Article: Twins Fire General Manager Terry Ryan

[Vanimal46]

 

For a billionaire, owning a professional sports team is a rare achievement.  There are only about 120 pro teams in the 4 major sports.  So owning 1 puts you in small club.

Absolutely. Billionaires can own all of the helicopters, cool cars, and private islands they want. Only 30 billionaires can own an MLB team, 32 for NFL, etc. etc. Once you're in that small club, why on earth would you decide to leave?

[bertrecords]

The letter from Jim Pohlad certain sounds like the way Terry Ryan talked.  Management of the Twins seems very much like the management of a grocery store or a bank.  Policies.  Procedures.

 

One example is the DFA of Oswaldo Arcia, and the immediate landing point on the Rays starting lineup.  It seemed from my perspective that Oswaldo was not following the rules when he joked after his very first homerun that people could learn Spanish if they wanted to understand him.  He was never going to be head cashier with that attitude.  He doesn't follow our policies and procedures.  Let him work elsewhere.

 

Another example is the laughable announcement that Eduardo Nunez was the Twins all-star.  Seems like a nice guy.  Had a great BA this year.  Can't play SS.  Follows policies and procedures.  Our kind of guy.

 

A third example is the yanking around of big time prospects like Buxton and Berrios.  Judgements seem to be made on very little evidence.  If you are going to call up Berrios, then don't yank the job at the first truly bad start.  Likewise, a couple weeks batting .380 in AAA is not evidence of much of anything.  Don't call up Buxton, if you are just going to send him back down after the next slump.

 

The knowledge that every other team seems to have about what types of statistical baseball performance is meaningful seems to be lost or irrelevant to the Twins.  The Twins operate as if the casual fan from 1970 who can relate to BA, HR and RBI is who you need to impress.  The Twins fail to understand that even these people are more impressed by W and L.

 

Assuming Jim Pohlad understands that running a baseball team is different from running a grocery store, then we have a chance to improve.   It would be nice to have baseball operations that genuinely care about and understand baseball at a level beyond the manager of the grocery store or the bank. 

 

But, I am not confident that a knowledge of statistical significance in baseball performance is something that fits tidily into a process or procedure.  Maybe, we want Jim to sell the team.

[Rezzy]

This is very unlike how the Twins operate. Which makes me guess that they already have the next GM chosen and waiting in the wings (much more Twins like). Antony is probably just a puppet for the next few months and the moves that are going to be made in the next 13 days and the rest of the season will be salary dumps that the new GM or ownership won't want credit for. Not to say the moves will not be prudent, just not very sexy, at all.

 

Better things are to come, just not this season. I hope JP found a good one.

 

*fingers crossed*

[Mike Sixel]

Katie Strang
ESPN.com

Minnesota Twins interim GM Rob Antony said he was informed of the team's decision to have him replace Terry Ryan in the 6th inning of last night's game. He spoke with Ryan afterwards and said Ryan was "very supportive." Antony said that Ryan has known that ownership planned to go in a different direction for two weeks but did not reveal to anyone. Manager Paul Molitor is addressing the team now.

[Loosey]

Does it concern anyone else that the Twins want to have a permanent GM in place by the end of the season?  Additionally Antony has no limitations on moves he can make.   I see some issues with this process.

 

1) Most teams aren't going to let you grab one of their front-office guys mid-season (I assume).

2) If it isn't Rob Antony (I hope it isn't) what is stopping him from going rogue and trading away anything of worth to the team knowing he is most likely gone when the new GM is here? 

 

This could be interesting/scary.

[spinowner]

It will be quite a while before I can read what everyone has said, but I'll put this in here now.

There are two linked actions here: One, firing Ryan and, two, hiring the next GM. Firing Ryan is by far the less important of the two.

[spinowner]

 

 

2) If it isn't Rob Antony (I hope it isn't) what is stopping him from going rogue and trading away anything of worth to the team knowing he is most likely gone when the new GM is here? 

 

Knowing that he'll never get another baseball job if he screws things up during the next three months.

[Mike Sixel]

Katie Strang
ESPN.com

Minnesota Twins Interim GM Rob Antony on what ownership told him heading into the trade deadline: "Do what you think is right." Said that, to his understanding, "I don't have any constraints." Asked if he had any indication that team wishes for a Braves-style rebuild, Antony said: "No, I don't think we'll look at that at all."

[h2oface]

YES!!! A great day in Twins History! Rejoice! Since it wasn't done year after year after year after year... after year after year... No time like the present! Change is happening! That is a good thing, whatever the last straw was

.

[gunnarthor]

Worst case scenario.  

 

Balt GM: (to Antony) Look, we both know the Pohlads are going a different direction.  Here's what I'll do.  Send me Sano for Chris Lee and you can be my asst GM next year.  

Antony: Deal!

[Mike Sixel]

 

I find this so unreal I just installed iHeart Radio to listen to Barrerio......unreal.

 

And, 400 minutes of commercials every hour.......now I recall one reason I stopped listening to KFAN....

[Vanimal46]

 

And, 400 minutes of commercials every hour.......now I recall one reason I stopped listening to KFAN....

Podcasts, Mike. Podcasts. No commercials. 

[Mike Sixel]

 

Podcasts, Mike. Podcasts. No commercials. 

 

Heh......but then I have to waste my non-working time listening to KFAN....that seems like a bad use of time...

 

edit: plus I'm old..... so it didn't occur to me.

Edited July 18, 2016 by Mike Sixel

[Vanimal46]

 

Worst case scenario.  

 

Balt GM: (to Antony) Look, we both know the Pohlads are going a different direction.  Here's what I'll do.  Send me Sano for Chris Lee and you can be my asst GM next year.  

Antony: Deal!

Sure, it's a worst case scenario, but it would never happen. Even if Antony knows the odds are against him sticking around, there's got to be some integrity to do what's best for the organization you're working with until the day you're no longer working there. 

[wsnydes]

 

Heh......but then I have to waste my non-working time listening to KFAN....that seems like a bad use of time...

 

edit: plus I'm old..... so it didn't occur to me.

You can also stream it online.

[Mike Sixel]

 

You can also stream it online.

 

Uh, that's what I am doing......

[wsnydes]

 

Uh, that's what I am doing......

Yeah, I'm an idiot...

 

I meant from KFAN's website.  No need for iHeartRadio.  Unless it's changed, there weren't as many commercials that way.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Does it concern anyone else that the Twins want to have a permanent GM in place by the end of the season?  Additionally Antony has no limitations on moves he can make.   I see some issues with this process.

 

1) Most teams aren't going to let you grab one of their front-office guys mid-season (I assume).

2) If it isn't Rob Antony (I hope it isn't) what is stopping him from going rogue and trading away anything of worth to the team knowing he is most likely gone when the new GM is here? 

 

This could be interesting/scary.

 

Well, Antony reports to DSP.  I don't know much about DSP, but I really hope he'd avoid the Sano for Hoey swap mentioned elsewhere.

[Mike Sixel]

 

Yeah, I'm an idiot...

 

I meant from KFAN's website.  No need for iHeartRadio.  Unless it's changed, there weren't as many commercials that way.

 

Ya, I went there first, and the page was not loading, so I re-installed iHeartRadio......next time my stupid phone runs out of space (wish more apps could move to the SD card)....it will be gone again.

[old nurse]

 

Or, maybe a more likely scenario:  The Pohlad brothers never seemed to love Twins baseball like Carl did. 

 

The firing of Terry Ryan is the beginning of the Pohlad's prepping of the Twins for sale.

Carl did not like baseball, Eloise did. Carl did like the assest that appreciated

[Vanimal46]

 

Heh......but then I have to waste my non-working time listening to KFAN....that seems like a bad use of time...

 

edit: plus I'm old..... so it didn't occur to me.

If I were to scratch the KFAN itch, it's usually a podcast after work while I'm out on a walk/rollerblading 

[big dog]

 

Another example is the laughable announcement that Eduardo Nunez was the Twins all-star.  Seems like a nice guy.  Had a great BA this year.  Can't play SS.  Follows policies and procedures.  Our kind of guy.

 

-- Are you suggesting that the Pohlads told the AL who they wanted as the Twins representative in the All-Star game???

[Platoon]

So now it appears the die was cast a month ago. Ryan was not coming back in 2017, and Pohlad allowed him to orchestrate the end. Apparently on Friday Ryan walked in and pulled the pin? Per Trib.

[diehardtwinsfan]

yeah, strange way to orchestrate your exit.

[Loosey]

 

Katie Strang
ESPN.com

Minnesota Twins Interim GM Rob Antony on what ownership told him heading into the trade deadline: "Do what you think is right." Said that, to his understanding, "I don't have any constraints." Asked if he had any indication that team wishes for a Braves-style rebuild, Antony said: "No, I don't think we'll look at that at all."

Again with the "It is my understanding".  The communication is terrible is this organization.  There either is or this isn't.  He should probably find out for sure.

[Loosey]

 

 

So now it appears the die was cast a month ago. Ryan was not coming back in 2017, and Pohlad allowed him to orchestrate the end. Apparently on Friday Ryan walked in and pulled the pin? Per Trib.

Why now?  Two weeks before the trade deadline?  Something is off.  Did Ryan not want to have to make the tough decisions on which popular veterans to trade?   Was there a major disagreement somewhere?

[Rigby]

 

Why now?  Two weeks before the trade deadline?  Something is off.  Did Ryan not want to have to make the tough decisions on which popular veterans to trade?   Was there a major disagreement somewhere?

Reminiscent of his last departure with the impending roster decisions on the horizon.

[howieramone2]

 

Probably agree that Bill Smith should not have been a GM in this era, but everyone should remember that no Bill Smith = no Jim Thome, no Sano, no Kepler, probably no Berrios and possibly no Buxton. A lot of bad decisions happened under his watch, sure, but he was the driver for obtaining the most positive parts of the team's future and the continuation of bad decisions after his removal suggests that he should get a break.

The new Angels GM inherited Trout and Pujols. The new Tiger GM inherited Miggy and Verlander. Etc, Etc, Etc, That Bill Smith obtained the most positive parts of the teams future is a myth.

[h2oface]

Interesting that an assistant GM in another organization is assigned to have experience and worthy of hiring, but an assistant GM from this organization has no experience. Hey, I sure hope that Rob Antony is truly an interim GM only, but he certainly has similar experience as other assistant GM's.

Edited July 18, 2016 by h2oface

[howieramone2]

 

The more I think about this it has to be about money. The pohlads wouldnt intervene in pure baseball decisions. I'm guessing they want anybody making decent money gone and TR objected.

Bingo!