Wagner: Who needs trade talks? These days, GMs just use emojis
From James Wagner at the New York Times on January 3, 2018:
In the annals of texting, $38 million doesn’t often change hands with a few taps of the thumb. And yet, that’s exactly what happened this off-season when the Miami Marlins sent Dee Gordon and the money left on his contract to the Seattle Mariners.
It started before the annual meeting of general managers in November, when Jerry Dipoto, the G.M. of the Seattle Mariners, called Michael Hill, the president of baseball operations for the Marlins, to inquire about Gordon’s availability. At the general managers’ meetings, they spoke again at length.
But weeks later, when it came time to complete the trade, a problem emerged: Dipoto was going to be on a plane for several hours, flying to Seattle. So, using the airplane’s Wi-Fi, Dipoto fired text messages back and forth with Hill to finish a deal that would send Gordon to Seattle in exchange for several prospects.
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This is the 24/7 life of a modern baseball executive, who operates in a world where analytics have already altered the way rosters are constructed and in-game strategies are carried out. Technology has also altered how the sport’s decision-makers communicate with one another — in humorous, contemporary ways.
Read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/04/sports/baseball/general-managers-texting.html
Originally published: January 4, 2018. Last Updated: January 4, 2018.