They will be irrelevant the next 3 years. The team is highly in debt and has one of the worst owners in sports. The MLB will end up stepping in at some point if this historic franchise doesn't start spending some money and also increasing revenues to be out of debt. If you think you are setup perfect to be a contender soon you are highly mistaken.
I don't really agree they are the worst owners in sports. Maybe I'm naive. But I believe the reports about the leveraged partnership being the reason they can't pay down debt and the debt in turn being the reason they have to limit the payroll. Everything about the sale with Zell was shady. Also, they have given Theo $105-110 mil in payroll the past 2 years which is more than enough to be competitive. It's not enough to turn an aging team with little farm near the majors quickly.
What bothers me is that people assume every move they make is malicious. Yes they've cut payroll but it's from players who were making more than they produced(Zambrano, and Marmol for example). The players they are tied to long term are Castro and Rizzo both who are young and have at least have shown potential to be better than average players. Yes they haven't signed many FA but they have attempted to sign impact pitchers in Sanchez and Tanaka as well as guys like Darvish and Ryu. I believe they have genuine plans to improve wrigely and the surrounding area to increase profits.
I don't really believe they intend to spend like the dodgers or yanks once the 7 year partnership with Zell is done. I think that was clear when they went after an analytic person like Theo. Plus, they come from a financial background so I find it hard to believe they see the yankee and dodgers spending as the intelligent way to build a team. With that being said, I believe when they are ready to bring in FAs they will be in the 3-8 range in terms of payroll which is more than enough money if your front office is good at their job.
Most of all, I believe these are moves that winning teams make. But winning doesn't happen over night. That is especially true when you're talking about sustained winning and not just a win at all cost mantra. The KC example I gave is exactly how prospects can turn an organization around in around 2 years. Many of them weren't very good. But they increased the overall talent of the team and that team should have a shot to make the playoffs over the next several years especially if they add any more talent via FA.
It takes faith in the team to believe in the long term plan which obviously few here seem to have. It's easy to be a fan when the team is winning. And I'm not even saying you have to be 100% behind their plan. However, at least keep an open mind. The majority of the players this front office has brought in have been better than expected. They have drafted well. They have found quality cheap players like Feldman. The big names they have gone after for the most part have been good. For example, Ryu, Darvish and Sanchez all would have been good pick ups had they been able to sign them. They haven't been perfect but show me a front office that is.
