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DeWitt on 1380:

Q: When did you know there was a problem in your front office?
A: Well, we knew there was a difference in philosophy, and it led to further division

Q: Did you try to get Jocketty to change?
A: Talked to him a bit, there was a disagreement, so it was time to move on

Q: Was the disagreement about the minors?
A: Yeah, that was pretty much it. I thought we needed to develop more from within, and Jock's approach was different. That led to divisiveness in the org, and wasn't productive.

Q: If there'd been more success this year, would we still see Jocketty gone?
A: Hard to say. We won it all last year, and there was still plenty of discontent. When things go bad, it makes everything seem worse.

Q: Should we expect differences in philosophy for next year?
A: We definitely expect to improve for next year no matter who's running it, and we've got a group in charge now that knows where Tony and the coaches stand, and has scouts who knows what we need to do.

Q: Should we do the Cleveland thing, and get young next year, let guys get healthy, and gear up for 2009?
A: Good point, it's hard to make those trades we used to. We could do sneaky things before there was revenue sharing/new CBA, and it's harder to make those deals now. We want to be competitive next year, but we also want to keep developing the youngsters. (He's dodging the question)

Q: What are you looking for in a new GM?
A: We're going to look for a guy with good player/agent relationships who can represent the Cards well and is "competent in the baseball organization" and "committed to building young players"

Q: What does this mean for Tony?
A: Dunno. Talked to Tony, but couldn't get a sense either way. He'll make his decision and let us know.

I think the bottom line is that until DeWitt unloads the team for an obscene profit, the Cards have become the Kansas City Royals-East. Develop exciting young players, watch them develop into stars after 3 or 4 years, and when it looks like they're going to hit the arbitration jackpot, trade them for draft picks or rookie league prospects. Oh, like Oakland, every now and then you'll sneak in for a quick howdy and exit in the first round of the playoffs because your division is weak, but you're not going to be a threat to win the Series.

Where in the world are you getting this idea? You think that getting rid of Jocketty is going to change this organization's approach to winning, player development, and long-range planning? I seriously doubt that.

Look, you might not have Jocketty in the front office, but it's not like we're going to go in some totally different and crazy direction.

Fat Strat wrote:

I think the bottom line is that until DeWitt unloads the team for an obscene profit, the Cards have become the Kansas City Royals-East. Develop exciting young players, watch them develop into stars after 3 or 4 years, and when it looks like they're going to hit the arbitration jackpot, trade them for draft picks or rookie league prospects. Oh, like Oakland, every now and then you'll sneak in for a quick howdy and exit in the first round of the playoffs because your division is weak, but you're not going to be a threat to win the Series.

Where in the world are you getting this idea? You think that getting rid of Jocketty is going to change this organization's approach to winning, player development, and long-range planning? I seriously doubt that.

Look, you might not have Jocketty in the front office, but it's not like we're going to go in some totally different and crazy direction.

Dewitt's waiting until Selig retires so he can sell the team to Mark Cuban.

Michael wrote:I have to admit, I'm excited about the change. This team has been going in the wrong direction for about 3 years.

That said, Walt was great and he has my respect and admiration.

I'm wondering what it was about the 2005 Cardinals (100-62, went to NLCS, had MVP/Cy Young winners, had a 103 OPS+ and 123 ERA+, and looked to have Wainwright and Reyes on the way as very good MLB pitchers) that suggested a trend in the wrong direction.

The Third Man wrote:

Michael wrote:I have to admit, I'm excited about the change. This team has been going in the wrong direction for about 3 years.

That said, Walt was great and he has my respect and admiration.

I'm wondering what it was about the 2005 Cardinals (100-62, went to NLCS, had MVP/Cy Young winners, had a 103 OPS+ and 123 ERA+, and looked to have Wainwright and Reyes on the way as very good MLB pitchers) that suggested a trend in the wrong direction.

I should have put 2 years. That said, they did regress from the previous year.

The Third Man wrote:

Michael wrote:I have to admit, I'm excited about the change. This team has been going in the wrong direction for about 3 years.

That said, Walt was great and he has my respect and admiration.

I'm wondering what it was about the 2005 Cardinals (100-62, went to NLCS, had MVP/Cy Young winners, had a 103 OPS+ and 123 ERA+, and looked to have Wainwright and Reyes on the way as very good MLB pitchers) that suggested a trend in the wrong direction.

I'm guessing the Mulder trade the previous offseason.

The Third Man wrote: I'm wondering what it was about the 2005 Cardinals (100-62, went to NLCS, had MVP/Cy Young winners, had a 103 OPS+ and 123 ERA+, and looked to have Wainwright and Reyes on the way as very good MLB pitchers) that suggested a trend in the wrong direction.

Rolen and Edmonds getting hurt, relying on a guy with a bad injury history and one who was injured before he came over at the top of our rotation, and the horrible horrible 2004 draft. The signs were there, but hardly anybody was seeing it.

Phyrkrakr wrote: Q: Should we do the Cleveland thing, and get young next year, let guys get healthy, and gear up for 2009?
A: Good point, it's hard to make those trades we used to. We could do sneaky things before there was revenue sharing/new CBA, and it's harder to make those deals now. We want to be competitive next year, but we also want to keep developing the youngsters. (He's dodging the question)

I think that's a telling quote. It was one of WJ's strong suits and it, for the most part, has been stifled by the change in baseball. That isn't to say it won't change back, but the last few years it's seems like Walt's mojo didn't work as well as it once did. I think ownership saw the writing on the wall and wanted to switch up gears.

obucard wrote:Dewitt's waiting until Selig retires so he can sell the team to Mark Cuban.

It doesn't work that way. The MLB owners have to approve any new owner(s). That's why you and I have as good a chance to buy the cubs as Cuban does.

Phyrkrakr wrote:DeWitt on 1380:



Q: Was the disagreement about the minors?
A: Yeah, that was pretty much it. I thought we needed to develop more from within, and Jock's approach was different. That led to divisiveness in the org, and wasn't productive.

Sounds to me like Walt wanted to continue the trend of trading youngsters for more expensive, proven players, and everybody else wanted to go in a different direction. I have to admit, Walt made that philosophy work for years, but not so much lately. Things have changed, and I'm not sure Jocketty was adjusting accordingly.

But, he's been terrific. Nothing but respect for what he's done.