Random Sports Babbling Post 2

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It was great to see Cutler's downfall. I have heared several Bears fans lamenting the trade of Kyle Orton. I find that hilarious!

 

Come on Pats!!! Stop sucking and actual defend against the passing game, fer christ's sake! (Or at least for my sake so I don't have a heart attack).

 

I think a lot of it is due to FIFA not wishing to remove the human element of the sport. While I'm sure replays would result in more accurate calls it would also reduce the respect for referees and weaken the debate about questionable calls, which in itself is its own subculture. It's always fun to find excuses why a team lost, it would be horrible if people were forced to the realization that their team sucks.

 

I watched that game from beginning to end on my Satelite. Great game. The Skins Kicker missing that chip shot was unbelievable. That was the game. I was stunned at Washington's offense, they finally woke up for a game this year.

 

Pats lost to Miami. I am saddened to now realize that the Pats are no longer one of the elite teams (although Brady is still one of the elite QBs) and they are just now slightly above average. Le sigh; my years as a sports fan have been pretty good in Boston - most of the last decade Boston teams have been consistently playoff and championship caliber teams, so it is tough to see some human qualities in the teams

 

So my Phils just landed Halladay, losing Lee. Money wise, smart move. Though I like Lee better for the team. He's a topnotch Lefty and Halladay has been injured more than once. Lee will be looking for a CC Sabathia payday next year though, something the Phils can't and won't do. Halladay was willing to take a 3 yr extension for much less money than Lee. A lot of sports sites have been calling my Phils the "Yanks of the NL". How stupid is that. They can't maintain a bloated payroll and it wasn't even conceivable that they could land Halladay and keep Lee at the same time. Just follow the Phils history and bankroll, never did they ever even try to keep a big payroll nor would they as they don't draw in enough revenue.

 

Err, the contract extension for Halladay is rumored to be 3 years at 60 million or more... thats 20 million a year - there is no way Lee could command too much more than that.

Man, Lee and Halladay on the same team would be sweet. But now we have to watch out for the Mariners, who had a decent year last year and are going for it this year! Hopefully they get to keep Lee past this year, or he is a one year rental that cost them part of their future.

 

Lee's agent is rumord to be looking for a sweepstakes payday, which he will get in a bidding war after next year. There will not be many quality free-agent starting pitchers available next year, which will drive up his value. The Phils know this and are not interested in shelling out that kinda money. They prefer to let the Yanks and Boston do that. A 3-yr deal with Halladay is by far the safer and much cheaper option, even at 20 Million a yr. Look at what Sabathia reigned it last year. Lee was so dominant in the plaoffs, much more than anyone else in recent history, except for maybe Hamels 2 yrs ago, that he will get that kind of money from a contender. The difference in yearly salary will allow them to pay a little extra to keep the core team solidified in Philly. Only the Yanks can afford to shell out top dallar for every player. No other team draws the revenue to do so. BTW, I don't think that makes the Yankees wrong for doing it, it just sucks no one else is in the position to do so. The league "could" impose a salary cap that can't be breached, but it won't happen. They like the extra money they get from the luxury taxes of the Yanks.

 

Poor Mariners then - they don't have the cash to feed Lee (unless they sacrifice King Felix) for 2011 - hopefully they do really well in 2010!


EDIT: What do you think about the Sox signing Lackey to a 5 year, 83ish million dollar contract? It's the biggest that has been signed since Theo became GM.

 

Here's the thing that didn't make sense to me in the Lee-Halladay trade: Lee was relatively cheap for this year at $6 million. I understand that the Phillies wanted to get some prospects back, as they gave up a lot of their young prospects to get Halladay. But if the goal is to win the World Series, and you're really close, why not take both pitchers into the season, and resign yourself to the fact that you'll probably lose Lee after the 2010 season. Yes, it's nice to get something in return for Lee, but if I were a Philly fan, I'd definitely mortgage the future for another WS title. IMO, when you have a really good chance to win THIS YEAR you've got to capitalize on it.

As for the money aspect, while there is no way that Lee will get $20 million per year, Lee is going to want a heck of a lot more than a 3-year deal. In terms of total dollars, Halladay costs the Phils $60 million plus whatever he gets paid this year (I don't know that number offhand, but it's probably substantially less than $20 million). So the Phils get Halladay for 4 years at a cost of around $65-70 million. Lee on the other hand, is going to be looking a deal of around 5 years for $80-90 million. So while Halladay is more money on a per year basis, he's cheaper in terms of a total price tag.

I'm still not entirely sold on the whole deal. Unless the prospects they got for Lee were better than the prospects they dealt for Halladay, I'm not sure if this deal makes the Phils substantially better in either the short or long term.

Regarding the Mariners not being able to retain Lee, I think that's crazy talk. There's no way you make that deal if you cannot keep Lee. The Mariners were not even close to a playoff contender last year, and I find it unlikely that a guy who plays once every five games is such a difference maker that you'd give up a ton of top prospects to get him for one year. (Although, to be fair, the Angels have got totally boned thus far in free agency - the Mariners might not be as far away as they appeared to be last year.)

With Lackey, I think the Red Sox have the best pitching staff in the American League at this point. They definitely appear to have the best starting rotation, Papelbon (sp?) is definitely a capable closer, and while the middle relief isn't great, no one has great middle relievers (because if they did, they'd be closers playing somewhere else). I don't know if it makes sense to give a five year deal to a guy who will be 32 next year, but if he continues playing at a high level, he's worth $80 million. The Red Sox still need a bat or two to compete with the Yankees. The Yankees still need to add another pitcher (obviously, it won't be an elite pitcher), but that lineup is easily the best in baseball.

 

The Philly Brass know they can't keep both of them and even if they tried to land just Halladay and retain Lee, it's still the dollars that are stopping them. Their payroll is already ballooned way over what they can afford. Only revenue from sales will pay those salaries. Philly's very touchy fan base is what keeps them from spending. The fans will only spend if you make the playoffs. If the Phils commit more money and don't start off hot, they seats won't fill up and the Jerseys won't be sold. Bottom line is risk and the Phils brass are notorious for not taking any. The fact that they spent this much on the team is amazing to most Phillies fans.

 

I concede that the Phils won't be able to afford to keep both. What I'm saying is that Lee was cheap for 2010 at just $6 million. The calculation here is what is worth more to the club, Lee for one more year and then letting him walk, or getting something in return for him now, but not having his arm in the rotation.

The Phils have a pretty good sized payroll, and $6 million minus whatever you're paying the prospects you got in return for him is not such a huge amount that it should cause fan outrage. In fact, I'd imagine that the bigger problem if the Phillies bomb would be what they're paying Halladay - they're off the hook with Lee at the end of next year.

Assuming the prospects are about equal, then this deal does make the Phils a little better, as you'd rather have Halladay than Lee. I'm just not so sure that it makes them substantially better, because while they acquired an ace, they also dealt one.

 

Oh, I don't think they improved the team in terms of having a better chance of winning the WS next year. Not at all. Lee is a stud right now. Halladay has been hurt a few times. I never like paying for an injury-prone player. I also prefer the lefty stud to a righty stud anyday when it comes to starting pitching. Good lefties are not a dime a dozen.

I was pointing out the Phils reasoning about the move. Which I understand from a team management point of view. They always go the conservative route when in a crunch. Most teams do these days. I would of loved to have seen Lee and Halladay together. They would of been unstoppable. Hamels would have a chance to get back to form in the 3 spot of the rotation. No pressure on him. But now, with Lee gone, the rotation will look something like this...still nice, but better with Lee. Though they might get some milage out of Pedro for cheap. I wonder whether a healthy Myers will fall into the bullpen again or make another stab at the rotation.


1 - Halladay
2 - Hamels
3 - Happ
4 - Blanton
5 - Martinez

 

As a Phillies fan, would you trade a WS title in 2010, for mediocrity for a few years afterwards by not getting prospects for Lee? I know you say it was an economic decision, but like I said Lee's salary was managable in 2010. The issue was not being able to sign in to a long term deal thereafter.

 

I agree with Aldeth... a rotation with Hallady, Lee, Hamels, Happ, and Pedro (Blanton sucks, to be honest) would be the best in baseball, and with the Phil's lineup, would be a definite playoff team (thus increasing revenue, perhaps enough to pay for Lee) and a very good potential WS team.

As for the Mariners not making the trade unless they could keep Lee - remember what Milwaukee did with Sabathia... they got him for 2 months for like... 4 or 5 players (IIRC).

 

Blanton pitched admirably for the Phils last year. He rarely gives up more than 5 runs usually 3-4 in 6-7 innings. With the Phils lineup, that keep them in most games. He is a solid # 4 or 5 for the innings he gives compared to his salary. He will give you 30+ starts. Plus there is no one in the bullpen who throws like him, so the change of pace from Blanton to the bullpen works to the Phils advantage. Blanton has a nice strikout total for innings pitched as well and in Philly, with their new, very small ballpark, that is a plus. The 1st game I went to their surprised me. I played on several bigger fields while playing High School and Legion ball. It really is that small. No wonder they hit so many HRs.

 

His ERA last year was 4.05, which is not bad, but that is only his 3rd lowest (and not by much) in his entire career. Plus, he gave up 30 HRs, which was 3rd most in the NL (4th overall). In all the games I've seen him pitch, he just looks ungainly and ineffective. Granted, I don't get to see nearly as many as you, so you probably have a more valid opinion, but I would take Pedro over him any day.

EDIT: Also, they could have moved Blanton if they wanted to keep Lee for the next few years - Blanton is due to make more than 7 million through arbitration after 2010.

 

I saw Blanton throw several nice games last year. He has an ugly delivery because of his build, which is stocky(or fat!).Blanton will not be retained after 2010, I guarantee it. As for the HRs allowed, so did alot of the Phillies pitchers in that ballpark. Blanton caught more starts at home than away last year. That park is a Home Run Derby stadium. He wouldn't give up 30 in San Diego or LA. Plus 19 of 30 HRs were allowed at home. The park is a telling factor, especially for RHPs, as lefty hitters get to hit flyballs that are HRs to rightfield. I am serious when I say that if you visit that stadium and walk around to get a view from behind the plate, rightfield is way shorter than stated. Everyone I know who has been to that stadium will agree. I think it's the power-alley that is shortened, making an odd taper from Center to Right.

That is why they went after Thome when they were 1st opening the stadium and also a reason why Howard hits so many HRs. Plus you have Utley and Ibanez, more pull hitting lefties and Werth, a righty who hits the ball to rightfield. There is a reson the Phils all of the sudden became a power lineup. They built their lineup around that field.

 

Haha, good planning on their part - tough luck for whoever gets those players in the next couple years when their numbers drop outside of the stadium (except for new Yankee Stadium, which was actually built as a NASA launching pad).

If they had kept Lee and gotten rid of Blanton, though, they would have saved the same amount of money and probably won the WS this year. They still have a good chance, but not as good with the 1-2 of Halladay-Lee.