Longtime Queens fan-favorite Edgardo Alfonzo has been hired to manage the Staten Island Ferry Hawks of the independent Atlantic League, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network. The move to Staten Island actually checks a third of New York City’s five boroughs off of Alfonzo’s professional checklist; in addition to his eight seasons playing for the Mets, Alfonso joined the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones in 2014 as Tom Gamboa’s bench coach, eventually managing the Mets affiliate for three seasons following Gamboa’s retirement. He also played briefly for three other New York-area teams: the Long Island Ducks, the Bridgeport Bluefish, the Newark Bears, all also of the Atlantic League.
After eight productive seasons in Queens shuffling between second and third base (and occasionally shortstop), Alfonzo signed a three-year, $18MM deal with the Giants ahead of the 2003 season. He split 2006, his final big-league season, between the Angels and the Blue Jays, logging only 95 plate appearances between the two. For his career, the infielder posted a .283/.357/.425 batting line across twelve major league seasons.
Other news from around the game:
- Slugging shortstop Carlos Correa, MLBTR’s number one free agent, recently hired Scott Boras to represent him as he looks to secure a $300MM+ payday after a new CBA is reached, and Boras doesn’t seem to have ruled out the Astros as the team that could pony up. Though reports are that the Astros’ best offer came in at five years and $160MM and that owner Jim Crane has insisted he won’t go beyond six years with the star free agent, Boras tossed out a few comments clearly pointed at the Houston brass, telling reporters that the Astros have “been at the championship level for three or four years and…can continue for six or seven if they are able to retain those true core pieces of All-Star level talent” (quotes from Mark Berman of Houston’s Fox 26). Correa is reported to have turned down a ten-year, $275MM offer from the Tigers before the lockout. Should Correa be forced to settle for a shorter-term deal, it’s likely he’ll insist on an opt-out clause that would allow him to return to the market as soon as next offseason.
- The Royals have hired former Braves chief of scouting Roy Clark as a senior advisor for baseball operations, the club announced Wednesday. Clark had already been scouting for the Royals in an informal, part-time capacity, but the new role puts him back into the office with Royals president of baseball operations and longtime friend Dayton Moore. Moore actually owes his career in professional baseball to Clark, who recommended him for a scouting job in John Schuerholz’s front office in 1994, when Moore was a coach at George Mason University. Moore was hired as the Royals’ GM in 2006, and Clark left the Braves to join the Nationals in 2009. While with the Braves, Clark had a hand in scouting and signing an impressive roster of future big-leaguers, including Adam Wainwright, Jason Marquis, Brian McCann, Charlie Morton, Craig Kimbrel, Jason Heyward, and Freddie Freeman.
Boras working on Crane.
Return of the Fonz!
Seriously doubt that anyone offers Correa more than $275 mil total at this point. He might get a higher AAV over fewer years, but no way anyone meets his ridiculous asking price. Switching to Boras might do him more harm than good in the long run if he’s too greedy with his demands, especially after his snide comments directed at other big-market teams over the years. No franchise wants to pay a premium for a guy that has a questionable injury history at age 27 and who fans hate. Regardless of his talent, it’s not a good investment at $300+ mil
There is no good 300 million dollar deal, ever so far (well trout might disprove that sentiment but I’d bet that it’s more similar to most $300M deals)
I agree. Looking back on it I can’t think of even a $260 million deal that seemed worth it at the time. A-Rod’s $252 million contract with the Rangers is the best big deal I can think of because he played well for those first 7 years before he opted out of the last 3. Even in that deal the Rangers had to eat a lot of money and trade him because his salary was tanking the club so much. I think Max Scherzer’s contract with the Nationals might be the most expensive contract ever completed that actually worked out for the team. That was only $210 million. Can anyone think of a contract larger than $210 million that was completed without eventually becoming a cancer to the team that paid it?
After research I think the only contract bigger than Scherzer that wasn’t regrettable was Kershaw’s $215 million with the Dodgers. I can’t think of a team that ever handed out a contract for more than $215 million and didn’t end up regretting it before the contract was over. Paying $425 million to have both Kershaw and Scherzer co-ace the top end of your rotation for 7 straight years would have been a good investment though.
I’d substitute the word “regretted” with “expected”. Executives aren’t fools and expect surplus value towards the front and a deficit at the end which is the reason why these mega-deals keep getting handed out. Big risk, big reward.
I would argue these $300 million deals are free market capitalism at work, but then I realized MLB owners do not want a free market, capitalist system.
For as long as fans pay $20 for a $4 beer, $200 for a $25 “authentic” jersey and rediculous prices for seats, et al , owners will always spend. When was the last time an MLB team went bankrupt?
I believe that would be Texas because of the A-Rod deal mainly but also Hicks had his hand in a lot of other dealings too. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong
The authentic jerseys sold at the stadiums are not the made in China knock offs you find online at shady sites.
RoyalsFan, at $200 each, wherever and however they’re made, that a huge profit margin.
You can pretty much make the same comment about every large contract yet every year there are long term deals for top talent
It’s not all that rediculous when you consider that Seager got a 10-year, 325MM deal…
But its easy to call it ridiculous, if you don’t consider that outlier for Seager.
Is the Seager contract really an outlier, though? Seager was always projected to get a contract in the $300 millions and Correa was always projected to get a contract that was more than Seager’s. I’m not saying the Seager contract is a good investment. I think it’s a bad investment. Large bad investments happen all the time in MLB though. Every contract ever handed out worth over $215 million went bad before it completed. That hasn’t stopped the owners from foolishly handing them out hand over fist, though. I do think someone will pay Correa $325-330+ millon and end up regretting it because that’s what a lot of teams seem to do all the time. If not, I would say there is a small possibility that Correa signs for a larger AAV on a shorter term deal but that will o it happen if he gets an opt-out after every single year. If there were no lockout and this massive group of other shortstops (Story, Baez, Semien and Seager) weren’t hitting the market at the same time I think Correa would have locked down at least $325 million already. I don’t think the Rangers would have paid Seager $325 million if they could have signed Correa for less. The worst case scenario for Correa is that he gets paid handsomely next year and decides to jump back on the free agent market when there is no lockout and he’s not competing with at least 4 other top free agent shortstops. I bet he still gets the $325+ million this offseason, though. Some team will be that foolish. As always.
Well Lindor got 340. So at what point does it move from outlier to baseline
When desperate owners make rash decisions… and it usually happens unfortunately
why, exactly, is it so unfortunate? is the money coming directly from your pocket? would you rather your owners have similar investment strategies as, say, the Pirates? Owners are smart enough to realize that, for now, you probably can’t carry two 300million plus contracts unless you’re the Yanks, but one huge contract isn’t going to kill you.
It’s unfortunate when it’s your team that does it and they never win a world series with that guy and can’t add more players later because that guy is eating such a high percentage of the payroll even though he sucks. Instead of offering any $300 million contracts why not just pay players for the years they will be good at a higher AAV so they don’t hurt your ability to contend when they are washed up?
The Braves just won the world series by adding a bunch at the trade deadline. You know how they could afford that? By not having even a single $140 million contract on the team. Nevermind $300 million. The Braves wouldn’t even touch half of that because they only want players when they will actually be productive. That is exactly how they won the world series.
I don’t care whether it’s players or owners that get the money but unless your team has one of the top 2 or 3 payrolls in the league contracts over $260 million end up hurting your ability to win a championship more than they help. Nevermind $300 million. Name one team not in the top 10% payroll bracket that ever won a world series with a $260-300 million contract on their team?
Unless you have one of those very top payrolls, $300 million contracts are bad for your team.
Aways loved Alfonso. Seemed like he’d be a great coach/manager from day 1.
Agreed. Solid player
I would not count Boras out, but I agree, Correa, especially with his injury history, is not worth $300M plus. But Boras has done remarkable things at time, creating competition where it doesn’t really exist to get teams to up their offer,
I never will after seeing him get Prince Fielder 9 years & $254 million in February. He’ll go over the FO to owners.
Roy Clark is amazing. All those musical instruments and baseball, too.
and don’t forget his most amazing feat – coming back from the dead!
RIP Roy Clark (1933-2018)
The big concern I have is durability; he’s only played over 148 games twice in his career. Other than that his offense and defense are some of the best at shortstop.
Well his offense is not as consistent, and health has a lot to do w it I’m sure. Last 4 seasons he’s 7th in WRC+ at SS and 10th in OPS… still good but I wouldn’t not even top 5 in either… last three years better (5th and 8th respectively)… his defense is great but WAR always overstates def value… he’s not a $300m player unless you believe he’ll continue to improve and his durability issues will disappear
The Tampa Bay Rays are the new business model. If you don’t sign them young at a team friendly deal, you don’t sign them. Let them walk, or trade them. That’s how you keep your window open. Not by paying the top dollar. Correa might put up a $30mm season, but not much value in that if you’re paying him $30mm or more when he does it.
Crazy point here but since the 2000-2001 off-season the average $/fWAR has been over 6 million so a 30M dollar season would be five war. Of course more recently it’s closer on average to 8, so a 30M dollar season according to the FA market is more like eh 3.8ish WAR
Alfonso was one of the few Mets I ever liked and wanted on the Yanks but now looking at his stats I never realized how good he was at such a young age. I also never realized how quickly he lost it and that he was out of baseball by 32. Maybe he is a few years older than on his birth certificate? He definitely was more in the Bartolo Colon area of conditioning too. Either way glad to see his name back in the fold for the Mets.
Interesting that Boras’ pointed comments at HOU states they could be contending for “6 or 7 [years] if they are able to retain those true core pieces of All-Star level talent” (i.e. his client, Correa).
– Correa reportedly asked for a 10-year contract before going with Boras, so either Boras knows 10 years is too much of an ask OR even he admits that they won’t be contending WITH his client the backend 3 or 4 years of his deal.
Boras “..six or seven years..”
Altuve and Bregman are signed for 4. Who replaces their production?
And Guriel and Brantley-1 year remaining.
My feeling is that Carlos wants to remain an Astro and he wants them to give him his money. I’m an Astros fan, at this point I really don’t want him back, let him go chase his money elsewhere. The Astros are a championship caliber team with or without him.
I agree with MuteButton. Ten years is absurd for any team, in my opinion. The money they would save by not signing him to a 10 year deal will allow them to spend money in other areas and remain competitive. That being said, I’d still be ok with signing him to a short-term deal…but I don’t Correa is going to go that route.
It’s been nice watching Correa play and contribute massively but he wants an excess of riches so let him seek it. Can’t rationalize a 8-10 yr deal for him. It’s highly likely he crumbles in 4-5 yrs leaving the team forced to eat the remainder and tank the rest of contract. Maybe somewhere will offer him 7 yrs with a 3-4 yr opt out. Good luck, Carlos.
One of the few times the Mets acquired or let go of a player at the right time. It def hurt when they let him go, but his career tanked right after he left.
Although a contract of 8 yrs/$200 mil is at the upper limits of sanity for this dude, he’ll probably get 8/240. There aren’t any teams left that can throw away $300 mil on a player with a career .277 BA, who averages low 20’s in HRs and doesn’t steal bases; not to mention the cheating and insufferable arrogance. Good luck with that, though.