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Wait 3-4 years to contend and you'll be waiting 4+ years more after that.
The Ms can't renegotiate their TV deal until 2020. By 2015, Texas, Anaheim, and Oakland are going to be reeling in $40mil+ more than the Ms per year in TV revenue alone.
That $40mil per year doesn't count all the revenue teams will be raking during the years when they'd be kicking the Ms' butts (which will be much larger).
Rebuilding at this point is not a realistic game plan. Perhaps 2012 if the Ms whiff this offseason, but anything beyond that is really pushing it. The Ms need to start making some bold trades/signing and drastically raising payroll, or its a done deal 'till the next decade.