Another reader submission from Steve Nelson:
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I know it really sucks to be a Royals fan. It probably sucks for Royals fans more than it sucks for fans of any other team. It sucks for them worse than it sucks for fans of the D-Rays or the Pirates. In fact, Royals fans probably think it couldn't suck any worse for them than it does now.
But life's ironies are like whack-a-moles; just when you beat one down, it pops up again someplace else. It's a lesson that Royals fans are going to get schooled in - as if they needed to learn that lesson again. Ever since owner David Glass said he was finally ready to replace Allard Baird, Royals fans have actually had a glimmer of hope that things might get better. But here's the irony - they should now realize that was just one of life's sops, those hopes will probably be trashed, and there's a distinct possibility that the front office will actually get worse.
Here's the story, from the KC star, Royals' GM offer on table - Braves assistant Moore is considering job but wants total control of personnel:
The only major hang-up to an agreement, multiple sources have told The Star, is Moore's demand that he receive written assurance of complete control over personnel matters from club owner David Glass.
And who are the other options who might not be so picky about having full control over personnel decisions?
First of all, how ludicrous is it to openly conduct GM interviews while you've got a sitting GM? Baird has been a bad GM and Glass has previously indicated he was ready to axe Baird. But come on - interviewing other guys while you've got Baird twisting in the wind? Why don't you cut off his nuts while you're at it, David?
For years the performance of the Royals on the field has been more embarrassing than any fan should have to put with. But now Royals fans get to add Schotty behavior (Marge Schott-ish, that is) in the Front Office to all of the other indignities they must endure.
Let's graciously move beyond that bit of tackiness, though, because that's really just peripheral to the big issues. That tackiness would be bearable - still repugnant but bearable nonetheless - if there were a light at the end of the dark and seemingly endless tunnel that is the Kansas City Royals.
Now, if you are a Royals fan, that news about a month ago that Glass was finally ready to fire Baird should have caused a light to appear way down the end your tunnel shaft. It would be a dim and flickering light, to be sure, but discernible nonetheless, and sufficient to birth hope of an end to the darkness. But now you get the news that your owner, a man who evinces baseball intelligence as often as Mike Hargrove changes his lineup, actually thinks it might be a good idea if he keeps control of baseball operations.
What do Royal's fans get If Glass doesn't back down? Ed Wade or Randy Smith - two guys who comprise two-thirds of the triumvirate of retread candidates (Cam Bonifay being the third) whose upside is that they might be no worse than Baird. Whoopee! The Royals get a GM who is so bad he can't get hired by anybody else and who is so desperate he will accept any terms to get a new gig as GM.
One of the most dismaying feelings in life is when you're in one of those tunnels and you've seen the light shining way down the tunnel, then suddenly you realize that light you've been seeing at the end of the tunnel isn't daylight after all, but the light of an oncoming train. If you're a Royals fan you get the additional treat of realizing that your team owner is the engineer driving that train. And that train is heading the opposite direction from the glory train - this is the train to oblivion.
That's what it's like right now if you're a Royals fan. If you're not a Royals fan, but a baseball fan in general, you should be cringing as well because of the damage to the game being wrought by people Glass and owners of his ilk.