Monday, December 15, 2003
MORE ICHIRO BASHING........
Dave's thoughts
"Ichiro is not a 10 million dollar player. Not even close."
And I beg to differ. Ichiro is pretty much the reason the Mariners are where they are right now, and to not give him what he wants would mean sacrificing many more millions in ticket sales, ad revenue, and television contracts. Ichiro has star power
No, I BEG TO DIFFER.
Ichiro is not a 10 million dollar player. He's a singles hitter, guys and gals. As for ticket sales, the Mariners are drawing over 3 million fans not just because of Ichiro, but because of the team. Remember, there is a lot more to the Mariners than Ichiro.
And why should the Mariners give him what he wants? If you think that Ichiro deserves 15 million, like he supposedly is asking for, then you are nuts. But it would not shock me to see the M's overpay him. It would be fitting. The M's like to overpay "nice guys", so believe me, it will probably happen.
"6 years and 72 million dollars for a player like Miguel Tejada is a bargain, folks. A freaking bargain. This guy is an MVP-caliber player, and believe me, he's a lot better than Carlos Guillen."
No. It's not a bargain. They did not "lowball" Tejada. They offered him a fair deal, and Baltimore went way over the top of Seattle (by a year and $3 million dollars a season).
Yes, Miguel Tejada's deal WAS a bargain, compared to the other top American League shorstop's contracts. I'll admit, I should have clarified this in my earlier posts.
Derek Jeter SS NYY Signed Feb 2001 - 10 years/$189M
2001: $11.0M (+$16.0M signing bonus paid over 8 years)
2002: $13.0M
2003: $14.0M
2004: $17.0M
2005: $18.0M
2006: $19.0M
2007: $20.0M
2008: $20.0M
2009: $20.0M
2010: $21.0M
-Signing bonus paid in $1M instalments each Jan & Jun 30th 2001-8
-Includes complete no-trade clause
Alex Rodriguez SS TEX Signed Dec 2000 - 10 years/$252M
2001: $21.0M^ (+$10.0M signing bonus paid between 2001-5)
2002: $21.0M*
2003: $21.0M~
2004: $21.0M~
2005: $25.0M*
2006: $25.0M*
2007: $27.0M*
2008: $27.0M~
2009: $27.0M~
2010: $27.0M~
-Deferred salary: ^$5M *$4M ~$3M deferred at 3% to 2011-2020
-Can void deal after 2007, 8 or 9. Guaranteed salary increase for 2009&10
-Numurous bonuses for MVP awards, All Star appearances, Gold Glove etc.
And Nomar Garciaparra will be going into the final year of his 7-year, 44.25 mil contract, making 11.5 mil in 2004. He will probably get a contract similar to Tejada's, if not a little bigger.
So, yes, in comparison, Miguel Tejada's 72 million dollar deal is a bargain compared to Jeter, Rodriguez, and Garciaparra.
Tejada is deserving of this contract as well. Why do some Seattle fans have to feel the need to bash a player just because he signs a deal with another team for more money? Face it, that is not a horrible thing. Why should he sign with Seattle for 4 years and 41 million, when he can get 6 years, 72 million? Just because the M's give him a better chance to get to the playoffs? I hope Tejada enjoys 4th place in Baltimore, because there's no way they're beating the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays. But I will not bash Tejada for signing with Baltimore.
If you think Tejada's a freaking bargain at $12 million a year, and Ichiro is not even worth $10 million, well... I don't know what numbers you are looking at. Because the only thing Tejada does better than Ichiro is hit home runs. About 15-20 more a season. Not enough to make up for the fact that Ichiro's worth about 8 wins a year for his team.
Ichiro "may" be worth 8 wins a year for his team, but in the last two seasons, it has not been enough for the Mariners to play in October. Miguel Tejada, however, has been a key player for his team down the stretch, while Ichiro just lays down. Believe me, I'm not saying that Ichiro is not a good player. I think he's worth at least 8 million a season, but should not get more than 9 million a season. If he does, then that's a terrible decision in my opinion.
To end this, it is very true that Ichiro brings in a lot of money with his presence. But should that mean that he should be the highest paid Mariner, even if he isn't the best player on the ballclub? No. HELL NO.
But let's be honest here. The Mariners will overpay for Ichiro, while seeing Vladimir Guerrero, a MUCH BETTER PLAYER than Ichiro, sign with Baltimore or, gasp, Florida.
Dave, at least we can both agree that Scott Spiezio signing for 3 years, 9 million would be a terrible deal....
"Ichiro is not a 10 million dollar player. Not even close."
And I beg to differ. Ichiro is pretty much the reason the Mariners are where they are right now, and to not give him what he wants would mean sacrificing many more millions in ticket sales, ad revenue, and television contracts. Ichiro has star power
No, I BEG TO DIFFER.
Ichiro is not a 10 million dollar player. He's a singles hitter, guys and gals. As for ticket sales, the Mariners are drawing over 3 million fans not just because of Ichiro, but because of the team. Remember, there is a lot more to the Mariners than Ichiro.
And why should the Mariners give him what he wants? If you think that Ichiro deserves 15 million, like he supposedly is asking for, then you are nuts. But it would not shock me to see the M's overpay him. It would be fitting. The M's like to overpay "nice guys", so believe me, it will probably happen.
"6 years and 72 million dollars for a player like Miguel Tejada is a bargain, folks. A freaking bargain. This guy is an MVP-caliber player, and believe me, he's a lot better than Carlos Guillen."
No. It's not a bargain. They did not "lowball" Tejada. They offered him a fair deal, and Baltimore went way over the top of Seattle (by a year and $3 million dollars a season).
Yes, Miguel Tejada's deal WAS a bargain, compared to the other top American League shorstop's contracts. I'll admit, I should have clarified this in my earlier posts.
Derek Jeter SS NYY Signed Feb 2001 - 10 years/$189M
2001: $11.0M (+$16.0M signing bonus paid over 8 years)
2002: $13.0M
2003: $14.0M
2004: $17.0M
2005: $18.0M
2006: $19.0M
2007: $20.0M
2008: $20.0M
2009: $20.0M
2010: $21.0M
-Signing bonus paid in $1M instalments each Jan & Jun 30th 2001-8
-Includes complete no-trade clause
Alex Rodriguez SS TEX Signed Dec 2000 - 10 years/$252M
2001: $21.0M^ (+$10.0M signing bonus paid between 2001-5)
2002: $21.0M*
2003: $21.0M~
2004: $21.0M~
2005: $25.0M*
2006: $25.0M*
2007: $27.0M*
2008: $27.0M~
2009: $27.0M~
2010: $27.0M~
-Deferred salary: ^$5M *$4M ~$3M deferred at 3% to 2011-2020
-Can void deal after 2007, 8 or 9. Guaranteed salary increase for 2009&10
-Numurous bonuses for MVP awards, All Star appearances, Gold Glove etc.
And Nomar Garciaparra will be going into the final year of his 7-year, 44.25 mil contract, making 11.5 mil in 2004. He will probably get a contract similar to Tejada's, if not a little bigger.
So, yes, in comparison, Miguel Tejada's 72 million dollar deal is a bargain compared to Jeter, Rodriguez, and Garciaparra.
Tejada is deserving of this contract as well. Why do some Seattle fans have to feel the need to bash a player just because he signs a deal with another team for more money? Face it, that is not a horrible thing. Why should he sign with Seattle for 4 years and 41 million, when he can get 6 years, 72 million? Just because the M's give him a better chance to get to the playoffs? I hope Tejada enjoys 4th place in Baltimore, because there's no way they're beating the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays. But I will not bash Tejada for signing with Baltimore.
If you think Tejada's a freaking bargain at $12 million a year, and Ichiro is not even worth $10 million, well... I don't know what numbers you are looking at. Because the only thing Tejada does better than Ichiro is hit home runs. About 15-20 more a season. Not enough to make up for the fact that Ichiro's worth about 8 wins a year for his team.
Ichiro "may" be worth 8 wins a year for his team, but in the last two seasons, it has not been enough for the Mariners to play in October. Miguel Tejada, however, has been a key player for his team down the stretch, while Ichiro just lays down. Believe me, I'm not saying that Ichiro is not a good player. I think he's worth at least 8 million a season, but should not get more than 9 million a season. If he does, then that's a terrible decision in my opinion.
To end this, it is very true that Ichiro brings in a lot of money with his presence. But should that mean that he should be the highest paid Mariner, even if he isn't the best player on the ballclub? No. HELL NO.
But let's be honest here. The Mariners will overpay for Ichiro, while seeing Vladimir Guerrero, a MUCH BETTER PLAYER than Ichiro, sign with Baltimore or, gasp, Florida.
Dave, at least we can both agree that Scott Spiezio signing for 3 years, 9 million would be a terrible deal....
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