No, its just a question of will they pay Pujols FMV when he hits FA. I always wonder why the Cardinals worry so much over payroll. They have a very good following. I assume its because of all the other teams near enough to steal some of their market share.
The Cardinals are a mid market team. They do not get the huge bonanza of local TV and radio money like NY, Boston, and LA. In short, they are in the same boat as the Astros and many other clubs in that regard.
Or they simply want to make money... This is a down economy after all. Not a stretch to think even a pretty successful mid-market team would not want to pay up.
The Cubs are only 4-5 hours away as well. If you're the Astros, you have the Rangers in Arlington, but nobody else anywhere close.
Barry Bonds strongly disagrees, as he is probably the greatest hitter ever and was doing just fine for most of the last decade. Far superior to Pujols, but discredited for PE's. There is no doubt Pujols is using PE's himself, though. All that you have to do is look at his numbers and compare them to when before PE's dominated the game, and it is quite obvious. Great hitter but falls well short of Bonds. It will take a long time, if ever, before they get PE's out of the game, but until they do, all you can do is compare apples to apples.
How can you say Pujols is using Peformance Enhancers.....there is no evidence to cite that claim what so ever. Where as Bonds had a HUGE jump in his offensive categories and it was blatantly obvious that he was taking illegal substances. Since Pujols has come into the league he has been the most consistent player the game has seen and his numbers have stayed solid. There is no reason to even think he has used Performance Enhancers. Fans and the media just love to throw out accusations of steroid usage. When simply they have nothing to back it up. Pujols is the equivalent to the Lebron James of his sport. People want to bash Pujols simply because of how good he is. Winning 3 MVPs in less than a decade is possibly one of the best individual accomplishments ever. God help your soul if you are comparing Pujols and Bonds and trying to link steroid usage between them. PUJOLS PUTS UP BIG NUMBERS=STEROIDZ lewl.
Why would he choose Houston? I'm guessing because the ballpark is pretty small and his offensive numbers would go through the roof. Can you imagine Prince Albert in Minute Maid? He would probably break every offensive record, lol.
To be young an naive. Are we supposed to believe that Pujols is so great that he is putting PE numbers against PE pitchers, and doing it cleanly. He is so far above anyone who has ever played the game that he is better than the greats who use PE's and he doesn't even need them to be better. Again, look at what offensive numbers were like before PE's took the game over. Are Pujols numbers closer to them or on par with the PE guys. You can say the same thing about consistency with A-rod and he has been using them. He came in as a teenager, also so obviously thee was some growth at the begginning of his career both physically and performance wise. Lebron isn't putting up numbers that go against the norm in his sport. He is just one of the best in the game today. He is doing nothing that makes him far and away one of the best ever. Pujol's is putting up numbers well above what the best in baseball averaged before PE's. He is almost at Bond's level. That should be all the proof you need. There is no comparison between the Lebron and Pujol's. You can choose to blindly look at the situation if you want, but if you were to just take a step back and look at the situation clearly, it is pretty obvious.
Pujols hit 47 HRs last season. It's not that far outside the norm and not even close to what Bonds was putting up. Griffey was putting up much higher numbers in his prime.
Why shouldn't we believe that Pujols is putting up these numbers legitimately..... You assume because Pujols has come into the league and been the best hitter that he HAS to be cheating. Give it up already Pujols is drug tested just like every other player, probably even more than the average. Until he tests positive or suddenly hits 75 homeruns in a season the guy is as legit as they come. Lebron isn't putting up numbers out of the norm....what are you talking about. He is putting up numbers comparable to Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan. He reached 15,000 points two years faster than anyone EVER has. Does that not seem out of the ordinary to you. So I mean he has to be cheating by your standards right ? Face it Pujols and Lebron are probably the two best players at their respective sports. People enjoy to hate on them simply because of how good they are. You have no factual evidence against Pujols but argue that simply because he plays in a PE era that he must be cheating. That's the problem with today's athletes fans like you simply enjoy putting the blame on them because of guilt by association. Give me a break.
Joe Mauer just signed an 8-yr, $184 million deal ($23MM a year), and the Twins weren't even bidding against anyone! Given that, I wonder what the hell Pujols' market value will be.
Pujols isn't putting up unheard of numbers. He's never hit 50 HRs in a season. Lots of players have his kind of power. Lots of players have his kind of average. It's fairly rare for people to have both, but people do - lots of players have had 1.000 OPS seasons before, including our own Lance Berkman. Berkman's 2001 and 2004 seasons were the same as most Pujols seasons. What really makes Pujols special is that he's incredibly consistent and puts up those numbers every single year.
Wow just read that. I'm glad Mauer is staying. Better to pay that kind of money now than to have to try and bid against the big market teams in the winter and pay a whole lot more.
The Cardinals have one of the strongest and largest fan bases anywhere. When I used to sell beer at Cards games, the stands would be filled with people who drove in from all over - Iowa, Arkansas, Tennessee, etc. to come see the team. The Cards were broadcast on KMOX, one of the strongest radio stations in the country starting in the 1920's. In a way, it is similar to the "superstation" effect that TBS and WGN provided for the Cubs and Braves, but it was much more enduring and for 60 plus years, instead of 10 to 15. They have a huge following in little Podunk towns all across the USA.
I disagree. That's more than 33% of the Twins payroll from last year. Mauer is a guy who's never had 100 runs, never had 100 RBIs, and has had more than 14 HRs once in his career. And he just got the 2nd biggest contract in the history of baseball.
Sorry - to finish, the no-trade clause dooms the Twins to mediocrity for the next 8 years unless they find a magical new source of revenues. This is no different than the Rangers with A-Rod, except much much worse since they have a smaller payroll.
8 years with a full no trade clause throughout at 23MM per year seems very risky. Even more risky for a team like the Twins that doesn't have the payroll flexibility compared with other teams.. But the Twins really had no choice. A homegrown guy from Minnesota the fans love him and he loves the Twins. It was a match that had to be. But eight years could come back to bite them. And I don't think he will be able to hold up at the catcher position and stay at his current pace for the next 8 years.
