Diamondbacks Toss Greenbacks

This is Jerry Colangelo’s party and he isn’t about to let anyone tell him he paid too much for the band.

On the eve of baseball’s expansion draft, the owner of the new Arizona Diamondbacks found himself defending why he would sign shortstop Jay Bell to a whopping five-year, $34.5 million contract that was a batting-practice fastball for baseball’s free-agent market.

Colangelo is not responsible for leading baseball into the age of fiscal enlightenment. He couldn’t if he wanted and he doesn’t.

He bristles at the suggestion he is corrupting the game even before making his first draft pick. When owners wonder out loud if the new kids will play nice with the salary structure, he blows a hot desert wind right back.

He looks at Jerry Reinsdorf of the Chicago White Sox, who gave Albert Belle $11 million a year into the new millennium. He looks at George Steinbrenner and the Yankees’ $66 million payroll. He laughs wondering how the Dodgers could be serious trying to feel out Bell’s agent Scott Boras for fewer years and less money.

But most of all he seethes at Florida owner Wayne Huizenga, who committed $89 million in salaries, then whined about being forced to sell the team that just won a World Series.

“Everyone ought to look in the mirror before anyone casts stones,” Colangelo said Monday. “We have a game plan and we plan to stick to it. And whatever we do is not going to be something that has to be torn down and sold.”

There are lessons in the Marlins’ madness and Colangelo thinks he has learned them all.

Championships can be won quickly. This is not Casey Stengel’s expansion draft. Look at the Marlins and Colorado Rockies, new teams just five years ago.

Chuck LaMar, the new general manager of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, made it clear Monday that building a pitching staff through the organization was the way to go. But Colangelo knows the first few picks today will not make his destiny. He could add more free agents, like Darryl Kile or Kenny Lofton. He says his payroll parameters are a secret, but it’s clear he will spend money to make money.

Unlike Huizenga, he doesn’t have to look out his window at 4 in the afternoon, see storm clouds and wonder if anyone will come to the game.

There will be a domed stadium with a retractable roof and natural grass. Season ticket sales are at 34,000 and advertising revenue at $400 million. A 110-degree temperature for a summer day game never looked so good or so lucrative.

There also isn’t a major-league team within 350 miles of this place. There isn’t much of anything out here, but as with the Colorado Rockies, there will be RVs in for the weekend with kegs to tap and money to spend.

When Bell was introduced Monday, Colangelo and general manager Joe Garagiola Jr. spoke of his character. Bell talked about knowing Diamondbacks manager Buck Showalter since high school. It made for a nice image, but Bell was here because of the money. He grew up near Tampa Bay and said his home will always be there. But while the Devil Rays were talking about farm systems, Colangelo was filling Bell’s ears with pennant races three months before the first spring training.

In Los Angeles, Dodgers GM Fred Claire and his team could have an entirely new infield next season. Eric Karros and Todd Zeile were left unprotected. Greg Gagne filed for free agency. The team desperately needs a solid shortstop.

But Claire never spoke to Bell’s agent Boras. It was better to see what the market would bear rather than set the bar.

“I only spoke to (Dodgers counsel) Sam (Fernandez),” Boras said. “I never spoke to Fred. No offer was made.”

In the end, Colangelo asked Boras to negotiate with the Diamondbacks exclusively until a deal was made or their final offer rejected. Sure, Arizona paid too much, but so did Rupert Murdoch when he swiped the NFL from CBS. No one remembers that anymore.

Murdoch doesn’t own the Dodgers, yet. The team is still Peter O’Malley’s and it shows.

So don’t hate Jerry Colangelo on the biggest day of his life. He’s just playing the game.