Toronto FCs 2014 season ended Saturday night. You may not have noticed as, for many, the season ended weeks ago. Negative headlines took the place of meaningful football as Toronto FCs playoff hopes slipped away. It was almost better the 1-0 loss to New England was overlooked. A game played on a turf field with football lines hardly does justice to the product. Nor does another dubious refereeing decision (or indecision, rather) leading to the game winner. Multiple controversial refereeing mistakes are an underrated, lesser-told storyline leading to an eighth consecutive season without playoff football for the TFC. Dubious red cards and disallowed goals should have been the extent of controversy in Toronto FCs season. Instead, more self-inflicted wounds due to poor communication, half-truths and speculation continue to hurt the image of Toronto FC. From Doneil Henrys transfer status, to mud-slinging at Jermain Defoe via high-placed club sources, it has not read well. On top of that, Michael Bradley is now having foot surgery in New York after Head Coach Greg Vanney claimed the player was fine after the loss to the New York Red Bulls two weeks ago. Mixed messages never end well. Weve experienced eight years of it and it hasnt helped. Its discouraging the lesson has not been learned from the mistakes of previous regimes: club leaks, he-said, he-said confrontations, and failure to simply tell it like it is continues to create an environment of mistrust and external perception of incompetence. This is the perception, it may not be reality. Things are not that bad at the club, but the manner by which they continue to conduct business opens the door for further criticism. The daggers are out. Calm and stability are needed. Good will is not something readily available based upon track record. Again, self-inflicted wounds are to blame. Its entirely frustrating to watch. Instead of piling on as many others continue to do, Id rather give advice; the club must keep quiet - just stop talking, or at the very least, think before they act. And if theyre going to speak, please make it the truth. Transparency is the ultimate olive branch to a skeptical fanbase. Its especially recommended if there isnt anything to hide. The depth of the negative narrative is surprising considering what the spin on the subpar season can be. The new Toronto FC administration should simply stick to the story that they began a complete rebuild of the squad less than a year ago, with the cupboards shockingly bare. They should stress the restructure will take time, something not simply remedied by a couple big money signings. Focus on the fact the team still set franchise records for wins and points through the growing pains and reshaping of the roster. Hit home that ownership is completely invested, showing for the first time in its history a willingness to spend with the power clubs in MLS. Bang home the message that the future is bright with a massive stadium renovation taking place and the continued investment in the Kia Training Ground. Off-field growth and stability has been achieved like never before. Its now about getting the right players to Toronto. Michael Bradley is the foundation, but its up to management to surround him with complimentary players, helping establish a team identity. 2014 was merely a start, 2015 the job continues. Simply admit the club over-sold expectations and came up short and that the blame is shared by all. There. Done. How difficult was that? All points made are true and paint a much better picture, the kind of explanation presented is completely reasonable. Not all will buy it - and thats fine - but thats the narrative to build off. Instead, a path has been chosen to discredit a star player (who is not without blame), while other items continue to confuse and lack clarity. Other than a small, short-term PR win, its hard to believe portraying the most talented player the club has ever had as a mammas boy does anything for Toronto FC in the big picture. It paints more of the same. Whoever leaked the story must have his reasons. It can be argued it was the last thing the team needed. An amicable split between Toronto FC and Defoe would do much more for future recruitment and league-wide goodwill. The focus has to be in the best interests of the team, emphasis on team. It especially holds true when the club defended Defoe to the hills around a tumultuous and speculative period around the closing of the transfer window. As an astute Toronto FC observer over the last eight years, I truly dont believe this team is that far off the mark. Things have been far, far worse. I have seen few better performances than an opening day win over Seattle and a massive away victory at Columbus a few weeks later. The wheels fell off as injuries mounted and adversity was faced. Personality conflicts emerged and the head coach was let go. Theres no way of telling if it was the right decision to dismiss Ryan Nelsen but the front office and coaching staff need be on the same page - thats a must. But the coaching change created instability. Its the type of instability that has reared its ugly head all-too often. Its unintentionally divisive and signals volatility. The team went back to old ways; nine head coaches in eight years. If Toronto FC could do it all over again, they would have most likely made the coaching change when the new front office took over, yet going down that road is nothing but living in the past. The present issues stem from the fact losing breeds drama at Toronto FC. And the clubs response to hardship leaves much to be desired. DC United went worst in 2013 to first in 2014, from 16 points to 59. Dramatic turnarounds can happen in MLS. A stable, consistent environment is essential for this to happen, though. No more pointing fingers, just proper communication. The establishment of positive conditions needed to succeed and continued commitment to superior player recruitment. This is what will lead to success. This leads us to this week: the year-end media interviews, an annual tradition. Toronto FC PR does a fantastic job making the players, coaches and management available for a year-end retrospect and should be applauded for doing so. The lack of team success and controversial storylines/unanswered questions makes for an awkward exercise. Many of the media use the day to fill-in the blanks, probe and pry for talking point of contention. Nuggets of discontent, bad-mouthing, and tone are dissected. The last thing Toronto FC needs is more off-field squabbling and/or controversy giving further fodder for the detractors to feast on. Basically, nothing good can come from the availability. Somber reflection makes for a depressing day, but its showing commitment to the future build is all thats needed. At this point, silence is golden. Enough talk. No more apologies, no more blame. There is nothing more to say. Everyone just needs to keep quiet. Before you speak, just stop. Enough is enough. Instead, just build a winner. Scout. Recruit. Network. Strategize. Find consistency, build an identity and culture of inclusion - and of success - and provide conditions to succeed. Until that time, all the positives of being a part of Toronto FC remain ignored, and thats not fair. The franchise can be something special. There are many who have worked so hard to make Toronto FC what it is, and there is much good to speak of. Its just overshadowed by losing and controversy, and understandably so. 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The slugger with 460 career home runs but zero at-bats in the post-season was traded by the Chicago White Sox to Oakland on Sunday, possibly giving the contending As the power boost they need for the stretch. The White Sox also sent cash to Oakland while acquiring minor league pitcher Nolan Sanburn. Because the deal was made before Sept. 1, Dunn will be eligible for the post-season if the suddenly sluggish Athletics make the playoffs. The 34-year-old Dunn has played more games -- 1,976 -- without reaching the post-season than any active major leaguer. This is his 14th season and, with a contract set to expire, said hes planning to retire after this year. Dunn waived his no-trade clause and approved the deal. "This is probably going to be it," he said. "I think that also weighed a lot, too. This is an opportunity. Ive been playing a long time and havent got this opportunity, so Im going to try to make the most of it." Dunn is hitting .220 with 20 homers and 54 RBIs. Earlier in his career, he played for Cincinnati, Arizona and Washington. Oakland holds the top wild-card spot in the American League. The As were second in the AL West after three straight losses to the division-leading Los Angeles Angels, and hadnt scored in 22 innings going into Sundays series finale. "I think this is just an opportunity for him that he shouldve taken," White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. "It came about and you talk to him about it, youre happy that he gets a chance to go do this. I think even if he does happen to hang it up after this year, hell at least get a shot at doing this." The As trailed the Angels by four games, their largest deficit since May 2013. The Athletics were looking to add a hitter after trading Yoenis Cespedes to the Boston Red Sox for starter Jon Lester before the July 31 nonwaiver deadline. "Were trying to do whatever we can to get some offence going here," Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. "The guy has a history of hitting homers and getting on base, and I know hes excited about being with us." Along with Dunn, the White Sox have traded away second baseman Gordon Beckham and outfielder Alejandro De Aza in the past week and a half. Dunn has struggled in four seasons with the White Sox, mostly as a designated hitter. He has pplayed first base and some outfield, and even made his first career pitching appearance this season in a mop-up role.dddddddddddd The White Sox envisioned making playoff runs when they signed Dunn to a four-year, $56 million contract in December 2010. Dunn was coming off back-to-back 38-homer seasons with Washington but the plan didnt unfold as envisioned. "I wish things wouldve worked out better, but it didnt," he said. Dunns first season in Chicago was brutal. His average dropped more than 100 points to .159 while he hit just 11 homers in 2011, and he never really lived up to expectations after that. He became a lightning rod for fans with his high strikeout totals, finishing one shy of the record with 222 in 2012, but he remained popular in the clubhouse. "Some people like to lump it all together," teammate Paul Konerko said. "We know the first year was a rough year, but if you look at a lot of his time here, he kind of did what he was supposed to be doing." General manager Rick Hahn said the White Sox started to zero in on the Oakland deal on Saturday. He discussed the possibility with Dunn, and the veteran waived his no-trade clause. "This deal, we feel real good about Sanburn," Hahn said. "Hes a young power arm with good pitch ability and good secondary pitches." He said Sanburn will likely start next season in Double-A. As for Dunns time in Chicago? "Obviously, we were both disappointed that we didnt accomplish on the field what we had hoped when the deal was originally signed four years ago," Hahn said. "He was brought here as part of a plan to help us win championships in that window, and it didnt happen. From that standpoint, I think were all disappointed. From the clubhouse standpoint, he was outstanding." The White Sox also called up first baseman Andy Wilkins and Scott Snodgress from Triple-A Charlotte, reinstated outfielder Moises Sierra from the 15-day disabled list and outrighted pitcher Nestor Molina to Double-A Birmingham on Sunday. Wilkins, who had 30 home runs and 85 RBIs for Charlotte, started at first base on Sunday. Dunn, meanwhile, gets to play in meaningful games down the stretch. "I think thats whats probably really exciting for him at this point, is to come in here and play meaningful games in September and hopefully help a team get to the post-season," Melvin said. Wholesale Throwback JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ThrowbackCheap Jerseys WholesaleCheap NFL GearJerseys From ChinaYouth NFL Jerseys CheapCheap Jerseys From China ' ' '