Hot start tempered by fiscal reality for LaMar

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By JOHN ROMANO, Times Staff Writer

© St. Petersburg Times
published April 4, 2002

ST. PETERSBURG -- The season has just begun and already the Rays have distinguished themselves from the pack. They lead the league in frugal.

This is no small accomplishment. The Rays are spending less money than Montreal. And the Expos don't even have an owner.

In case you missed the news, the Rays are beginning 2002 with the lowest payroll in the majors. I'm betting they go wire to wire.

For, you see, general manager Chuck LaMar is under orders to further pare the payroll. And, if he has time, win more games than last season and build the Rays into a contender for next season.

This is akin, of course, to asking the manager of a local coffee shop to increase production, decrease expenditures and overtake Starbucks next year.

"This year," LaMar said, without a trace of self-pity, "is going to be a tremendous challenge."

The baseball world is supposed to look bright and fresh in April. In the season's first month, you see a team in its pristine state, long before time and reality intrude.

For the most part, this is how it is this morning in Tampa Bay. The Rays appear young, hungry and exciting. They have come from behind in the eighth inning on consecutive nights. They have won consecutive games to start a season for the first time. They have pitched well and fought hard.

But, in the case of LaMar, the enthusiasm is tempered by the task at hand. It is difficult to appreciate the bigger picture when you're in charge of shrinking the landscape.

"I have to be the realistic one," LaMar said. "All of us in baseball, especially this time of year, want to be the idealistic one."

There is plenty of blame to share for this predicament. Ownership has been impulsive and erratic. LaMar has made some poor personnel decisions. And the margin for error is ridiculously thin because fans have failed to provide support in the form of attendance and, thus, revenues.

So the result is the team is downsizing at a time when it should be growing. After all, it is not unrealistic to expect some measure of growth when you begin the fifth year of a five-year plan.

Yet Tampa Bay's payroll today is less than one-third the size of the Yankees'. Apparently, the aim is to reach one-fourth.

Which is why the Rays must entertain the notion of trading closer Esteban Yan before he earns his first save of the season. Which is one of the reasons rightfielder Ben Grieve could be heralded as an integral piece of the puzzle in 2001 and a poor fit in 2002.

Attrition will solve some of LaMar's problems by 2003. The contracts of Wilson Alvarez and John Flaherty will expire in October and Tampa Bay's payroll will immediately shrink by $11-million.

But LaMar does not have the luxury of waiting until the offseason. Three months from now, he is expected to have found new homes for some of his veterans. Yan, Grieve, Alvarez, Flaherty and Greg Vaughn are candidates. Not so coincidentally, they are Tampa Bay's five highest-paid players.

"Our intent is to keep this club together for the first two to three months and let them play," LaMar said. "Yet if something presents itself that I can reduce payroll and hopefully get us better for the future, I would have to do that. Even though it would have an impact on this club."

You might argue it is premature to talk about trading a player with as much value as your closer. You might make a case for waiting until July when you have reaped the rewards of a half-season

But that is assuming more than LaMar can potentially afford. What happens if Yan is injured or bombs? In that case the Rays are not only on the hook for his entire $1.5-million salary, but must decide whether to cut him loose in the offseason with nothing in return.

Every dollar saved this season is another that can be applied toward keeping Tanyon Sturtze or Paul Wilson next season.

Still, in the end, none of the immediate solutions are appealing.

Should a fan be excited because a prospect was acquired at the cost of the team's only closer? Should you root for Vaughn to have a so-so first half because you do not want his trade value to increase?

Which brings us back to LaMar. No one wants the Rays to win more than he. And even though it is his reputation on the line, he still must follow the organization's bottom line.

But as much as he dreads the next few months, LaMar finds solace in the potential of next season.

For the first time in years the Rays will go into an offseason with money to spend. Decisions will be based on baseball ability and not solely on finances. The Rays will have more prospects on the way from the farm system and some flexibility to add or retain players.

It is why, LaMar says, he potentially has one of the best GM jobs in the major leagues.

Except it all hinges on whether ownership is willing to spend money. The Rays made major purchases in 2000 and have been seeking refunds and exchanges ever since.

The Rays can claim some justification for having the lowest payroll in the majors in 2002 if they are indeed positioning themselves for the future.

But, at some point, they will have to prove they are serious about building a contender.

After all, talk is cheap.

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