Re: Cuban's chances getting better than we thought?

[CoolHandLuke]

Some of those chain link fences are rather unsightly. Adding more luxury seats at the expense of team offices doesn't bother me at all. I figured most of the team offices were at Tribune Tower anyway.

 

Incorrect...every member of the Cubs front office works at Wrigley Field (outside of scouts of course).

 

Not sure where you were getting that the luxury seating would be at the expense of the team offices which desperately need a major overhaul. There is a reason that the Cubs front office is the smallest by far in baseball and that is because they lack the space to expand the staff as part of the reason. The team offices face the outside of the park (hence all the windows above the main entrance to the park) with portions under the main ramps in the back of the seating areas of the grandstand so those would have to be some awfully darn big luxury seats.

 

He got it from this article, that was linked to above.

 

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080508-wrigley-field-more-taxes-chicago-cubs,1,7811302.story

 

And if it's true that the office space is constricting the front office, that is ridiculous.

[David]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

[jersey cubs fan]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

[E.J.]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

I think I remember reading something that said the Cubs have the fewest full-time employees (employees working all year round) than any other team in baseball.

[jersey cubs fan]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

I think I remember reading something that said the Cubs have the fewest full-time employees (employees working all year round) than any other team in baseball.

 

Sounds more like back office types than what I consider front office. Front office are your heads of baseball operations and whatnot. Marketing and ticket sales people are more like support staff, especially for a team like the Cubs that doesn't need help selling tickets.

[Beer Kaese]

Cuban sucks. Just look at the Mavs. I hope to god that over hyped piece of human garbage doesn't end up owning my team. I'll find a new team or sport. F Cuban.

[shnsajax]

Cuban sucks. Just look at the Mavs. I hope to god that over hyped piece of human garbage doesn't end up owning my team. I'll find a new team or sport. F Cuban.

 

Wow, you convinced me!

[E.J.]

Cuban sucks. Just look at the Mavs. I hope to god that over hyped piece of human garbage doesn't end up owning my team. I'll find a new team or sport. F Cuban.

 

Do you remember the Mavs before Cuban owned them? That's right, no one remembers them because they were a joke of a franchise with no fan-base.

[Sammy Sofa]

Cuban sucks. Just look at the Mavs. I hope to god that over hyped piece of human garbage doesn't end up owning my team. I'll find a new team or sport. F Cuban.

 

You'll be missed.

 

Maybe.

 

Eh, probably not.

[javy knows my name]

Cuban sucks. Just look at the Mavs. I hope to god that over hyped piece of human garbage doesn't end up owning my team. I'll find a new team or sport. F Cuban.

Yeah, the Mavs suck because of Avery Johnson. Cuban is the reason why their suckitude is no longer the norm. I don't how any fan of the team could dispute that.

[David]

LOL it's so ridiculous to me when people scream, "Look at the Mavericks!" and mean it as an insult to Cuban somehow.

 

I guess that's cause I don't put much stock in the playoffs as a measure of success. Championships are cool and playoffs are fun and all, but they don't always necessarily mean all that much.

 

 

Even if championships were the be all, end all that people make them out to be, it's pretty absurd to blame the Mavs' playoff failures the last couple years on Cuban. Plus, they WERE in the finals three years ago, for crying out loud. Last year they lost to a GSW team that they just matched up with very poorly and this year they lost to a great team. The west is/was just loaded this season.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I guess that's cause I don't put much stock in the playoffs as a measure of success. Championships are cool and playoffs are fun and all, but they don't always necessarily mean all that much.

 

In baseball? Wholeheartedly agree.

 

In basketball? Must disagree. The best teams wins a seven-game series in basketball much more often than in baseball, and teams can and should build around the matchups they are likely to face deep into the playoffs.

[Outshined_One]

Plus, they WERE in the finals three years ago, for crying out loud.

 

Quite frankly, they should have been champs that year. It's one thing when you have a guy like Wade get star treatment, but the dude was flopping all over the place and getting calls when people even looked at him.

[shnsajax]

So in 2000, Cuban bought the Mavericks for $285million. They were worth at the time $167million and the 23rd most valuable franchise out of 29 teams. Last season they were worth $463 million, good for #3 on the list. [greenfont]Clearly he doesn't know how to operate a business. Not to mention having only mediocre success with every other business venture he has ever taken on.[greenfont]

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Now I really hope Cuban buys the team to weed out those who aren't true fans.

[javy knows my name]

So in 2000, Cuban bought the Mavericks for $285million. They were worth at the time $167million and the 23rd most valuable franchise out of 29 teams. Last season they were worth $463 million, good for #3 on the list. [greenfont]Clearly he doesn't know how to operate a business. Not to mention having only mediocre success with every other business venture he has ever taken on.[greenfont]

Let me preface this by saying that I think Cuban would be a great choice. However, defending his ability to run a business really doesn't do much to further his cause to non-believers, especially in the Cubs case. The man is going to make an obscene amount of money with the Cubs no matter what he does; the question is, is he going to run his business like Jeffrey Loria or like Steinbrenner?

And by like Jeffrey Loria, I would mean keep the payroll the same and not drastically change the team. Loria makes a ton of money by selling his young players high at the cost of the team's (continued) success. My finance major friend says he's the best owner in baseball because of his business savvy. I think he's an a-hole.

[shnsajax]

So in 2000, Cuban bought the Mavericks for $285million. They were worth at the time $167million and the 23rd most valuable franchise out of 29 teams. Last season they were worth $463 million, good for #3 on the list. [greenfont]Clearly he doesn't know how to operate a business. Not to mention having only mediocre success with every other business venture he has ever taken on.[greenfont]

Let me preface this by saying that I think Cuban would be a great choice. However, defending his ability to run a business really doesn't do much to further his cause to non-believers, especially in the Cubs case. The man is going to make an obscene amount of money with the Cubs no matter what he does; the question is, is he going to run his business like Jeffrey Loria or like Steinbrenner?

And by like Jeffrey Loria, I would mean keep the payroll the same and not drastically change the team. Loria makes a ton of money by selling his young players high at the cost of the team's (continued) success. My finance major friend says he's the best owner in baseball because of his business savvy. I think he's an a-hole.

 

I think its an extremely important point though for Bud Selig and all of the other owners voting for approval as well. Cuban has taken an operating loss several years (almost an 18 million dollar loss last season) on the Mavericks yet the franchise value continues to improve vs. the rest of the league. Cuban's business approach is still geared long term, nothing short term, and nothing that will impact the team in any given season. So no there is no comparison to Loria what so ever.

[RedIvyCub]

What about moving it 100 feet or so and going back to the Federal League?

 

Getting rid of some of the fences and concrete panels might look pretty good, actually. Even redoing them would work.

 

YAY, someone gets what they are trying to do to the exterior. Remove those huge ugly concrete slabs and replace that garrish chain link fencing with decorative iron. If you look at old pictures of Wrigley, you will see where they are going with this idea. It will look so much better.

 

They used to have some photos from the 60s through the 80s. There were also a few really old ones. Sadly, McD stripped the hallways of those historical photos to put up flashy current photos of players and parts of the park.

 

Do they have old photos of the stadium through the years on the walls of the executive offices?

 

I ask because I can't think of better wall fixtures than old photos through the years. My local bank has pictures on their walls of photos of the early days of the actual spot where the bank currently sits. It's pretty cool to see how areas develop over time, not to mention rather historic.

[RedIvyCub]

What about moving it 100 feet or so and going back to the Federal League?

 

Getting rid of some of the fences and concrete panels might look pretty good, actually. Even redoing them would work.

 

YAY, someone gets what they are trying to do to the exterior. Remove those huge ugly concrete slabs and replace that garrish chain link fencing with decorative iron. If you look at old pictures of Wrigley, you will see where they are going with this idea. It will look so much better.

 

Do they have old photos of the stadium through the years on the walls of the executive offices?

 

I ask because I can't think of better wall fixtures than old photos through the years. My local bank has pictures on their walls of photos of the early days of the actual spot where the bank currently sits. It's pretty cool to see how areas develop over time, not to mention rather historic.

 

They used to have some photos from the 60s through the 80s. There were also a few really old ones. Sadly, McD stripped the hallways of those historical photos to put up flashy current photos of players and parts of the park. Just wiped the history away...guess he thought it would make the team win a WS and he could be the King of Chicago.

[RedIvyCub]

Some of those chain link fences are rather unsightly. Adding more luxury seats at the expense of team offices doesn't bother me at all. I figured most of the team offices were at Tribune Tower anyway.

 

Incorrect...every member of the Cubs front office works at Wrigley Field (outside of scouts of course).

 

Not sure where you were getting that the luxury seating would be at the expense of the team offices which desperately need a major overhaul. There is a reason that the Cubs front office is the smallest by far in baseball and that is because they lack the space to expand the staff as part of the reason. The team offices face the outside of the park (hence all the windows above the main entrance to the park) with portions under the main ramps in the back of the seating areas of the grandstand so those would have to be some awfully darn big luxury seats.

 

He got it from this article, that was linked to above.

 

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080508-wrigley-field-more-taxes-chicago-cubs,1,7811302.story

 

And if it's true that the office space is constricting the front office, that is ridiculous.

 

Yes, I saw the article so I just wondered where they got that idea considering that most of the writers are there every day and have to know the setup.

 

And the front office space in constricting. In some areas, people have very little personal space to do their work.

[RedIvyCub]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Trust me...it's true. Remember the old donut shop? That became media relations in 2005 because there was no place to put them when they expanded another department. Now Media Relations is in a trailer in the parking lot. One very small department has people in four different areas because there is not a space to accomodate them all.

 

It's an old ballpark and there is no more room to add office space. So if they redo the grandstand, I think the current employees might be quite happy. It was why everyone was looking forward to the triangle building on the corner of Clark and Waveland as it would have included office space.

[RedIvyCub]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

Not one of those special assistants has an office at Wrigley and everyone scrambles to find a space for them when they visit. Usually the take over a conference room. Even the scouting director does not have an office at Wrigley Field.

 

Didn't necessarily say they were lacking but it is the smallest front office in baseball because they don't have the space to accomodate all of those people.

[RedIvyCub]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

I think I remember reading something that said the Cubs have the fewest full-time employees (employees working all year round) than any other team in baseball.

 

Sounds more like back office types than what I consider front office. Front office are your heads of baseball operations and whatnot. Marketing and ticket sales people are more like support staff, especially for a team like the Cubs that doesn't need help selling tickets.

 

No everyone at Wrigley who works in the office in considered front office. And those department heads you mention, don't have very many employees which report to them. Front office means all non uniformed full time employees. At least that is the terminology throughout MLB.

 

Ticket sales people are not part of the front office. They are part time unionized employees. There are people who work the ticket office year round (the ones who handle group and season tickets) and I don't envy them. Fans give them a verbal beating on a regular basis.

[CuseCubFan69]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

I think I remember reading something that said the Cubs have the fewest full-time employees (employees working all year round) than any other team in baseball.

 

Sounds more like back office types than what I consider front office. Front office are your heads of baseball operations and whatnot. Marketing and ticket sales people are more like support staff, especially for a team like the Cubs that doesn't need help selling tickets.

 

No everyone at Wrigley who works in the office in considered front office. And those department heads you mention, don't have very many employees which report to them. Front office means all non uniformed full time employees. At least that is the terminology throughout MLB.

 

Ticket sales people are not part of the front office. They are part time unionized employees. There are people who work the ticket office year round (the ones who handle group and season tickets) and I don't envy them. Fans give them a verbal beating on a regular basis.

 

Is Frank Mahoney still in charge RIV?

[RedIvyCub]

It is beyond absurd that the organization's front office is being held up by the amount of office space inside of Wrigley Field.

 

If true, wow.

 

Is it even true that they have fewer front office types than most teams? They have about a half dozen special assistants to the GM. They've got 15 names in the baseball ops section. I'm sure teams like the Mets and White Sox, with a bunch of people actually considered part of the ownership group, probably have more names. And the Yankees seemingly have 2 front offices, in the Bronx and in Tampa. But I've never heard anything about the Cubs lacking bodies in the front office.

 

I think I remember reading something that said the Cubs have the fewest full-time employees (employees working all year round) than any other team in baseball.

 

Sounds more like back office types than what I consider front office. Front office are your heads of baseball operations and whatnot. Marketing and ticket sales people are more like support staff, especially for a team like the Cubs that doesn't need help selling tickets.

 

No everyone at Wrigley who works in the office in considered front office. And those department heads you mention, don't have very many employees which report to them. Front office means all non uniformed full time employees. At least that is the terminology throughout MLB.

 

Ticket sales people are not part of the front office. They are part time unionized employees. There are people who work the ticket office year round (the ones who handle group and season tickets) and I don't envy them. Fans give them a verbal beating on a regular basis.

 

Is Frank Mahoney still in charge RIV?

 

Frank Maloney is the Director of Ticket Operations.