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Archives for March 2011

Gregg Zaun Retires

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9:59am: Zaun told MLB.com's Corey Brock his shoulder isn't where it needs to be, and he didn't want to leave the team hanging.  Padres GM Jed Hoyer told Brock they'll consider both internal and external options.  As we discussed with the Astros, there isn't a lot out there.

12:43am: Catcher Gregg Zaun is "set to retire from Major League Baseball," reports Sportsnet.ca.  The report says to expect an announcement Monday.  Zaun has served as an analyst for Sportsnet during the playoffs since 2006.

Zaun's decision comes as a surprise, as his first Spring Training start yesterday was deemed a success.  He'd signed a minor league deal with the Padres and was attempting to win the backup catcher job.  Zaun, 40 next month, saw his 2010 season end with June surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder.  Zaun contemplated retirement at that point, but told MLB.com's Corey Brock his shoulder responded well to treatment.

Zaun's retirement would clear a path for Rob Johnson to win the Padres' backup job.  Johnson was acquired from the Mariners in December for a player to be named later or cash considerations.

Zaun always had a knack for drawing a walk, leading to a .252/.344/.388 line in over 4,000 plate appearances for the Orioles, Marlins, Rangers, Royals, Astros, Rockies, Blue Jays, Rays, and Brewers.  He picked up a World Series ring with the '97 Marlins and earned almost $18MM in his career.

Analyzing CarGo’s Contract

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In January, the Rockies accomplished a feat thought to be impossible: they locked up Carlos Gonzalez, who is represented by Scott Boras.  Despite Boras providing CarGo with "actuary tables that would show Gonzalez's earning power if he would stay healthy and productive," the Rockies were able to buy out three free agent seasons at less than $18MM per year.

Gonzalez's seven-year, $80MM deal set a record for the largest deal signed by a player with between two and three years service time.  The contract topped Hanley Ramirez's six-year, $70MM contract, signed nearly three years ago.  Other recent deals for two-plus players include Justin Upton's six-year, $51.25MM contract and Jay Bruce's six-year, $51MM pact.  A few details on the four contracts:

  • Gonzalez is paid $23MM for his three arbitration years plus $53MM over the course of three free agent seasons ($17.67MM per).  There are no option years, so CarGo could reach free agency at age 32 and score one more huge deal.
  • Ramirez gets $23.5MM for his three arbitration years and plus $46.5MM over three free agent seasons ($15.5MM per).  His deal also has no options, and he can reach free agency at age 30.
  • Upton will earn $20.75MM for his three arbitration years plus $28.75MM over two free agent seasons ($14.375MM per).  The deal has no options, and he can be a free agent at age 28.
  • Bruce will make $25.25MM over four arbitration years plus $25.5MM guaranteed over two free agent seasons ($12.75MM per).  In the likely event Bruce's 2017 club option is exercised, that's $37.5MM over three free agent seasons or $12.5MM per.  If the option is exercised he'll reach free agency at age 30.

CarGo essentially matches Ramirez's arbitration earnings and tops his free agent take by a total of $6.5MM.  In one sense Boras deserves credit for brokering the largest deal ever for a two-plus player, but in another Hanley's agents at WMG win since their deal came almost three years earlier.

Though the Rockies paid top dollar to do Gonzalez's extension now, the savings could still be significant.  Further along in their careers, Ryan Howard and Joey Votto required $44MM and $38MM for their three arbitration years, respectively.  Howard later gave up five free agent seasons at $25MM each, so paying CarGo $16MM in 2015 could be a downright bargain if he remains an elite player.

For my take on the Rockies' other huge extension, the Troy Tulowitzki contract, click here.

Astros Willing To Stretch Payroll For Catcher Addition

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Though the Astros are already $2MM over their 2011 payroll target, owner Drayton McLane and GM Ed Wade met yesterday "to set financial parameters for going outside the organization" for a catcher in the wake of Jason Castro's season-ending injury, reports Steve Campbell of the Houston Chronicle.

Comments from McLane and Wade suggest any acquisition will be minor, and Wade isn't ruling out opening the season with Humberto Quintero and J.R. Towles.  A few days ago, MLBTR's Mark Polishuk looked at potentially available backstops the Astros could consider.

Ryan Doumit is an obvious fit for the Astros, though in a general sense Wade said, "Even if there was a guy out there making substantial dollars available, I'm not sure we would be in the mix to be able to go do something like that."  Keep in mind that the Pirates would likely assume at least half of the $5.6MM owed to Doumit.  Ron Musselman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the latest from GM Neal Huntington on the near-dormant Doumit talks.

Evaluating Tulowitzki’s Extension

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Troy Tulowitzki's first extension with the Rockies, a six-year, $31MM deal signed three years ago, set a precedent at the time as the largest deal ever for a player with less than two years of Major League service time.  Tulowitzki had one full big league season under his belt, but the Rockies guaranteed $17.25MM for his three arbitration years and $10MM for a far-off free agent season, with a club option at $15MM for an additional free agent year.  Even with Tulo's lack of service time, the risk in total dollars was minimal.

With the Rockies' first bet on Tulowitzki looking prescient, a few months ago they made another wager about four times the size by guaranteeing their shortstop's 2014 option year (plus an extra million bucks) and adding $118MM for the 2015-20 seasons.  The popular question was, why now?  Tulowitzki was already under team control through '14.  Wouldn't the safe move be to wait at least a few more years?

Tulo

The answer is that the Rockies likely feared that the price to retain Tulowitzki for his age 30-35 seasons would increase drastically with each additional MVP-caliber season.  With the new money totaling $119MM over six years, that's $19.83MM per year.  The cost of Tulowitzki's age 30-35 seasons falls between the salaries of newly-signed free agent outfielders Jayson Werth and Carl Crawford, but they're poor comparables.  Premium all-around up-the-middle players almost never reach free agency, with only Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran, Torii Hunter, and Miguel Tejada coming to mind in recent years.  With such a tiny sample of similar free agents, not to mention economic uncertainty, I can't use a formula to predict what Tulowitzki might have gotten as a free agent in 2015. 

Still, it's easy to look at the player Tulowitzki is now and imagine him getting a $200MM+ contract on the open market in four years, given inflation and the rarity of elite shortstops.  Since 2000, only Tulowitzki, A-Rod, Brian McCann, Grady Sizemore, Hanley Ramirez, and Joe Mauer posted a pair of 130 OPS+ seasons at age 25 or younger while playing up the middle.  Take the sample back to the 90s and we add Mike Piazza, Ken Griffey Jr., and Nomar Garciaparra. 

This is where I start to worry about the Rockies' gamble.  Sizemore, Griffey, Nomar – in their mid-20s it sure looked like they'd still be premium players at age 30-35.  Fans might have responded positively to Tulo-style extensions, unable to imagine worst case scenarios.  But Griffey and Nomar saw that slice of their careers destroyed by injuries, and Sizemore currently has something to prove at age 28.  Tulowitzki has already missed significant time with a broken wrist and a quad tear in his young career, but he came back strong in both cases.

To their credit, the Rockies built in slight protection by dropping Tulowitzki's base salary down to $14MM in 2020, his final guaranteed season.  Performance decline isn't the main concern – even as just a good player, Tulo's contract won't look bad in his early 30s.  The greater worry is that injuries will take over at that stage, perhaps due to the extra wear and tear of playing an up-the-middle position.

Quick Hits: Overbay, Accardo, Diamond, Astros

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Links for Sunday, as Opening Day inches a little closer….

Highest Paid Players Of The Last Three Decades

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It's no secret that baseball player salaries have exploded over the last two decades, but just how much? With some help from the USA Today Salary Database, let's look at the game's highest paid players from last season, ten seasons ago, and twenty seasons ago…

2010

  1. Alex Rodriguez– $32MM
  2. CC Sabathia - $23MM
  3. Derek Jeter - $22.6MM
  4. Mark Teixeira - $20.625MM
  5. Johan Santana - $20.145MM
  6. Miguel Cabrera - $20MM
  7. Carlos Beltran - $19.402MM
  8. Ryan Howard, Carlos Lee & Alfonso Soriano - $19MM
  9. Carlos Zambrano - $18.875MM
  10. John Lackey - $18.7MM

Four Yankees occupy the top spots, and six New York players are in the top seven. Ichiro Suzuki, Barry Zito, Torii Hunter, and Manny Ramirez were the only other players to pull down more than $18MM last season.

2000

  1. Kevin Brown – $15.714MM
  2. Randy Johnson – $13.6MM
  3. Albert Belle – $13MM
  4. Bernie Williams – $12.357MM
  5. Larry Walker – $12.143MM
  6. Mike Piazza – $12.071MM
  7. David Cone – $12MM
  8. Pedro Martinez – $11.5MM
  9. Mo Vaughn – $11.167MM
  10. Sammy Sosa – $11MM

Barry Bonds, Greg Maddux, Raul Mondesi, and Jeter make up the rest of the eight-figure club.

1990

  1. Robin Yount – $3.2MM
  2. Kirby Puckett – $2.817MM
  3. Roger Clemens & Paul Molitor – $2.6MM
  4. Eddie Murray – $2.514MM
  5. Don Mattingly – $2.5MM
  6. Will Clark & Rickey Henderson – $2.25MM
  7. Tom Browning, Mark Davis & Teddy Higuera – $2.125MM
  8. Eric Davis, Andre Dawson, Kent Hrbek & Jack Morris – $2.1MM
  9. Pedro Guerrero & Kevin Mitchell – $2.083MM
  10. Mark Gubicza – $2.066MM

Tim Raines wasn't far off the list at $2.055MM, and at least six other players earned no less than $2MM that season. 

The top ten salaries in the game have nearly doubled over the last ten years, and they've increased ten-fold over the last 20 years. Albert Pujols could very well land the first contract with a $30MM average annual value next winter; how long will it be before we see a $40MM a year player, maybe ten years? Based on the recent inflation, it could be sooner.

Mets Notes: Rodriguez, Reyes, Finances, Wright

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Let's check out the latest Mets-related links, as Carlos Beltran makes his spring debut vs. the Red Sox….

  • Brian Costa of The Wall Street Journal explains one interesting way in which the Mets could avoid having Francisco Rodriguez's $17.5MM option for 2012 vest. K-Rod needs to finish 55 games this season to trigger the option.
  • All signs point to Jose Reyes playing for a team other than the Mets in 2012, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Sherman talked to five non-Mets executives and not one expects to see New York re-sign Reyes. As we heard yesterday from SI.com's Jon Heyman, Reyes' OBP will be a major consideration as the Mets contemplate their future with the shortstop.
  • In a separate piece, Sherman wonders whether we'll see a full-fledged fire sale from the Mets, with the Wilpons attempting to keep control of the team. Two rival execs that spoke to Sherman said it would be wise for the organization to cut payroll nearly in half for 2012. If the club were to go in that direction, deciding whether to try to extend or trade David Wright would be the toughest call, says Sherman.
  • Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times examines why the Mets and Dodgers, two franchises with ownership uncertainties, are being treated differently by Bud Selig.

MLBTR Originals: 2/27/11 – 3/6/11

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Time to recap the original content posted here at MLBTR over the last seven days…

Poll: Which Non-Tender Will Provide Biggest Benefit?

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Every year players are non-tendered for many reasons; perhaps they’re injured, have grown too expensive, or just simply aren’t performing well. Whatever the case, these players add sometimes unexpected options to the free agent market and often yield bargain results.

Kelly Johnson has to be figured as the prize of last offseason’s non-tender crop. The Braves decided to cut the then 27-year-old loose, and he rewarded the Diamondbacks with a .284/.370/.486 line. Johnson belted 26 home runs, swiped 13 bags, played nearly 1300 innings of strong defense, and totaled 6 WAR according to Fangraphs — all for $2.35MM.

Let’s not forget Mike Rizzo’s dealings either. The Nats’ GM signed Matt Capps for just $3.5MM and flipped him to the Twins at the deadline to receive Wilson Ramos and Joe Testa. Ramos was ranked as the Twins’ #4 prospect and the game’s #58 prospect entering the 2010 season. Not a bad ROI for a low-risk move on Rizzo’s part.

According to MLBTR’s Transaction Tracker, 52 players were non-tendered this year. Some of the more interesting cases include Bobby Jenks (now in Boston), Russell Martin (now a Yankee), Joel Peralta (now a Ray), Jack Cust (now a Mariner), Dustin Moseley (now a Padre), and George Sherrill (now a Brave). All six of these players saw either strong 2010 seasons or have experienced success at the Major League level. Looking at this season and beyond, let’s pose the question:

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Week In Review: 2/27/11 – 3/5/11

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Let's take a look at the last week as we continue to creep up on the 2011 season…

  • The Cardinals may have lost Adam Wainwright for the year, but they'll wait two weeks before making a big push for a replacement starter. Wainwright's teammate, Chris Carpenter, clarified his comments that he'd accept a trade. He said that while he wouldn't hold the Cardinals back from such a move, he's not looking to be traded and expects his team to contend, even without his fellow ace.
  • Cards' GM John Mozeliak may have difficulty finding any help, though. Just ask Yankees' GM Brian Cashman. According to Cashman, "nobody's available" on the trade market. The Yankees have been connected to Francisco Liriano on and off, and we heard a report this week the the Twins turned down an offer of Ramiro Pena and Ivan Nova.
  • The Mariners acquired Aaron Laffey from the Indians in exchange for 25-year-old minor league infielder Matt Lawson. Seattle also signed its 2010 fourth-round pick James Paxton, who wasn't restricted by the August signing deadline because he played in the independent leagues in 2010.
  • The Laffey trade was likely made in order to open a spot on Indians' 40-man-roster for Chad Durbin, who the Tribe signed for $800K on a Major League deal this week. Cleveland also signed Nick Johnson to a minor league deal this week.
  • The Rangers agreed to a four-year extension with general manager Jon Daniels. Under Daniels, the Rangers have seen their win total increase for three straight seasons, culminating in their 2010 World Series berth.
  • While no official extension was agreed, Orioles owner Peter Angelos said that Baltimore's president of baseball operations, Andy MacPhail, will likely be around beyond the 2011 season.
  • Cody Ross may have spent less than half a season with the Giants, but he's already got a ring there and he wants to stay in San Francisco longterm. He and his agent approached the club about an extension at the onset of Spring Training.
  • Scott Boras' client profile is constantly expanding, it seems. However, he lost one of his marquee names this week when Mark Teixeira dropped his services, saying their relationship had "run its course."
  • Spring Training is hardly as active as the Winter Meetings or July trade deadline, but the Angels will still be looking to make something happen. They're on the lookout for a left-handed bat to add to their club.
  • J.D. Drew is considering retirement following the 2011 season, but he was far from the only retirement news that surfaced this week. Garret Anderson officially called it a career, and Bob Howry filed his papers as well.

 

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