Collin McHugh calls out White Sox for manipulating Eloy Jiménez’s service time

By Mar 13, 2019, 11:27 PM EDT
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Astros pitcher Collin McHugh hasn’t been shy of sharing his point of view on the various issues surrounding Major League Baseball. He expressed solidarity with New Era workers last month, and has consistently been on top of the leagues’ service time manipulation issue. Last month, McHugh tweeted about Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (who has since suffered an injury), “They’re not even pretending to disguise their rationale anymore. This is not good. Fans deserve better.”

On Wednesday afternoon, the White Sox announced that outfield prospect Eloy Jiménez was among the players optioned to Triple-A Charlotte. Jiménez didn’t have a particularly great spring, albeit in a small sample size, batting .154/.154/.346. However, Jiménez is considered by MLB Pipeline — and many other reputable sources — to be the No. 3 prospect in baseball. He demolished minor league pitching to the tune of a .337/.384/.577 line last year between Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte. Besides, it’s not like the White Sox outfield has anything going for it. If the season started today, the starting outfield would consist of Adam Engel, Jon Jay, Brandon Guyer, and Daniel Palka. PECOTA projects them, collectively, to be about replacement level. Jiménez is projected to be about two wins better than a replacement-level player.

McHugh called out the White Sox for sending Jiménez down. He tweeted, “Wishing Eloy the best of luck as he goes to AAA to work on…defense? baserunning? creating excess value for a $1.5 billion franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs in a decade? bunting?”

With wonks in every front office, every team has been guilty to some degree of manipulating its players service time, including McHugh’s Astros. It is assumed, generally, that because smart people think it’s a smart thing to do, then it must be smart. It’s not. Service time manipulation is actually against the rules, contrary to popular belief. That’s why front office executives dance around the issue every February and March.

Pitcher Eric O’Flaherty brought up a great point recently on Twitter. He said, “Braves could have manipulated Jason Heyward’s service time in 2010. They didn’t, and we clinched the NL wild card on the last day of the season.” In a follow-up tweet, O’Flaherty wrote, “JHey hitting a 450ft [three-run home run] on the first swing of his MLB career, with every single fan in a sold out, standing room only crowd chanting his name on Opening Day is a once in a lifetime sports moment that people will remember for the rest of their lives.”

To manipulate a player’s service time is also to be myopic. Gaining that extra year of service time might matter after the 2024 season, when Jiménez would become eligible for free agency if he were to break camp on the active roster. Who knows what the White Sox might look like heading into the 2025 season? What if the club performs above expectations this year and finds itself in contention for the AL Wild Card or, better yet, the AL Central title? It is an unlikely scenario, sure, but is it less likely than that extra year of control over Jiménez meaningfully affecting the fate of the White Sox franchise six years from now? Doubtful.

New bill to build Athletics stadium on Las Vegas Strip caps Nevada’s cost at $380 million

Associated PressMay 27, 2023, 12:14 PM EDT
D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports
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CARSON CITY, Nev. — A bill introduced in the Nevada Legislature would give the Oakland Athletics up to $380 million for a potential 30,000 seat, $1.5 billion retractable roof stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The bulk of the public funding would come from $180 million in transferable tax credits from the state and $120 million in county bonds, which can vary based on interest rate returns. Clark County also would contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

The A’s have been looking for a home to replace Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City for the 1968 season. The team had sought to build a stadium in Fremont, San Jose and finally the Oakland waterfront, all ideas that never materialized.

The plan in the Nevada Legislature won’t directly raise taxes. It can move forward with a simply majority vote in the Senate and Assembly. Lawmakers have a little more than a week to consider the proposal before they adjourn June 5, though it could be voted on if a special session is called.

The Athletics have agreed to use land on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, where the Tropicana Las Vegas casino resort sits. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has said he is disappointed the team didn’t negotiate with Oakland as a “true partner.”

Las Vegas would be the fourth home for a franchise that started as the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-54. It would become the smallest TV market in Major League Baseball and the smallest market to be home to three major professional sports franchises.

The team and Las Vegas are hoping to draw from the nearly 40 million tourists who visit the city annually to help fill the stadium. The 30,000-seat capacity would make it the smallest MLB stadium.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet June 13-15 in New York.

The plan faces an uncertain path in the Nevada Legislature. Democratic leaders said financing bills, including for the A’s, may not go through if Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoes the five budget bills, which he has threatened to do as many of his priorities have stalled or faded in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Under the bill, the Clark County Board of Commissioners would create a homelessness prevention and assistance fund along the stadium’s area in coordination with MLB and the Nevada Resort Association. There, they would manage funds for services, including emergency rental and utility assistance, job training, rehabilitation and counseling services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The lease agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority would be up for renewal after 30 years.

Nevada’s legislative leadership is reviewing the proposal, Democratic state Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager said in a statement.

“No commitment will be made until we have both evaluated the official proposal and received input from interested parties, including impacted community members,” Yeager said.