MLB Thread

[grommit2]

On 12/9/2023 at 3:17 PM, Carey said:

Just Crown The Dodgers

Wow!  $700 million over 10 years.  Actual payments are delayed, thus trimming some of the cost burden.  But...holy cow!  The Dodgers must be confident that Ohtani will be healthy enough to both pitch and hit. Amazing!

[ProudMary]

This is insanity. This deal should be blocked by MLB. This means $2 million per year for all 10 years of Ohtani's contract and then $68 million for EACH of the following 10 years.

 

[baldryanr]

He's not getting interest on that deferred money either.  I suppose it doesn't really matter to him, but that's a decent chunk of money he's sacrificing.  Should have tried to work out the Bobby Bonilla sweetheart deal, especially with rates being pretty high right now.

[twoods]

That’s very nice of him, but shows that he wants a very good team around him to get the best chance at winning. The Dodgers got lucky because not many would defer that much just for the sake of paying others around him.

[baldryanr]

1 hour ago, twoods said:

The Dodgers got lucky because not many would defer that much just for the sake of paying others around him.

Maybe not for a quaint $100 million dollar contract, but I'm pretty sure they would if they were guaranteed $680 million.

[twoods]

Yeah but only getting two million a year for 10 years? He can do that with all the endorsement money he has, but I don’t even think the talented young players would defer that much. Maybe 20-30 million, but not 68.

[ProudMary]

On 12/7/2023 at 5:34 AM, mojoween said:

I am not ok with Higgy being part of the Soto deal.

Sharing, as I wanted to make sure you saw this. I'm verklempt. 😔

 

[Jane Tuesday]

I'm absolutely disgusted by this deal. It's a clear and obvious attempt to circumvent the CBT. (And also California taxes. He'll be taxed based on where he's living when he gets paid, not where he's living when it's earned.)

It's bad enough that baseball - because of its lack of salary cap - has increasingly become a game of haves and have nots. But this goes to a whole new level and is horrible for the sport, even if MLB and the talking heads don't realize it. Basically, we will end up with all the stars on six teams, and either: 

1. The same few teams will dominate, and fans of other teams will become disenchanted and stop watching, or...
2. A smaller market team will put together a postseason run (think Dbacks in 2023), but the ratings will be horrible because they don't have any stars and casuals won't watch. 

I hope it blows up in all their faces. 

[shoregirl]

Dodgers still going to take a 46 million hit towards the competitive balance tax but it's still insane. 

Deferrals are a part of the game most teams do that or sign guys for more years so the AAV goes down like the Phillies do.  Othani make so much in endorsements that getting a salary to play for the dodgers is just a bonus apparently.

Edited December 12, 2023 by shoregirl

[baldryanr]

2 hours ago, shoregirl said:

Dodgers still going to take a 46 million hit towards the competitive balance tax but it's still insane. 

Deferrals are a part of the game most teams do that or sign guys for more years so the AAV goes down like the Phillies do.  Othani make so much in endorsements that getting a salary to play for the dodgers is just a bonus apparently.

Well, that and the 40 million he earned from the Angels.  Unless he was a complete spendthrift it's not too tough to use that to pay the bills while his salary's deferred even if he wasn't making a fortune from endorsements.

[mojoween]

Everyone is mad now and I am here for that.  The pitchforks for “the Yankees are buying championships!” wasn’t that long ago.

I’m sure it won’t last, but I’ll enjoy it while I can.

[Jane Tuesday]

I don't mind the huge contract - much - that only a few teams can afford.  I mean, it sucks, but it is what it is.  There's no cap, and the players' union will never budge on that.

But, there is supposed to be a competitive balance tax to help in some small way level the playing field.  This is circumventing that, which is my objection.  Yes, many teams defer money, but no contract has ever been like this one, so it didn't have such a dramatic effect.

Defer payment all you want, but the CBT should be figured on the years the player is playing.  Otherwise, it's complete bullshit and why even bother?

[ProudMary]

The Dodgers are still dealing.

 

 

 

[JTMacc99]

On 12/12/2023 at 9:45 AM, mojoween said:

Everyone is mad now and I am here for that.  The pitchforks for “the Yankees are buying championships!” wasn’t that long ago.

I’m sure it won’t last, but I’ll enjoy it while I can.

That's what pisses me off the most about the Yankees lately. The only thing preventing them from buying championships is that they're bad at it. 

As long as the owners are never going to band together in a way to create a true revenue sharing and then live through the disastrous labor stoppage that would be necessary to implement a salary cap, so that true competitive balance could start to evolve in MLB...

And as long as I've been a fan of the Yankees since I was 8 years old, well before I understood anything about baseball haves and have nots...

I might as well embrace the fact that my team has a massive advantage over the others.  And if I'm embracing that fact, for the love of God, can the people in charge of my team actually do something with its unfair advantage, and not field a team that barely breaks the Mendoza line as a whole?

 

[ProudMary]

53 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

That's what pisses me off the most about the Yankees lately. The only thing preventing them from buying championships is that they're bad at it. 

👏

You're SO right. IMO, the Yankees haven't made an impactful free agent signing in the ten years since they signed Masahiro Tanaka. Of course, that was the same off-season they signed Jacoby Ellsbury, so as good as the Tanaka signing was, it's almost negated by that disastrous contract. 

It wasn't always that way. Just limiting it to the 21st century, the Yankees made several excellent free-agent signings: Mike Mussina, Hideki Matsui, Mark Teixeira and my personal favorite, CC Sabathia. While I hate to give any credit to GMS III, (I'm old enough to remember being a fan in the '80s and early '90s, when George's interference was particularly problematic 😒) it's not lost on me that the Yankees' FA signings have generally been awful since "The Boss" died.

I honestly don't see the problem being fixed without Brian Cashman being shown the door and maybe even going as far as new ownership being required. 

Just as an aside, I've never actually been on the "Fire Aaron Boone" train. I'd honestly be interested in seeing the kind of manager Boonie would be were he allowed to make his own decisions instead of being Cashman's puppet. I have no doubt that Cashman pulls ALL the strings. 😠

[mojoween]

At a sports bar somewhere in Pennsylvania and these two older guys at the next table were talking about Shohei’s contract and one said three times that Barry Bonds gets a million dollars from the Mets every July and I asked the hubby if it would be rude to correct a total stranger and he said “absolutely”.  And then some other lady was walking out and she told him that it was Bobby Bonilla so I feel vindicated.  😀

[baldryanr]

There's all sorts of fun to be had with deferred contracts, especially if your team sucks.  Look at the Reds.

Their highest paid player was Joey Votto, who was completely washed up and only played 65 games.

Their second highest paid player was Wil Myers, who was so bad he was released in June.

Their third highest paid player was Ken Griffey Jr, who left the Reds in 2008 and retired in 2010.

[Carey]

LOL Re:  Someone mixing up Barry Bonds with Bobby Bonilla.  What's hilarious is that there are a couple handful of people like the above that act like they know more than the owners and/or say it's time to fire everybody!

No matter how the contract words, as mentioned, Bonilla will still be getting paid in the aftermath of Ohtani getting all of his

[baldryanr]

1 hour ago, Carey said:

LOL Re:  Someone mixing up Barry Bonds with Bobby Bonilla.  What's hilarious is that there are a couple handful of people like the above that act like they know more than the owners and/or say it's time to fire everybody!

If by a couple handful of people you mean large chunks of the fanbase who think they know better than the manager, GM, owners, etc. when it comes to personnel moves and game strategy then yup, I agree.

[mojoween]

2 hours ago, Carey said:

LOL Re:  Someone mixing up Barry Bonds with Bobby Bonilla.  What's hilarious is that there are a couple handful of people like the above that act like they know more than the owners and/or say it's time to fire everybody!

Not baseball-related but in the same conversation with his buddy he also fired Mike Tomlin and the entire Steelers staff.

For baseball they only talked money, I don’t know where they stand on the Pirates.

[grommit2]

Angry at the Yankees?  For spending big bucks and getting little more than injured stars? 
At least the Yankees are willing to take the plunge and fork over the piles of dollars.
Not like the Red Sox...oh no. They decided to let Xander go.  And they did not counter-offer Betts.  Paid for Trevor Storey, but then he got hurt.  As did Chris Sale, the one time top 3 pitcher.  Now they are trying to build a team with mid-level players.  Probably thinking that the Boston fans will pay for seats no matter what they put on the field.  Oh well...it's not my money.

[baldryanr]

46 minutes ago, grommit2 said:

Angry at the Yankees?  For spending big bucks and getting little more than injured stars? 
At least the Yankees are willing to take the plunge and fork over the piles of dollars.
Not like the Red Sox...oh no. They decided to let Xander go.  And they did not counter-offer Betts.  Paid for Trevor Storey, but then he got hurt.  As did Chris Sale, the one time top 3 pitcher.  Now they are trying to build a team with mid-level players.  Probably thinking that the Boston fans will pay for seats no matter what they put on the field.  Oh well...it's not my money.

You can't pretend to be the plucky underdog if you outspend the Yanks - that was always Boston's thing.  What's that, the Yankees are the ONLY team that outspent us?  Doesn't matter, we're not some evil empire outspending everyone else, so you should always root for us.

[mojoween]

Baltimore (the city) Twitter is in distress and I do not blame them.

This has apparently always been the case, but they are just now going to pursue it.  Get ready for Utz Stadium at Camden Yards!

[Fukui San]

I’m ready for Old Bay Fields. 

[ebk57]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

This has apparently always been the case, but they are just now going to pursue it.  Get ready for Utz Stadium at Camden Yards!

I was getting ready to hit the sad reaction - but really, Utz Ballpark would be awesome!  

 

1 hour ago, Fukui San said:

I’m ready for Old Bay Fields. 

Or this! 

Or maybe McCormick Spice-y Field!

 

Just please spare me the big corporate telecom company.  

[DMK]

Here it comes: Who But WB Mason? Park

[smittykins]

Yankees claim Jeter Downs off waivers from Nationals.

And yes, he’s named after you-know-who. 😛

Edited December 19, 2023 by smittykins

[smittykins]

Ryan Minor, who replaced Cal Ripken Jr. to end The Streak, dies at 49

Fuck cancer.

[ebk57]

Once more, with feeling (I posted this during the dark time here and it was swallowed up). 

This is a gifted link for my Yankee-fan friends here (and everyone else).  I think the hair policy is silly, but if it actually keeps some good players from signing, I'm fine with it.  Although I agree with the part that says if you pay me enough, I'll cut my hair and shave... 

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/18/style/yankees-beard-hair-policy.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Hk0.e2zg.qBS0Ild2mWfC&smid=url-share

[mojoween]

This is why I like the Yankees facial fur/hair policy - it’s funny.  It’s funny to have a four-column article in the newspaper about Alex Verdugo shaving his beard.  It’s funny to see video clips of confused children who don’t recognize their fathers.

The only time it was not funny was when Andrew McCutchen had to cut his dreads.

Edited December 24, 2023 by mojoween

[smittykins]

And it’s funny to me how, when an ex-Yankee signs with another team, usually the first thing they do is grow a beard.

Merry Christmas to my fellow Primetimers who celebrate! 🎄🎁🎅

[mojoween]

Andrew?  I think?  Signed with the (then) Indians mid-season, and by the playoffs he looked like Grizzly Adams.

[baldryanr]

Let that be a lesson to everyone - offer to give up your number to a high priced FA and you might get something else in return

[Salacious Kitty]

Saw that a few days ago. Now I'm really going to get a Shohei jersey. 😃

[mojoween]

I know this is just one guy’s ballot, but none of his choices feel like Hall of Famers.  Of the options on the entire ballot for this year, I personally see four people I would vote for.

 

[ProudMary]

Just my opinion: I'd vote for Adrian Beltre, Helton and Wagner.

While I'm sure Carlos Beltran will ultimately be elected, I hope the writers let him wait a few years. Manny and A-Rod are outsiders because they cheated via PEDs. Fine, but Beltran should pay some price for his part in the Astros cheating scandal.

[baldryanr]

Helton and Wagner will probably squeak across the 75% line, but even if they don't then they'll get in eventually unless they pull a Curt Schilling. 

Beltre should get in without breaking a sweat.  It'll be interesting to see how well Mauer does - how much respect will his catching get?

[ProudMary]

[ProudMary]

MLB In Memorium 2023

 

[ProudMary]

I lost several posts on recent MLB trades and signings in this thread to Friday's update here. 😔 I don't have time right now to do all of them again, but I did want to link the info from Baseball Hall of Fame Tracker, which gives a bit of insight into the direction the HOF votes are heading. It's updated regularly as more writers share their ballots.

Baseball Hall of Fame Vote Tracker

 

 

 

[ProudMary]

I have to root for Marcus Stroman???? I detest him and his attitude. This is definitely going to be a case of rooting for the laundry because I'm going to have to hold my nose every time he pitches. 🤬

Marcus Stroman agrees to Yankees deal to bolster rotation

[woodstock]

Cancer Sucks!

Sending positive and healing vibes to Ryne Sandberg. I became a huge baseball fan thanks to Cubs day games on WGN back in the day. Ryno is one of my all time favorite  players.

[jennifer6973]

So, it seems Joey Gallo signed a 1 year deal with the Nationals. 

From what I've seen of him in Texas and elsewhere he's mainly a home run hitter who strikes out a lot.

Of those who have seen him play,  am I correct?

[mojoween]

3 hours ago, jennifer6973 said:

So, it seems Joey Gallo signed a 1 year deal with the Nationals. 

From what I've seen of him in Texas and elsewhere he's mainly a home run hitter who strikes out a lot.

Of those who have seen him play,  am I correct?

We’ll, he does strike out a lot.

I’m not jumping for joy about Beltre Mauer or Helton.  I just feel meh.

[AimingforYoko]

Congratulations to St. Paul, MN's 4th MLB Hall of Famer, Joe Mauer. Pretty remarkable for a city of around 200,000.

[baldryanr]

36 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I’m not jumping for joy about Beltre Mauer or Helton.  I just feel meh.

Ichiro's on the ballot next year, so there's at least one big name to cheer for.  The only question is how high his vote percentage will be.

[mojoween]

9 minutes ago, baldryanr said:

Ichiro's on the ballot next year, so there's at least one big name to cheer for.  The only question is how high his vote percentage will be.

CC is going to be there as well.  Those are two names that will interest me more.

[Jane Tuesday]

20 hours ago, mojoween said:

I’m not jumping for joy about Beltre Mauer or Helton.  I just feel meh.

Same.  Mauer was literally a "who?" for me, but I'm admittedly a bad baseball fan (plus I never really watch the AL until the playoffs).  Helton I recognize as being the best thing about the Rockies for a long time.  Beltre is deserving for sure, but kind of uninspiring.

In the next group, the only ones I can see being first ballot are Ichiro and CC.  They're the only ones who fulfill my personal criteria of "would a casual baseball fan know who this is?"

I look at it as a Hall of Fame, not a Hall of Stats.  So I frequently disagree with the voters and the "experts" on social media.  I don't really give a crap what some guy's bWAR or ERA+ might be.  Was he FAMOUS?  That's my decision point.

Forgot to add... at least Beltran still didn't get in.  He has the stats and the fame, but his participation (leadership?) in the trash can cheating should keep him out forever.

[baldryanr]

2 hours ago, Jane Tuesday said:

I look at it as a Hall of Fame, not a Hall of Stats.  So I frequently disagree with the voters and the "experts" on social media.  I don't really give a crap what some guy's bWAR or ERA+ might be.  Was he FAMOUS?  That's my decision point.

So in other words, the Hall should be disproportionately filled with Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, Cubs, and Cardinals alumni?  It's a lot easier to be famous when you play for a popular and/or big market team. 

[Jane Tuesday]

1 hour ago, baldryanr said:

So in other words, the Hall should be disproportionately filled with Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, Cubs, and Cardinals alumni?  It's a lot easier to be famous when you play for a popular and/or big market team. 

That's a fair criticism, and I am a Cardinals fan.  (Hate the rest of those teams, tho... lol)

Maybe I should edit to... I think pure fame should be part of the equation.  A big part, but not the whole thing.  (But I think truly great players are famous no matter where they may play.  Look at Trout.)

I would also say that - especially now when more teams get into the playoffs - postseason excellence can raise anyone's stature regardless of their market.  The 2023 Cardinals stunk, so casual baseball fans probably don't know Jordan Walker's name.  But tons of people know Evan Carter, even though he didn't get to the bigs until September.

Edited January 25 by Jane Tuesday