[新聞] A's stadium uncertainty could push Billy Beane out

看板Athletics作者ThomasHSNU (mimura *^^*)時間14年前 (2011/08/27 16:10)推噓2(2推 0噓 0→)

留言2則, 2人參與討論串1/1

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/25/SPQQ1KRV9N.DTL A's stadium uncertainty could push Billy Beane out John Shea Lew Wolff was on the phone with his eyes glued to a television set. He was watching his A's pursue a three-game sweep of the Yankees, beating the Bronx Bombers at their own game. Home run after home run after home run. "Now (Cliff) Pennington's hit one. This is fun," Wolff said in a giddy third-inning tone Thursday. Eventually, reality hit, and the A's turned a 7-1 advantage into a 22-9 loss and were denied their first sweep at Yankee Stadium (new or old) since 2006, Wolff's second year as managing general partner. The Yankees are making their annual drive to the postseason, challenging Boston for first place in the American League East. Most likely, the loser gets the wild card. The stakes are high, and the future encompasses a World Series-or-bust mentality that accompanies the team with by far the biggest payroll. It's three times the size of Oakland's, as Wolff mentioned in the phone call. The A's have a different future. No October baseball. No guarantee that any of the free agents to be - many of whom have contributed to the team's winning record since the All-Star break - will return. No plans for a photo-op display of sinking ceremonial shovels into San Jose or Oakland soil. It explains the speculation around baseball, as reported in Thursday's Sporting Green by Susan Slusser, that A's general manager Billy Beane might go elsewhere. With nothing to report 29 months after Commissioner Bud Selig appointed his three-man committee to analyze the A's stadium options, there's no reason to believe Beane isn't getting antsy as the face of a franchise stuck in neutral. If not reverse. The Cubs' GM job is open with Jim Hendry's firing, and The Chronicle report suggested Beane might consider an offer if the Cubs called. His A's contract runs through 2014, but Wolff said Thursday he wouldn't stand in the way if Beane desires another challenge in another market. A job could open elsewhere. If the Dodgers' Ned Colletti or Yankees' Brian Cashman takes over the Cubs, a gig would be available in Los Angeles or New York. "I would never inhibit anybody from bettering themselves because of a contract," said Wolff, who had lunch with Beane on Wednesday and said no team has called regarding his GM. "Billy is fantastic and, to me, indispensable. My hope is he will be here a long time. I did promise Billy and all the guys we would have a venue so they would be able to further execute their abilities, and I think that will happen." Sounds optimistic. "I have to be," Wolff said. "There is no choice for us, for the good of baseball. It's sad it's taking this long." He added, "I'm going to build a new stadium for the A's, and if I'm not, someone will," but he was quick to point out he didn't mean he'd move the club or sell to out-of-town interests, instead mentioning his son, Keith (vice president of venue development) as a possible baton receiver. "We're working every day. If it doesn't happen, we'll go to Plan B, which I don't have." Wolff cited Brandon Allen (from Arizona) and Scott Sizemore (from Detroit) as in-season acquisitions that "take a little more thought" by a GM who's restricted financially, which Beane is in Oakland and wouldn't be in Chicago, New York or Los Angeles. Beane made a legendary comment after the A's lost to Boston in the 2003 Division Series - "Give me $50 million" for a promise of more postseason success. He'd get that extra $50 million with the Cubs and a chance to bring Chicago's North Side a championship after 103 years without one, which would crown him Emperor of the Midwest. Instead of Marco Scutaro, he'd be wooing Albert Pujols, a bit more fruitful asset. But Beane paraded down this road before, accepting and then rejecting a five-year contract to run the Red Sox. He liked the challenge (and freedom to wear flip-flops) in Oakland as well as the creativity required to equip David (not Forst) against Goliath. But a guy can maintain passion only so long when the leaders of his industry think so unfavorably of his franchise that they ask it to sit tight for 29 months on an issue that should be front and center. Whether he'd want to leave, apparently, is Beane's choice. If he's free to go, as Wolff suggests, he could zoom to the top of a team's wish list. His reputation remains solid despite no winning records in five years. Not many other GMs have Brad Pitt playing them in upcoming movies. "Billy and his people have done everything I asked for and more, and I want to give them everything they've asked for," said Wolff, referring to a new ballpark. "This year, we lost four starting pitchers in less than three weeks and two for the season, and that's hard for any team to compete with. The hitting Billy brought in is now there. We've got better balance." Unfortunately for the A's, time has run out. Has it also run out on Beane? -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 210.71.180.119