Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Joe In Birmingham
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Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Post by Joe In Birmingham » Tue Nov 24, 2020 4:00 am

I want to congratulate Paul Reeths for his thoughtful and very accurate editorial on Major League Baseball's forced takeover of organized minor league baseball. Paul hit the nail on the head with his commentary. It is despicable on MLB's part. To read Paul's first editorial on the subject, go to the "Services" option and then go to "OSC Originals" in the drop down menu. It is well worth the time to read.

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Re: Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Post by Pounder » Thu Dec 10, 2020 8:57 am

Despicable? Maybe.

Goofy? Plenty of that. Judging from the invitations out today, there’s a semblance of rhyme and reason to the overall proposal, but some head-scratchers.

Thing is... inevitable. They’re re going to be pressed on paying a living wage to minor leaguers, there’d better be a way to pay for it (spoken facetiously from someone of the mind that it’s time for rich folk to pay it back).
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Joe In Birmingham
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Re: Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Post by Joe In Birmingham » Mon Dec 14, 2020 7:41 am

Great post, Pounder. In general you bring up a great point. One I overlooked. MLB is a business like many other entities. It made a strategic business decision. I should have not expected any more or less of it.

As to the description of their tactics and decision, despicable was just a word I borrowed from Paul Reeth’s first editorial on the subject. Many businesses do things which are categorized in a negative light. I agree with Paul on this particular move by MLB.

The only thing you wrote I disagreed with was the term “goofy.” I found nothing goofy about the contraction or how it was done. It was cold and calculating. Again, at times like many other businesses. The head-scratchers were just MLB's preference.

If this was all about finding a way to pay a livable wage to minor leaguers, it was at the expense of the many people affected by their decision. Working in business for years, I found it highly unusual the rich folks or big business ever pay it forward. If you expect it to change, you are probably going to be disappointed most of the time.

Again, Pounder, thank you for your comments. We actually had a back and forth on the message board.

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Re: Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Post by Pounder » Mon Dec 14, 2020 7:31 pm

First off... I think the 3 people who kept monitoring this board might have had a pool on when the plug would be pulled. There was so little happening here that I awash practically shocked when I remembered it last week and the board was still here.

So if this doesn’t take, it’s our fault. ;)

“Goofy” is touting the need for tighter league geography before moving Bowling Green from the Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic. Of course, this might be my way of sold-pedaling how that argument was rather BS.

I think I have a guess of “what really happened.”

Exhibit: Carolina League after High Desert and Bakersfield were excused from the California League and replaced with teams in the Carolina League. There was more than one shift in conjunction with those moves. Let’s just say, even as a geography nerd who knows where to pinpoint Kannapolis without a map, I had to google some of those franchise locations. Put it another way... Baseball was having a harder time continuing the stadium race. So this happened.

Maybe despicable is the right word.
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Re: Major League Baseball Hostile Takeover Of Organized Minors

Post by Joe In Birmingham » Thu Dec 17, 2020 5:06 am

Pounder,

Ah, yes, "goofy." I was thinking "quirky." I completely understand where you are coming from. Same thing.

And you are exactly right. MLB cites the need for tighter geography and then breaks the rule with a goofy inclusion into a league. I guess it is whatever suits their needs. Is it going to be Bowling Green for sure in the new Class A league? I thought it would be either them or Lake County. I don't know if MLB would still make a late change somewhere else to create the better geography.

Pounder, have you heard if MLB will stay with two Class AAA leagues? Initially, I read some speculation about creating a third league, but I've seen nothing further on the subject.

Keeping the thread going and the exchange of ideas and thoughts.

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