A Kansas City turnstile

Last night the Kansas City Royals fired their manager of two plus years and replaced him with an in-house person. So what else is new you say? They do that every few years. Unfortunately that is the problem.

Teams like KCity and Pittsburgh have fewer resources than the 'bigger' New York and Boston clubs but at some level that shouldn't stand in the way of building a winning organization. Look at Tampa and Florida. Both have put their clubs in contending positions over the years and the Marlins have won the series twice in their brief history. Yes, it doesn't happen every year but it does happen more than once every twenty.

There is an expression simply put, "If you want to change the result change what you do". Teams like KCity continue to dwell in the basement of baseball because they do the same thing over and over and over again. If you've changed the manager every two to three years for the last twenty, that's not the problem. Baseball execs have become so beholden to the players and their own egos they can't see the real problem of their teams. Managers don't field the ball, pitch the ball, step into the batters box or score runs. Team owners however seem to think they do. They must face the fact that they have given the managers lower quality players and expect competitive teams.

A manager can only make out a roster with the players you have given him. If those players can't field a routine ground ball, that's not his fault. He can't go to the bench across the diamond and ask for a loaner shortstop.

I understand many club owners see teams as a business but the business is also in place to win and compete on equal terms with others, yes, even the dreaded Yankees. If you can't or won't you shouldn't own a team. Sell it off and go sit in the bleachers.