If You Could Run A Team...

[Klew1986]

If you could run any team in the MLB, other than your favorite team, who would it be and why?

[GMLoophole]

The Yankees.

But if I couldn't run my second favorite team, I'd like a crack at the Mariners. They have good fans and money to burn, and a pitcher-friendly ballpark.

[The Game]

The Cubs. If you win the WS with the Cubs in Chicago, you could run for Mayor and tell everyone that they will work 23 hr days and that there will be a curfew of 4 pm on weekdays and that there will be no alcohol sales unless it it is at a stadium and you would win in a landslide. Plus they have a cool ballpark and are of course a challenge over the next few years. Ditka, Phil Jackson, Lou Holtz, Joel Quenville and Ozzie are God like in Chicago.

[JMDurron]

The Cardinals. A huge fanbase, decent revenue, and said fanbase is not so crazy as to drive away potential talent, but is still loyal enough to fill the ballpark on a regular basis. The only major market team in the division has tended to be especially bad about roster construction (or picking managers, hi Dusty!) over the years, and the rest of the division makes it impressively easy to make the postseason 80% of the time. Same primary color as my favorite team, so no cognitive dissonance there. A nice city that I would not mind living in. Also, a nice, new ballpark to play in.

[ELDoro]

Forever it was the Oakland A's but recently it was the Washington Nationals.

[Déjà Bru]

Originally Posted by GMLoophole

The Yankees.

This. And I will not apologize. However, if forced, the BoSox, followed by the Cubs. It's the traditions, guys. Something that the stupid Dodgers and Giants lost forever when they moved, in my eyes. GML, I respect your reverence for the Mariners but they rank just a bit above the Diamondbacks and Rockies on this scale.

[MizzouRah]

Cleveland Indians..

They have always been my favorite AL team and if I couldn't manage my hometown Cardinals, I'd have to head to the AL.

[JimmyB]

The Houston Astros. The reason? Jeff Luhnow(sp?). I love what he was able to do with the Cardinals farm system and can't wait to see what he can do with Houston. If I was going to run any team, he is who I would want as my right hand man.

[MrDov]

Marlins. I'd want that clean slate to rebuild. Either them or Phillies but only if I'm allowed to blow things up and flip the older guys for young players and/or prospects.

[Charlie Hough]

I don't have a favorite team and haven't had one since 1989. And I haven't really followed MLB since 1996. Imagine that!

I would probably choose to run the Pittsburgh Pirates, although at one point in my life that was my favorite team. So if we disqualify that club, then I'd probably go with the Kansas City Royals. I would want the biggest challenge in terms of market size and turning around a long-struggling franchise.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by Déjà Bru

It's the traditions, guys.

"What is tradition? Tradition is a foolish decision-making policy where the dead are allowed to outvote the living."

[ezpkns34]

The Cardinals, so I could decimate their roster & farm to set them back for years

[ELDoro]

Originally Posted by ezpkns34

The Cardinals, so I could decimate their roster & farm to set them back for years

Good idea!

[shawa666]

MLB confiscated our team.

So, I'd take on the Mets. Just to see if I could stick it to the evil empire.

[stannis]

Baseball reasons: As others have mentioned I have lot of respect for the Cardinals' farm system and I think being involved with an organization with a lot of good young talent coming through would be exciting. I'd rather that than one of the teams with a lot of fat aging high contract stars.

Non-baseball reasons: A city where it would be nice to live: Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, or Toronto, although I'm sure other places have their charms too.

Silly reasons: The Angels, so I could change their stupid name - "The The Angels Angels of Anaheim".

[The Game]

Originally Posted by stannis

Silly reasons: The Angels, so I could change their stupid name - "The The Angels Angels of Anaheim".

I am waiting for them to be called the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California of the American League.

[Tram2Whitaker]

I would run the Tampa Bay Rays. Of course, I'm imagining that I could tell Mayor Bill Foster where he can shove his lease, and it'd actually hold up.... Move the team across the bay to Tampa, where it would be more readily accessible to my fanbase in Pasco, Polk, and Orange counties; thereby tripling my market size.

[Le Grande Orange]

Originally Posted by Tram2Whitaker

Move the team across the bay to Tampa, where it would be more readily accessible to my fanbase in Pasco, Polk, and Orange counties; thereby tripling my market size.

According to the new CBA, Tampa Bay is considered the 24th largest market in MLB (with Miami in 23rd place and Cleveland in 25th). According to the 2008 Major League Rules, the Tampa Bay Rays' territory consists of Hillsborough and Pinellas counties (combined population in 2010: 2,145,768).

According to the Census Bureau, the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL metropolitan statistical area in 2010 consisted of Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco, and Pinellas counties, and the total population was 2,783,243. Polk County is considered part of the Lakeland-Winter Haven metropolitan statistical area, while Orange county is considered part of Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metropolitan statistical area. If these two counties are included with the greater Tampa-St. Petersburg area, then the total population was 4,531,294 n 2010.

Lastly, according to series of articles from 2007 by Nate Silver over at Baseball Prospectus, the Tampa Bay market at the time was the 26th largest market in MLB for attendance purposes and the 22nd largest market in terms of television/media.

Lies, Damned Lies — Defining a Market, Part One
Lies, Damned Lies — Defining a Market, Part Two
Lies, Damned Lies — Tweaking the Market Size Model

[OutfieldGrass]

Originally Posted by Déjà Bru

GML, I respect your reverence for the Mariners but they rank just a bit above the Diamondbacks and Rockies on this scale.

We have great fans up here in Seattle. A great park. Not sure about the money but we do have an amazing farm system at the moment. Lots of talent coming through the system.

I would have to go with the Red Sox. It really is about the tradition. Just to have the opportunity to run such a storied organization would be amazing.

If I were to base it on talent and future outlook I might go with the Nationals. I like what they were doing. Except for the Soriano deal. Not sure about that.

[Tram2Whitaker]

triple, double, whatever.... bigger is bigger. But realistically, how much of the Tampa-St. Pete market is shut out, simply because of where the Trop is located? Further, when the stadium was built in 1990 (the same era as Rogers centre, and Camden Yards) it was already an inferior facility. Sternberg had a plan in place to "privately" fund a new stadium (it involved use of city-owned land, and the sale of the Trop) but that got shot down by Foster.