BtBWAA Awards: MLB Executive of the Year: Alex Anthopoulos
by Lewie Pollis on Oct 20, 2011 11:00 AM EDT
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PrintCan't wait for the BBWAA to release their end-of-season awards? Want to see a group take a more saber-slanted approach to the MLB hardware? If the answer to either of those questions is "yes," then you've come to the right place.
At the end of the season, 11 of us here at Beyond the Box Score held our own vote for seven categories: AL and NL Most Valuable Players, Cy Youngs, and Rookies of the Year, as well as the all-MLB Executive of the Year. Over the next few weeks, I'll be unveiling the results so that you may take our collective wisdom as infallible gospel.
Today, we start the revelations with the "BtBWAA" MLB Executive of the Year award. This one isn't voted on by the real BBWAA, but since much of what we do here at BtB is about how players are assessed, I thought it would be interesting to see how we ranked MLB front office personnel.
Voting for this award was scored like Rookie of the Year: each writer picked their top three executives, and votes were counted on a 5-3-1 scale. Here are the top finishers: (number of first-place votes in parentheses)
| 1. | Alex Anthopolous, Blue Jays — 34 (5) |
| 2. | Andrew Friedman, Rays — 24 (3) |
| 3. | Doug Melvin, Brewers — 10 (1) |
| 4. | Jon Daniels, Rangers — 8 (1) |
| 5. | Mike Rizzo, Nationals — 5 (1) |
Full results after the jump.
6.
Frank Wren, Braves — 4
T7.
Brian Cashman, Yankees — 3
T7.
Jed Hoyer, Padres — 3
T9.
Ruben Amaro, Jr., Phillies — 2
T9.
Kevin Towers, Diamondbacks — 2
T11.
Sandy Alderson, Mets — 1
T11.
Billy Beane, Athletics — 1
T11.
Neil Huntington, Pirates — 1
T11.
Tony Reagins, Angels — 1
Personally, I think this list came out pretty well. I picked Anthopoulos, Friedman, and Melvin in that order, so I'm happy.
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I was joking, of course,
but a serviceable RF for $6.25M per year for a couple years at his probable peak? I’m not going to put that on the list of things that we should be questioning.
Managing Editor at Beyond the Box Score and MLB Daily Dish. Follow me @justinbopp
by Justin Bopp on Oct 20, 2011 11:38 AM EDT up reply actions
I'd have voted for him over Reagins
Contributor @ Beyond the Box Score. Editor @ Wahoo's on First. Sophomore @ Brown University. Twitter: @LewsOnFirst
"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona."—George Will
by Lewie Pollis on Oct 20, 2011 11:42 AM EDT up reply actions
I like Anthopolous a lot, but...
Trading away Napoli for basically nothing was awful. That Rajai Davis extension isn’t looking too hot, either. The Rasmus trade was one I liked a lot at the time, but it’s safe to say that it hasn’t paid off yet. Plus, the Jays actually won 4 fewer games this year than in 2010.
He certainly had plenty of good moves—dumping the Wells contract, getting Brett Lawrie, extending Bautista at a reasonable rate, snagging Kelly Johnson—but I just don’t think it was a “best in MLB” type of year.
/devil’s advocating
In retrospect, I wish I had put Jon Daniels on my list instead of Frank Wren. I like what Wren did, but Daniels really put his team over the top.
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
I now twitter as @junkstats and blog about made-up stats and general baseball stuff at JunkStats.
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 20, 2011 11:43 AM EDT reply actions
I disagree
Dumping Wells and signing Bautista when everyone was talking about how big of a fluke he was weren’t just “good moves,” they were two of the most genius moves anyone made this year. The Lawrie trade isn’t far behind, and despite how he played in Toronto I still think the Rasmus deal was a big plus.
He couldn’t have traded Napoli if he hadn’t dumped Wells, and the less than $6 million he gave Davis was a pretty minor move compared to Bautista.
Contributor @ Beyond the Box Score. Editor @ Wahoo's on First. Sophomore @ Brown University. Twitter: @LewsOnFirst
"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona."—George Will
by Lewie Pollis on Oct 20, 2011 12:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed.
The Napoli move isn’t great, but he only put himself in a position to make that move by making arguably the best trade in recent memory.
Between the Wells deal, getting a good return on Marcum, snagging Rasmus without giving up much and getting crazy good value on the Bautista extension, I think that Anthopolous has been better than anyone at setting his organization up for long-term success.
Yes, my real name is actually Satchel.
I'm a columnist for Beyond the Box Score and a writer for MLB Daily Dish.
Oh, I'm on Twitter, too.
by Satchel Price on Oct 20, 2011 1:06 PM EDT up reply actions
Sure, in hindsight
Trading away Napoli for basically nothing was awful.
But would anyone have predicted that Napoli would essentially have a career year and that Franky Frank would spend 1/2 a season in a funk?
While trading a good offensive C/1B/DH for a merely good reliever is not exactly setting yourself up for success, it should have been a lot closer than it actually turned out. AA was trading a player he acquired but did not really want (there wasn’t a position for him on the Jays roster) for a player that filled a hole. The Jays needed a quality veteran reliever and Franky Frank fit.
There are a lot of MLB executives who would want this trade as their worst move for the season.
Other AA accomplishments:
Look at Jays draft. That was a pretty impressive haul, even though they didn’t sign their first pick. Some of the others weren’t expected to sign but did.
Colby Rasmus for essentially relievers and prospects.
4th best minor league system by winning percentage
Had we voted for the top four...
I would have used #3 and #4 on each of Doug Melvin’s balls for the deals he made in the offseason. Since we only voted Top 3, mine are the same as the group results.
On Twitter: @baseballtwit
Mr. Darowski,
As you well know, balls were formally discharged from candidacy after the Carl Crawford incident (in which his contract required an unequivocal removal of former GM Theo Epstein’s previously burnished set).
I regret to inform you that you 3rd and 4th votes have been ignored.
Signed,
The Committee
Managing Editor at Beyond the Box Score and MLB Daily Dish. Follow me @justinbopp
by Justin Bopp on Oct 20, 2011 12:05 PM EDT up reply actions
Which one would be #3 and which would be #4?
Contributor @ Beyond the Box Score. Editor @ Wahoo's on First. Sophomore @ Brown University. Twitter: @LewsOnFirst
"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona."—George Will
by Lewie Pollis on Oct 20, 2011 12:10 PM EDT up reply actions
I disagree
Despite the fact that his team made the playoffs, he incredibly damaged the long term health of the franchise by dealing away the best prospects in the system (all of them) and then held onto Fielder for the last year of team control.
I contend that his team would still have made the playoffs without those big two moves, and having dealt Fielder the season before for Daniel Hudson as had been in the works. In this scenario, you make the playoffs, you have a farm system with top quality players in it still, and you have team control of some very nice pieces for 5 more years.
The only way I would have considered Melvins incredibly short sighted gambles to have been a sucess would have been with a World Series appearance.
Sure the team isn't as set up for the future.
But I admire the way he said, “Eff it. We have one more year of Prince. Let’s do this thing.” He made some big moves to try to win this year. He won the division and ran into a ridiculously hot team in the NLCS. I applaud the balls.
On Twitter: @baseballtwit
I can accept your view on it
But I would rather have a team with a GM that thinks forward continually, the big balls gamble is only a good one if you reach your goal, which he didnt.
He probably shouldnt care too much, his contract ends in 2012, and what he leaves behind (disaster) will be for his replacement.
IF he leaves.
Which he won’t.
Honestly, I wouldn’t mind all that much if he did. I don’t mind him as a GM, but there are better out there. If he moves on I’m not going to be upset, though for far different reasons than yours. But I don’t think he’s going anywhere, and you don’t either. That, of course, doesn’t stop you from taking shots at him since he doesn’t think the way you do, and since he’s not an embittered guy taking potshots at GMs on blogs because he couldn’t break into the business.
"fortunate, but also lucky"
by Ted Simmons Speed Camp on Oct 24, 2011 7:42 PM EDT up reply actions
Jon Daniels
I would pick Daniels over Melvin. Not only do I think he’s made some savvy trades (eg. Teixeira and Napoli trades), but Daniels also put together a more sustainable organization that can succeed both now and in the long run. Good players playing for the team now, as well as a stable foundation in a very good farm system.
I feel the Brewers have 1, maybe 2, good years left before they begin another rebuild. Their farm system was gutted by the Greinke and Marcum trades (mind you, they were both bold and good trades that made sense for the team), and they could lose Prince Fielder this offseason. Melvin took more of a Hail Mary approach to building his team, which came close to working this year but sadly didn’t.
"We are all agreed that your theory is crazy. The question that divides us is whether it is crazy enough to have a chance of being correct."
- Niels Bohr
That's fair.
I pretty much agree with it, and I’m a Brewer fan, though I think there’s a chance the Brewers future isn’t as dire as many think.
"fortunate, but also lucky"
by Ted Simmons Speed Camp on Oct 24, 2011 7:44 PM EDT up reply actions
How is Mozeliak not on this list anywhere?
Signed Berkman- win
didn’t take the bait and sign pujols to 10 years 300M- win
traded for scrabble, dotel, and jackson- i hate that trade long term, and i hate corey patterson, but for this year, thats a win
Oversaw a meteoric rise in Cards farm system rating- win
Traded for Furcal- Win
signed berkman, carpenter, and Garcia to team friendly contract extensions- win
Team he constructed is up 1-0 in the world series- win
year, he had some bad moves (getting rid of ryan, trading for theriot, Batista/Franklin) but come on, how does he not finish at least in the top 10?
"Albert hits good pitches hard and bad pitches even harder. And when he gets in the batter's box, if you pray, then you start praying. And if you don't pray, you think about starting."--Brian Bannister
Trevor Rosenthal Update (as of end of regular season)
120 1/3IP, 133 K, 52 BB/HBP, 55 ER, 7 HR, 3.04 FIP
Postseason: 2 Starts- 15 IP, 9 H, 10 K, 2 BB, 3 ER, 19:10 GO:AO
I agree on all points, but...
Had the Braves not chiked so magnificently, would he be such a winner?
"Words ought to be a little wild for they are the assaults of thought on the unthinking." (J.M Keynes)
We also did these during the final week of the season
So it’s not like he ever could’ve gotten special credit for how well his team has done in the playoffs.
Yes, my real name is actually Satchel.
I'm a columnist for Beyond the Box Score and a writer for MLB Daily Dish.
Oh, I'm on Twitter, too.
by Satchel Price on Oct 20, 2011 5:42 PM EDT up reply actions
My exact thoughts.
I did not like the Rasmus trade, but it provided the Cardinals with exactly the talent they needed to take advantage of the Braves collapse. And to this point, it is even unclear whether it even was a bad deal in the long run. I think the key is that Mozeliak jumped in at the right moment to strengthen exactly the right elements of the team. I would not put Mozeliak #1 or 2, but I think he deserves to be in the top 10 and maybe top 5.
Whither Mozeliak?
Signed Berkman- win
didn’t take the bait and sign pujols to 10 years 300M- win
traded for scrabble, dotel, and jackson- i hate that trade long term, and i hate corey patterson, but for this year, thats a win
Oversaw a meteoric rise in Cards farm system rating- win
Traded for Furcal- Win
signed berkman, carpenter, and Garcia to team friendly contract extensions- win
Team he constructed is up 1-0 in the world series- win
year, he had some bad moves (getting rid of ryan, trading for theriot, Batista/Franklin) but come on, how does he not finish at least in the top 10?
"Albert hits good pitches hard and bad pitches even harder. And when he gets in the batter's box, if you pray, then you start praying. And if you don't pray, you think about starting."--Brian Bannister
Trevor Rosenthal Update (as of end of regular season)
120 1/3IP, 133 K, 52 BB/HBP, 55 ER, 7 HR, 3.04 FIP
Postseason: 2 Starts- 15 IP, 9 H, 10 K, 2 BB, 3 ER, 19:10 GO:AO
While not quite Executive of the Year
The lack of Dave Dombrowski support is kind of striking. Particularly when there are actually votes for Billy Beane and Tony Reagins.
as a Jays fan, I’m sure that one of my fellow (Jay) fans was the one voting for Reagins. He was great. for us.
"Words ought to be a little wild for they are the assaults of thought on the unthinking." (J.M Keynes)
by HESS2479 on Oct 20, 2011 2:45 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
What has AF done over the last year?
The Damon and Manny signing didn’t work out, he didn’t make any extensions or trades, and he had a pair of moderately successful signings (Peralta and Farnsworth). It was a good year, but not by AF’s standards.
by benderbrodriguez on Oct 20, 2011 2:33 PM EDT reply actions
A few things
- The Garza deal, which looks damn good.
- Signing Casey Kotchman. Say what you want, it worked.
- The quality RP signings
- Signed most of his 2011 drat picks
It was a good year, one where he avoided making any bad moves. Avoiding bad moves has value just like making good ones.
Yes, my real name is actually Satchel.
I'm a columnist for Beyond the Box Score and a writer for MLB Daily Dish.
Oh, I'm on Twitter, too.
by Satchel Price on Oct 20, 2011 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions
My vote: Andrew Friedman
Friedman put together another playoff team in 2011 and it lost its six highest paid players from last year. The Rays had the second lowest payroll in all of baseball and beat out the Red Sox for the AL wild card. Who by the way took away arguably their most productive player in history by throwing 140 million dollars his way. On top of that he lost his best hitter (Longoria) for a couple months due to injury and Manny Ramirez due to suspension/retirement in the first month of the season. He also had to put together a bullpen that saw its top contributors all leave. In addition to this he has the organization looking very strong with one of the top rotations in baseball for years to come (Shields, Price, Hellickson, Moore) and a farm system that just keeps reloading. He aquired a record 10 top 60 picks in the 2011 draft while bringing in 5 top prospects from the Cubs (which isn’t necessarily saying a whole lot but still…). Anthropolous had a payroll of $28 million more and finished 10 games behind the Rays in the AL east. I understand he made some good moves but still I don’t think it was anywhere near what Friedman was able to do this year for the Rays.
I'd say Mozeliak at the moment
But hindsight is 20/20 and the voting was before the final standings were made official, of course.
I see no reason why Reagins got a vote, though.
Founder and Chairman of the Send Dan Some Pizzeria Bianco Commission (SDSPBC). SDSPBC is a totally, definitely for-profit organization.
by Dan Strittmatter on Oct 20, 2011 7:07 PM EDT reply actions
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