Gillick to Phillies
Word on ESPN and elsewhere is that our own Pat Gillick has been hired as the new Phillies GM. Read more
Ichiro wins Gold Glove again
ZAO Water
All of us here are baseball nuts. We spend far too much time thinking, talking, and writing about the game. However, for each of us, baseball is still just a part of our lives. So, for a moment, I want to take a break from talking to you guys about the Mariners and show you an opportunity to join with me on another part of my life.
One of the organizations I’m involved with is a non-profit group called ZAO Water. It was founded two years ago by a guy named Matt Peterson, who I’m proud to call a friend of mine, who believed he had an idea that could impact the world in a significant way. At its heart, ZAO is committed to providing fresh drinking water and sanitation to the impoverished nations of Africa. The numbers of diseases that have decimated Africa due to the lack of clean water are staggering:
2.3 billion people worldwide have a water-born disease.
5 million people a year die from water-born diseases (including cholera, typhoid, hepatitis, etc…). It is the number one killer of humans worldwide.
The W.H.O. estimates that by 2025, 2/3 of the worlds population will live in areas of water shortage.
The lack of access to fresh drinking water in Africa is a huge problem. It’s also one that isn’t that hard to fix. For less than $5,000, ZAO was able to hire local experts to go into the town of Ntagacha, Tanzania, and change the town’s access to fresh water. Three springs have been provided and a well has been dug, as well as several latrines, and community hygiene education was provided for the entire village. When hygiene education is teamed with access to fresh water, the health of a village can be increased by 85 percent.
In a short period of time, ZAO has already made a significant impact on parts of Tanzania. We are committed to seeing this through until the problem is eliminated. And this is where you guys come in.
In order to raise funds, ZAO has entered the retail bottled water business (again, as a non-profit organization). We have an artisan well in North Carolina and are working to build our own bottling facility which will allow us to produce millions of bottles of ZAO water every year for retail sale, competing with Dasani, Aquafina, Le Bleu, etc… The price for ZAO water is extremely competitive; $1 for a 15 ounce bottle or $9 for a 24-bottle case. The difference? Every dime of profit that comes from the sale of bottled ZAO water goes directly to providing fresh water for people who badly need it in Africa. You get water, they get water, and everyone wins. If you’re interested in ordering ZAO water for your business (or, if you’re just a very thirsty individual), the contact information will be at the end of this post.
Also, we’ve had an donor come forward and offer a donation challenge; he is going to match every dollar we raise through the end of the year with one of his own, up to $500,000. So, if we receive a half million dollars in donations between now and December 31st, he’s going to write us a check for $500,000. Essentially, every dollar donated to ZAO between now and the end of 2005 will be immediately doubled. And, of course, it is all tax deductible, and you will receive all the necessary reciepts to claim a deduction on your 2005 tax statement. If you would like to participate in the ZAO donor-match challenge, you can give directly through paypal.
ZAO’s administrative overhead is basically nil. What we receive goes to help those in need. It’s a great organization, one that I’m proud to be affiliated with, and one that I believe strongly in. We really do have a chance to change the course of a continent in our lifetimes. If you guys are interested in purchasing ZAO Water, helping to increase our distribution, or simply giving directly to the efforts, feel free to contact us through any of the ways provided below:
Email: office@zaowater.com
Phone: 336-712-4008
Mail:
ZAO Water
3812 Littlebrook Drive
Suite A
Clemmons, NC, 27012
Any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments.
DePo, Theo to form joint venture team
This is a USSM exclusive: outsted new school GMs Theo Epstein and Paul DePodesta have joined forces and are seeking venture capital for their new venture, tentatively titled “TheoDePo Co.” The two whiz kids will attempt to acquire the Las Vegas 51s, reach a deal with Las Vegas development companies to build an entertainment complex that includes a baseball-only stadium, and then petition Major League Baseball under a set of rules they believe force the league to bring the matter of admitting the team to a vote, as long as the proposal meets certain financial and market critiera… rumored backers of the development deal are a dream team of Las Vegas companies, headed by Steve Wynn, and including Boyd Gaming Corp. and Park Place.
This could set into effect a series of even crazier events: owners may be swayed to vote for the proposal by the chance to use the Las Vegas team’s cash payment to contract one of the leagues worst franchises that constantly suck revenue-sharing money, like the Twins or Devil Rays, leaving those cities to pick up a minor-league affiliation instead. Under the current CBA, such a franchise swap is not prohibited because it would not affect the total number of teams in existence.
Whether a new, well-financed franchise is added to the mix or supplants an existing poor one, this would dramatically change the dynamics of free agency in this off-season and may send the price of premier free agents like Paul Konerko skyrocketing.
Baseball analysts note that this is all totally not true, and they’re correct, I totally made this all up. But would it be any weirder than what’s been going on in Boston this last week?
Epstein out in Boston
ESPN.com, elsewhere I’m sure.
Unlike DePodesta in LA, this was Epstein’s choice; he turned down a reported three-year, $4.5M deal (reports vary from $3.6 to $4.5M) at the last minute, apparently looking for something closer to the $2.5M per year the Red Sox offered Billy Beane three years ago.
Somehow I can’t see him taking a job in Tampa Bay, Los Angeles or Philly. “Out of baseball for a year” seems the best bet.
Live in Bellingham? Been To Spring Training?
If so, and you’re interested in fame, fortune and glory — or at least in being interviewed by the Bellingham Herald — hit me up via the backchannel e-mail address. A friend of mine is doing a story on Mariner fans just like you.
New coaches, Gillick interviewing in L.A.
The M’s hired Rafael Chaves to be their new pitching coach (replacing Bryan Price) and Jeff Pentland as their hitting coach. Pentland was lately the hitting coach for… wait for it… the Royals.
Royals hitting, by OPS rank
2003: 7th of 14
2004: 14th of 14
2005: 12th of 14
He certainly got results.
Also interesting, though, is that the M’s have let the Dodgers talk to Pat Gillick for their vacant GM position. It’d be amusing, if only because Bavasi came to Seattle from L.A. to take over from Gillick, and now Gillick may go to L.A. to take over that organization from one of the young whippersnapper GMs he has little patience for.
“What’s this computer doing on my desk? Who left all these SQL manuals in here? What’s this CD… Mogwai? Who the heck is Mogwai?”
DePodesta fired
LA Times, elsewhere.
The Dodgers didn’t have a great season, certainly. But what’s most interesting to me is the extent that the daily press in LA took him down. DePodesta was subject to almost constant criticism of his every move that often ranged freely into personal attacks on him (Jeff’s talked about this here only a few weeks ago). Dave and I both said that we thought the Dodgers had a horrible off-season (others disagreed), and the season turned out badly.
But does his on-the-job performance justify getting canned this early? It seems as if they’re reacting much more to the perception of his work, rather than what he actually has done since coming on, and have decided to bow to the meme-makers.
Sports columnists across the country must be breaking out the champagne. If you’re nasty enough and loud enough for long enough, and your ownership’s weak-willed, you can bring down a GM in two years.
Mariner free agents
No Mariner filed in the opening batch, but in alphabetical order, I present the possibilities:
LHP Eddie Guardado (mutual option, team still pondering their $6.5m option)
PH-L Dave Hansen
RHP Shigetoshi Hasegawa (club option ha ha ha ha)
LHP Jamie Moyer
RHP Jeff Nelson
IF-R Pokey Reese
C-R Dan Wilson
Props for Niehaus
At long last, Dave Niehaus has been recognized by America’s Finest News Source — The Onion. Enjoy.