Rockies Sign Holliday For Two Years

Tough to say Pena signed for a discount by calling the value for Pena and Holiday even... Holiday has shown more than one year have great production.

If Holliday got 2 X 11.5, I expect the Rockies to negotiate him long term.

Couldn't disagree more...Holiday is absolutely 40% better. Pena had one good season, at 29 years old, which is more likely to be a fluke than a sign of things to come. At 26 and 27, Holiday hit .326 and .340 with over 30 HR. That's at least 40% better.

No way. Holliday was worth 9.7 wins in '07, Pena 9.9.

Plus Holliday basically becomes Josh Willingham when he's not in Coors.

So? They're paying Holiday to play in Coors 81 games a year. Plus, .301/.374/.485 isn't crap. Also, you can't just look at two years of a three year contract vs. a two year contract. Players always take somehwat less money for the security. If Pena reverts to his old form he'll be making way more than he's worth - he is way more of a risk than Holiday, which has to factor into the cost.

ryne: Holliday and the Rockies avoided arbitration. That extra year could have been worth 20mil

I'm just sayin' they're fairly comparable but Holliday is making way more money. Even with all the caveats about Pena being older and trading dollars for security (though that $10 mil Pena is getting in 2010 more a favor to the team than him).

Pena likes playing in St. Petersburg. There is absolutely no pressure to perform above average and he can use the home field to his advantage. He hit several "catwalk" HRs last year and is sure to repeat that feat this year. For a guy that failed to beat out Greg Norton for a roster spot out of Spring Training(Norton sprained an ankle at the end of SP, saving Pena from starting the season at AAA),I'd say he hit the jackpot on this new contract. Somehow, I've got a hunch that last year was an aberration.

There is this guy that is a pretty good hitter now, one of the most feared in baseball in fact. He didnt really become anything special until 2003. His age 28 season. Before that his numbers were pretty pedestrian at best. His name is David Ortiz. I am just saying, people who have written off Pena need to remember Ortiz and how he was a very average player and he hit his late 20's, something clicked, and he became a monster. Sometimes it just takes certain guys longer to hit their stride. Lets wait and see before we bash the guy.