Thursday, December 11, 2003
IT IRKS ME
Here's a Baltimore Sun article that kinda ticked me off...I'll throw some quotes...
Yesterday, a high-ranking Orioles official said they will definitely top [the Mariners' 3-yr, $24-25M offer], though he declined to say what the number of years or dollar amount will be.
The same club official also shot down the possibility of the Orioles trading for disgruntled Boston Red Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra.
Beyond realizing they would have to overpay for Garciaparra to trade for him within their division, the Orioles simply like Tejada more, the source said.
There was an article that I think Gabriel at the Safe Blog linked the other day -- it was an ESPN article on players taking "stupid money," which of course includes Alex taking money from Texas and as of yesterday, Fernando Vina taking money from Detroit. Tejada taking money from Baltimore would be stupid money. To Vlad and Tejada: good luck winning in Baltimore with that very questionable pitching staff.
Later in the article...
Guerrero, 27, may be the jewel of this free-agent class, but the Orioles understand there could be drawbacks to making him their primary franchise player.
Guerrero's English skills are limited, so it would be tough for him to attach himself to the fan base, though there is no doubt his contributions would be welcome on the field.
Oh man, how can this even enter one's mind if they have a chance to sign Vlad frigging Guerrero? Do I care if he pops 40+ bombs, drives in 130 runs, but can't speak English? Hell no. And if the Orioles are stupid enough to let this get in the way of signing him (because he isn't the media darling that Tejada is more of), then they're out of their minds.
even later...
Another potential suitor for Tejada and Guerrero, the Anaheim Angels, appeared to drop out of the running on Wednesday, when they signed pitcher Bartolo Colon to a four-year deal. Angels owner Bill Stoneman told the Los Angeles Times that Tejada and Guerrero were "probably not" options.
Well, as I suspected, the Angels should be out of the Tejada running thanks to their gross overpayment of Bartolo Colon. Also, RotoWorld reports that there is no weight clause in Colon's contract with the Angels.
Just listening to KJR right now, and Softy is darkly speculating about the Tejada situation; he paints a scenario which I hope doesn't happen. The process is something that would be ignited by the Pettitte contract signed in Houston today. This would tick off Steinbrenner. Steinbrenner would deal Jeff Weaver for Kevin Brown. In a straight-up deal, the Dodgers would clear like $7M in salary. That reeks of "about to sign key free agent." In Softy's words, if a Weaver-for-Brown deal is announced, the Mariners' bidding for Tejada could take a big hit.
And that, my friends, would really really REALLY suck. I haven't been this juiced up as a Mariner fan in a long time thanks to this possibility of the Mariners actually stepping up and getting a key top-notch free agent, and I'll be freakin' irate if they don't get him. Even with a Tejada, some have speculated this is still merely a high-80s-winning team. Imagine what those people would feel like if they don't land Tejada??
Yesterday, a high-ranking Orioles official said they will definitely top [the Mariners' 3-yr, $24-25M offer], though he declined to say what the number of years or dollar amount will be.
The same club official also shot down the possibility of the Orioles trading for disgruntled Boston Red Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra.
Beyond realizing they would have to overpay for Garciaparra to trade for him within their division, the Orioles simply like Tejada more, the source said.
There was an article that I think Gabriel at the Safe Blog linked the other day -- it was an ESPN article on players taking "stupid money," which of course includes Alex taking money from Texas and as of yesterday, Fernando Vina taking money from Detroit. Tejada taking money from Baltimore would be stupid money. To Vlad and Tejada: good luck winning in Baltimore with that very questionable pitching staff.
Later in the article...
Guerrero, 27, may be the jewel of this free-agent class, but the Orioles understand there could be drawbacks to making him their primary franchise player.
Guerrero's English skills are limited, so it would be tough for him to attach himself to the fan base, though there is no doubt his contributions would be welcome on the field.
Oh man, how can this even enter one's mind if they have a chance to sign Vlad frigging Guerrero? Do I care if he pops 40+ bombs, drives in 130 runs, but can't speak English? Hell no. And if the Orioles are stupid enough to let this get in the way of signing him (because he isn't the media darling that Tejada is more of), then they're out of their minds.
even later...
Another potential suitor for Tejada and Guerrero, the Anaheim Angels, appeared to drop out of the running on Wednesday, when they signed pitcher Bartolo Colon to a four-year deal. Angels owner Bill Stoneman told the Los Angeles Times that Tejada and Guerrero were "probably not" options.
Well, as I suspected, the Angels should be out of the Tejada running thanks to their gross overpayment of Bartolo Colon. Also, RotoWorld reports that there is no weight clause in Colon's contract with the Angels.
Just listening to KJR right now, and Softy is darkly speculating about the Tejada situation; he paints a scenario which I hope doesn't happen. The process is something that would be ignited by the Pettitte contract signed in Houston today. This would tick off Steinbrenner. Steinbrenner would deal Jeff Weaver for Kevin Brown. In a straight-up deal, the Dodgers would clear like $7M in salary. That reeks of "about to sign key free agent." In Softy's words, if a Weaver-for-Brown deal is announced, the Mariners' bidding for Tejada could take a big hit.
And that, my friends, would really really REALLY suck. I haven't been this juiced up as a Mariner fan in a long time thanks to this possibility of the Mariners actually stepping up and getting a key top-notch free agent, and I'll be freakin' irate if they don't get him. Even with a Tejada, some have speculated this is still merely a high-80s-winning team. Imagine what those people would feel like if they don't land Tejada??
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