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| JACK ZDURIENCIK |
As General Manager of the Seattle Mariners, he has seen attendance dwindle from a high of 3.5 million at the time of their 2001 postseason run, to 1.7 million today.
He has watched the Mariners slip to third place on the Seattle 'sports radar', behind the Seahawks and Sonics.
So what does he do ? He goes out and makes the biggest free agent signing in Mariners history. And what does he get, criticized !
Pundits, general managers and owners are all commenting that the contract was irresponsible, will damage the industry and ruin the Seattle Mariners.
To add insult to injury the Seattle Times ran a Sunday feature that was a character assassination of Zduriencik. Describing him as a tyrant and creator of a cancerous work environment.
Curt Schilling, who was just named the new analyst for ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball weighed in, "This is not to be the first ten-year contract that works. Robinson Cano is going to be a good player. But this will not work. It never fails. It's impossible to stay healthy in this sport. And as you're seeing the sport cleaning up, it's going to even be harder for the players to stay healthy. Five years from now, they'll be looking to move an enormous contract and eat a bunch of it."
Schilling's feelings were echoed all through the winter meetings. One 'Hall of Famer' calling it, "The games worst contract ever."
Zduriencik was unrepentant, "People can write and say what they want, but this is an exciting time in Seattle. Any time you can make your club better, especially if you can upgrade with a star, it helps everybody. A star coming to our market is a great thing."
Zduriencik also sent out a 'feeler' for other prospective free agents (David Price,Nelson Cruz), "I don't know if it's sending a message to anybody, but Seattle is a great city, a great community, a great place to play, and a great place to live. There could be another free agent out there who wants to come to our team now. Our pursuit of top free agent talent has a lot to do how we were building this thing the last couple of years. We have a strong foundation with young players. Now,we're in position to take the step, if you will, to bring in players at this time."
Arizona Diamondback GM Kevin Towers said, "To me, this was one of those statement signings to your fan base and ballclub, that you're serious about competing. I'm sure players look at the Mariners in a munch different way today than they did a week ago. It sends a message to your own players."
You didn't here the Dodgers fans complaining last year about their payroll on their way to the division title. But for every attempt to 'Buy a Winner' there are many failures.
Two years ago the Florida Marlins broke the bank with free agent signings, only to finish last in the NL East and dump them off a year later.
"The bottom line is that it comes down to winning ballgames," said Miami president Michael Hill. "Flashy signings and press conferences are great. But it all comes down to what your putting on the field and winning ballgames."
Time will tell who is right. But the Seattle Marines won 71 ballgames last year.
Two more than the 2012 Boston Red Sox.
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