Greenberg The hero to baseball fans in North Texas left the organization today. Or was forced out. Or fired. We can continue on, but we know that it was one of the latter that took place, not the former.
For a sports second, Greenberg represented a saviour in helping issue in a new ownership group that ended the hold of Major League Baseball and Tom Hicks on the Texas Rangers.
And just like that. He's gone.
Greenberg definitely marched to his own drummer. He spoke candidly and believed in being open with fans and community. He had a minor-league mindset in a big-league setting.
As much as he ruffled the feathers of other owners, teams and the league, he was also bothering Rangers brass. Nolan Ryan and others in the organization are company guys. They like being old and quiet.
Apparently, it was Greenberg pushing the Cliff Lee hunt in the off-season pushing up the money and years. It was possibly Greenberg throwing a monkey wrench in the Mike Young trade negotiations. It was Greenberg mouthing off to the New York Yankees a month ago about driving Lee to Philadelphia.
By all accounts, Ryan and Greenberg didn't get along. And Ryan made that clear to the majority owners and proposed an ultimatum. Ryan's thrown seven more no-hitters than Greenberg, so we knew who would win that face-off.
Truth is, Greenberg's absence will not be felt in the day to day. I think Ryan's an aggressive guy. Just holds his cards closer to his vest than Greenberg. I do wonder how this might affect prices and fan-experience intiatives like the half-off beers in the third inning and half-off parking.
Again, whoever is writing the book, here's a pretty interesting epilogue.
Anyway, nice knowing you Chuck. You ran fast. You ran hard. You ran into a brick wall.
