Peter Angelos - Man of Principles

[NCRaven]

The Orioles May Have a Good Reason for Not Pursuing Ohtani

Paul Swydan, Fangraphs

https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-orioles-may-have-a-good-reason-for-not-pursuing-ohtani/

"One certainly couldn’t blame the Orioles for their stance that the international posting system is an amoral process. The only truly fair process for the players is for every potential professional player to be a true free agent — no draft, no posting system. MLB has taken steps to ensure a process like that never sees the light of the day. And while the Orioles’ stance is particularly interesting, that they are willing to make this stance public is even more so.

But it also strikes me that we may have collectively underestimated the Orioles all along. Generally speaking, it seems as though Peter Angelos is written off as difficult, eccentric, and cheap. His actions are often dismissed out of hand. Perhaps it is true that he is difficult, eccentric, and cheap. But it also may be possible that he’s covered in this dismissive fashion because he doesn’t fit the mold that the other owners want him to fit, and that viewpoint filters down to fans and the media. Perhaps Angelos deserves more benefit of the doubt than he’s been extended in the past. I’m not necessarily convinced of that myself, but I’m certainly willing to keep an open mind about it."

[Frobby]

Pretty speculative.    We don’t really know why PA opposes the posting system.

[NCRaven]

3 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Pretty speculative.    We don’t really know why PA opposes the posting system.

The whole post is worth reading as it gives some background into Angelos history as a labor lawyer, his stance on the players' strirke in 94(?), the posting system and signing international amateurs.

Not that I expect this to be a popular point of view or that I even agree with all of it.  But, I do like to be a contrarian now and then.

[Frobby]

13 minutes ago, NCRaven said:

The whole post is worth reading as it gives some background into Angelos history as a labor lawyer, his stance on the players' strirke in 94(?), the posting system and signing international amateurs.

Not that I expect this to be a popular point of view or that I even agree with all of it.  But, I do like to be a contrarian now and then.

I did read it, and while it’s certainly possible that Angelos won’t allow the Orioles to bid on a posted player due to moral objections related to his career as a pro-labor litigator, he’s never stated that publicly, so the author is really just guessing in my opinion.   Duquette has spoken on the topic before, without indicating that the owner has moral qualms about the posting system:  https://www.google.com/amp/www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-duquette-talks-about-the-japanese-posting-system-20131226-story,amp.html

[NCRaven]

Joe: I think Angelos is actually a good person and I understand his principled stands, but if he’s not affecting change in his industry then he’s playing a game without a full deck.

2:27	Paul Swydan: That’s a very fair stance.   from today's Winter Meetings Chat on Fangraphs.

[bobmc]

On December 10, DD said this to MLB Network, Sirius, XM 809:

GM Dan Duquette confirms that the team did NOT make a presentation to Shohei Ohtani, "Because philosophically we don't participate on the posting part of it."

And Camden Chat goes on:

“The posting part of it” that Duquette referred to in the above quote is likely a reference to the part where the Angels will pay $20 million to Ohtani’s old Japanese team, the Nippon Ham Fighters. Any team that came to an agreement with Ohtani would have had to do this. 

What is the philosophy that leads to not participating in that system is not immediately clear; one could scour the entirety of rational thought in search of the answer and have a hard time finding one. It’s stupid, it’s short-sighted, and it’s just so Orioles.

Of course, this is hardly the only time that the Orioles apparently “philosophically don’t participate” in the acquisition of talent from outside of the United States. Their lack of action on international amateur players in Central and South America is now nearly legendary. They spend the least money. They trade away their signing bonus allotment for non-prospects and organizational filler at best."

And my take:  If they were "morally against this system", why would they trade away the international slots for other teams to use?  Wouldn't they want that money to not be used at all?

 

https://www.camdenchat.com/2017/12/11/16761684/orioles-news-rumors-starting-rotation-scaredy-cats

[eddie83]

I’d rather he be a Man of trophies. 

[Luke-OH]

15 minutes ago, NCRaven said:

Joe: I think Angelos is actually a good person and I understand his principled stands, but if he’s not affecting change in his industry then he’s playing a game without a full deck.

2:27	Paul Swydan: That’s a very fair stance.   from today's Winter Meetings Chat on Fangraphs.

I think this pretty much sums it up for me.

[NCRaven]

Just now, phillyOs119 said:

I think this pretty much sums it up for me.

Agreed.  I just like Fangraphs writers, including Swydan, and thought it was an interesting take coming from a national and not local writer.

[TradeAngelos]

It is funny all of the Peter Principles involve him not spending money in places pretty much every other team does. Maybe it is just a coincidence. So yeah, one could definitely come to the conclusion he is cheap, and difficult to work for as a result of such. It is hard enough running a baseball team in the AL East as it is, and I can't imagine how hard it is doing it with one arm tied behind your back. 

LOL at the writer and his "the only fair way for the players......" nonsense. Yeah the only fair way to make sure there are 6 great teams in baseball and everyone else is on the verge of folding the franchise. Moron. 

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

53 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

I’d rather he be a Man of trophies. 

The Orioles are like a boxer who only punches with one arm.  

[Luke-OH]

26 minutes ago, TradeAngelos said:

It is funny all of the Peter Principles involve him not spending money in places pretty much every other team does. Maybe it is just a coincidence. So yeah, one could definitely come to the conclusion he is cheap, and difficult to work for as a result of such. It is hard enough running a baseball team in the AL East as it is, and I can't imagine how hard it is doing it with one arm tied behind your back. 

LOL at the writer and his "the only fair way for the players......" nonsense. Yeah the only fair way to make sure there are 6 great teams in baseball and everyone else is on the verge of folding the franchise. Moron. 

I for one have never called him cheap.  I just think he's hurting the team by refusing to play by the same rules as all the other teams.

[Enjoy Terror]

It was mentioned that Angelos should be keeping his int’l money if he’s opposed to the posting system. Or even buying up international money and not using it.

[spiritof66]

This is garbage. Sure, Angelos has some pro-labor views that most MLB owners, don't share -- and at times he has worn those views as a badge of his

moral superiority to go along with his intellectual superiority.  It's absurd to draw a connection between those views -- call them principles if you like -- and he way he shuns spending to tap a major source of talent, or his unfounded belief that he knows more about how to build a baseball team than those he hires, or his team's long record of failure.

If Angelos really believes all players should be free agents and is willing to abide by that belief, he should either direct the Orioles to stop participating in the amateur draft or sell the team to someone whose principles won't stand in the way of trying to compete.  

[Fuzzball22]

1 hour ago, OsFanSinceThe80s said:

The Orioles are like a boxer who only punches with one arm.  

Or a one legged person in an a$$ kicking contest.