One more separate thought on the firing in the Diamondbacks land.  I am often writing about how General Managers contracts are too short to instill in them any need for true long-term decision making.  Most General Managers are given three years or less on their first contract, and they are expected to show results to fans in that time.

The Diamondbacks went another route.  They gave their GM a long-term deal, and they even gave him a stake in the company which would help any manager think about the big picture.  Byrnes developed some  philosophy (but since he never seems to publicly have discussed it- perhaps it never really existed)  that was meant to carry the team through the length of his contract- which in baseball terms was a very long contract.   Now he is fired with 5 years remaining, and this will only serve to teach other owners to be wary of making such a long-term commitment.

That is the wrong lesson here.  The commitment was correct, it was the philosophy that was wrong. What owner Kyle Kendrick got absolutely right is that he didn’t let the long-term contract handcuff him.  He fired the guy with 5 years left.  No one says you have to stick with the guy forever.  And yes, the long-term nature of the contract makes it difficult.  But remember, if Byrnes takes a job with another club, some of the pay due him from the Diamondbacks may go away.

Again, I hope the lesson learned from this firing isn’t that thinking long-term is bad.  The lesson should be thinking long-term is great- evaluating as you go and changing course when needed is essential.