Hot Stove League (1 Viewer)

[jazzeum]

I thought this might be of interest to some. To get it going, the period when you can now offer contracts has begun. This is what I've heard so far:

CC Sabbathia - Yankees have extended him an agreement, one which is richer than Santana's.

Yankees have also extended offers to AJ Burnett and Derek Lowe, hoping one will sign. I would pass on Burnett: very injury prone and high ERA.

Texeira - Priority for Angels and Yankees may pass, which is why they traded for Nick Swisher, as plan B. Their focus is pitching this off season.

K Rod - No offers made but Mets and Angels and two other teams have indicated interest although Fuentes would be a lot cheaper. I believe the Mets would like to sign him.

Kerry Wood - nothing yet although his stay in Chicago is over.

 

[Louis Badolato]

I know Burnett is injury prone, but he has such filthy stuff I hope the Yankees get him. What if all three pitchers accept the Yankees' offers? Suddenly the Yankees have the following rotation:

1. CC Sabathia
2. Chien Ming Wang
3. Joba Chamberlain
4. A.J. Burnett
5. Derek Lowe

Who has a better rotation than that?

 

[jazzeum]

I guess that's why they are probably not going hot and heavy after Texeira. Perhaps that's why they haven't made any offers to Pettit yet.

 

[Louis Badolato]

I would much rather see the Yankees land those three pitchers than spend the money on Texiera. However, with 90 million dollars of salary freed up by the Yankees cutting loose Giambi, Pettitte, Mussina, Pavano and Abreu, the Yanks probably can sign all three pitchers and still make the biggest offer to Texiera.

The only big free agent that the Yanks don't seem prepared to make a run at is K-Rod.

 

[lancer]

I have not kept up on NYY offseason. Did those players file for free agency or were they actually cut loose by NYY? If cut loose, Mussina and Abreau could be hard to replace. Mussina still has years left, if he desires and Abreau is a good, solid player. -- lancer

 

[jazzeum]

The Yankees had a buy out (I believe) with Giambi and exercised it. Pettite's contract has expired and he wants to re-sign but apparently the Yankees interest has been lukewarm. Abreu's agreement is up and he appears to be headed for the Cubs and Mussina is apparently going to retire.

 

[lancer]

I would like to see Mussina go for 300. As an Oriole and a NYY fan I have always followed Moose and I think he is 2 good years or 3 average years from 300. He certainly has the ability and know-how, but my guess is he feels he has nothing to prove and wants to move on. JMHO. -- lancer

 

[sammy719]

I think major league baseball would be a little more fair if there was a actual salary cap in place and no steinbrenners or other owners that could find loop holes in it to get around it, it sucks year in and year out that some how boston, new york yankees, mets, dodgers can pay outrageous amounts of money but yet there is suppose to be a salary cap in place, there is no off season it's called "let's see who the yankees/redsox sign"..i for one am sick of it,i know you guys in new york and boston don't agree but the rest of the baseball fans do, i hope every year teams like the rays, orioles, royals, etc. find a way to beat the yankees, sox, to keep them out of the world series, or playoffs for that matter, p.s. why don't those high priced organizations close up thiere farm systems because they sure as hell do not use them!!!!!!! sammy

 

[jazzeum]

Sammy,

Even though I'm a Mets fan (and the town has a little more buzz when the Yankees are in it), I agree with you. We need something like the NFL where towns like Green Bay have a chance to compete with the likes of the Cowboys, Giants, Eagles, etc.

Unfortunately, the players "union" is a little bit strong and I don't think it's going to happen.

 

[lancer]

Make maximum pay 250K and find out who really wants to play, otherwise those athletic wonders can go get real jobs making 50K like the rest of us. -- lancer

 

[Louis Badolato]

Lancer,

I would be fine with that, as long as the owners had a cap on how much they could charge for tickets, and no seat licenses!!!

 

[lancer]

Louis - I believe that the multi-trillion dollar contract that players get today (even mediocre players that would not have been in the majors 25 years ago) is what is responsible for the outrageous ticket prices and various fees that owners charge. It will take a while yet, but those idiot owners and players will eventually kill the game. I for one cannot afford nor will I support the prices being charged to go to a game. Minor league ball is still affordable so that is where my money goes, when I go. -- lancer

 

[Louis Badolato]

Lancer,

I am with you on that. I used to go to a lot of MLB and NFL games, heck, I even bought season tickets to the Jets one year when my friend who owned the season tickets had financial issues (I ended up taking him to the games). But with the seat licenses and crazy ticket prices, I doubt that I will be going to any games next year.

The most offensive thing to me is the seat licenses. Why didn't the owners just come out and say it: we don't want the average joe who has had season tickets since the 1960's in the good seats, we want those for our corporate clients who will pay a huge premium for them, so, since we cannot contractually kick the long time season ticket holders out of their seats, we came up with this rip off concept to price the tickets out of their hands. I used to be a big fan of the Maras, who own the Giants, but since Wellington Mara passed away, the rest of the family showed that he was the one who had all the class. One of the Maras actually came out and said "we have a waiting list for season tickets with 110,000 people on it, so we can charge what ever we want and still sell out the stadium." What a scummy position to take with the fans that stood by you through the late 1960's and 1970's, when the Giants stunk.

 

[lancer]

Louis - What you relate is, I am afraid, pretty typical of the way things are around proffesional sports in general. No one wants to remember the early, long time fans that payed their way in when things were not all mega-brilliant and corporate supported as today. When the die-hard working man fan is finally priced out (and it is almost here, especially in the large markets), football, baseball and the rest will be looking and more and more empty seats. As a matter of interest, the last Redskin game I attended cured me. Between parking, tickets, food, unruly drunks, and the overbearing noise of the public address system I am now a devoted TV fan until they take that away. Oh, for the good old days (cue geezer music from the 60's). -- lancer

 

[sammy719]

Sammy,

Even though I'm a Mets fan (and the town has a little more buzz when the Yankees are in it), I agree with you. We need something like the NFL where towns like Green Bay have a chance to compete with the likes of the Cowboys, Giants, Eagles, etc.

Unfortunately, the players "union" is a little bit strong and I don't think it's going to happen.

your right jazzeum, it never will happen, bud selig is nothing but a puppet on a string who hasn't a clue to what is wrong with baseball, it's just not a steroid problem (that seems to be the only thing he will take a stand on)and believe me fellows i love baseball, i grew up in the early 70s with the orioles and love it, but baseball has become harder and harder to love with the non salary cap, the over the top price gauging at the games,and just no loyality from players to current teams,maybe i'm just to old fashioned. man just take me back to those golden years of jim palmer, mark balanger,boog powell,al bumbry, real players who gave it thier all for a great city and a great league.....sammy

 

[lancer]

Sammy719 -- another Birds fan, alright. Go Brooksie, Cuellar, McNally, and Cal has to be there as a throw-back type Oriole.-- lancer

 

[jazzeum]

A couple of developments/rumors and it's not good if you're a Yankee fan:

CC Sabbathia and the Angels have apparently begun negotiations on an agreement in Santana range. It's looking less likely that he will sign with the Yankees; he has indicated an interest to return to California. If that happens, I'm sure that will gladden the hearts of Kevin Lowe and A.J. Burnett.

Pettite has apparently contacted Joe Torre about possibly pitching for the Dodgers. That could be just to get the Yankees to do something. If Sabbathia signs with the Angels, they may become interested again.

 

[theBaron]

...Minor league ball is still affordable so that is where my money goes, when I go. -- lancer

Right, I get my dad Sunday season tickets to the Reading Phillies, we go to all of the Sunday home games, we've been going now for 10 years. We also drive out to Harrisburg every now and then to see the Senators (in their tiny, tiny park-you'd think it was a Legion field, if you didn't know it was Double A), and since the Phils moved their Triple A club to Allentown, we go to see the Iron Pigs play.

Minor league ball, at Triple and Double A levels, has a decent level of play, the parks are small enough, typically, that there's not a bad seat in the house, and many clubs, if not all of them, do a good job of providing a family-friendly atmosphere.

The downside is that to attract your contemporary American family, with its short attention span, clubs often have so much going on at the park, during the game, that it's like being at a carnival, that just happens to have a baseball game playing at the same time.

Still, Reading's Crazy Hot Dog Vendor is a good one, and I still remember, during Clinton's administration, that they actually had a between-the-innings event called "Nail the Intern". It was sponsored by a local golf course, and it consisted of hitting plastic golf balls at one of the college interns who worked on staff for the summer (one of the guys, btw, not one of the young ladies), but I always wondered if that was a wry joke on current events.

You have to get used to the idea, too, if you follow a minor league club, that you will see a different roster every season, as guys move up (or down), except for the career minor leaguers, and that your club might not ever make it to the post-season. But there is something so American about Sunday afternoon baseball, with dollar dog days, and warm summer sun, even if there is a swimming pool out behind the right field fence.

Prost!
Brad

 

[Warrior]

Sammy,
Regarding your comments about the spending of the Red Sox, Dodgers, Mets, etc; the Red Sox spend the way they do to keep up with the king of spenders, the Yankees, who just happen to be in the same division as the Red Sox. And the Yankees are rumored to be signing not one, not two, but three pitchers to add to their starting rotation. The Mets have to keep pace back pagewise with the Yankees, so there you go and the Dodgers are trying to keep pace with the Mets.

Of those four big spenders, only two made the playoffs and the WS runner up spends less on their entire team than the Yankees do on A Rod, so spending does not equal success. To further that point, the king of spenders, the Yankees, have won a grand total of zero WS titles in this decade.

Regarding farm systems; the Red Sox currently have Youk at First, Petey at second, Lowrie at short, Ellsbury in center, 50% of their starting line up and Lester, Buckholtz, Pap, Del Carmen and Masterson, 50% of their pitching staff, as home grown talent.

 

[Njja]

Lancer,

I would be fine with that, as long as the owners had a cap on how much they could charge for tickets, and no seat licenses!!!

Hey Louis:

Whats the deal with seat licenses?

How does that affect long time season ticket holders? Do they charge them

additional fees?