It broke down as:
- don't get all crazy and blow a wad of cash on Fielder in an attempt to keep up
- he won't help you get to the playoffs anyway the next few years, since there are two teams now that are SO much better than the Ms
- Keep building for the 2013 season, punt 2012
In 2013 if we did that I would then expect to see a "play for 2014, trade Felix" piece since with a year and a half to go on his deal Felix would be worth more.
This would be how teams get to be the Orioles, I guess (spend 85 million a year, never come close to competing).
Throwing in the towel and pretending like we're a small market team just gets my dander up. We can sustain a $120+ million dollar payroll if we sell tickets. Which we can't do if we suck.
Wasting 2 or 3 more years hoping to internally locate a bat like Prince Fielder or overpay some vets to come here to fill out the kids roster annoys me. Just waiting for the system to "finish the job" is even more annoying. How long have Pittsburgh and KC been waiting for that? How is Minny doing with that? Not too long ago the Astros had a highly rated farm system. Oops.
You pay to play. Texas has one of the best farms around, and they're throwing money at their team to improve its chances. Pony up, Mariners. Your rivals are, and it IS a game of Keeping Up With The Joneses. You really think you can out-do the Angels and the Rangers on the farm promotions by a large enough margin to overcome playing $60 million in the hole?
That's what the term "High Stakes" means. If you want to play the penny slots, then sell the team to someone with the will to compete and not just to make money off the half a BILLION dollars the citizens of the state of Washington ponied up to build your pretty park...not to mention what they pay in ticket prices to watch you finish 20+ games out.
We've got the farm. The farm IS producing. So support it with the right players, even if they're expensive.
If Fielder isn't the right player, then somebody better be figuring out how to get Hanley Ramirez or whomever in here instead.
~G
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