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Elendil · 06-28-2007, 10:55 PM

Disaster!

September 14, 2009 - Barely had the glow of the awards ceremony subsided, when the league announced the dire financial numbers from the just-completed season. Nine of twelve teams had lost money, and the Glacier Pilots had gone catastrophically into the red. The Jets had lost less money than in 2008, but were still heading in the wrong direction.

The Board of Governors voted to rescind the franchises of the owners of the Chugiak and Anchorage clubs, and to establish league oversight over their finances. The league itself would thus assume the considerable debts of these teams, which put the league in a precarious financial position. The Board also voted, unanimously, to invoke Clause 4A(3) of the league bylaws, which authorizes the Commissioner to annul all player and personnel contracts for teams that have been placed into receivership.

Within a few days, the Commissioner had decided to void the contracts of all players on both clubs who were making more than league minimum. The following players thus became free agents immediately:

From Eagle River-Chugiak:

First baseman Adam Joly
Outfielder Ray Tomiak
Starting pitcher Jeremie Dessureault
Outfielder Colin Harmon

From Anchorage (AGP):

Outfielder Tom Robbins
Outfielder Dave Bonnar
Shortstop Dave Chipman
Starting pitcher Bryan Kendall
Starting pitcher Gary Tufts
Relief pitcher John Adams
Starting pitcher Eric Liger
First baseman Greg Perkins
Relief pitcher Travis Jeoffrey

If the teams in receivership do not turn a profit after a year, or if no permanent owners are found, the Commissioner may contract the franchises. Of course, the Board of Governors has the power to overrule the Commissioner, but with the league's financial health at stake, it's doubtful that they would do so. All eyes now turn to Fairbanks, whose owners insist that they plan to turn that team's finances around and avoid further massive losses that could bring on receivership for them.

How did things get so bad?

The answer really lies in overspending. Last offseason, there was a feeding frenzy, as for the first time, most of the really decent players from Alaska who had not entered the MLB system were signed to AKL contracts. Most teams had expected a breakthrough in attendance and merchandise sales that simply had not materialized. Rumored league-wide TV contracts had also never worked out.

Putting two teams into receivership was clearly not the answer. Many excellent free agents were now dumped into a big pool of unsigned players, and few teams had the cash on hand to sign them. The players themselves obviously complained about the situation, and it wasn't good for the league either. How could you have Tom Robbins, Dave Bonnar, Louis Mays, John Abston, and other top-flight free agents simply not play next year because they had to work a "real job" to make ends meet?

The Owners' Conference

October 2009 - The owners met to resolve these issues the following month. They took several steps to improve the future financial health and stability of the league:

First, they increased the length of the season. Now, the season would go from the start of May to September 1: 108 games. The schedule would still be unbalanced: 12 games per intradivision opponent and 8 games per interdivision opponent. Travel expenses would rise, but if per-game attendance remained steady, net revenues would rise slightly.

Second, they reverted the minimum years for free agency to three, to extend the period that new players continued to make league minimum. Already a flush of very young free agents had hit the market because of the previous 2-year rule. However, the league minimum salary did rise as planned, to $5,000 per year, which made the financial constraints even tighter.

Third, and most controversially, the owners agreed a plan to renegotiate contracts with every player making more than $50,000 a year. These players would be locked out and remain unpaid until they agreed to the renegotiation. Each of these players would have 10% of his salary deducted for the remaining years on his contract, with a per-year salary floor of $50,000. This provision would not apply to players who would be in the first year of a new contract in 2010, thus allowing free agents to sign with confidence during the ongoing offseason. The renegotiations would not take effect until all the players had renegotiated, or the beginning of the season, whichever came first. Once the season had started, players who had not renegotiated would be banned from the league.

If the players had had a union, these decisions might have been more difficult, but it was difficult to organize the players: many of them had little time outside baseball, because they were also trying to hold down part-time or temporary jobs. Those who were free agents and wanted contracts also resented some of the huge, long-term contracts in the six figures that some players were still making. Even an elite player like Bob Horton was only making a little over $50,000 a year, because he had hit free agency last year. Reducing the salaries of existing players would have a direct correlation with bigger salaries for outstanding free agents.

And so the league struggled on, teetering on the brink, even as its popularity steadily grew across the state. Would it survive, even in altered form?

06-28-2007, 10:55 PM	#63 (permalink)
Elendil Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: the dynasty forum Posts: 2,176 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	Disaster! September 14, 2009 - Barely had the glow of the awards ceremony subsided, when the league announced the dire financial numbers from the just-completed season. Nine of twelve teams had lost money, and the Glacier Pilots had gone catastrophically into the red. The Jets had lost less money than in 2008, but were still heading in the wrong direction. The Board of Governors voted to rescind the franchises of the owners of the Chugiak and Anchorage clubs, and to establish league oversight over their finances. The league itself would thus assume the considerable debts of these teams, which put the league in a precarious financial position. The Board also voted, unanimously, to invoke Clause 4A(3) of the league bylaws, which authorizes the Commissioner to annul all player and personnel contracts for teams that have been placed into receivership. Within a few days, the Commissioner had decided to void the contracts of all players on both clubs who were making more than league minimum. The following players thus became free agents immediately: From Eagle River-Chugiak: First baseman Adam Joly Outfielder Ray Tomiak Starting pitcher Jeremie Dessureault Outfielder Colin Harmon From Anchorage (AGP): Outfielder Tom Robbins Outfielder Dave Bonnar Shortstop Dave Chipman Starting pitcher Bryan Kendall Starting pitcher Gary Tufts Relief pitcher John Adams Starting pitcher Eric Liger First baseman Greg Perkins Relief pitcher Travis Jeoffrey If the teams in receivership do not turn a profit after a year, or if no permanent owners are found, the Commissioner may contract the franchises. Of course, the Board of Governors has the power to overrule the Commissioner, but with the league's financial health at stake, it's doubtful that they would do so. All eyes now turn to Fairbanks, whose owners insist that they plan to turn that team's finances around and avoid further massive losses that could bring on receivership for them. How did things get so bad? The answer really lies in overspending. Last offseason, there was a feeding frenzy, as for the first time, most of the really decent players from Alaska who had not entered the MLB system were signed to AKL contracts. Most teams had expected a breakthrough in attendance and merchandise sales that simply had not materialized. Rumored league-wide TV contracts had also never worked out. Putting two teams into receivership was clearly not the answer. Many excellent free agents were now dumped into a big pool of unsigned players, and few teams had the cash on hand to sign them. The players themselves obviously complained about the situation, and it wasn't good for the league either. How could you have Tom Robbins, Dave Bonnar, Louis Mays, John Abston, and other top-flight free agents simply not play next year because they had to work a "real job" to make ends meet? The Owners' Conference October 2009 - The owners met to resolve these issues the following month. They took several steps to improve the future financial health and stability of the league: First, they increased the length of the season. Now, the season would go from the start of May to September 1: 108 games. The schedule would still be unbalanced: 12 games per intradivision opponent and 8 games per interdivision opponent. Travel expenses would rise, but if per-game attendance remained steady, net revenues would rise slightly. Second, they reverted the minimum years for free agency to three, to extend the period that new players continued to make league minimum. Already a flush of very young free agents had hit the market because of the previous 2-year rule. However, the league minimum salary did rise as planned, to $5,000 per year, which made the financial constraints even tighter. Third, and most controversially, the owners agreed a plan to renegotiate contracts with every player making more than $50,000 a year. These players would be locked out and remain unpaid until they agreed to the renegotiation. Each of these players would have 10% of his salary deducted for the remaining years on his contract, with a per-year salary floor of $50,000. This provision would not apply to players who would be in the first year of a new contract in 2010, thus allowing free agents to sign with confidence during the ongoing offseason. The renegotiations would not take effect until all the players had renegotiated, or the beginning of the season, whichever came first. Once the season had started, players who had not renegotiated would be banned from the league. If the players had had a union, these decisions might have been more difficult, but it was difficult to organize the players: many of them had little time outside baseball, because they were also trying to hold down part-time or temporary jobs. Those who were free agents and wanted contracts also resented some of the huge, long-term contracts in the six figures that some players were still making. Even an elite player like Bob Horton was only making a little over $50,000 a year, because he had hit free agency last year. Reducing the salaries of existing players would have a direct correlation with bigger salaries for outstanding free agents. And so the league struggled on, teetering on the brink, even as its popularity steadily grew across the state. Would it survive, even in altered form? Last edited by Elendil; 07-20-2007 at 02:37 PM.