Beeston: Jays should have 140-150 million payroll

[darth_federer]

"We raise our revenues, we raise our expenses at the same time and our salaries. ... We should be a city that can have $140 million, $150 million in the way of salaries. We could support that, and that's the direction that we're headed."

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd ... b&c_id=mlb

If it isnt already evident there you have it.

[Randle McMurphy]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

[hyper316]

words =/= reality. i dont know if they would actually follow through... how much was the payroll of the jays when they signed glaus, ryan, overbay?

[ItsDanger]

The market should support that range. Unfortunately that would require a huge boost in attendance and improved TV ratings. I believe its misleading to state "will".

[darth_federer]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

Link? I think they ve pretty unequivocal that they intend to have young stars and plan to keep them unlike Tampa Bay.

[U_Mad]

Prince Fielder...Get'er done AA

[CapeCrusader]

Prince Fielder...Get'er done AA

Hopefully

[spykelee]

That link says that where a city than can and should be able to support that kind of salary... and assuming the revenue's go up (I.E fan support) then in the future we should have that kind of payroll. Like any business though, they will want to see the fan support rising before they more than double the operating cost of the franchise. The two go hand in hand, and unlike the chicken and the egg, this scenario needs 1 before the other.

[Komodo]

"We raise our revenues, we raise our expenses at the same time and our salaries. ... We should be a city that can have $140 million, $150 million in the way of salaries. We could support that, and that's the direction that we're headed."

Misleading quote, it should say: Jays will have 140-150 million payroll if attendance... if attendance increases to a level that can sustain that kind of payroll.

[LittleOzzy]

Changed thread title as it was misleading.

He was talking about the payroll a baseball team should have in a market this size, not what the Jays will have.

[Skin Blues]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

I don't think they've ever put a number like $150M out there. Its much easier to hold them accountable with real numbers thrown around instead of vagueness like they've used before.

And they had the highest payroll in baseball in the early 90s when they were the league leaders in attendance, so it's within the realm of possibility that they'll return to being a big-market style team.

[dagger]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

I don't think they've ever put a number like $150M out there. Its much easier to hold them accountable with real numbers thrown around instead of vagueness like they've used before.

And they had the highest payroll in baseball in the early 90s when they were the league leaders in attendance, so it's within the realm of possibility that they'll return to being a big-market style team.

The Jays also had different ownership in those days, IIRC. They certainly had different ownership in the World Series years.

Beeston gave himself the perfect out: The revenues have to come for the payroll to rise. But as we all know - and MLSE probably knows this with the Raptors - there is a lag, sometimes multiple seasons, before the growing excitement of an improving team translates into higher revenues. Beeston isn't saying the team plans to spend $150 million in order to show the market we're serious about competing at the very highest level. That would be investing on hope, and it might actually get some fans to spend more on the team, in anticipation that things have to become better.

As for the promise to keep the future stars we're grooming, most of those have a decade of controllable seasons ahead. The best of them aren't even at Triple A and maybe one or two are at Double A. Some of the younger guys who are on the major league roster aren't necessarily long term answers. Arencibia is probably a transitional player, tiding us over until d'Arnaud makes it to the majors. Brett Cecil might or might not be a long term hold, but I bet the team can rationalize not signing him long term, even trading him, by the rise of even better young pitchers down the road. That roster full of the likes of Lawrie, Gose, Hechy, Maguire, Sanchez, etc, is 3-5 years away, and then their controllable years will take us almost to the end of the decade! Right now, the closest player to a long-term deal is Morrow, who is further down the arb path than some of his fellow younglings.

[raps4life~]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

I'm still waiting for a link showing someone from the Jays organization saying that we "should" have a $150m payroll.

[LittleOzzy]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

I'm still waiting for a link showing someone from the Jays organization saying that we "should" have a $150m payroll.

We raise our revenues, we raise our expenses at the same time and our salaries. ... We should be a city that can have $140 million, $150 million in the way of salaries. We could support that, and that's the direction that we're headed."

[Chevy Chase]

Same BS as the Raptors will spend in the Lux Tax if its warranted. But you can't get to the next level of performance or attendance without first spending the money. And as Dagger pointed out there's always a lag, and I for one don't think either Rogers or MLSE has the stomach to wait it out.

[MGD24]

The Jays (and in particular, Beeston) have been saying stuff like this for years.

I'm still waiting.

I'm still waiting for a link showing someone from the Jays organization saying that we "should" have a $150m payroll.

We raise our revenues, we raise our expenses at the same time and our salaries. ... We should be a city that can have $140 million, $150 million in the way of salaries. We could support that, and that's the direction that we're headed."

i don't think he meant the most recent quote made by Beeston. I think raps4life is looking for a quote made by the Jays (and Beeston) from the past....as Randle was referring to

[raps4life~]

I'm still waiting for a link showing someone from the Jays organization saying that we "should" have a $150m payroll.

We raise our revenues, we raise our expenses at the same time and our salaries. ... We should be a city that can have $140 million, $150 million in the way of salaries. We could support that, and that's the direction that we're headed."

i don't think he meant the most recent quote made by Beeston. I think raps4life is
looking for a quote made by the Jays (and Beeston) from the past....as Randle was referring to

Thanks for clearing that up. Yes, I was referring to the part where Randle said the Jays have been saying this for "years".

[Randle McMurphy]

"Stuff like this."

As for specifics, well you can go read the news stories from any of the other "State of the Franchise" events over the last decade. You'll find either Beeston or Godfrey talking about the potential of this market and how the money will be there when the team needs it.

I'm still waiting, because it certainly wasn't there in 2008 or 2009.

[Peteros]

The market should support that range. Unfortunately that would require a huge boost in attendance and improved TV ratings. I believe its misleading to state "will".

Exactly.

[Homer Jay]

I hope that it reflects developing top young talent and then spending the money to retain it rather than blowing it all on aging FAs. How scary good could Tampa Bay have been for years and years if they kept those players?