[Ragin Cajun]

January 1974

When Elston arrives in California we begin looking at our ballclub and our situation.

I explain to Ellie how things will work that I expect him to make moves on the field and to get this team to win. I will work the front office and handle trades and contract talks. He asks if he can have any input on players and I say he can have input but I will have final say-so. We shake on our understanding and start breaking down the roster.

Financially, we are OK. Last season the team had a payroll of $10.7 million and turned a profit of $5 million. Thanks for that came in large part to merchandising and also to 1.8 million fans hitting the turnstiles. We need to up that though to handle escalating costs and I know that is coming. LA is a big market although the Dodgers are the dominant team. We need to win and our perception as a hick team will go away. Fan interest seems to be there. I've currently got $5 million set aside for player and staff signings. I don't like signing free agents if I can help it, preferring to build from within. Ellie agrees that a solid farm system like the Yankees had is the way to go. First hurdle down and we move on to the next item on the agenda.