While Marco Scutaro seemed less-than-enthused about leaving the Rockies when he was traded in July, the veteran now says that he hopes to return to San Francisco next season, writes Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com.
“I would love to come back here,” Scutaro said. “I really love it here. There are great fans, it’s a great place to play. More important, it’s a place where you have a chance to win every year.”
The infielder went on to say that he would be open to re-signing during the exclusivity window after the season, before he would hit the open market. Baggarly hears that the Giants will work hard to re-sign Scutaro after the season as they're in need of someone to handle second base for a year or two before Joe Panik is ready.
In 139 games for the Rockies and Giants this season, Scutaro has a slash line of .293/.336/.388 with six home runs. Yesterday, Ben Nicholson-Smith broke down Fangraphs' list of the top free agent infielders, which included Scutaro.
So do all giants fans 🙂
2yrs/$10 mill… get’er done
He’s making 6 mill this year, so it would have to be 2/12 or more.
Funny, that’s a deal another 2B the Giants signed for not to long ago. Well minus the crazy injury history.
Hopefully Scutaro repeats what Freddy did in the postseason.
That 2B was almost 5 years younger at that time and then ran into a costly string of injuries…. might be wise to learn a lesson there.
Freddy had an injury history before the trade. Scutaro doesn’t. The only thing you have to worry about is age.
Yes, because 37 year olds aren’t more likely to get injured.
Give me a break. He’s 37 years old, not 62. He’s not the injury prone player like Freddy was. Just because he’s higher age, the Giants should stay away? Who’s a better replacement out there? The way you’re making it sound is like there’s almost certainty he’ll be injured.
You’re insane if you don’t think 37 year old pro athletes have a harder time staying healthy than their 25, 30 or even 32 year old counterparts. I’m not making it sound like its certain he’ll get hurt, you’re reading into that yourself, I’m just saying its definitely an increased risk with old players, as is dropoff in production.
I’ve never said they should stay away from Scutaro, just that they should be very wary about giving him more than one year or too much money. Better replacements on the free agent market include Kelly Johnson and possibly Jeff Keppinger. Guys who have a pretty good shot at offering similar value (likely slightly less production, but at less cost) include Adam Kennedy, Maicer Izturis, or a Jeff Baker/Mike Fontenot tandem signed to platoon. I want Scutaro back, I just don’t want to overpay for him.
If the Giants give him one year than he’s not staying here. If he has any type of great postseason (knock on wood) then he’ll get money.
You’re also making it sound we want to sign him to Renteria money which is totally absurd. A 2 year deal at 10 million isn’t that much money buddy for the Giants.
Is it not? The Giants are operating on a 130 million dollar budget this year. They have 80 mil in commitments for 2013 before arbitration cases. If they don’t offer arb to Wilson but do offer it to Pence and the rest of the arb eligible guys (they’re basically all locks to be offered) it will take them to 110-115 million at the absolute minimum. That leaves them 15 mil under this years budget still needing to address the starting CF situation, the starting LF situation, the starting 2B situation, 1 or 2 bench spots and 1 or 2 bullpen spots. Yes, the payroll will probably increase, but we’re not the Yankees or Dodgers. I think they’ll have 25 million to spend at the absolute very most. Adding two starting OFs and keeping at least one of Affeldt or Wilson will chew through the vast majority of that budget. Can they afford Scutaro at 5 mil per? Sure, but they still aren’t the kind of team that can afford to waste 5 mil a year at the back end of contracts. I’m not saying 2/10 would be awful, I’m just saying they do have to be very cautious.
So you rather pay Johnson or Keppinger more money with the “budgetary” concerns the Giants have?
Or would you rather have Scutaro at an affordable price and gives you value with the bat not to mention being a clubhouse favorite in a short amount of time? By that I mean, I’ll use the cliche word, adding ‘chemistry’/impact especially with Latin guys. Something Keppinger wasn’t able to do and he spent the same amount time as Scutaro last season.
No, in fact I flat out said I wouldn’t want to pay one of those guys more. I’d rather have Scutaro at a fair price, but if he won’t accept that and some team offers to overpay in a guaranteed second year worth 5+ mil, I’d probably go with Bond, a veteran minimum free agent like Kennedy and/or explore the trade market.
Fine, how bout this?
Since you say you think he’ll have continued success in 2013 then pay him 6 million first year and 4 mill the second year? Does that work?
what do you think?
I don’t know. I’m asking you?
It seems to be in the ‘budget’.
The first year pays for his value and with 4 million in the 2nd year it doesn’t constrain him and should be fair.
Be fair in the sense that you believe that’s what he’ll be worth or less in the 2nd year.
Also, I’m glad we are providing comedy for the masses of MLBTR commenters and the moderators. They’re probably like, “What in the? There’s two guys arguing about Marco Scutaro!?”
no, total dollars are total dollars no matter how you divide them up
Ok, play GM. Are you or aren’t you going to sign him?
You already know he could get his two year deal but knowing Sabean and the farm system it well….
You know he wants to come back. There is no guarantee with the other players you mentioned have any inclination they want to be here.
You know PR wise its good for the fan base.
You know he’s been a positive influence in the clubhouse.
That is what you weigh when it comes to a contract. It’s not even a big contract something minimal as 2 years at 4-5 million. Again, comedy.
Total dollars is total dollars that is true.
But you want to pay him at value and you even said, “You’re paying him for what he will do in his age 37 and 38 seasons.”
Hey Marco! Your 38 season you’re production will go down (maybe?????? we don’t really know without looking into the future) and your worth 4 million.
So…in a sense you paid the 6 million he got at 37 and paying him less at age 38. So it still works out right? You’re giving him fair value at his age/production.
And I know you just want a 1 year contract but again I like the two year because its not that expensive in my opinion.
I’m glad we are providing comedy for the masses of MLBTR commenters and the moderators. They’re probably like, “What in the? There’s two guys arguing about Marco Scutaro!?”
Uh, yeah…I was kind of wondering about that, actually. Here’s something you don’t see every day. :->
Lol! Don’t worry I’m ok with the self-depreciating humor.
Plus, I have time on my hands. Sick in bed 🙁
And its a good discussion regarding older players and contracts.
Where did I say 37-year old player don’t have a higher chance of getting injured? Of course they do, but from what I’ve read it seems like it’s imminent he’ll come down with one. He’s a solid ball player and just because of his age, it shouldn’t scare off the Giants, especially considering the market is barren for second baseman this offseason. I may be reading too much into it, but when you said, “might be wise to learn a lesson there”, that implies they should learn their lesson from past mistakes and not retain him. Maybe it was a poor choice of words, but what else would one think when reading that?
The only replacement that could have some value similar would be Kelly Johnson as you listed. I don’t see Keppinger (who will be 33 on April 21) sustaining this year’s production into the future. I would hope the Giants would not be interested in bringing in Kennedy (who’ll be 37 at the start of the season) or a platoon of Baker/Fonenot. Scutaro probably won’t be hitting .300 next year, but will still provide a solid MI bat. If the Giants aren’t able to retain him, out of those you listed, I’d hope for Johnson or Izturis.
In a perfect world Scutaro would sign a one-year deal with a club option with the Giants, but in reality, it will probably have to be a two-year deal that’ll make him stay. Something along the lines of Freddy’s deal (2yr/12) I wouldn’t be too opposed to, but would hope it would be a bit lower and wouldn’t go higher than that.
Not really. Sanchez averaged 150 games a year in the three years before the trade.
No it wouldn’t, he’ll be 37 in October. You’re paying him for what he will do in his age 37 and 38 seasons, not for what he’s done previously. I’d be surprised if he even gets a guaranteed second year. He signed his last deal when he was “only” 34 I expect something more like 1 year at 3.5-5.5 mil with a mutual option for similar money in 2014.
Baseball players are always payed for what they have done not for what they are yet to do. It’s how the market always plays out contrary to what you said. Whether that’s right or not is up to the GMs and FOs to decide.
I would argue he’s honed his skills at his age and is worth it. Understands the strikezone, pitcher’s tendencies, and most importantly knows what he can and can’t do with the bat.
I’d do the 2/10 for him but you have to play the market where he could be in demand especially what he’s shown the last couple of seasons.
Sure, it happens all the time because of bad general managers, but smart GMs don’t make a habit of doing that. Of course previous performance is the best way to predict future performance so it factors in, but when you’re looking at a guy Scutaro’s age you have to factor in age regression. Who was the last 35+ year old middle infielder who got multiple years for more than 5 mil a year? How many 35+ yr old middle infielders have been worth that kind of money?
Because like I said baseball always pays you for what you did and not what you’re going to do. GMs don’t have crystal balls and free agency is dictated by the Agents and players association. Unless the demand for Scutaro goes down after what’s he’s done then yes you can sign him for a value deal.
No it doesn’t. It uses what you’ve done AND YOUR AGE to help predict what you’ll do in the future. Thats why multi year deals for guys in their late 30s who were never superstars are extremely rare.
Well we’ll see where he stands in the offseason. He got a cool $6 million from the Rockies last offseason. He’ll gets his 2 year deal and not a 1 from some team.
no he didn’t, the Red Sox traded him to the Rockies in a salary dump last year. They signed him to a 3 year deal 3 years ago.
Jeff Kent is a prime example if you really want to ask.
A prime example? Kent is one of the 3-5 best hitting 2B of all time and a likely hall of famer. He also had the kind of skill set and a good enough bat that allowed him to play some 1B as he aged. Scutaro is a nice player, but let’s not make Jeff Kent comparisons.
A prime example to your question not as a comparison to Scutaro. Sorry if that confused you.
It speaks volumes that the only example you presented, and really most of the ones available are guys who at some point played at a superstar or HoF level. Thats because if a player peaked at a HoF level they have a better shot of still being a useful player at 36, 37, 38 years old because they have to fall a lot further before they become useless. Scutaro isn’t in that category. His 2012 has convinced me he’s incredibly likely to be a quality player in 2013, but the odds are he will get worse in the next year and a half, and I’m concerned that could take him all the way to being a bad player in 2014. And all of this assumes Scutaro wants to keep playing beyond 2013, which none of us should probably assume.
Again, I’m not comparing the two.
You asked the question, I answered it. It’s as simple as that. Nothing more, nothing less. I apologize again if you didn’t get that.
I didn’t say you were. But can you come up with an example of a similarly productive middle infielder who was worth a multi year, 8 digit contract in his late 30s? Mark Ellis has one of the closest similarity scores to Scutaro on BR and he signed a 2 year 8.75 mil dollar deal at 34 years of age last year. I really doubt you can come up with a better example of Scutaro’s value, and I’d say his advanced age should probably make him worth slightly less.
I really don’t want to dig through BR right now at such a late night but it can be found.
Anyway regarding Scutaro’s value. It transcends just being on the field its in the clubhouse. He’s already a clubhouse favorite according to the beat writers, broadcasters, Sabean & CO, and the players. Say what you want about Beltran but word was he just didn’t mesh with them.
Sabean & Bochy are all about clubhouse chemistry and they’ve stated it themselves. They’ll be more much more comfortable paying him what they think he’s worth. Whether you agree with that philosophy, well thats up to you. I’m indifferent only because their clubhouse the last couple seasons has been better than the Bonds Era and has brought them success.
I’ll do it for you since its actually super easy. Guys with close similarity scores: Mark Ellis, Mike Lansing, Felipe Lopez, Deivi Cruz, Tony Graffanino. Any of those look like guys you would’ve wanted to give multi year 8 figure commitments to if they were playing today in their late 30s?
Thats nonsense about Beltran, last year the beat writers and broadcasters were talking about what a great influence he was on the other latin players, especially Sandoval who really seemed to take to his mentoring if you buy that sort of thing.
Yes they are all about chemistry, but you shouldn’t pay 5 million for chemistry, there are always plenty of good clubhouse guys available on the cheap.
Really? Because in interviews with Sabean, Baer, and Bochy it seemed like the chemistry wasn’t there. Well, at least they hinted at that and maybe I read into their response all wrong. In that case my B.
Scutaro is a nice player, but please don’t ever mention him in connection with a future HOFer again.
I wasn’t comparing him at all? He asked a question and I answered it.
And if you’re looking at the market, look at how the Giants have acquired a close to league average or above 2B every year for the last 4 years without giving up much value at all.
But Scutaro will be getting paid one way or other regardless of his age. It’s either you want to sign him or you don’t. No one in the Giants minor league system is close to ready for the 2B job unless you want Burriss patrolling that position.
Signed by who for that kind of money? Don’t bid against yourself just because you have something of a need. Noonan and Bond aren’t great options, but going with one of them and then looking to make another trade at some point is better than throwing away money on a 38 year old.
I like this and I agree with @twitter-161808700:disqus. He can mentor Panik in the future.
Craziest stat since he came over. He’s swung and missed exactly 9 times since he’s been traded to the Giants!? Think about that for a second. I’ve seen Hunter Pence swing that many times in 4 ABs lol!
Scutaro has been a great pickup and not to mention he’s a good professional for all the young players to tailor themselves after.
Maybe he can be something of a mentor to Panik in spring training, but its pretty unlikely Panik is with the big league club before August/September 2014. Scutaro has been a huge upgrade at 2B and I love the types of ABs he brings, but its important to remember how old he is too. Very few middle infielders continue to have success into their mid-30s, much less their late 30s. I’d like to have Scutaro back because I don’t think Bond or Noonan are starting quality players and most of the available offseason money should be spent on the outfield, but they shouldn’t go crazy and commit multiple years either. The Giants have been burned before committing too much money and multiple years to aging veterans who impress with a strong season or partial season. The Giants have also been able to acquire a near league average or better 2B every single year for each of the last 4 years at the deadline without giving up a single prospect who has made an impact at the major league level. (Sanchez, Fontenot, Keppinger, Scutaro) I want Scutaro back, I just don’t want the wave of enthusiasm he’s riding to lead to a bad deal.
Spring Training and September Call Ups next season Scutaro will have time to spend with Panik or Noonan. Either way I think Sabean an Co should sign Scutaro for 2 seasons.
Panik is extremely unlikely to be a September call up in 2013. Gary Brown was a lot closer to being a contributing major leaguer last year than Panik is now.
I know Panik wont be up in 2013 but by that 2nd year of the Scutaro contract, which I know you’re not a fan of, he’ll likely be up by 2014 if he makes the progression the organization thinks he’ll make.
Gary Brown may be a closer but he sure isn’t ready for the Majors. Defense is good but batting against righties is just terrible and dude won’t take a walk.
He’s shown power which is nice but he’s not really known for it. What he is known for and drafted for is his speed on the bags which his CS% is abysmal for a 80 guy.
Sure, I wasn’t saying anything about Brown, just that Panik is nowhere near a place where we can count on him as the long term answer at 2B, or to even be on the roster to be mentored by Scutaro in the next 2 years.
Panik had a great 2nd half and counting postseason down in San Jose he had a solid season.
Numbers could be better because of his college/AFL experience in that offensive league but it seemed like he figured something towards the end.
We’ll see what he’s like with a 2nd trip to AFL and most importantly how he’ll fair in Richmond.
Noonan isn’t really a player to see wearing a Giants uniform in the future. Sure he has good AAA stats, but the rest of his numbers have been average at best.
Noonan may have a future in a utility role of some sort you never know. I wasn’t saying he’s for sure going to make it but they’ve been developing him for a long time.
A lot of guys say that to their teams because they know no one will pick them up in the off season.
And after the short season he’s had with the Giants I’m sure teams will be interested.
You just know if he turns out good or bad, Joe Panik has a future of hearing “It’s Panik time.”
Native Bay Area folks hate the term, “Frisco” but I can’t wait for ESPN to use…
“Panik at the Frisco”
Too bad the Tigers didn’t draft him. He could have been “Panik in Detroit.”
The Red Sox should consider a short-term deal here. Obviously, Iglesias still isn’t ready to hit MLB pitching, and Scutaro would be a good stopgap.
Marco Scutaro has been quoted as desiring to play for 70 different teams which I’m still trying to figure out who the other 40 teams are.