Wizards Get 3rd Billing.

Today the Wizards released their promotion for the first game of the season. This fact has caused quite a stir on bigsoccer, with many people not in favor of the idea. The team has come back with a response on their official blog, Hillcrest Road.

To me, the team completely misses the point of many of the people's arguments against it. In the press release that the Wizards sent out to the media, the team says "Kansas City Wizards to Host Dora the Explorer, Scooby Doo, DC United Saturday March 29 at Community America Ballpark in KCK." The problem is the order at which the game appears in the release. To posters like AndyMead and kuhnscoot on bigsoccer the game looks like it is playing third wheel to the two cartoon characters that will be at the game. I have to agree with those two, and I'm sure we're not the only ones. The fact that the opponent on that day appears third on the list of things hosted by the Wizards says to me that the team cares more about the outside activities then the actual event.

This is a press release that the team sent out to the media. What's that say about the importance of your product in the eyes of the people that read that release?

Even in their own blog entry, the team seems to miss the point. The post talks about the fact that the team has events planned out for people of all ages and that this is just one of the things that is planned out for younger fans. They also mention that there will be an event for the 18-35 year old crowd in Lawrence coming up (the fact that the Kansas City Wizards are having their big party for that age group in Lawrence is a completely different thing). But as I said, the team misses the point. The fact is, it's the importance that the team appears to put on this event instead of the game. Even on their website when they talk about the event, is it a picture from a Wizards-DC game last year or some other thing about the team? No it's a picture of Scooby Doo in the article, and on the main page is a picture of a Dora balloon.

OnGoal and MLS have said in the past that they are in support of the "Game First Initiative " yet this seems to go against that.


This has been,
Baines Right Leg

Fire Sale

On 14 January Cerner Corp. cuts 97 jobs in the KC area. Company spokeswoman Kay Hawes said that the local layoffs were part of global job eliminations totaling 152 positions. This is not good news for Cerner Stock holders. As if the 3rd quarter report of Cerner shares losing $5.93, or 9 percent was not bad enough.

I know you all are thinking this has no effect on us or the Wiz. Or does it?

That's 97 former employees that will not buy tickets for themselves or their family. I might go as far as to say some will probably never have anything to do with any of Mr. Neal Patterson's holdings.

As for the the Wizards they are saving money by trading away Nick Garcia and Jose Burciaga . And look at the cash they save in salary and make in transfer fees by letting Eddie Johnson go with out a fight.

Now we hear that Sasha is out the door too. Who will be next, Jack Jewsbury , Kerry Zavagnin or even Jimmy? Will we have any experienced starters left?

Now if we can have a moment of silence for those Wizards you may not have ever heard of. Yes I mean our waivered Youth.

Edson Elcock - waived
AJ Godbolt - waived
Chris Konopka - waived
Willy Guadarrama – waived

I would like to thank you all for your service to the Wizards and the community. Some of you have been kind enough to volunteer your time to this community. Some have taken leadership roles, others have sold themselves.

Strange how both Cerner and On Goal LLC. seem to be cutting costs.

This has been,
Baines Breath.

The season is right around the corner.

Yes, believe it or not, the fans are getting excited about the draft.

Lets be brutally honest, the fans opinions really mean nothing when it comes to player personnel decisions. What am I really saying? Peter and Curt could care less what you and I think. Just send the sales department your money for those tickets and Sing and Chant. Face it you and I do not know what is best for the Club. If we did we would be working for them.

I have to say that BenC1357 might be right. " I mainly have this feeling because the top players in the draft usually use MLS as a stepping stone toward Europe and MLS never sees their best days, or they simply flop. " And Curt's is quote in the Star, “We want to be a franchise that’s selling players all the time” makes BenC1357 correct.

But lets look at who we might get anyway.

Patrick Nyarko He is 21+ and a 6 footer. Not bad height for a MLS but a bit short for most European teams. Comes with ACC honors and could develop into something special. Conclusion Curt would sell him.

Sean Franklin Nice career at Cal State, does have international experience. Short but fast. Can play DM or D. Current Club San Fernando Valley Quakes

Julius James All-American honoree and collected BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. Nice size for a physical defender and has the potential of representing Trinidad and Tobago. What does this mean? If he wants to play for MLS, he will only be a Youth International (YI) for one season. This is a serious problem for him and undercuts his value.

Chance Myers First-team All-Pac-10 honoree. Another DM and has been chosen to Participate in under 23 service. Hello Beijing. Could be a problem. I as a fan hate to lose half the team to national call up.

Eric Avila A true midfielder, M.A.C. Hermann trophy candidate. Someone who might step up in Davey's absence.


What the Wiz need is are forwards, defenders, wing and center back (now say goodbye Nick and Jose). And anyone who went to a match last season knows they need a Midfield. Just watching the ball go from a defender to a forward was getting pretty boring.

Lets Face the facts. We have traded away talent and are rebuilding. This means as fans we may as well admit that we have the potential of losing a lot of our games, although the Wizards will find a pretty way to package the truth and won't admit to rebuilding.

All of this really does not matter because Peter and Curt have already made their decisions. They will pick the players that have the most value, or should I say resale value.

Enjoy the baseball stadium, Stand a chant, and watch us rebuild this team for a winning inaugural season in the SSS.


This has been,
Baines Breath.

The Cauldron

There's been a lot of talk lately in blogs and on message boards about the Cauldron and it's location at Community America Ballpark. The arguments have gone from the pricing of the Cauldron season ticket to the support of the section.

The price for one season ticket in the Cauldron for this coming season is $299 for a 15 game regular season, and apparently 3 special game tickets. So over the course of the season, people are paying $16.61 for a ticket to the game. Of course that's if the Wizards use all 3 special game tickets this season. Which personally I don't see happening. Usually you get 2 special game tickets, 1 for the first round of the playoffs and one for the conference final. Does this mean the Wizards have a friendly with a team on the horizon for the coming season, or are they just adding the extra ticket so that they can make the ticket prices per ticket for ALL season tickets look lower?

Since we haven't played a friendly at home since 1997. I have my doubts that it's for a friendly.

Many people that have been part of the Cauldron for years are now having to look at possibly relocating to the berm where the tickets are cheaper. They aren't doing so without complaining though. A big part of the Cauldron's growth this past season was the fact that the Cauldron was the cheapest ticket for the games. Will it still be so without that fact this season? That's hard to tell.

What can Cauldron members who are pissed about the price and the move out of the section do? Accept it? Or do like La Porra has done and be organized? Kansas City's Argentine supporters group received discounted tickets last season for the Cauldron, and I would not be surprised to see them receive it again this season.

My suggestion is to get organized. Start the push for dues or to get the Cauldron more organized. Supporters groups all around the league are able to have some kind of pull with the front office because the group is organized. Paying members of the Red Bulls, ESC get discounted season tickets as a perk of being paying members of the group. Barra Brava lists some of their benefits on their website. Included in their benefits are discounted tickets and even discounted parking among other things. I'm sure that other supporters groups have similar benefits too. Why can't the Wizards work with the Cauldron's leadership to try to get similar benefits for the paid Cauldron members if and when they start collecting dues?


That can't be the only benefit for members though. There has to be more to it then that. And all of it can't come from the team. Barra Brava has t-shirts, the Midnight Riders list their benefits on their website. Those extra benefits have to come from the group itself.

This is not to say that the section should become a reserved section for only those paying dues, no. The section should still be GA for the group of the group.

If you agree, contact the Cauldron leadership, all their emails are on the website, and tell them you want the group more organized.

This has been,
Baines Right Leg

Sense For the Centsless

Thank you Dave (Ficklin) and Dave (WizardsCharter) for making the most sense out of this yet. I am a firm believer in communication. I believe this to be true of most people that if you explain the reason(s) behind decisions most people will accept the decision easier than handing it down as law.

This being said I want to say I was originally quite frustrated by the new costs to sit in the Cauldron. I do not have a lot of disposable money and my entertainment dollars go almost entirely to the Wizards. It was pretty hard to understand how the FO was doing us a favor by charging such a price for metal bleacher seats that the T-bones are getting to keep.

I could begin to justify this more in my mind if I believed that part of the 2008 STH Cauldron price was to begin to pay for a new stadium. I wish it were more about building on our future and less about covering construction costs for upgrades to a minor league ballpark.

I am grateful that Kansas City still has a soccer team and we didn’t have to see them leave only to have to bid on an expansion team once we finally had a SSS built, assuming that Kansas City would have continued to prove that it loved the beautiful game enough to make this happen. Perhaps its easier to be short sighted and complain about costs than to look into the reason for the price hike.

I accept this price hike like swallowing a double-edged sword. On one hand I see the need to cover the construction costs at CAB and to begin to build the Cauldron foundation outside the “hallowed” walls of Arrowhead. (Alas this foundation will cost quite a bit to move yet again.) On the other hand I also see the FO for the crafty foxes they are. Similar to the oil companies it’s easier to stomach today’s fuel prices after having paid in the low 3s earlier this year. Raise the price, knock it down, raise it again. By the time we move into the Three Trails SSS we won’t choke quite so quickly on the price they will want the 12th man to pay.

Oh but the price would be greater without a home team. The price of silence, beauty lost, aspirations fading. I will pay to keep the cacophony of the Cauldron, the beauty of the game and the dreams of the youth who play to one day be a Wizard.



"As long as Qi flows freely through the meridians and the Organs work in harmony, the body can avoid disease."

This has been,
Baines Qi

Rose Colored Glasses

Inhale. Ok, are you feeling the burn? You do. Good, now go ahead and exhale.

Are you seeing more clearly? If not you might need another drag before you read this.

date Dec 7, 2007 8:43 PM
subject2008 Cauldron Season Tickets


Wizards fans,


After a great deal of consultation and deliberation, we can now announce the details for the 2008 Cauldron.


The section is going to be the area that is currently the left field berm--we are installing bleachers in that whole area. On the map below, those are the two areas in yellow immediately adjacent to the west end line. The other three bleacher sections are higher.


The full season ticket price in The Cauldron will be $299, $35 less than standard bleacher pricing. The half season and walk up pricing will be the same as standard bleacher pricing, $190 (for 10 games) and $20 respectively.


Full season ticket holders get a parking pass in the close paved lot, unused ticket exchange privileges, and more.


If you have been waiting on this to renew, and wish to do so, please do so via Account Manager, or drop me a line.


The installation of these bleachers is a (remarkably) expensive undertaking, and this is, more than any other decision made with regard to the seating at CAB, a decision of policy rather than the bottom line. The organization wants The Cauldron to provide home field advantage, and being a few yards from the goal and near the corner flag can help in that regard, more than any other spot. The safety concerns played some role in choosing to not leave that as berm; the comfort concerns did as well. Plus, you can make a lot more noise on metal.


There are approximately 700 spots in that section. The success of this experiment will determine the size of The Cauldron in the new stadium. We made huge strides last year, but we need to build on it. We need to fill these seats.


To order season tickets for next year, please email (spierron@kcwizards.com) me, PM me, or call me (785-218-3636).


If you want to come out and see where The Cauldron will be for yourself (and, perhaps, place an order), come by Community America Ballpark next Monday through Saturday, 9am-4pm.



Thanks,
Sam





Stated by ownership last year, "we appreciate everything you the Cauldron have done for us this season. We are going to take care of you next year."





Hold on, after reading that I think I need a few more hits.





You've experienced
Baines Lungs

TIF Commission reschedules Bannister Mall

The TIF Commission of Kansas City has decided to hold a special meeting on Wednesday Nov. 7 to review the $943 million redevelopment proposal for Bannister Mall and surrounding area. My understanding is this does include what remains of Benjamin Stables. Aaron March, a lawyer with White Goss Bowers March Schulte & Weisenfels PC who is representing Three Trails Redevelopment LLC asked the commission to hear its request a week before the next regular TIF meeting. Aaron March said the earlier date would let the Kansas City Council consider the commission's recommendation this year. Waiting another week probably would have pushed the council's consideration into January.

Out of the $943M Bannister Mall plan, $55.5 million in TIF has been requested covering roughly six percent of the anticipated budget. Reportedly, this is the largest plan to come before the commission since the Kansas City Council passed the new incentives and economic development policy in August that Mayor Funkhouser pressed for. This policy was changed as a result of the former city auditor’s publicly stated view that the commission was too lax in administering incentives.

Hell I wish I knew how much the stadium they have planned will cost. $943M WOW. Do you think the Stadium will cost $55M? Do you really think that OnGoal and the developer want the city to pay for the stadium? Get real. More than likely the $55M will be used to tear down the buildings, rearrange the infrastructure, redeveloped the utilities and possibly pay for environmental impact studies. What I am saying is that the $55M TIF will be used to clean the place up, and make it consumer friendly. I doubt they would move the new Fire station.

That leaves approximately $886.5M coming out of the pockets of the redeveloper and the Kansas City Wizards for a kick butt Stadium hosting men’s and women’s soccer and some youth fields. Keep dreaming. Maybe $50M of the $886.5M would go to stadium and youth field development, but I doubt it. That leaves a lot of cash to develop a currently large expanse of wasted land. With what you ask? With office space, retail shops, and of course great restaurants. Sorry Mr. Woody Woodruff that does mean jobs for the local community. I know you hated hearing that, but a job is a job.

You out there. Yes you. If you live in Kansas City proper start writing your councilmen and women. Let them know you support redeveloping Bannister Mall. Show up at the TIF meeting and be seen and heard. You can make a difference. If you are like me and live outside Kansas City ask your co-workers and friends to write their council member as well as the TIF Commission appointees like Claudia Oñate Greim, and Margaret May. Here is your chance to be heard and make a difference.



Please be a part of the solution.
This has been,
Baines Breath

Wizards Employee May Not Support First Amendment Right.

Sam has posted comments for all to enjoy. So if I may I shall reply to his comments.

As all can see, Sam your first amendment right exists on this Blog. I have not and will not alter your comment in any way. If you would like to have a page to state your observations feel free to e-mail Baines Breath. It will get published. After all this is a collective.

As for Anonymous blogging, I as well as others, have posted on BS for years feeling we have to hold back at times. Granted Sam you have no ability in BS to moderate us, yet it has been stated in conversation that some have received calls, email and AIMs from you requesting we delete posts. Why? Did those posts get your goat, jeopardize your future position with the Wizards, or was/is the front office not able to handle criticism. I think it is not the latter of choices.

I know this is not rubbish. You Sam have done that. Tuesday you called Baines Finicky Liver and told him he was wrong and needed to correct his statement. This is a fundamental problem driving those pressured by you to join the collective. Do not think of it as a Blog but as an open forum for all to read. You do not need to be a member. You do not need to worry about personal attack. You cannot be called an idiot here. (I delete name-calling) Just e-mail something to Baines Breath and voila it is published. Yes it’s open to all. The best thing about this Blog, come closer…no… closer, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO READ IT.
Now, I bid you, good day Sir.

FAQs:
Why did I start this Blog?
It’s a not a secret that OnGoal has some unhappy fans. I started it to say out loud what your fans say behind your back. You see some may say they speak their mind but they really don’t because they might get a phone call, AIM or e-mail from the great and powerful Sam asking for them to play nicey nice. When someone says something to the front office directly they receive the pat answer, “be patient, we plan to announce something in two or three weeks. ” Rather than submitting their thoughts to the Wizards only to hear the same mantra, some choose to keep it to themselves or share it with me. This gives me fodder for blogging. Thank you for your mafia style censorship.

Does my, Joe Baines, opinion matter?
Every person’s opinion matters. That is why the collective is here. Please in the future do not pressure someone to make an addendum to their Blog, just write something yourself and state your opinion.

Is there an Emotion Quotient test I can take to measure my commitment to the Cauldron and the Wizards?
Sure. Just e-mail Sam Pierron with the Wizards and he can provide you with the test.

In closing. As for your statement, “Just trying to help, because nobody has more emotionally invested in the success of the section as I do.” I personally know of at least 25 Cauldronites and Big Soccer posters who also step up every time the Wizards and Heart of America Soccer Foundation ask them. They spend their own money and ask relatives for favors to get things done so our section looks good on camera. Have you stepped up this season and offered to pay for the 50 new flags? All the new Banners? These are the same volunteers that are/were at every game under our new ownership and while ownerless, putting the club before themselves. They have just as much emotionally invested in this section as you do.

Again, thank you Sam for all you have done.
I would also like to thank those that have bought celebration materials, beer, and food and donated their precious time to the section.


This has been,
Baines Breath