Every time the Knicks step onto the court these days, it’s clear — their strategy isn’t based on trying to win games this season. Their strategy is completely about the future. They won’t use the word, but everyone knows what they are doing. It’s called tanking.
The issue of tanking has become one of the most compelling subjects in sports. While it may have originated decades ago, it feels as if it’s more prevalent now than ever. It’s a polarizing philosophy that engulfs organizations, media coverage and fan bases.
That prompted The Post to explore this fascinating subject. In this ongoing series, we’ll examine how and why tanking became so prominent, reveal how fans view the strategy and propose our solutions to fix it.
The worst single-season team of baseball’s Tanking Era did anything besides tank.
Well, at least not until midseason, when the 2018 Orioles would have been cited for malpractice had they not traded away their veterans.
Actually, the Yankees’ longtime American League East rivals hold a special place during this weird time in baseball, and as they embark on a full-fledged 2019 tank in the wake of their woeful 47-115 record last year — the fourth-most losses by a team since 1901 — they arguably serve as Exhibit A … in favor of tanking. Yet they and their owner, labor-friendly attorney Peter Angelos, also earned the longtime admiration of the Players Association and fans who believe in present-day value.
“Mr. Angelos wanted to be competitive, personally because of his age [now 89] and also because of the players we had,” said Dan Duquette, who served as the Orioles’ executive vice president of baseball operations from 2012 through 2018. “… We had a core that was competitive, and they all aged together, anyway.”
That group came together as the result of an endeavor that was, what one person familiar with the team’s thoughts at the time said, “80 percent of a teardown.”
“Angelos would say, ‘How do I ask someone to pay $40 for a box seat when they expect you to win? Rather than trying to get through a year, we’re going to do what we can [to win],’” the person recalled.
The Orioles traded pitcher Erik Bedard to the Mariners in 2008 for a package highlighted by center fielder Adam Jones, who became a core team member. They acquired slugging first baseman Chris Davis and valuable reliever Tommy Hunter from the Rangers for veteran reliever Koji Uehara. They finished poorly enough to draft Manny Machado third overall in the 2010 amateur draft and Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman fourth overall in the subsequent drafts.
Even during that stretch, however, Angelos refused to trade franchise favorite Brian Roberts as the second baseman hit age 30 and still provided value as he earned eight figures. A trade of Roberts for prospects could have enhanced the O’s 2012-17 charge with Duquette and manager Buck Showalter that produced three postseason appearances.
And if Baltimore had opted to tank after a lousy 75-87 showing in 2017, it could have received a haul for Machado, Jones, Gausman, Jonathan Schoop, Zach Britton (before he suffered an injury that offseason) and Brad Brach. Instead, it gave the group one more chance and dealt away everyone besides Jones in July.
Now the Orioles, under new general manager Mike Elias, will choose first in this year’s draft, with no ambitions to contend in the near future. The fans remaining in those box seats will have to be patient and hope this process produces the desired rewards.
