For Dodgers, Lack of International Spending Is Beginning to Show
December 29, 2011 at 4:37 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 32 Comments
Regular posting will resume next week. For now, a thought…
With the starting rotation of Clayton Kershaw / Chad Billingsley / Ted Lilly / Aaron Harang / Chris Capuano all but set, Nathan Eovaldi & John Ely likely the main reserves, and the possibility of other minor leaguers like Allen Webster, Michael Antonini, or Zach Lee arriving at some point at well, the Dodger starting group looks like it could have a decidedly American and Caucasian feel.
If that seems unusual for the Dodgers, well, it is. If it holds, this would be the first time since the 1980 staff featured Jerry Reuss, Bob Welch, Burt Hooton, Don Sutton, and three others that the Dodgers have had all of their starts made by American natives. 19-year-old Mexican Fernando Valenzuela made ten relief appearances that year and would start at least one game for the club in each year from 1981-90, by which time Dominican Ramon Martinez was on the scene; Martinez was a Dodger through 1998 and was followed by starters from all over the world, like Chan Ho Park, Odalis Perez, Kazuhisa Ishii, Hiroki Kuroda, and Vicente Padilla. Considering the Dodgers were once known for their diverse “United Nations” rotation in the mid-1990s with Martinez, Park, Hideo Nomo, and Ismael Valdes – in 1996, those four plus Pedro Astacio made 135 of 162 starts, with Tom Candiotti taking the rest – it’s a surprising turnaround.
In and of itself, this isn’t a problem, because Kershaw is one of the best in the game and the other four are all legitimate (if overpriced) rotation options; besides, this wouldn’t even be a discussion if financial concerns hadn’t prevented Kuroda’s return and if Rubby De La Rosa hadn’t blown out his elbow last season. (Other than a trade, the slim possibility of de la Rosa returning late in the season is probably the most likely chance of keeping the streak alive.) Of course, since one of the many sins of the Frank McCourt era is that the Dodgers have become one of the most stingy teams in international spending after years of leading in that area, it’s hard not to notice.
The Americanization of the current team goes beyond just the starting rotation, because of the current 40-man roster, only seven players are from outside North America (and yes, I’m saying “North” because Blake Hawksworth is Canadian) – Ramon Troncoso, Kenley Jansen, Ivan DeJesus, Juan Uribe, Trent Oeltjen, Juan Rivera, and Alfredo Silverio. That could increase by one if Ronald Belisario actually makes it back, but it’s also unlikely that Troncoso, DeJesus, Oeltjen, or Silverio make the 25-man roster or have any impact on the 2012 club. Just as random point of comparison, the 2008 team had 14 players who weren’t from the United States or Canada.
Again, that’s hardly a scandal or something that seemed planned, and does feel as though it’s a direct impact of the lack of funding for international scouting. (Nor is it really a racial issue, especially on a team that will give considerable playing time to African-Americans Matt Kemp, James Loney, Dee Gordon, Jerry Hairston, and Tony Gwynn.) But what was once an important talent pipeline has seemingly dried up, as evidenced by the fact that only four of the top 20 prospects recently listed at Minor League Ball are from outside North America. If the Dodgers are to return to prominence – once, you know, the criminal is gone – refunding international scouting needs to be a top priority.
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The penultimate sentence can drop the word “seemingly” and be even more true.
Comment by Rob McMillin— December 29, 2011 #
I love this Mike. And it’s so true. Noticed this for a few years now. Hopefully the next ownership takes notice and international scouting is a priority.
Dodgers invited 15 players for the January developmental camp and only two are from out of the U.S.A. (De La Rosa & Silverio)
Comment by Roberto Baly— December 29, 2011 #
Thanks, Roberto. Its not a good trend.
Comment by Mike— December 29, 2011 #
Fantastic topic to cover! I’m SO glad that you brought this up because it has bewildered me. Could it just be McCourt being cheap? Or is it a matter of the fact that the economics have now changed in the international market?
You see, in the 80s, and part of the 90s, there were not many clubs putting money into international scouting. The Dodgers were one of the only games in town, not just for players but for scouts as well! Now, after everyone saw the Dodgers reap the benefits of a first mover, every club has significant international programs. This has driven the cost WAY WAY up. It has also put a massive strain in the likelihood of getting a good player since you are now fighting with over a dozen other organizations for a player most likely. Let’s not even get into the f-ing “blind bidding” process that Japan has in place! That is the biggest scam of all time.
What are your thoughts? Is it just not worth now that the market is saturated or was it McCheap?
Comment by Dodgers Baseball News— December 29, 2011 #
I think it’s both, Miguel. You’re correct that more teams are involved than back in the day and that makes it harder. But if you’re spending less than every other team in baseball, that makes it downright impossible.
Comment by Mike— December 30, 2011 #
Great stuff, Mike.
When I spoke to Logan White this spring, he ensured me that his approach to the international market was to lay off the big names and youngest prospects to try to find value in older, overlooked players (Rubby, Angel Sanchez). However, I got the distinct impression that he wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger on a bigger name if he had the resources. So I believe your conclusion that this approach is a result of budget, rather than ideology, is correct.
Comment by Jared Massey— December 29, 2011 #
Also worth nothing, Silverio was signed in 2003.
Comment by Jared Massey— December 29, 2011 #
Amazing how long he’s been around. Sort of makes it hard to take him too seriously as a prospect.
Comment by Mike— December 29, 2011 #
I’m still skeptical. Not diggin the walk rate and I don’t know if he has the pure speed to stick in center. Plus there’s that Kemp dude…
Comment by Jared Massey— December 29, 2011 #
Wish the Dodgers were in on Cespedes or Soler. Though it sounds like Cespedes might get some major moola.
Comment by Tommy Blackjack— December 29, 2011 #
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jorgemontanaro/sets/72157602596408777/detail/
Mike Brito is/was perhaps the image of Dodger efforts to scout/recruit/promote outside of the U.S.
So much of Dodger success in other countries was not due to direct spending on scouting, but the indirect efforts to put up an image of themselves. For Decades, the Dodgers were the symbol of American baseball to the Far East, the Caribbean and more.
The Dodgers were obviously the first integrate in bringing Jackie Robinson to the majors and the first to start 5 African Americans in the World Series (1963) – expanding their image in the U.S.
The Walter O’Malley and Al Campanis efforts to promote baseball in the Far East through exhibition tours and personal appearances of their stars in foreign countries made players there think first of the Dodgers if they wanted to be a major league player.
A generation of Asian players looked to the Dodgers first when they wanted to come to America and the Dodgers reaped the benefits.
The Campo Las Palmas baseball academy the Dodgers built in the Dominican Republic made the Dodgers a favorite of local kids. Same in Mexico and many other places. The Dodgers reaped the benefits of the P.R. they put in there.
When the bean counters started looking at such expenses and did not see a direct return for dollars spent, out went many of the efforts to put up a Dodger world wide image. The desire for local kids in the rest of the world to become a “Dodger” dissolved.
Now the Dodgers are just forced to compete for foreign players using only $$$ and are not willing to spend with the big boys (Red Sox, Yankees etc) They had a unique position before, now they are just in the mix of all the teams. I doubt if anything will return the Dodgers back to the previous standing in the world, but hopefully new ownership will be aware of the need to cultivate players worldwide
Comment by Kirk Davenport— December 29, 2011 #
the link to a Mike Brito photo did not work as I thought – sorry
Comment by Kirk Davenport— December 29, 2011 #
That’s okay. The image of the Panama hat, cigar, and radar gun is forever ingrained.
Comment by SamAdams— December 30, 2011 #
At least once a week in would remind the audience who that man in the Panama Hat with the radar gun was.
Comment by Lex S— December 30, 2011 #
That’s a great perspective, Kirk. I do think money is the main cause, but it’s also the diminishing standing of the Dodger brand internationally. Foreign kids used to dream of being Nomo or Park or mondesi. Now who?
Comment by Mike— December 30, 2011 #
Eugenio Velez!
Comment by Jared Massey— December 30, 2011 #
Great observation and important topic. Obviously making the team and roster should be merit-based, and color-blind, and as a minority I have no issues regarding player ethnicity. But what I think you have correct is that it is good business, good ethics, and good for the team’s performance, to have a strong international pipeline. There’s no downside to it.
Baseball has always been my favorite sport because it’s passing/tangential relationship to cricket has made it very internationally accessible (it’s no accident that Carribean, Central and South American countries are baseball obsessed as many of them are also cricketing countries). NFL will never truly be as international as baseball because playing it requires so much infrastructure and equipment. Baseball is, at the end of the day, stick and ball – which makes it a great sport for poorer nations.
And not that the Dodgers must chain themselves to history, but far and away the most inspiring aspect of the club, and its shining contribution to baseball history, is it’s direct participation in desegregating baseball.
I am very glad you flagged this topic and gave it prominence. I hope the next ownership group will do so as well.
Comment by RS— December 29, 2011 #
+1
excellent points
Comment by The Dude Abides— December 30, 2011 #
Mike, a very good example of the shortcomings of the McCourt Era. The lack of money is the root of this issue, but one could also look at this from the McCourt point of view. Prior to his ownership, the team was a leader in the international market, but recent big dollar failures like Joel Guzman, Willy Aybar, Kaz Ishii, among others, might’ve made Frank reticent to spend big on international players. Mind you, if the clown had spent the dividend on the draft, we would not be having this conversation. As it stands, McCourt’s promises of building from the bottom up were all lies. Given his finances, the only way he could go was to spend his limited resources on veteran talent and hope he could find some diamonds in the rough through the draft.
That being said, if he didn’t need his ego fluffed, there might be a real GM in the front office and not the King of All Sycophants in Ned Colletti. He is barely a baseball man and his only skill is being press-friendly.
Comment by grabarkewitz— December 30, 2011 #
+1
Comment by The Dude Abides— December 30, 2011 #
My favorite stat came from Baseball America last year. The Dodgers spent $330,000 on amateur free agents. The major-league minimum is $415,000. Can you say ouch?
Comment by Chris Jackson— December 30, 2011 #
I wonder what will change in this area for all teams if they ever get to an international draft? The money would need to go to scouting but who would be providing the development camps that get kids from 14 to draft age?
Comment by west coast ram— December 30, 2011 #
The international draft is a pipe dream for Selig and company. I don’t ever see them pulling it off. Age verification is already a huge problem. Plus, a lot of those countries would defy the draft (Venezuela, anyone?). The spending cap on international bonuses is one thing, but a true draft outside the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico just sounds impossible.
Comment by Chris Jackson— December 30, 2011 #
Yep, this is just another casualty of the McCourt regime. I remember how exciting it was during Nomomania. The Dodgers were always the first team to go after the best international players.
Comment by format— December 30, 2011 #
[...] Mike Petriello of Mike Sciosciaâs Tragic Illness thinks the Dodgersâ lack of investment in foreign players under McCourt has begun to [...]
Pingback by Dodgers web musings: Who needs another out-of-town owner? - GPC News | GPC News— December 30, 2011 #
Bring back the killer tomato!
Comment by Mike L— December 30, 2011 #
And of course, the prized Latin prospect that they DID have was traded away because McAsshat didn’t want to pay two million dollars for Casey Blake. How much better would we feel about 2012′s line-up if Carlos Santana were in it, providing protection for Matt Kemp?
And one could argue that frittering away Santana to save money also led to the loss of Trayvon Robinson because they needed to find catching. That wouldn’t have been seen as necessary if Santana were in the fold. (Then again, knowing Colletti, he might’ve traded Robinson to get Tim Byrdak or some other scrub pitcher for a “veteran presence.”)
The sad thing is that not only are they worse in the long-run talentwise not having Santana and Robinson, but they also end up paying MORE because of it. Rivera is going to make more in 2012 than both Santana and Robinson combined would’ve cost the Dodgers in salary. Isn’t that just brilliant management of a franchise?
What did we do to deserve this criminal as the owner?
Comment by ElysianPark— December 31, 2011 #
[...] Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness: Mike Petriello highlights what the lack of international spending has cost the Dodgers. [...]
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Pingback by Royals aren’t Dodgering Latin America | Pine Tar Press— January 16, 2012 #
[...] players. It seems like we have gone away from that under the previous ownership. According to MSTI this lack of international spending has been trending downward for a while [...]
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[...] not just in the traditional free agent market either. As Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness pointed out a month ago, the money spent on international players has dropped considerably. [...]
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