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That's news to me, as I'm in the midst of a couple of real estate negotiations here on the West Coast. Folks have been repeating this line for four years, usually after a story they don't like, and yet, guess what? Here I still am. My girlfriend owns a home here in Seattle and we have no plans to sell or move.
As for pitting executives against one another, I can't help it if Chuck Armstrong says he was told one thing by Zduriencik and two people of solid reputation suggest something very different. If their contradictory statements appear to put them at odds, speak to them about it. Not my job to pick and choose who to write about based on who is the most popular guy in Seattle at the minute. Muckracking? Well, compared to the average MLB.com story, perhaps. But compared to standards across the country? This is tame stuff. Maybe you don't get to see enough of it, I don't know. The charges Lueke faced were more than a misdemeanor offense, as was the felony he pleaded no contest to. It's up to competent MLB teams to know about these facts in advance, which the M's claim they did not. That alone makes this a story worth following, even before the comments contradicting their versions.
I agree with your take that some teams would have traded for Lueke right away, just as some others would not have. It's up to the Mariners to decide which of those teams they are. I'm not telling them what to do. The fact they just fired somebody over it seems to suggest they are a tad uncomfortable. Look, I feel for your desire to have a winning team that acquires talented players. I'm tired of covering 100-loss teams.
But that doesn't excuse the fact that quality MLB teams are expected to know in advance about the prospects they acquire in the biggest trade of the year. Expected to know things like the fact Lueke is on felony probation through the 2012 season and cannot be in a bar or in possession of alcohol at any time before then. That's how you protect valuable team assets. Through knowing these things.
Senior team officials are also expected to tell the truth, both to their bosses and to the public at large. And when something comes up contradicting whether or not they told the truth, they are expected to clarify any misunderstandings right away. That's how good teams operate. It's one thing to preach accountability and talk about the imprtance of character. Quite another to practice what you preach. The example is set from above. If you don't have accountability upstairs, you will never have it down below.
Otherwise, keep up the good work Doc.