Top 10 Remaining Free Agents
Yahoos take on the remaining top tier free agents and their predicted contracts. Several of the top ten have been mentioned in connection with the Cubs at various points this winter.
Interesting that theyre predicting 5/23M for Chapman, seems like a reasonable gamble given his upside.
over 2 years ago
bren
35 comments
0 recs |
Email
PrintComments
Well...
Guessing…
Chapman – Angels
Holliday – Cardinals
Damon – Braves
Piniero – Orioles
Beltre – Red Sox
The Blackhawks and the Stanley Cup in 2010.
I'd like to see Ricketts open the checkbook for a bevy of incentives for Sheets
If Sheets meets those incentives, the Cubs should recoup a lot of those incentives with the financial rewards of a strong season.
"We’re going to come back here next year healthy and do what we’re supposed to do, and we’re going to be all right. That’s not Hendry’s fault. He thought it was the right move. It didn’t work out. But at the same time, he’s the same guy that put back-to-back championship teams together." - Aramis Ramirez
The question is whether Sheets would take that
Indications are he won’t at least right now. If he isn’t signed by February then maybe….
Yeah, I was surprised by that Chapman estimate, too
C’mon Jim, rev up the backhoeloader!
Fontenot (fon-te-no): Cajun for "scrappy"
by cubzfan on Jan 2, 2010 6:39 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
LOL
I would really like Chapman. I think the thing we have to remember is that like with Dome, Chapman may not go to the highest bidder, but to a team that fits his overall desires, so I’m keeping my expectations down, but my hopes alive.
"We’re going to come back here next year healthy and do what we’re supposed to do, and we’re going to be all right. That’s not Hendry’s fault. He thought it was the right move. It didn’t work out. But at the same time, he’s the same guy that put back-to-back championship teams together." - Aramis Ramirez
by DGU on Jan 2, 2010 6:52 PM CST up reply actions
Id take the risk on either Sheets or Chapman
But odds are the best bet for ’10 is Pineiro, Chapman would sure go a long way to bridging the gap after the Lee/Ramirez years are over
Okay, just so I understand it... in your wildest fantasy, you are in hell. And you are co-running a bed and breakfast with the devil.
Hendry will finish the off-season with
signing Kiko Calero to a 3 YR/$15 M deal. lol.
Come on Lisa, I'm trying to impress people here. You don't win friends with salad. ~ Homer J. Simpson
So what is the current estimate on Chapman's MLB-level skills and how old is he?
So far, the Cuban players have translated to MLB better than on average than Japanese players. A young, top-notch pitcher for $4.6M a year could be the deal of the offseason.
The collusion argument is laughable.
When the agent asked “where did all that money go?”, he should have responded with “I don’t know, where did all the production go?” Between free agency, salary arbitration, and free agent compensation, the union has negotiated themselves into this quagmire.
There is competition in the free agent market and there have been numerous trades this off-season. The fact that the free agent contracts are not as long or lucrative, or being offered as fast as previous years, does not equal collusion. The current economy has impacted/justified the free agent market this year. Most teams are finding it difficult to justify raising ticket prices and sign large free agent contract when unemployment hovers circles 10%.
Collusion is now this veiled threat the union trots out as a negotiating ploy that falls flat. Today’s GM may have been in high school when the 1985 collusion case occurred. They’d need look it up on Wikipedia to understand it.
The Cubs have single-handedly supported the free agent market for the last 10 years. They dust off last year’s press release and send it out again – “Cubs Sign Player X to Three-Year Deal.”
by RiskyBusiness on Jan 2, 2010 7:28 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Cubs also opened the FA flood gate
by giving Ryno the first ever $6m contract, which now looks like a cheap bench spot (damn near)
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
There are several things going on, I think
Some top talents are being locked up before they become free agents, like the Phillies signing Halladay to an extension.
And some team that went big on payroll are struggling financially, leaving the landscape dotted with warnings. How much money did the Tigers lose last year? That put Granderson in the market, which pretty much killed it for the other available CFs. And the divorce drama has left the Dodgers letting FAs go instead of signing them.
Finally, GMs have become wary after all the flops over the past few years. On this blog, people love to hate the deals to Soriano or B*****y, but how about Jason Schmidt’s $47M for 43 innings, paying Manny $45M while he is trying to conceive a child, or paying Barry Zito $18/year to be a 4-5 starter?
Agreed
There are 30 baseball teams and most of them do not have fan bases (or ball parks) like the Yankees, Red Sox, and Cubs. Gate receipts were down last season. Alternative revenue streams took a hit last year – in ballpark ads, promotions, etc.
And since 2000(?) insurance companies have started to limit how much a player’s contract they will insure when a player goes on the DL. I think previously it was 100%, so the downside risk to longer contracts was mitigated.
I would like additional financial discipline by the Cubs, like the White Sox have. Buerle’s contract extension was an exception to policy.
by RiskyBusiness on Jan 3, 2010 11:54 AM CST up reply actions
Not true
The White Sox want you to believe they are a “small market” team and their marketing campaign focuses on their supposed grindiness, but The White Sox are not a team that exercises fiscal discipline. It’s true the White Sox haven’t doled out big contracts to other team’s free agents, largely because players don’t seem to want to go there, but they have doled out big money to their own guys (Konerko, Buerhle) and have traded for a number of large contracts (Thome, Peavy, Rios) since winning the WS in 2005. Their opening day payroll has been north of $100 million each of the last 3 years, and is knocking on the door this year. They gave $19 million to Scott Linebrink. Taking low priced gambles on the likes of Contreras, Garcia, Colon, Andruw Jones and Vizquel might be cost-effective but it is also a necessity when you have a dismal farm system, Gordon Beckham not withstanding. Of course, thanks to their sweetheart lease with the state-run ISFA the White Sox also play in US Cellular virtually rent-free.
White Sox still show more financial restraint with Free Agents
You don’t see 8 year deals to free agents from the White Sox. I think the White Sox see less relative value in the upper end of the free agent market, and they avoid it. That, or Reinsdorf is just cheap.
by RiskyBusiness on Jan 4, 2010 12:59 AM CST up reply actions
Well I'd be cheap too.
If I’m giving Alex Rios that money.
Randy Wells. A product of the Roy Halladay School of Pitching, located in Toronto, Canada. Possible relocation.
That was a strange trade for Rios
Rios was picked up off waivers and I don’t think there was a trade involved. Just “here, take him.”
I don’t remember Kenny Williams being that reactive during the season.
by RiskyBusiness on Jan 4, 2010 10:10 AM CST up reply actions
Man I would totally take Tejada for 2/13.
Move Riot to 2B and we have two perfect stop-gaps until some minor leaguers can get ready for the bigs.
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
Agreed...
Although I’d still prefer that the Cubs find an infielder who bats left-handed, and is not named Fontenot.
by Damen Jackson on Jan 2, 2010 8:42 PM CST up reply actions
You two do know that the likelihood of the Cubs making any moves like this is close to zero?
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Valverde at 6 million
That is the one I would get.
"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim
Agreed...
Probably couldn’t get Valverde for only $6 million, but I’d love to see him a Cub. There’s no one better in the bullpen than Marmol with 2 guys on and no one out (at least when he’s in control of his stuff) and would love to see him stay in that role for now. Plus the Cubs wouldn’t have to face Valverde anymore as it seems they can never hit him.
My first post, wanted to make it an easy one. New Years’ resolution was to quit lurking this year and join the conversation here!
I agree, and I like that projected 6m for him
sadly I do not believe he would sign for that. If I was his agent, if the best offer I got was 1yr $6m i am calling all the teams in their division for starters to let them know how low the bidding is
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
That would be quite a bargain
I always turn to the sports section first. The sports page records people's accomplishments; the front page has nothing but man's failures.
~Earl Warren
by lookingdeadred on Jan 3, 2010 10:07 AM CST up reply actions
Keep in mind you're giving up your first rounder for him
To a division rival at that
"If I were playing third base and my mother were rounding third with the run that was going to beat us, I'd trip her. Oh, I'd pick her up and brush her off and say, 'Sorry, Mom,' but nobody beats me." ~ Leo Durocher
thought the cubs 1st rounder was protected
Eric Hanna and FAN of the BULLS, the two greatest BCBers in the history of mankind
by jesus christos on Jan 4, 2010 9:22 PM CST up reply actions
Were the Cubs in the bottom 16 record wise?
"If I were playing third base and my mother were rounding third with the run that was going to beat us, I'd trip her. Oh, I'd pick her up and brush her off and say, 'Sorry, Mom,' but nobody beats me." ~ Leo Durocher
Couldn't we trade for Peavy?
United we stand and united we'll fall......down on our knees when we win it all!
PV!
Some men learn through what they read. Some men learn through what they're told. Some men have to piss on the railroad tracks. And some men keep on pissin'.
Brian Roberts anyone?
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
FanShots
Quick hits of video, photos, quotes, chats, links and lists that you find around the web.
Recommended FanShots
Recent FanShots
Cubs By The Numbers
Cubs By The Numbers is a history of the ballclub by uniform number, but the biographies help trace the history of our beloved team in a new way. For everyone who's a Cubs fan, anyone who ever wore the uniform is like family. Cubs By The Numbers reintroduces readers to some of their long-lost ancestors, even ones they think they already know.
Click here to order your copy, available now!
Recent Stories in Chicago Cubs Game Threads
Recent Stories in Ticket Exchanges
Baseball Nation Recent Stories
In Association With
Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
- College player makes impossible over the fence catch to save tournament game (Video)
- Security!: Camden Yards guard collides with Royals’ Mike Moustakas
- The Juice: Nelson Cruz matches career high eight RBIs, Pujols stays hot in Seattle
- Benches clear at Fenway as Red Sox-Rays rivalry heats up
- Keeping good company: Albert Pujols becomes fourth-youngest player to hit 450 home runs
