READING TIME, 5 MINUTES (or much more):
* When the subject is Tony La Russa, you can go to any Cardinals-related Internet board, or listen to most talk shows, or read comments sections under columns and blogs and usually there's a lot of anger and bile. The anti-TLR crowd has plenty of venom to dispense and is never in short supply. The hatred runs deep. And then the pro-TLR forces get upset and return fire to the anti-LaRussas. So many message-boarders and/or talk-show snipers who seem absolutely obsessed with La Russa. He has become a compulsion. His mere presence in STL makes these folks snap. I can't imagine being infatuated with one man the way these peeps are, and I have no idea what they'll do when he's gone, because his absence will create a void in their beings. But it's just amazing to see the intensity -- and the frequency -- of the opinions. It's the kind of nastiness that we usually associate with politics.
On a more moderate level, the constant debates over La Russa can be fun. When civil, reasonable people discuss the pros and the cons of TLR, it's usually entertaining and can be enlightening. And there is certainly a good debate to have. I respect La Russa for the career he's had, and he's certainly had a good run in St. Louis. It's really one of the best eras of baseball for the franchise. Since La Russa became the manager in 1996, the Cardinals rank 4th in the majors in regular-season wins, and 2nd in the NL in the same category. And they are high up on the leaderboard for postseason victories. But I also believe that there's got to be some accountability for the last four seasons and for missing the postseason three times. And for not having a postseason win since Game 5 of the 2006 World Series. Has La Russa gotten stale? Can he maintain his energy? That's a legit question. And like anyone else who works in sports, TLR will have to prove himself anew in 2011.
But back to the hatred that he inspires ... it's laughable really, in this regard: whatever you want to say about La Russa, no matter whether you embrace him or diss him or stand on more moderate ground, there's no escaping the conclusion that he's terrific for business.
The hatred that we see so much on message boards or that we hear on talk shows has not translated into a loss of customers, rating, revenue or interest in Bill DeWitt Jr's business. There is no evidence to suggest that La Russa is hurting DeWitt's investment. The opposite is true, actually. The value of the franchise has escalated dramatically since DeWitt and La Russa moved in back in 1996.
In the six seasons leading up to TLR's arrival in '96, the Cardinals never averaged more than 35,123 per home game in a season. In the full seasons -- not interrupted by labor disputes -- they drew 2.5 million in 1990, 2.4 million in 1991, 2.4 million in 1992 and 2.8 million in 1993. After the game was shut down late in the 1994 season, the Cardinals averaged 24,570 per home game in 1995.
Here's what the franchise has done under La Russa. I'm going to list the per-game average and total home attendance for each year:
1996: 32,774 ... 2.65 million
1997: 32,519 ... 2.63 million
1998: 39,453 ... 3.19 million
1999: 40,197 ... 3.25 million
2000: 41,191 ...3.36 million
2001: 39,390 ... 3.1 million
2002: 37,182 ... 3.01 million
2003: 35,930 ... 2.91 million
2004: 37,634 ... 3.04 million
2005: 43,647 ... 3.49 million
2006: 42,588 ... 3.40 million
2007: 48,853 ... 3.55 million
2008: 42,353 ... 3.430 million
2009: 41,274 ... 3.433 million
2010: 40,755 ... 3.30 million
A few notes here: with La Russa as manager, the Cardinals have surpassed the 3 million mark in 12 of his 15 seasons and have averaged 3.177 million during that time ....obviously, the Mark McGwire home-run rampage led to a spike in home attendance. But why did McGwire agree to be traded to St. Louis? His relationship with La Russa. The closing of the "old" Busch Stadium and the season-long celebration in 2005 certainly helped attendance. The opening of the new Busch in 2006 was going to be great for business no matter how the team did on the field. But the Cardinals capped off that first season by winning the World Series. Having Albert Pujols attracts customers. But the external factors -- Home Run Derby, new ballpark, etc. -- will only carry you so far. The real test is maintaining attendance, and staying strong at the gate over a long period of time. And with La Russa as manager, the Cardinals have had enough success to keep the crowds coming. Even in a bad economy the Cardinals still hit 40,000 per home game in 2010.
And then there are the local TV ratings. In 2010, the Cardinals' broadcasts on Fox Sports Midwest drew the highest ratings for a local market in Major League Baseball. Which is remarkable.
On the radio side, the Cardinals' broadcast rights were the focus of a bidding war between multiple radio stations.
Business is booming for Dollar Bill DeWitt ... and you folks wonder why he thinks it's a nice idea to keep La Russa around?
Again, I don't really care if you are pro-Tony or anti-Tony. But all of the rage directed at him seems to be part of the show, part of the appeal. He is a polarizing figure, a controversial figure -- the proverbial lightning rod. But he generates considerable attention and does so on a daily basis. La Russa is at the center of the STL baseball universe. The pro-Tony and anti-Tony factions can't get enough of him. And whatever he does, fans flock to the ballpark, they gather in front of the TV sets, and they listen on the radio. Love him or hate him, TLR is money.
* GM John Mozeliak has to get Dave Duncan under contract. If Duncan wants to stay here for multiple years, then give him multiple years. The pitching -- though faltering a bit late in the season -- was the best part of this team in 2010. Nothing new there. Duncan has been the Cardinals pitching coach since 1996. And over those 15 seasons the Cardinals rank 3rd among the 30 MLB teams in starting-pitching ERA, and they are 4th best in total ERA. Duncan is a proven asset, and over a long period of time. There are times when an organization should make exceptions in contract policies or beliefs ... and this is one of them. Mozeliak already has fired bullpen coach Marty Mason, who was hailed by the team's pitchers for his work in helping them prepare. Mason was a plus for the pitching staff. And now there's a chance of losing Duncan? If that happens, how in any way would maximize the Cardinals' chances of winning in 2011? Duncan has been angry before; he certainly wasn't happy when the Cardinals traded his son. And he got over it. He's loyal to his pitchers. Perhaps that allegiance to Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and all of the rest will override any concerns Dunc may have. And the Cardinals are trying to re-sign Jake Westbrook, which undoubtedly would please Duncan.
* Cliff Lee is dynamite, and it is a pleasure to watch the Texas Rangers' ace work at his craft during the postseason. But as great as Lee has been, I think some of us are missing the larger issue in the ALCS: the Yankees offense has disappeared. And Lee has only pitched 8 of the innings in the first three games. The other Texas pitchers are making it happen, too. The Yankees had that 5-run outburst against the TEX bullpen in the 8th inning of Game 1. And that was about it. They've scored 3 runs in the other 26 innings. For the series, Mark Teixeira is 0 for 11, A Rod is 2 for 13, Derek Jeter is 3 for 13, Nick Swisher is 1 for 11, Jorge Posada is 2 for 10, Curtis Granderson is 1 for 8, Brett Gardner is 2 for 8, Marcus Thames is 2 for 9.
* A disappointing road trip for the Blues. They didn't match Nashville's energy early in Thursday's game and their rally came up short. They went to Dallas and couldn't hold a 2-0 lead, losing in the shootout. Then it was onto Chicago for another blown 2-0 lead, and an OT loss. Notice a trend? The Blues do not have an assassin. They don't have a finisher. They do not have that guy who can change a game with one flick of the wrists. They will struggle to put teams away because of it. Then again, we knew this already. Management opted to go with what they had, in house. ... so I don't know why I should be surprised.
Thanks for reading ...
-Bernie
