I've heard plenty of people complain about why Ruben Amaro has yet to make a splash in the Winter Meetings and people who wonder why he hasn't shelled money at the big name free agents yet. Why? Because its the smart thing to do.
The baseball Winter Meetings are one of the most wonderful parts to the most wonderful time of the year. The 30 general managers in baseball get together in one place to display their endless amounts of money and sign up all the free agents available as early Christmas presents to their fans and their teams. And its all televised for some reason, but for some reason we all watch anyway (who wants to miss MLB Network analysts finding old pictures of the sports figures they interview and giggling for ten minutes when they cleverly display them on air? "Oh, Terry Francona, I heard the Indians were getting a good look at this guy (cue to picture of Francona in a towel at some random hotel looking like he's had a few cases of Blue Moon)! (cue to everyone on TV giggling like girls who just called the hottest guy in school during a slumber party and instantly hanging up)." Its great!
The Winter Meetings have become a national past time for the national past time. Its so popular that I receive ESPN Alerts to watch the MLB Network coverage. That's like Greg Popovich texting me reminding me to get David Stern something for his birthday. I understand the spectacle of the Baseball Winter Meetings and fully indulge in them, and even wonder why every sport doesn't partake....
Imagine, please, if the NBA did this. This would be a dream come true. The analysts would have to include the TNT crew, Micheal Wilbon, Bill Simmons, Jalen Rose, Jeff Van Gundy and Dikembe Mutumbo. Can you imagine us seeing a picture of Doc Rivers as a little tike and Jalen Rose losing his shit?! And the panic that would ensue when a guy like Kevin Love is a free agent? There might even be a GM brawl! For that reason, the Palace in Detroit would be the clear venue to hold these meetings.
With the razzle dazzle that comes with the Winter Meetings comes the risk of ruining your team. The opportunity to just throw money around and bring in several big name free agents is so tempting to general managers (and the social media breathing down their necks to sign everyone doesn't help) that they often find themselves making decisions that keep them up at night. In reality, when does this strategy work? Honestly, when is the last time a team that spent almost as much money as the national debt during the Winter Meetings won the World Series? Or even come close, for that matter?
Last season, the Angels brought in probably the two biggest names in free agency- Albert Pujols and CJ Wilson- and failed to even make the playoffs. Remember when the Cubs spent 300 million dollars a few years back and brought in Alfonso Soriano? Remember when the Cubs have sucked ever since? The Marlin seemed to sign every heralded player in baseball last offseason, and well, we know how that has unraveled. Even the Yankees have only made one World Series since 2003, and they spend more money annually than most second and third world countries.
The contrary is to look at the teams who make small moves and spend little. They win. The Giants have hardly made any big name signings lately and they have now won two World Series rings in three years. The Oakland Athletics made Moneyball popular again last season by catching the Texas Rangers (who are another example of spending little and winning often) and advancing to the postseason. The Pirates have a payroll that is chump change in baseball today, and they were competitive up until September. Look at the best team in baseball last season, the Washington Nationals. Name one loaded contract on that team that wasn't signed by Jayson Werth.
The point is baseball has changed and small payrolls generally equal large win totals. The Yankees are hated nationwide for spending money and signing all the big names en route to World Series championships. They have one since 2000. Baseball is changing and teams simply need one thing to win today: chemistry. And that is generally achieved through small but vital signings that address specific team needs and by not composing a roster and payroll of overpaid players who lose the passion to win and improve because they have seven houses and the rights to Flava Flav.
Which brings me to the Philadelphia Phillies. The recent outcry against GM Ruben Amaro to sign everyone and bring the payroll over the luxury tax is disheartening. There is simply no need to do so. Why? Reread the past three paragraphs. The answer to overcoming a losing season (which is a .500 season these days in Philadelphia) is not to spend 300 million dollars on big name free agents that don't fit a team's needs or aura. Is it ironic that Pujols had his worse season because a) he's not in his prime and b) he now makes a shit ton of money? Hell to the no.The answer is to spend money in a smart way. Shelling big contracts to big names might make big headlines, but it won't amount to a big wins total necessarily. Opening up the checkbook to make ridiculous fans happy, who always seem to be the ones who have the most to say and have criticized the most, is stupid.
The Phillies won the World Series in 2008 as a small ball club with a small market makeup in a big market. Then, for some reason, they decided they needed to sign free agents and make huge splashes every trade deadline and offseason through this season. Where did that get them? An exit in an earlier playoff round every year until they finally did not make it in 2012. They have the talent to get back to the postseason, a team built around a core of Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Cole Hamels is a good team. But it is a good team that can not do it alone, but does not need a handful of new guys or Josh Hamilton to make them better. I would be all in for small signings of a starting pitcher, middle reliever and setup man, power righty and maybe a third basemen. None of those moves need to be the big name guys, but they should happen.
I can see the argument for spending a lot of money. It gives the impression of having a passion to win, it is the sexy thing to do with the spectacle that has become the baseball offseason, and it creates some hype for the winter getting prepped for spring training. However, I would rather risk all of that for small moves that make sense for a team's chemistry. Let's go back to 2008 and have a tight knit team rather than one making a push for first place in the payroll department rather than the NL East.
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