A Major League Win!

Well, hello there, fellow sports lovers and business hustlers! I hope you’re enjoying the beautiful weather here in the Temecula Valley. I was enjoying a great glass of local Syrah the other night, and licking my wounds over the loss by the USA to Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. 

What a treat to have Major League Baseball BEFORE the official season actually begins. Truly, it was a major league win for me. The World Baseball Classic series got me thinking about MLB Opening Day which happens tonight with a standalone game between the Yankees and the Giants. Tomorrow the leagues go into full swing with 14 games! It is the earliest start in league history. 

It seems like just yesterday we were all celebrating the first National League team to win back-to-back championships since 1976. Of course, I’m talking about our very own Los Angeles Dodgers as they won their 9th World Series title. 

The whole seven-game showdown against the Toronto Blue Jays was pure magic. You had Addison Barger hitting the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history in Game 1, a crazy 18-inning marathon in Game 3 won by Freddie Freeman, and then the ultimate drama in Game 7: the Dodgers trailing on the road in the ninth and coming back to win the whole thing! Talk about a historical comeback. And let’s not forget Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Series MVP, pitching on zero days' rest in Game 7—a legendary performance!

A Major League Win Using Major League Rules

But here’s what my business mind kept coming back to: The Ohtani Rule.

The Dodgers didn’t just win because they had great players; they won because they had a smart, game-changing strategy built around a special rule.

If you don't follow the nuances of baseball, the "Shohei Ohtani rule" is a specific rule change that allows a player who starts as a pitcher to stay in the batting lineup as the designated hitter (DH) even after they are removed from the mound. This rule was adopted for one reason: to unlock the total value of an asset like Shohei Ohtani.

The Dodgers leveraged this perfectly with Ohtani reaching base nine times in Game 3 and hitting home runs after being removed from pitching duty. The organization didn't just utilize him for a few innings on the mound; they created a strategic framework—a "rule" they adopted—to keep his bat in the lineup for the entire game. They maximized their return on investment (ROI) on their most unique asset!

A Major League Win for a Major League City

Now, get ready for my geeky perspective. Consider the Temecula Wine Country. Think about the incredible economic and cultural importance of the Wine Country that led the City of Temecula to establish special policies and zones. These guidelines were adopted to promote winery-related uses, protect our valuable equestrian and agricultural heritage, and foster booming tourism and hospitality enterprises (Southwest Area Plan – GPA No. 1077). These special zones and design regulations support that unique rural, vineyard-focused landscape and reinforce Temecula's reputation as a world-class wine  and equestrian destination! That is the perfect local example of adopting a "rule" to maximize a world-class asset.

A Major League Win for a Major League You

Think about your office, shop, or company right here in Temecula. Don't we face the same challenge? You have that superstar team member—the one who is fantastic at leading a project and has the most creative ideas for marketing. Under the old "rules" (standard operating procedure), you might put them on the project team, but once that phase is done, they move on. You've benched their marketing genius!

The Dodgers showed us the winning strategy: If you have a world-class, multi-talented asset, you adopt a special internal rule or strategy to keep them playing the whole game.

1. Identify Your Assets: Who are your "Ohtanis"? Which employees or departments have unique, dual-threat skills?

2. Examine Your Rules: Are your company policies limiting your biggest stars? Are you taking your best hitter out of the lineup just because their pitching job is done?

3. Adopt a Strategy: Implement a new policy—your "Ohtani Rule"—to utilize those talents fully. Maybe it's a special cross-departmental role, or a new compensation structure that rewards dual-expertise.

The 2025 Dodgers' historical, dynasty-sparking victory wasn't just about talent; it was about strategic rule adoption to get the most out of that talent.

Let’s take that winning lesson back to the vineyards and businesses of Temecula. Go find your own "Ohtani rule," put your best assets in a position to win, and let's go for back-to-back historical victories in our businesses too! Cheers!

Let’s get together over a glass of wine, talk sports and get you into the house of your dreams.

Sources

County of Riverside General Plan: Southwest Area Plan – GPA No. 1077