Time to pull the plug on the Cubs

[LA RAM FAN]

And I will agree money does not buy championships but it sure does help. The Yankees put up quite a run and no Pittsburg team is going to outbid them on a free agent closer.

Problem is the drug tests have thrown the stats back in favor of younger players and some of the money tossers have not realized that.

Now the cubs spend enough money, just not well. A sabermetrics failure? Bad pitching coach? I swear the Yankees actually saw decreased production out of their imported star pitchers for example. Must be the league, right?

It helped the yankees and awfully lot when they were able to BUY 4 world series championships in a row.NOW its hard fro me to hate the yankees like I used to because other than CC Sabathia and A-rod,they have home grown products now. I hope this is finally the year the pirates avoid a collapse at the end of the season.

Both times last year,they got off to a hit start with one of the best records in the league only to fizzle out both times and keep the losing streak alive at something like 23 years without a winning season.Not a pirates fan or anything,i just would like to see the small market guys succeed.

 

[DarkLion]

exactly.Having the top payroll in the league was very beneficial to them being able to have the most money in the league to buy talent to win four world series in a row with players like Wells,Clemons,Paul O'neil,Wade Boggs,and David Wells.

Then why haven't they been able to replicate that success, despite spending twice as much as they did back then? I mean, they have always been the highest paying team, but back then they had a payroll in the 90 millions while other teams were in the 80s. The past decade, the payroll gap between them and the other teams has been far more extreme.

No, money doesn't buy championships. It can help make it easier, but money is overrated. The Yankee teams in the late 90s fit together, they weren't just a collection of stars. Huge difference.

 

[TheOldSchool]

The Cubs will make it one day! Besides, you guys are lucky! I had to root for the damn Orioles... for YEARS!!!

Go Nats!

Orioles were a dominant team of the 60s,70s and 80s they paid their dues

Maybe if we make the Cubs a minor league team they could win a championship

Yea I was just joking that I now hate the Orioles for the b.s. they pulled when the Nats were coming to town.

 

[rightwinger]

I do not see a team like the Pittsburgh Pirates doing any better. The only thing that will change them is someone filthy rich coming in, buying the team and then buying talent. There was a day where your team came out of your farm system, subsidised by a few trades. It is all about the money now.

Abslolutely dead wrong. Money doesn't buy championships in baseball anymore, hasn't for least a decade. Teams with homegrown talent and free agent pieces that fit are the ones that win. Look at the Dodgers and Blue Jays, opened the pocket books, didn't they? Bought all kinds of free agents, huge names. Dream teams. And look where they are. Two of the worst teams in baseball.

Look at the teams that HAVE won the past few years. Teams with a lot of chemistry, small ball types that put the ball in play and don't strike out. The 2010 Giants were dead last in the league in home runs. You couldn't even name 10 guys on the team unless you either follow baseball closely or are a Giants fan. Same with St. Louis. They had Pujols, Holliday, Carpenter and a bunch of scrappy role guys.

The Pirates absolutely can do it, and they are doing it the right way. Teams are wising up. Overloading your team with big money, big ego players doesn't work anymore. If it ever did. Sure the Yanks won 4 out of 6 years, but that ended when they really opened the purse and brought in the biggest names they could, like Giambi, Randy Johnson etc.

It didn't work. It could be argued that trying to buy championships was what ended the Jeter-Rivera-Williams-Pettitte dynasty.

How often have the Yankees been the best team that money can buy?

Since they bought Babe Ruth