So it's all going to shake out today. In case you haven't been paying attention, if you're a Padres fan, you have several things that you should be mad about right now. No, you're not mad at ownership for allowing Jed Hoyer and staff to take a 2010 playoff bound team and add just enough pieces to put that team firmly in last place the following season.
There's other stuff now.
By all accounts, Theo Epstein's pending move to Chicago has put him in the position to start hiring up all the talent that he wants to hire. He's sending offers left and right and he's got his eyes set on Padres GM, Jed Hoyer and Padres Assistant GM, Jason McLeod. All things considered, we should've known that those would be the two guys that Theo Epstein would want to hire away. Sorry for calling McLeod our director of scouting. Apparently, he's always just been assistant GM.
SO...
They're gone and we're f_ckin' PISSED. However, I'm reading stuff about what we're pissed about and some of it I get, but some of it, I'm kinda like, "Dude why are you pissed about that?" I want to retain my anger and hold it in me because it gives me lightning from my fingers, but I have trouble doing that when there are ridiculous reasons to be pissed that are getting in the way of all the good reasons to be pissed. So let's break them down... True or False, should Padres Fan be mad about the following things:
The San Diego Front Office has become the Arizona Diamondbacks Front Office circa 2006-2009
This totally depends on how much you hate Zonies. Me? I really dislike Zonies. I dislike the idea of sloppy seconds. So this is a valid reason to be pissed.
The only redeeming thing here is that the ownership group was chased out of town, so the enemy of my enemy is my friend. If Arizona Fan didn't like Josh Byrnes, Jeff Moorad, etc at the end of their run, to me, that's not a great reason why we shouldn't like them. That doesn't make sense. Arizona Fan also doesn't like warm baths. By that logic, if Arizona Fan doesn't like warm baths, then I should hate hot showers. Think about it.
Also, if you're worried about the idea that this ownership group changed Arizona's uniform scheme and that means that the Padres uniform scheme will be changing again, I get it... BUT... This is the group that changed the uniform scheme away from purple and teal, which were the sh_ttiest colors in the MLB to be perfectly honest. They aren't too keen on moving to brown and yellow, but I have it on good word that they hate the SD shampoo bottle logo as much as I do, which is good.
Jed Hoyer is a f_cking TURNCOAT
Yes, you can be kinda pissed about this. But to be totally fair to Jed Hoyer, here's how the last 5 years of his life have played out:
1. Win the World Series with the Cursed Boston Red Sox while working with one of his favorite people, Theo Epstein.
2. Realize that he wants to be a GM in his own right.
3. Notice that Theo Epstein doesn't appear to be going anywhere.
4. Gets offered the GM job in San Diego.
5. Puts together a nice year in San Diego.
6. Puts together a sh_t year in San Diego.
7. Gets offered a GM job (see step 2), with a bit more job security, by one of his favorite people, Theo Epstein (see step 1).
8. Asks for extension with the Padres based on step 5.
9. Gets turned down based on step 6.
10. Leaves for Illinois at a date TBD.
So is it his dream job? Maybe yeah. It's the position he wanted with a bit more job security, more money and with a guy he liked working for before. Should he have honored his contract with the Padres? Man, I sure wish he had. He seems like a smart guy and for the sake of our farm system, I really hope that he and McLeod really did know what they were doing. So I will root against him going forward, but secretly hope that they really know what they're doing, which he will have to demonstrate by actually doing smart things for the f_ckin' Cubs.
Josh Byrnes is a Jeff Moorad Yes Man
I could see being pissed about this, but it really depends on how much you dislike Jeff Moorad and probably not reflective of Josh Byrnes' skills as a GM. If you think Jeff Moorad is a cheapskate owner who bought the Padres on layaway, then of course you think having a Yes Man in the GM spot is a terrible idea. If you think that Jeff Moorad's Blueprint for turning the Padres into a contender is solid, then you'd be fine with Josh Byrnes as much as you were fine with Jed Hoyer. After all, Josh Byrnes/Jed Hoyer/Theo Epstein/Jason McLeod even Billy Beane/Paul DePodesta... These are all guys that came out of the same school of thought. These are the current crop of Smart GMs, so sticking with another one of these guys is perfectly fine for me. If you point to Josh Byrnes' tenure as the AZ GM and call it a failure, well you probably hated what Paul DePodesta did while he was the GM of the Dodgers (speaking as a baseball nerd and not a Dodger Hater). Byrnes got them to the NLCS in 2007 (on a team that seemed to enjoy getting blown out) and he set up their draft class for KT to exploit this season.
The Padres aren't getting compensation for losing Jed Hoyer
This is not yet proven and the latest reports are that we will be getting draft picks. If we don't get compensation, then I call shenanigans.
The Padres are losing Jason McLeod and Jed Hoyer, the guys who put together our amazing Minor League System
You're allowed to be pissed about this if you like watching Minor League Baseball. I don't pay attention to the minors regularly, because if I pay attention to the minors regularly, then I should be paying attention to high school and college baseball regularly and if I pay attention to that, then I need to be paying attention to little league and pony league regularly and I don't have time to be watching kids playing tee ball, wondering how the next ten years of their life will turn out and deciding based on that if I want to buy season tickets.
This also depends on who the Padres will decide takes over for Jason McLeod's duties. Other teams have won the World Series you know and those teams have front office people who are probably really smart. Look at Billy Beane. He found Paul DePodesta in a cubicle playing World of Warcraft. We too will find our curly haired fat dude, good with numbers.
The Padres are a Stepping Stone organization and this is yet another example of this
Yes. Be pissed about this. We are a stepping stone organization. We've gone through enough owners now that we should all realize that. Even when we have an owner willing to just drop a ton of his own money into the club (see John Moores late 90s), players and front office personnel still leave us for better opportunities. If you don't believe that we are a small to mid market for baseball, then ask yourself why we've had Cox Channel 4 for the last 10 years and the Yankees have YES. Point to the Seattle Mariners and ask yourself who the closest MLB club is to that team and wonder exactly how many people live in Washington and Oregon. Go to a game at Wrigley and wonder why people would sell out a ballpark that houses the Cubs and San Diego regularly turns out half that number.
The Padres are a stepping stone organization. We have every right to be pissed about this, but it's not going to change anytime soon and Mark Cuban is not going to come in and drop $100 million of his own money in payroll just to make you happy.
Yeah, the Padres sold us on Jed Hoyer and they seem to be letting him go without so much as a peep, but the MLB rules are that they actually aren't allowed to speak during the World Series, so all of yesterday's "no comment" and leaks are just a matter of protocol and it's tough to get worried about that. Padres PR is literally not allowed to talk so it's tough to blame them and Chicago is apparently much better at "accidentally" leaking information than we are, which is fine with me.
With our Front Office decimated, there's no where to go but down
Last I checked, the Cubs do not receive our minor league system along with Hoyer and McLeod. It's weird, but I guess those guys in San Antonio that murdered the league are still ours. Also, we came in last place last season. So, there's actually no where to go but up. We've already traded away our best player. Our former closer of the future is currently playing in the World Series for some other team. This was all done with our supposedly stocked front office so I'm not so much concerned about that.
I figure, I liked Kevin Towers and then I liked Jed Hoyer and I knew Kevin Towers as a GM a hell of a lot longer than I knew Jed Hoyer.
Some other thing I'm missing?
I'm pretty sure there are other reasons to be pissed, but that's all I can think of right now. So... Have at it. Be angry. Maybe we can get Mentor to write us some comments today. GET HIM ON THE PHONE.
In the end... 2012 is not lost because Jed Hoyer is gone. 2013 is probably still on pace with relatively small hiccup. Therefore... Go Padres (angrily).
[UPDATE] Just in case there's some 11th hour decisions: