Yankees owner Steinbrenner dies

[slagfarmer]

This from todays Toronto Sun.

NEW YORK -- George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees owner known as "The Boss" for his colorful and tempestuous style, died in Florida at age 80, his family and baseball club said Tuesday.

Media reports said he suffered a massive heart attack at his home in Tampa and was rushed to hospital.

Steinbrenner demanded results and got them as he ran America's most successful sports franchise. The Yankees won seven World Series titles and 11 American League pennants since he bought the fabled club in 1973.

"Winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing," he once said.

Steinbrenner handed over daily operations of the club to his sons in recent years. His Yankees empire, which he bought for $10 million, is now worth $1.6 billion, nearly twice as much as any other team in baseball, Forbes magazine estimated.

"He was an incredible and charitable man," his family said in a statement. "He was a visionary and a giant in the world of sports. He took a great but struggling franchise and turned it into a champion again."

The family said funeral arrangements will be private but there would be an additional public service.

Steinbrenner, who turned 80 on the U.S. Independence Day holiday on July 4, was a well-known figure in popular culture, routinely pictured on the back pages of New York's tabloids wearing his familiar white turtleneck under a blue blazer and was regularly skewered on the TV sitcom "Seinfeld."

[Oracle]

Billy Martin's been waiting in the wings for this.

His first greeting will be a sucker punch!

[redrum]

Why do I not care?

[danelectro59]

Why do I not care?

Yea, i'm having a hard time with it myself.

I'll be honest, i've hated this guy all along.

As far as i'm concerned, he's done more to ruin baseball (and sports in general) than anyone I can think of. His headstone should read "Hope it was worth it"

[danelectro59]

He took a great but struggling franchise and turned it into a champion again."

Because he flashed his giant bankroll luring the best talent away from smaller market teams that developed these players. His free agent spending makes the Obama administration look like a thrift store.

[silvermedalist]

Because he flashed his giant bankroll luring the best talent away from smaller market teams that developed these players. His free agent spending makes the Obama administration look like a thrift store.

This is very true. It will be interesting to see what happens in the near future. No limit to what he would spend to rob the small market teams. And it destroyed any fairness and legitimate building of teams using their farm system. Back in the 70s the Orioles and Dodgers were the best at developing talent in their farm systems. Long gone are those days.

[Starbreaker]

This is very true. It will be interesting to see what happens in the near future. No limit to what he would spend to rob the small market teams. And it destroyed any fairness and legitimate building of teams using their farm system. Back in the 70s the Orioles and Dodgers were the best at developing talent in their farm systems. Long gone are those days.

I would say that by doing that he forced the small market teams to rely more on developing talent through their farm-systems rather than signing free agents, but i'll agree that Steinbrenner's spending made it so that those teams often have to let their talent after 5 years because they can't afford their young stars anymore.

If I'm not mistaken haven't the Dodger's continued to have a strong farm system throughout the Steinbrenner era?

That Orioles on the other hand I don't know why their farm system went downhill (Palmer, Dobson, Cuellar, and McNally were products of the farm system right?).

[Anjin-san]

Hi Dan,all,

Because he flashed his giant bankroll luring the best talent away from smaller market teams that developed these players. His free agent spending makes the Obama administration look like a thrift store.

At 1 trillion dollars?

Not even close,...

Did we forget the millions he gave away to charity?Like the Jimmy Fund (young cancer patients) or the fact that when Red Sox made the greatest comeback in MLB history (2004)and they wanted shut the lights off so no one could see the celebration,The Boss said: "Keep them on,they deserve it."

KB

[Wolfman]

Yea, i'm having a hard time with it myself.

I'll be honest, i've hated this guy all along.

As far as i'm concerned, he's done more to ruin baseball (and sports in general) than anyone I can think of. His headstone should read "Hope it was worth it"

I'm glad I'm not the only one who doesn't give a shit.

[danelectro59]

Hi Dan,all,

At 1 trillion dollars?

Not even close,...

Did we forget the millions he gave away to charity?Like the Jimmy Fund (young cancer patients) or the fact that when Red Sox made the greatest comeback in MLB history (2004)and they wanted shut the lights off so no one could see the celebration,The Boss said: "Keep them on,they deserve it."

KB

Dude, you didn't even nibble the hook. I was expecting "right, but George spent his own money, while Barry is spending ours!" Geez, you're slippin'

Ya' know what I think about mega rich people and their gifts to charities.

Appreciated, yes, but don't use that as a testimonial to praise this guy.

He would cut your liver out and hand it to you if it was beneficial.

[Electrophile]

I love the smell of Yankee Haters™ in the morning.

BTW, anyone who thinks Steinbrenner was bad for baseball has no clue what in the hell they're talking about. If not for Big Stein and his deep pockets, there'd be no revenue sharing. Without revenue sharing, a lot of those small market teams would be in deep shit. The Yankees pay out literally tens of millions of dollars per year to those small market teams. That's why there will never be a salary cap. In order to have a cap, there would need to be a floor to keep owners from paying their players in Monopoly money. The owners will never agree to a floor, because it would force them to have competitive payrolls. They'd rather spend jack shit and let the Yankees/Red Sox/Mets/Dodgers finance their operations.

But why let facts cloud the discussion, right?

[TypeO]

I love the smell of Yankee Haters™ in the morning.

BTW, anyone who thinks Steinbrenner was bad for baseball has no clue what in the hell they're talking about. If not for Big Stein and his deep pockets, there'd be no revenue sharing. Without revenue sharing, a lot of those small market teams would be in deep shit. The Yankees pay out literally tens of millions of dollars per year to those small market teams. That's why there will never be a salary cap. In order to have a cap, there would need to be a floor to keep owners from paying their players in Monopoly money. The owners will never agree to a floor, because it would force them to have competitive payrolls. They'd rather spend jack shit and let the Yankees/Red Sox/Mets/Dodgers finance their operations.

But why let facts cloud the discussion, right?

Um, by floor I assume you mean a minimum.

There IS a minimum MLB salary.

[2bitnogoodjive]

[danelectro59]

Um, by floor I assume you mean a minimum.

There IS a minimum MLB salary.

Yes, around $400K, i believe.

[TypeO]

Yes, around $400K, i believe.

I know, it's not a ton in MLB terms, but it IS there, and it's reasonable.

Most teams are fairly equitable with players during the first 5 years, they'd like to see the future stars WANT to stick around.

Yeah, you got the Marlins pulling a fire sale every 4 or 5 years, but most small-to-mid-market teams make an effort to field a decent balance of veterans and free-agents along with their developing (non free agent) players.

I don't care for what Steinbrenner did, either, creating an upper echelon of high-payroll teams comprised of mercenaries who perennially play for the title.

At least my team (Braves) maintained a strong farm system and had a significant amount of homegrown talent to go with a few high-profile free agents when they were contending during the 90s.

After suffering through the 80s with them, I make no apologies for being a Braves fan.

No bandwagon jumping here.

[redrum]

Yes, around $400K, I believe.

Awwww, those poor babies.

[Electrophile]

Um, by floor I assume you mean a minimum.

There IS a minimum MLB salary.

Not a salary minimum, darling. I'm talking about payroll. Isn't that everyone's biggest (and stupidest) gripe about the Yankees? That their payroll is too high? Well, if you cap it on the top, you need to put a floor in. Meaning, X% of the cap is the lowest your payroll can go. So let's say the salary cap in baseball is set at $100M. Now let's say they put the floor at 60%. That means you can't go over $100M, but you can't pay under $60M either. Meaning you actually have to invest money in your team and field competitive squads every year, instead of pocketing the money and sitting on it, while fielding piss-poor teams each season.

One thing these "Yankee Haters" never seem to understand is how vital teams like the Yankees are for the Royals, Pirates, Marlins and Diamondbacks of the league. You all bitch and whine about how much money the Yankees spend, but you don't grasp the concept of where the money goes, how it gets divvied up and how everyone else benefits from it. You want to put a salary cap in to teach the Yankees a "lesson", totally ignorant of how bereft of funds YOUR team will be if it happens.

So please by all means, continue to whine about the Yankees. Whine about all the money they spend and how they buy players and how they're making it oh-so-hard for the Little Engines That Could all over the league to win anything. It is amusing.

[silvermedalist]

I know, it's not a ton in MLB terms, but it IS there, and it's reasonable.

Most teams are fairly equitable with players during the first 5 years, they'd like to see the future stars WANT to stick around.

Yeah, you got the Marlins pulling a fire sale every 4 or 5 years, but most small-to-mid-market teams make an effort to field a decent balance of veterans and free-agents along with their developing (non free agent) players.

I don't care for what Steinbrenner did, either, creating an upper echelon of high-payroll teams comprised of mercenaries who perennially play for the title.

At least my team (Braves) maintained a strong farm system and had a significant amount of homegrown talent to go with a few high-profile free agents when they were contending during the 90s.

After suffering through the 80s with them, I make no apologies for being a Braves fan.

No bandwagon jumping here.

I think Bobby Cox is one of the best of all time. He to me is the reason Atlanta has never missed a beat. I hope they win as my team is gone from contention AGAIN.

[danelectro59]

Not a salary minimum, darling. I'm talking about payroll. Isn't that everyone's biggest (and stupidest) gripe about the Yankees? That their payroll is too high? Well, if you cap it on the top, you need to put a floor in. Meaning, X% of the cap is the lowest your payroll can go. So let's say the salary cap in baseball is set at $100M. Now let's say they put the floor at 60%. That means you can't go over $100M, but you can't pay under $60M either. Meaning you actually have to invest money in your team and field competitive squads every year, instead of pocketing the money and sitting on it, while fielding piss-poor teams each season.

One thing these "Yankee Haters" never seem to understand is how vital teams like the Yankees are for the Royals, Pirates, Marlins and Diamondbacks of the league. You all bitch and whine about how much money the Yankees spend, but you don't grasp the concept of where the money goes, how it gets divvied up and how everyone else benefits from it. You want to put a salary cap in to teach the Yankees a "lesson", totally ignorant of how bereft of funds YOUR team will be if it happens.

So please by all means, continue to whine about the Yankees. Whine about all the money they spend and how they buy players and how they're making it oh-so-hard for the Little Engines That Could all over the league to win anything. It is amusing.

I think you're the one that's clueless. We were talking about Georgie Boy here. The pompous ass that had to make sure he was front and center in the media spotlight. Airing out his differences with managers and players in the press, turning the beloved game into a cheap ass soap opera. Paving the way for the Jerry Jones', Mark Cuban's and other ego maniacs who buy sports franchises. I'll stick with the Mike Illitch's and the late Wm. Davidson's of this world, who won a few championships themselves.

But hey, let's not let class and dignity get in the way of facts

[danelectro59]

I think Bobby Cox is one of the best of all time. He to me is the reason Atlanta has never missed a beat. I hope they win as my team is gone from contention AGAIN.

Bobby Cox is the antitheses of a baseball manager. He bridges the old with the new and certainly bound for Cooperstown when all is said and done.

[danelectro59]

I know, it's not a ton in MLB terms, but it IS there, and it's reasonable.

Most teams are fairly equitable with players during the first 5 years, they'd like to see the future stars WANT to stick around.

Yeah, you got the Marlins pulling a fire sale every 4 or 5 years, but most small-to-mid-market teams make an effort to field a decent balance of veterans and free-agents along with their developing (non free agent) players.

I don't care for what Steinbrenner did, either, creating an upper echelon of high-payroll teams comprised of mercenaries who perennially play for the title.

At least my team (Braves) maintained a strong farm system and had a significant amount of homegrown talent to go with a few high-profile free agents when they were contending during the 90s.

After suffering through the 80s with them, I make no apologies for being a Braves fan.

No bandwagon jumping here.

The Braves are a great organization who should have won more World Series than they have.

They seem to be back this year.

[Electrophile]

I think you're the one that's clueless. We were talking about Georgie Boy here. The pompous ass that had to make sure he was front and center in the media spotlight. Airing out his differences with managers and players in the press, turning the beloved game into a cheap ass soap opera. Paving the way for the Jerry Jones', Mark Cuban's and other ego maniacs who buy sports franchises. I'll stick with the Mike Illitch's and the late Wm. Davidson's of this world, who won a few championships themselves.

But hey, let's not let class and dignity get in the way of facts

If you knew half of what George Steinbrenner did in terms of charity and philanthropy, you'd drop dead. He was an unrepentant asshole, but he was asshole that gave a shit, not just about other people but his team. I was reading a story about how he had fired a secretary quite a few years ago, yet paid for her children to go to college. He's donated untold sums of money to the Jimmy Fund and probably a dozen other charities, gave money to Virginia Tech after the massacre there 3 years ago and even had the Yankees go to Blacksburg to play their baseball team in a charity game. He's assisted families in the Bronx who were displaced after an apartment fire left them all homeless, when Jon Lester (Red Sox pitcher) was diagnosed with cancer a couple of years ago, he was the only other team owner in MLB aside from John Henry to make any kind of statement about it, and even sent a note and flowers to his family. When the Red Sox won the ALCS in 2004 in Yankee Stadium, Steinbrenner told the grounds crew not to turn the lights off at the stadium, because the Sox earned the right to celebrate, even on his team's field. Who would have expected him to say something like that?

If you're not a Yankees fan, you wouldn't get it, understand it or even hope to begin to reconcile it.

[BIGDAN]

If you knew half of what George Steinbrenner did in terms of charity and philanthropy, you'd drop dead. He was an unrepentant asshole, but he was asshole that gave a shit, not just about other people but his team. I was reading a story about how he had fired a secretary quite a few years ago, yet paid for her children to go to college. He's donated untold sums of money to the Jimmy Fund and probably a dozen other charities, gave money to Virginia Tech after the massacre there 3 years ago and even had the Yankees go to Blacksburg to play their baseball team in a charity game. He's assisted families in the Bronx who were displaced after an apartment fire left them all homeless, when Jon Lester (Red Sox pitcher) was diagnosed with cancer a couple of years ago, he was the only other team owner in MLB aside from John Henry to make any kind of statement about it, and even sent a note and flowers to his family. When the Red Sox won the ALCS in 2004 in Yankee Stadium, Steinbrenner told the grounds crew not to turn the lights off at the stadium, because the Sox earned the right to celebrate, even on his team's field. Who would have expected him to say something like that?

If you're not a Yankees fan, you wouldn't get it, understand it or even hope to begin to reconcile it.

Hi Liz,

Do you know your shit or what?

Well you have these Guys on the run that for sure, I'm impressed, so impressed I'm sending you some refreshments so you don't dry up, keep it up and keep it dirty.

Regards, Danny :beer: :beer:

[silvermedalist]

Hi Liz,

Do you know your shit or what?

Well you have these Guys on the run that for sure, I'm impressed, so impressed I'm sending you some refreshments so you don't dry up, keep it up and keep it dirty.

Regards, Danny

Danny, I believe its way past your bed time over there?

[danelectro59]

[quote name='Electrophile' date='14 July 2010 - 08:10 PM' timestamp='1279152652'

If you're not a Yankees fan, you wouldn't get it, understand it or even hope to begin to reconcile it.