Timing was everything for Dick Jacobs

Jacobs helped build a winner in
Cleveland. (Photo: AP)

Former Cleveland Indians owner Dick Jacobs is widely considered a hero in the Cleveland area for being one of the main people behind the renaissance and success of the franchise in the mid-to-late 1990s.

He and his brother David purchased the team in 1986 at a time when the interest level and competitive nature of the franchise was at an all time low. Several years later a "Blueprint for Success" devised by former GM Hank Peters and then fulfilled by former GM John Hart had the Indians as the talk of the town and around baseball by 1994.

The Indians were a sight to see during that time period from 1995-1999. They had stars up and down the roster and at one time boasted an All Star at every position. They made the playoffs every year. They went to the World Series twice. Fans packed "The Jake" every night because it was the place to be. Indians fever had swept over a fan base because of 40 years of misery and the loss of the beloved Browns.

With the fervor surrounding the team at an all time high and expectations lifted to unsustainable levels, the value of the franchise was maxed out. Being the business man he was and understanding the situation with the franchise both short term and long term, Jacobs pounced on the opportunity to “sell high” when he put a for sale sign up seemingly out of nowhere at the beginning of the 1999 season.

At the time no one really understood why Jacobs wanted to sell the Indians as they were a cash cow in the 90s and it was believed they would continue to be. In the 12 years that have passed since it is easy to see Jacobs knew exactly what he was doing as his keen business sense once again showed itself.

As an astute business man, Jacobs probably saw what was coming in the future for the franchise with declining attendance and revenues with the return of the Browns, the changing Cleveland economy, and the stadium itself no longer being the draw it once was when it was brand new. He also saw an aging roster with several star players and fan favorites becoming free agents who would be tough to resign. Most of all he probably saw a blossoming inequality in the economic structure of the game.

By selling the team in 1999 and getting out just in time before any potential rebuild on his watch, Jacobs saved his image as a "hero" in the Cleveland area. He capitalized and struck at the right moment and passed a rapidly depreciating team onto the Dolan family. The Dolan’s bought into the team without having a true idea what they were getting, and they soon discovered that they were not inheriting the money machine and guaranteed yearly winner that Jacobs enjoyed for most of the 90s.

By getting out when he did, Jacobs saved face and made a truckload of money at the same time. The guy knew business, and it showed with how he knew when to sell the team and how he went through the sale process and eventually got the Dolan family to overbid for the team.

Most importantly Jacobs' legacy and reputation remained intact by not having to deal with the reality of missing the playoffs and losing star players to free agency. All of that fell on the Dolans.

Jacobs had already gone through the free agent process with Albert Belle and Kenny Lofton. They lost Belle to the White Sox after the 1996 season, and in anticipation of Lofton’s unrealistic demands they traded him to Atlanta just before the start of his free agent year in 1997. At the time of the sale, fan favorites Manny Ramirez and Sandy Alomar Jr. were on the eve of free agency, and Jim Thome was getting close as well.

Jacobs also did not have to worry about competing in an economic climate where the gap between the haves and have nots was quickly becoming as large as the Grand Canyon. With revenues already maximized, he did not have to contend with the rapidly increasing payrolls in the game. That was up to the Dolans to figure out.

In the 90s the Indians were able to be very competitive in the market because of their maximized revenues from sellouts. By 2001, even with a winning team, loaded roster, and a payroll of $92 million which is the highest in team history (over $15 million more than any payroll under Jacobs), the Indians did not even sell out half their games.

This decline in interest and revenues was something Jacobs probably saw coming. At the same time the revenues for the team were decreasing, the payrolls for the big markets were increasing at a rapid rate. In 1999 - Jacobs’ last year as owner - the New York Yankees led baseball with an $88 million team payroll. Five years later in 2004 the Yankees payroll jumped to $184 million.

The common perception is had Jacobs never sold the team that the Indians would have kept winning and spending. But Jacobs mandated the team always operate where it made a profit, and he even resorted to putting the team up publicly where he made around $60 million in stock sales to help finance the team in 1998 and 1999. Having been tapped out financially, he very likely would have needed to take the same route that the Dolans did in 2002 when they made the hard decision to completely tear down the team and rebuild it from scratch.

Had Jacobs stuck around, he might have gone through something similar to what Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert is going through now. Gilbert’s situation is much the same as the one Jacobs came into, and the one the Dolans fell into.

Gilbert bought the Cavaliers in 2005, near the end of LeBron James' second season with the organization. His purchase was timed perfectly as interest was gaining in the team because of James and a feeling he would lead the team to the Promised Land and win the city's first championship in decades.

The Cavaliers were coming off a long dead period where since the Price-Daugherty-Nance Era from 1988-1993 they had largely been ignored. But Gilbert experienced a run from 2006-2010 in five years much like Jacobs did with the Indians from 1995-1999. Lots of sellouts, lots of praise, a superstar player, tons of playoff games, a high quality product, and above all a winning team that people believed could win a championship.

Unfortunately, all of that came to an end with "The Decision" last July, and now we are seeing what Jacobs may have faced had he held onto the Indians a little longer.

Gilbert is going through the pains of a rebuild and the uncertainty it brings. While he is still getting the benefit of the doubt by a lot of fans, he is already starting to be put through the public meat grinder as fans start to realize that the Glory Years of the Cavaliers franchise have quickly come and gone, just like the Indians in the late 90s. As a result he is no longer viewed as much of a hero and his reputation has taken a big hit.

The Cavaliers just completed a season where they essentially went from first to worst in the league, all in one year. The public perception of Gilbert will only continue to wane if the losses continue to pile up the next few seasons. If the organization ends up in a perpetual cycle of mediocrity (at best) just like they did prior to the arrival of James, eventually all the love for Gilbert in his first several years as owner will be forgotten and be replaced with the contempt and dismay of a losing franchise and bewildered fan base.

Which is exactly what Jacobs would have endured here in Cleveland had he stuck around as owner.

Gilbert very likely will get to experience both sides of the spectrum with the fan base by being viewed as a hero just like Jacobs, but also as public enemy number one like the Dolans.

Like a good poker player you have to know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em. For Dick Jacobs, he knew when to cash in his chips and get out at the right time.

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

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