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Post by bobby on Mar 24, 2016 4:39:26 GMT 10
What changes need to be made?
Will there be another new Manager, if so, who should it be?
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Post by stuartcapel on Mar 24, 2016 13:56:29 GMT 10
It is difficult to tell if we will have a new manager - that is solely up to the clubs decision makers. I do not think Joe Vavra was 'cover-your-eyes-awful' last year, as he did what he could with the players he was allowed to have. My understanding is that a pro scout had some significant impact on player and squad selection last season, to the point where as a person with no official ties to the club he was overruling the Baseball Operations Manager. This should not have been allowed to take place, and strong leadership would have taken control of the situation.
How the club marketed Joe however was a debacle. To the mainstream media, it appeared he was most accessable, and for what I saw in the media, quite good due to the human interest story of a father and his sons coming to Australia together for baseball. To Joe Fan however, he was effetively a token. After a few series he stopped taking the line-up card to the plate meeting, which as far as I am concerned is, at best, poor, and he never spoke to the people in the stands after a game until after the final out of the final home game of the season. That needed to happen after the final out of the FIRST home game of the season. To make the crowd (what there was of it, the Aces for the sixth straight year were in the bottom third when it came to attendance) feel a part of the journey with the coaches and players is important - just look at how the AFL, NRL, A-League, ANZ Championship, NBL, AiHL, Super Rugby etc etc have their clubs talk about and interract with the fans. Even when Chris Gayle was dismissed in Big Bash games, on the way back from the dressing rooms he would sign autographs and get photos with the crowd. Even he understands the importance of a paid attendance! One Aces member had her photo with Gayle at one particular game. Can't say that would happen at the Aces. Following Trey Vavra's ejection/suspension in Adelaide, for the next three games he was nowhere to be found at MBP (was he in the Jet Couriers box?). Now, why on at least one of those nights was he not meeting and greeting fans for nine innings around the ballpark, and maybe even selling raffle tickets as a PR exercise? Inexcusable for mine, but then again, going into the crowd was seemingly more season two at the Showgrounds. At ABL games, in Victoria, the crowd is seen as a necessary evil, and the club simply won't grow while that is the attitude. Nor will it grow while bottom-placed finishes are seemingly deemed acceptable. Simply putting on a baseball game is not enough. The team, and the sport in Melbourne will not grow while mediocrity is the acceptable standard.
On the field, I think the commitment, especially by a couple of veteran players, was awesome, and I don't think enough appreciation is given to the sacrifices they make to make themselves available, and even when they aren’t available, to make things fit so that they indeed can make themselves to be available. In reality I don't think we have what those other states have - some depth in the 24-30yo ranks, whose bodies have filled out and are able to perform consistently for 50+ games. Hence why I couldn't understand why Masato Fukae was getting game time over someone like Nick Rossell, who if played every day, could become a regular for some time. Sadly, the young signed players haven't come through much - Ryan Dale, Jared Cruz, Aaron Sayers etc. Liam Bedford has come back and is noticeable bigger than when thrown in the deep end three years ago so he's a potential positive, and Darryl George is filling out, so some of those eighteen doubles he hit should become home runs in the years to come. As a state we are incredibly short on ABL-level pitching. Had the Aces not had Joe Burns and Matt Larkins over the past couple of years, just what would the record be like? Larkins should be signed as a matter of priority, though I could understand a starter like himself, and someone like Troy Marks, could easily turn their backs on the place after being embarrassingly demoted to the bullpen for the final round. The front office should have overruled such a fiasco from happening.
Club wise, while the clubs associated with BV are not united in supporting the comprehension of a representative side in the national league, then the club will always be held back. Stories of players effectively not being released by clubs over the years, or turning down the opportunity to play because their club side rewards them better than the ABL does do actually make it into the crowd. Having a look at clubs participation numbers over the years, it is evident that when the old ABL was going well, that tee-ball and junior numbers were thriving. How clubs cannot realise the importance of having a strong, marketable team in the national competition to both the game and to their own club, at times, surprises me.
Off the field, the club really needs to look at itself. Over the past three years, we've had a season under Windsor Knox, a season where no one was in charge, and most recently Justin Huber. There's been no discernable difference along the way and I do not mean that in a positive sense. In weighing up whether to rejoin last season, I was being implored by the sales people "Give Justin a season". My wife and I did. Nothing changed for the better. I cannot see what mission statement the club has - for both on the field and off it. I cannot see what direction is being set for the club - on or off field. I do not see the immediate signs of improvement for next season - both on the field and off it . I do not see where members and fans will be considered important. I do not see where constructive feedback will be acted on. I cannot see where the light is on the horizon.
It made the decision not to rejoin incredibly easy.
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Post by mc15 on Mar 24, 2016 17:07:03 GMT 10
Stu,
I've spoken to Justin, and offered to buy a membership to ensure that if you were considering buying a membership again, justin could politely decline your request and not have his bottom line affected.
With alleged supporters like you, the club sure as hell doesn't need enemies.
Go watch BBL. Your negativity, and lack of genuine insight won't be missed.
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Post by russelledwards on Mar 24, 2016 17:55:19 GMT 10
As far as I know, I've never met Stu but his record of 6 straight years of paid up membership of the Aces should entitle him to a Gold Medal. His love of the game (and the ABL) is obvious in everything he writes. "Shooting the messenger" for telling a few home truths seems a massive over reaction.
Anyone who thinks the Aces don't need to change a few things if they are to survive,is not facing reality. Shocking attendances and a deplorable win/loss record are things that need to change.
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Post by doubleplay on Mar 29, 2016 11:52:29 GMT 10
If the Aces was a business, it would have gone straight into LIQUIDATION last season after 5 non productive years except for supplying a holiday camp for imports and not enough local talent being promoted to give the up and coming players something to strive for. Just to back Stuart up, when the original ABL was up and flying, the DBA had 96 yes that is 96 Junior sides, the minute the ABL collapsed, it dropped dramatically down to 40 odd sides and now I think we have around or less than 30 junior sides. Some one must accept the resposibility. No point in pointing the finger, but the onus at present seems to lie with both the the Aces and BV for the total lack of coverage and promotion of Baseball in General. Time for a good long hard think about what the heck is going on.
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Post by wearnie52 on Mar 29, 2016 12:38:56 GMT 10
Wow Crooksy.
Your continued commitment to back up your 'mates' on the inside is getting a bit old to be honest.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 29, 2016 13:57:53 GMT 10
It is probably safe to say that the overwhelming majority of Australian baseball people would dearly love to see a high-standard, flourishing national league poised for the sort of expansion that was projected by MLB and the ABL after the league’s first five years.
However, notwithstanding the multiple successes of Perth Heat, a super 2015/16 season by Brisbane Bandits, some apparent strengthening of baseball in Canberra and consistently solid crowds in Adelaide, it is pretty evident that there is a degree of disenchantment and even disinterest in the Melbourne and Sydney clubs – both of whom have to succeed if the league is to have any chance of surviving, much less expanding in years to come.
Average attendance at Aces games last season was 789 and the average in Sydney was 667 (compared with Brisbane 1128, Perth 1044, Canberra 1005 and Adelaide 998). Even if we factor in a distortion factor that may have reduced the average on doubleheader days, the numbers are still bleak when we consider that officials were citing 1500 per game as the break-even figure when the new league started.
So there are obvious issues with attendance. Altona may have something to do with that for the Aces, and it may not. Let us remember, apart from an initial flurry, that the Showgrounds was not exactly packing them in – even in its central location.
And in the case of Melbourne Aces, the win/loss ratio is terrible as the club struggles to establish any sort of ascendancy in a crowded Victorian sports market.
There are so many questions, and there are no glaringly obvious answers to arresting the current ABL malaise and turning things around – especially in Melbourne and Sydney – as much as we might like to see the league be a success. But if concerns are not raised and the hard questions are not asked, then the league will certainly be going nowhere in a hurry. Baseball people have every right – in fact an obligation – to ask questions such as these:
What are the intentions of Major League Baseball after the initial funding period to which it committed? Does the ABL know? Does it have any inkling? When might the ABL know?
Is it likely, or even possible that the league (as rumoured) may go into private ownership as early as next season, with franchises taken up directly by business partners? If any such development is planned, or is likely, surely the baseball public can be updated without specifics being mentioned or without commercial sensitivities being disclosed.
If, and more likely when MLB scales back its funding and resource commitment, the ABL will have to find personnel to cover the range of roles held down by United States interns since the start. Where are the staff going to come from? While the intern system may have been cost-effective, it pissed off a lot of local baseball people who were eminently qualified in particular areas but were pushed aside in favour of imported personnel more interested in a summer down under and padding their own CV than anything else. Should MLB scale back its involvement, where will the staff come from? Who will pay them? Surely we are not going to expect people to work for nothing.
The Australian Baseball League has from the start been seemingly reluctant to communicate with the baseball public. Since the end of the 2015/16 season only token efforts have been made to update its websites and social media. This is simply not good enough and must inevitably lead to a growing disconnect and feelings of a lack of ownership of one’s “local” baseball club that is totally unhealthy and damaging in the longer term.
Is ABL management still in interim mode after the departure of Peter Wermuth and Tom Nicholson? Is it going to advertise for a new CEO? If so, when and how broadly?
Who works for the clubs over the winter months? Since bobby’s question related to the Melbourne club, who works for the Aces? Yes, we know that Justin Huber is the CEO. And good luck to him. But who else of any baseball or sports management expertise actually works there? There are names listed in board and advisory capacities on the website, but who exactly are they for the benefit of those who may not know? What are they doing, individually and collectively? What progress is being made? Where are we at with potential coaching staff, players, sponsors? Surely there is something to tell.
The occasional birthday wish on social media or some milestone or other that a former player has achieved in Minor League baseball somewhere is just not enough. For the ABL to work, we need clubs that have substance, clubs that are run and resourced by committed and professional people, clubs that are surrounded by baseball people and who are honest and totally up-front about where they are at and what they are aiming to do – all year round. Volunteers of course have a vital role to play, as they do with any successful club. But the right people will only come on board and stay on board if they feel valued and if they feel a degree of ownership of the entire project.
It is always nice to win, though no-one can expect to win all the time. But if those fundamental elements of the equation are lacking, then there can be no real or lasting success in club terms.
While it is all very well to have a dash at Stuart over his alleged negativity towards the Aces club, his position is pretty well-founded – and understandable - given that he has been there from the start and has been a paid-up, passionate club person who simply wants to see things done better and done properly, as they should be. He is absolutely entitled to express a view, to make suggestions, to ask questions and to make criticism where he believes it is warranted.
I sense that Stuart is one of a dwindling number of people, now, who can still be bothered. Very many others have simply turned off and have given up on the Aces - and the ABL - as a lost cause. That is a real pity, and it is a reflection on those entrusted to run the club and to run the league.
However, we always knew that building the league was never going to be easy. To my mind it is still an exciting prospect and a challenging project that can succeed with heaps of hard work, serious off-field accountability and the right decisions being made on a more regular basis.
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Post by doubleplay on Mar 29, 2016 14:52:17 GMT 10
Well typed Kingsley, as usual you have hit the nail on the head, what is more disappointing that the likes of Perth, Brisbane and even Adelaide have left Melbourne behind in their collective wake. These three Clubs have a structure, we seem to have a haphazard approach with no forward thinking in trying to improve. The Aces at present are the face of Victorian Baseball and at present it is a fairly sad face. Improvement can be had but with diligent work and better promotion department and just maybe there could be light at the end of the tunnel. But I must stress, there has to be a business plan/acumen along with baseball smarts to make the Aces successful instead of what we have at the moment,a complete basket case that is only going around in circles.
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Post by stuartcapel on Apr 5, 2016 13:42:03 GMT 10
What changes need to be made? Will there be another new Manager, if so, who should it be? Anything that you think needs addressing, bobby? |
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Post by bobby on Apr 13, 2016 0:37:21 GMT 10
Hey Stu,
I think the turnover of Managers needs to be addressed, the lack of Vic players (the reason for this also) would be the major 2. They need some stability, appointing a manager for more than one season would help int his area.
That is probably all I can say from the UK.
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Post by Journeyman on Apr 21, 2016 13:39:51 GMT 10
Well said Stu and KC, it seems the more things change the more they stay the same. So you have to ask yourself the question "Do the Aces have 6 years of history or 1 year repeated 6 times?"
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Post by perfeckt on Nov 19, 2016 14:06:03 GMT 10
Does anyone know of any live audio streaming of commentary from the Aces games today? I know there is no TV streaming but would love to listen in.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2016 16:08:33 GMT 10
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Post by perfeckt on Nov 19, 2016 18:35:53 GMT 10
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Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2016 19:43:00 GMT 10
ABL attendance records for Friday night are showing 848 in Brisbane, 747 in Sydney and 2000 at Melbourne Ballpark. Although the precision of that last figure suggests that it may be an estimate, anything even approaching 2000 would be a fantastic result for the first Aces home game (paralleled only by the 2500 or so who attended the rained-out first game at the Showgrounds six years ago). If the figure is even reasonably close, and given the early success of the team, all seems to bode very well for Melbourne Aces. Get on 'em! www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?y=2016&sid=milb&t=l_att&lid=595 |
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Post by stuartcapel on Nov 20, 2016 17:26:47 GMT 10
Having been there, I'd suggest that figure was several hundred people out and was more about 1200. Could be told the corporate boxes and down the lines were full but the stands were not full and at the All-Star Games where the corporate areas and lines are full AND the stands are full, MBP has still fallen short of taking a 2k attendance.
Some positives out of the series but plenty of learning opportunities as well. Four series plus the All-Star Games doesn't give them much time however.
Well done to the players and coaches on their series sweep. Hopefully they get ruthless and look for four-games rather than three-games next time around. Wishing them the best on their road series.
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Post by lonewolf75 on Dec 5, 2016 6:53:26 GMT 10
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