As we near the Major League trade deadline I need to address something that has never made any sense to me.
General managers spend months in the winter to build a team that can compete during the regular season.  They spend tons of money on scouting, to get the right fits and give up tons of prospects to get the line up they want.  They do their best to put together complete teams, that can make the playoffs.
So why is it that if a team doesn’t pan out right away they blow it up?
It takes more than just a few months for a whole bunch of new pieces to fit.  Players have to get used to their new surroundings, including the manager,  their teammates, the city,  a new stadium and maybe even a new league.
Having a new manager really throws off some players.  Managers have so many different styles that it can be hard to adjust.  Some guys yell and scream while others don’t say much at all.  Some try to delegate to their coaches while some are very hands on.
Getting used to a club house full of new teammates is always a challenge.  There are so many huge egos, that it takes time for players to see eye to eye, especially if you want to be a team leader.
Having to move to a new city is not an easy thing either.  It takes more than just a few months to get adjusted.  From buying a home, to finding schools,  to getting to know the route to the stadium,  it all just takes time.  Those kinds of everyday stresses can really affect how someone plays.
Figuring out how a ball flies in a new stadium or how the turf plays is also an adjustment for some players.  Even though teams play 81 road games a season they still need to figure out their home ball park.
Playing in a new league might be the most important thing of all, especially for pitchers.  The American league game is very different from the National League.  First off, if you’ve spent your whole career in the NL then you had to bat.  A lot of guys get used to that.  When they switch to the AL and don’t bat anymore it throws many guys off.  Add to that, they have to face teams that have a DH.  There isn’t an automatic hole in the line up every game.
With all that in mind,  you really have to wonder why teams give up so quickly on what they’ve just built.
As a huge fan of the under achieving Toronto Blue Jays, I hope that they keep their roster in place.   I don’t want to see them give away players who are just now getting adjusting to life in Toronto and as a Blue Jay.  There is far too much talent there to just throw it all away after a slow four months.  There is a reason that they invested all that time and money.  I just makes sense for them to see it through.