Originally Posted by
Shakes McQueen
It wasn't a question of whether they were spending the most in the league on these things - it was a question of whether they were running the team "on the cheap". And it completely disregards what I said about the massive expansion in our scouting staff.
And yes, I know that we are spending less on payroll now than we were ten years ago (even factoring in the draft). Stoeten did a story on this about a week ago on Drunk Jays Fans, after AA claimed that payroll had been "steadily increasing every year" to a reporter. The difference between 10 years ago and now, is that AA/Beeston had generally been pretty frank about the fact that they wanted to redouble scouting and drafting efforts, rebuild the farm system, and then add a FA or two when the time was right. The disagreement with some fans and media has been on what the "right time" is.
And of course, a real, unavoidable test is going to come up when guys like Brett Lawrie are knocking on the door for their big, fat contract extensions.
So yes, they've been thrifty when it comes to payroll, so far (in some cases smartly, in other cases... not so much). But they aren't running the team "on the cheap". And personally, I think this winter is going to be a turning point for Rogers to either put up, or shut up, as it pertains to the Blue Jays.
- Scott