Click here for a transcript of this afternoon’s baseball chat with MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk
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By Mark Polishuk | at
Click here for a transcript of this afternoon’s baseball chat with MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk
MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com
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Machado was the 7th best player out of all the hundreds upon hundreds of players last year, if you honestly don’t think he’s elite, you are just plain incorrect and need to re-evaluate what you think good baseball is. “Come on now”
His team, my team, is in first place already. Last night, he was the difference maker in a 2-1 win. He hit a HR in the 1st and made an unbelievable play at 3rd. If you want good baseball, watch the play from last night, I’m sure it’s all over the place. The Padre Dynasty is just getting started. #1 Free Agent two years in a row, 20-25 first round picks if you count the international top 30 as a first round, 4/8 of the lineup is set for the next 5 years, which leads to prospects being traded for more stars. Our new, local owner is totally cool and our GM is in on EVERYBODY, Harper, Realmuto, Keuchel, EVERYBODY. Who’s starting opening day next year? I’ll let you know when I see who is starting in the All-Star Game this year. Please re-tort. I want to take screen shots so I can throw it in your face every October for the next 20 years.
Nobody here is arguing the Padres don’t have potential to win. We shall see how their young players turn out. I think it’s great Padre fans have something to finally be excited for.
Even scientists who propose the possibility of infinite universes know that there is no possible universe in which Hosmer was the top free agent last year :-p
Maybe in a time warp…
That hosmer signing was possibly the worst signing of last offseason. In terms of fit, contract size, contract length. I feel like his presence has had a negative impact on the team. Not only did it throw Wil into the OF and into a decline/injuries but his being in the OF has kept young players in the minors or not playing everyday. Just a terrible signing from every angle
1) Wil-bro is cool. He is a good hitter. But he also comes up with nerve damage, and other exotic injuries. If I understand what you wrote, Hos contributed to Wil getting injured by forcing him to the outfield. If that’s true, and it’s not, Wil needs to play softball, not MLB.
2) Hos is good for 162 games a year. I’m not a stat nerd like a lot of people who read this but I suggest you incorporate Games Played into your top 10 stats. Career At-Bats is also something you might want to put in your pipe and smoke.
3) I played 1st base and IMO Hos makes it look easy. The way he sets up, and is easy to throw to is hard to explain. There is no stat for it. Maybe if some of you went outside and played catch you’d notice Hosmer’s way when you next see him play.If you don’t get what I mean, you never will. His presence in the infield is like “good stuff”
3) He has kept young players in the Minors? So. I’ve seen years and years of young guys who supposedly “need” regular at-bats: Forsythe, Headley, Venable, Blanks – he was especially brutal – Sean Burroughs, Greene, I could go on and on. All those young guys were so-so at best. Maybee 1 or 2 Playes of the Month. Big Whoop. Meanwhile the Yankees, a group of veterans, have made the playoffs 19 out of 20 years. Get off the young guys. If you lime young guys, go live in Boston.
4) Bad fromevery abgle? How about 1st place right now?
So your argument for Hosmer is that he plays a lot of games and has good defense at the easiest position to defend. GIve this man 150 million dollars!
Hosmer is definitely a good player, he was just a terrible fit for the Padres and way overpaid.
Wil Myers did fine at 1B, when he is subjected to the rigors of the OF is when his injuries come into play. He’d have the same issues in softball, the answer is just to keep him at 1B and not waste 20+ million per year moving him to the OF so that someone with a worse bat can play there. He played 155 and 157 games during his two years with the Padres before Hosmer came so it’s not like the Pads were desperate for a player that plays more games at the position.
I’m not even a fan of SD, I am just a fan of baseball and this is my analysis of that signing. And hosmer has little to do with them being in first place, he is off to another horrible start at the plate. Think of the great deals they could have gotten this offseason if they didn’t have 21 million tied up in Hosmer
You don’t pay $20M per year for defense.
What exactly are you referring to, Strike 4? Mark P said Machado is elite in his response.
EDIT: Whoops, jk. I see the question – “What about him is elite? Come on now.” Mark P schooled the poster in his response, and you were just expressing disbelief at the question. Sorry for wasting everyone’s time…I’m going to go practice how to read the Internet for awhile before I post again :-/
I think S4 just likes to b**ch and moan.
You are forgiven, MWeller77.
“Guess Who
3:06 Why are all these sports journalists dumping the Braves for the Albies contract? No one forced him to sign anything. Folks should shut up”
– coward-level question, way to totally ignore how the Braves just damaged the market for EVERY player. Stop letting your homerism make you side with owners, we dont do that around here. Be better.
You just ignored the player and agent’s decision to say “yes” rather than “no thanks”. Clearly you do not care or know how and why deals are done. Regardless how underpaid Albies will be, Albies wanted to sign.
In case you missed the first part, Albies and his agent said yes to a contract with the Atlanta Braves.
Exactly. If I had made it, the first thing I’d do is sign as long term as possible. Guarantee I’ll be set for life rather than going year to year and hoping arb and eventually free agency makes my family rich for generations.
Ok, that’s a fair point, but why give up 4 free agent years for such a tiny total (relatively speaking)? I’m sure he could’ve taken a 5 year deal for ~$20mil if he wanted “life changing money,” and he would’ve been set up SIGNIFICANTLY better for his future earning potential. This is a horrible, extremely short-sighted deal for him.
*And that proposed deal would still be a gross underpay, but at least he’d have a shot at a big deal in free agency on the backend.
I agree that Ozzie could have left off even the two option years and it would have been a great deal for the Braves.
You should never manage another man’s money. He wasn’t forced to do anything, he signed something that he believes was good for him. He plays sports… he could tear his knee out tomorrow. Some people, rightfully so, would rather be guaranteed an awesome amount of money that to go year by year hoping you are good enough and durable enough to get paid even more. Who knows, his numbers could fall off a cliff and be a AAAA the rest of his career.
I for one can’t blame him and would do the exact same.
Priggs I don’t disagree. We don’t know what motivated Albies and his camp to sign.
It’s one thing to bag on league rules, it’s another when it comes to mutual agreements (referring to Strike Four). Not sure what was in Albies’ mind or heart during the lead-up to signing time.
Agree, Priggs. And it’s not like Liberty Media is going to rip up the contract later on like the Royals did for Perez.
It isn’t even likely that Ozzie plays out that entire contract.
If he gives the Braves GG caliber defense, and continues to hit well, then the Braves will resign him to a new deal in 3-4 years…
Regardless though, locking up Albies and Acuña Jr. was a brilliant move for the Braves; however, even with Albies’ boost offensively and Dansby’s wrist being healthy, without better options in the pen, it’s going to be tough sledding for the Wild Card..
Who is this “we” you speak of? The Braves owe nothing to any player outside their organization. Why should they care? If you have a beef, take it to Ozzie.
Calling people cowards in a comments forum is a “cowardly” thing to do.
He was calling the question cowardly, but if the shoe fits..
Strike Four you underestimated how much people side with ownership and overestimated the amount of critical thinking done around here
S4 thinks the teams owe it to players to pay them more than they have to.
“S4 thinks the teams owe it to players to pay them more than they have to.”
That’s way too simplistic a view. Not just baseball, but any business should be paying their employees what’s fair, not the least they can. And most do, because they need to retain good employees, and any smart business will avoid causing resentment among them. Albies may be okay with it now, but who knows how he’ll feel when he sees he’s getting paid way less than his peers.
I blame his agent.
There’s some rumor, as reported by some sites, that Abies’s agent (who is also Craig Kimbrel’s agent) had a fear with Albies that he would eventually jump ship to a bigger agency (like the Boras corp) and then they’d lose that commission. I’e’, he may not have been giving Albies the most altruistic advice. But that’s just rumor.
Obviously a 9-year/45million dollar contract for Albies is pretty absurdly low. He would have been a 28-year-old free agent with a chance at another big payday, and assuming he stays good/improves – like most players who are as good as he is at his age – he probably would have made more money than that just in arbitration .
I mean, the agent works for the player, and Albies got a very small signing bonus and who knows what his prerogatives are. He signed the contract, and maybe it was against his agent’s advice, or maybe it was rushed through because the agency wanted the commission on 45 million instead of 3 million (or whatever) But Albies signed a contract and that’s it. He’s still one of the richest people in the world, and he happens to be one of the best in the world at what he does, in an industry making record profits. But we aren’t inside his head and we don’t know what pressures, internally and externally, he was facing.
If all of Albies’ options are exercised, which they probably will be, Ozzie Albies will be a 30-year-old free agent. He will have made less money in his career than Chase Headley, and without a chance – if things in Free Agency continue as they have – to surpass him. That’s a definite worrting downward push on player salaries that will probably be part of what leads to the next work stoppage.
I don’t “side” with either one. It’s a business, and they are both responsible for doing what’s in their own best interests.
You could say the same about indentured servants. Doesn’t make the exploitative system right
Indentured servants don’t have agents.
12up.com/posts/6342704-agents-for-ozzie-albies-and…
Check out the tweet at the top of this article
I think people are forgetting that just 3 years ago Albies had a freak injury and fractured his elbow fouling a pitch off his elbow…I think that could have played a part in this extension. Albies wanted to stay in Atl. The Braves offered a contract and Albies agreed to it. Should he or could he have gotten more waiting? Most likely, but anything could happen…I mean how many top prospects don’t make it? Or dissapeared just as quick as they came up? This was an opportunity for Albies to secure his future and his family’s future.
You gonna do this every day?
1. Giants need to embrace the rebuild, not go out and spend more money on guys like Betts.
2. You NEVER “move a veteran who’s a free agent at the end of the season” if you have any real interest in making a run that season. You pick a direction and stick to it.
Nobody cares.
You seriously need to get a girlfriend.
Or boyfriend. No judgement here.
Funny, people have said the exact same thing to you. Still hilarious you won’t come out and say you’re you, Ryan.
Very few insults are truly original nowadays.
Why did you lie about your age?
I didn’t? Why do you keep dancing around the statement of you being Ryan? How bout this. You have no life, no girlfriend or boyfriend (not that there’s anything wrong with that), probably don’t have a job, and have no friends. Not insults, just truth.
Yes you did and now you are trying to use my insulting angle back at me. Nice to know how much influence I have on you 🙂
Dance, dance, dance. I’ve already stated in your creepy IP address comment that I am his brother. But yet you continue to deny your identity. Influence on who?
I see no comment from you saying you are the other guy’s brother.
Influence on you as I make you keep replying and try to steal my insults.
Has mommy brought you your hot pockets yet? XD XD XD
Yeah she did, right after I got done eating your mommies who’s was gushing. XD
Lol ok if you’re into that kind of shxt
I think too many Braves fans, in defending their team, have lost sight of the big picture. Sure, Ozzie had every right to agree to sign a deal even though it was ridiculously team-friendly. But how is he going to feel a few years down the road, if he’s an elite top 10 talent making way less then other comparable players? He may be happy with the deal now, but less so later on. It isn’t good for the team if he gets resentful feeling that he was taken advantage of. Just because Ozzie agreed to this deal is no reason for the Braves to take full advantage, and not consider what was fair. This could also be something that angers other players contributing to labor strife. Braves fans need to stop being so defensive and look at this more objectively.
Not being defensive. I think he gave up FA years he didn’t need to. I blame his agent for not advising him better.
Missing the point. Whether it was his agent, his inexperience, or something else, is irrelevant. The team knew they were getting a deal ridiculously team-friendly. Not sure how they should have handled it; maybe not start with such a low-ball offer, but I still think they weren’t looking long-term, or at what was fair, but just jumped on it without regard to the guy they want playing for them long-term.
The Braves have a tendency of signing contracts like these, only to re-work the contract and resign the player 3-4 years down the road, IF THEY PERFORM…
It’s a win-win for both sides, and if Albies performs, he will get his new deal after about four more seasons..
Be patient people, before you comment on a story that hasn’t even finished. Everyone is so quick to judge nowadays, especially before they even have the full story..
Now, if Albies plays out this contract, and performs at a high level, then that’s just extremely cheap on the Braves part, and then we can judge..However, I have 100% faith that won’t happen..
If you look at similar players to Ozzie Albies at Baseball Reference, you see guys like Devon Travis and Geronimo Pena… Middle infielders that hit .270 with an OBP of .320 are pretty common. Let’s judge this contract in about 5 years. He could be the next Angel Berroa.