He's never been the same since the Fish management chose the Herald over him to play out the story of the firing of Jeff Torborg. I had hoped that a World Series victory and time would mellow out Mr. Mike but if this column is any indication, it's gong to be a long lonely summer for the guy who went from being the team's biggest supporter to biggest detractor overnight. It's a shame.

 

What troubles me most about the following column is Mike's reluctance is factor in a full year of Conine (who had 95 rbis last season between Baltimore and here), a full year of Cabrera and any contribution from the Choi/Cordero combo. It's almost repeat of Kevin Baxter's faux paux a month or so ago, but at least Baxter admitted his mistake when called on it. There's no doubt, at least at this point our pen is suspect but it's early yet. Let's see how things play out.

 

One last comment, Mike talks about post-season "revenue" and not reinvesting it. First, revenue is not profit, it ignores the additional costs the Marlins bore as they made their drive, and he ignores the fact that at best the Marlins still lost $18 million last season.

 

All that said, here's Mike Berardino...enjoy :mad :

 

BERARDINO: Marlins' prudent payroll is prickly

Published February 24, 2004

 

 

JUPITER ? Mike Lowell holds an undergraduate degree in finance from Florida International, so he can appreciate a payroll trend better than most professional ballplayers.

 

Informed Monday afternoon the Marlins are one of just three World Series champions in the past 15 years not to spend more in their repeat effort, Lowell smiled knowingly.

 

"We're not the typical World Series champion," the All-Star third baseman said on the first official day of Marlins spring training.

 

He'll get no argument there. From their youth to their exuberance to their flashy style to their low payroll to their ability to rise above seemingly any adversity, the 2003 Marlins made an indelible mark on their sport's history.

 

No one in his right mind should bet against them making another strong run at the playoffs. Not with all that starting pitching, all that defense, all that accrued confidence and character.

 

It just won't be any easier this time. In fact, it should be significantly harder.

 

It's not just the huge target they'll wear on their backs when they visit places like San Francisco and Chicago after knocking those teams out of the playoffs last year. It's the deep stash of talent they let walk out the door this winter.

 

Pudge Rodriguez. Derrek Lee. Braden Looper. Ugueth Urbina. Juan Encarnacion. And the list goes on and on.

 

The 2002 Angels won a championship and increased their payroll 38 percent last season. The 2001 Diamondbacks won it all and came back with a 29 percent heavier outlay the next year.

 

The Marlins? According to Major League Baseball figures, they finished last year with a payroll of $54 million.

 

With a handful of key players still unsigned, they figure to open their title defense either right at that figure or slightly below.

 

So much for plowing that additional $6 million to $8 million in postseason revenue back into the product.

 

Lowell, signed to a contract extension this winter that could pay him as much as $32 million over the next four years, wasn't in a management-bashing mood Monday.

 

"I was just hoping we wouldn't lose too much," he said. "You've got to respect if they want to operate under certain parameters. They're going to do what they're going to do."

 

Chad Fox, re-signed as the setup man for new closer Armando Benitez, held his fire as well.

 

"I can see as a fan where [critics] are coming from," he said. "As fans, they see the payroll and they want to see the money figures going up. If you don't have to, though, why do it? If you can replace guys with quality players and still stay around the same [payroll], that's just a smart business move."

 

Pennywise or just plain cheap? We'll find out soon enough.

 

On average, the past 15 title winners have increased payroll by 14 percent the following season. Take out the '98 Marlins, whose payroll dropped a whopping $33.4 million, and the average increase is 20 percent.

 

Call it the cost of victory. You reward those who brought you to the mountaintop.

 

Had owner Jeffrey Loria chosen to follow the industry standard, this year's Marlins would be chasing a repeat with a payroll of about $65 million.

 

That would have been more than enough to keep either Lee or Rodriguez in the lineup.

 

Instead, the Marlins will go with low-budget alternatives at both first base (Hee Seop Choi) and behind the plate (Mike Redmond and Ramon Castro).

 

Fox, while expressing confidence in their replacements, voiced respect for the departed stars.

 

"I think D-Lee will be the biggest void to fill," he said. "He's a Gold Glove first baseman. And Pudge was incredible down the stretch in the time I played with him. Losing him is huge."

 

In all, the Marlins lost between 41 and 44 percent of their home runs, RBI, walks and runs. Even with the additions of Choi and veteran Wil Cordero, those figures are in the 27- to 29-percent range.

 

The '98 Marlins? The ill-conceived dismantling left them without 40 percent of their homers, 38 percent of their RBI, 29 percent of their walks and 31 percent of their runs from the previous year.

 

Does that sound disturbingly comparable to you, too?

 

To Loria's credit, there was no wholesale dispersal of players this winter. But the Marlins' moves (and non-moves) weren't in line with the bulk of their championship predecessors in recent times.

 

They could have rewarded production with loyalty in several cases but chose another direction, falling well short of the $85 million it would have cost to keep the gang together.

 

Time will tell whether going against the grain will cost these atypical champions any chance at another glorious run.

 

Mike Berardino can be reached at [email protected].

so Beradino EXPECTED the guys to bash management?

 

forget this guy

This guy is an idiot.Not even Jim Mandich bash FO because he knew the team was losing money and did their best to keep the team together.

What Berardino fails to see is that no matter how much money these champs in the past raised their payroll - THEY DIDNT REPEAT. In other words, MONEY IS NOT INDICATIVE OF WIN TOTALS.

 

The Angels increased their payroll? They were worse than they were the year before. Now, I am not saying teams shouldnt increase their payroll, but what I am saying is that if you can make necessary improvements and changes to field a team that has a similar chance to compete and do it for the same (or damn it, even less) money, then why not? There is a fiscal side to this equation and the Marlins have probably the worst lease in MLB if not history (thanks John Henry, once again). Berardino is clearly sticking to an agenda here and ignoring common sense.

 

The media cannot get around the fact that this team was not dismantled and is arguably better than last year. There are so many things wrong with this article and I am especially disturbed at how he expected the players to rip management. Why? Why color their words as if they want to rip management but they cant. They committed to playing here for a reason. Go away, Berardino. You will have to eat crow again.

No smart Businessman will increase payroll considering he is losing large sums of money.It just doesn't make sense.He needs to see business side of things in order to understand why the payroll wasn't increase.

I was going to say the same thing jonnylons.... why is raising payroll such a big deal if you don't repeat? So what if the angels and DBacks raised payroll, how'd they finish in those years??

 

The players that are still here all got fair raises. Yes some players were let go, but for the most part they've been replaced.

 

Pudge Rodriguez. Derrek Lee. Braden Looper. Ugueth Urbina. Juan Encarnacion. And the list goes on and on.

 

Does the list indeed go on and on Mike? Redman is the only other guy he didn't mention. By Berardino's own admission, Encarnacion is only an average offensive player.

 

How can you mention lost players without including their replacements? it's irresponsible. No mention of Jeff Conine, no mention of Benitez, no mention of Darren Oliver, no mention of a full season of Cabrera, no mention of how Castro has been looked upon as a promising starting catcher for years now, no mention of having Cordero off the bench instead of Hollandsworth?

 

Drawing comparisons to the '98 team and this one is ludicrous. No one in their right mind thinks that.

 

Marlins2003, I guess we keep expecting him to grow up, but he's proving time & time again he's just begging for opportunities to bash this ownership.

Marlins2003, I guess we keep expecting him to grow up, but he's proving time & time again he's just begging for opportunities to bash this ownership.

 

I was optimistic that Mike and the FO would patch things up in the off-season but it doesn't appear so. Berardino is a fine writer and I hate seeing his talent corrupted by that big chip on his shoulder.

 

Mike knows better than to ignore the points you made in your post. Where's Conine, Benitez, Oliver, Cordero (vs Hollandsworth), etc. ? Does anyone really miss Almanza or Helling or Andy Fox?

 

Mike needs a change of scenery, his act is getting old in South Florida.

He came back a couple days ago.

 

And just to let some know, I may have a piece on Berardino and the Marlins in a couple days or weeks.

Total bulls***. How do these unfactual articles get published. I use to have some respect for Berardino, defintely not anymore. Nothing in this article makes sense. Oh yeah the players are supposed to bash the ownership and all those percentages he put up are totally false. Unbelievable, someone needs to put him in his place.

:fyou

 

this is for your Berardino trying to stop a new fan base from growing.

I think a lot of the "bash the South Florida media" that's been going on lately has been unwarranted, but this column signifes everything that's wrong with the media in Florida. Here it is, first day of spring training, trying to attract fans for a new and exciting season, and you have a column coming out comparing this team to the '98 team. It's not just stupid, it's irresponsible. How does this column make fans care about this team? What good does this column do? Nothing.

 

Of course, Berardino's next column will probably be "why can't the Marlins draw?" Look no further than your own columns, Mike.

I think a lot of the "bash the South Florida media" that's been going on lately has been unwarranted, but this column signifes everything that's wrong with the media in Florida. Here it is, first day of spring training, trying to attract fans for a new and exciting season, and you have a column coming out comparing this team to the '98 team. It's not just stupid, it's irresponsible. How does this column make fans care about this team? What good does this column do? Nothing.

 

Of course, Berardino's next column will probably be "why can't the Marlins draw?" Look no further than your own columns, Mike.

 

So bashing is in the eye of the beholder?

 

If you don't agree, it's unwarranted, but if you do, then it's appropriate?

 

 

This is a(n editorial) column. It is not an article nor a news story. Mike B. is paid to voice his opinion, not to report factually (which is no excuse for distortions or excluding obvious truths or yelling fire in a crowded theater just to see people flee) as opposed to say Clark Spencer at the Herald (used for illustration purposes only) who is not paid to opine, but rather to report (one would hope) as accurately as possible.

 

I happen to agree this does nothing to engage readers to the Marlins or to further their cause in South Florida but that wasn't Mike's objective. Mike's objective, as loathesome as it is, is to show the FO that he still has his 50lb sledgehammer and he'll swing it anywhere, anytime, he feels like it.

I think a lot of the "bash the South Florida media" that's been going on lately has been unwarranted, but this column signifes everything that's wrong with the media in Florida. Here it is, first day of spring training, trying to attract fans for a new and exciting season, and you have a column coming out comparing this team to the '98 team. It's not just stupid, it's irresponsible. How does this column make fans care about this team? What good does this column do? Nothing.

 

Of course, Berardino's next column will probably be "why can't the Marlins draw?" Look no further than your own columns, Mike.

 

So bashing is in the eye of the beholder? Yes. Yes it is. It's opinion, I'd say.

This is all I have to say about Berandino :chair

Berardino is an indiot! Shocked!

Berardino is an indiot! Shocked!

indiot?

Proof that money does not equal wins:

 

1. NY Yankees 156,948,495

2. Los Angeles 115,764,287

3. Boston 100,651,177

4. Atlanta 99,195,593

5. San Francisco 89,052,167

6. Seattle 87,184,500

7. NY Mets 86,341,429

8. Chicago Cubs 86,252,833

9. St. Louis 84,106,269

10. Arizona 75,914,933

11. Texas 72,941,367

12. Philadelphia 70,452,500

13. Chicago Sox 68,949,684

14. Anaheim 68,325,467

15. Minnesota 67,795,500

16. Baltimore 67,502,275

17. Houston 66,864,840

18. Colorado 59,711,017

19. Cincinnati 58,436,777

20. Florida 52,538,298

21. Oakland 49,277,634

22. Cleveland 47,610,134

23. Detroit 46,564,000

24. Montreal 45,834,500

25. San Diego 44,524,500

26. Kansas City 43,323,500

27. Pittsburgh 42,106,059

28. Milwaukee 27,887,000

29. Toronto 27,523,500

30. Tampa Bay 18,730,000

 

Figures from ESPN.

 

If Berardino wants to make an argument about % increase being a necessity to win, I am sure he would find the %'s actually lower among the higher payrolled teams.

 

Not to mention, it doesnt seem any payroll amount would guarentee a playoff spot. Just look at where the Dodgers fit...

Toronto, if that figure is correct, has got to be the most ridiculously valuable team in all of sports. They could steal a playoff spot or even, dare I say, sneak up and grab the AL East from Yanks and Red Sox...

All World Series teams have increased payroll in the past 15 years and how many repeats do we have? Just one if memory serves correctly (The Blue Jays). The team in 97 was a monster in terms of power, last years team was small ball.

 

 

Bernandino is such an idiot. The Herald (Dan Le Betard) isn't that bad. At least he knows about the buisness side of ball.

 

 

I say we boycott reading Bernandino articles or mass email him. Come on Capefish think of something!

1. NY Yankees 156,948,495

2. Los Angeles 115,764,287

3. Boston 100,651,177

4. Atlanta 99,195,593

5. San Francisco 89,052,167

6. Seattle 87,184,500

7. NY Mets 86,341,429

8. Chicago Cubs 86,252,833

9. St. Louis 84,106,269

10. Arizona 75,914,933

11. Texas 72,941,367

12. Philadelphia 70,452,500

13. Chicago Sox 68,949,684

14. Anaheim 68,325,467

15. Minnesota 67,795,500

16. Baltimore 67,502,275

17. Houston 66,864,840

18. Colorado 59,711,017

19. Cincinnati 58,436,777

20. Florida 52,538,298

 

 

Out of those 20 teams and excluding the Marlins, do you know how many of those teams have won the World Series in the last 5 years? Answer: 3

 

And Anaheim increased their payroll last year and didn't even make the playoffs, the Diamondbacks got knocked out of the playoffs and the Yankees have won't anything since 2000. So this "spend more money after you win" bull$*** doesn't always work. And for me, it just gives the Marlins another chance to shock the world! :thumbup

All World Series teams have increased payroll in the past 15 years and how many repeats do we have? Just one if memory serves correctly (The Blue Jays).

That is of course if you don't include the Yankees, who win or lose add on better players (and their salaries) each year.

one word: Idiot

one word: Idiot

you mean indiot :lol

Yeah, I agree that the timing of the article is bad, and it isn't exactly an offering of goodwill towrds the Marlins by Berardino and all that....

 

But listen to yourselves for a second... By citing that money doesn't factor in the repeated success by a WS champ you are essentially stating that increasing payroll size has very little relation to success on the field. Are you all serious?

 

 

One last comment, Mike talks about post-season "revenue" and not reinvesting it. First, revenue is not profit, it ignores the additional costs the Marlins bore

You are right, I'm sure teams that host playoff games take a huge bath on it, what with all that increased attendance, MLB incentives, merchandising and all. With this in mind I wonder why any team in their right mind would even want to make the playoffs. And since you are all about business 101, how's this: If their margin is so low during the playoffs like you are inferring it is, imagine how poorly they would be performing financially during the regular season?

 

Also, ironic that the exact same point about costs -v-revenue could be made about stadium "revenue."

 

Not to mention, it doesnt seem any payroll amount would guarentee a playoff spot.

 

Huh? Of course nothing is "guaranteed." But one thing is for sure, having a small payroll certainly doesn't guarantee you a playoff spot either. You are inferrring that a larger payroll doesn't have a huge effect on success? Ridiculous. I guess there isn't really a problem with payroll disparity in MLB, after all.

 

And Anaheim increased their payroll last year and didn't even make the playoffs, the Diamondbacks got knocked out of the playoffs and the Yankees have won't anything since 2000. So this "spend more money after you win" bull$*** doesn't always work

 

Yep, you are right on the money, it's bullsh1t. And I guess that makes you right and every FO professional, analyist, Owner, union professional and industry trend over the last 27 years wrong. Thank God we aren't suckers like those Yankees, blowing all that money on no good WS appearances almost every year.

 

All I'm saying is that in that gobblygook Berardino spewed there is a point... The Marlins didn't even keep payroll expensitures commensurate with the rate of simple inflation, much less go out and improve themselves via FA.

Yeah, I agree that the timing of the article is bad, and it isn't exactly an offering of goodwill towrds the Marlins by Berardino and all that....

 

But listen to yourselves for a second... By citing that money doesn't factor in the repeated success by a WS champ you are essentially stating that increasing payroll size has very little relation to success on the field. Are you all serious?

 

 

One last comment, Mike talks about post-season "revenue" and not reinvesting it. First, revenue is not profit, it ignores the additional costs the Marlins bore

 

You are right, I'm sure teams that host playoff games take a huge bath on it, what with all that increased attendance, MLB incentives, merchandising and all. With this in mind I wonder why any team in their right mind would even want to make the playoffs. And since you are all about business 101, how's this: If their margin is so low during the playoffs like you are inferring it is, imagine how poorly they would be performing financially during the regular season?

 

Also, ironic that the exact same point about costs -v-revenue could be made about stadium "revenue."

 

Not to mention, it doesnt seem any payroll amount would guarentee a playoff spot.

Huh? Of course nothing is "guaranteed." But one thing is for sure, having a small payroll certainly doesn't guarantee you a playoff spot either. You are inferrring that a larger payroll doesn't have a huge effect on success? Ridiculous. I guess there isn't really a problem with payroll disparity in MLB, after all.

 

And Anaheim increased their payroll last year and didn't even make the playoffs, the Diamondbacks got knocked out of the playoffs and the Yankees have won't anything since 2000. So this "spend more money after you win" bull$*** doesn't always work

 

Yep, you are right on the money, it's bullsh1t. And I guess that makes you right and every FO professional, analyist, Owner, union professional and industry trend over the last 27 years wrong. Thank God we aren't suckers like those Yankees, blowing all that money on no good WS appearances almost every year.

 

All I'm saying is that in that gobblygook Berardino spewed there is a point... The Marlins didn't even keep payroll expensitures commensurate with the rate of simple inflation, much less go out and improve themselves via FA. Geez, you know how to totally take something out of context - maybe you can write for the Herald too. But that aint saying much.

 

I think the point is that we are not condoning the Yankees spending all that money. But first of all, this is a free country - and George SHOULD be allowed to spend however much he wants. It is his team, he shoulders the risks himself.

 

Which brings us to the second point. MONEY DOES NOT GUARANTEE VICTORY. Last I checked, there wasnt a stack of dead presidents laying down a sac bunt or taking one to right field. It is actual players. The Yankees, hate 'em, love 'em, be green with envy (like Henry), it doesnt matter because they spend their money effectively. Lots of teams tried to corall the best talent money could by in the past, but it didnt work out (see Orioles, Mets, Dodgers...list goes on).

 

What is left? After all, I support owners spending whatever amount they feel they want, as much as they want. And I think it is plainly obvious that money does not guarantee wins. It is about VALUE. The Marlins have to act like a small market team because they dont have the revenue a team like the Yankees do. In fact, based on population and interest, the S. Fl. market SHOULD be getting this franchise top revenue. But it is underperforming - and that is a whole 'nother thread. But how do 'small market' teams compete with big ones? By evaluating talent BETTER than they do and getting the most bang for their buck.

 

You dont have to have a team of all-stars to win a championship. You have to have a team. It has been demonstrated it is possible - just look at the last 2-3 years and see who has won it all. Nobody is claiming money doesnt matter, but at the same time forcing some sort of socialist economic picture on the situation seems to be counter-America and contradicts our way of life.

 

Think about this - how the hell do you have an underdog in any sport if everyone is on the same playing field? If every team spends the exact same amount of money but teams still are horrible what then? Suggest that teams stop scouting so well?

 

I have a theory (and I swear this will be the end of this post... ). We have seen an increase of international players over the last 10 years. Why? Because some teams CANT compete financially, so they have had to search elsewhere for talent. What has happened is that you have more small market teams making up the gap with talent and winning ball games. The talent pool also has grown. All because people have had to find a way to adapt to a system in place. Innovation - that is what has made our nation great. Now buck up, and try and beat the Yanks and everyone else in MLB!!!

Stop monday-morning quarterbacking with other people's money. If Loria is a cheat he'll be exposed as such and be run out of town just like Henry.