Dear Fans:
This letter to you is long overdue. I've been in charge of the Royals for almost 15 years. There hasn't been a lot to cheer about in that time. A once-proud organization has become a source of nearly constant frustration and disappointment.
My name is at the top of the club directory, so I need to take responsibility for the team's almost comical lack of success. I am sorry, and I pledge to make some changes.
What prompted this soul-searching? Maybe you heard our general manager, Dayton Moore, talking with Soren Petro on WHB 810 the other day. At one point, Dayton described our organization's dismal efforts in acquiring foreign-born players. Dayton said that from 1996 to 2006, the Royals were dead last in terms of resources spent in Latin America. "That is changing," Dayton said.
Latin America is, of course, rich with talented baseball players. Latin America was also the responsibility of my son Dan, who worked in player personnel before he became club president. In his team bio, my son takes "credit" for the coordination and development of the Royals' Latin American program.
As Dayton suggested, this endeavor was a joke. Look at our rosters. The Cleveland Indians found two-time All-Star Victor Martinez in Venezuela; we came out with Andres Blanco.
On the same day that Dayton told such a painful truth on the radio, the Royals lost their 12th game in a row. A losing season is all but guaranteed — and in keeping with recent tradition. Since I became the team's chief executive in 1993, the Royals have fielded just one team that finished with a winning record.
Dayton, meanwhile, has made several good moves. He swiped the magnificent Joakim Soria from San Diego. But fixing the franchise will take time. After all, I gave real management duties to my son, who worked in the jewelry business before I brought him out to Kauffman Stadium.
Saying you're sorry is never easy. But I'm going to try to make some amends.
First, the Royals will no longer be a Glass family project. Dan will no longer serve as the team's president. I am also removing my wife, Ruth, and children Don and Dayna from the board of directors. I love my family, but it has become obvious that this corporate structure does not work and hurts our credibility.
Second, I'm going to stop whining about Kansas City being unable to compete with teams in bigger cites. I realize now that this was an excuse, one I wouldn't have tolerated while building Wal-Mart into a company that produces billions in wealth for its shareholders.
Minnesota and Oakland play in junky stadiums, and they find ways to win more than they lose. Heck, the Tampa Bay Rays are hanging around first place. It can be done!
Baseball economics may not allow us to build a dynasty in Kansas City. I can't put up $51 million just for the rights to negotiate with a Japanese pitcher. But there's no reason that we can't grab a division title from time to time. With a little luck, we might get back to a World Series.
I'm also going to stop lying.
I've forcefully denied that my son and I have interfered in the baseball side of things by rejecting trades and the like. But I wasn't telling the truth. For instance, we walked away from several opportunities to trade the expensive and often-hobbled Mike Sweeney. Sports Illustrated baseball writer Tom Verducci, who will go into the Baseball Hall of Fame someday, has reported that there was a time when we could have dealt Sweeney for Toronto outfielder Alex Rios. Wow, Rios hit 27 home runs last year!
We meddled because we lacked courage. Things had gone so badly around here that we were afraid to part with affable white players such as Sweeney and Joe Randa. Sweeney is a wonderful human being, but my refusal to let him go damaged the future of the ball club.
I'm also going to stop moaning about the team's financial position. I've claimed, for instance, that I've lost $27 million since purchasing the team in 2000. Chances are, I pulled that number out of thin air. Mark Gorris, the team's former vice president for business operations, let it slip in 2006 that we had eked out a small profit each year, on average. Whoops!
Finally, I promise to continue to try to improve public relations.
PR has never been a skill of mine. When I was at Wal-Mart, we ran a "Buy American" campaign. Trouble was, children in Southeast Asia made some of the clothes that we sold. Confronted with the evidence by Dateline NBC, I looked like a buffoon.
The stakes were lower, but a similar thing happened in 2006 when we introduced Dayton. Because the people in the front office didn't know how to choreograph a press conference, I got hammered with all these questions about the shabby treatment of Dayton's predecessor, Allard Baird. It got me so mad, I revoked the credentials of two radio reporters. Thus began another round of bad publicity. Oy!
Anyway, I'd like to take a moment to express my gratitude to Allard. Convinced that I could run a pro sports team like a Wal-Mart in Gobbler's Knob, Arkansas, I refused to give him the resources he needed, like scouts and money for signing bonuses. Allard tried to make up the difference by sheer effort — he was always flying somewhere because I wouldn't pay for the extra sets of eyes he needed. God, it probably took 10 years off the man's life, and the on-field product suffered.
Alas, I can't wave a magic wand. Just as Wal-Mart isn't going to become a model corporate citizen overnight, the Royals are going to struggle to win until we can rebuild the player development system that went to waste under my watch.
Here's what I can do.
Ticket prices will not increase until we finish .500 or better. If this means prices have to hold at current levels even after the renovation of Kauffman Stadium is complete, well, so be it.
Royals fans won't pay additional money for concessions or parking, either. Really, this won't hurt a bit as long as parking at the K costs $9 — one of the reasons I didn’t want a downtown ballpark.
Again, fans, I'm sorry the Royals squandered your adoration and your money. I'm sorry that I acted like an imperious creep all these years. You can take the man out of Wal-Mart, but it's hard to take Wal-Mart out of the man, I guess.
Now I'm going to find a jewelry store for my boy to run.
Go, Royals,
David D. Glass
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it's gotta be fake. martin's usally on the up-and-up but if this were real radio and tv would be all over it. how about it's real in spirit?
it's gotta be fake. martin's usally on the up-and-up but if this were real radio and tv would be all over it. how about it's real in spirit?
So seriously, is this for real or not? Great article, just want to know for sure.
yeah, mark, the royals are a shining example of how free market principles work wonders. I think signing knoblauch a couple years back was the best possible example of "trickle down".
So seriously, is this for real or not? Great article, just want to know for sure.
yeah, mark, the royals are a shining example of how free market principles work wonders. I think signing knoblauch a couple years back was the best possible example of "trickle down".
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office.
I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team.
Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out.
The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up.
As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw.
In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams.
In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office.
I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team.
Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out.
The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up.
As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw.
In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams.
In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office.
I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team.
Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out.
The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up.
As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw.
In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams.
In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office. I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team. Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out. The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up. As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw. In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams. In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office. I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team. Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out. The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up. As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw. In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams. In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
WOW! This is an article that you wouldn't expect to read from a team owner. David Glass definetly see's problems within the front office. Problems that I didn't know existed. If he can correct those problems, that would be a good start. I also believe the problems go beyond the front office. I have been a fan of the Royals ever since the beginning of their existance. Matter of fact, I go back into the Kansas City A's as a fan. I have seen alot of baseball in my time, in which I know what it takes to win ball games. You have to have the right ingredients on the field to produce a winning team. Having a Fox Sports tv station, I have watched alot of games this year. I like the players that we have. They do have talent. The pitchers that we have (not all) is very below average, especially the bull pen. Game after game I have witnessed the bull pen not able to close games out. The biggest problem I think the Royals have is their coaching staff. I am not thrilled at all with Tillman's decisions he makes during the games. It's like he can't leave well enough alone at times. It appears to me that he changes pitchers at the wrong time, or leaves them in to long. I see games where a lead off batter gets on, and he doesn't bunt him over to second as much as he should. The first forty to forty-five games he was shuffling the line up every other game. To be successfull you have to have an everyday starting line up. As for the batting coach, the most frustrating thing for me to watch is a batter taking the first pitch. That is usually the best pitch they will see. Don't get me wrong, the Royals do get their share of hits. The problem is scoring runs. Maybe the problem is the batting order the players are in. In the latter part of games, I would have pinch hit in some of the games I saw. In any sport, I am a believer that a team that stays together, will become a winning organization. Over the past few years, I have seen the Royal change personnel like I change my underwear. The Royals belief has always been to go young. I have seen alot of good talent leave, especially when they get into their prime years. It's like the Royals have been a farm club for other teams. In conclusion I would say that the two areas that need to be addressed on the field, is the coaching staff and the pitchers. Maybe the front office will do some soul searching in these areas. You have to work the kinks out to have a winning team.
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