Notes From The Nat

We’ve been talking about it for some time, and it’s finally here. The Vancouver Canadians have a new logo, and they gathered the press at the BC Sports Hall of Fame yesterday to demonstrate how proud they are of it.

And the media, they did flock.

The new look is a reconstruction of the awful logo the team used until 2007, with the old "C" now morphing into a "C’s", and the baseball image moving into the center of the image.

Also apparent is that the team colours are now red and white - gone forever is the old ‘Molson blue’, which will mean the ‘lucky’ road jersey will also head for the trash heap.

From Lyndon Little’s piece in today’s Vancouver Sun: 

"It was a major process," explained Kerr Thursday at an unveiling of the new team crest. "The whole thing took from between six to nine months." […] "The first three logos we submitted to Major League Baseball were rejected," said Kerr, the managing partner of Lignum Forest Products and chairman of Lignum Investments. "One of the stylized letter ‘C’ logos we submitted apparently MLB felt too closely resembled the ‘C’ of the old Cincinnati Red Legs (considered baseball’s original majorleague team). The other, although we didn’t agree, was felt to be too close to the current ‘C’ used by the Chicago Cubs."

It’s certainly an improvement over the last logo. And the logo before that. And the one before that. Thinking about it, it’s probably the best logo the team has had.

But if I’m honest, the Vancouver Giants still have the best sports logo in town - by a mile.

Today’s Vancouver Province ran a full page work-up on the C’s, which featured some very interesting side bits of info. To wit:

• New Team President Andy Dunn [seen right] was gifted a share in the team as part of the package that lured him here. Co-owner Jeff Mooney described the team as having "made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

• Triple-A ball is becoming more and more of a public ambition for the team, with Dunn stating that he’ll be keeping an eye on the weather in April/May, to see for himself if Vancouver really is a place that is too cold/wet for ball in those months, as previous AAA ownership so often stated as a reason for fleeing the city.

• If Triple-A is too lofty an ambition, full season Single-A is being considered as an option.
  

• The new owners briefly considered renaming the team to the Vancouver Mounties (as we’ve been pushing here on Notes From The Nat forever, though we prefer the even older Vancouver Capilanos moniker), but after market researching found there was "no interest at all", they stuck with the Canadians.

Where to begin on all that?

First, let’s discuss the non-name change. The thinking behind sticking with the Canadians over the old Mounties name is apparently more about the fact that folks have, over time, got used to calling them ‘the C’s’, and that the Canadians extension of that is neither here nor there - kind of like how the Athletics have evolved over nearly a century into the A’s. Okay, I can see that.

But it’s still my opinion that, while the changes the C’s are going through right now are almost uniformly awesome, it’s a damn shame the name change won’t happen. Having worked in PR with the film industry a lot over the years, I know full well that focus groups are notoriously dumb, and that the data you get from them depends greatly on a) who they are, b) how you phrase questions, and c) what’s in the news that week.

Ask a bunch of people how they feel about calling a ball team the Vancouver Mounties after they’ve just watched a couple of RCMP officers taser a guy to death at the airport, and chances are they’ll be cool to the name change. Ask a bunch of people who’ve never been to a ball game what they prefer - Canadians or Mounties - and they’re going to go with the Canadians, because they don’t know the history associated with the Mounties name - or that the C’s name was a cynical marketing exercise designed to sell Molson beer.

As Ian Walker of the Vancouver Sun recounted yesterday in a piece about the C’s logos over the years:

It was at a well-attended press conference at the Hotel Vancouver in the spring of 1978 that Harry Ornest proudly announced the arrival of the Canadians and the resurrection of Triple A baseball on Vancouver’s sports landscape.

"Now, you gotta know, Harry was one of the best promoters in the history of sport, so what he failed to mention was that he had made a brilliant promotional deal with Molson’s Brewery," recalls longtime sports columnist Greg Douglas. "So someone in the gathering asked if there was any tie in here with the fact that Molson and you have signed a promotional contract and that was the reason for the name — in recognition of their most popular beer — and Harry put his hand over his heart and said ‘I’m insulted! The reason I’m calling this team the Canadians is because I’m proud of my heritage, I’m proud of the fact that I’m a Canadian.’

"Of course, the next thing we see is the red, white and blue uniforms and out on the field all these ball players looking like beer bottles running around the bases."

If there’s one thing Walker’s retrospective makes clear, it’s that every change of the logo over the years has been a ‘minor’ change. Changing font here, adding a maple leaf there, removing the maple leaf, adding a V, dropping a V… it’s all tinkering in an effort to make the best of a bad situation, left to us by an old beer contract that.. Just. Never. Died.

Would people take a while to work out who the Vancouver Mounties were? Mayhaps. But hey, make the change that will pay off a bunch five years down the line, not the one that pays off a little bit tomorrow. 

On full-season Single-A ball being an option - that’s news to me. I can’t imagine Vancouver being admitted into the Midwest League due to simple geography, but even assuming that could be worked around, the Kane County Cougars are one heck of a successful MWL franchise, and they ain’t moving. 

Finally, on the weather… heck, if you can get 60k+ to turn up to an outdoor hockey game in Buffalo NY in January, you can lure 4-5k to a ball game in Vancouver in April. The big question will be, do you want to? The field will get ripped up, you’ll have rain-outs, the outfield would need to be entirely dug up and outfitted with a proper drainage system - perhaps even a heating system, like English football teams have - and though I know an outfield upgrade is in the works right now, you either have to schedule a ton of those early outings as road games, thus killing your opening day flow-on potential, or you have to spend a ton on promotion to get people motivated to come out on a cold Tuesday night.

It’s not impossible. It’s just hard. And if you’re going to bother, might it actually make more sense to just build a new facility, with a retractable roof, that can also be located near transit, closer to downtown, used for non-baseball events such as concerts, and seat more than 5,800 people?

You know… there’s a lot of land around Main Street Station that nobody is doing much with…

Side note: If you haven’t seen the new Canadians TV feature on the C’s website yet, now might be a great time to scoot on over. Rob Fai’s got some kids from Columbia Academy broadcasting school to throw together a video newsletter every few weeks, and it’s a decent show.

C’s fans that came out to The Nat in season ‘04 will remember fondly the name of Mike McGirr [seen left], who lit up the Northwest League with a season that ended with a 5-0, 0.66 record after 7 starts. 

McGirr, an 8th round draftee for the Oakland A’s from 2003, was enjoying his second spell with the Vancouver Canadians organization, having pitched decently but not outstandingly a year earlier (5-4, 4.66), but during that ‘04 season, as he chewed up hitters and won game after game, it looked like his time had come. As he moved up to Kane County, it looked for all intents and purposes as if he was headed up the ladder in leaps and bounds.

And then, like Keyser Soze… [poof!] He was gone.

Rumour had it that McGirr had an epiphany at the end of his second season, and decided that he had a better chance of making a considerable amount of money with his business degree than he did throwing fastballs.

Personally, I thought the kid was loco. But then, I’d curbstomp grandma for the chance to make the Majors.

Well, it turns out that Mike McGirr wasn’t done with baseball after all. In fact, he’s just beginning his ‘professional sports’ career.

McGrrrrrrrrr is the majority investor and CEO of Real Sports Investments, a company that pays minor leaguers an up-front cash amount (let’s say $50,000), in return for a percentage of their future Major League earnings (let’s say 5%). If the minor leaguer doesn’t make the bigs, they pocket a nice bonus. But if they do, McGirr’s company makes a nice return.

It’s an interesting concept, investing in the future of a real life professional athlete on the rise, but what’s most interesting about the business plan is, McGirr is selling shares of each athlete to folks like you and me, for $20 each.

Co-founder and Cleveland Indians AA minor league sidearm pitcher, Randy Newsom, explained the genesis of the business recently to Baseball Prospectus:

Minor leaguers can make as little as seven or eight thousand dollars a year. Some have families to take care of, some have to take jobs right away once the season is over to pay bills, and many of those that are a little better off still can’t afford some of the things that could help them reach the big leagues, like hiring a nutritionist or going to some of those expensive training institutes. With that in mind, I wanted to come up with a way that players could use their own upside earning potential to try to help their financial situation in the present and kind of lock in some of that earning potential, like insurance.

I mentioned this to my friend and former teammate, Brian Pritz, and he put me in contact with another former minor leaguer, our CEO and majority owner Mike McGirr, who actually wrote a business plan at Cornell Business School along these same lines. We started talking, used his business plan as a model, worked some things out, and launched RSI.

Right now, if you go to http://www.realsportsinvestments.com/, you can buy a share in Newsom, which is reportedly worth 0.0016% of his RSI contract.

If he makes the majors and earns over $1.25m over his career, you’re in profit. If he earns $20m in his life, you’ll increase your stake by 1500%. If he becomes a Barry Zito-like success story, you’ll be able to send the kids to college.

And if he doesn’t make the Majors? Well, it might be worth the $20 just to have the experience of ‘owning’ an athlete.

I’m in. 

We’ve said the words "Vancouver Canadians’ new GM" more times than we care to remember these past two years or so, because the position has been somewhat of a revolving door… and ’somewhat’ may be the biggest understatement since Marion Jones asked her dentist if she needed any work done.

First there was Dan Kilgras - the tassled loafer GM, who was eventually (according to unconfirmed reports) promoted to Team President to stop him from leaving.

Then there was Delany Dunn - the ‘doing the best with what we’re given’ GM, who was installed to run the team on a shoestring so Kilgras could concentrate on ad sales and sponsorships, until new owners came in with a big broom and let him concentrate on what he does best - the game day experience.

Then there was Aileen McManamon - the ‘bums on seats’ GM, who brought in the biggest crowd in ages for opening day last season, but badly miscalculated what it takes to feed such a crowd once they’re in the door, and was quickly shown same.

Then there was nobody, though Andy Dunn handled the job as a consultant for a while… but not really (shh, Immigration might be listening).

Then there was Andy Dunn - the ‘Major League experience’ GM, who would also be Team President, at least according to the info given to the press a few weeks ago.

And now there’s Andy Seymour [seen above] - the ‘fun is good’ GM, who has stepped into the GM spot that, apparently, Dunn didn’t want, nor actually agree to handle, despite what was said to the press… 

So who is Andy Seymour? Why, he’s the Vancouver Canadians’ new GM… and he’s not one to make short term plans, if his last gig is anything to go by.

From his days dressed up in an inflated sumo wrestling suit, to donning a trenchcoat, hat and sunglasses as the mysterious “G-man,” to creating award-winning promotional campaigns such as “Billy Donovan Night,” Andrew Seymour has been a fixture for the Fort Myers Miracle since September 1995. Not anymore.

The Miracle enter their 18th season as the Class A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. Seymour has been there for 13 of them.

“You know what’s rewarding, is seeing the families growing up,” Seymour said. “This community has been fantastic down here. But I’ll get to go north and continue to have fun.”

Get used to that word - ‘fun’.

A supporter of Mike Veeck’s working motto, “Fun is Good,” Seymour said he has been strolling down memory lane as his last day with the Miracle, Wednesday, Jan. 23, approaches. Memories include:

•The Bobble-butt doll. Made in the likeness of Riverdale High School graduate Tommy Watkins, only about 500 of the dolls were made.

•On June 4, 2003, the day after Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa was caught swinging a corked bat, the Miracle announced “Sammy Sosa Night,” handing out pieces of cork to fans.

•In July 2003, less than a week after Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Randall Simon swung a bat at a Milwaukee Brewers racing sausage, the Miracle held a “Salute to the Italian Sausage Night” with random sausage giveaways and a “Safe Sausage Race.”

•Last season, the Miracle had “Billy Donovan Night,” at which fans who changed their minds about attending the game could negotiate with a lawyer for refunds, poking fun at the University of Florida basketball coach who backed out of a contract with the Orlando Magic.

That promotion placed first in the inaugural Minor League Baseball Promotion of the Year Award.

Granted, such a promotion might not hold the crowd’s interest like a pair of three-year-olds building a giant Subway sandwich, or a ‘$1 off your next fish and chips’ voucher from Mr Pickwicks, but one would think we’re in for an interesting ride with Senor Seymour pumping out the bizarro promotions.

Pleasant side benefit: he’s not a pinball executive. That is to say, he doesn’t bounce around from team to team, like many in the minors. And by all accounts, he’s a heck of a guy.

“As a fan, as a worker and as a friend, I’m dumbfounded to say the least,” [Fort Myers Miracle] season ticket holder Bobby] Izzo said upon hearing the news. “Andrew’s an institution. He’s the face of the Miracle. He has been forever… There’s not much that the man wouldn’t do for anybody. In all the time I’ve known him, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him have a bad day. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a frown on his face. He’s been super… The dedication and the loyalty that I have for the Miracle comes from Andrew.”

It’s not often that when a pro sports GM leaves a town, that people are actually sad about it, and the local press writes glowing tributes of their time with the team.

Some background on the Larry Donovan promotion:

In this much-lauded promotional extravaganza, the Florida State League franchise paid tribute to the painfully indecisive Florida Gators basketball coach (on June 1, Donovan signed a massive contract with the NBA’s Orlando Magic, but backed out one day later in order to return to the University of Florida).

On "Billy Donovan Night," the Miracle did everything short of handing out flip flops to fans as they walked through the turnstiles. But at the heart of the evening was this little nugget of genius — any fan who had second thoughts about attending the game was given the opportunity to negotiate out of their ticket purchase by consulting with a lawyer and then (in certain cases) shooting a basketball through a hoop.

"It was like — Bam! — there it is. There’s our hook. For us, the honeymoon continued. We put out a teaser about the promo, and the Associated Press picked it up and ran a story. After that, everybody jumped on it. All of this occurred during a period when there wasn’t much happening in the sports world, so the timing worked out great."

Indeed, the Miracle’s unorthodox promotion received prominent local and national media coverage, and resulted in a crowd that was more than double the team’s Wednesday night average. All in all, it was a fitting stunt for a franchise with ties to the most legendary name in the world of sports promotions.

And finally, from Seymour’s own bio on the Fort Myers Miracle staff directory:

Often mistaken for THE ROCK, Andrew enjoys entertaining. An interest that has served him well in his second career as a Motion Picture action & Stunt double where Andrew has done body stand-ins for Vin Diesel, Sean William Scott, Will Smith and Jack Black. In his spare time, Andrew enjoys watching infomercials, organizing his fridge magnets and speaking of himself in the-third-person. Favorite Movies Include: Slapshot & House Party 1 thru 4. Favorite Players: Paul Kariya, Michael Vick, Torii Hunter & Bill Bellamy. IQ: Self-described … “somewhere yo-yo’ing between Nickelodeon and C-Span.” Little known fact: Andrew has written songs for both Luther Campbell & Glen Campbell.

Methinks maybe we got a good deal here.

Side note: While I’m on the ‘good people arriving’ tilt, I should also mention that a good person is leaving the C’s. Long time pleasant person, Game Day Goddess, and Ticket Mistress, Lori Bonang, is moving on to opportunities new.

One of the last remaining folks on staff from the pre-ownership change era, she will be missed (especially by guys like me, fighting opening day crowds to find someone - anyone - who knows where my press pass is).

Be happy, Loz. 

From Sports Illustrated: 

What are all of Oakland’s dollar-conscious disciples to think of the A’s this year? What’s anyone to think? The franchise that made the modern blueprint for winning on a budget has spent the winter trading away what few marquee players it had and stocking up on unproven, untested, largely unknown kids. That is nobody’s formula for success.

In fact, if we didn’t know any better, we’d swear that the A’s are … are … rebuilding.

"We weren’t afraid of the word," says David Forst, the team’s assistant general manager. "There’s a negative connotation to it when it’s used by fans, who think they’re going to be watching a team without any entertainment value. But if you look at it and what it leads to, it’s really exciting.

A likely story. But could it be that this rebuilding process, like just about everything the A’s do, will be less about what everyone else does, and more about thinking outside the box?

The new course of action was charted last October, shortly after the A’s had concluded their worst season since 1998. Beane sat down with Forst and others and conducted a top-to-bottom organizational review, Oakland’s first in years. A new strength coach was brought in to examine why players were having such a huge problem with injuries. The A’s also hired five new area scouts, adding to a staff that had become one of the smallest in the league, and re-sectioned the country to get better coverage. They increased their scouting budget in Latin America and elsewhere internationally, and have earmarked more money for signing bonuses.

In case you missed it: "earmarked more money for signing bonuses."

One of the big beefs with the A’s and their drafting philosophy has long been that they don’t pick the guy they want most with their early draft picks - they pick who they can easily afford.

Personally, I’m okay with that. The difference between a $3m 1st rounder and a $1.5m first rounder can often be nothing more than 1-2mph on a fastball, or one less injury in a senior year, or a school that’s in the national spotlight. I see nothing wrong with picks like Swisher, Blanton, Suzuki, Powell, Buck, Robnett, etc etc. For the most part, they do the job well.

But then there’s the Tim Lincecum’s [left] that, once in a while, pop up, destroy the local UBC Thunderbirds for a year or two, and make you think, "hmm… an extra mill in the draft signing budget would be a nice thing about now, so he could be wearing our colours and not steamrolling them…"

More scouts. More bonus money. No more ‘injury-prone’ gambles.

Looks like the C’s don’t just get new jerseys and logo this season… we’re also going to get a new level of talent on the playing field.

Regular visitors to Nat Bailey Stadium would no doubt be aware of the existence of the man they call ‘Dancing Hans’. You can see him to the left there, stomping out some Chicken Dance love, and that’s long been the enduring image of the best darn cheerleader in minor baseball.

He doesn’t get paid to come out to every home game and entertain the fans. He’s not looking for a career change, or a way to work up through the system and one day be GM. He just likes coming out to the ballpark, dancing on a dugout, and getting the local yokels worked up into a tween-innings frenzy or seven. People like Hans are a huge part of what makes minor league ball so much fun, and that volunteer spirit is something we sometimes take for granted. We get used to having guys like Hans around, and it’s only when they’re not there that we realize what we’re missing.

Last year, unfortunately, Dancing Hans wasn’t dancing. He’d gone through some health issues, but was back at the ballpark as soon as he could walk again (much to his doctor’s concern, I’m sure), and if not for his wife following him around with a big stick, to be used with force if his toes started to so much as tap to the beat of YMCA, I’m sure he would have wheeled himself around the bases on a hospital gurney during the 7th inning stretch. Instead, he helped out with the webcast game call on the final day of the season with his son, Tim.

Anyhoo, the relevance of all this comes from my having opened one of the local papers, The Richmond Review, only to find myself face to face with a huge full color model shot of the Hanster himself.

And darn it all if Hans has a lot more volunteer work going on than just Chicken Dancing at The Nat!

So as a tribute to the skinniest gams in pro sports, I give you Dancing Hans’ 15 minutes of (local) fame:

The text:

"I read The Richmond Review so that I can keep up with what is happening in our fine community." 

Hans Havas, President of the West Richmond Community Association [who knew?], and President of the Richmond Youth Concert Band.

See the Richmond Youth Concert Band in concert along with the Richmond Orchestra on Friday, Feb 25 at Gateway Theatre as part of the Music Lover’s Concert.

Call 604-270-1812 for tickets. 

What’s hilarious is, this ad runs right beneath a Letter To The Editor that complains that someone on Jones Road isn’t picking up their dog doody. Seriously - they even describe how it’s a big dog, "judging by the size of what it leaves behind."

Some people change the world complaining about dog crap, others change it by giving and giving and giving.

Love your work, Hans.

Can the prospect of success for the Vancouver Canadians in season 2008 get any stronger than it is right now?

A true Canadian joining the C’s after a three-team minor league stint in the states.  Welcome home, Mr Seymour.

January 16^th, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

CANADIANS BRING ON HOME GROWN TALENT TO FILL GENERAL MANAGER’S ROLE

VANCOUVER CANADIANS ADD CANADIAN ANDREW SEYMOUR TO FRONT OFFICE STAFF

 (Nat Bailey Stadium - Vancouver, BC) – The Vancouver Canadians are proud to announce that Andrew Seymour has been named the 10^th General Manager in club history Wednesday.  Seymour comes home to Canada after more than a decade working with the Fort Myers Miracle (Florida State League), Tyler WildCatters (Texas-Louisiana Ind. League) and the Thunder Bay WhiskeyJacks (Northern Ind. League).

Seymour is a native of Toronto, Ontario and has been a part of the highly successful Goldklang Group which includes mentor Mike Veeck who instilled his “Fun Is Good” mentality into the C’s newest General Manager. 

Canadians President Andy Dunn looks forward to Seymour’s arrival later this month, “Having known Andrew for the past ten years, I am very proud to have him join our staff in the General Manager’s position.  Andrew will bring a ton of experience to our staff and a strong promotional background that will be enjoyed by Canadians fans for years to come”.

Nominated for an Elaine McLaughlin award (Community Service Excellence), Seymour has been a part of numerous Minor League Baseball awards including the “Larry MacPhail”, “John Johnson” awards and the brains behind some of baseball’s greatest minor league promotions.  From Bobble-Butt & Bobble’ection to Mike Tyson Night where fans got a plastic ear with a piece missing, Seymours wacky and eccentric ways should make him an instant hit out at Nat Bailey Stadium.

“Vancouver has it all – great people, stunning beauty and culture and tremendous opportunity with a really strong owners in Jake Kerr and Jeff Mooney.  I can’t wait to get started with President Andy Dunn and the Canadians crew and continue living out my dreams in professional baseball,” said Seymour who arrives in Vancouver in the coming days from his home in Florida.

Tickets for the 2008 Vancouver Canadians Baseball season are now on sale by calling the C’s Front Office at 604-872-5232 or visiting http://www.canadiansbaseball.com.  The Canadians open up the 2008 NWL season on Tuesday, June 17^th vs. the Tri City Dust Devils at Nat Bailey Stadium. 

So we have the major league experience of Andy Dunn as President, and now the minor league experience and promotional showmanship of Andrew Seymour as General Manager.  How much longer until Mike Veeck jumps aboard to sell pretzels?

My first promotional proposal to Seymour is the following: An Anthony Recker Bobble-Butt. 

Oh come on, you know you want it.

All I can say, is wow.  The Canadians are going nowhere but up, and this just proves that statement!

(Pacific Coliseum - Vancouver, BC) - The Vancouver Canadians have a handful of new fans as Country music sensation Big & Rich along with Cowboy Troy came out for the Vancouver Tour stop wearing Vancouver Canadians jerseys and game hats.

The Canadians who will be changing their look for the upcoming season saw 13-thousand Big & Rich fans go wild when Cowboy Troy came out with John Rich wearing Canadians gear and acknowledged the C’s several times during their finale which finished with the Troy signing the shirt and the hat and giving it to lucky fans in the crowd.

The C’s have made great strides in increasing their public profile, but were humbled to see a Grammy award winning Music Group come out and support Vancouver’s baseball club.

Thanks to Country music’s BIG & RICH!!!

C’s Media Boss, Rob Fai, is not only a media genius - but a promotional whiz! If this is part of the Andy Dunn effect, we’re certainly getting a great first impression of how his staff will be working!

There’s been a lot of stuff written, and said, (and whined) about Oakland’s recent trades of former Vancouver Canadian Nick Swisher, and former ‘afterthought’ of the Mark Mulder trade, Dan Haren.

Some thinkers are liking the deal, understanding that the worst that will come of it is one player as good as Swisher coming through in the next season or so, while the upside could mean THREE Swishers dropping into the roster by 2009. Others think it stinks, and that it’s just a continuation of the Oakland habit of trading away stars for kids, being cheapskates, and looking towards a future that will never come.

One noted blog pundit, on Elephants in Oakland, thinks Oakland boss Billy Beane "has made so many bad moves that his ‘positive’ moves are really just scabs on the A’s organization wounds he himself inflicted," reasoning that  the two trades "are a stinging rebuke of Billy Beane’s management of the Oakland Athletics Baseball Club, and if you will - the populist Moneyball theory."

Swisher was one of several first round draft picks for the A’s in 2002. While Lewis spent much of the book explaining (not very well) varying statistical analysis methods the A’s purportedly eschewed - Nick Swisher was the player the scouting crowd and stat heads could ‘agree’ on. The definable stats and the indefinable intangibles and the tools in-betweens were all there with Nick Swisher.

What Swisher became for the A’s was a loudmouth, publicity-whore and/or the face of the A’s franchise. Swisher was not a disappointment if you read columns by Susan Slusser and Mychael Urban. If you look at the projections based on stats and the hopes based on talent and ability - Swisher had failed, to date, to live up to the expectations of both the stat head and scouting communities. Swisher’s ability and talent have deteriorated into ‘old player skills’; power, walks, low average, lack of speed. In 2007 Jack Cust clearly showed that those old player skills are not worthy of a 1st round draft choice - they could be had, twice-over, (the A’s had Cust in Sacramento for 2005) at the minor league level.

Now, he makes a good point that the A’s got Cust for nothing, and ended up with someone as good, if not better, than first round draft pick Swisher when they did so. That, to me, would seem to indicate that there’s value in the A’s tendency to steer clear of big money draft picks, and find replacement parts on the market when the need arises.

But Mr EiO goes on to harp on the Octavio Dotel [seen right] and Arthur Rhodes trades (which nobody will deny sucked), decry Oakland’s scouts and draft team as being incompetent, and points out the obvious - that Eric Chavez is a giant hole of suck, in trying to demonstrate that Billy Beane is a very average GM.

In my opinion, he not only cherry picks his data, but he also misses some very important points.

The worst kept secret in Vancouver baseball has finally been confirmed, as Andy Dunn has put his John Hancock on an employment contract and settled in as the new (public) boss of the Vancouver Canadians.

Of course, this will be his second season at the helm, after he stepped in on a consulting basis last season when the Aileen McManamon experiment was shut down due to a lack of hot dogs, but ownership’s desire to keep their abrupt dismissal of the previous Team President out of the papers (and certain Immigration restrictions) meant Dunn stayed behind the scenes, didn’t put out any press conferences, and quietly lurked in the shadows making sure everything was ticketyboo, on and off the field.

From today’s piece by Lyndon Little in The Sun:

Dunn is already well versed in the running of the club. Introduced to the new owners by marketing guru Mike Veek, Dunn was employed by the club as a consultant last summer. With the departure of McManamon, he took on many of the de facto duties of a club president, but had to maintain a low profile in order not to violate the terms of the conditional work permit with Immigration Canada.

"I had to be careful what I did," admitted Dunn, who is married with three children all under 10 who will join him in Vancouver once the school year is over in Florida.

"But I’m looking forward to being more visible to the public now."

So what comes next?

Firstly, celebration. This is a guy with baseball in his blood, who has run Major League stadium operations and farm systems, for several teams. He’s a guy who has the foresight to see what a success story the C’s could be with a little guidance, he’s a guy who clearly understands what a douchebag Washington Nationals GM Jim Bowden is, and walked away from that outfit with his reputation solid and with several good people walking in his wake, and he’s someone who can shove his fingers into the dirt at second base and tell you if it needs watering.

Of course, he’s going to have a job in front of him to penetrate Vancouver’s terrible sporting press pages with any sort of consistency. Don Taylor doesn’t seem able to say the name "Vancouver Canadians" without shuddering for a second and blurting out "MARKUS NASLUND AND ROBERTO LUONGO!" to make up for it, but if there’s one thing that the Vancouver sporting public looks for more than anything else when deciding where to spend their dollars, it’s competency.

That’s why the Canucks didn’t draw for so many years. It’s why the Grizzlies were run out of town on a rail, and why the Vancouver Voodoo’s short life as a pro roller hockey team is still a running joke to this day. Give the people a solid product, good value for money, and a plan to grow both on and off the field (think Vancouver Giants and Vancouver Whitecaps) and they’ll show up in numbers.

In that respect, the Vancouver Canadians are on really solid ground. Especially now.

Again, from The Sun:

Dunn says he understands the challenges of operating a minor league baseball team in a major league market such as Vancouver.

"I understand that Vancouver is a hockey town," he said. "What we want to do is make our team a premier summer attraction. Long after the score is forgotten, people remember the park experience. We want to create memories. "

"We realize we’re now in somewhat of a unique situation," said Kerr’s partner Jeff Mooney, the executive chairman of A&W Canada. "With the departure of the Ottawa Lynx, we’re now the last minor league pro baseball team in the country with a major league affiliation. We want to preserve the heritage of pro ball in Vancouver and build on it."

Welcome to the city, and welcome to the team, Andy Dunn. And may I be the first to apologize for the number of times both you and Delany Dunn will have to say "no relation" over the year ahead.

But hey, now that I’ve said all this nice stuff about you… can we have a stadium speed gun? Please? 

Andy Dunn was announced as the Canadians 10th President today, following the resignation of Aileen McManamon back in June.  Dunn has been a ‘consultant’ to the team since July, and controlled the ship per-say.  

The Vancouver Canadians are proud to announce the addition of Andy Dunn to the organization in the role of President.
The announcement came at a press conference at Nat Bailey Stadium where owners Jake Kerr and Jeff Mooney introduced Dunn to the media.

Dunn, 38, has a vast amount of experience at all levels of MLB with his most recent position being Director of Player Development for the Washington Nationals.
Prior to his role within the Nationals organization, Dunn was the Vice President of Ballpark Operations which included the task of turning RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., into a facility ready for Major League Baseball.  Dunn was the Vice President of Florida Operations for the Montreal Expos during their transition to Washington, D.C.

He also worked with the Florida Marlins organization, both as president of Sales and Marketing and Director of Florida Operations and General Manager for the Marlins Class A Brevard County Manatees. 

Dunn was named the Florida State League Executive of the Year in 1999 and 2000.  He was also awarded the Bob Stower Minor League Baseball Award in 2002.
Dunn’s background in baseball gives the Vancouver Canadians an immediate presence across North America as his experience and relationships have earned him the respect of many at all levels of the game.

Andy lives in Vancouver, B.C., and is married to wife Kristi with his three daughters, Hailey (9), Colby (7) and Kennedi (3).

 This making you excited for Opening Day?  A great day for Canadians fans indeed.

Oh and by the way, when I mentioned a few days I guessed Andy Dunn would become the new GM/President, I had no idea he would occupy that position a few days later.  I had no knowledge of who would become the new boss, so don’t go thinking I ruined the surprise for the Canadians to announce - my guess was as good as any of yours.

Player-favourite Clubhouse Attendee Glenn ‘Magic’ Hall, a West Van resident, will be returning to the C’s in 2008 as the ‘Clubbie’.  

Making the players meals, washing the uniforms, watching over the clubhouse etc. are just part of his duties with the Canadians.  Essentially, it’s a 24-hour job and not many people are cut out for the position.  Luckily for the Canadians and their future players, Glenn is.  From the C’s site:

Glenn Hall will be returning for the 2008 season marking his fourth year with the Vancouver Canadians. A die-hard Bruce Springsteen fan, Glenn spends countless hours at Nat Bailey as the ‘Boss’ of all that goes on in the C’s clubhouse. Glenn prepares meals for the team, ensures their uniforms and other personal belongings are ready for each and every home game and is generally every players ‘big brother’ during the season.
Glenn resides in West Vancouver, B.C. during the season.

And, here’s an excerpt from an article The Province did on Glenn Magic back in 2006.

Hall — dubbed "Glenn Magic" by the C’s — also does all the cooking. And the grocery shopping. And the cleaning. He has an apartment at Horseshoe Bay, but he’s never there. In winter, Hall works in northern Alberta and B.C. as a cook in work camps for the oil and gas industry. He’s used to being around gangs of hungry men. But working for a sports team — in particular, a baseball team — is something he always wanted to do.

"I was always curious about doing this job," says Hall, who found out about the Canadians job on the Internet. "The atmosphere is tremendous," he says. "The baseball knowledge that you’re exposed to and the players at this level are totally appreciative. … You don’t get the bitterness you might get with some of the older players further along […] And you get invested in how they do. That’s one thing I wasn’t prepared for. You get emotionally involved in how they’re playing."

Well, a lot has gone on with the C’s behind the scenes while we’ve been in off-season mode, and much of it I can’t yet talk about, simply because it’d be spoiling some neat surprises.

Here’s what I can tell you: Nat Bailey Stadium baseball Version 2008 is going to be awesome.

Let’s roll through the highlights.

First, yes, as has been mentioned below, there will be a new logo. The ‘concept logo’ Jeremy found will not be it, nor will it be close to it. Not sure where that one came from, but while the new logo will in all likelihood not be too far removed from the current logo, it will be a far, far, FAR improved version - thank god.

Much as I’ve been pushing for a team name change for a while, and have support on the issue from some folks on the inside, the Canadians name will not change. And to that I say, "Go Capilanos."

The team will have new uniforms - they’re going retro to a degree, but I’m not able to tell you in what way just yet. Suffice to say, you’ll notice the change. From a mile away.

There will be a team mascot, which is a positive step from a fan experience point of view, especially speaking as a soon-to-be dad of two.

All the C’s games will be broadcast in season 2008 - be it via radio or webcast - but here’s the kicker; the home games will be broadcast online via streaming video. FINALLY!

The long awaited changes to the NWL set-up, where the Arizona League is killed off and the Northwest League becomes the new rookie league, have not come, and will likely not arrive in 2009 either, due mostly to nobody in the Major League farm systems having the time or inclination to actually make it happen. That will continue to be threatened for another few years, but nobody is too keen to lose 30 players from their system in any great hurry.

The new Vancouver Team President will be announced next Monday, and though I know who it’ll be, I’m keeping my mouth shut for a bit so the team can announce it to full fanfare, which the announcement will deserve. 

As for this blog, the arrival of video webcasting of the C’s home games means we can shelve plans to do that ourselves. It’d been something I’d been planning for a while, and that we actually had a little budget for this season (thanks to those people who keep hitting the Westjet ad for their holiday travel plans), so we’ll either use that money to pick up a speed gun (so we can finally see how fast C’s pitchers are hurling), or do what we’ve done the last two years and send it to charity.

I’m guessing speed gun. 

On a personal note, I’ve sold my editorial services company, Unreel Media, to an American buyer, so I have a little more spare time than usual. Expect that to bring some more improvements to the site over the coming months - at least until I get my new PR firm up and running.

Oh, and we’ll be looking for new writers for the blog to join Jeremy and myself and really round out the coverage, so if you like the baseball, are committed to seeing a bunch of games this season, and know how to string a few interesting words together, drop us a line. We’ll talk.