Comments on: Linkage: Robertson, Rosters, KLaw, Bunts

By: Zack

Zack — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:16:17 +0000

they had leverage- no one else was offering close to 275m on a contract til he is 41 years old

By: Brien Jackson

Brien Jackson — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:51:34 +0000

“Not saying i necessarily disagree, just that it’s awfully tough to know that something you see is a potential injury causer – it could very well be that that particular hitch is what generates his effectiveness.”

Not disagreeing per se, but these two things aren’t mutually exclusive.

By: tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Ridiculous Upside

tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Ridiculous Upside — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:47:08 +0000

It’s okay to overpay for talent up to a point. A guy at age 41 making close to $30 million 99 out of 100 times is an atrocious idea.

FWIW, the contract was frontloaded. ARod won’t be making 30M at 41, he’ll be making 20M at 41.

The last three years of the deal are at $21M, $20M, and $20M.

By: pete

pete — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:32:51 +0000

I agree with the basic premise that those of us who are as obsessed with the yankees as many of us are could study video so much that we would NOTICE peculiar things about pitchers’ deliveries. Our ability to know for sure (or even with any real confidence) the effect they have on injury likelihood, however, is almost nil without some kind of competence in sports medicine.
Not saying i necessarily disagree, just that it’s awfully tough to know that something you see is a potential injury causer – it could very well be that that particular hitch is what generates his effectiveness. I have to say i haven’t carefully studied robertson’s mechanics, but i always thought his were good, just because they looked so clean and repeatable from my standpoint. He pitches the way HS coaches tell their pitchers to pitch – drop and drive, pop the front knee, reach towards the ground with the throwing hand. But I am now going to watch more carefully. Its an interesting suggestion, and one i haven’t heard.

By: pete

pete — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:25:15 +0000

the other thing about the a-rod contract was that they had no leverage. There was no suitable replacement, anywhere, and he had just had one of the best seasons ever, had never been injured, etc. I don’t think anybody would call the a-rod deal a coup on the part of the yankees, but it’s hard to discredit them for overplaying for a player who was about as much of a lock for production as one can be (and has produced in his first two years of the contract) when they had their hands tied behind their backs completely.

By: Ed

Ed — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:12:42 +0000

Hafner and Westbrook were producing when the contracts were signed. Wood’s prior issues were always injuries, not production. And he’s been over the injuries since he moved to the pen.

The A-Rod contract was ok last year, but this year he clearly wasn’t worth $32 million due to the hip issue. Who knows how he’ll hold up. It could very easily end up a horrible contract. It’s interesting that the contract is frontloaded though, it should make his decline years hurt less on the payroll.

By: tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Ridiculous Upside

tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Ridiculous Upside — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:01:07 +0000

Hoover: (whispered) Hey, tell those assholes to shut up.
Boon: HEY, SHUT UP, YOU ASSHOLES!!!

By: JMK aka The Overshare

JMK aka The Overshare — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:00:47 +0000

It’s okay to overpay for talent up to a point. A guy at age 41 making close to $30 million 99 out of 100 times is an atrocious idea. Maybe A-Rod will justify it all the way through. Not to Joe Morgan the point, but right now it’s impossible to know. A 7 year deal? I’m on board. Maybe, just maybe for eight. But ten? That’s madness. None of the three guys you mentioned is in Wells territory. That point is irrelevant. Westbrook signed for 3 years (at $11 mil.), which is a bad contract, no doubt. He hasn’t given them anything. Wood is on a 2-year deal for $10 mil. He hasn’t been great, but he’s probably earned about half that contract. Hafner? Yikes. That’s just stupid. But here’s the thing: yeah, it’s a lot of money at 4 and $57, but it’s done in four. The Indians, in a worse-case scenario, which is what those three guys appear to be at this point (though Wood isn’t a complete abomination), is four years total inflexibility at a total of around $105 million.

Say A-Rod stops producing in 2013, they’ll owe him about $100 million. You err with another player or two and there’s very little flexibility, even with the financial mite the Yanks wield. If A-Rod were 26 or 27 when he signed a 10-year deal, I’d be a little happier with it, but not at age 32.

Sorry if I’ve belabored the point.

By: Brien Jackson

Brien Jackson — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:50:56 +0000

I figured someone made that comment before I did as soon as I submitted it.

I’ll give them a pass on Hafner, but the other two (especially Westbrook) are just inexplicably bad.

By: Brien Jackson

Brien Jackson — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:48:48 +0000

Would someone tell that dumbfuck Indians fan to stop whining that the reserve clause isn’t around anymore and ask Indians management why they paid a combined $20m to Jake Westbrook and Kerry Wood this season?