MLB WILL Contract.

Arizona to the AL West??? They just won the friggin World Series and they are already being realigned? That is a stupid move IMO. You can count on the AL having the champ for years to come in either the Yankees or the D-Backs if this is true.

 

I wouldn't worry about that. The D-backs will have to sell off all their talent Marlins style just to avoid bankruptcy.

Contraction is an evil necessity brought on by ridiculous behavior af the players and the owners. Selig is on the right track. Can't wait to hear what the Players Union has to say about it.

 

I'm all for contraction, but I don't particularly like this plan all that much . . .

Keep the Twins . . . I mean, come on now, they are a solid franchise that was over .500 last year, and even though ratings and attendance was down, it'll rise again . . . heck, if that was a measuring stick, the Rockets should be gone as well . . .

Don't move the D-backs to the AL - Why the Diamondbacks of all teams? Move the Phillies or something . . .

Get rid of the Devil Rays - they are a stupid team with a bad logo and less than mediocre talent . . .

 

this is a dark day for baseball

 

Why get rid of the Twins and not the D-Rays?

The D-Rays are an abysmal team run by an incometent front office. If you want to keep baseball in Tampa, why not fold up the D-Rays and move the Twins there?

 

That's great news! I think they picked Minnesota because of their stadium situation, not because of fan support. I think Zona is being moved because when Arizona got a team they had waive their right to fight realignment for a few years and this is the last year they couldn't fight it.

 

Good question about the D-Rays. I thought the decision to eliminate Minnesota instead of one of the Florida teams was based on MLB's desire to avoid a political confrontation - figured it was easier taking on Ventura than the president's brother. But if they are going to move the Marlins to DC, that reasoning wouldn't apply.

 

gr8-1 the contraction is official but the teams have not been named officially yet.

 

The Rockies would have seen more logical to me. The Dbacks play more NL style ball and already have better (more intense) rivalries with the Giants and Dodgers than the Rockies have with anyone. But if the Dbacks don't have any veto, I guess it makes some sense on that regard.

I wouldn't count on the Dbacks folding--they made a lot of money this postseason, plus the AL is the easier league to be in (only like 3 really solid teams versus like 6-7). Also, the Dbacks current pinch hitters (Durazo, Colbrun) would make among the most potent DHs around. Also, the A's (especially) are in a far more precarious financial position (wait and see if they can resign Giambi and their young starters--they almost started their fire sale early this year), and I think this year was the Mariners chance as well (they will go down from this yeat). A lot of the Mariners pitchers and hitters played over their heads this year and Edgar is getting up there. You saw glipses of it when they squeeked by the worst of all playoff team (the no-pitching Indians) and their less than vigorous battle with the Yankees. Except for Ichiro and in the bullpen, the Dbacks just has a tougher phatter lineup than the Mariners.

 

What happens to players under contract when their team contract?

Does MLB just allow each individual team to carry an extra player or two for a few years and have some kind of secondary draft of those extra players? What about players with notrade clauses?

 

Desert Scar: There will be a draft.

Rocketspimp: They'd been planning to move Arizona to the AL West for years now. Colangelo had a contract that protected his team from movement for a few years, but it's the only way to really balance the divisions geographically.

 

Actually, Colangelo had the opposite contract. His franchise agreement gave MLB the right to move the DBacks (or the Devil Rays for that matter) to the opposite league within the first five years. Selig just hasn't had the cojones to do it before.

I would hesitate on calling this contraction a "done deal" or say that it's "set in stone". Yes, it passed a vote (and so did NFL expansion to Los Angeles), but there are still hurdles to cross. Giving the commissioner authority to make the move doesn't make the move made necessarily.

Personally, I think baseball would be better off without the Twins and Expos (and there are likely two reasons why we're talking about the Twins instead of the D'Rays. 1. Apparently Pohlad wants to be contracted, and he has senority over the D'Rays ownership, etc., and 2. The D'Rays have nearly three decades left on their lease. That would be prohibitively expensive to buy out. The Twins have only one more year remaining on their lease with the Metrodome).

Getting Texas out of the AL West (which was supposed to be a temporary move anyway) is only one of the many benefits.

 

With the 5th pick of the draft, the Houston Astros select Vladimir Guerrero

 

The way I understand it is it's not totally official. MLB still has to negotiate with the players union and I doubt it's going to be easy to get the players to agree to this without having MLB give up a lot.

 

I dont get this: at best its a short term fix

I agree something needed to be done about montreal and minnesota but the mlb experts are overlooking the real problem, its the lack of any set salary structure. Im sorry but while i think it may help teams in question some its at best a stop gap solution.

Until baseball realizes that the discrepancy in talent is due to a free market where ny spends 4 times what a young stud team like oakland does it will never, i repeat never alleviate the real problem for good.

 

I like the ESPN columnist who called this baseball's most "despicable act ever".

Yeah, Josh Gibson might have a bone to pick with you on that one.

 

I would bet 99% of the posters here have no idea who Josh Gibson was.

 

At least I'm in the 1%. I even have the collectible Josh Gibson figurine on my desk (but then again, my last name is Paige, so I've read about Satchel Paige and the Negro Leagues).