9:20pm: Bob Simpson, a principal owner of the Rangers, said that the club is operating at a deficit and will until the new TV contract starts in 2015, but that doesn't automatically mean that Prince Fielder is not an option, writes Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.
5:19pm: Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan said that it would be "pretty hard to think" that a deal with Prince Fielder would develop in an interview yesterday with ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM, writes Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. However, Ryan also conceded that things can always change as he added, "when you think you’re out of something, you get up the next day and find out opportunities exist."
Meanwhile, Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated writes that the Rangers and Nationals each offer unique opportunities to Fielder. The Rangers can win right away and can comfortably offer the slugger an opt-out clause. The Nationals would allow Fielder to stay in the National League and play first base exclusively, but the club is seeking stability and wouldn't want to include an opt-out clause in a deal. Verducci feels that the Rangers payroll can expand even further with a brand-new TV deal kicking in for the 2015 season.
With a team that is far from a guarentee like the Nationals, an opt-out clause isn’t too much to ask for. If they win then he won’t opt out but if they continue to struggle then he will, which is perfectly fair because the guy deserves to win and he’s pretty much granting the Nationals the privelage of having a slugger like himself on the team. That may sound unbeliveably cocky, conceited and stuck-up but hey, that’s the name of the game sometimes
Yeah only established starter Felix, now you have prospects but they are just that until the produce.
The Rangers need to give Josh an ultimatum. Sign our offer or we sign Fielder.
Let’s say Josh doesn’t sign before the season and negotiations break down. Do they trade him come July? Will fans revolt? Not if they keep winning.
As a phillies fan i’d love to see prince go to the rangers
Why?
Cuz he won’t be in NL East. Kind of obvious.
so they don’t have to see him in a Nats uniform several times a year.
You’d rather see the defending AL Champions get stronger?
He’ll sign with the Nats tonight for 7 years, including a no-trade clause. I bet he’s in DC with Boras right now working out a deal with the Lerners and Rizzo
Or he’ll be introduced at Orioles fanfest tomorrow.
Prince to the Mariners will happen, just watch. M’s are lying in the weeds
More likely, the Mariners are face down in a ditch…
lame joke…. lets get better material in here plz
The M’s aren’t lying in the weeds because you’re smoking it all, apparently.
If i could give that comment 10 likes I would. Funny
Thanks, I try. I could just log into my other 9 accounts on here and like it :P jk.
But to play where?? Unless you trade smoak there’s really no room.
Montero’s not a catcher
The more I think about it, why should the Rangers sign Prince Fielder?
How many more fans would it bring to the stadium? How many more TV viewers to Fox Southwest? Signing Prince Fielder would cost them money! In my opinion, signing Prince Fielder would be a drain on the cash flow. Also, as far as 1st Base production Napoli, Young, and Moreland do just fine!
Prince would bring more fans to the Nats and Orioles for sure. The Nats would sell out I think and the Orioles would start to have a respectable turn out at the Yard again, maybe. As for the Mariners, I don’t know. PS With the Nats buying out Morse, they might not want to spend the money. So who knows.
Why should the Rangers sign Fielder? Because he would hit 50 for them. Because he would help them win.
50 HRs for them.
Oh, I thought he meant hit 50 for his ba. .050 is pretty good…
Call me nuts, but I agree with Lefty. Contract-wise it really makes little sense for them.
Nuts (I don’t disagree with you you just said to call you Nuts)
If I had a business and any money, you’d be hired.
I think it is more about stacking the team to win it all now that translating a Rangers Prince signing into profit. The “all-in” approach. There’s no denying the Rangers would be better with Fielder. I think the signing is gonna happen.
I think it is also
Not to mention the 50 hrs he would hit in Arlington.
Morse was under team control through 2013 anyways so the deal didn’t really change much
I’m really hoping the Nats land him. I’m not saying this as a Yankee fan who doesn’t want the Rangers to get better, but as a baseball fan who is excited to see the Nats turning into a rather good club. I believe they’re on the verge of taking a big step up in the division.
I think the second WC slot will increase the club’s motivation and drive. Also, Philly is an aging club and could be 1 or 2 key injuries away from despair
Philly has 22 players on their 40 man roster over the age of 30. (1 player who is 30; Dontrelle Willis) Their starting line-up excluding SP is around 33-34 years.
Add Prince along with Werth, Zimmerman, and Morse, and that’s not a bad group of hitters. Espinosa I think hit over 20hrs at 2B last year, but I’m not sure what to expect in 2012. Get to look at Harper as well.
The Nats also have a nice group of young starters, adding Gio this winter.
I predict Wang to be the 2012 miracle player. (long shot)
In truth, the Nats didn’t buy out Morse. They had him under club control through the 2013 season anyway. They just assured what it would cost. There’s no option year beyond 2013.
The Rangers would want Prince Fielder for only one reason , to win it all. After the last two seasons , anything other than a World Series win will be a disapointment . Signing Fielder is overkill for the Rangers , but that may be the plan . Overload the team with talent and go for it all next year.
I still think the Rangers sign him. They are trying to use the Darvish signing to bring down his price but other than the Nationals , he has no other strong suitors . A dark horse team could emerge ( Marlins , M’s , Blue Jays ) but the Rangers are the best fit . As for the Orioles getting involved , forget about it ;)
They should sign Fielder because then the team will improve over last season. The Angels have improved significantly and Rangers have stayed about the same. It’s never a good thing when you plateau and your biggest competitor improves markedly.
He’ll sign with the Nats tonight for 7 years, including a no-trade clause. I bet he’s in DC with Boras right now working out a deal with the Lerners and Rizzo
I like how the title says “latest on Fielder,” then the entire article is the latest on the Rangers.
Hand in hand man
Its the Rangers stating reasons they won’t sign Fielder. Although the fact they are losing money is a pretty good one, it doesn’t mean they wouldn’t bid against themselves to get Fielder.
I think its between the Rangers and Nationals. The Marlins could possibly be a sleeper but not Seattle.
I don’t think its “between” anyone, Boras is waiting until all of the players are in a position to bid on Fielder’s services. This won’t happen until Boras has a chance to talk to the Dodgers new owner.
“Win right away”….except for the Big Daddy.
Twice.
Yea, while your Angels sit at home.
The Rangers can win right away? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!
Personally I believe Prince will sign with the Nationals. But if I were the Rangers, and I know I’ll have people disagreeing with me, I’d Sign Fielder, say to a 7/8 year deal with the option of an opt out. Then rather than having Hamilton throughout, with their depth of hitters, I’d turn around and trade Hamilton.
You use the trade to fill in other holes (Better quality SP) or at the least to fill up their farm system with top tier talent. Having Hamilton would be a luxury that the Rangers can afford to let go, especially if they’re not willing to give him at least a 5 yr deal, which is what he’s seeking, Then you’re better off trading him rather than just losing him via free agency.
P.S. If they did look into trading him. Wouldn’t Hamilton look nicely in a Washington Uniform? Then the Rangers would be able to get one of their stud young arms (Lannan or Zimmermann possibly also Storen who can compliment Nathan if he isn’t successful in coming back) along with another prospect or two. For this to happen of course Hamilton would have to agree to an extension, and would fill the Nationals desire for a starting CF. (He can also easily be moved over to left with Werth playing in CF and then Harper eventually in Right and Morse staying at 1B).
Just food for thought.
Zimmermann and Storen aren’t going anywhere. If the Nationals want Hamilton in CF they’ll wait until 2013.
Are you so sure about that? Remember this is the same team that wanted to trade Storen for Denard Span only to have the twins back out of the deal. Are you telling me they wouldn’t rather have Hamilton over Span?
And remember, I said the key is if he agreed to an extension, why would you want to compete with him on the open market when you can lock him up right now and most likely for a better club friendly contract . . . do you think that Hamilton wouldn’t jump at the 5 yr 90-100m deal? Or do you think he’d rather risk it and possibly get injured, ultimately costing himself money when he becomes a FA, Remember, he is injury prone.
Personally I don’t think it’s a far fetched Idea, and as I said before A Zimmermann/Lannan type along with a Storen and others. With their wealth of Starting Pitching depth, I think it’s also a trade that the Nats can afford to do. See for yourself:
Strasburg
Gonzalez
Zimmermann
Lannan
Detwiler
Wang
Gorzelanny
That’s 7 Starting Pitchers right now on their roster and that’s not including all the others in their farm system. I don’t think if the Nats had the chance . . . that they wouldn’t jump at the opportunity. They’d be ready to at the least to compete for the Wild Card right now. They’d jump at the chance I think if it equated to playoffs.
well Hamilton has made it known..7yr 126mil is gona be starting point for new contract..he is using Jason Werth as his model..i dont think the Nats can afford both..if you wanted to spend that money..spend it on Prince..4 yrs younger
Agree. The Nats should be targeting Fielder right now, and probably Upton or Bourn after the season. Victorino seems likely to resign with Philly.
You seem to be missing the point of my argument. I agree I’d rather have Fielder, my point is IF Fielder chose to sign with the Rangers rather than the Nationals . . . Then Hamilton could possibly become a back up option for them. Especially when you consider the next few years free agent crop to come out. The only other legit, power hitting left handed bat the will be entering the market any time soon will be Votto. So I think its an option to consider.
Well for one I don’t think Hamilton will hold up longterm as an everyday CF. Two, there’s a bunch of CF the Nats could sign (Bourn, Victorino, Sizemore, Pagan Upton, and potentially Granderson). The Nats desperately need a legit leadoff hitter.
Plus the whole point of trading for Gio was so that they had their top 3 under club control for the next 5-6 years. If Zimmermann pitches 200 innings this year look for him to get an extension similar to what Gio got.
And really trading Peacock, Milone and Cole pretty much gutted the Nats of any guys close to the majors.
You put Pagan with those guys, Wow. You clearly don’t watch much baseball do you.
I’m a Nats fan, but the Rangers have 7 or 8 starters that are better than Lannan. 2 or 3 of them are going to end up in the pen (making Storen less of a need). I dont see why they would do this deal.
Darvish
Lewis
Holland
Harrison
Feliz
Ogando
Feldman
Martin Perez
How about to stockpile players assuming that you’re not going to re-sign Hamilton, this is again if you read my original post . . . If they were to sign Fielder. So if you’re going to let him walk . . . why not get more depth with young pitching? Especially since you can never have enough (Injuries) and on top of that they’re pretty much set at all the other positions for the next several year.
Btw. they can also eventually use the excess top tier pitcher in future trades. Hence recycling talent to meet your teams needs.
And one last thing . . . Lewis will be 33 and had an e.r.a in the mid 4s and has a career e.r.a. of abt. 5.00, Feldman will be 29 with a career era of 4.75, Ogando finally made it to the big leagues at the age of 28 and actually had to be sent to the bullpen do to getting lit up. He finally settled in the bullpen. Then with Feliz, he has never started. And that’s just 4 question marks that I mentioned.
Can you honestly say that you’d be content with that rather than stock piling? Especially if as I said, we’re going wit the hypothetical situation of the Ranger signing Prince and letting Hamilton walk.
And Don’t forget who’s running the show, Nolan Ryan, he loves pitchers, especially work horses, and the guys that I mentioned fit that profile, especially Lannan who happens to also be a Lefty . . . You can never have to many of those!
If the Nationals want Hamilton in CF they’re nuts.
how many of you think that the mariners actually have the highest offer out there but he does just does not want to go there? [possible reasons: the young lineup, the difficult ballpark to hit, travel, having to dh…]
i actually like the mariners youngsters better than the nationals…
That could be, seems players are going where they want over money in some cases. Look at Pena, he just signed with the Rays for 2.5 less than last year. I heard the Indians offered him more. If it were me, I would sign with the Nats, I think you would have a better chance of winning in the NL over AL West, plus the travel is brutal.
I don’t think they have the highest offer, but I also don’t think he wants to play there.
I think its funny how most of you discount Seattle’s possibility of signing Fielder. How many of you saw the Cliff Lee deal happening? Jack Z has some smarts and does his homework. If Prince doesn’t sign here I think you will find that it was because Jack didn’t want to offer him the big dollars or the long term deal. Jack wants to build a sustainable team that will win for an extended period of time. Signing Prince may or may not hinder that in his eyes.
If you think that hitting in the safe is difficult you had better think again. Left field is a hitters dream and with a short porch it makes no sense to think that would deter Prince from Seattle. You would find MANY athletes love the Seattle area. The M’s are in this just as much as anyone. Jack Z doesn’t let anyone know his intentions or possibilities. Smart baseball man.
It makes SOME sense—but if Justin Smoak is all together next year, that leaves him without a major-league position.
As I see it, Fielder’s price will drop as I think that the Nationals may be having second thoughts…the Rangers could offer less as Texas has no state income tax and it would come out more in real money.
@slider32:disqus (slider32) – how much more did the Indians offer him? Also keep in mind that Florida, like Texas, has no state income tax.
Washington also does not have a state income tax. FWIW.
Washington absolutely has an income tax. Maybe it is not a “state” income tax, but the city definitely takes taxes. I hope we nab him but that is not a selling point.
I don’t discount it, Seattle was 30th in offense last season. Which is reason for Seattle to sign him and for him to not to want to sign.
If Seattle signs Fielder they could possibly have a pretty good offense in a few years if Smoak figures it out, if Montero can stick at catcher, and if Franklin develops into a force at SS. So there are 4 “ifs”. That pretty much sums up how close they are to a good offense.
I agree that there are “ifs” in the Seattle lineup. But when you have a BUNCH of young talented kids it doesn’t take too long to develop into a solid team. IE Tampa Bay. They likely traded too much of their talent away to sustain a winning team but the concept of drafting and building a team around talent does work. Yes there may be a few “ifs” right now but the more “ifs” you have the more you increase your chances of becoming a great team. Right now you are seeing Jack Z load up the Ms farm system with “ifs”
Since fielder hasnt signed yet what if nobody offered him a contract at all and he was forced to take minimum wage. Is there a law that says a team has to pay him 20 mil a year. I mean what would he do about it if everybody offered him minimum wage and that was the highest offer he got. Would he retire?
Excellent question. Wait. What?
The MLBPA would sue MLB for collusion and they’d have an excellent case.
Especially since he’s not going to play for less than the hotdog vendors. A Japanese team would easily sign him for $10 an hour.
Uhh, when 30 teams found out that the minimum was the top offer, 30 teams would up their offer. Then when 30 teams discovered that say, $1M was the top offer, another 30 teams would top the offer. Then when they found out that $5M was the top offer, 25 teams would top their offer… and so on.
That would continue until someone offers something like $180M/8 or $200M/9. Most likely the Nationals or Mariners, but possibly Texas or Toronto.
If no ones gonna sign him, lets see him go to the Indians for 6.00mm
I think that the Nationals will eventually sign Fielder, but a price closer to THEIR liking…they have to realize that they are probably bidding against themselves. It isn’t as though there is a bidding war brewing as there was when Mark Teixeira was a free agent after 2008, with the Chicago Cubs out of the picture (with Teixeira, a bidding war ensued between the Yankees and Red Sox).
O’s. Begin flame.
I actually think its possible. The percentage of possibility rises every day.
Fellow M’s fans
Don’t get excited by these boys on here trying to talk big – they can’t help it, they listen to ESPN and they think they know something. We know they don’t – we’ll get the last laugh.
Last laugh to go along with last place.
I don’t know, those A’s are going to be tough to beat.
What I would do if I were Texas, a very drastic move. Trade Josh Hamilton to TORONTO for Sergio Santos, Eric Thames, and Colby Rasmus, then sign Prince Fielder.
2B Ian Kinsler
SS Elvis Andrus
DH Michael Young
1B Prince Fielder
RF Nelson Cruz
3B Adrian Beltre
CF Colby Rasmus
C Mike Napoli
LF Eric Thames
And David Murphy on the bench ready to come in when Cruz gets injured and for defensive purposes.
Santos, Thames and Rasmus for 1-year of an injury-prone LFer? No thanks. Midaswell sign him in free agency at that point.
You’re talking about a former mvp. A ranger fan might think I’m crazy. Really what is Colby Rasmus? He is a wild card, Thames is pretty good, and Santos is awesome specially considering his contract.
But imagine having Bautista, Hamilton and Lind in the same lineup. And they could easily sign Francisco Cordero.
2B Kelly Johnson
SS Yunel Escobar
CF Josh Hamilton
RF Jose Bautista
1B Adam Lind
3B Brett Lawrie
DH Edwin Encarnacion
LF Travis Snider/Ben Francisco
C JP Arencibia
Maybe that at least gives them a chance to compete on that division.
No thanks sir, you can keep your former mvp player sir.
I wouldn’t trade Hamilton for them. I’d rather take a stab at another WS with a full lineup.
Same, the Rangers have a good org up and down the extra pieces short term (relative to getting draft picks) would be nice but are not particularly needed. What is needed is a world series title, and the 2012 roster with Fielder and Hamilton would be stacked.
Of course, the Yankees are stacked too and the Redsox/Angels/Rays are quite good and the playoffs are fairly random… but its the best chance to win a series anyway. And that would be one fun season to watch, should be a 100 game winner.
Same, the Rangers have a good org up and down the extra pieces short term (relative to getting draft picks) would be nice but are not particularly needed. What is needed is a world series title, and the 2012 roster with Fielder and Hamilton would be stacked.
Of course, the Yankees are stacked too and the Redsox/Angels/Rays are quite good and the playoffs are fairly random… but its the best chance to win a series anyway. And that would be one fun season to watch, should be a 100 game winner.
There is too much collusion going on. This guy should be fetching 10 year $240ish million dollar offers all day long.
You are welcome to express your opinion, Mr. Boras, but the market seems to have spoken about the expected length and quality of productivity for a player grossly out of shape and apparently personally indifferent to getting in shape and being the very best athlete he can be.
Still, you may fool some team into bidding against themselves on the pretext a mystery team exists. But your tricks and deceptions become ever more transparent.
If you really look at his production, it’s less than half of Albert’s from age 21-27. Fielder didn’t have a full season unti age 22 (one year less than Pujols) but that only makes his production half that of Albert’s! He should not get anywhere near the deal Pujols got.
Just read a rumor elsewhere that a deal between the Rangers and Fielder is 90% done. We’ll see if the rumor spreads later today…
Where?
Incaracerated freakin’ Bob on twitter.
Ignore it completley, its just some random guy who spouts off a bunch of random rumors, touts the 10% that happen to be right and has somehow gained something of a following.
I’d love for the Rangers to sign him, but this guy knows nothing.
Where?
I haven’t seen that anywhere.
Sign a one year deal then go to the Dodgers next year. That’s what I would want Fielder to do, as unrealistic as it seems.
WS Champ Lineup
Kinsler
Young
Hamilton
Fielder
Beltre
Napoli
Cruz
Murphy
Andrus
I like your attitude, but nothing is won in the winter.
WS Champ Rotation
Halladay
Lee
Hamels
Oswalt
Worley
Oh wait…
The fact that the jays haven’t swooped in and signed him yet is really sad.
I’m surprised he hasn’t signed yet he was a bigger FA then Pujols. He’s in his prime and 7 years younger I would take Fielder over Pujols any and everyday of the week. I still say he goes to Texas.
7 years younger? On paper no, but maybe lol
Fielder 27 Pujols real age at least 34 7 yr different. Fielder much better player. Pujols past his prime he has maybe 2 yrs 3 if he’s lucky.
Texas is just posturing to keep the Fielder bidding up to make it expensive for the M’s to acquire him.
lol yea, that’s it.
Glad you agree.
is it possible to bet on this in vegas?
Is Boras slipping a little bit? I don’t think this Rangers thing is a Slam Dunk. I am sure it could still happen, but I think the ball is in the Rangers hands now. They will control the negotiations going forward.
I don’t think Fielder wants to play in a lot of the cities that are being talked about. If he did, I think there would be a much better chance that he would be in DC or possibly Toronto.
If Prince was to change his mindset and go after a heavy loaded short term deal, Prince could end up making a lot more money. I think if he put himself out there asking for a 3 year, 84 million dollar deal (27 million per year) he would probably get MORE teams interested. The problem is not the money per season right now…it is the years on that overweight body. If he could finish that 3 year deal healthy, he would be in line for a HUGE contract at age 31.
Until then…it is going to be a big question mark as to who is really interested.