The Cheapest and Most Tone Deaf Owner

Previously in our series about bad owners we brought to you John Fisher of the Oakland A’s.  In addition to Mr. Fisher being a bad and disloyal owner (as he is moving his club to Las Vegas next year and robbing the Bay Area of their long time club), you can also add cheap and tone deafness to his other attributes.  The latest blunder on the part of the A’s was their tribute to Detroit Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera who is retiring after twenty plus years in the major leagues.  Cabrera, the Venezuelan, is one of a select group to win (2012) a Triple Crown, has slugged more than 500 home runs and is a 12-time all-star.  He is obviously destined for the Hall of Fame based on his incredible career.

Cabrera announced his retirement after this season, so teams throughout the league are honoring him with gifts to note the mark he has left on the game.  The A’s were somewhat different though in their level of gifting as they decided that a mere $90 bottle of wine was appropriate.  If it were you or I, a $90 bottle of wine would be fine, but a major league team worth over a $1 billion just does not make the grade.  Even worse than the dollar amount associated with the gift was the pure lack of imagination.  It sounds like someone from the front office realized at the last minute that Cabrera would be in town and decided to ask an intern to pick up a bottle from the liquor store on their way to the ball park. Just also reminding that same intern that whatever you do, do not spend more than $100.

Finally, what was even worse was that the A’s tone deafness actually outpaced their cheapness, as they did not realize that they were bestowing a bottle of wine upon a recovered alcoholic.  It was no secret that Cabrera has had bouts with alcoholism throughout his life, so just a little research by the A’s PR department would have revealed that gifting wine in this situation would be a boneheaded and insensitive move. 

Obviously, there is no way to directly link this gifting error to owner John Fisher, but an organization is only as good as its leader.  Our sincere apologies to the Oakland A’s fans who had their franchise purchased and ruined by this bumbling owner and then had the league and John Fisher conspire to steal and move it to Las Vegas.  We have no doubt that the same incompetence will follow the A’s to Las Vegas as long as Fisher is leading this organization.  Rumors are that he plans to eventually sell the franchise after relocating the team, which is good for Vegas, better for baseball, but in the end a damn shame for the loyal fans of Oakland.  In this case, two out of three is not so good.