March 19: The year-by-year breakdown of Freeman’s contract have come in, per Robert Murray of FanSided (via Twitter). The deal breaks down evenly over the six years, with Freeman set to make $27MM every season from 2022 through 2027. The deal includes $7MM of deferred money in 2022-24, and $12MM deferred in 2025-27.
March 18: The Dodgers have made the signing official, announcing that Freeman signed a six-year contract through the 2027 season. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports (on Twitter) that $57MM of the $162MM guarantee is being deferred, to be paid between 2028-40. Feinsand suggests that brings the real present value of the contract closer to $140MM.
March 16: The Dodgers are adding another star, reportedly agreeing to terms with Freddie Freeman on a six-year, $162MM contract. The Excel Sports Management client finds the sixth guaranteed year he’d been seeking, setting himself up to bolster an already loaded lineup.
Los Angeles finished tied for third as a team in wRC+ last season (excluding pitchers), with their collective .251/.339/.446 mark checking in 13 percentage points above the league average offense. Only the Astros and Giants fared better, while L.A. was tied with the Blue Jays. They’ve lost Corey Seager to free agency this winter, but Freeman steps right into the void as a left-handed, middle-of-the-order bat for manager Dave Roberts.
One could argue Freeman’s even an offensive upgrade over Seager, who himself is one of the best hitters in the game. Freeman has been a consistently excellent bat, not having posted a wRC+ lower than 132 in any season since 2013. That run has earned him five All-Star nods, three Silver Slugger Awards and six top ten finishes in NL MVP balloting.
Freeman has remained at the top of his game over the past few seasons. He obliterated opposing pitchers to the tune of a .341/.462/.640 line during the 60-game season in 2020. Among qualified hitters, only Juan Soto fared better by measure of wRC+, and Freeman earned a resounding victory in that year’s Senior Circuit MVP balloting. It was never realistic to expect him to repeat that kind of otherworldly performance over a full schedule, but he returned to his metronomically consistent ways in 2021.
Over the course of the season, Freeman appeared in 159 games and tallied 695 plate appearances of .300/.393/.503 hitting. He popped 31 homers, drew walks at a robust 12.2% clip and only struck out in 15.4% of his trips to the plate. Freeman began the year with a relatively pedestrian start by his lofty standards, but he got scorching hot from June onwards. Over the season’s final four months, he raked at a .329/.404/.520 clip. That production helped carry the Braves to their fourth straight division title, and Freeman picked up where he left off when the lights were brightest. He posted an OPS of .996 or better in all three playoff rounds, helping Atlanta to their first World Series title since 1995.
Coming off that championship, many expected Atlanta would strike quickly to ink the career-long Brave to another deal. Freeman and the club had already lined up on an extension once, a February 2014 eight-year pact that guaranteed him $135MM and delayed his first trip to the open market by five years. The Braves maintained they had interest in keeping Freeman in the fold, but the first baseman’s desire for a sixth year quickly became a stumbling block.
Atlanta, which had made Freeman a qualifying offer at the start of the offseason, reportedly put forth a five-year proposal in the $135MM range. It’s believed they eventually nudged the guarantee around $140MM, but the organization seemed opposed to putting a sixth year on the table. Freeman turned 32 years old in September, and Braves brass apparently had real reservations about guaranteeing him a notable salary through his age-37 campaign.
Throughout the lockout, industry chatter picked up that Freeman and the Braves might be heading their separate ways. That became all but official when Atlanta struck a deal to acquire A’s star Matt Olson on Monday afternoon, then signed him to a $168MM extension the next day. Freeman penned a farewell to his former teammates, coaches and the Atlanta fanbase on Instagram this afternoon.
It’s not hard to see the Braves reasoning for letting Freeman walk. Olson is more than four years younger, so his extension only takes him through his age-35 season. There’s real risk in committing to any player into his late 30’s, and that’s particularly true given that Freeman needs to continue to hit at a very high level to be an elite player. He’s a solid defensive first baseman but unlikely to be a perennial Gold Glove winner into his mid-30’s.
Recent six-plus year contracts for free agents at the position haven’t been particularly fruitful. Each of the past four deals of six-plus years for first basemen — the Padres’ eight-year Eric Hosmer agreement, the Orioles’ bringing back Chris Davis on a seven-year pact, Prince Fielder’s nine-year contract with the Tigers, and the Angels’ ten-year investment in Albert Pujols — turned out to be missteps for the club.
Of course, that’s not to say Freeman’s deal with Los Angeles will end the same way. It’s shorter than those precedents, for one, and Freeman has a much more consistent track record than either Hosmer or Davis did at the time they signed their deals. There’s essentially nothing to nitpick in his offensive profile. Freeman doesn’t chase many pitches, and he makes plenty of contact on offerings both inside and outside the strike zone. He posts high-end exit velocities and hard contact rates annually. As is the case with most left-handed hitters, he’s better against right-handed pitching. Yet Freeman’s career .266/.348/.436 mark against southpaws demonstrates he’s more than capable of holding his own without the platoon advantage.
Even after the Braves dropped out, a few teams remained involved in the running for his services. The Red Sox, Blue Jays and Padres were superficially tied to Freeman in recent days, but it seems the surprising Rays may have proven one of the Dodgers strongest challengers in the end. Juan Toribio of MLB.com tweets that Tampa Bay made a “strong push” throughout the process, but L.A.’s willingness to acquiesce on the sixth year proved a deal-breaker.
It’s a return to Southern California for Freeman, an Orange County native. In addition to the financial and geographical appeal, he’ll step into a lineup that’s among the best in recent memory. It’s conceivable the Dodgers will roll out an Opening Day lineup consisting of Freeman, Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Max Muncy, Justin Turner, Will Smith, Chris Taylor, Cody Bellinger and AJ Pollock. Betts, Freeman and Bellinger are each former league MVP’s. Eight of those nine players have garnered at least one All-Star selection; the one player who hasn’t yet gone to the Midsummer Classic, Smith, is among the top handful of catchers in MLB.
The Dodgers have assembled a similarly star-studded pitching staff, and the construction of this kind of roster required a sizable investment from ownership. Los Angeles blew past all three luxury tax tiers last season, incurring nearly $33MM in fees. They’re in line for another huge expenditure this year.
The exact financial structure of Freeman’s deal isn’t yet known, but contracts’ average annual values are used for luxury tax purposes anyhow. Adding $27MM to that mark pushes the 2022 CBT tab north of $277MM, in the estimation of Jason Martinez of Roster Resource. Because they exceeded the CBT last season, the Dodgers will be subject to escalating fees as a second-time payor. They’ll be taxed at a 30% rate for every dollar spent between $230MM and $250MM, a 42% clip on overages between $250MM and $270MM, a 75% rate on overages between $270MM and $290MM and a 90% tax on all expenditures north of $290MM.
In addition to the financial cost, the Dodgers will take on some non-monetary penalties for signing a player who had rejected a qualifying offer. Because they paid the luxury tax last year, they’ll lose their second-highest and fifth-highest picks in the upcoming draft and be stripped of $1MM in international signing bonus space. The Braves, as a team that neither received revenue sharing nor paid the luxury tax, will receive a compensatory pick after Competitive Balance Round B in the upcoming draft. Those selections typically fall in the 70-75 overall range.
That pick will be little consolation to Braves fans disheartened by Freeman’s departure, although that the organization replaced him with a hometown star of their own in Olson should soften the blow. Even when it became clear he’d be leaving Atlanta, however, there were presumably many Braves fans hoping he’d wind up somewhere other than L.A.
Freeman moves on from the reigning World Series winner to join the team he played an instrumental role in defeating in last year’s NL Championship Series. His departure from the defending champs to sign on with what appears to be MLB’s best team adds plenty of intrigue to what’ll be an entertaining battle for control in the National League.
Jon Morosi of MLB.com first reported the Dodgers and Freeman were making progress on a deal that would guarantee $150+MM. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported the sides were discussing a six-year deal in the $160MM range. Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan of ESPN reported Freeman and the Dodgers were in agreement on a six-year, $162MM contract.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Wat
That’s a scary lineup…
Same with braves Bluejays Yankees to name a few
Except, not really the Yankees, like not even close.
That lineup wouldn’t scare the Yankees moms.
Lots of good lineups but my first thought was playing the dodgers is going to be like playing the all star team.
What’s new?
Weird you left out the top offense of 2021, but included the Yankees for some reason…
Yes, those teams have scary lineups, but the Dodgers lineup in on another level.
Being a yankees fan i can honestly say our lineup is not scary
The Braves lineup is much better than the Yankees?
Let’s at least try to be more openminded.
It is. But Yankees fans turned into huge spoiled brats recently.
Recently!?
That’s yankee fan 101 for about 100 years now
A good off season doesn’t translate into a WS. Because dodgers like the Yankees spend and have produced one WS in the last 13 years.
Being another Yankees fan I concur.
Adding IKF, Rizzo, and Hicks to a lineup that was 19th in RS doesn’t make it scary.
Only Gary isScary!
Astros at all???
I would be surprised if Cash doesn’t add another bat or two before Opening Day. So: I don’t think we are looking at a finished product yet.
I am willing to wait & see.
Not even close?! I thi k you’re way underestimating them.
Actually it is and is better than the Dodgers. Rizzo’s BABIP was too low he’ll bounce back as his EV etc. were the same as 3 years ago and even better. JD as a DH is good, DJLM can bounce back so can Torres. Gallo in a contract year for a full season.
Bouncebacks however do.
True. But you can’t deny it helps the cause.
Stop. Just stop already.
Just seems glutinous from the Dodgers and can’t be good for baseball when one team can buy up all the best talent. Yeah, I know there are plenty of good players on other teams, but when money buys championships too many teams won’t be able to compete, and the league will be ruined.
..So, what the Yankees did for 20 years?
@Pete’sView Here’s an idea. Maybe certain teams buy the talent because the majority won’t spend.
You know that’s not the case. But there’s a limit to spending, even the Yankees are more conscious. But LA just has so much $$$, it simply doesn’t matter. It’s not good for baseball.
I think the real problem in baseball are the teams that tank. Just look at what the Reds have done the last couple of days.
It’s only bought them one championship and it was in a 60 game season
@Pete’sView. I’m sorry but it is the case. Look at what Oakland and Cincinnati are doing. They are competitive teams and they are blowing them up to save money. The Cubs? Are you telling me they don’t have cash? Those are the teams ruining baseball.
Dodgers also have a lot of homegrown talent and have resurrected players like muncy and chris Taylor. Smith, bellinger, kershaw, buehler, urias all home grown. They aren’t just buying players. They develop very well, scout very well and spend money when needed
Steve Cohen has entered the chat….
And by buy you talent, you mean trade quality prospects and players for betts/trea, bring up bellinger, smith from the farm system, pull JT, Muncy, and taylor off the scrap heap. Dodgers top 3 SP are also all home grown. We “bought” pollock and freeman, that’s it
That every team competed in and had the chance to win, but didn’t, just like every other season.
How many championships?
The A’s are ruining the sport?
They win a lot more than many franchises.
No idea how that makes sense.
@jonbluvin and to believe every team can’t spend like the dodgers, is another idea. The Dodgers can spend all they want, but eventually age catches up. Betts, Freeman, and others will decline before their contracts expire. And here’s another idea, try to move aging players with phenomenal contracts. Anyways, when small market teams can be on the same level as the largest of markets, then everyone can be happy. Players make money, favorite stars stay longer with the team, and fans get to watch a more competitive baseball. It won’t happen in my lifetime, but at some point things need to balance out or the sport dies.
Basball is deep into tradition so of course only the Yankees are allowed to buy free agency
Didn’t the braves have first dibs here and 4 other teams were rumored to be in on him?
Well, that is true if one does not count 2017 and the cheating Astros. You know it, we know it, and you know we know it. So stop with the 60 game season crap. That was probably one of the seasons in baseball history, on my11six.
“One of the toughest seasons” sorry.
The dodgers have one championship thats all in decades. Its not their fault that their ownership cares about winning they are not breaking any rules your team and every other team can spend just as much as them but they chose not to they care more about making money than winning stop crying and let the ownership of your team know how you feel.
But they are also buying players and outspending everyone. That can’t be ignored,
There was that whole “favorite stars stay longer with the team” for decades. It was called collusion and it actually led to free agency. Place a cap on what a player can command, that will make them happy.
This might sound absurd, but as a Mets fan I’m not thrilled with Cohen for exactly this very reason. Sure, there’s a lot of variance in the postseason and we Mets fans are due some good fortune but the idea of being able to win through vastly outspending our opponents doesn’t sit right with me. Frankly, I enjoyed being the underdog even if I didn’t enjoy the losing but, of course, the two aren’t exactly correlated.
As much as I detested the Wilpons and wish they would’ve spent a bit more money, all the crying about lack of spending was misguided. The Rays win through strong drafting, proper utilization of analytics, and making smart trades. So do the A’s, etc. It can be done. The only thing I’ve ever asked for is a competent, forward-thinking front office that would prioritize those areas of the game while ownership would put forth a reasonable budget. We just never went that route because the Wilpons were old-fashioned, stubborn, and meddlesome. Speaking of which, I’m also not a fan of Cohen at the moment for similar reasons (meddling, his personality) but maybe that will change with time.
As for the counterargument of “It’s the fault of the other owners for not spending more”, it’s ultimately their money and no one truly know what their books are like. But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that nearly every team in baseball has a threshold they aren’t willing to exceed, or exceed for a long period of time. Some may call it collusion, but I haven’t seen enough evidence of that to justify such a claim. Moreover, these teams are, in fact, an investment for their respective owners and so I have no issues with them running them in a way that would balance competitiveness against profit.
@zappa
It stunk then – it stinks now.
I believe you’re forgetting the suspended pitcher that shall go unnamed.
The Dodgers also “bought” Betts after they traded for him. Don’t forget that. But they do develop players and trade well too.
Baseball needs to contract in size. Cities like Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Oakland, Baltimore, Cleveland are no longer Major League cities. They all belong in AAA now.
The Dodgers don’t buy champisionships, they delevop good players (ex: Seager, Bellinger, Muncy, Kershaw, Walker Buehler, Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, Will Smith, Chris Taylor, Justin Turner, and they spend money to resign their best players. And they use the prospects to make massive trades.
As a fellow Met fan, I can’t bring myself to say anything good about the last run of the Wilpons.
Sure, there was some bad luck in there (Wright getting hurt, Harvey breaking down, Cespedes being Cespedes, etc) but there was every ability to build a sustainable winner around that 2015 roster that went to the World Series. The Wilpons did absolutely nothing to advance that cause. Ownership couldn’t sign Daniel Murphy? Jose Reyes? GTFO. The list goes on obviously.
I agree with you to some extent on Cohen. I don’t have any desire to become the Yankees of old, spending for the sake of spending. But if I have to choose one extreme or the other, its going to be Cohen every time.
Teams with $500-$700MM in revenue vs teams with $250-$300MM. And people complain about teams not spending. Think before you speak please, thank you.
Other teams can not spend as much as them. Come live in the midwest where the median household income is $40,000/yr. Those teams can not charge the same prices as teams in NY and LA because nobody could afford to go the games. So the income of those teams are half of the big boys. Then the TV deals, small market clubs get about 1/4 of the money as a large market. So to say that teams such as the Royals or Reds can spend just as much as the Yankees or Dodgers is absurd. I guess they could but they’d be broke in a year.
6. The Dodgers have 6 Championships. Any other brain busters?
Rays *cough*
BINGO! And the players know it too.
Just for the record, if you’re a major league baseball team and you pay your players, you’re trying to buy a championship.
“Just for the record, if you’re a major league baseball team and you pay your players (the most), you’re trying to buy a championship.”
Nothing wrong with it, but certainly not “homegrown” as we’ve come to know it. Freddie returned “home” and Olson returned “home”. All is well.
How people can say things like “they’ve only won one WS” about the dodgers like it’s an insult is insane and idiotic. I hate the Dodgers, but they’re the best team in baseball the last ten years. Nine straight years 90+ wins (counting the strike year they went 43-17), in last 3 of 5 WS, and lost in 2017 to astros who are known to have cheated. They’re an evil empire, but they win, prob should’ve won more, and should have the 2017 and 2020 titles. Stop trying to minimize their annoying success.
Sorry Pete.The MLB has been ruined for many years.Only money buys real happiness in this sport.
But indirectly yes they are. Alot of teams could have Homegrown talent but the difference is, small market teams can’t afford to keep all of their home grown talent where as the Dodgers can.
Ma4170 — As a Giants fan, I hate that I have to agree with you.
Deep into tradition… with a universal DH, 7 inning doubleheaders, and a ghost runner in extra innings? Not nearly as deep as it used to be.
here i thought only Freeman and Taylor were signed as free agents in the starting 9…well, Kershaw. Everyone else was traded for or homegrown. Stop being jealous.
And the A’s. Melvin said I don’t want anymore rebuilds.
The Dodgers didn’t develop Turner. They either signed or traded for him.
They lose players every year. Seager. Pederson and so on. They just care enough to re stock.
It’s not just outspending, but out scouting and out developing too.
CubsWin108 — The Dodgers did not develop Muncy, Taylor or either of the Turners. They acquired them and, for the first three I mentioned did a great job of bringing out their talent.
I’m a Giants fan and don’t claim that LA isn’t an extremely well run organization. It is.
I just don’t like the Dodgers ability to out-bid everyone on many of the best players in the league, whether it’s Betts, Freeman or whoever.
LA has more money than anyone (perhaps the Yankees are equal) because of their market size and their TV revenues.
I still believe MLB should have a floor and—if necessary—a CBT/cap. I want all teams to have an equal playing field.
LASWAG, Maybe, big market fan, you should take off your rose colored glasses and understand factually what isngoing on. Obviously, you do not.
Maybe they can’t spend as much as the dodgers or Mets, but all the small market teams are getting $50 mill in tv money and 50 mill in revenue sharing. Any team that isn’t approaching a $100 million payroll isn’t trying, and that’s a fact.
Bummer. Dodgers get Freddie, Giants got….wait….wait…wait…Joc. Pickings are getting slim
Giving out a bad contract they will regret?
Braves willing to pay Olson $21 mil for 8 years but can’t pay Freddie $26 mil for 6 years
Imagine being that cheap to let your franchise icon walk away
There’s a several year age difference so productive years should probably figure into that calculation..
There’s 4 prospects leaving so let’s not leave that out of the calculation.
Who cares about age? Freeman will be better than Olsen for the next 4 years. I guess the Braves are playing the long game planning for years 5-8.
also true.
Not necessarily
Freeman wasn’t even better this season.
@bucsfan0004 You’re probably right, but I haven’t got the same machine like you.
1 prospect will be gotten as comp from Freddie turning down QO, don’t forget.
Not if they agree on an International Draft
You do realIze that with that extra money they were able to sign Eddie Rosario and Collin McHugh as well. The Braves probably would not have been able to sign either one if they would have signed Freeman. Also, I tend to remember the MASSIVE downhill slide of Pujols towards the end of his contract. Not saying it will happen with Freddie, but in the long run, Olson was a better fit for the Braves according to AA.
And how about those 4 prospects? Bad decision in the Atl
Olson is much younger
Olsen also cost 4 top prospects
Olson is also way more likely to decline at an earlier age.
Or do you all think players all just magically stop producing at the same age?
Olson has never even sniffed .300 and just got done having an awful 2020 covid season…. In his prime no less. But yeah he’s aces for sure in 7 years because he’ll only be 34 lol
“Olson is also way more likely to decline at an earlier age.”
@ MJ;
Why?
Two top prospects….
Why are you even mentioning BA? Olson has just as much power, if not more. I mean the guy hit in OAKLAND, which consistently hovering in that park is no small feat. He’s younger, better D. OBP difference last season was negligible between the two.
I guarantee when the Braves win 2 more WS with Acuna, Albies, and Riley in the fold, AA will look like a genius.
@MJ- He is? Olson is the better defender and more athletic. Why is he going to decline at an earlier age?
And there 1st rounder from this year
Sorry their first rounder this year Ryan Cuisak
Three top prospects and a 1st Round pick…
Losing Joey Estes WILL HURT in a few years when people remember he was part of the Olson deal from Atlanta…
Alot of fans act like just because a player isn’t on a popular TOP100 list, he isn’t a good/great prospect..
All Joey Estes did was in his FIRST full professional season, set the league on fire dominating and showing a very mature approach for someone over 3 years younger than the average player at the same level…
Estes wasn’t a throw-in by no means, he was the best Braves young, up and coming pitching prospect…
Maybe people will recognize him after he has another great year and then he’s put on one of those dumb twenty different top100 lists…lol
I’d say 3….cusick should be a stud
“and just got done having an awful 2020 covid season”
No, Olson just got done having a career best 5.8 fWAR 2021 season.
You do know that 2021 was his best season. If you put Freeman and Olson’s stats next to each other, the only stat that Freeman won on was average. Olson had more HRs, RBIs, walked more, and struck out less. He also played for a team that had no batters really around him like Freeman had last year.
Never sniffed .300 – yet he still beat Freeman in WAR 2 of the last 3 seasons. And don’t forget 2021 saw a massive turnaround reducing K and increasing walks to almost a Freeman-level. While his OBP won’t be where Freeman’s is at – his SLG will make up for it, especially at Truist for 80+ games. In 2021, Olson’s OPS+ was 153 compared to Freeman’s 133 — and that’s not “sniffing .300” like Freeman did.
Power forgives all things.
Guarantee!!!! Lol. Idiot.
And two of those years on Olson’s contract are buyouts of arbitration years, so they were gonna be cheaper anyway.
That said, virtually a 100% chance Olson does better over the life of his contract than Freddie.
100% chance huh? What happened in 2020 with him then?
In a best case scenario Olson is good for 4 of his 8 years. In a worst case scenario Freeman is only good for 4 of his 6.
It’s MY turn to throw around a guarantee that Freeman will be better over his contract. I imagine my guarantee will mean as much to you as yours does to me though. Absolutely zero. But thanks for your useless guarantee all the same.
Boy you got big mad real quick. Sorry for daring to discuss the fact that players in their late 20s typically play better than guys in their mid 30s. You sad baby.
@MJ Freeman being good 4 out of 6 years is his *best* case scenario not worst. There’s no way he carries that success into his age 37 and 38 season
“ There’s no way he carries that success into his age 37 and 38 season”
I wouldn’t commit to that. It takes 20 minutes in a locker room with Nellie Cruz and he will be slashing like he was 27 again when he’s 38!
@candy
“ Boy you got big mad real quick. Sorry for daring to discuss the fact that players in their late 20s typically play better than guys in their mid 30s. You sad baby.”
Missed this comment earlier but don’t worry I circle back
So guys in their 20s typically play better except when they don’t…. You mean like with Freeman compared to Olson?
Since Freeman has entered his 30s while Olson still in his 20s (2019-2021) Freeman has a WAR of 11.7 To Olson’s 9.7
Fangraphs also projects Freeman will be better in 2022 despite Olson being in his prime and Freeman being in his 30s.
None of this is my opinion which all of you have such a problem with apparently.
Let’s see if numbers staring you in the face change anything. Clear evidence that being younger in your prime doesn’t automatically mean he’s better than Freeman.
But go ahead and ignore because hurrr durr he’s younger so gud deal AA durrrrrrr
@kapler
Freeman being good for 4 more years is now a best case scenario?
So what the worst case? He’s just gonna fall off a cliff after 1 year, or 2 years? He’s easily going to produce for 4 of those 6 years at a high level. That’s called worst case, sorry to break it to you. Or do you actually think he’s only got 2 years left in him right now? That’s the most idiotic thing ive heard yet if that’s what you’re trying to tell me.
No one thinks that at all.
Why not?
No way? That’s a mighty definitive statement on something that’s wholly an unknown. There is precedent for guys raking at that age, though rare – I’d argue Freeman could be an outlier based on his floor and fitness level – but I wouldn’t attach a definitive assertion on something none of us truly know.
Might one say it’s highly unlikely he’ll be carrying “that success” into his age 37 and 38 season but the same could’ve been said about a guy like Nelson Cruz or Big Papi, they just kept raking beyond the arbitrary age point chosen – no way that’s possible either, huh?
MJ, Freddie turned down basically the same AAV from the braves. If he wanted to be in ATL, he’d be there.
Let’s wait and see all of the details / opt outs… but yes, I agree, he most likely wanted to be in LA all along.
@T takeover…..Maybe similar AVV but longer term. As has already been discussed many times, ATL didn’t offer 6 years.
@Tomahawk Takeover
So by that theory the Braves should have been good offering him a 1 year $26 mil contract and if he “wanted to be there he’d be there”
Your post has 0 logic to it. Years matter which was Freddie’s entire point in the negotiations.
Yep. Just like if Seager wanted to be in LA he’d be there.
MJ, there’s a big difference in one yr vs five or six yrs. If one yr was all it took for him to leave, it’s obvious there wasn’t a very big desire to stay. He said he wanted to be the next Chipper but he lied. You’re looking to blame the FO but leaving is all on Freddie.
What’s with the “cheap” epidemic around here? Every time a FO stays within their budget they’re “cheap.
Olsen is 4 years younger. He’s just started his prime. Freeman is at a point where he’s slowly coming out of his prime. Add in that Atlanta doesn’t have the revenue stream that LA does, and they want to have the money to field a sustainable contender for years by being able to retain their core players. What AA did was SMART.
I’m sorry to say this, but if posters around here keep throwing the “cheap” word around every time a FO doesn’t go beyond their budget to sign one player (and like all billion dollar business, FO’s estimate their budgets years in advance as their business plans are developed and modified) – then maybe it’s time some of us started throwing the “dumb” and “stupid” word back when we read these simplistic, juvenile comments.
@Samuel w/ the big “sticks and stones will break my bones” energy.
Samuel = Triggered!
Ok forget the numbers and cheapness
How was it smart? When was Freddie’s last bad season? Oh wait… you can’t find one?
Interesting cause I only need to go back to 2020 to find a bad season from Olson. And wasn’t he in his prime in 2020 too? Yeah I think he was
Wow look at that! There’s actual evidence pointing to Olson dropping off whereas there’s 0 evidence of any Freeman drop off
All you have is speculation. At least I have something a little more solid than speculation when I look at Olson’s track record.
But tell me more how AA is so smart. He botched this 100% and more than willing to let time tell the tale for me.
If 2020 was a full year you’d have a point.
But it wasn’t so you don’t. Look at freeman’s start to the 2021 season, it was awful but he had the second half to make up for it, and did.
That’s why they play 162
Dodgers fans will always act like 2020 was a real season.
No I completely have a point you just refuse to concede that Olson was trash in 2020.
Once again you’re dealing in speculation. Speculation that Olson would have turned it around and ended up with a normal 2020. I’m dealing in reality, that he put up a god awful season.
It was a real season.. you guys played the same season. I swear thay take is so weak!
Ha. Nice
@ ML
BECAUSE BASEBALL IS NOT A ONE MAN SPORT!
A batter only hits once every 9 guys. He only fields a ball if it’s hit to him.
Keeping Freeman mean that the Braves will lose a player heading for FA in the future because they gave Freeman more money than Olsen.
Should they have Olson and a #1 and #2 starter in 2-3 year, or should they have Freeman and be moving a #3-4 guy to #1 or #2? Should they have a quality OF or lose him and get a stop gap?
The Braves sis the right and smart thing.
Sorry for spelling errors. Clicked Enter twice.
Well you’re not really dealing with reality if you ignore the fact that Olson was amazing in 2021, in fact much better than Freeman and that 2020 was a small sample size.
Freddie did what’s right for him. AA did what’s right for the Braves.
That’s the real / adult world.
There is no villain here.
Even if you want to discredit Olsons 2020 ad a product of a shortened season, or doesn’t change the fact that he’s never once sniffed .300.
Guys like him fall off way earlier than guys like Freddie who know how to hit.
I didn’t see Chipper fall off a cliff 32-38. Ages 34-36 he was only throwing up 1.000+ ops seasons no big deal.
The fact some of you can’t think critically past age alone and take a look at the players themselves makes me think some of you must work in the Braves front office.
Matt Olson’s long swing is basically gonna end up making him Dan Uggla 2.0.
Uggla was great during ages 26-30. Why did he fall off at 31 and not last until 34 or 35? I thought age was the end all be all here. He was younger than Freeman when he started sucking… THAT CANT BE!!!!
No it’s not a 1 man team but this is also a team that just raked in considerably more money thanks to Freeman leading them to a WS.
You act like they can’t pay Freeman and add a #1 or #2 starter (which by the way they show no indication of doing…. They didn’t even bother to upgrade from Rosario to Conforto for the outfield gap after they “saved” by bringing in Olson instead of Freeman but go ahead and keep thinking Olson + a #1 starter is what they’re doing… you live in denial my friend).
All of which leads me back to calling them cheap, which you have the problem with. If it looks cheap, smells cheap, and acts cheap… it is cheap.
MJ, you sound like a whining middle schooler who just got dumped. If Freddie want to be a Brave, he’d be one. He didn’t and Atlanta still has an awesome team and more financial flexibility as well. You may wanna get those tissues in bulk.
@ MJ;
Go back to your computer baseball game, spreadsheets and rotisserie baseball.
Then take your credentials and interview for a job at an MLB FO. Tell them you know for certain how 2 guys will be producing in 4-6-8 years. They might want to ask you to show some documentation of your past projections, so bring some with you.
Am sure you’ll be hired. Cause if you think people that have been working in FO’s for 20-40 years can do that accurately…….
@Dusty
If by amazing you mean he barely cracked .900 ops for the first time in his career (.911) which is almost basically Freddie’s career average ops (.893) then you got me. Olson was amazing and “way” better than Freddie last year.
Go look up their production with RISP though for fun and let me know who you think was actually better afterward.
Freddie’s getting clutch hits in the playoffs to drive runners in when the pressure is on while Olson is striking out in clutch moments during the regular season. Can’t wait for the awesomeness that awaits Braves country in 2022 from our new 1B who is supposedly so much better.
Go look up and down the 2020 stat sheets and you’ll find a ton of aberration years for a lot of good players. Guys who danced back and forth between being in and out of camps, being told to be ready for a season, then that it wasn’t gonna happen, all until they needed to be ready to go on short notice, and played just two months. It messed with a lot of guys. Shohei Ohtani, Javy Baez, Jose Altuve, JD Martinez, Nolan Arenado, Kyle Schwarber, Marcus Semien, Carlos Correa, Max Muncy, Ketel Marte etc etc etc. All varying degrees of bad or terrible on offense that year, all good hitters. Anyone taking that sample size seriously is lying to further an argument. And if *you* want to take it seriously, then I guess you’ve gotta explain why Freeman’s OPS declined by more than 200 points from 2020 to 2021. You hack.
@samuel
You mean the same way you know how they’ll produce? You might as well re-read that post to yourself bro. We’re just on opposite ends of the argument on the production discussion.
What’s not debatable is the Braves went cheaper on their 1B. That’s a hard number. Let me say it again, louder for you.. they went CHEAP.
You’re cherry picking stats. I get it, it sucks when your fave player moves on.
It’s an emotional time, grieve the loss and then put on your big boy pants and move on.
@candy
Fine call 2020 an aberration
Why did Dan Uggla fall off at age 30 though? Those of you clinging to this “but Olson will only be 35” narrative still won’t explain why you think Olson will age well.
I am at least trying to justify why I think he will fall off worse than Freddie and I’ve given comparisons.
You look at Olsons swing and it’s not designed to catch up to heat when starts to exit his prime years. Hes like Uggla.
Freddie is much more like Chipper. I’m not saying he is Chipper and will throw up 1.000+ ops years. But if we want to look at how they will age you can’t just say Freddie = 38 and Olson = 35 at the end. That’s so flawed it’s not even funny.
I’m the only one in here looking past the number and trying to draw comparison to the types of hitters they are with other hitters similar in the past and view how those guys held up.
Freddie will hold up longer than Olson. If you don’t think he will you’re just an idiot. It’s the closest thing of an opinion that’s not an opinion.
Bet it was a real season to you when Atl was up 3-1
I think the most shocking thing is that you seem to think you know better than professional baseball execs.
AA is one of, it not the best GM in the sport, your emotion is blinding you in to thinking you figured out something no one else did. But the truth is you didn’t, it was a well thought out, calculated move by the braves FO. It def sucks but you don’t win games with nostalgia
Is it just me or do the guys that immaturely call people names here (like MJ) seem to be the ones that know nothing about baseball?
Maybe just a coincidence.
Why are you worried about 2020 but ignore 2017 2018 2019 2021 for Matt Olson? If you have to tell people you have a point MJ. You don’t have a point.
Dan Uggla fell off at age 33 MJ
30 OPS+ 131
31 OPS+ 107
32 OPS+ 98
33 OPS+ 85
Uggla fluxuated his entire career early on. Had huge differences between OPS+ before age 33. Some years higher some years lower. Fell completely off at 33. Not 30
Guy comparing Olson to Dan Uggla and he’s surprised nobody is taking him seriously..
As always, we await developments.
Yeah and sid bream will always act as if he understands the game of baseball.
MJ – I agree with you on this.
Everyone else on here is so stupid.
Sure Olson is 4 years younger and had a better season in ‘21 according to WAR
But he had an awful 2020, this can not be forgotten. It brings into question the legitimacy of his bounce back year in ‘21, was it really a great season from a young player entering his prime? Doubtful.
We’ve all seen Moneyball, Brad Pitt was just using Olson’s ‘21 season as an brilliant foil to set up an over valued trade so that Freddie (the greatest player in the history of Baseball based on WAR and the fact players get better the older they are) would sign with the Dodgers.
You know where the Dodgers play?
LA.
Where does Brad Pitt live?
LA.
How many teams will Freddie play for now?
2.
How many letters are in LA?
2.
How many names does Brad Pitt have?
2.
It makes too much sense MJ! BRAD PITT RUINED THE BRAVES AS PART OF THE LIBERAL AGENDA
Q ANNON IS REAL BABY
AND MATT OLSON IS Q!
We figured it out guys.
@Bigmetsh8ter
How many games was 2020 season? You haven’t got a clue.
@MJ. Man take it easy. Already took your high blood pressure pills today?
@DragBunt
Is it just me or do the guys that immaturely call people names here (like MJ) seem to be the ones that know nothing about baseball?
_____________________
Sure, it makes sense. You don’t often see people say, “Well you have to look beyond the surface stats and apply a normal aging curve if you want to assess a given player….BEYOTCHES!
You are an idiot MJ! There were multiple players who were not good in 2020, but completely turned it around in 2021. Your logic to just use that one year is ridiculously stupid. If that is the only argument you have, you have no argument.
I love this “sniffing .300” — did we revert 20 years when AVG was just as important as pitcher wins?
@MJ – you’re looking past 2020, but you’re also looking past 2021 for Olson in which he looked as if he turned a corner reducing his strikeouts and adding walks, which helped him to a 155 OPS+ (better than FF’s 133 with a .300 AVG).
In ATL’s lineup with more protection, you know Olson will be walked more than his career-high rates to get to the Ozunas, Rileys, Rosarios, etc. So in addition to his SLG, he’ll have a higher OBP which means he most likely could have his highest OPS if he continues his power…in a smaller Truist Park.
I 100% would have preferred trading for and extending Olson over this Freeman signing. Pretty sure all 30 ball clubs would agree. Ninja move by AA.
I think his posts are: Journal Entries of a Grumpy Old Dude.
I love it! I so want the kids in my neighborhood to stay off my lawn too. Well…unless they are mowing it. But: I take notes.
Yeah. Let’s not take into account that Freddie will be 38 in 6 years and Olsen will be 35 in 8. That didn’t factor into the decision at all.
@Dan
You’re way behind Dan. I already explained it above in many other posts. Go back and read before opening your mouth.
I’m not sure you fully appreciate how remarkably annoying you are in this entire exchange with literally everyone who dares defy you.
@candy
And yet you continue to exchange with me. Can’t be that annoying to want to keep coming back for more
MJ: your whole premise is ridiculous. If you want to say Freeman will outperform Olson, then fine but it’s at least debatable. People aren’t idiots for saying otherwise since you have no idea yourself.
And it has nothing to do with the Braves being cheap, they simply liked Olson better going forward and since they’re the ones wearing the rings…I’ll take their word for it, not yours.
Really surprised Freddie got “only” 162 million. Rumors were 6 for 175-180.
Freddie was asking for 6/180, but most prognostications had him at 6/160-165, the Braves offered him that same AVV but only for 5 years (140M)
Stupid decision by the brave I don’t getting
Imagine freeman played on team friendly 8 year contract with 18 per year avg and then when he needs to get paid, they get Olson. All while their owner posts record profits.
@Lakers
Exactly. Someone gets it.
Their owner?
“when he needs to get paid”
Wants, not needs. That sixth year is all about ego; Freeman is already so rich he’ll never speed a dollar of what he earns that season.
It looks team friendly now but at the time it was a big contract. Freddie’s contract was 8/135 giving up 5 free agent years, Olsen’s 8/162 giving up 6 free agent years. Basically same contract, LakerBoi.
I think we all might be missing a point about FFs sixth year. The man is building a solid HOF resume. That final year could be make it or break it for him joining Chipper on the walls of the hall. Even if he is in LA rn, if Freeman makes the hall, there will be a Braves logo on that plaque
@Chucky D. Spot on Chucky. When FF signed that deal, it was the largest pre arb contract ever given to a 1Bman in MLB history. It was a great deal for both FF and the Braves.
Mj, maybe you and lakers1 should stop. Go reasearch who really owns the Braves.
Let me ask you this: do you two clowns rant and rave when a top exec leaves twitter to go to tik tok or similar? It is the exact same scenario. Exactly.
5 years younger, Dodgers will regret paying him his 5th and 6th year.
I don’t think so. He’ll probably DH on those 2 last years and be pretty good at it
Yep. Great pickup, particularly if Muncy needs more time to recover from his terrible injury.
Freddie will love LA weather, no 100+ degree temperatures with 85+ humidity. Atlanta weather sucks from June thru October.
@MJ
Freddie could have signed if he WANTED to sign with the Braves. Freddie made it about the money. Who’s “cheap”?
MJ, maybe, for some odd reason, your team didnt consult you on their next move. Any reason why??
He was too busy out buying a Dodgers hat to answer when AA called?
I agree, MJ….and they gave up a pile of prospects too, just to be able to be that cheap. Weird!
McGriff made a good point too though.
Braves offered higher AAV just over 5 years so let’s not act like they weren’t more than fair.
Olsen allows financial flexibility that FF’s deal wouldn’t. That extra $12-13M has already gotten another bullpen stud and solid OF. Braves don’t have an unlimited payroll ceiling…just a fact. So you have to look at more than player v player.
@MJ That’s what commitment to winning really looks like
Olson’s just as good and much, much younger.
Olson is probably better at this point. If his gains in K% are real, he’s certainly better.
*Imagine being that business savvy to sign an equal as productive player that’s more than 4 years younger to set your franchise up for longterm future success. FTFY (and this is coming from a huge Braves AND Freeman fan)
You will see why in Freeman’s fifth and six year
When Kershaw pitches they will have 4 MVPs on the field at once, pretty incredible when you think that there are organizations that have never had a single MVP.
Not that I’m disagreeing with your last statement but is that true? Not every team has an MVP yet?
I’m not sure if the rays have (don’t think) or the Nats/Blue jays (do think).
Pujols, Miggy, and Votto are former MVPs also… not really saying much
Thank Christ he didn’t end up with the Sox or Yanks
Good for Freddie in getting most of what he was looking for. He seemed to want $30M per season, but having to ‘settle’ for $27M is not too shabby, especially with that 6th year included. Tip of the cap to his agent too.
Also, tip of the cap to AA for setting a budget to re-sign Freddie and making the very hard decision not to bring him back. While they lost some good prospects, getting Matt Olson and locking him up for 8 years was really the only deal that could match and possibly improve their output at first base upon FF leaving. This is why AA is one of the top executives in all of baseball. It’s so hard not to bring back a franchise icon but Matt Olson is super talented, 4 years younger and a home-grown kid from Atlanta who is ecstatic about joining the team he rooted for throughout his childhood. He’s going to give them maximum effort every night and be proud to wear the Braves uniform. This was really a win-win for both players.
Don’t care how good the player is, you don’t ever need to give a 32 year old a 6 year contract ever. If owners were smart they would publicly announce they don’t pay anyone past their age 38 season for their team. And keep lowering the age. If you wanna play for the team you sign one year deals at that age. This would give you maximum payroll flexibility and would guarantee you not being stuck with a albatross pujols or miggy deal.
Let’s look at the Dodgers when they still have to pay Freeman and Betts when they are in late 30s, who you going to trade them to
Atlanta?
Where the f was al avila??????
Holy crap…he was SUPPOSED TO BE HELPING SAN DIEGO GET IN THE MIX!!!!!!
AL AVILA????
WHAT ARE YOU DOING AND WHY, WHY, WHY?????
I wish Freddie all the best, but will he get lost in that line up?
Crap
You can say that again.
Really thought he would go to Toronto, but good for LA
It would have been nice offensively but defensively it never made sense for them to spend their money that way.
Very true. I was hoping for a “surprise” signing for him but I think Bryant to the Rockies fulfilled that for me
Wait, there’s a Rockies fan ?
Top 5 in attendance most years. There’s a ton of them.
Rockies home attendance is very good. Better than most. They have a good fan base.
Great fan base but poorly run franchise unfortunately.
Rockies fans deserve better
@Baseball Purist This is true. As I’ve mentioned a bunch of times, they only need to stay relevant with some star power. Same applies to the Angels.
Sounds like Wrigley field and the cubs. Giant beer garden.
Lmao
Earlier today, I thought maybe the Mets or Phillies may take a run at him and figure out the defense/DH alignment later. I do think he’ll be a productive bat for at least the next four seasons.
Braves and Dodgers are the top two teams in the National League, for sure. Would be a juicy NLCS.
Hopefully the CO front office starts performing like their attendance warrants.
Nope. The owners are too cheap to pay Story or Keep Arenado, but they had no issue building a hotel in an old parking lot right next to the stadium for $365million. The Monforts don’t care about winning. And with the Rox dumb fans (I’m included). We continue to go to these games all the time, so why would they change their business plan..(fans really go to drink beer and be outside. 85% are on their phones or just gossiping up in the Roodtop bar area)
Been to Wrigley. That’s certainly one way to watch a ballgame.
Totally agree- I was not big on Chapman all winter but now that I look more deeply the defense upgrade is big as is the $$ aspect. Leaves then a ton more financial flexibility in the years ahead. In 2 yrs they will now have Chapman, Gurriel Jr, Hernandez, Ryu, Grichuk coming off the books.
I wonder which of the first 3 they would look at extending.
Doesnt make sense with Vlad sadly.
After the Chapman trade, all signs pointed west.
Same here, I was thinking Jays for sure
No cuz then they wudda been in the same position as the Tigers were when they had Fielder, Cabrera & V-Mart and had to play Cabrera at 3B (in Toronto’s case it would be Guerrero at 3B), and that wouldn’t end up being good.
300 million dollar payroll is stupid. If they don’t win they should be embarrassed
You forget it’s a business for every dollar they spend, they make at least 20 back. So it’s a good investment. We draw 3 million ever year the highest in all baseball
It’s fine. I get it but it’s pretty stupid when one team can spend 150 million more than the average baseball franchise. They should win is all I am saying
Not denying that, but it is kinda unfortunate to see one team just laying that money out when there’s no real consequence.
I don’t understand this take at all. No team profits $5B a year or even brings in $5B a year in revenue (not sure what you were multiplying), not even close, not even the Dodgers. On top of that, the marginal revenue gained by added payroll for the Dodgers at this point is… probably a positive number, but the returns are for sure diminishing for where they are at on the win curve and the fact that, as you stated, the Dodgers draw the best in baseball already.
Adding Fred for $25MM will certainly not net another half a billion. But perhaps I read your comment too literally.
I agree with you, but that’s because you are in LA so its not really “fair”. I mean it is fair because all the owners can afford it but you get the point. But hey, lifes not fair, we know that. Don’t hate the player hate the game, ect.
“We” – Lol, I usually don’t mind that, I’m a fan too, obviously. But you aren’t the “we” that’s drawing anything. Stop.
Don’t be sad because your team
Is ran by a cheap billionaire
Right!? Since day one Guggenheim said they wanted to win. And they have. And not only do they spend in free agency but they build up the farm system as well. What else do you want from your team? Just make an effort
Not sad at all but this is one of the major flaws with baseball. There is zero consequences for stupidity.
Stupidity on who’s part?
If you have to double every teams payroll to be competitive you have made massive mistakes. Let’s not act like they are winning every year. The farm is fine but nothing home grown has won them a championship. Blah. I am sure they will be great next year with that 300 million dollar payroll.
Homegrown, Kershaw, Buehler, Urias, Jansen, May, Gonsolin. Smith, Lux, Bellinger, Barnes plus more but they’re lesser players. I’ve not included anyone acquired like Betts or Taylor or Muncy that they used homegrown talent to acquire.
An imminent Bauer suspension should take the payroll down to $260 for awhile, but your point is valid.
He just just jealous that his team doesn’t spend to make sure they’re competitive . What the Dodgers do is rly smart. Their value as a franchise has increased substantially since they were bought .
That was a great story 3 years ago when they had a reasonable payroll and solid farm. Now it’s just stupid.
@bucsfan0004
On what grounds will he be suspended?
Ozuna actually got convicted of something, while Bauer’s case didn’t even go to trial — and Ozuna’s suspension was retroactive to time served, so he will play all of 2021 — and what makes you think that Bauer will be any worse?
I don’t doubt he’ll most likely miss some time, but I can’t imagine it’s more than a ~5 starts, if that.
The Dodgers owners (a hedge fund) are not putting one dime into that team, I can completely guarantee you that. If you or I owned the team the payroll would be no different (although we’d be a helluva lot richer). All teams get their operating budget from their operating revenue. The owner’s personal wealth has zero to do with it.
Who ever is fitting the bill, the team goes and competes and puts a contender year in and year out
No no, the owners personal wealth has everything to do it. Ask the 2010s Tigers teams.
Yep Myecho, Mike paid Prince Fielder out of his pocket….or at least was willing to when he signed him. Thank goodness for Texas, lol. Tigers still had to “chip in” $30 million (on a $254 million, 9 yr deal), but got Kinsler, who was awesome with us (Tigers).
My guess is 4/135…
If he would take that he would still be a Brave. Think more like 4 and 175
I think 6/180. He wants the years and would take a lower AAV.
Are you kidding with the 4/175??? NO ONE’S giving him $44M per year, except maybe on a one year deal, and I doubt even that.
Guess we shall see.
I agree with FSF. He can only play one position on defense, albeit well. But not for $44m AAV.
It won’t be $44, but I bet it’s $33-5. Something like 5/165.
Based on the last update at 1023, looks like even my prediction of $30m AAV is high. We’ll see. It will be 6 years for sure, otherwise he would have taken Atlanta’s 5 years.
LETS GO!
KG, dude thanks for your mods/roster work on
MLB ’05
Me and my bro played it well into 2013.
That’s KG from mvpmods? wow, that’s so cool
Refreshreshrefresresh wash rinse repeat..l
GARBAGE! He should have gone to one of the following teams…
Blue Jays
Mariners
Tigers
Rays
Rockies
Brewers
Diamondbacks
Angels
Twins
Rangers
Orioles
SPIDERS
Ha.
Guardians*
@goastros123
I’m not calling them that. Ever.
Are you a Cleveland fan?
I’m an Atlanta fan…but that doesn’t make Cleveland’s new team name any less absurd.
Yeah, the Braves is a much less absurd name.
There have always been more Indians playing for Atlanta than ever played in Cleveland.
He’s going to the team offering the most money like they all do. Get real!!
Can’t trust Morosi.
@C-Daddy- can’t trust C-Daddy either.
It doesn’t matter, the Braves are still better than the Dodgers
That surely isn’t true…
Mute: now, that is truly funny.
Looking forward to another series this year – it’s been fantastic to watch these two teams play and the Dodgers currently lead the series 2-1 since 2018.
Wondering if Dodgers budge on years, or if Freddie just didn’t get the years anywhere else?
If he were going to settle it would have been with the braves.
It’s going to be a 5 year 158 deal with a 6 year option
Freeman is a perfect fit for their process-oriented system
It’s the only real option. This makes too much sense. Sign already. LA will give more per year plus opt outs. They do very player friendly deals. Why isn’t this done yet?
Good, finally.
the Dodgers sign everything that moves, the A’s have like a 2 million payroll committed for the 2023 season. Balanced sport, I’m glad there was a 3 month lockout to solve major issues like the shift.
Braves have a billionaire owner(s). Braves could spend, if they wanted.
The Braves are owned by a corporation based in Denver. They couldn’t give less of a crap whether that team wins or loses unless it affects the bottom line. Like all teams, they total up their revenue, subtract a profit, and spend the rest. The Dodgers spend more than anyone else because they make more than anyone else (well, except the Yankees).
Seamaholic2: Lol you guys are confusing the Braves with the Reds and A’s?
Don’t care if they win? Huh? They just did!
Corporate ownership is quite different than a few rich guys with deep pockets willing to play in the red for a few seasons.
They did spend, they just spent their dollars more wisely. Picked up a much younger stud 1B in Olson, and had money left over for a big bullpen arm in McHugh and we’re able to bring back Rosario. I’m not mad at Freddie for playing hardball, but if the organization meant as much to him as he led on about, he’d still be a Brave. Props to AA for sticking to his guns and making the best baseball/business decision.
And it only also cost them 3 if their top 10 prospects. Gotta factor that into the cost
They sign all the best that moves!! As evidenced by the squad. Grow up man.
“grow up”… did I criticize the Dodgers? Did I say spending was bad? My point was the game is completely unbalanced, some teams spend $250 million a year, other teams spend $40 million and trade away stars. I think this is an huge issue with the game of baseball and should have a been a major talking point during the CBA discussions. I prefer to have a game where most teams are competitive. When I grow up I’ll try to be more explicit so you grown ups understand. smh
Every owner could do the same or close to.it but they are too greedy. Can’t change that so just enjoy the game and a team you respect and don’t blame owners who are willing to admit they are all rolling in cash.
I didn’t blame the Dodgers or any other team, I simply pointed out what I believe is a huge issue with the MLB today.
I’m pretty sure millionaire ballplayers living in CA keep just over 43% of their salary once mandatory taxes are taken out. If these players were smart, they’d go to some of these teams:
Pirates (3.07%)
Phillies (3.07%)
Tigers (4.25%)
Rockies (4.55%)
Reds (4.80%)
Indians (4.80%)
Cubs (4.95%)
White Sox (4.95%)
Red Sox (5.00%)
Those are some of the lowest state taxes…
You only pay your home state income tax for home games. So the difference is significant but only on 50% of your salary
No one wants to live in those crap towns
Wouldn’t Florida teams make this list? Had always heard their lack of income tax mentioned as a factor playing games in-state? Granted, that’s roughly half the schedule, but?
Florida has no state tax.
But both florida teams aren’t handing out money to free agents so doesn’t really matter
Ah, yeah. Understood. I believe Tampa could, and that’d be a bold as hell move.. but nobody wants to see that.
No state income tax combined with lower sales tax than multiple states which have 1, like CA. Son was there visiting over the winter, said LA was 9.5% sales believe it was stacked on top of state income tax. Ridiculous.
Math isn’t your strong suit ~ Angeleno.
The Rays offered Freeman 6/140 before the lockout.
Lol where did you get from. I don’t believe that
Here’s the link:
https://www.draysbay.com/2022/3/16/22980803/freddie-freeman-mlb-rumors-tampa-bay-rays
@StPete that article doesn’t say anything about an offer before the lockout.
Wish it was true but doesn’t seem like a credible source.
Ok, so he’s left with 75 million dollars, guess he will find another job :/
@californiaangels, he just needs to start making his own coffee at home and not go out for brunch as often
Texas with no state income tax…. But property taxes are unreal.
Lol poor dumb players aren’t smart enough to factor taxes into their decision. Feel bad for them. Me big dummy smack ball hard but don’t know nothing about no taxes.
Yes, because as a Tiger’s fan I know.. any smart American would chose to live Detroit Metro over LA. Even if they are from California..
That’s looking at taxes in a vacuum. What’s the additional income opportunities in those cities compared to Los Angeles with Hollywood being in the Dodgers backyard? What’s the weather like? What’s the entertainment like? How tough is the local media on your team?
Dodgers lineup is ridiculous
Going to say 5/155 with a team option for year 6
Absolute dogwater. Dodgers would have to trade one of their key position players. Otherwise, makes zero sense.
Elaborate?
Yes, please explain.
Because Muncy obviously can’t play 2b or dh.
Pssh he’s gonna end up settling for what the Braves offered him in the first place. Haha
Like Bryant? What an overpay.
Of course. That new CBA is great for about six teams in baseball.
No one and nothing is stopping other teams from spending.
Maybe you don’t understand baseball finances. The dodgers tv contract pays about 10x great then a team like the padres.
Easy to about pirates and what not but no team has the money coming in at the dodgers level other then maybe the Yankees. Not even sure that true any longer.
It’s egg before the chicken
Ever think that teams like the dodgers and Yankees have such high tv deals and attendance is because they have a strong brand and continue to invest in it?
There is a reason the Mets franchise value is almost 3x less than the Yankees. It’s brand and marketing.
@Dustyslambchops23 Demographics. Population and income. Also people all ready rooted for the Yankees. All those world series and hall of famers much more appealing than a awful expansion team. You are somewhat right in that the Mets never had sustainable winning to gain ground. And Yankees haven’t given them that opportunity either.
Absolutely. I’m not arguing that demographics and population don’t factor in, but it’s not everything.
Simm, the Padres have a top 5, maybe top 3 TV deal. Pick another team
Yes but the Dodger tv contract brings in a lot of money because they have been consistently good for a very long time and have a huge fan base that watches the game. They have been competitive pretty much since Kershaw came up.
Padres have a deal that runs through 2031. It’s the 23rd best TV deal in baseball not a top 5 deal.
Padres problem is that San Diego is a glorified suburb of Los Angeles. It’s why two of its three professional sports teams (Clippers, Chargers) now reside in Los Angeles.
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/lets-update-the-estimated-local-tv-revenue-for-mlb-teams/
@mario, almost all teams can spend. They elect not to.
So, Mario, you say money does buy championships then? And the Rays are not effective in their budget baseball, correct?
Nats are still in it…
“Where does it hurt?”
Pretty much around the big bloody spot…
Let me know when you see,
A RadioShack.
What do you get when combine a bungee cord with an owl?
My ass…
Bleeding, making me the victor!
Good. The Dodgers will be a force in the west as usual especially with the Padres losing Tatis for half the season. I’d rather see the Padres get Freeman but I’m fine with him landing in LA.
Yeah, each time they lose a few big names they don’t mind replacing them, that’s for sure. I wish Hal would head out west for some lessons in being competitive…..
The Dodgers have become what the Yankees used to be when it comes to committing dollars. Hal will spend, but he’s constantly focused on the luxury tax, ensuring he can get back under. That impacts the quality of decisions and players signed. No surprise that Donaldson and Rizzo are off the books in two years max.
Eh don’t worry, the Padres already signed one of the better first basemen in MLB a couple years ago, right? I mean, at least at the time, right?
They’ve been trying to dump Hosmer for 2 seasons now. Can’t be good for Hosmer’s morale.
Please keep your wife in her clown place and stay on west coast…
6 years is an INSULT to fans…a retirement player without CONSEQUENCES for poor play
Color me surprised….. yawn.
Hey Clipper! I’m just glad your Yanks passed on him!
Yeah, I think it was a smarter play, although I really like Freeman.
Anti-climatic.
Right? Hey, goastros, when is Correa signing, man? It’s been silent on his progress….
This is weird…
$150? If that’s true then he grossly misjudged his targets for both years and total$ In what was initially reported.
Almost makes me go back an question the Olson deal…almost.
Apologies to Dodgers fans on this website, but I lived in the LA area for nearly a decade. Dodgers fans are annoying as hell and bandwagoners to the extreme. They don’t deserve this.
What an odd comment from a guy with your screen name and icon.
My icon is just a Jeff Rosenstock flag. So either seeing the name satan in text upsets you, or the idea of LGBTQ-support upsets you. Either way, you’re a square.
I never said I was upset. That’s your assumption. Just said it was odd.
I would bet my bottom dollar he has his pronouns in his social media profiles.
preach
Grew up in SoCal and moved out of state in early nineties. Butt is superglued to this high-milage bandwagon since the seventies. So Judge Judy, do me and my extremely crazy compadres not deserve this?
@abc if you are such a devout fan, then why even acknowledge the comment? He obviously wasn’t talking about you. You don’t need to white knight for an entire fan base.
Now we got satan and jesus involved. To the Dodgers fan: If you’ve been into them since the 70s, you’re definitely not in the age range I’m ragging on.
@secretsatan we believe in Jesus around these parts, pal.
Thanks.
Because when you make a really general comment about a city with millions of people, you deserve to be called out @Beans
Or maybe you’re what’s wrong with LA? Well you get what you vote for
@viva I bet I can guess your political affiliation based on making a jesus fudging baseball signing article political.
“Baseball fans that formerly lived in LA disliking dodger fans must mean they are liberals. Time to eat some more paint chips”
I mean… I’ve been to 22/30 MLB stadiums. This is most fans in general.
They’re drawn 3+ million for 40+ straight years. They’re hardly Bandwagon fans. That’s a ridiculous comment.
Sir, with all due respect your generalization about millions of people in Los Angeles, throughout California, the U.S. and the world is offensive and inaccurate. Fans everywhere can be ignorant, passionate, tribalistic. Your comment actually demonstrates that you may very well be a fan who at times lacks grace, compassion and respect for others. There are Dodger fans everywhere who have all of the qualities that I just referenced and many more. Please stop. Stop this silly tribalistic generalizing about people who happen to root for a baseball team. I’m sure you’re really better than this, please reflect a little bit on what you just wrote and try not to go there again on this website or any other place.
Where in LA?
Stinkin Dodgers
4 / 152M, opt out after year 2.
That’s the most insane contract prediction I have ever seen. You really think anyone is paying a 32 y/o first basemen over $35mil annually?
Yes
No
Somebody hurry and swoop in. Don’t let the Dodgers get Freeman!
Your move Marlins.
Nobody wants to play in front of 2,500 fans.
@You Can Put It In The Books- they actually play in front of 2,500 fans? I figured it was less than that.
I bet the 90’s pop group LFO would love to play in front of that many fans, but they can’t, because 2/3 of them are dead.
🙁
6/31mil
Hey Freddie is from California. Just let him go home. I’m okay with Rizzo back at lst.
And he grew up an Angels fan. Clearly this man has no taste.
Says the guy with a satan/ rainbow flag
6yrs 156 plus 7th option?
Seemed inevitable after the Olson move.
It’s been done for weeks probably they’re just waiting for Bryant to sign. Then they start rolling it out prime time PDT
Dodgers’ ownership is phenomenal.
Having and spending more
Money than everyone else doesn’t make you phenomenal in my eyes but to each their own
They greatly invest in the franchise on every level. Don’t be bitter because your team’s owners aren’t willing to do what they should for the fans.
I’m an Astros fan, I’m not bitter at all
They greatly invest in the franchise on every level. Don’t be bitter because your team’s owners aren’t willing to do what they should for the fans.
Maybe true but their market provides the money to do so at a higher rate then most.
C monkey: It’s not just that though. They do spend a lot because they have a lot. But, they spend in the right places. Contrast LAD, for example, with some of the recent Yankees teams and you see the stark differences in positions, lineup construction/diversity, etc. LAD does spend a lot, but they also do it correctly.
So Correa announcement is coming tomorrow night or Friday
He signs with Houston 5/$100M….. lol.
Lol he’s getting Matt Olson type money after all this.
So the Dodgers gave him the 6th year. Good on them.
Braves offered Freeman 5/135. $27M/yr
Braves signed Olson 8/168. $21M/yr
Dodgers get Freemen for 6/160. $26.7M/yr
So the Braves wouldn’t pay 6/160 for their franchise player, hating the idea so much that they also traded always four prospects to make sure they couldn’t keep him? Strange times.
Everyone thinks Freeman wanted to come back to Atlanta. I don’t buy that.
@getreal yeah, heard! He grew up in Orange, I imagine he might have wanted to play his home games at home (on top of the other incentives).
Because the Braves owners are smart. All that money spent by LA for 1 championship in a shortened season. They are successful no doubt but I’d rather be the Astros or Rays. Similar results for $100m less
Go Stros!
And you care about the money why? This is always a dumb argument.
Because most teams don’t have an unlimited budget. How is that so hard to understand?
For the declining years of their franchise player. If Freddie wasn’t going to be 38 by the end of the deal, the Braves don’t hesitate to throw him the contract. See Matt Olson for proof.
Yeah, I’m a bit confused. Now, in the Braves’ defense, Olson is younger, in his prime years, & better on defense, so those years will (likely) be at least as productive as Freddie’s next 6.
However, they also traded two really good prospects away, one reported to be an outstanding defensive catcher, and those don’t seem to easy to come by nowadays. Objectively, I would’ve given Freeman the sixth year and kept the career Braves player, franchise icon, team leader around. But that’s also easy for me to say…..
He is younger, but Freeman is more of a proven hitter. Freeman is also showing no signs of decline; indeed, his process and pitch selection is improving. This is not like when Albert Pujols left the Cards but was already showing regression. Freeman is showing no signs of regression.
I don’t doubt that Olson is good, but Freeman’s contract as reported takes him through his age 37 season. Olson’s takes him through age 35 season. We already know Freeman can hit at a high level in his 30s. Olson may not. Based on their hitting skills, I think there’s a better chance Freeman is more productive at 37 than Olson will be at 35. Olson just had his career year and it’s one I don’t suspect he’ll repeat. He’ll be good, but within three or four seasons, we’ll all be wondering why we ever thought Olson was going to be as good as Freeman. Freeman is building a HOF resume.
I don’t dislike the Olson signing. I dislike the fact the Braves traded away their franchise player and tossed in four prospects too when it’s not clear at all this is an upgrade. Could be a downgrade.
*not traded.*. Let leave.
6/160 and he couldn’t take the Braves’ 5 year offer?
Sucks it came to that. But, let’s go Olson.
At first glance it appears that Freeman’s camp overplayed their hand, although he did get more than the 150 million he was originally seeking.
Much better deal for the dodgers than what Seagar got. Freemam in his prime for 3-4 years is well worth it. Will be great as a DH as he ages
I’ll take Olson’s deal over this one considering length and age. First baseman don’t age well into their late 30s.
This is a bad deal. He won’t be worth the money after 2 years BUT LA has the money so why not?!
hot take
If it goes down they can hide max at dh and have solid defense all around
I still prefer Olson.
You gotta wonder how Freeman actually feels about this deal- 6 years/$160M…. he gets his 6th year but the AAV is super low and it’s still nowhere near the $200M he was aiming for.
I am sure ATL would have gone to 6 years/$160M if that’s actually what Freeman had asked for.
I think they offered 5 years/$135M in part to make it abundantly clear that they weren’t gonna go anywhere near $200M.
If Freddie had asked for 6 years/$180M, I am sure ATL would’ve met him in the middle and offered him 6 years/$160M…..possibly even 6 years/$168M…. if you catch my drift….
I bet Freeman is actually losing out on money by not being more flexible and creative with his Atlanta negotiations, even if it’s just $8M or so.
Freeman ultimately lost some money, but the Braves lost their franchise player, 4 prospects, and the same total dollars.
And if any of those prospects work out well, I smell regret in Atlanta’s future.
Can you stop talking like my accountant for one time??? I’m aware you’re a NYY fan and you articulate your thoughts well even though I disagree with them mostly. Quit being so rigid.
Me? I barely pay attention to other posters in these comment sections. If we disagree… shrug. I didn’t think I come off as ‘rigid’. I tend to be pretty open minded about monster contracts.
Freeman wasn’t seeking $200M. It was reported he asked for 6/180 and that was obviously aiming high. I believe that Freeman got exactly what he wanted, but I wonder if he would have taken 6/150 from the Braves.
1. Turner
2. Betts
3. Freeman
4. Turner
5. Muncy
6. Smith
7. Bellinger
8. Pollack
9. Taylor/Lux
Ridiculous
Yeah, and a couple of those guys could bounce back also. If they do…..even more sick. But, I love it. I love LAD going out and showing their fans they’re going for the throat. They’re going for it all, no holds barred. It’s a good time to be a Dodgers fan. They had the best SS in MLB playing 2B last year…. That’s saying something.
Very true. The Dodgers are ponying up and putting the money back into the club year after year. They should applauded for that.
Really really really good lineup lol. That top 3 is ridiculous
They are the Gold Bar Standard
Bs how do they get turner to bat twice in the order lol
Trea Turner and Justin Turner
Really had to explain it to mister guy? Pathetic.
Wow what a lineup! Now Dodgers need another starter, and then extend Trea Turner. Then it will settle itself on closer role.
Bauer?
Brew88: I don’t think you’re allowed to say his name….. out loud, ya know?
I only thought it, and then somehow typed it. My bad
Like Voldemort, I guess.
You….know….who……
I’d think that Muncy should hit ahead of J Turner. Smith may also move ahead. Hoping Bellinger bounces back. Taylor can play CF when Bellinger rests against lefties. Taylor can also plays 3B when J Turner DHs. I wonder how 3B PT gets divided.
I’d go T Turner, Freeman, Betts, Muncy, Smith, J Turner, Bellinger, Taylor, Pollock. That gets your best four hitters the most ABs in the course of any given game. Smith has had better OPS than J Turner the last two seasons.
Betts is most comfortable batting leadoff (the numbers show he performs better too) and Trea Turner doesn’t care, so Betts will bat leadoff when he plays. If everyone is healthy on April 8, the starting lineup against a RHP should be:
1. Betts RF
2. Freeman 1B
3. T Turner SS
4. Muncy 2B
5. J Turner 3B/DH
6. Smith C
7. Taylor LF/3B
8. Pollock LF/DH
9. Bellinger CF
Based on reports, it doesn’t sound like Muncy will be 100% ready though, so the lineup without him would be:
1. Betts RF
2. Freeman 1B
3. T Turner SS
4. J Turner 3B
5. Smith C
6. Taylor 2B
7. Rios DH
8. Pollock LF
9. Bellinger CF
Of course, this is just my opinion and the lineup possibilities are endless…definitely been the best 10 years of my 35-year Dodgers fandom!
Great for Dodger fans. But is it good for baseball?
And the Giants signed Joc Pederson. Great.
So…the Angels signed Matt Duffy. We just got serious.
Don’t forget Kurt Suzuki is back 😉
splodem — This is the first time I’ve ever questioned Farhan and Harris. Signing Joc makes absolutely no sense unless there’s a trade coming that clears out the roster.
Dodgers have a good supply of hard-throwing RHPs in the bullpen…Joc loves smashing those types of pitchers. He’s also super clutch in the postseason, as both Dodgers and Braves fans can confirm.
He’ll probably be somewhat of a platoon player, which the Giants were VERY good at utilizing last season.
Yeah well we have Hosmer so there haha ugh. In all seriousness good signing by the Dodgers. As a Padres fan,there’s always 2023 or 24 or never.
Well done, Dodgers! I’m going to enjoy watching you guys.
He will lose his power in a few seasons but seems like the type of player who will still be able to hit for average and drive in runs at an old age.
Padres should trade Hosmer, Myers & Darvish then sign Correa move Tatis to Outfield and trade Abrams for young pitching from Marlins or Rays
Uh, jimbob, the padres have been trying to trade Hosmer and Myers for years. No takers.
@Jim The padres should stand pat and keep their prospects now that Suzuki, Freeman, Rizzo, Olson are gone from the market. I hope they don’t feel desperate and do something stupid in trading their top prospects. After the year, Myers will come off the books with a 1mil buyout and Hosmer would only have 3 yrs left and 39mil. With Tatis gone for 3 months there’s no reason to trade your future.
Some of you guys take sports way too seriously
I’d serve a life sentence for my Blue Jays.
True. They are much better off being someone like you and telling complete strangers how to act….
@Fred HERESY!
Let’s GO DODGERS is all I have to Say!
Commenting “BRAVES ARE CHEAP” when seeing where this lands is idiotic. This is not where it would’ve landed if they stayed in the bidding. Dodgers had high chip stack. Use logic folks.
Liberty Media is cheap.
Braves get Matt Olson and $5 million (if freeman does get the 6/160) in savings by giving up 4 prospects plus their franchise cornerstone
They got spooked by LA and had to do what they had to do. Getting Matt Olson was a great move but letting it get this far with Freeman was beyond ridiculous. He should’ve been locked up years ago. Basically saying hey thanks for helping us to a World Series, now get lost
I think Freddie (or his agent) was convinced he could get 6/$180. Atlanta and the Yankees were doing that so they moved on which dropped his market. At this point, I bet he wishes he accepted the original Braves offer and just fully became the next Chipper.
If Padres made these moves they would have money left to sign Correa and Conforto or. Castellanos
Dodgers are like the cool guy in class that wants to steal everybody’s girlfriend.. what arseholes, Freeman should’ve been a Blue Jay.
Man I love the people talking about how his wife is “gross”. some random weirdo commenting on MLBTraderumors that a millionaires wife isn’t hot enough for him…gotta love it
ah yes, the HYPOCRISY rears its ugly head again. “Wow! they’re really going for it” when another team spends massive money. But cries of “IT’S NOT FAIR” when it’s the Dodgers . Swear all of baseball is licking Steve Cohen’s nipples for spending. Yet the Dodgers do it and it’s “ruining the game.” Yall are ridiculous lol
Nothing wrong with picking on the cool kids in class, when we were young they always picked on us. Right guys?
Seems to me the Dodgers are always stealing the Spot light. Don’t sign or trade for anyone then boom a mega move to cap their off season or trade deadline.
Done deal!
The Dodgers are such an incredibly well-run organization, and they’re willing to back it up with the resources. The two go together.
the whole Dodgers buy everything complaint is wholly inaccurate but don’t let that stop you
they signed Pollock, Bauer and Betts after trading top talent for him
rest of the team is home grown or castoffs other teams gave up on
the farm is so strong everyone wants their prospects
and the FO is so shrewd it makes it all work
no the team didn’t steal the best players in the league like the spankees do
atm the entire rotation came up through their farm system
stop crying cause your team can’t figure it out
The *buy cry* crowd are simply jealous because their teams don’t put the resources in to win that the Dodgers do, even when they can. I’ll take them every day of the week over the Pirates, Royals and Reds of the world. Not every team has their resources, but teams often spend poorly, many teams underspend (there are no poor MLB teams), and we also see teams that spend less and win too. They’re to be admired. Fans of those teams are lucky. In the world of sports entertainment, they entertain by consistently trying to win.
You guys are a couple of talking heads
Your argument isn’t clear. Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman are castoffs no one else wanted? What about Scherzer what was he? Homegrown? Price?
Muncy, Turner, Taylor, etc.
vivalosdoyers — I think this is where the Dodgers have been so effective. And they’ve developed Smith, Seager, Lux, Bellinger. It’s a well run organization. Still, it’s hard to watch them out-money everyone else. That can’t be good for baseball.
we traded top prospects or we don’t get those guys
Huh? What prospects were traded to get Freddie?
It’s just a business to owners and players. .
Freeman has made 120M in the past 12 years.
If he signs a 150M deal for 8 years, he would have made 280M over 20 years.
Matt Olsen has made 6M over the past 6 years.
Matt is due to make 170M more over the next 8 years.
He would have made 176M over 14 years.
Fair to say that Freddie Freeman making over 100M MORE than Matt Olson says ALOT about their value.
Freddie is a borderline HOF.. 11 years in the majors and he’s been a MVP candidate for 7 of them
Matt had a couple of good years.
They put people in the HOF for their earnings… better make way for Chris Davis and Vernon Wells
Jacoby Ellsbury ain’t no slouch either. Wait… he was.
Josh Hamilton
Thank God for Freddie. That extra few million he took from the Dodgers will help keep his family off of govt cheese in retirement!
Let’s gooooooo!
Braves couldn’t go 1 more year for Freeman instead trade Pache, two first round prospects, and another prospect
One of the rare times they botch something
Couple that with the fact they are salivating over Olson who has done nothing in his career (yet) to even think he will match Freeman’s production. One great year and he is already an easy replacement? Lets throw money his way?
He Will Get a standing ovation when the dodgers come to town.
Being a 1B just doesn’t pay as much
Al AVILA REALLY KNOWS HOWMTO SCREW.THINGS.UP!
THE FGUY WAS TOTALLY SET UP.AND SCORED ABSOLUTELY ZERO
ZERO
lol, Kris Bryant got more than Freeman. Never saw it coming.
Freeman took that to be on a winning team, kris took that to pat his stats and never win anything
Saying “Freeman took that to be on a winning team” implies there was a team offering Freeman more than what he received from the Dodgers, and it doesn’t seem like that’s the case. What also-ran was offering Freeman more?
Pretty simple actually – the Rockies overpaid. They’re poorly run and the Braves/Dodgers are very well run.
Um it’s the Rockies, they have to overpay.
Dodgers just took their toughest competitor’s best player. Addition by subtraction. All for an extra year?
I am a Cubs and Didgers fan
But in Atlanta’s defense, had Atlanta signed Freeman, then the Dodgers might have traded for Olson.
Good for Freddie. I feel like he was worth more but I’m glad to see he still going to be competing for another championship.
Regardless of who he plays for, I will forever cheer for him.
Scary thing is; I dont think the Dodgers are done adding players
Prob sign Pujols and call it a day. Will likely trade for pitching via Lux or farm with their abundance of talent.
Nope, Dodgers will keep Lux. If Turner leaves after this year, Lux will be the SS.
People can complain all they want about the Dodgers “buying” players, but they let an impact homegrown bat in Corey Seager leave. He signed for $325M with the Rangers. They signed an equally impactful and healthier bat in Freddie Freeman for half of Seager’s deal, and now they simply slide Turner over to SS.
The Dodgers are smart.
Yeah but people just love to hate Los Angeles. For the record, that’s fine by me. L.A. can take the hate.
Braves last known offer was 5 years 138mil $27.6mil AAV
Dodgers signed him for 6 years 162 mil, 27mil AAV
I’m sure Braves would have gone 5/150 so it seems that Freddie held out for one more year at 12 mil.
I’m dissapointed that Freddie felt like he needed to squeeze that extra year out. Maybe he wanted to move back to California all along. Who knows?
It’s being reported that the Braves last offer was 5/140, but getting that 6th year was key to Freeman. Shouldn’t you be more annoyed that the Braves wouldn’t find an additional $20M for the sixth year for their franchise player? Keep in mind those four prospects traded away are worth well more than $20 million in assigned value, and it’s a lost opportunity to trade them to fill other needs.
I’m simply not seeing how the Braves couldn’t close this deal for their fans.
I personally think the Braves offer was more than fair. FF turns 33 later this season.
Somewhere out there Gavin Lux is going WHAT ABOUT ME – Muncy at 2b but I think they have muncy at DH more of the time and have lux at 2B
Chris Taylor can play 2B as well. Lux will see time in CF, but he is at the point where he has to start proving it consistently at the plate
cheapest insurance policy in the meantime
Good chance we see max mostly at DH
Or at 3B with Justin Turner at DH
Who is the better fielder at 1b? They might rotate Freeman on DH at times.
You don’t pay that money for a DH until he starts falling off defensively. He is now the face of the franchise and an elite defender
Face? Forgetting Kershaw, Mookie etc…? I think he will DH at times, especially as he ages and also to give Muncy reps at 1st.
I think the point for the Dodgers is that they have options.
Still not sure Muncy will be ready to go by April 7. He is still not taking batting practice. Another reason the Dodgers went heavy after Freeman, IMO.
The thing is not spend money just because but, when you see a team that’s a few pieces away from being a legit WS contender and they don’t go for it ,that’s when you call them cheap, ( Tampa, Milwaukee) both teams can spend 50 more millions this year and become a top 5 favorite to win the WS but, they won’t.
Pit, Baltimore, could be taking bad contracts and getting good prospects back and that would be good for baseball, they will get out of the rebuild earlier and a team like SD ( Hosmer) Mets ( cano) will have more money to make the team better today, win, win for fans.
“Cheap”….yes, are all owners are business owners trying to make a profit? Of course…do you know what the TV deal pays towards payroll for LAD and milwaukee?? The dodgers get $239MM per season from Spectrum, The Brewers get $28MM per season from Bally’s Sports. Yes, the Dodgers will pay into revenue sharing and their penalty for being into the luxury tax…but it’s like half the teams are playing in an entirely different league.
They don’t need to go to 200M , they can go to 160M.
Not to hate in Freddie but just watching him at time last season you could tell he was struggling at some thing he had never struggled with earlier on in his career. It may not show in his stats but even he admitted at times that he was stumped and would go through spurts of frustration which is what all players who start declining start to do. We’re these signs that he was declining? No idea, we won’t know until we see what he can do next season but I watched every single braves game last season and could see for myself that he wasn’t the one carrying the teams weight most of the season like in years past. Freddie is a hell of a guy and a great player. As a Braves fan I’m gonna miss him. But now that he is with the enemy I will hate having to root against him.
There were some signs that Freddie may be declining and I think in some ways he might even know that and would admit if being honest. Maybe it’s why he held out for as much money as possible because he knew this was going to be it. Than again he might win MVP next season who knows
This contract and this decision is what he was struggling with last season. If you watched Freddie at ST and the beginning of last season, being bombarded with contract questions, he was rarely smiling, he wasn’t having fun, and he wasn’t being himself.
He was even half-assing his Freddie Hugs..lol Seriously though, any and everyone could tell his contract negotiations were stressing him out and bogging him down.
Once he just learned to let it go, and once he started smimong and having fun again slowly but surely he turned it cold streaks at the plate right around. From then on he was the Freeman we all knew and loved both on ajd off the field..
Freddie took the lack of progress personally at first, and he let that affect his on tue field performance. He wouldn’t ever admit it, even when he was straight up blatantly asked about it in interviews, but that is just how Freddie rolls. He wasn’t going to make any excuses for hisself..He is always a class act, and always takes responsibility for his performance and actions, for better or worse…
Even when he was going really well, he would always talk about the atbats or defensive plays of someone else on the team. He’d always say compliment the hitters around him and thank them for providing him with protection. He would thank his Dad for helping him make adjustments or their hitting coach Kevin Seitzer..
You’d be hard pressed to find such a humble human being coupled with star abilities and charisma..
Here is ONE FINAL HUG to you Freddie Freeman!! Wish you nothing but success and the best, unless you’re playing against the Braves. Then and only then, will I ever be rooting against you..lol
LOL…so many things here. First, thanks Spectrum and 13M people in metro LA for that tv deal…and a big hang up on the CBA was a minimum floor for the small market teams….geezus.
Second…this AAV is lower than the one the Rox gave KB earlier today. YIKES…
Freddie did what was best for Freddie and his family. ATL did what they thought was best for them. Olson is a solid ballplayer. I don’t blame either side for any of it. That said as a Phillies fan I’m glad he’s out of our division and comes back and torches the hell out of the Braves for years.
Rich get richer. Disgusting.
Would you have said this if they signed Seager for 10/350?
It’s official Freddie to LA 6 years at $162…
Sick Dodgers lineup.
Dodgers will still choke in the playoffs.
Sad little puppy you are, uncle.
Not sure about the articles “ Star Studded Pitching Staff”
Freeman is one of the most overrated players… crap… uhhh… He’s a future HoFer!!!! ~ Dodgers fan
None of my friends have ever uttered that. In fact, we’ve all rooted for Freddie and we were happy for him to win. Genuine good guy and great player deserves a ring.
So AA wouldn’t pay Freddie and traded for/ signed Olson instead. Seems like just last season the Braves were missing some key players and AA tried to replace them with “lesser” players. 2 of them won postseason MVP’s and I’m still waiting on Soler’s HR to land. Braves fans should accept the fact that AA seems to know what he’s doing.
Absolutely agree, Also AA said very clearly…they couldn’t afford to wait. And dodgers just would’ve kept outbidding…
Teams are still allowed to sign free agents?
Signed, an Angel fan.
I’ve got nothing but respect for Freeman as a player. But it’s clear he made it about money, and in this regard, he lost a little bit of that respect, not as a player, but as a human being. I’ll always support him as a player and hope he does well, just not against Atlanta.
The Braves did make him a very fair offer, he just wasn’t signing anywhere until he got that 6th year.
Freddie stuck to his guns, for better or worse, and as a man, I admire the heck out of him for it. As a Braves fan, I will never forget he left over 1 year and 12mil …
There is honestly a big part of me that feels Freddie really wanted to move back to LA to end his career, and by the Braves not giving him that 6th year that was his “excuse” to leave. Not that he needed one, but I think it meant alot to him to leave the Braves and their fans on good terms…
Dodgers win offseason again?
No, Rangers won the offseason. Dodgers will win the regular season. Dodgers and Altlanta will be front-runners to meet in NL playoffs
Let’s see what happens with Correa and Story before I pick front-runners for AL.
My only problem with the Braves is that if they were willing to offer 5/140, why wouldn’t they try 6/150?
That lowers the AVV from 28 to 25 per year and if Freddie declined that, then you could say you tried your best.
Good luck Freddie! The Dodger fans don’t deserve you, but we will always love you
I heard they offered as high as 5years and 150 mil, but they absolutely refused the 6th year. Liberty Media has to okay the big money deals, and they would not okay a 6 year deal for Freeman, not at those rates. If they really offered 5/150, and Freeman turned it down for 6/162, then I think either Freddie wanted as much money as possible regardless who gave it to him, or he really just wanted to go back to LA and the 6th year and extra 12 mil was just the cherry on top.
Good lord almighty, Dodgers fans should be sending Terry McGuirk and Liberty Media thank you cards!!
I dont blame AA, he shouldn’t even be forced to have to make budget decisions on their decade long franchise icon and all-star…
That lineup and even their bench is just STUPID AMAZING!!
Trea Turner
Mookie Betts
Freddie Freeman
Max Muncy
Justin Turner
Will Smith
Chris Taylor
Cody Bellinger
AJ Pollock
Their bench: Austin Barnes, Edwin Rios, Gavin Lux, and Matt Beatty…
Plus, heck, knowing the Dodgers they’ll probably have another super stud or two position player just waiting in the wings that’ll get called up when they have an injury or two…
I’m just beyond envious and jealous how well the Dodgers organization is ran. They’ve built up their primary core from their farm system, through nailing picks and trades, and then they aren’t afraid also to spend money to fill in their needs to complete their roster and add depth!!!
I know that doesn’t seem like that difficult of a concept, but the Dodgers do it better than anyone else. The Rays might be the one exception, but they are unable to attract a crowd and thus dont spend enough to make the jump from really good to great. Then, they also have to rebuild every so many years and start over quickly…
I would absolutely LOOOOOVE to see what the Braves and AA could really do if they had a different owner. They’re ran strictly as a business for a profit, nothing more, and it is times like these where you remember just why that really sucks sometimes!!!
Rich
I totally agree for teams with financial clout the Dodgers are the model to follow. Several years ago when SD were going nuts with trades and FA signings many fair weather Jays fans were crying for the Jays to do the same. It takes a few years and patience to develop a good young core and the development infrastructure to build a sustained winner. Build the homegrown core then use FA $$ and prospect capital to supplement it. Jays Mid 80s-Early 90s did just that and have 2 WS to show for it.
Oh yeah, and I understand, as a fan, it may be difficult to sit through a rebuild, but like you alluded to, building a sustainable contending roster takes time and patience.
The best comparison I can give is like a person that is trying to lose weight. The faster you lose it, the faster you’re right back to where you started. If you take your time, get your diet right, exercise, and lose a little here and there over time, you’re alot more likely to keep those good habits and maintain that weight loss..lol haha
Trying to fast track success only really works in sports like basketball, where one or two players can completely turn around a franchise, but EVEN STILL, the franchise’s that are able to sustain more than a 1 or 2 year run are built through patience and timely free agent acquisitions…
Look at the Jay’s and White Sox now, they both took the time to build up their prospects and MiL systems, they had alot of their young players grow up through their systems together building a new foundation for success, and now they are dealing those rewards. Now, they can fill in their roster holes by spending some money, or by making some trades from their MiL depth, but for teams without a big budget it is all about balance..
Like the Cubs, and the mistakes they made building up to get their championship. They weren’t sustainable because they could not develop enough pitching internally. So, they had to trade too much of their MiL depth away, and by the time their core came up for big paydays they couldnt afford to pay them, because of all the money they spent acquiring pitchers, and basically they were stuck forced to rebuild and retool…
It isn’t easy, especially for markets that put alot of pressure on their teams to Win and win titles..That’s why I was so happy that AA and Coppy were patient not trading away a bunch of prospects when the Braves were rebuilding, or when they first started to rebuild. They could have tried to keep that moderately competitive Braves team going and traded away some top prospects like Albies and Acuna at the time, but they knew they’d only be digging that franchise into a hole of neverending mediocrity…And thank god they didn’t trade away those two prospects at the time. Even then they weren’t sure fire All-Stars, but they let them develop, and they certainly rewarded them for keeping them around.
I also think this is the method by which Farhan and Harris are guided in San Francisco, though admittedly they have more money. Not everyone can throw money around like the Dodgers and Yankees.
So one year was the deciding factor that he left his home team and fans for. If he wanted to be a Brave and represent with his championship team he could have for the same money minus one year. I’m a HUGE Braves fan and have been forever. Good luck Freddie the ATL will miss you but it’s now known your true motivation. $$$ #ATLWSCHAMPIONS
Extra year means another 25-30 million. Whatever he’ll get that last year. Boatload of money though
Alternatively… one year was the deciding factor that his home team let him walk for. If they wanted him to be a Brave and represent with his championship team they could have for the same money plus one year. Good luck ATL, Freddie will miss you but it’s now known your true motivation. $$$
First let me say that despite understanding how much Freddie Freeman helps the Dodgers’ chances of winning the WS for years to come, I truly wanted him to stay in Atlanta, just like I always want Kershaw, Jansen, (wanted Seager, but not for 300+ mil), Buehler — and all our homegrown players to be Dodgers for life.
However, only one of those players playing in another uniform, would cause me to never forgive the current ownership and management…Kershaw of course.
That guy for the Braves and their fans was Freeman, hands down.
So the real question is why in the absolute hell, would the Braves let Freeman walk over 1 year and 22 mil??? That 22 mil would have probably been covered just from the Freeman merchandise sales over the next 6 years alone. If I were a Braves fan, I would be so mad at AA and ownership right now…unbelievable fail on their part.
That’s my opinion anyway
They don’t have 22m to burn & be able to compete against the DODGERS at the same time lol.
From a franchise perspective ATL got better even though that hurts to say.
With Freddie ATL likely doesn’t get Rosario or McHugh & would have to fill holes internally. Also would hamstring the payroll in future years being that ATL doesn’t have a mega TV deal to foot the bill.
Filling holes internally with unproven prospects is exactly how you lose to a team like LA when it matters most.
Having Lux in CF hurt LA last year for instance. Great player with a lot of upside but wasn’t ready for the bright lights of the WS in a fairly new position.
Dodgers Outbid Rays! There’s a headline shocker.
I just realized this, the Dodgers could have three, different former MVP’s on their roster from the past 3 years, but then also any one of their #’s1-4 hitters could legitimately be the 2022 NL MVP and no one would be surprised whatsoever..(Not to mention, they could also have the Cy Young Award winner in Walker Buehler)
Trea Turner
Mookie Betts
Freddie Freeman
Max Muncy
Has there EVER been a more dominant foursome, all in their prime,to start off a lineup!?!
Not like the rest of their lineup isn’t absurdly good as well, like I posted previously, but good lord what a starting one through four!!
Not to pry, but………
Acuna
Albies
Olson
Riley
Its not about what you have done in the past, but what you gonna do……oh, the cost for Braves in 2022 for these four will be 39 Million. The Cost for the Dodgers will be 81 million. Thanks for playing…….
I’ll take the Dodgers over the Braves, especially until I see how long it takes Acuna to come back 100%
@Randomuser. How long will it take for Muncy to come back from his elbow injury? Braves GM (AA) said that Acuna should be available to DH by April 21st. Muncy can’t even swing a bat yet. Dodgers “top 4” is just a “top 3” in the comparisons above.
They actually have 4 former MVPs on their roster. Kershaw, Freeman, Bellinger, Betts
Braves could have and should have done this. The regression risk really isn’t much different for Olsen