Scott Boras landed Jayson Werth a nine-figure contract with a surprise suitor this afternoon. The Nationals signed the free agent outfielder to a seven-year, $126MM deal. In case any doubt remained, this deal shows that it's a good time to be a free agent. Werth turned three productive seasons into the third biggest deal a free agent outfielder has ever signed.
Manny Ramirez ($160MM, 2000) and Alfonso Soriano ($136MM, 2006) are the only outfielders to sign bigger deals than Werth's. Interestingly, Vernon Wells and Barry Zito both signed deals worth exactly as much as the one Boras just negotiated with the Nationals.
The Phillies offered Werth, a Type A free agent, arbitration, but will not receive the Nats' first-round pick as compensation because Washington's pick is protected. Philadelphia will instead receive the Nats' second-round pick and and a compensatory sandwich-round pick.
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo appears to have a strong relationship with Boras. The two worked out deals for number one overall selections Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper in 2009 and 2010.
It was said earlier this week that the most serious suitors for the 31-year-old were the Phillies, Tigers, and Red Sox. Those three teams were all in on Werth up until the end, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. While Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that Boston got up to four years on Werth, Alex Speier of WEEI.com hears the Sox never made a formal contract offer to the outfielder.
MLB.com's Todd Zolecki first reported that the two sides were nearing agreement. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) confirmed the deal, Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) first reported the length of the contract and Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports reported the deal's terms (via Twitter). Rosenthal later tweeted the financial breakdown. Werth's $4MM signing bonus will be payable between January 2011 and January 2012, and his annual salaries are as follows: $10MM, $13MM, $16MM, $20MM, $21MM, $21MM, and $21MM.
What a surprise, didn’t expect this.
Nice player to add Nats
Nice player, but not at that many years.
Exactly. Boras found yet another sucker.
7 years $126 million… sounds like Barry Zito’s contract. Boras like those numbers.
might be the worst contract in the history of the league right there…
Barry Zito? Ryan Howard? Vernon Wells? A-Rod? Mike Hampton?
How the hell was the Ryan Howard contract bad? Same with A-Rod (as of right now) and Vernon Wells, and it isn’t worth the amount of money he’s making, but Zito is not posting an ERA at 5.
I was about to respond to your response with a WAR/$ breakdown for Vernon Wells and then tell you to simply ask any Jays fan anywhere what they feel about Vernon (hint: they’ll say he can’t hit and he should be a corner OF), but then I felt your second sentence was too incomprehensible to warrant a full response.
As for Howard, I’ll be brief statistically: wOBA vs LHP .329; wOBA vs RHP 424. Can’t hit lefties at all and won’t get any better. And he is he average at best defensively. 8 more years. 25 million per in a few years for a first baseman.
Do I really need to explain A-Rod? I’m a die-hard Yankees fan who has been defending A-Rod from his detractors within the Yankee fanbase. Just look at his contract. 30 million or something? He is an all-time great, but at this point only Pujols should be considered for that type of money.
As for Zito, I have no idea what you are trying to say about him, so I’ll just say that the Giants left him off of the playoff roster……. and that ought to say enough about the contract right there.
howards is terrible…
none of those guys signed those deals at Werth’s age(with only 3 good years under his belt) and he will never reach the numbers he had in Philly ever again. not to mention that the numbers he did put up arent even that great in the first place.
ryanhoward
might be the worst contract in the history of the league right there…
lol
Nice player to cripple the Nats.
Wow, never would have thought that.
To quote the prolific New York poets Wu-Tang…CASH RULES EVERYTHING AROUND ME
Holy crap!
7 years? Wow, they really needed to sign a big name. Guess FA’s need to take them more serious now.
My guess is it’ll look a lot like the Holliday deal, 7 years $120M. If that’s the case looks like Boras was a great agent choice.
An amazing agent choice! I am glad for the National’s sake they don’t have a pitcher’s park for they could find themselves being very upset with themselves.
Wow, 126!?! Does that work with the inflation rate?
Its 5% more than what Holliday got last season, and with the way contract values have been going that might be a little under the “baseball rate” of inflation. Still, I didn’t think teams thought of Werth and Holliday as being in the same strata. Holliday was 2 years younger and had a history of better, more consistent performance. I’m assuming that’s the premium the Nats had to offer him to get him to a team that isn’t an obvious contender
They have been spurned as of late by FA’s.
Can you imagine the look on Crawford’s face when he heard this news?
He is sitting back and thinking…”I had better widen the driveway, they’re going to need a fleet of brinks trucks to get my money here”.
Holliday=1.5xWerth
So Holliday is worth a Werth and a half?
Yeah, +/- .05Braun
It’s more like: Holliday is werth 1.5 times more?
See what I did there?
Lets see Cliff Lee beat this deal !
lost by 1 million!
This is awsome!!!! Go Nats!!!!:)
The red soxs keep getting screwed 😀
So do the Tigers! Dave Dombrowski needs to be FIRED!!!!
What? This is a horrid signing. The Sox and the Tigers both should be praised for going nowhere near this deal.
This is a massive overpay, especially in years. Not upset at all that the Red Sox didn’t get Werth–wouldn’t want him at $18MM per year for even 5 years. Even the A-Gon thing I’m somewhat ambivalent about if the reason is that he was looking for something like $25MM per for 7-8 years. It’s hard to see any one player, even a “great” one like Gonzalez, worth that much risk. Maybe Boston will take another look at Beltre. Since Crawford is better, he’ll get even sillier money than Werth, and I wouldn’t even want Carl for 7/$126MM.
I wouldn’t call signing Benoit and V-Mart and losing out on Jayson Werth for seven years and $126MM getting screwed. Do YOU want him manning right field until he’s 38 with certain to decline numbers while paying him more than Matt Holliday? I sure don’t. As a Tigers fan, I’m happy this wasn’t Detroit’s deal, because it seems like this is them more often than not. This makes V-Mart’s $50 million deal look like a bargain.
maybe, but as a WSox fan, I’m very happy not to see Werth a dozen times a year.
What planet do you live on? This was a horrible move by the Nats. He wasn’t worth half that amount.
Why don’t you keep reading and see my explanation why I said that.
The only reason Werth would have been a big target for the Sox would have been if they signed A-Gonz and needed a righty outfielder. After losing out on A-Gonz I would assume they would have been more interested in Crawford anyway. Having said that it does still hurt because it is becoming Crawford or bust for the Sox.
The only team that got screwed was the Nats.
(and maybe the Phillies because the Nat’s draft pick is protected)
I’d hardly say the red sox got screwed.. they didn’t overpay for werth and detroit didn’t sign him so the still get that first round draft pick.
no they didnt who wants a guy that long no none was gonna match that deal and keep there job
This is a joke….right?
HA!
Wow Now its even worse to be a Sox fan 🙁
Till 5 years from now when Werth’s legs and arms fall off
His beard is most likely to go first.
Wow, did not expect that at all.That should appease the restless Nationals fans.
Though I must say 7 years seems like a lot, I definitely wouldn’t want my team to commit that many years to him, though I guess we’ll wait for the dollar figures,
That’s exactly what I was thinking. It may be a terrible signing eventually but, at the moment, it’s a big free agent signing that will hopefully attract fans to National games until the likes of Strasburg and Harper are recovered/in the majors.
LOL. The Red Sox are gonna be terrible next year. They have no one to get now. HAHA.
Crawford maybe
Angels or Rangers for Crawford.
Why the Rangers? They already have Cruz, Hamilton, Murphy, Borbon.
I say Angels or Red Sox.
you forgot detroit.
you forgot detroit.
Crawford is going to want an 8-year deal at the least now. If Boston wouldn’t give A-Gon 8 years, how are they going to give Crawford that much?
Crawford is going to want an 8-year deal at the least now. If Boston wouldn’t give A-Gon 8 years, how are they going to give Crawford that much?
Carl Crawford, Cliff Lee, yep, no one left at all.
That’s right the Yankees won’t get at least one of those two guys if not both. STOP RATIONALIZING!
How many will the Jays get? I’m not RATIONALIZING! I’m just laughing at the idea that Lee and Crawford are nobodies. I think that you need to also remember that the AGon deal isn’t permanently dead. At least not yet.
LMAO when did I say Lee and Crawford are nobodies. Don’t put words in my mouth. The odds of the Yankees not getting both of those guys are slim. Therefore, they’re out of the Red Sox’s reach. So who are they going to get? No one.
‘The odds of the Yankees not getting both of those guys are slim’. Uhhhh, que?
LOL. If you can’t understand that you don’t understand English.
crawford to the angels or tigers
shut up your a nyy fan posing as a blue jays fan get over yourself do soemthing usedull
I think you said it here… “The Red Sox are gonna be terrible next year. They have no one to get now”.
To answer the second part… they are going to get Adrian Gonzales… Maybe you have heard of him.
I hate to say this because, for the most part, I like Jays fans but are the Jays going to come in 4th or 5th in the AL East this year?
you might have misunderstood but cliff lee and crawford aren’t going to be red sox, meaning there is nobody big the red sox will get on the FA market, not that those 2 guys are nobodies.
OK, now, can you tell me what tomorrow’s lottery numbers are so I can buy my own island and get out of this cold weather?
After losing out on A-Gonz and keeping their prospects they could also revisit an Upton or Rasmus trade or look into Fielder. They could also pick up talks with Beltre again.
They will still be better then the Jays
Yeah no they’re not
LOL are they? NO
They have some prospects. Last I heard…
The Sox traded Adrian Gonzalez to the Padres for Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo, and Reymond Fuentes. The Padres got the slugger!
Yep that’s what I mean. The Red Sox are in rebuilding mode.
there gonna be alot better than toronto will be didnt you trade your 2nd best starter to the brewers for a 2b prospect
they’ll get beltre.
LOL i really hope they cave and give a boat load of money to him because it would be the worst investment ever
no it would still be a better deal than Vernon Wells.. hope you enjoy eating that 20 million per year for another few..
you should worry a little bit about the jays.. the sox won 89 games without 3 of their best players pretty much all year… the jays had the stars all aligned for them and still finished 4th… Good luch tho
Dude. Beltre has had two great years in his entire 12 year career. Wells had a way better tack record than Beltre and deserved that contract. If the Red Sox want to give him 5 years 90 million on a guy with not that great a history who over-performed in a contract year, I’m happy as a Jays fan.
well in all fairness, vernon wells isn’t at all crippling the team at ALL, the 2 jays 2009 silver sluggers had bad years, their SS had a down year, they’ll be replacing their mediocre 1b/DH with a better bat, Morrow likely won’t get so unlucky again this year (see: advanced metrics), and they’ll actually have a 5th starter this year. and snider will be around all year.
buccholz will regress, lackey and beckett are wildcards, as is matsuzaka…i’m not saying the Jays will be better, but you DO realize both teams probably won’t make the playoffs right?
dont base everything on players the offseason isnt over and guys get injured during the year red sox are in it same with toronto if they can sign manny
The Jays’ fluke home run mashing MVP candidate will go back to hitting 13 HRs a year, all of their pitchers will regress except some that will be wild cards, their 1b will still suck and their new 5th starter won’t be as good as they thought.
Buch and Lester will be tied for second place in CY balloting. Lackey and Beckett will be co-CY winners. DiceK will still walk every other batter. To top it off, Derek Jeter will win ANOTHER gold glove.
Hey, this is pretty fun! What team should we make stuff up about next?
well in all fairness, vernon wells isn’t at all crippling the team at ALL, the 2 jays 2009 silver sluggers had bad years, their SS had a down year, they’ll be replacing their mediocre 1b/DH with a better bat, Morrow likely won’t get so unlucky again this year (see: advanced metrics), and they’ll actually have a 5th starter this year. and snider will be around all year.
buccholz will regress, lackey and beckett are wildcards, as is matsuzaka…i’m not saying the Jays will be better, but you DO realize both teams probably won’t make the playoffs right?
no it would still be a better deal than Vernon Wells.. hope you enjoy eating that 20 million per year for another few..
you should worry a little bit about the jays.. the sox won 89 games without 3 of their best players pretty much all year… the jays had the stars all aligned for them and still finished 4th… Good luch tho
Not as bad as the Werth signing apparently…
we’re getting pedroia, youkilis, ellsbury, cameron, buchholz back from injury and crawford and lee is still on the market. blue jays will be the ones winning 80 games next year
also losing Martinez and Beltre and the Yankees could easily get both Lee and Crawford.. wups .. the Jays will be hopping over the Red Sox next year.
I hate to break it to you, but the Jays won’t be contenders next year. Sox and Yankees are taking over the AL East again. I could see the Jays becoming contenders in about 4-5 years, though.
The Jays were only 3 games behind the Red Sox in a rebuilding year, even with the Red Sox injuries, that says a lot. Where do you get off seeing the Red Sox on the upswing for next season? Like, honestly, who do they have? Red Sox just lost their two best hitters and have not picked up anyone to replace them. Further, that list of players they can acquire is growing thin and the Yankees haven’t even dipped in yet. Are you saying the Red Sox are gonna make a push with a bunch of guys returning of injuries.
“The Red Sox are going to take over the AL East.” LMAO. Sorry to break it to you, that’s hilarious.
The Sox just got AGonz for real, and the Jays just traded Marcum, their best pitcher. They’re giving up all chances of contending next year. The Jays are still working on things. They do have a lot of potential though, so I think that they will be a serious threat in about 4 years.
And yes, I do think the Sox will be better than the Jays next year. You’re starting to sound very ignorant, when the Jays clearly aren’t ready to overcome the Yankees or the Red Sox. Oh, and when I said they are going to take over the East, I meant that they will be the only serious contenders for now.
Great for the Red Sox. But the Jays obviously got Lawrie to trade for Greinke. You’ll see that unfold this week. FYI: The Jays are not trying to rebuild for the future, AA is always trying to improve the team for next season So stop talking about them like they’re the Cleveland Indians when you have no idea.
Come now. We all know the Jays will be lucky to stay ahead of the Showalter led O’s.
If they get Grienke, they will be a lot better, but they still won’t be better than the Yankees, or Sox. Remember, Grienke is one pitcher, who pitches every 5 days. And AA is improving for the next season. Improving is the key word. The Jays are getting better, but no matter what he does, they won’t beat the Red Sox, or the Yankees next season.
Both the Jays and Orioles will seriously contend in 2011.
The sox will still get A Gon in the end they’ll just trade for him and work an extension later after they swap a prospect or two in the deal with San Deigo…The sox want him and Pads realize they need to restock their system and this is their best chance to do so.
HOLY CRAP. geeze man I didn’t see this coming
Good on ya, Nats!
7 years? the amount won’t be pretty.
It will be interesting to see what happens with the Crawford situation, Crawford is in for a huge payday
Wow, Nats give Werth 7 years and the Sox couldn’t swallow 8 years to get it done for AGon… wow…
I Guess this means the Sox should just give A Gon 15 Years?
Or sign over the ownership of the team to him in 20.
Great Move…what a great day it is watching the Red Sox go down! 7 years is too much, but it is worth it to watch the Sox fans cry.
who cries over baseball really you must have no life at all you arent on a team nor will ever be get a wife and kids get a good job worry about yourself cuz in the end your just another nobody you will never make the money ortiz drew matsuzaka beckett make and i bet there wives will be hotter than you.what a lazy dude you are all you can do is talk
What is this I don’t even
That one came out of right field. I would love to see the Nats compete for a playoff spot this year.
I appreciate your glass half full mentality but wake up and smell the sh*t dude, this is one WAY overpriced signing and his bat wont even make up for losing Dunn’s. Nats could have resigned Dunn and gone out and gotten Pavano or something, but I’d imagine they’re pretty much tied up now and this is the only major signing we’ll see them make. Good luck with season and all, but they’ve still got a ways to go.
7 Years is ridiculous unless extremely front loaded. Do you really want an Alfonso Soriano #2?
Im just glad the Cubs didnt make the SORE-KNEEano 2!!!
He actually had a good year last year, just will never be worth his salary over his next 4 years, which will be the same thing for Werth.
I agree, a .258 average, .322 OBP, and 123 strikeouts, while playing horrible defense, in 496 at bats, is absolutely stellar for a 35 year old guy getting paid 20 million an year. Nice move on Hendry’s part, huh?
I didn’t say say he was stellar. I didn’t even say he was very good. He had a good year last year, and was probably worth a 10 million dollar salary. Obviously, not what Hendry signed him for
7 years!?????? For a 31 year old!???? Nice signing…
feel bad for him cuz the nats wont be good until 2 or 3 years
I don’t feel bad for anyone making $18 million a year.
reported 7 yr deal by heyman
Um. but but, they’re a last place team with no first base man
So. They have money to spend. And with this signing means more guys will think they are contenders. Which means better players.
No. This means they’ll have LESS money to spend.
If I were a FA this would only mean to me the Nats are willing to throw cash away.
Contenders actually make the playoffs — not just sign players. When the Nats stop being a last place team, then they’ll look better to FAs.
Either way, if the Nats are willing to overpay then it really wouldn’t matter.
Yeah. I am actually shaking in my boots at Nyjer Morgan, Mike Morse, Josh Willingham, and their one good pitcher.
I’m scared of Nyjer Morgan. Any given plate appearance, he has the potential to injure an opposing player. Until he gets clotheslined.
Not that the Nats were really front-runners for Lee, but now they’re certainly further removed.
Big signing. The Nats need pitching though. They’re still a couple pieces removed from contention, but should be exciting in a few years. I guess this means Harper is now ticketed to be a LFer?
Wonder if you’ll be seeing an overloaded payday for Beltre returning to the Sox now?
They’ll try to get Crawford first, but if not, that’s very conceivable.
Wow I bet they overpaid the crap out of him too.. That was about as random as the Berkman signing haha
If he signed for like 5/80 or something, I was gonna be pissed if the Phils didn’t match the offer…but no way at 7yrs. It’s been fun Jayson, good luck.
Rosenthal makes a great point. What does this mean for Crawford? If the money for Werth is in the 17 Million range, Crawford should ask for 8/155.
Especially considering Werth is 31 and Crawford is 29.
but. Crawford is better
Exactly.
Matt Holliday and Crawford are better players.
What a bad signing… I want to know what other SANE team was willing to go above 5 years for Werth.
Seven years? This isn’t going to end well.
Thank god. This was one Red Sox fan who did not want any part of this dude.
A seven year deal for a 31 year old outfielder with a history of injuries. Let’s see how well he does as he no longer will play half his games in the Philly bandbox. Aaron Rowand hit 27 homers in Philly one year, Werth hit 36.
Look up his stats on the road, they’re really not very impressive. Good defensive outfielder, though. But don’t expect him to be any kind of savior. Boras strikes again.
They trade him in 3 years
Not when he’ll be making 18 Million over his 34-38 years.
I’m calling it. I don’t care
If anything, he will get the Alex Rios treatment and just get waived to another team willing to pay.
Wow, Boston salvaging a deal to get Gonzo almost becomes a must now.
Good luck Nats on finishing in last place for many years to come.You now mess up the whole market with this terrible contract you gave Werth.Expect 20 hr 70 RBI from Werth on a yearly basis
And then people blame the Yankees when teams like the Nats give crappy contracts to guys like Werth…
7/126. WOW.
This means Crawford will get 8 yrs 1 bazillion dollars!
1 bazillion? If anything, this Werth deal makes Crawford worth at least 2 bazillion dollars
Seven Years?!!! God bless Boras. He is truly the ambassador of “quan”. Unbelievable.
I will never be able to figure out why you WOULDN’T have Boras as your agent.
I will never be able to figure out why you WOULDN’T have Boras as your agent.
Ken_Rosenthal
Source: Werth is 7 yrs, $126M
This is actually okay news for the Red Sox because if they weren’t gonna land him then at least it was to a team besides the Tigers. Now the Sox get to keep the Tigers’ #19 pick for Vmart instead of it going to Phillies with Werth being the higher ranked type-A free agent.
Ahh that also! I wasn’t too excited about Werth to begin with.
Party pooper!
Wasn’t that Barry Zito’s contract? 7/126…
#forshadowing
funny my first though was Mauer’s 8 year $184M splurge…
The big difference is that even with a subpar 2010 for Joe compared to 2009, he’s still worth the money. Zito isn’t and Werth soon won’t be either
Ummmm, how many GG/SS/MVPs does Werth have?? Now look at Mauer and all of his recognitions and he’s the best player at his position. Very different deals. Not to mention he could have made $50 million more from the Yanks or Red Sox this offseason had he not resigned with his hometown team Minnesota.
you win! you took the bait with the most gusto!
7 yrs at 126 makes the Aaron Rowland contract look good
This is good. I am a Sox fan and although Werth was a possible option, I didn’t like the idea of bringing him in on a big contract.
This should also push them to hopefully renegotiate a trade/deal for AGon or maybe Fielder?
Or they’ll get no one.
they got agon leave the site dude your a nobody
Source: Werth is 7 yrs, $126M #Nationals #MLB
That’s right..who called it 😛
Sox fans are riding the emotional roller coaster today…and I am loving it!
if you r life is the mlb you need a new hobby your gonna die a nobody
This is a horrible deal. Take Werth out of that bandbox in Philly with his stacked lineup and give him 7 years? Brian Sabean laughs at you.
The thing I love about deals such as this is that it makes one feel a *little* better about the Vernon Wells contract.
126 million!!! lol
He makes more than the whole team
no
Matt holliday at 7yrs > jayson werth at 7yrs
nats should have tried to make a move last year
Hey Sox…I got an idea for you. Howbout you let your all-star catcher walk, along with not giving a possible franchise player a huge payday in AGon, resign captain old Tek, and let the status quo outfield of Nancy Drew, Jacoby Dinglebury, and has been Cameron play the field and see if you can contend in 2011. I do have to say though that Werth is not worth 7 years
I am absolutely gutting myself with laughter dude—your creativity and humor are totally perfect here!
Oh, and doubting your closer because you tried to sign Riveria
Anyone know where I can watch this press conference?
It was on MLB Network. It will probably be on the mlb site in a bit.
Terrible Contract
Wow, this is a ridiculous contract. Crawford must be doing cartwheels. Matt Holliday must be kicking himself.
He’s getting more than Matt Holliday?? Seriously?? I’m not so sure I like this anymore.
Wow, if werth got that much how much will crawford get?!?!
I was mad when I saw this because the tigers were rumored to be in on him, but dang not for that many years $$$ you can have him! I am glad we didnt sign him.
Werth just could say no to 7 years even though he will player for a last place team for many years
He’s a little bit more valuable than Gonzo.
Gonzo is more consistant and way better than Werth
comparison fail
Ok…this deal is moronic. I know you have to overpay to get anyone to Washington but this deal will hurt their team in a couple of years. How can Rizzo justify paying Werth 18 million per year when he is 35-36 years old? Does Rizzo realize that MLB actually drug test now?
So Werth can get 7 years, but according to the Red Sox, Gonzalez doesn’t deserve 8…
I was thinking the same thing. If this deal went down earlier I think the Sox would have been forced to up their offer.
It stinks for Washington that they are forced to pay a $1-2M a year premium per season, plus add years, just to attract free agents.
Or… So Gonzalez can’t get 8 years, but according to the Nats, Werth deserves 7…
I agree though, they should have pulled the trigger.
Well this is a pretty depressing move for Phillies fans.
Not depressing IMO…i like Werth, good player and all, but he’s not worth remotely that much money or years. if that was what it required to sign him, I’m glad he’s not a Phillie any longer.
IMO I think we needed Werth and now we will have to replace him with a platoon of Francisco and Brown, hope that works out.
Dom Brown? The same guy who hit under .100 in the DR winter league, and was brought home early? Yea, I think Ross Gload is looking like the more realistic partner for Francisco at this point. Brown’s day will come, but he’s not ready for prime time yet. I’m a Phils fan, but I’m also realistic with what I saw last year.
yes lets judge Brown on 10 days of consistent play and 50 at bats total and then 8 days of Winter ball coming off barely playing for 2 months and a quad injury. Phillies fans amuse me.
People who have never watched Brown play, but think they know him because they have his “baseball-reference.com” page bookmarked, amuse me even more.
Thanks Bob, I needed the laugh.
…and what you saw was exactly what Ryan said – 10 days of consistent at-bats. THATS IT. You can’t draw conclusions from that sample size – even if you’re only talking about him passing your “eye-test”, because even all-star hitters can get weird fundamentals for a week.
Let’s wait and see how he looks in Spring Training before writing him off.
I’m a big Philly fan and while I agree that Dom Brown needs more consistant playing time before we really can judge him, I’m totally not sold on him being the outfield answer. His swing is too slow. WAY too slow. He can’t make mid swing adjustments because he just doesn’t have the bat speed or the wrist strength (the opposite of Chase.) This means that the BEST we can hope for from him is another pure fast ball hitting lefty. Just what the Phils need. yay.
I actually strongly disagree with you on this, respectfully of course.
“Slow” (as you put it) isn’t the right word – rather, his swing has a somewhat “long path” because his bat starts high, but because he holds his hands high and tight, he actually loads his hands and clears his wrists very quickly. It’s one of his best attributes actually – he had a few hits this year during his call-up that were inside fastballs that he let travel but was still able to pull the bat-head in and generate power; for me, it was pretty impressive.
He’s definitely got a hole in his swing for off-speed stuff away, but he’s definitely got the bat speed to hit good fastballs at this level.
V Wells Look’s like a steal for the jays with this contract to werth lol
Wow this really came out of right field…
This is Alfonso Soriano-worthy. As a Tigers fan, I was bummed we missed out. Now, I am glad. Now we can focus on trading for Rasmus or Upton or worse comes to worse resigning Magglio. The BEST thing about this signing is while teams are going to come crawling to Magglio to sign in desperation offering ALL kinds of money, theres a good chance he signs with the Tigers for less because he LIKES playing for Detroit, shutting up some of the jerks always saying how terrible it is to play in Detroit
Woah, $18M per over 7 years at 31!
Now I can see why AGonz and Red Sox were so far apart. If Werth can get that deal, AGonz could get 7/$161 to 8/$184. Sox were probably at 6/$126
i guess the political commercials are right…washington loves spending only to get worse
So he’ll be making about 18 mil when hes 39, that may be a problem for them down the road
No player in baseball deserves 8 years so if a stupid team like the Nats give a guy like Werth 7 yrs let it be
Pujols might have earned it
Pujols has already earned it. He’s the best hitter in the game and easily in the top 10 right-handed hitters of all-time.
Pujols has already earned it. He’s the best hitter in the game and easily in the top 10 right-handed hitters of all-time.
More money then Holliday? Crawford has to get a 8+ year deal since he’s 2 years younger lol
Buster_ESPN Buster Olney
Werth terms of seven years is enormous for Carl Crawford, who figures to get even more. Wonder if this will change boston’s view (more)
hmmm. My guess is the red sox will be going REALLY HARD after Crawford..I have a feeling they are realizing now that the Werth (probably their backup plan) is gone and they will need to just give Gonzo his money and then go hard after Crawford. Just my guess. If not Gonzo then Beltre will be back with the Red Sox in 2011 which despite his awesome numbers in 2010…I don’t want that to happen.
Theo probably wants a mulligan and would now sign Bay at 4 year 66.
No doubt about it
For sure..seems like a complete bargain now..but then again…look how Jay Bay did last year…not so hot.
Maybe the 4/50 Martinez deal. Doubt he will think about Jason Bay at all…
Yo, that’s some major wow! All things considered, this signing makes a lot of sense for everyone. Good for the Nat’s. I reserve making any further comment on the Red Sox and missing this opportunity and Gonzalez until the deal is officially ruled dead.
I think it made a lot of sense to Werth. That’s about it.
*cents to Werth
This has to hurt to be a Nationals fan…126 million over 7 years for a player who nobody can honestly say is a franchise type guy. We know they have to overpay because they’re the nationals but this is obsurd.
They are working to make that team relevant and you know what, Rizzo is doing a fantastic job. There is buzz there and shoot, even from NYC I find this team interesting. I’d like to see them dump Morgan, but outside of that its a fun team to hear about, kind of like the Orioles always have been for me, especially with Sholwalter at the helm. While this contract is high in dollars, they are getting a quality player, at the right price. I think they should have stopped at 5 or 6 years, max, but its manageable. These teams make money down there. They have a large fanbase and it is as much a baseball town as Boston and New York.
I disagree.
I think your desire in rooting for the underdog is getting in the way of your analysis.
I admit I don’t have the actual financial statements of the team but neither do you. However, here are some facts:
The Nats came in 23rd in baseball attendance for 2010. 23rd. They also don’t have the same TV deals as other teams. For comparison, the Tampa Bay Rays came in 22nd. The Nats do not have the same fanbase numbers as Boston or New York — and it really isn’t close.
Instead of signing Werth, they could have used the money and upgraded their facilities, medical staff, minor league training (like coaches), scouting or used the money for International relations. (there are a lot of great CHEAP players outside of America) Baseball fans only think about free agents and draft picks but there is a lot more a team can do to improve the organization and winning chances.
Could they afford it? Yes. However, the point is to maximize a budget. This signing is not a smart move and does not maximize the “bang for the buck”.
The owner of the Nats, Ted Lerner, is 85 and worth $3 Billion. Maybe he just wants to see his team win a few games and figures he can’t take it with him so he might as well have some fun.
The Nats just opened a new $600 million stadium so I think they are all set there. Maybe the Nats are just tired of free agents saying no.
Then what about letting Adam Dunn go? What about signing Crawford instead? If offered the same deal, would Crawford really reject it? Did they try Lee?
Money can go to their minor league facilities (both in America and baseball facilities abroad) is what I meant.
This signing just really seems irresponsible. It’s a perfect example of moral hazard where it’s not the General Manager’s money so why not up the risk? The Red Sox had an offer of 4 years. Was going an extra 3 years really necessary just for Werth to say yes? I guess Rizzo doesn’t want to have more losing seasons on his resume so why not throw cash away? It’s not his and he’ll lose his job anyway if they keep losing.
Either that or he is way too friendly with Boras.
Putting money into minor league facilities and signing more minor leaguers isn’t going to put people in the seats or get them to tune in to the TV to watch this year. The Nats desperately needed a marquee type player to hype and, in their minds, they got one. It could be that Crawford and Lee told the Nats that they value winning as much as $$$ and the Nats had no shot at them no matter what the contract.
With a contract this size I have a feeling ownership gave it their blessing. I doubt Rizzo has a blank checkbook.
Well of course they think it was worth it. However, spending cash in player development and scouting increases your chances of winning. It’s not like the cash can’t be used on other FA’s either. A high risk/reward type player like Webb comes to mind. The Nats need to start winning more than they need Werth and his enormous contract. You increase your probability of winning more in spending on alternative options than just splurging your resources on one deal. The Nats isn’t like the Red Sox or the Yankees — the Nats have a ton of other holes to fill.Would Werth really garner more seats than Dunn did? They already have a marquee type player in Strasburg and Harper has huge potential as well. Again, I know what they were thinking; I simply think they’re choosing the wrong path. It’s very disappointing to see a team with so much promise shoot itself in the leg with a signing like this. It happened with the Cubs, Tigers, Astros, etc. You start thinking that signings like these will be manageable and then you spend years in mediocre limbo all because of payroll inflexibility.
I must have missed something. I haven’t read lately that the Nationals have a glaring deficiency in either the scouting or the player development areas. As a matter of fact, the Nats have also been spending huge money to sign the players that they have been drafting.
I agree that you increase your chances of winning by spending in numerous areas and one of those areas is free agency. The Nats offered more than the Yankees did for Teixeira and yet he signed with the Yankees. They have talked to, it seems like, every big name free agent that comes along with no luck in signing them. Finally, they convinced one to sign by offering way more than anyone else. Will this break them financially? No. Will this even handicap them financially? I doubt it. Keep in mind that the owner of the Nationals has a net worth that is DOUBLE what the Steinbrenners are worth.
As for putting people in the seats… I’m betting Jason Werth/ Carlos Pena puts more fans in the stands than Adam Dunn. Let’s see how the rest of the off season plays out. Games don’t start for a few months and the Nats have plenty of time to work more deals. Try not to fret over how much the money will handicap the Nats. No one really knows how much payroll they can take on except the owner and maybe the GM.
“I haven’t read lately that the Nationals have a glaring deficiency in either the scouting or the player development areas.”
Well, they signed Werth didn’t they? Scouting can’t be that great.
At any rate, a team can always improve their baseball departments. (Deficient or not)
I hope you’re right; maybe the guy really wants the Nats to win. However, no matter how rich you are, you never want to get stuck with a losing business. Of course they have cash now, that’s because most of their good players haven’t had enough service time yet. Before the Werth signing, the highest paid guy on payroll was Ryan Zimmerman’s 8.9 mil for 2011. Wait till they need to resign guys like Zimmerman to keep them on the Nats.
We’ll see how the rest of the offseason plays out but really shouldn’t make deals like this again.
What woud you be saying if Boston signed him to this deal….
why not just sign superior player in holliday last offseason. this team just got fleeced.
Scott Boras is a masterful pitchman. He’s the Billy Mays of baseball.
“I’VE GOT AN AWHHH-MAZING PRODUCT FOR YOU TODAY!! JAYSON WERTH!! A 31 YEAR OLD BEARDED OF FORMALLY OF THE PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES!!! HE CAN BE YOURS FOR A MEAR 18 MILLION A YEAR!!!!”
May Billy Mays soul continue to sell godly items to all the angels in heaven. R.I.P.
He’s pretty much Billy Mays without the drugs and tons more money.
Isn’t it ironic that Billy Mays made his living selling white powder, and ultimately this is what also killed him.
I wish teams would stop spending crazy money on players like Werth.The Rays are the smart ones in this sport
How are the Rays the smart ones (in this regard)? Their payroll is low because all of their players are on entry level contracts – and the only reason they have so many high-talent players on those entry level contracts is because they were awful for literally 10 years, allowing them to draft high every year.
If being bad for a decade straight in order to stockpile picks — so that you don’t have to pay for guys past their arb year — is the “smart” approach..
Don’t get me wrong, I think the Rays have a smart Front Office, but c’mon.
good for the nationals finnaly becoming something besides the luaghing stock of baseball not many teams could offer a deal like that to a free agent of that caliber what it also means is that their really gonna try to stick it to the phillies i very much aprove of this acquisition nationals i believe aernt done yet im sure theyll do something else to try and make us believers they do seem to be going in the right direction with strasburg and harper and now werth add his name to guys of ivan rodriguez, nyjer morgan, and ryan zimmerman why not make this a team to watch?
Yeah actually, this is a deal that is going to make them the laughing stock of baseball. Before this they were building from within and making rational decisions-nothing funny about that. This is funny, though.
i think this is an absolutely stupid contract as far as years and money, but at least i’m glad to see Washington make an attempt at a good player. Maybe the Orioles will take note and actually spend some damn money on someone, it seems like were one of the only teams that always wait till everyone has signed and just pick whose best of what is left and sign them cheap!!!
WOW! The salary inflation is getting worse by the minute. I blame the inflation on Jeter’s new contract!!
This deal is absurd.
Now I’m kind if glad the phillies didn’t sign him. That’s alot of money
Ha, LOL. Good luck with that dead weight when Strasburg is hitting free agency.
So, Willingham should be traded now to the Rockies.
I wish people would realize that the Nationals have THE RICHEST OWNER IN BASEBALL
Rogers Communications may dispute that.
They may, but I bet they’d prefer not to.
lots of owners are rich to bad they dont spend to make there team better alot of them
The Nats seriously over-paid.
$18 mil for somebody who hits around .270, ~25 homers, ~85 RBIs, and a dozen steals every year.
I don’t get it. Must be another Boras brain-wash job.
Dumbest move of the offseason goes to MIKE RIZZO.
I criticized his Jason Marquis signing last year but this definitely takes the cake.
Jayson Werth is NOT Matt Holliday or Carl Crawford. You don’t give anything more than 5 years for a guy who posted an OPS above 900 JUST ONCE while hitting in a hitter’s ballpark.
Someone tell the guy that Werth is NOT A GAME CHANGER. He hit in a very dangerous lineup and very favorable ball park. What was Rizzo thinking?
I don’t know signing Tulo to 20 million 6 yr contract when he isn’t even a FA til 2015 takes the cake but this is up there for sure.
In fairness to Werth, he’s only been an everyday player for 2.5 seasons – literally. So posting an OPS only “once” in 2.5 seasons isn’t as bad as you’re making it sound.
On top of that, the RBI numbers are misleading, since he hit behind Howard (who averages 130 RBIs a year since 2006) the entire time, so obviously Werth had less chances to drive in runs.
But yeah, I agree that he’s not an “anchor” type player that you build around.
I’m not exactly sure the lack of history helps his cause. In comparison, Matt Holliday’s average OPS is still higher than Werth’s best season — full or otherwise.
I didn’t really argue RBI numbers but hitting in the Phillies lineup still nets you RBI opportunities. Werth’s number of ABs with RISP to Dunn’s number is similar although Dunn had more opportunities. (The difference is about 10 for 2010 and Werth actually had more AB’s with RISP for 2009) Anyway, I don’t really count RBI numbers cause they are very misleading at times.
You have a valid point.
I’m not trying to overstate RBIs or anything, I was just simply responding to the fact that you described him as an “85-RBI” guy, so I assumed you were putting some stock in that. My apologies if I misunderstood.
Regardless, I think you MIGHT be under-rating Werth a bit – he’s certainly not perfect, and not a franchise type player, but he’s very well rounded and does everything well. He’s very, very impressive defensively in person, despite what UZR says – takes great angles on ground balls heading to his sides, for example.
Worth this contract? Absolutely not – but still a very nice player.
HAHA! Didn’t see that one coming!
Do the Nats actually think Werth will be worth $18 million seven years from now, or are they trying to make a playoff push?
Prince Fielder for Jordan Zimmermann. Make it happen, Melvin.
I’d be worried about that SLG going down leaving CBP.
Do the Nats actually think Werth will be worth $18 million seven years from now, or are they trying to make a playoff push?
Prince Fielder for Jordan Zimmermann. Make it happen, Melvin.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha
*Ring! Ring!*
Crawford: Hello?
Reagins: Hello, Carl, it’s Tony Reagins in Los Angeles.
Crawford: Oh, hey Tony.
Reagins: My home boy Torii and I are really interested in making you a Los Angeles Angel.
Crawford: Wow, what an honor, I’d love to play for you guys.
Reagins: Well, since the interest is mutual, why don’t we whip up a contract right now?
Crawford: Okay, what did you have in mind??
Reagins: Well, Carl, my front office and I sat down and discussed this for awhile, and we decided we were ready to give you the biggest contract in our franchise’s history for six years and $105 million, we figured that’s more than fair considering you are an amazing player and all.
Crawford: Well that’s all fine and dandy, Tony, but I just saw my buddy Jayson Werth just got signed by Washington for seven years and $126 million. I’m a better all around player than Werth, surely I deserve more than that.
Reagins: Obviously, Carl, we can’t give out that kind of contract, you have to understand that Werth is being drastically overpaid.
*click* *beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep*
Reagins: Hello? Hello???
(A few days later…)
*Ring! Ring!*
Crawford: Hello?
Reagins: Hi, Carl! Me again!
Crawford: Ugh, what the f#!k do you want?
Reagins: We realized that you make a fair argument, and that you are indeed a better player than Jayson Werth, so we have decided to not make this a fiasco and just offer you an eight-year $180MM contract as a way of saying we’re sorry.
Crawford: Well, I guess that seems fair. I’ll agree to that.
Reagins: I can see your halo, Carl.
Crawford: We need to include a clause in my contract that clearly states you are never allowed to quote Beyonce ever again.
Reagins: Only as long as some of your contract can be deferred.
Crawford: It’s WERTH every penny.
-THE END-
Lmao awesome.
I try. 🙂
Lmao awesome.
LMFAO!
OMG!!! As a Phillies fan I can’t believe this horrendous contract! Werth is certainly a solid player but no where near worth this kind of cash. A seven year contract for a 31 year old outfielder with exactly TWO count em’ TWO good full years …… no last year was NOT a good year ….. he hit .186 with runners in scoring position. Wow….. Nats you are indeed run by the equivalent of Mister Magoo……
He’s had two good years — and he’s only been a starter for 2.5 years.
But yeah he’s not worth this.
More like…..things have been going Boston’s way if that kind of money/years is the current FA market. I’d rather gouge my eyes out than see Werth on our squad for that deal.
Absolutely brutal deal that jacked up the price on any and everyone decent. Stupid Nationals. And people wonder why they never win jack.
He has never had 100 rbis in a season….Rizzo is all day dumb
There are lots of reasons why this contract is bad. Werth’s RBI totals from season to season isn’t one of them.
The Nats have questions surrounding them but with a legit number 2 sp. Im sure they probably have one in their system. If Steven comes back healthy and Werth hits (unlike my guy Aaron Rowand) and Bryce is able to come up within the next 2 years the Nats will have a contender
I get that the Nats really wanted to make a big splash but WOW they are over paying. You can tell every team in on Crawford is probably so mad they gave Werth this deal.
That’s a lot of similar right-handed bats in that lineup, assuming they don’t deal willingham. Also, you keep hearing Washington in all the big name rumors. It seems like for that reason, and because of this deal they’re making an attempt to legitimize their franchise. It seems silly for them to be doing anything buy building on a young cheap prospects for the long-term.
Crawford just made millions. Who gets to overpay him?
1. Angels (current favorite)
2. NYY (one of the few teams with the funds)
3. Texas
4. BoSox (desperate to make a splash but possibly too poor for carl now)
I think the Yanks were hanging around in case the market was 4/60 is for Crawford. They’re going to have to give Lee 6/~140+. No way the add 8/~180 to Crawford as well…
That’s what we all thought with CC, Burnett and Tex too.
They had the payroll space available then. Unless they raise payroll to $250 mil, which is fine, they won;t be able to get both. If it stays at $210mil they’ll have trouble signing Lee and Pettite…
Crawford just made millions. Who gets to overpay him?
1. Angels (current favorite)
2. NYY (one of the few teams with the funds)
3. Texas
4. BoSox (desperate to make a splash but possibly too poor for carl now)
Wow. This deal is terrible. If Werth doesn’t pan out then Lerner, the owner of the Nationals, is probably going to go broke… oh, wait… nope, he will still be a multi-billionaire.
Kind of baffling that they couldn’t sign Dunn if they have that kind of cash they are throwing around tho.
I will never understand why people think an owner’s net worth has anything to do with the team’s spending. It’s a business, not a hobby.
not to all owners
The owner is 85 and worth $3 BILLION. I will never understand why some people think that a $126 million contract is something Lerner will lose sleep over. Yes it’s a business and the more you win—> the more bigger your fan base—> the more your franchise is worth plus you get to actually watch your team win before you croak. If I was worth $3 Billion and was 85 years old, I would probably sign Crawford and Lee, too.
Do you know for a fact that he’s worth $3 billion in liquid assets? Because I can certainly promise you that he’s not.
Being worth $3 billion and having $3 billion to spend are two ENTIRELY different concepts.
Liquid or illiquid, a $126m contract isnt going to bankrupt Ted Lerner. Let me ask this… how many more people are going to attend games and watch on TV let alone buy Washington Nationals “WERTH” jerseys than if they just plugged that hole with another second rate talent? How would that decrease in revenue and ratings affect the value of the franchise? This signing, in my opinion, is like paying Jeter what he is getting the next few years.
I understand what you’re saying – in fact, the Phillies made a similar move 8 years ago when they overpaid for a 32-year-old Jim Thome on a contract that ran until age 38.
At the time, I said pretty much the exact same thing you just did – that the move was important for a struggling franchise to get some good will from the fan base – and it was. But it’s not like the contract was still a good idea from a dollars standpoint – the Phillies had to trade him 3 years later and eat half the salary.
Was it worth it? Probably – it showed the baseball world that the Phillies were ready to start trying to win – but I’d wager that the Phillies’ success since the Thome deal had more to do with developing Utley/Howard/Hamels/Rollins then it did with overpaying Jim Thome to play here for 2.5 seasons.
Now, if this move turns out to be the key point that starts a run of success for Washington (like the Thome deal was for the Phillies), then I’m sure the Nats and their fans will be happy; but if it’s not, then this deal hurts.
Dang, Werth must be smiling all the way to the bank on that one.
Dang, Werth must be smiling all the way to the bank on that one.
Is it mean or has this been the year of the most over-paid players to date for an off season?
Wow! Didn’t see that coming. What an overpay, in years and dollars. I suppose the Nat’s felt they needed to overpay to get a marquee player to come to them, similar to how the Tigers overpaid Magglio back when he signed with them. Still though, going 7-years on Werth seems to be at least 2 too many. And by year three or four and after he’s not likely to be worth the amount he’s going to get paid. This signing seems very similar to the Cubs signing Soriano four years ago. Paid too much, player started to decline early and isn’t as productive as was before the deal.
I remember reading a fan graphs article looking at Soriano’s peripheral numbers, arguing how he was still technically worth $17MM per season, while only producing less than 27 HR’s per season, never playing in more than 135 games and watching his stolen base totals dwindle precipitously, along with RBI’s, etc. This is the problem with long-term deals. Werth is not in any way shape or form worth $18MM per season, let alone over the length of this contract. But whatever. Good for him. He’s gonna make over $140MM lifetime thanks to this deal.
The Nationals are going to begin to experience some serious bouts of regret from this deal around 2013.
But Nationals fans think they can just trade him them.
HAHAHAHAHA
What is it about that magic number, $126 million. That’s exactly the amount Boras suckered Brian Sabean into. Wow, I wonder what his cut is? Pretty soon, he ought to be rich enough to buy a damned team instead of bilking them.
Just waiting for the first writer to blame this awful deal on the Yankees somehow.
Seems small market teams always overpay like this. The deal is absolutely ridiculous. Why the Nats won’t be a winning team
Derek Jeter is not amused!
Holy Crap! SHOCK!
so the Yankees will be paying $17 million for a 38 year old Derek Jeter and the Nationals will be paying $18 million for a 38 year old Jayson Werth?
at least Jeter will fill the seats…
Wow, I think this is a massive overpay, but I’m glad he didn’t go to the Red Sox. I was never big on him. I’m curious how our local (DC area) media will play this up, especially after not ponying up for Dunn.
The real winner in this might just Carl Crawford. Even though they’re different types of players, it might give him leverage on at least the years he’s looking for.
Who plays 1st base for the Nationals in 2011…Willingham?
Holy crap what a suprise this was!! I was positive he was going to the Red Sox
YAY!!! That was my 500th comment!!!
lol @ all the RBI comments. And Werth is a good player, but this contract is one reserved for superstars, not 31 year old sluggers. He’s going to be making 18 million when he’s 39.
Didn’t see this one coming at all.
The nats are going to be filthy in a few years!
They had to overpay, because that was the only way they were going to able to get a big FA to come to Washington. Though I am apprehensive about the length of the deal & the age of the player..I will enjoy it now and then regret it in 5 years.
GO NATS!
Nasty
Nasty
I like that the Nationals are going after some big names and trying to attract even better pieces for the future. I understand that they have to overpay to get the big free agents there right now. But 7/126 seems way high, especially this early. I would of thought that contract would of put them into Crawford territory. I guess we will see though.
Carl Crawford should be the biggest fan of this, imagine what he is going to get now on the market.
theyre gonna be nasty in a few year
Nasty as in awful. They won’t make the playoffs over the course of Werth’s contract.
terrible signing. werth will be declining after year 3.
apparently they disagree.
This is a terrible contract, but I’m happy he didn’t go to the Yankees or Red Sox. Every player they lose, my Jays have a better chance of climbing the AL East ranks.
Test
This is not going to end well. Extreme overpay for a slightly overrated Werth but that is what the Nationals had to do to attract Werth to sign. I’m scared to see what Crawford will get.
Oh. My. Goodness.
Good for the Nats. I’m happy to see the excitement being generated in Washington. It’s good for baseball.
From a Red Sox fan.
W.T.F????? The Red Sox have been shafted so far this offseason. After this signing I believe Crawford is going to the Orioles.
The Sox will probably re-sign Beltre now. They aren’t getting Cliff Lee, and I don’t think they will want to pay what Crawford will be asking after what Werth got. As a Jays fan, i’m happy about it, but it doesn’t mean that the Red Sox are magically going to be a terrible team just because they missed out on Werth (and a ridiculous contract) and probably Crawford. If the Red Sox somehow miss out on Craw and Beltre, then i’d be extremely happy, probably not going to happen though. I’m sure if they did, they would be re-visiting that A-Gon deal right away.
I don’t think this will be as bad as the Vwells contract in the end though. I actually think Werth will continue to be pretty good throughout his contract, but time will tell.
I’d take Wells and his contract over Werth and his contract any day.
lol please explain this one…Wells is one of the worst defensive CF’s in the league, while Werth has only had a negative UZR once, which was last year. Now lets take a look at the bat…Wells has topped a .380 wOBA twice in his career, the last time being in 2006, while Werth has eclipsed that mark 5 years in a row.
What a great ice breaker this will be for the GM’s at the winter meetings
Come home from work and open up the interwebz to this and instantly laughed, but seriously the Nats are going to regret this day.
wow the phillies clearly made no attempt in resigning him so now to fill in for that right handed bat they are going to have to make a trade…wow
What?
Thank god the Phillies didn’t match this contract, 7/126 is just insane.
Crawford will have to get at least 7 if not 8 years and probably at least 20 million per year.
These offers are absurd…I would rather sign Derek Lee for a fraction of the money rather than sign Werth. for 7years. Heck, just resign Dunn. This is just crazy!
What a hilarious day. I bet Beltre and Crawford are throwing parties tonight.
Seems to me that every deal for 7-8 years in the $120-140MM range ends up being a failure.
Carlos Beltran (Mets haven’t made it to the post season and his last year couple years on contract are looking to be a bust)
Jason Giambi (No WS titles in his tenure, plus a whole bunch of lost seasons to strange ailments)
Barry Zito (Derr)
Mike Hampton (Still managed to be a journeyman with such a massive contract and never pitched better than league average)
Todd Helton (Not worth that money, not by a long shot)
Matt Holliday (Jury is out, but I still say he’s a glorified 25 HR hitter that shouldn’t be worth more than $12MM per season)
Ryan Howard gets a pass since his deal is for 5 years and not 7-8 and he’s proven himself every year thus far (though he desperately needs a bounce back season)
I don’t think you can include Holliday in that group. He was a beast in the first year of his contract, and we have no idea how he is going to play later on. Just sayin.’
Wow. What a truly terrible contract. This is a guy who deserved 5/80, not 7/126. Rizzo just guaranteed himself an albatross in four years. Then again, if Strasburg and Harper don’t pan out, he won’t be around for the end of this monstrosity.
well my heart was already ripped out today might as well be stomped on and i didnt really even want werth. I guess its just one less option that hurts..or maybe its seeing other teams spending money!
either way…
THIS IS BAD FOR BASEBALL! I hate seeing bad singings…its just bad for the game overall.
Dunn got $56 million over 4 and Werth got $126 over 7? Wow, somebody messed up.
Was Dunn willing to come back? Probably not for 4/$56. Werth is still ghastly overpaid, but a bad comparison.
Umm, I’m not talking about the Nationals screwing up in getting Werth over Dunn. I’m saying Dunn is a very good hitter and got significantly less than Werth. THINK BEFORE U WRITE
You’re comparing an iron-gloved 1st baseman against a guy who can play CF and steal bases? Quite the comparision.
A necessary move to replace Dunn’s power in the lineup. Good job Rizzo and ownership for making effort here. LaRoche would be a great LEFT-handed bat and first baseman to add now, and Greinke would make a succesful offseason pitching acquisition. Then you have a shot at a .500 season, and once that happens, anything can happen. Got to love baseball …..
Replacing Dunn’s power with Werth is an extreme degradation in power. Werth in that park and that lineup is worth 25 HR tops
HAHAHA perfect! Werth basically is a replacement for Dunn, with a slight better avg. and fielding%. 7 years?! Phillies are now weaker, Nationals are still flat with their best pitcher injury prone. Love it. Terrible loss for the Phils, Nationals are only a tad more competent.
Phils knew Werth wasn’t coming back. Not exactly a surprise.
You can’t really compare Werth’s contract to Dunn’s if Dunn wasn’t willing to return to the Nats. That being said, $126 million for a power hitter who never hit 100 RBIs and had ONE season above 30 HRs? And just for kicks, Jayson is also several months older than Adam Dunn. A few months is immaterial, but the fact remains that Jayson is older.
Scott Boras is going straight to Heck when he dies. Straight down to Heck.
i’m sure he’ll negotiate himself out of it.
Boras at his best. BIGGEST BUST OF FREE AGENCY. I don’t even want Crawford now, the price will be insane, and 8 years is almost a lock now.
Scott Boras is just doing his job, and doing it well. I don’t personally like the guy, but you have to respect him for not half-assing his job like 98% of Americans do.
Very true.
Good day to be a non-Red Sox fan
But, damn, what is Crawford going to cost?
I always new werth was gonna be in a nationals uniform ‘ but i was shocked when i first saw this because of the fact that they had some other plans ‘ but great signing now all they need is a first baseman and carlos pena has been they’re target seens he became a FA .
wayy to long of a deal and wayy to much money for a guy who has had only 3 good seasons in his career and those seasons were played in a hitters dream of a ball park with ryan howard and chase utley in the line up with him…
Wow, just insane. I now feel a lot better about Jason Bay.
I feel so much better about Vmart. I would have loved to have gotten Dunn, but his deal looks golden compared to Werth…
look for crawford to be the biggest contract ever given to an out fielder now…im thinking 8 years 200 mill the lowest he will sign now is 8 yrs 180 i bet
A SEVEN year deal at ridiculous money for an OF about to be 32 in May? Rizzo is so Rizziculous. Couldn’t sign fan favorite Dunn for half that. And then picked up another FA with the savings.
Rizzo is just trying to put his own stamp on the club regardless of the wisdom of his moves.
Werth is horrible. This is one of the worst contracts in history. Without Utley and Howard and without the small park, Werth is a league average RF at the very best. Awful awful signing.
Yeah I’m sure he’s horrible if you say so.
Wow, 18 million a year for a guy like this? I guess this is what the Phillies get for paying Howard 25 million a year- its a ripple effect. Crawford won’t be able to top this though.
What does it have to do with the Phillies
All you haters are just jealous
No…I am not jealous. Not at all actually. Not in the least bit. Jealous is the last thing I am believe me. I wanted Detroit to stay away from Werth for this reason. That contract is asinine.
im not sure about you, but i am excited for the winter meetings. what does dd have up his sleeve this year?
Colby Rasmus. Perhaps if the Tigers were willing to take Lohse’s bad contract and give a few prospects to St. Louis…..He would be a perfect fit for Detroit.
the others are
Werth has got to be one of the most overrated players Ive ever seen. He benefited from a small park, help in a powerful lineup, and a winning team. You take him out of that situation and you have a declining .260-.340-.445 hitter for 7 years 18+ a season. I can’t believe they gave him that much.
yeah their offense really looks like a juggernaut
This is ALL Scott Boras. He is the man who is meticulous about getting his clients PAID. He probably even had something to do with Werth’s long hair and appearance. Prepping him for this payday. The guy is a smooth lawyer.
It looks like Obama gave the Nats a bailout just so they can sign Werth. But seriously, if the Nats were going to overpay anyone it should have been at least Cliff Lee.
Alfonso Soriano part two.
Wow did not see this one coming. Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me either. They wouldn’t match the reasonable offer that Dunn received, but they’re willing to throw 7/$126M at Jayson Werth? I find it hard to believe that he’s still gonna be worth $20M a year when he’s 37-38 years old. Boston wouldn’t even give AGon that many years. Boras does it again.
Go to a Nats game now, and you’ll pay $11 for a beer, $6 for a hot dog, $5 for a small bottled water. Guess who will pay for this contract……..
And Crawford is going to get more??? What fools baseball owners are. This is the free market at its worst, for the average Joe struggling to make ends meet and being able to afford to take his kids to a ballgame. Does Rizzo really think Werth’s going to put fannies in the seats? What bozos they all are.
It’s hard to believe that the Nationals [66M payroll in 2010] would give a 31 yr old RF [With declining defensive statistics] a 7YR/126M deal.
Werth is going to earn this money. As a Phillies fan I appreciate all that he did the past few years. He had the luxury of hiding behind Howard, Utley, Rollins, and Ibanez who were all expected to perform above him. Werth got lost in the shuffle and really didn’t take a lot of blame when he failed to deliver. At that kind of money, those days are over. He will be questioned when he doesn’t get the big hit. For a guy that struggled terribly with runners in scoring position all year (.186),(.139 with 2 outs) He needs to step up his game. Even hitting fifth on the high scoring Phillies he never had 100 RBIs. He only had 85 last year and he stepped to the plate 652 times. This may go down as one of the worst signings ever when it is all said and done. I expect Werth to play well the next 2-3 years, but the end of that contract is a joke. Good for him though.
So you are trying to say he is NOT* going to earn the money…
I loved him too, but he’s NOT going to earn his money for the life of this contract. Best case scenario is that he maintains his current numbers for the next 4 years, and then gradually drops off over the remaining 3 years.
Rizzo will be cutting this guy an $18MM check and mailing it to his room in the nursing home. Not so smart. But I’m glad it won’t be the Sox doing that.
red sox fans just klnow this you will always play second to the evil empire thats just the way it is by the way lee and crawford will be yankees it sucks to be a red sox fan…
so you are commenting on a Werth signing by attack Red Sox fans for no reason. Plus you think that the Yanks are going to sign Lee and Crawford. Please take your head out of your butt. In no way does this comment belong here.
Werth got more than Jeter HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
what !!!!!!!!!!!
The Werth contract is amazingly bad. Too many years and too much money for just a “good” player. He isn’t an elite outfielder. He is a career .272 hitter with decent power. Could you imagine what Ted Williams would make now? 35 million a year?
Any of you catch Sandy Alderson’s comments? “It makes some of our contracts look pretty good.” Also, “I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington.”
hcuhus
The Red Sox just lost Werth to the Nat’s so they will probably go after Crawford but they don’t need him they just want him. If the Yankees get Cliff Lee then they won’t pursue Crawford. The Yankees and Red Sox can offer Crawford more years than the Angels like 7 or 8 but the Angels could offer him a 5 or 6 year deal worth more money per year. It all depends on how much Cliff Lee signs for and where and if Crawford wants more years or more money per year. I think Cliff lee goes to the Yankees and Carl Crawford goes to the Angels.
As a Cards fan, the Holliday deal is looking better already.
Sandy Alderson – “This deal makes our contracts look pretty good.”
I dont know if this has been discussed because im not reading 200 comments about Beltre. But from a Werth standpoint, I would actually be pretty excited to play for Washington until 2018. I predict that in 2013 Washington will be playoff contenders. I would also be excited to be able to experience seeing Harper come up through the system and seeing Strasburg coming back from TJ. I am not sure of other pieces of the farm system but im sure that after all these horrible years they might pull a Tampa Bay, Werth will be in the middle of it all. From a player standpoint, I could see why he would choose Washington.
Something tells me that if he signed with the Red Sox, there would be 1000 comments saying how great of a signing it was.
yeah probably. I know nothing about Washington and their payroll and I dont know how much they are willing to spend, but at this point what do they have to lose. I am actually excited for Washington. Its not my money so I dont care. But hopefully Harper is worth the hype. i cant wait to see this team in a couple of years.
I think the positive of contracts like this is it shows that the ownership is serious about paying for top talent. Since 07, Werth’s worst year in terms of BA was 09, and he still slugged over .500 and had 99 RBIs. He’s definitely a good player, don’t know if I agree with the contract, but you gotta pay to win.
Every contract handed out to the big free agents this year is a big overpay, but everyone is dishing out the money so it doesnt bother me. If the Nats could pitch and have a solid bullpen, they wouldnt be all that bad.
You can say that again, 90% of the people posting here aren’t even Nats fans. They just want to rain on our parade.
I think you underestimate how many Red Sox fans like the Nats. I think a lot of us are so used to rooting for the underdog that liking the Nats feels almost natural.
Oh I’m not passing judgment on whether or not Sox fans like the Nats.
My comment was aimed at the deal itself in the understanding that if the Sox got him, then their fans would love the deal but because they didn’t, they think it was a bad deal/Werth isn’t that good, etc..
I don’t know if it was a good deal or not and I don’t think anybody does. Maybe it has options that we don’t know about. Maybe it’s crazily backloaded with options. Maybe it’s Albert Haynesworth-esque. Nobody knows. I’m sure there was a Cub fan or two that thought signing Soriano was a great move at the time too, hell I wanted him back in DC at the time, but I don’t think his output has been worth what they paid him, IMO. Time will tell the same with Werth.
I think it’s a real looooongshot that statistically this works out to be a good deal for the Nats but everything isn’t statistics. This gives Nats fans someone to cheer for (or boo) for a long time and hopefully boosts your attendance rates and TV ratings to the point where the deal financially pays for itself.
Good luck to the Nats in 2011!
I can agree with that assessment. Thanks for the good luck wishes, haha…we’re gonna need it. When your expectations are 1) Less than 100 losses, and 2) Not last in the division, you need all the luck you can get.
not at the price he signed for. If they got him for around 4 years 80M, maybe.
Yes, and for good reason. The Red Sox can actually afford to overpay to get their guy. The Nationals could have signed Dunn and extended Zimmerman instead. The Sox can afford to do all of the above.
Theyll trade for Scherzer too. I’ll bet anything.
7 years?……. Really,7?
Wow and the Nationals had so much promise to them…oh well Mets 2015 OR EVENTUALLY YUH YUH YUH.
well this is a strange one… werth aint a bad player, but this has vernon wells written all over it.
Congratulations to the Nationals & Jayson Werth on agreeing to a pact.I wish both parties lots of success.
Oh My GOD WHERE DID THIS COME FROM… I WALK IN THE DOOR AND THIS HAPPENED!
If the Nats are this aggressive when making an offer to Lee… they might have a chance.
Congratulations Jayson! Everyone back home is proud of you!
This just increases the Braves losing against the Nats…
Funny thing is, you’re probably right – although losing a series to the Nats isn’t as bad as dropping 2 of 3 the Pirates in the middle of a playoff race (ouch!)
I’m just messing with you 🙂
I find it funny that almost all the posters here are non-Nationals fans. I guess everyone has to rain on another team’s parade.
Carl Crawford is a happy, happy man
;;ll
Just imagine how much Boras will get Choo signed up for.. The Indians have no chance.
The Brew Crew mentality is probably that they already have Casey McGee who can play 2b or 3b until 2015, and/or feel they can extend Weeks at 2b, thus not needing a 2b prospect in Lawrie, who may or may not be overexceeding expectations. They want to win now and are getting a pitcher that has pitched well in a hitter-friendly park in the AL East, and will not be overly expensive. If I were a Brewers fan, I would not mind this deal at all.
I am a huge Nats fan. I have had season tickets since day 1. This is an idiotic deal. If you are going to over pay, spend the money on Crawford.
Not sure why you’d prefer Crawford. Stat-wise, they look identical to me. Hell, Werth has a higher OPS, slugs higher, hits more HRs, and hits more RBIs. They steal about the same and Crawford has a better BA. Werth even has a better WAR.
What?? They do NOT steal the same — Crawford can steal 50 bags easily, while Werth will struggle to steal more than 20. Believe me, I watched every game Werth played in a Phillies uniform (not literally but you know what I mean).
Crawford is a polished hitter, while Jayson is a streaky doubles hitter with 25-home run power outside of Citizens Bank Park and strikes out WAY too much (146 Ks last year).
Werth is an really nice all-around player, and I’m sure the Nats fans will enjoy watching him play, but the contract is still bad.
OK, I was wrong about one stat. However I stand by my initial premise that they are very similar in statistics. Yes he strikes out a lot but so did Adam Dunn and he ended up being alright in DC (not to mention that Crawford’s SOs have been increasing though not close to Werth’s). Again, whether the contract was bad or not is yet to be determined. If it were my say, I most likely would have not paid him that much or signed him for that long but quantitatively concluding that he won’t amount to the worth of the contract is a conclusion that impossible to reach at this time. If in a couple years he turns out to be a Nyjer Moran-ish player, then you would be correct. However we don’t know what he will do in DC yet.
I understand where you’re coming from – I apologize if I came off too strongly – I didn’t mean to.
As I said before, you Nats fans will absolutely enjoy watching him play.
This was a chess piece move for Boras. By having his Top OF client sign for a colossal overpay that goes deep into his 30s, his other top free agent clients that are looking for contracts in their mid-to-late 30s, will be overpaid as well. The A-Gonz trade does not help Beltre’s value, but this signing sure does help to make up for it.
watch out for the nats in a few years. strasburg, harper, zimmerman, webb if hes signed and stays healthy. they’re turning into the rays. years of high draft picks are going to develop except the only difference from the rays is that the nats have more money than the rays ever will.
If this means Crawford is gong to cost $160/8yrs then I’m not sure I want him. Our only hope is that some other non-contending team pays that and keeps him out of BOS and NYY. Do the Royals or Pirates have money to burn?
Bummer for the Phillies. They couldn’t resign Werth, and they won’t even get a first round pick now.
Can you imagine if Washington kept Dunn and signed Werth
Zimmerman
Dunn
Werth
Would of been the start of something special
wow seven years , hears to the nat winning in 2016, and mlb and bud selig still giving them money, after all they are the new devil rays , oh yeah they didnt win , here to werth batting 280 and hitting 20 hrs and 90 rbi for a team that doesnt even sniff the playoffs for five years , and is baseball nothing more than taking the most money, as if 80 million wouldnt make you rich , Scott Boras needs a bullet to the brain……
wow if they kept dunn and signed werth they would be the yankees ouch scott boras down fall of baseball
wow werth but not werth that much much and if the nats could have kept dunn and werth and zimmerman they would be the yankees, and i hope the playoffs in 2016 taste good nats, and you better pray that bryce harper doesnt sign scott boras or he will be werth 30 million a year. SCOTT BORAS RUINED BASEBALL, i said it
I am a Red Sox fan and I’m not, and never have been a Werth fan and didn’t want him. I do, however, think that he would be better numbers wise if he had went to Boston. First off, I think a large part of his success in Philly was the lineup he was a part of. I would think he would see more fastballs cause I would rather pitch to Werth than Howard or Utley. After Zimmerman and MAYBE Willingham there is not a whole lot bats that would force pitchers to pitch to him. In Boston I think he would have been more protected in that lineup. Secondly, I think the change in parks will show in his numbers too. Citizens Bank had very cozy dimensions and I think some of the balls he hit for HRs at CBP would be HRs or doubles at Fenway while they will be outs in Washington. Although, I could very well be wrong and he could smack 40+ HR this year. Hopefully he’ll work out for you Nationals fans.
Ugh this deal makes me sick. Just look at his careers numbers. Once he has had a WAR of 5 or better, never 100RBI’s, batted less than .200 with risp last season, never batted over .300, strikes out a lot…oh god it is sickening. im not calling the guy a nobody, but there is no way he deserves that money. it makes you wonder what Pujols will sign for or Hanley when they hit free agency. I though Uggla was greedy for turning down 4/48 and while werth is MUCH better defensively Uggla is there or better offensively and deserves whatever Werth makes. Its just sickening that an average player is making the elite money. look up the people that signed deals like him, he doesnt belong anywhere near them. this is the kind of thing that ruins baseball. any player better than him will expect more money now, and why shouldnt they?
As a Redsox fan i’m thrilled they did not sign this guy. He has never put up 100 RBI’s in a season and has a 162 game average almost about the same as Luke Scott. He has done nothing to deserve that much money. Can you say J.D. Drew?
How does Boras do this to teams? Does he travel to their offices with a concealed crack pipe? Does he have Jedi mind powers? Does he kidnap team executives’ children?This type of crazy overpay with one team bidding against itself usually only happens to the Yankees. Oh, well, they’ll have their turn with Cliff Lee or with Crawford if Lee doesn’t sign with them first.
It’s kinda like asking how the mean hot girl at school can constantly sucker boys into falling all over themselves for her. She (or in this case, Boras) has something they want.
So while the boys probably know better, she just bats her eyes and blows you a kiss – and the next thing you know, you’re doing her homework and laundry while she borrows your car for a weekend road trip in which you offered to pay for gas.
Don’t lie, you boys know what I’m talking about 😀
ohhh yes i do..
this deal is almost as crooked as big bens nose
i would have KILLED Ruben Amaro had he signed Jayson to this deal. Soriano is a fair comparison and look how the Cubs are dreading that deal. The phils could sink 1/20th of this amount into the draft and scouting departments and come up with equal value in the future. Jayson is great, don’t get me wrong but he’s not a building block type player. If he gets this what does Zimmerman eventually get??? Good non-move. Now go trade for Willingham and save $15 million per year and spend it on more pitching.
I agree completely. Say what you want about the Phillies ownership or Ruben, but their hard “policy” about trying to stick around 3-4 years on contracts has helped them more than hurt them.
Now only if they had remembered that “policy” when it came to Howard’s extension, but whatever.
Dunn was a mighty big fan of that Howard deal.
Scott Boras is an ANIMAL…and Jayson Werth should be licking his shoes right now.
Christmas came early for Mr. Werth. He just robbed Santa Claus and the Nats at the same time. This could rank as one of the worst free agent signings in history. This is the reason salaries in MLB are so out of whack, the overpaying of a player the likes of Werth. He’s a 31 year-old late bloomer who has never driven in 100 runs, strikes out far too much, and will never be the player a team can build around. What can the Nats be thinking? I’m glad Dave Dombrowski bowed out of this bidding war, this was akin to paying for Secretariat and getting a $5,000 claimer.
I never, in my wildest imagination, thought that anything could make me feel good about the Soriano deal! Thank you Nationals!
Seriously though, I know I’m late to the party as I’ve been out of town the past few days, but when did Jayson Werth become an 18 mil per year OFer? Is it too early to say this is the worst signing in MLB history?
good deal rizzo we’re on the way up!
Flashback!