Encouraging Signs
As the faithful dance in the streets over the departure of Jim Bowden, I have been watching for signs that the real issues are being addressed.
Everywhere you look you see Stan Kasten reasserting unmistakable control (here, here, here) of the entire Nationals operation. He has assumed the role of General Manager (until such time he can name a replacement). He has encouraged his front office staff to look for new and better ways of doing things, telling them that in the face of adversity, opportunity is often found. He’s appearing in the media frequently. He has a coherent message, and has had one since the whole Smileygate brouhaha came to light. He has taken responsibility for the situation in the Dominican Republic, and for the tenure of former GM Jim Bowden.
These are all the things that a team president should do. What is most interesting is the great skill and poise that Kasten is showing as he does all of these things.
Back in 2006, when Major League Baseball was still evaluating the different ownership groups, Kasten joined the Lerner team at the suggestion of Bud Selig. The idea was that Kasten brought the baseball knowledge and track record in professional sports that were necessary for a successful organization, and as I pointed out in a posting last week, this move was widely seen as being the one that made the difference for baseball, and made the Lerner bid successful.
We’re now down the road three years, and the Nationals have struggled to find direction. Often when organizations struggle this way, it is because there is a lack of clarity within the organization. Many would point to Bowden and suggest that he was the cause of that lack of clarity, but I would suggest to you that he was a symptom rather than the cause. The real cause of organizational frustrations such as these are often difficult to see from the outside, even in organizations whose profile is as public as a professional sports team. Organizations often don’t realize the energy and resources that are wasted as different parts of the organization pull against each other, rather than focusing that energy towards a common goal.
The outward signs, as imperfect as they are, suggest that many of the divergent motivations within the organization are now being addressed. Kasten seems to be consolidating the operation into a single coherent unit. The public face, as seen in the media, has taken a very different appearance in just the last week.
That said, we can’t know for sure that whatever has been causing the Nationals to spin their wheels organizationally is being addressed. But at least, from where I stand, there seems to be movement in a positive direction.
