This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/31/sports-rush-a-baseball-firestorm/
2017’s original baseball schedule had the Rangers and Astros playing this Tuesday-Thursday in Houston. Hurricane Harvey forced the Astros to move those games. Reports indicate Houston proposed playing this week’s games at Globe Lift Park in Arlington and the Rangers would then come to Houston for three late September games currently scheduled for Arlington.
The Rangers offered to play all six games in Arlington, with Houston being designated the home team this week and receiving all the revenue from the contests, which they could then pocket or donate. The Astros declined that option, which was their option as the home team, worried, apparently, about affecting the competitive balance of the games. The Rangers expressed concerns about compromising their ticket buyers who held seats for the late September games and would have little notice to change their own schedules. They also were likely concerned about the 12-game road trip with which they would have been left in September during a potentially crucial competitive period.
The Rangers have come under a great deal of criticism for their stance, with many apparently believing the most compassionate response would have been to swap the series.
Here are some factors that could have been considered in making the decision about the games and in evaluating that decision afterward.
The Business Side
If you want to maximize the total number of fans who will see the six total games remaining between the teams, as Major League Baseball might, you play all the games in Arlington, because rescheduled games always draw poorly, as do neutral-site games.
If you want to inconvenience only one fan base instead of two, you leave the September games in Arlington. The Houston fans already, though no fault of their own, have no way to go to a ballgame in their town during the early part of this week. From my experience in teams’ front offices, I can tell you that the argument that most fans holding tickets to the September games won’t use them for rescheduled weeknight games a few days notice is a legitimate one. Hurricane Harvey forced Astros fans to miss games for which they held tickets, Should it force Rangers fans to do the same?
Even if one rescheduled September’s games for Houston, there is substantial question as to how many fans would be able to make the games even by that point, given the large number of people whose lives were substantially disrupted. Monday-Wednesday games during the school year are a tough draw anyway.
If you want to maximize the amount of money raised for the relief efforts, you play the three games this week in Arlington. You’ll draw home fans and those who had to relocate from South Texas. You won’t draw much at all in Florida. Whether you donate gate receipts or simply collect donations, you’ll get more for the victims playing in Arlington. So if that’s your priority, you play the games there no matter what happens in September.
The Baseball Side
Playing this week’s games in Arlington would place the Houston players closer to their families than any out-of-state option. If one considers this a crucial factor, given how recently the disaster happened, one plays those games in North Texas no matter what deal one has to make.
It is a virtual certainty the Astros will make the 2017 postseason. The Rangers still face challenges to do so. Strictly from a competitive standpoint, that would seem to indicate that the Arlington team should be the one to get the on-field advantage here if one is to be had. Many have said the Rangers will be out of the race by the end of September, but you simply cannot make that assumption with so many games left to play.
Related to the business-side items above, what advantage does playing at home confer? Getting to bat last is one, but that can be easily changed for a given series. Being more familiar with the angles of the home park is another, and while that’s not irrelevant, Houston is at least as familiar with Globe Life Park as any other facility other than their own because they share a division with the Rangers and therefore play multiple series there each season. The other advantage conferred is playing in front of a home crowd. A rescheduled series would result in small home attendance numbers for the Rangers this week, so they wouldn’t get much of the home crowd advantage. Houston would be likely to have tiny draws as well for a late-added September series, but they’d have a month to prepare. If the Rangers drew 10,000 (probably a generous estimate) to this week’s games and the Astros draw 15,000 each in September, the latter have effectively used the disaster to give themselves a competitive advantage if one believes fan support aids winning.
You could play a series this week in Minute Maid Park without fans. The field was apparently playable, so if you’re all about competitive balance and you won’t draw good crowds no matter where you play, make special arrangements to do it there. It’s not a good solution, and would probably be harder than it sounds, but it solves the issue of park dimensions and at least makes the crowd a neutral factor. The Astros will, in fact, play the Mets there this weekend.
You could also play this week’s games at a minor league or college ballpark in Texas or Oklahoma. The Frisco Roughriders and Round Rock Express had schedule conflicts, but swapping minor league series is less of a big deal than swapping big league ones, so those parks could be freed up. If you’re not going to draw well anyway, the smaller capacities wouldn’t matter.
If maintaining competitive balance is all-important here, and business considerations are to be put out the window, and if we decide that a 12-game road trip late in the season is unduly hurtful to the Rangers’ chance, then get a third team involved. Have the out-of-the-running A’s flip their September 22-24 home series with the Rangers for the one currently scheduled in Arlington for September 28-30. Then you move the Rangers’ series with the Astros to Houston and still give Texas a balance of home and road games. That’s incredibly disruptive from a business standpoint, but if all you’re concerned about is the on-field stuff, that solves that issue.
Summary
Both teams no doubt balanced competitive considerations with fan-related and community-related ones. The situation is a lot more nuanced than knee-jerk criticism would indicate.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Taking A Stance Has Always Been Controversial
This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/29/sports-rush-taking-a-stance/
With the United States enmeshed in an overseas conflict that lingered past original expectations, and amid a political climate charged with racial animus, athletes elected to protest during the ritual playing of the Star-Spangled Banner. Controversy resulted and the men lost opportunities because of it.
They also eventually saw statues erected honoring their gestures.
The scene referenced above did not happen last week. It occurred nearly five decades ago, on October 17, 1968 at the Olympic Games in Mexico City. American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos had won gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 200 meters. The two African-Americans raised gloved fists during the anthem to signify their concerns about racial inequities in their home country. Australian Peter Norman wore a button next to his silver medal in solidarity with their statement.
And a statement it was, albeit a blunt one. It clearly expressed the men’s displeasure with a present state of affairs, though with little room to precisely define it. Such is the case today as well. A handful of NFL players have adopted atypical stances as the anthem has played before their games. Like Carlos and Smith, who were living through the upheavals of the civil rights movement, today’s athletes have identified issues they feel to be inconsistent with what the anthem and the flag should signify. They have used the most public occasions at their disposal to show their discontent.
The United States has a long tradition of questioning power. In the 1770s, certain of our forefathers protested a lack of representation in the affairs of the day, including mercantilist trade policies that much resemble those of the current administration. Indeed, it truly is important to scrutinize authority, and to be able to peacefully do so without said authority being able to stifle your expression.
Writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper or posting a video to YouTube enables one to explain one’s objections in detail. Body language on a medal stand or a football field does not. For better or worse, the flag and its associated anthem have become inextricably equated with the U.S. military, and praise or insult directed at one unavoidably flows over to the other. I think few people in the stadium believe black lives don’t matter; but a whole bunch of them believe the lives of soldiers of all colors matter a lot. When it’s unclear to those observers what’s being protested, anger results.
The results for Carlos, Smith, and Norman included more than anger. The two Americans did, ironically, play professional football, but both had some post-Olympic struggles, especially Carlos, as did their Australian supporter. In the end, however, both San Jose State University (alma mater of Smith and Carlos) and the National Museum of African American History and Culture honored their legacies with statuary.
The racial climate has, in many ways, improved since that time. The year after Smith and Carlos competed in Mexico, the University of Texas won a college football national championship with an all-white roster. The country has since elected an African-American president who, while controversial, was actually less polarizing than his successor.
Did things improve in part because of Smith and Carlos or in spite of them? Will history view the Colin Kaepernicks of the NFL as important consciousness-raisers or as rabble rousers who needlessly prodded patriotic sentiments?
We should perhaps remember 1968, and how many things we couldn’t have possibly foreseen. For instance, a president elected that year would later become the first to resign his office, and his decisions on the War on Drugs may (or may not) have proven, at least in part, the point of Carlos and Smith. That issue remains relevant to today’s debates.
One thing one should certainly do before rendering judgements about protestors in 2017 or 1968 or 1776 is to learn as much as possible about their motivations and the points they’re trying to make using the admittedly unsubtle platforms available to them. Only then can we accurately decide if we should vilify their acts or create monuments to them.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
With the United States enmeshed in an overseas conflict that lingered past original expectations, and amid a political climate charged with racial animus, athletes elected to protest during the ritual playing of the Star-Spangled Banner. Controversy resulted and the men lost opportunities because of it.
They also eventually saw statues erected honoring their gestures.
The scene referenced above did not happen last week. It occurred nearly five decades ago, on October 17, 1968 at the Olympic Games in Mexico City. American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos had won gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 200 meters. The two African-Americans raised gloved fists during the anthem to signify their concerns about racial inequities in their home country. Australian Peter Norman wore a button next to his silver medal in solidarity with their statement.
And a statement it was, albeit a blunt one. It clearly expressed the men’s displeasure with a present state of affairs, though with little room to precisely define it. Such is the case today as well. A handful of NFL players have adopted atypical stances as the anthem has played before their games. Like Carlos and Smith, who were living through the upheavals of the civil rights movement, today’s athletes have identified issues they feel to be inconsistent with what the anthem and the flag should signify. They have used the most public occasions at their disposal to show their discontent.
The United States has a long tradition of questioning power. In the 1770s, certain of our forefathers protested a lack of representation in the affairs of the day, including mercantilist trade policies that much resemble those of the current administration. Indeed, it truly is important to scrutinize authority, and to be able to peacefully do so without said authority being able to stifle your expression.
Writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper or posting a video to YouTube enables one to explain one’s objections in detail. Body language on a medal stand or a football field does not. For better or worse, the flag and its associated anthem have become inextricably equated with the U.S. military, and praise or insult directed at one unavoidably flows over to the other. I think few people in the stadium believe black lives don’t matter; but a whole bunch of them believe the lives of soldiers of all colors matter a lot. When it’s unclear to those observers what’s being protested, anger results.
The results for Carlos, Smith, and Norman included more than anger. The two Americans did, ironically, play professional football, but both had some post-Olympic struggles, especially Carlos, as did their Australian supporter. In the end, however, both San Jose State University (alma mater of Smith and Carlos) and the National Museum of African American History and Culture honored their legacies with statuary.
The racial climate has, in many ways, improved since that time. The year after Smith and Carlos competed in Mexico, the University of Texas won a college football national championship with an all-white roster. The country has since elected an African-American president who, while controversial, was actually less polarizing than his successor.
Did things improve in part because of Smith and Carlos or in spite of them? Will history view the Colin Kaepernicks of the NFL as important consciousness-raisers or as rabble rousers who needlessly prodded patriotic sentiments?
We should perhaps remember 1968, and how many things we couldn’t have possibly foreseen. For instance, a president elected that year would later become the first to resign his office, and his decisions on the War on Drugs may (or may not) have proven, at least in part, the point of Carlos and Smith. That issue remains relevant to today’s debates.
One thing one should certainly do before rendering judgements about protestors in 2017 or 1968 or 1776 is to learn as much as possible about their motivations and the points they’re trying to make using the admittedly unsubtle platforms available to them. Only then can we accurately decide if we should vilify their acts or create monuments to them.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
Saturday, August 26, 2017
A Night of Sports in Arlington
This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/24/sports-rush-sports-night-in-arlington/
If you mapped the traffic flow in North Arlington on your
phone Saturday night, you no doubt saw a steady stream of red. The
incoming vehicles weren’t all headed the same place, but almost all of
them had one thing on their minds: sports.
Arlington did something no other city in North Texas can do, and it might be the first time it’s ever happened. It played host to three professional sporting events at one time.
None of the teams in question are actually named “Arlington,” but they all stage their home games there. Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers took on the Chicago White Sox at Globe Life Park in Arlington while the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys played the Indianapolis Colts at AT&T Stadium as the WNBA’s Dallas Wings hosted the Atlanta Dream at College Park Center.
North Texas hosts a plethora of professional teams. Our 13-county area is home to more than 200 cities and towns. Frisco is the only other one of them with three pro franchises (NBA G-League’s Texas Legends, Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas, and the Texas League’s Frisco RoughRiders baseball team). The northerners (relatively speaking) could conceivably host all three in a day if the Legends made a playoff run deep enough to overlap the start of the RoughRiders’ season, but they have yet to do so.
Based on official attendance numbers, 127,254 people watched live sports in A-town Saturday. Many thousands more tuned in on their preferred screens as all three games were televised. A lot of folks paid attention to Arlington at some level.
Arlington’s civic leaders have bet big on sports. An evening like Saturday magnifies the good (visitors patronizing local eateries and opportunities for nearby residents to conveniently attend high-level athletic contests) and the bad (brutal traffic congestion and locals declining to brave it to patronize Lincoln Square retailers). The economic impact studies produced to support such a project are notoriously unreliable and much of an individual’s assessment is subjective anyway. In my case, I like sports, so I enjoyed getting to go to one of the games while keeping up with the others’ progress online. Some people might prefer their city host a trio of quilting bees or renaissance festivals.
As you’re determining what you think about Saturday’s big sports night, does it matter that all three teams won? Sure, the Cowboys were in preseason, but a win’s a win. And the Rangers and Wings really needed their victories as they attempt to secure postseason spots. Does being able to host three Ws in a night make Arlington a city of winners? Should Arlingtonians talk trash to two-team Dallas or teamless Little Elm?
This could happen again September 10 if the Wings make the playoffs and the schedule falls right. That day the Cowboys and Rangers face the Giants and Yankees, respectively, both outfits having been named for a city that has hosted 3+ games in a day many times (although the Giants now play in New Jersey). The Wings could even conceivably host the New York Liberty if results and seedings so dictated. So if you think you’ll be in the mood for some live sports that day, come to North Arlington (I’d show up early, by the way). If you believe you’d like to browse used books, cruise Collins Street in your hot rod, or stroll through Bob Cluck Linear Park, maybe pick another day.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
Arlington did something no other city in North Texas can do, and it might be the first time it’s ever happened. It played host to three professional sporting events at one time.
None of the teams in question are actually named “Arlington,” but they all stage their home games there. Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers took on the Chicago White Sox at Globe Life Park in Arlington while the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys played the Indianapolis Colts at AT&T Stadium as the WNBA’s Dallas Wings hosted the Atlanta Dream at College Park Center.
North Texas hosts a plethora of professional teams. Our 13-county area is home to more than 200 cities and towns. Frisco is the only other one of them with three pro franchises (NBA G-League’s Texas Legends, Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas, and the Texas League’s Frisco RoughRiders baseball team). The northerners (relatively speaking) could conceivably host all three in a day if the Legends made a playoff run deep enough to overlap the start of the RoughRiders’ season, but they have yet to do so.
Based on official attendance numbers, 127,254 people watched live sports in A-town Saturday. Many thousands more tuned in on their preferred screens as all three games were televised. A lot of folks paid attention to Arlington at some level.
Arlington’s civic leaders have bet big on sports. An evening like Saturday magnifies the good (visitors patronizing local eateries and opportunities for nearby residents to conveniently attend high-level athletic contests) and the bad (brutal traffic congestion and locals declining to brave it to patronize Lincoln Square retailers). The economic impact studies produced to support such a project are notoriously unreliable and much of an individual’s assessment is subjective anyway. In my case, I like sports, so I enjoyed getting to go to one of the games while keeping up with the others’ progress online. Some people might prefer their city host a trio of quilting bees or renaissance festivals.
As you’re determining what you think about Saturday’s big sports night, does it matter that all three teams won? Sure, the Cowboys were in preseason, but a win’s a win. And the Rangers and Wings really needed their victories as they attempt to secure postseason spots. Does being able to host three Ws in a night make Arlington a city of winners? Should Arlingtonians talk trash to two-team Dallas or teamless Little Elm?
This could happen again September 10 if the Wings make the playoffs and the schedule falls right. That day the Cowboys and Rangers face the Giants and Yankees, respectively, both outfits having been named for a city that has hosted 3+ games in a day many times (although the Giants now play in New Jersey). The Wings could even conceivably host the New York Liberty if results and seedings so dictated. So if you think you’ll be in the mood for some live sports that day, come to North Arlington (I’d show up early, by the way). If you believe you’d like to browse used books, cruise Collins Street in your hot rod, or stroll through Bob Cluck Linear Park, maybe pick another day.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Talking the 1976 Olympics and Women’s Basketball with Billie Moore
This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/15/sports-rush-how-the-1976-olympics-shaped-womens-basketball/
In 1972, the members of the United States basketball team declined their Olympic silver medals after losing the title game in controversial fashion to the underdog Soviet Union team.
Four years later, a USA basketball team again watched the U.S.S.R claim Olympic gold, but this time the runners-up treasured their awards.
While the two teams earned the same results, the second group of Olympians differed significantly from the Munich team in one key respect: their gender. Indeed, the Montreal competition marked the first time women from any country had competed in an Olympic basketball tournament. The men played in ’76, too, of course, and Coach Dean Smith’s team reassured American hoops fans by reclaiming gold. But for Billie Moore, the women’s coach, her squad’s finish carried both immediate and lasting significance.
In this video interview, Coach Moore explains how the US nearly didn’t make the Olympic Games despite the presence of future Hall of Famers like Pat Head, Anne Meyers, and Nancy Lieberman. A Hall of Famer herself, Moore also details what their showing meant to the future of the sport.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
In 1972, the members of the United States basketball team declined their Olympic silver medals after losing the title game in controversial fashion to the underdog Soviet Union team.
Four years later, a USA basketball team again watched the U.S.S.R claim Olympic gold, but this time the runners-up treasured their awards.
While the two teams earned the same results, the second group of Olympians differed significantly from the Munich team in one key respect: their gender. Indeed, the Montreal competition marked the first time women from any country had competed in an Olympic basketball tournament. The men played in ’76, too, of course, and Coach Dean Smith’s team reassured American hoops fans by reclaiming gold. But for Billie Moore, the women’s coach, her squad’s finish carried both immediate and lasting significance.
In this video interview, Coach Moore explains how the US nearly didn’t make the Olympic Games despite the presence of future Hall of Famers like Pat Head, Anne Meyers, and Nancy Lieberman. A Hall of Famer herself, Moore also details what their showing meant to the future of the sport.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
Wednesday, August 9, 2017
Ed Belfour on Hockey and His New Business Venture
This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/09/sports-rush-ed-belfour-in-good-spirits/
Ed Belfour’s goaltending propelled the Dallas
Stars to the franchise’s only Stanley Cup win. He formed a unique bond
with that team’s coach, Ken Hitchcock. Now the club has rehired
Hitchcock in hopes of returning to an elite level. In this video
interview, Belfour offers his feelings about his former coach coming
back and why Hitchcock might be even better this time around. The Eagle
also talks about a team he has assembled and the work they have been
doing to create a North Texas distillery to be called Belfour Spirits.
Videographer Dave French and I did this interview in
Louisville, Kentucky where we were recording images of the exchange and
refinement of ideas related to the development of the distillery. I
observed elements analogous to the Belfours’ sporting backgrounds (Ed’s
son Dayn, also a former goaltender, is his partner in the venture, as is
his daughter Reaghan) . Firstly, they truly tried to assemble a team
and let them play their positions. The Belfours didn’t pretend to know
everything (although they have certainly done their homework on the
industry), but they did try to have a good representation of the diverse
factors that go into creating a distillery from scratch. Those included
building design and construction, event space planning, branding and
marketing, production workflow, and finance.
I also thought about how Ed Belfour approached the game of hockey. He
had a reputation for paying close attention to details, wanting to keep
on top of everything from the sharpness of his skates to new techniques
other goaltenders had adopted around the league. He approached the
distillery business the same way. Everyone we talked to at the meetings
agreed that he was keen to make sure nothing fell through the cracks.
Architect Wayne Estopinal, who describes himself as a “detail freak,”
viewed Ed’s approach as a positive.
“I
think that’s helped a lot,” he told me. “If we had a guy who just threw
out a big idea and left it to everybody else to implement it, for them
it’s kind of a hollow feeling. You want somebody engaged and he
certainly is.”
They came out of their meetings knowing what they wanted
and how much it might cost, and next steps will include figuring out
financing it and what to do first. It’s probably similar to building a
hockey team, come to think of it. Stars fans will no doubt hope both
Belfour and his former boss will experience success with their new, yet
in many ways familiar, teams.
RushOlson.com
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Wednesday, August 2, 2017
More Than Just 3,000 Hits
This post originally appeared in the Blotch section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/01/sports-rush-ode-to-adrian/
It’s not an unusual sequence. When a Major League Baseball player records his 3000th hit, effusive praise follows. We get to see video of hit number one in his career and endless replays of his milestone.
Since the Rangers’ Adrián Beltré doubled in his second at-bat Sunday, the kudos have rolled in. Teammates’ quotes have lauded his accomplishments and pundits have extolled his Hall of Fame credentials.
I took especial notice of a blog post by Rangers reporter Emily Jones, probably because much of her experience with the great third baseman mirrored my own. I worked for the team when he arrived in 2011, and had the privilege of interacting with him for the purpose of shooting TV commercials and certain other video and audio projects, as well as the occasional live event.
Like Jones, I wasn’t sure what to think of Beltré when he arrived. He takes his job seriously, and his facial expression often reflects that, even in the clubhouse where someone in my position, or Jones’s, would need to solicit him to participate in some video. He also was an established star, and that status means you might approach him a little more slowly than, say, a rookie eager to do whatever anybody in the organization asks.
We figured out pretty quickly we didn’t have anything to worry about. He might set that intimidating jaw to good effect in the batter’s box, but he could break into an infectious grin on a moment’s notice.
photo courtesy Brian Gagnon/Texas Rangers
We saw it shooting a commercial that featured him and teammates Josh Hamilton and Darren O’Day. Not only did he not mind being there, the superstar asked if he could wear the goofy foam cowboy hat we had brought for a prop. We shot some takes with it, although it didn’t make the final spot. He and Hamilton joked about whether Josh was allowed to touch his head while wearing the getup.
photo courtesy Tim George/Texas Rangers
Jones mentioned how good he is with his teammates and his family. In fact, you’d often see him pitching to his son in the outfield during the afternoons before a game. But Beltré also embraced those he’d never met before. At another commercial shoot, the juvenile actor seated next to him had a runny nose. The guy best positioned to solve this problem was our $96 million infielder. The father of three did as I am sure he has many times and applied tissue to nostril, stanched the flow without complaint, and laughed about it afterward.
His first two seasons in Texas were my last two with the club. I was at every home game he played and considered it a great privilege to see him do something amazing pretty much every night. He was even good at choosing walkup music that got the whole ballpark control room singing along in Spanish. He performed remarkable physical feats on the field, and also showed off a deep appreciation for the game and a fierce competitive spirit.
I’m reminded of his performance at a Park Place Dealerships Triple Play charity game show night. The players competed in a version of the $40,000 Pyramid. Host Eric Nadel gave them a list of terms and they had to figure out what tied the words together. As Nadel read “Oh . . . Aaron . . . Mays . . . Sosa . . . Bonds . . . Thome,” you could see the question marks pop up over the contestants’ heads. But you could also observe Beltré deep in thought, and he finally rang in. “Players who have hit 600 home runs” was the answer and he had deduced it. His playing partner, Elvis Andrus, asked about “Oh,” and Nadel explained it referred to Japanese slugger Sadaharu Oh, and noted that Yu Darvish probably could have explained it. I bet the student of the game Beltré could have, too.
And someday in the future when people are playing games and trying to name players who have achieved great things in the game, the correct answer will, on many occasions, be Adrián Beltré.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
It’s not an unusual sequence. When a Major League Baseball player records his 3000th hit, effusive praise follows. We get to see video of hit number one in his career and endless replays of his milestone.
Since the Rangers’ Adrián Beltré doubled in his second at-bat Sunday, the kudos have rolled in. Teammates’ quotes have lauded his accomplishments and pundits have extolled his Hall of Fame credentials.
I took especial notice of a blog post by Rangers reporter Emily Jones, probably because much of her experience with the great third baseman mirrored my own. I worked for the team when he arrived in 2011, and had the privilege of interacting with him for the purpose of shooting TV commercials and certain other video and audio projects, as well as the occasional live event.
Like Jones, I wasn’t sure what to think of Beltré when he arrived. He takes his job seriously, and his facial expression often reflects that, even in the clubhouse where someone in my position, or Jones’s, would need to solicit him to participate in some video. He also was an established star, and that status means you might approach him a little more slowly than, say, a rookie eager to do whatever anybody in the organization asks.
We figured out pretty quickly we didn’t have anything to worry about. He might set that intimidating jaw to good effect in the batter’s box, but he could break into an infectious grin on a moment’s notice.
We saw it shooting a commercial that featured him and teammates Josh Hamilton and Darren O’Day. Not only did he not mind being there, the superstar asked if he could wear the goofy foam cowboy hat we had brought for a prop. We shot some takes with it, although it didn’t make the final spot. He and Hamilton joked about whether Josh was allowed to touch his head while wearing the getup.
Jones mentioned how good he is with his teammates and his family. In fact, you’d often see him pitching to his son in the outfield during the afternoons before a game. But Beltré also embraced those he’d never met before. At another commercial shoot, the juvenile actor seated next to him had a runny nose. The guy best positioned to solve this problem was our $96 million infielder. The father of three did as I am sure he has many times and applied tissue to nostril, stanched the flow without complaint, and laughed about it afterward.
His first two seasons in Texas were my last two with the club. I was at every home game he played and considered it a great privilege to see him do something amazing pretty much every night. He was even good at choosing walkup music that got the whole ballpark control room singing along in Spanish. He performed remarkable physical feats on the field, and also showed off a deep appreciation for the game and a fierce competitive spirit.
I’m reminded of his performance at a Park Place Dealerships Triple Play charity game show night. The players competed in a version of the $40,000 Pyramid. Host Eric Nadel gave them a list of terms and they had to figure out what tied the words together. As Nadel read “Oh . . . Aaron . . . Mays . . . Sosa . . . Bonds . . . Thome,” you could see the question marks pop up over the contestants’ heads. But you could also observe Beltré deep in thought, and he finally rang in. “Players who have hit 600 home runs” was the answer and he had deduced it. His playing partner, Elvis Andrus, asked about “Oh,” and Nadel explained it referred to Japanese slugger Sadaharu Oh, and noted that Yu Darvish probably could have explained it. I bet the student of the game Beltré could have, too.
And someday in the future when people are playing games and trying to name players who have achieved great things in the game, the correct answer will, on many occasions, be Adrián Beltré.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
A Window on the Trading Deadline
This post originally appeared in the Stuff section of the Fort Worth Weekly's website. To consume it there : https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/08/02/trading-games/
A baseball trading deadline revolves around seeing the future. A team acquiring proven talent attempts to peer three months hence and occasionally as much as 15 months. A franchise adding prospects needs to see further, sometimes as much as four years or more.
Ironically, a word we use when talking about a baseball club’s ability to try to predict its near future is “window.” A winning club’s collection of talent is said to have a period of time when it’s a viable title contender before those players age and leave due to free agency, retirement, or cost-benefit analysis.
Heading into this season, the Texas Rangers returned the core of consecutive division title-winning teams led by the 2015 American League Manager of the Year. They added fan favorite and power threat Mike Napoli, plus TCU product Andrew Cashner. They had reason to expect continued progress from young players like Rougned Odor, Nomar Mazara, and Joey Gallo.
Their window of opportunity seemed open. The 2017 Rangers have shown promising bursts, including May’s 10-game win streak and another five-gamer in June against first-place teams Washington and Houston. Overall, however, they have won fewer games than they have lost. Young players have not taken necessary steps forward, though the 23-year-old Gallo’s OPS north of .830 shows progress. Veterans have mostly underperformed. Cole Hamels missed time with an oblique strain. The relief pitching has inexplicably beached itself, as bullpens sometimes do.
This season’s window of contention, then, has likely rattled closed for the Rangers, and their trade deadline activity reflected it. July 31 represents a key date in the baseball calendar, because it is the last date teams can trade players without sending them through waivers. From now through the end of the season, a team wishing to trade a player must put him through revocable waivers, a process that allows any team to claim him. At that point, the player’s current club must either pull him off waivers and keep him, trade him to the claiming team, or let the claimant take the player and his salary. Each player can only go through the process once a season, so it can stymie a lot of August trades. Teams therefore generally decide by July 31 whether their windows to win include the current campaign.
This July, the Rangers traded three established players for younger ones unlikely to help them win games this season. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy went to the Rockies for a player to be named later; relief pitcher Jeremy Jeffress moved to Milwaukee for minor league right-hander Tayler Scott; and starting pitcher Yu Darvish headed west to the Los Angeles Dodgers for prospects Willie Calhoun, A.J. Alexy, and Brendon Davis.
The returns for Lucroy and Jeffress will not have a substantial impact on any Rangers window. With the former posting a career-low batting average and the latter’s ERA at a career-high 5.31 at the time of the trade, the Rangers had to sell low. Baseball-reference.com rated both at below replacement level in 2017, implying that any average player would have performed better. One could argue that moving them might have made sense no matter where you found yourself in the standings, especially given that Colorado now has to pay a portion of Lucroy’s $5-plus million salary.
Darvish, however, likely offers substantial present value to any team. Baseball Reference estimated his WAR at 2.8, higher than any other Ranger. He has struck out more than a batter per inning and offers a bewildering selection of pitches. Banister declared that losing his team’s only All-Star selection doesn’t mean his group won’t have a chance to contend. He should say that, because his job entails motivating the men he manages, and players view the possibility of October baseball as an important enticement. Also, Banister could be right. We don’t know because we haven’t played the games yet. Other contenders could suffer slumps or injuries, and his roster could improve its performance. Darvish’s departure makes it unlikely, however, that the Rangers’ window of contention will extend into 2017.
The Rangers fan must ask that if 2017 is not the team’s window, when is? The team’s current run dates to 2010, with Texas playing beyond the standard 162 regular season games every year since then other than an injury-crushed 2014. Its success rested on a strong minor league system fortified by prescient trades, draft choices, and international signings. The club supplemented its internal promotions with free agent signings and by using its farm depth to trade for the likes of Hamels, Cliff Lee, and Mike Adams.
If General Manager Jon Daniels polishes the glass on his crystal ball and spies a chance to contend next season, it means he sees enough tools either currently on the roster, ready to be promoted from the minor leagues, or likely to be acquired in the offseason. Perhaps internal evaluations indicate they can expect improved performance from current guys. They might also look at signing free agents. Darvish will become available again, if they want to make a run at him. Last year, the Yankees effectively rented Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs before re-signing him in the offseason. The Cubbies did the same the year before in bringing Jason Hammel back from Oakland after dealing him there mid-season.
Darvish makes $11 million this year and can expect to command more than double that next year, barring injury. Texas has $61.5 million in combined commitments to three thirtysomething players next year (Hamels, Adrián Beltré, and Shin-soo Choo) and the 29-year-old Elvis Andrus. Could they afford to re-up with Darvish and, since they would need to improve on what they had this season even with the big right-hander, also add another big-ticket free agent like Wade Davis or J.D. Martinez?
In a sport without a hard salary cap, the Rangers’ revenues have an impact on payroll acquisitions. The way ticket sales cycles go, the club will likely have less money to work with for next year’s budget. A non-playoff season means less money coming in during the all-important winter season and group ticket sales period. We can also expect limited sponsor revenue-producing additions to the current ballpark (à la the Hyundai Club or left field video board of recent years) with a new stadium on the horizon.
In terms of internal help, it’s not out of the question that Calhoun or Ronald Guzman could emerge from AAA to impact the big club next year. Perhaps Nick Martinez will surface as a reliable starter. The Rangers’ farm system is not what it once was, though, weakened in part by the trades for Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza, and others, made to extend the current competitive window. This year’s trade deadline deals won’t hurt, but they won’t move the needle there, either.
If the Rangers’ next window isn’t 2018, when is it? To get back to winning its division consistently, and earning its best chance at succeeding in the crapshoot that is the postseason, Texas must overcome its A.L. West foes. Most of the teams have remained bunched in the middle of the standings this year. Various services rank the minor league systems of the Rangers, Angels, and Mariners in the lower third of baseball. The A’s get placed a bit higher, and their own deadline trade of Sonny Gray improved their system further, but unless they get a new facility and improve their ability to boost payroll, Oakland isn’t a long-term threat.
The young and talented Astros present problems, however. In addition to running away with the division in 2017, they possess one of the major leagues’ top development pipelines. How can the Rangers match up with them in 2019 and beyond? In 2008 and 2009, Daniels and his staff, along with then-president Nolan Ryan, brilliantly identified who in their current organization could help them win and which players they’d need to acquire. They thought they might surprise in 2009 (and they almost did), and they knew they would in 2010. That’s their challenge now — to figure out when they’ll be good again and who needs to still be here when it happens. It’s not an easy process, because everyone wants to win now, but the organization needs, above all, to be realistic about it.
Daniels’ office, like many on the fourth floor of Globe Life Park in Arlington’s center field building, has a window overlooking the diamond. Every so often, workers walk the ballpark balconies cleaning the glass. Rangers fans hope they do a good job, because for JD and his staff, it’s all about clear vision and windows.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
A baseball trading deadline revolves around seeing the future. A team acquiring proven talent attempts to peer three months hence and occasionally as much as 15 months. A franchise adding prospects needs to see further, sometimes as much as four years or more.
Ironically, a word we use when talking about a baseball club’s ability to try to predict its near future is “window.” A winning club’s collection of talent is said to have a period of time when it’s a viable title contender before those players age and leave due to free agency, retirement, or cost-benefit analysis.
Heading into this season, the Texas Rangers returned the core of consecutive division title-winning teams led by the 2015 American League Manager of the Year. They added fan favorite and power threat Mike Napoli, plus TCU product Andrew Cashner. They had reason to expect continued progress from young players like Rougned Odor, Nomar Mazara, and Joey Gallo.
Their window of opportunity seemed open. The 2017 Rangers have shown promising bursts, including May’s 10-game win streak and another five-gamer in June against first-place teams Washington and Houston. Overall, however, they have won fewer games than they have lost. Young players have not taken necessary steps forward, though the 23-year-old Gallo’s OPS north of .830 shows progress. Veterans have mostly underperformed. Cole Hamels missed time with an oblique strain. The relief pitching has inexplicably beached itself, as bullpens sometimes do.
This season’s window of contention, then, has likely rattled closed for the Rangers, and their trade deadline activity reflected it. July 31 represents a key date in the baseball calendar, because it is the last date teams can trade players without sending them through waivers. From now through the end of the season, a team wishing to trade a player must put him through revocable waivers, a process that allows any team to claim him. At that point, the player’s current club must either pull him off waivers and keep him, trade him to the claiming team, or let the claimant take the player and his salary. Each player can only go through the process once a season, so it can stymie a lot of August trades. Teams therefore generally decide by July 31 whether their windows to win include the current campaign.
This July, the Rangers traded three established players for younger ones unlikely to help them win games this season. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy went to the Rockies for a player to be named later; relief pitcher Jeremy Jeffress moved to Milwaukee for minor league right-hander Tayler Scott; and starting pitcher Yu Darvish headed west to the Los Angeles Dodgers for prospects Willie Calhoun, A.J. Alexy, and Brendon Davis.
The returns for Lucroy and Jeffress will not have a substantial impact on any Rangers window. With the former posting a career-low batting average and the latter’s ERA at a career-high 5.31 at the time of the trade, the Rangers had to sell low. Baseball-reference.com rated both at below replacement level in 2017, implying that any average player would have performed better. One could argue that moving them might have made sense no matter where you found yourself in the standings, especially given that Colorado now has to pay a portion of Lucroy’s $5-plus million salary.
Darvish, however, likely offers substantial present value to any team. Baseball Reference estimated his WAR at 2.8, higher than any other Ranger. He has struck out more than a batter per inning and offers a bewildering selection of pitches. Banister declared that losing his team’s only All-Star selection doesn’t mean his group won’t have a chance to contend. He should say that, because his job entails motivating the men he manages, and players view the possibility of October baseball as an important enticement. Also, Banister could be right. We don’t know because we haven’t played the games yet. Other contenders could suffer slumps or injuries, and his roster could improve its performance. Darvish’s departure makes it unlikely, however, that the Rangers’ window of contention will extend into 2017.
The Rangers fan must ask that if 2017 is not the team’s window, when is? The team’s current run dates to 2010, with Texas playing beyond the standard 162 regular season games every year since then other than an injury-crushed 2014. Its success rested on a strong minor league system fortified by prescient trades, draft choices, and international signings. The club supplemented its internal promotions with free agent signings and by using its farm depth to trade for the likes of Hamels, Cliff Lee, and Mike Adams.
If General Manager Jon Daniels polishes the glass on his crystal ball and spies a chance to contend next season, it means he sees enough tools either currently on the roster, ready to be promoted from the minor leagues, or likely to be acquired in the offseason. Perhaps internal evaluations indicate they can expect improved performance from current guys. They might also look at signing free agents. Darvish will become available again, if they want to make a run at him. Last year, the Yankees effectively rented Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs before re-signing him in the offseason. The Cubbies did the same the year before in bringing Jason Hammel back from Oakland after dealing him there mid-season.
Darvish makes $11 million this year and can expect to command more than double that next year, barring injury. Texas has $61.5 million in combined commitments to three thirtysomething players next year (Hamels, Adrián Beltré, and Shin-soo Choo) and the 29-year-old Elvis Andrus. Could they afford to re-up with Darvish and, since they would need to improve on what they had this season even with the big right-hander, also add another big-ticket free agent like Wade Davis or J.D. Martinez?
In a sport without a hard salary cap, the Rangers’ revenues have an impact on payroll acquisitions. The way ticket sales cycles go, the club will likely have less money to work with for next year’s budget. A non-playoff season means less money coming in during the all-important winter season and group ticket sales period. We can also expect limited sponsor revenue-producing additions to the current ballpark (à la the Hyundai Club or left field video board of recent years) with a new stadium on the horizon.
In terms of internal help, it’s not out of the question that Calhoun or Ronald Guzman could emerge from AAA to impact the big club next year. Perhaps Nick Martinez will surface as a reliable starter. The Rangers’ farm system is not what it once was, though, weakened in part by the trades for Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza, and others, made to extend the current competitive window. This year’s trade deadline deals won’t hurt, but they won’t move the needle there, either.
If the Rangers’ next window isn’t 2018, when is it? To get back to winning its division consistently, and earning its best chance at succeeding in the crapshoot that is the postseason, Texas must overcome its A.L. West foes. Most of the teams have remained bunched in the middle of the standings this year. Various services rank the minor league systems of the Rangers, Angels, and Mariners in the lower third of baseball. The A’s get placed a bit higher, and their own deadline trade of Sonny Gray improved their system further, but unless they get a new facility and improve their ability to boost payroll, Oakland isn’t a long-term threat.
The young and talented Astros present problems, however. In addition to running away with the division in 2017, they possess one of the major leagues’ top development pipelines. How can the Rangers match up with them in 2019 and beyond? In 2008 and 2009, Daniels and his staff, along with then-president Nolan Ryan, brilliantly identified who in their current organization could help them win and which players they’d need to acquire. They thought they might surprise in 2009 (and they almost did), and they knew they would in 2010. That’s their challenge now — to figure out when they’ll be good again and who needs to still be here when it happens. It’s not an easy process, because everyone wants to win now, but the organization needs, above all, to be realistic about it.
Daniels’ office, like many on the fourth floor of Globe Life Park in Arlington’s center field building, has a window overlooking the diamond. Every so often, workers walk the ballpark balconies cleaning the glass. Rangers fans hope they do a good job, because for JD and his staff, it’s all about clear vision and windows.
Rush Olson has spent two decades directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently creates ad campaigns, television programs, and related creative projects for sports entities through Rush Olson Creative & Sports, Mint Farm Films, and FourNine Productions.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
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