Dan Gould Posted November 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 Is it just me or does 18 million for two years for Frank Thomas seem a tad risky? I saw one commentator write that he looks like he is one trip from first to third away from the DL, but that left me thinking, what trip from first to third? Frank doesn't go from first to third on a double! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted November 18, 2006 Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 (edited) Same old story-- ageing veteran does great in his contract year, spends the next two years on the DL. Plus, Thomas on turf for half the season? Good luck. Toronto got taken to the cleaners. edit: early morning spelling problems. Edited November 18, 2006 by Matthew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 Same old story-- ageing vetern does great in his contract year, spends the next two years on the DL. Plus, Thomas on turff for half the season? Good luck. Toronto got taken to the cleaners Interesting thing is the structure: 9 million gets paid as a signing bonus, in January. 1 million next year 8 million the following year And a third year becomes guaranteed if he reaches 1000 plate appearances in the first two years, or 525 in 2008. But why the huge signing bonus and low salary? Frank needs money for next year up front? The thing is, Toronto had awful production from the DH spot last year, yet still scored a lot of runs. Their lineup will be very deep with Thomas in there. Funny how the Hot Stove season started with the A's seemingly certain to re-sign him, and then the Blue Jays sweep in with big bucks. Definitely a preview of the deals to come. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quincy Posted November 18, 2006 Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 Interesting thing is the structure: 9 million gets paid as a signing bonus, in January. 1 million next year 8 million the following year And a third year becomes guaranteed if he reaches 1000 plate appearances in the first two years, or 525 in 2008. But why the huge signing bonus and low salary? Frank needs money for next year up front? He went through a nasty divorce. And he also has or had an outrageous mansion, the kind that's too big for most CEOs. It was pictured once in Sports Illustrated a few years ago. The mansion isn't an easy-as-pie Google as there's a Frank Lloyd Wright house that goes by the Frank Thomas name as well but as far as I know has nothing to do with baseball. It's not easy being a multi-millionaire baseball player! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted November 18, 2006 Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 There's talk of the Dodgers resigning Nomar Garciaparra to a two year deal. Personally I hope that they don't . Nomar was great at the plate and did a better than expected job at first but Nomar started to break down towards the end of the year and he was out at the beginning of the year. It seems that every time you turn around Nomar is injured. For the kind of money he would command who really needs that kind of risk besides-don't laugh-I think James Loney is major league ready or very close. I also understand that Boston is taking a look at Eric Gagne-I don't know how you feel about that Dan but remember two words-Darren Dreifort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2006 There's talk of the Dodgers resigning Nomar Garciaparra to a two year deal. Personally I hope that they don't . Nomar was great at the plate and did a better than expected job at first but Nomar started to break down towards the end of the year and he was out at the beginning of the year. It seems that every time you turn around Nomar is injured. For the kind of money he would command who really needs that kind of risk besides-don't laugh-I think James Loney is major league ready or very close. I also understand that Boston is taking a look at Eric Gagne-I don't know how you feel about that Dan but remember two words-Darren Dreifort. Chris, I think Gagne is worth a look for a low risk/high reward type of deal. One or two mil, with bonuses for finishing games or appearances that, if maxed out, puts him in the elite salary class. I can't help but remember how dominant he was when healthy, and with Papelbon headed to the rotation, we need to replace him with someone nearly as lights-out. Apparently Gagne is going to workout for teams that are interested sometime next month. If he looks healthy and still has a power fastball to go with the Bugs Bunny changeup, he'll definitely get a lot of interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HolyStitt Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 What does everyone think about Alfonso Soriano signing an eight year deal with the Chicago Cubs for $136? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 What does everyone think about Alfonso Soriano signing an eight year deal with the Chicago Cubs for $136? Shocking, in that the Tribune Company is for sale - or in bad financial straits, I'm not sure - so I didn't think they'd be spending like this. Makes the Red Sox bid look like chump change. Makes Manny Ramirez more likely to be dealt, particularly to the Angels, who once again miss out on that big bat they need. If Soriano is worth that much, what's two years and 37 million for Manny, who may not have as many tools as Soriano but is in a completely different universe when it comes to pure hitting skills? A-Ram, D-Lee and Soriano is a scary middle of the lineup for the Cubbies. Yet they've still done nothing to address their pitching problems aside from re-signing Kerry Wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalupa Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 The Cubs paid too much and, unlike the Sox, will not be making any money back from broadcasting games in Japan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BERIGAN Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Gammons.... There is no question about which team has jumped out and made the biggest bang. The Cubs signed second baseman Mark DeRosa, re-signed Aramis Ramirez, re-signed Kerry Wood and now have agreed to pay Alfonso Soriano eight years and $136 million, pending a physical Monday or Tuesday. "Soriano's agents [sFX, led by Fern Cuza] said they wanted [Carlos] Beltran money," said one club executive. "Well, they did better than that. But I'm not surprised. Justin Speier's people started out looking for Bobby Howry money (three years, $12M) and got four years and $18 million from the Angels. What a market." The Cubs do not yet know where Soriano will play. It could be any of the three outfield positions, and they know -- working with the Nationals -- he became an exceptional outfielder whose throwing arm makes him a rarity. The $136M is more than they shelled out to keep Derrek Lee and Ramirez, but those players made it clear they wanted to remain in Chicago. Now the Cubs have Lee and Ramirez around the electrifying Soriano, plus an above-average offensive catcher in Michael Barrett and Cesar Izturis and DeRosa in the middle of the infield. While the Astros are trying to retool, the Cardinals are trying to sign pitchers, the Brewers are on the rise and the Reds have signed Alex Gonzalez and Mike Stanton, the Cubs' explosion in the market could make them instant contenders. They now want to sign two starting pitchers and a couple of left-handed bats. "Jim Hendry defined what he needed," says another GM, "and he's willing to spend to get it." Soriano, who will be 31 in January, has ascended offensively the last three years. His OPS has risen from .808 to .821 to .911, his steals from 18 to 30 to 41, his homers from 28 to 36 to 46. "Soriano was the positional player on the market," says one GM, and now it will be interesting to see how the Phillies, Astros, Angels and the other teams interested in him move from here. This should dramatically help Carlos Lee, who has Houston, Baltimore, San Francisco, San Diego and others after him. It could alter the J.D. Drew market with the Angels, Red Sox, Orioles, Astros and others. The Cubs are now out of the Julio Lugo sweepstakes despite Lou Piniella's fondness for his former shortstop, with the Red Sox, Mets and Blue Jays in line to see who is willing to step up to four years and $32M; Boston may be the preferred destination because of how he fits and the fact that he can play shortstop and lead off, but Mets GM Omar Minaya is also a huge Lugo fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BERIGAN Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 There's talk of the Dodgers resigning Nomar Garciaparra to a two year deal. Personally I hope that they don't . Nomar was great at the plate and did a better than expected job at first but Nomar started to break down towards the end of the year and he was out at the beginning of the year. It seems that every time you turn around Nomar is injured. For the kind of money he would command who really needs that kind of risk besides-don't laugh-I think James Loney is major league ready or very close. I also understand that Boston is taking a look at Eric Gagne-I don't know how you feel about that Dan but remember two words-Darren Dreifort. Chris, but what other choice do the dodgers have? they can't loss their 2 best offensive players and compete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Look for the official Nomar announcement later today. 2 years, not sure about the money. I'm just glad it keeps him out of the Bronx. Let the Yanks go for Hillenbrand. You want a bad apple clubhouse presence? Shea will do you just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Gammons.... There is no question about which team has jumped out and made the biggest bang. The Cubs signed second baseman Mark DeRosa, re-signed Aramis Ramirez, re-signed Kerry Wood and now have agreed to pay Alfonso Soriano eight years and $136 million, pending a physical Monday or Tuesday. "Soriano's agents [sFX, led by Fern Cuza] said they wanted [Carlos] Beltran money," said one club executive. "Well, they did better than that. But I'm not surprised. Justin Speier's people started out looking for Bobby Howry money (three years, $12M) and got four years and $18 million from the Angels. What a market." The Cubs do not yet know where Soriano will play. It could be any of the three outfield positions, and they know -- working with the Nationals -- he became an exceptional outfielder whose throwing arm makes him a rarity. The $136M is more than they shelled out to keep Derrek Lee and Ramirez, but those players made it clear they wanted to remain in Chicago. Now the Cubs have Lee and Ramirez around the electrifying Soriano, plus an above-average offensive catcher in Michael Barrett and Cesar Izturis and DeRosa in the middle of the infield. While the Astros are trying to retool, the Cardinals are trying to sign pitchers, the Brewers are on the rise and the Reds have signed Alex Gonzalez and Mike Stanton, the Cubs' explosion in the market could make them instant contenders. They now want to sign two starting pitchers and a couple of left-handed bats. "Jim Hendry defined what he needed," says another GM, "and he's willing to spend to get it." Soriano, who will be 31 in January, has ascended offensively the last three years. His OPS has risen from .808 to .821 to .911, his steals from 18 to 30 to 41, his homers from 28 to 36 to 46. "Soriano was the positional player on the market," says one GM, and now it will be interesting to see how the Phillies, Astros, Angels and the other teams interested in him move from here. This should dramatically help Carlos Lee, who has Houston, Baltimore, San Francisco, San Diego and others after him. It could alter the J.D. Drew market with the Angels, Red Sox, Orioles, Astros and others. The Cubs are now out of the Julio Lugo sweepstakes despite Lou Piniella's fondness for his former shortstop, with the Red Sox, Mets and Blue Jays in line to see who is willing to step up to four years and $32M; Boston may be the preferred destination because of how he fits and the fact that he can play shortstop and lead off, but Mets GM Omar Minaya is also a huge Lugo fan. From what I've heard the BoSox have the inside track although the Mets are very interested. What about Alou to the Mets. Not sure I like that deal but they are willing to trade Milledge (I don't they like what they saw attitude wise) and apparently they have some kids on the farm that they like more than Milledge so Alou is just a stop gap. The numbers for Alou in 06 seem, on the surface, decent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Whether it will be the case in 2008, I don't know, but Alou helps what was a rather lefthanded lineup, Brad, so I think its a good move at least for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalupa Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 MVP!! MVP!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Kind of interesting, the total silence from Bonds camp. Nomar resigned with the Dodgers for 18 million; think the Dodgers will regret that one when Nomar spend half of 2008 on the DL. The money that's being thrown around this winter is amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted November 21, 2006 Report Share Posted November 21, 2006 Now I hear that Colletti wants to sign Juan Pierre to a 5 year 45 million dollar contract. Ned may need to be drug tested. That was an outrageous amount of money to spend on Nomar. Hopefully he wont break down before the contract is up but I'm not optimistic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted November 21, 2006 Report Share Posted November 21, 2006 Now I hear that Colletti wants to sign Juan Pierre to a 5 year 45 million dollar contract. Ned may need to be drug tested. That was an outrageous amount of money to spend on Nomar. Hopefully he wont break down before the contract is up but I'm not optimistic. That is crazy money for a player who doesn't add all that much to a team. Heaven help us, I wonder what JD will get if Pierre is worth 9 mil? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2006 Totally agree that Pierre is a terrible signing at hugely inflated dollars. Yes, he got his batting average up last season. Yes he stole 50+ bases. But his OBP is still terrible, especially for a lead-off hitter, and he also got caught 20 times, so for all his speed, he isn't a sure thing on the basepath. Nomar - I have to admit that I was a bit surprised, I thought they had someone waiting in the wings? But he did win comeback player, and played more games than he had since 2003. I saw some commentator predicting that Nomar would improve physically as he adjusts to 1B, as if a less demanding position will help him avoid injuries, even as he gets older. Sounded highly doubtful to me ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quincy Posted November 21, 2006 Report Share Posted November 21, 2006 I've always been suspicious about Nomar's health (hey, who isn't), but to hit the way he did at Dodger Stadium really impressed me. Although the injury risk is obvious, the other risk is that he'll be like Paul Molitor and finally shake the injury bug when he's 33 or 34 and seal the deal on with the rest of his career as a Hall of Famer. With aging injury-prone athletes I tend to be a pessimist, but I'm glad not everyone is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulstation1 Posted November 22, 2006 Report Share Posted November 22, 2006 WTF is up with the AL MVP? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HolyStitt Posted November 22, 2006 Report Share Posted November 22, 2006 WTF is up with the AL MVP? What is there to say; I love it. Sent from the Home of the Minnesota Twins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HolyStitt Posted November 22, 2006 Report Share Posted November 22, 2006 Seriously, it was a huge surprise to me and most people in the metro because everyone assumed Jeter was the lock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2006 WTF is up with the AL MVP? What is there to say; I love it. Sent from the Home of the Minnesota Twins. Indeed, WTF is up when the man who led the league in homers and RBIs doesn't get a single first place vote, and even gets placed as low as 7th on one ballot? Ridiculous. I've got no problem with Morneau winning, he had an outstanding year for a team that came back from nowhere to win the division. Plus his name isn't Derek Jeter. As far as I am concerned, this makes up for Jeter receiving the Gold Glove instead of Alex Gonzales. That was a crime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quincy Posted November 22, 2006 Report Share Posted November 22, 2006 As far as I am concerned, this makes up for Jeter receiving the Gold Glove instead of Alex Gonzales. That was a crime. But Jeter had a better year at the plate. So of course he deserved the Gold Glove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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