and Field team for the spring. Currently I'm working on getting the kids interested in Disc Golf and we have enough space for a course so I'm working on that, too.

The best sport is when you participate

Truer words never spoken!

 

[captain-janeway]

Seriously! I went to Dodger stadium back when my age was a single digit... IT"S STILL EXACTLY THE SAME! Oakland couldn't get there act together and lost their team. The Angel's owner was just indited for fraud for his attempting to bribe the city to build him and his team a new park...

What is going on here?

As an A's fan and Oakland resident I think it's ridiculous for the taxpayers to shell out the money for something that the owners can afford. When the Warriors bailed on us, at least Jacob built his own playpen over there. Oakland has too many other problems to spend money on.

 

[bbkobabe]

As an A's fan and Oakland resident I think it's ridiculous for the taxpayers to shell out the money for something that the owners can afford.

True... but why pay when far-away cities are lined up and ready to build one for you? This is how the rich get richer...

And hey, a nice new stadium costs $1B these days. Not every owner has that... and even fewer feel loyalty to their fan base...

As I recall: Oakland was ready to pay in quite a lot for a new bay-front stadium and partner with the team to help them build... as I recall they made this deal to BOTH teams in some form... and still lost them both.

I won't even mention the Raiders... different situation, anyhow.

I guess the next question is this: Is hosting a Pro team a net gain or a net loss for a city to host a team?

I'm sure this has been figured out both ways: In terms is reflected glory and prestige a city gains and the hard numbers of revenue added. From what I've heard, reflected glory is real-ish, and the money part more or less breaks even. Plus, various re-development agencies often help cities finance new stadiums, so it's usually considered prudent financially. Plus it brings some elevation in stature and puts your city "on the map" when your name is heard in every sports report daily from coast to coast.

Oakland won't need to spend that much money in order to lure in another professional level team.

The Colosseum could easily be reconfigured for soccer, and the Arena is ready to go for Women's basketball.

Let's go, Oakland!

 

[badhabits]

Dodger stadium was/is privately funded/owned. There have been renovations along the way, but it's been around since the early 60s.

 

[bbkobabe]

Well... sort of...

Chevez Raving was condemned for redevelopment by eminent domain laws and seized by the Feds in the mid- 1950's. They never got started and then funding dried up, so they sold it to the City. Then LA held a vote for the land to be cleared and a site prepared for building a stadium. Voters agreed to sell the land for a token amount and private construction began only after thousands of people were thrown out of their homes, often by force. The city then cleared the land so that people wouldn't continue to squat in their former houses.

An ugly chapter in the history of Los Angeles.

There have been renovations along the way, but it's been around since the early 60

Renovated, and how! It's one of the biggest ballparks ever built... and sold out every night. I'm sure I wouldn't recognize it.

 

[badhabits]

We'll look who's leading the NL West with the best record in baseball.

 

[bbkobabe]

Har har... Don't the Dodgers play the first game in a preseason opener in Korea? They will be either playing 1.000 or 0.000 for the rest of the week!

Untouchable!

 

[KohanMike]

Chevez Raving was condemned for redevelopment by eminent domain laws and seized by the Feds in the mid- 1950's. They never got started and then funding dried up, so they sold it to the City. Then LA held a vote for the land to be cleared and a site prepared for building a stadium. Voters agreed to sell the land for a token amount and private construction began only after thousands of people were thrown out of their homes, often by force. The city then cleared the land so that people wouldn't continue to squat in their former houses. An ugly chapter in the history of Los Angeles.

Some people entirely blame the Dodger organization for clearing out those people, but it was the city that did it years before, finalizing it shortly after making the Dodger deal.

Har har... Don't the Dodgers play the first game in a preseason opener in Korea? They will be either playing 1.000 or 0.000 for the rest of the week! Untouchable!

Not clear what his means, 1.000 or 0.000??

 

[bbkobabe]

Not clear what his means, 1.000 or 0.000??

It means they will have either won 100% of their "game" (batting 1,000) or lost "it" all (0.000% win ratio) after one game!

So... as it turns out, they split and have 0.500 record, tied for first in the NL West.

My prediction, @badhabits, is that this predicts that the Dodgers will finish with 82 wins, for a fourth place finish behind SF, AZ, and SD.

And with all this Ohtani noise going on right now, that is entirely possible!

 

[Ukecaster]

It's a gamble!

 

[badhabits]

Maybe they can steal a ws or pennant or division.