Dear Braves... keep paying your employees
Yes, there are no games right now. That means people aren't going to The Battery. That means the ocean of cash that was flowing into the Braves bank account has dried up.
Considering all the money that was already in that account, however, there should be zero reason for the Atlanta Braves to even hint about not paying their employees.
Let's be honest. This organization, since moving into its own city, is a cash cow. We don't need the numbers from the quarterly reporting that is required by Liberty Media. We can see the people moving throughout The Battery extending their wallets to buyt this and that. We know how much money this team is making in the new setup.
Hey, that's why they wanted to move from downtown. Would it have been possible if this city had been built on the area that used to be Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, just like Georgia State is now building dorms and a new baseball stadium? Certainly. But when a deal was not possible with the city, the Braves moved to Cobb County.
They did it to make money. They have proved in the few years they've been in what will be called Truist Park that their idea worked. They wanted to compensate for the supposed crappy television deal they have. They wanted to compete with other MLB teams for higher local revenue.
I don't need to know the numbers. All I do know is this team is owned by a huge corporation who really doesn't give a damn about it. The Braves are just a line on a business ledger. This isn't like Ted Turner owning this team. Those days are over. And Liberty Media also has plenty of money to help protect the Braves employees during this mess we are all in.
There is no reason for the people who have made this organization special to stop being paid. To even think about the people who work in the offices, or the scouts who have been finding the great talent through the years, or the minor league personnel who don't make enough money anyway having to lose pay during this is sickening.
Scouts and minor league managers and coaches do not make enough as it is, and then to possibly ask them to take a pay cut or to lose one red cent because of this tragedy would be criminal.
I know other teams may make other decisions. I know other teams may be in different situations. But again, the Atlanta Braves have plenty of damn money. Do not try and tell us otherwise. If anyone needs to take a pay cut, let it be the man who likely makes more than he should to begin with. Let Terry McGuirk give his salary for 2020 back to the real people who make this organization tick so they can pay their mortgages.
I haven't heard the Braves are not paying their employees after a certain date, but let's be honest. Considering what other organizations are doing with furloughs and pay cuts, it might be possible. But they shouldn't do it. If I thought there was no choice, like many businesses have in this situation, I wouldn't be writing this. But money is there to make it happen.
I'll sacrifice the Braves paying a million dollars to a washed-up veteran to try and make the roster in 2021 to have the employees paid right now. This is more important, to protect the people who make this organization work.
The Braves Way is something that many people cringe when they hear it. They find it pompous and condescending that a team would think their way is better than others. But what you need to know is The Braves Way is about the PEOPLE who have made this team, this organization special for over five decades.
It's about Bobby Cox, Paul Snyder, Brian Snitker, John Schuerholz and scouts and coaches who have been around forever. It's about how they are treated as human beings, with respect, like a family.
Is it a perfect organization? Hell no. There are some people who don't need to be there, like any business. But the tradition that has been built needs to provide the foundation to protect its employees in this great time of need and of concern. Employees of this organization do not need to worry about their next paycheck.
So Braves, do the right thing. Keep on paying your people. Protect them and forget about any furlough or pay cut for the people who make the Braves what they are. Keep paying the people who make the Braves special.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.