I suppose people blame John Fisher for the McCaffrey Heisman snub, too. . . . Many of McCaffrey's big games also came late at night on the West Coast after many voters on the East Coast were asleep. The "East Coast bias," as some call it . . . https://www.espn.com/blog/carolina-...s-derrick-henry-2015-heisman-battle-revisited
It’s also not sustainable to not spend. Quakes haven’t spent big, haven’t spent well and, have never done a big wow factor DP signing that got everyone’s attention and signaled the dawn of a new era. We have to come out of the gate flying this year or it’s another big step backwards. It’s one thing to talk about your academy and youth development when your first team has a respectable track record, it’s a whole different ask when you want folks to wait for fruit to maybe one day bloom when your team has struggled as much as this one has. It’s going to take something special at this point to change hearts and minds. I think all but the most diehard soccer lovers have long since lost interest, sadly.
What did he say again? I tuned out.... I remembered he mumbled something about Wondo but I can't recall what he said exactly...
DG, seriously: do you REALLY think Garber has no clue about the Quakes and San Jose? Fine examples you provided regarding other metro areas and what Garber (supposedly) did to influence events, but here in the Bay is presented an entirely different animal (so to speak). We did get a new SSS in 2014 and even hosted an All Star game in said stadium. We can argue all day about the Fisher ownership group or the "cheapness" of Quakes Stadium, but to suggest that the MLS commissioner doesn't know squat or care about SJ/The Bay Area is just that...squat! (Respectfully and IMHO)
I'm sure Garber knows and cares to a point about the Quakes. I doubt he cares about San Jose as much as he does the two LA & NY teams. Or for that matter, Atlanta and Seattle. He has proven this over the years and I don't see how you can erase that history.
Oh, I know. If the SF Giants never existed and the A’s were the only MLB team in the bay I believe they would still operate exactly the same way they do now. They would spend exactly the same and they would attract exactly the same number of fans (well they would inherit a few more fans but nothing like the giants fan base). We would just wonder why the Bay Area is a small market that doesn’t attract many sports fans. Probably come up with all kinds of excuses why the A’s are so small.
If a zillionaire came along and wanted to build a stadium in SF I believe Garber wouldn’t hesitate. But no zillionaire is pushing for that right now while there are people interested to build stadiums and run MLS teams in other areas like Phoenix, Las Vegas, San Diego, and probably some other places. I think building in SF is just too expensive and MLS isn’t worth it at this point. I think Oakland is much more likely than SF to get a team but it’s not even being mentioned. Well I think the east bay USL guy mentioned he was interested but I don’t that’s going anywhere to soon.
I'm sure they talk about this at every investor meeting. It's not going to be news to Fisher. We also already know the Quakes' strategy going forward: develop players to sell. I don't see a whole lot changing in the short term. They already will mandate the entire player salary budget be spent. Outside of that, they can't really control how Fisher operates the team.
Neither SF nor Oakland are going to get an MLS team any time soon, or probably ever. When Sacramento enters, there will be four teams in California. Only MLB has more than that with 5, right? I just don't see it. Even without reaching the rest of the Bay Area, Santa Clara County alone is more than big enough. It's larger than several other MLS markets. The Quakes just aren't a good team on the field, and so people don't much care. It's really about as simple as that. The league can't force the Quakes to be good on the field, no matter what they do. So it's up to Fisher to hire people to get results. So far, nobody he's hired as delivered on that, and it's not looking like that will change in the short term.
As baffling, frustrating and maddening as this truth nugget is, it really sums up what John Fisher has meant to the San Jose Earthquakes, in a nutshell. Fisher doesn’t care, the fans don’t care, everyone knows this to be true. There is no commitment to winning, to being the best, in San Jose. Without that, what’s the point? Bobble heads? Watch the other teams stars come to town? Fisher has been riding on the coattails of the ambitious teams since Beckham first came to town. And sadly for anyone who cares about this team and soccer in San Jose, there’s no end in sight.
So this, really, is the question. Sure, we all get the sense that Fisher doesn't care because the team has been bad. I'm not really convinced that's true for a couple reasons (which I've pointed out before). First, Fisher has changed his operations staff at points where it was clear things weren't working. Doyle's departure was long overdue, but it came across to me like a reaction to how bungled the Emeghara signing was, and how the acquisition of Kinnear didn't pan out like expected. It appears that Fisher gave Doyle some clear goals and set the budget, and Doyle spectacularly failed to make good on any of it. More recently, Fioranelli totally botched the hiring of a long term coach after trying to rectify things with Kinnear first. Instead of firing everyone, he chose to eat the contract of Stahre and let Fioranelli find another coach. He also followed through on acquiring a good and well-liked player from a team who didn't seem particularly interested in selling him to begin with. These are fairly small things in the overall timeline of Fisher's ownership, but they do indicate to me that he does care. I think he's susceptible to sweet talking by folks who aren't as qualified as they claim, and I think he's slow to course correct. Doesn't mean he doesn't care. Still, he expects to turn a profit from this endeavor, and that means setting your budget a certain way. There's no doubt in my mind he thinks he can make the team competitive without increasing his budget drastically, and that's what he's aiming for. But remember, owners across pro sports are becoming more like Fisher, not less. We've seen some cash splashed around in MLS lately, but I don't expect the teams that are currently doing so to do so indefinitely. They're all in this to make money and they'll adjust things until they hit the return they're want. Will there be outliers who just spend like crazy to win? Yes, probably. Would the Quakes get an owner like that if Fisher ended up selling the team or were forced out? I really don't think so. I think the big issue is that people conflate caring with winning when they aren't really the same thing. That in no way means Fisher couldn't be doing better than he is, or spend more than he is, or what have you. I just think when you frame it as if the owner doesn't care, you're detracting from what the genuine issues are. If Fisher really didn't care about the team, he'd already have sold it off.
Why would he sell it off when he can invest in his team at bare bones level and watch the overall value sky rocket as the league grows around him?
But that has nothing to do with not caring about the team, and that's my point. If he actually didn't care about it at all, he wouldn't own it. I think it's really that simple. Complain about how little he spends until you're blue in the face. Complain about the lack of big name signings until you lose your voice. But saying he doesn't care, as if that is an actionable thing, doesn't lead to anything.
I absolutely believe he cares about not losing too much money on the game day operation while he waits for the right time to sell his investment for maximum profit. As for caring about winning and all the things fans care about pertaining to glory, victory and winning titles and trophies, everything I’ve learned since ‘08 says he’s completely meh and not interested, not if it means spending what it takes to be competitive whether that’s on players, player development infrastructure, scouting, etc.
I got the screen shot of an athletics article via reddit via here Your Periodic Reminder Brett Anderson Is An American Treasure https://t.co/qbnZs7EYT5 pic.twitter.com/rYfgUzWQbX— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) February 20, 2020
Anyone following what Fisher is doing with the A's minor team and stadium? My less than one percent of confidence in our ownership has officially gone to zero. No more season tickets for us. We may still occasionally go to games for my youngest son, but I really don't want to support this ownership.
To each his own. You are going to have a hard time finding a restaurant that meets your criteria for patronage. Almost all have had layoffs or haven’t paid the rent. But at least we’ve all learned to cook at home the past few months.
Apple and oranges. Most restaurants don't have the funds that Fisher has available. The point being is that Fisher and Wolfe are not involved in baseball and soccer for the community and as fans of the sport. They are involved for investment reasons. It's about the bottom line.
I will tell you that I my adult children agree with you. The consensus was that 20 years ago I would have agreed with you. I liked the idealist that I was. So I apologize. It is your money to chose how you spend it. Live by your values and be happy.