Comments on: News of the Day – 12/20/08

By: Shaun P.

Shaun P. — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 10:44:38 +0000

[6] [7] Without having read your post, Chyll . . . Ticket revenue/concessions are an important piece of MLB’s revenue pie, but a much smaller piece than before. The ESPN/FOX/TBS deals pay guaranteed cash; team deals with their RSN and radio stations pay guaranteed cash; there’s all of us who will give up something else before we drop Extra Innings or MLB.TV; and the MLB network (and its huge subscriber fees) debuts on 1/1/09.

Apart from that, its a team’s responsibility to not make poor financial decisions, not an agent’s, or a player’s. They don’t have access to the team’s books; only the team does. The agent’s job – and legal and professional duty – is to get the best possible deal for his/her client. If they don’t, they can be sued, and they’ll also probably be out of a job. If a team is too poorly run – or too stupid – to properly evaluate their current financial situation and future outlook, and agrees to a contract they ultimately can’t pay, the fault lies with the team, and the team alone. No one holds a gun to a team’s head and says, “8 years and $184 million or your life.” (And if team ever couldn’t meet payroll – rumored to have happened in the late 90s/early 00s – the owners have a very large slush fund to deal with such situations.)

Yes the economy is historically bad. But its not an agent’s job to make sure MLB stays financially sound; its MLB’s job. As bad as things are, I don’t see Hollywood, for example, paying its biggest stars anything less than top dollar PER FILM ( forget per year; those folks make a hell of a lot more than A-Rod does; ditto TV people). Seems like the entertainment biz is ok for now. But if changes in baseball’s context, it won’t be the fault of the agents, or the players, for their big contracts. It will be entirely on the teams.

By: Chyll Will

Chyll Will — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 02:53:34 +0000

[6] I’d like to think it was that easy, but the market isn’t all that appealing in 2010. I think Diane posted a FA link a few posts back (and you can check Cot’s on the sidebar) from what I see, it’s gonna take some precision and a hope that some of those teams don’t wrap the good guys up before they hit the market. Aside from that, you also have to hope that the agents don’t try to ignore reality. Next year’s gonna be a real mess, and if baseball doesn’t get with the program, they might be in GM’s position by 2010…

By: OldYanksFan

OldYanksFan — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 00:37:59 +0000

Tex turned down 8/$170m? Wow… maybe he just figures he has time on his side. I would love him on the Yanks, but he’s not worth $180m+. The market is just nuts. We really need to get the farm and international signings together. My guess is the FA market HAS to be (doesn’t it??) cheaper next year.

By: Mr. OK Jazz TOKYO

Mr. OK Jazz TOKYO — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 23:20:34 +0000

[3] Chyll, was unable to log in on your blog so replying here..I was also surprised that Ellis had no insurance. Does the Players Union not supply insurance along with a pension?? And as usual, you are spot-on about the priorities of the “bailout”…same over here, the govt is now giving “cash back” to “stimulate the economy” through “consumer spending”..total received by each family will be about $150…yeah, that goes very far in Tokyo…

By: Rich

Rich — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 22:38:38 +0000

Given that Cash has gone on record as saying that he preferred signing Beltran over Randy Johnson, and that he told Francesa this week that he wants to prioritize defense as older players are coming off the roster, it doesn’t take much of a logical leap to think that he might prefer signing Tex over Manny, unless perhaps if Manny would take a one year deal.

By: Chyll Will

Chyll Will — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 21:18:12 +0000

[2] Okay, it’s done. Just click on my name. Obviously too long and fuzzy for a proper Banter comment… >;)

By: Chyll Will

Chyll Will — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:19:19 +0000

I was gonna put up a long comment, then realized that half of it wasn’t so directly Yanks related, so I posted it on my blog. If you really want to know what I said (and come on, who does?), click on my name. But in short, Yay Toyota, boo JetBlue, hedging on Tex, not really down with Manny or Lowe, Wasserman Agency is second to Boras in the Scum Cycle of Sports Agents, but Frank Wren is an idiot for not realizing this beforehand. And peace to Dock Ellis. I’ll let you know when I finish that post, but Thanks Diane for all of the above! >;)

By: Joseph

Joseph — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 17:03:27 +0000

After hearing from Sox fans and the media for weeks that nobody wanted to come to NY, before C.C. and A.J. signed, I must say I got a good chuckle upon hearing that Tex spurned the Sox (at least for now), after Boston’s big presentation down in Texas. I’d have liked to been a fly on the overhead baggage compartment listening to Henry, Theo, and Lucchino bitch and moan on that long flight back to Boston, empty-handed no less.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Teixeira still ends up in Beantown, considering Boras is involved. He’s like an antique wash tub with a hand-operated wringer when it comes to squeezing every last nickel out of a club.

News this morning from Jon Heyman of S.I. that the Yanks and Angels are back in it …uh..well, I don’t want to get my hopes up too much on that rumor.