If money were not a factor, the answer would obviously be yes, yes, a million times yes. However, given the financial constraints (real or self-imposed), should the Astros resign Bagwell, or take their chances with out him and try to upgrade elsewhere? Thoughts anyone? ------------------
The Astros must re-sign Jeff Bagwell. He is the greatest position player they have ever had, and he is the centerpiece of the Astros' offensive attack. Letting him sign somewhere else would be a huge mistake. ------------------ I am the b*stard son of LHutz. Huh? Right!
The ony way they don't resign Bagwell is if they can negotiate a monster trade. Remember the "horror" when Glenn Davis was traded. Hmmm, Steve Finley, Curt Schilling and Pete Harnisch, not a bad deal. The Astros are in a fairly good situation if they can acquire a decent pitcher or two AND hang on to Bagwell. They have a solid veteran nucleus and a number of good youngsters. Their minor league pitchers that have the best ability to be #1 or #2 starters (Oswalt, Rodriguez and Ireland) are 1-3 years away. Spend the money to sign Bags. At 15 million a year, he'll be a bargain in 2 years. ------------------
Are you proposing a trade, bobrek? If so, who? My thought is Bagwell is definitely the best position player the Astros have ever had. But is resigning Bagwell ensuring the Astros will not be competitive? Can the team be improved by trading Bags? ------------------
I fail to see how the team would improve if we traded Bags. Imagine losing Hampton, Everett and Bagwell in consecutive seasons. I don't care who we would get for him, we would not be a better team. The Hun has proven to be a bonehead of late, so anything can happen. I would have a hard time being an Astro fan if we traded Bagwell ------------------ In order to be a success in life, you need 2 things: 1. Don't tell everything you know.
I agree with the majority of comments. There is no way the Astros will improve themselves by moving Bagwell. Bagwell deserves the big $$$ contract and the Grocery Man (i.e. Drayton McClane) better be willing to spend at least $15-$16 million per year to re-sign Bagwell. Remember Bagwell has been underpaid (based on the baseball market) for the past few years. So it is time for the owner to step up to the plate and pay the max to Jeff. Whatever Jeff wants he deserves. The man has proven this his entire career. The Astros got one of the best players in the history of baseball by getting Jeff Bagwell from the Red Sox. The first priority for the Astros should be get Bagwell resigned. They should not worry about any other moves until Bagwell is signed first. I regret the loss of Carl Everett. I will not stand being called an Astro fan if they trade Jeff Bagwell. ------------------ Titan's fanatic!!!! It was the first time the Titans sent an offense to the line of scrimmage with Eddie George in the backfield behind McNair to go with Wycheck at tight end and Carl Pickens, Kevin Dyson and Yancey Thigpen at wide receiver. So many choices, with a full season still ahead. "I think that might be scary for a defense," Dyson said.
Super Dave - Nope. No trade proposal. BUT, if they do trade him, they need a deal similar to the Glenn Davis trade; Two quality starters and a starting 3rd baseman (since they obviously don't need another outfielder). The Astros hands are tied when it comes to a trade, however, since Bagwell is a 10 and 5 guy (10 years in the majors, 5 with the same team) and has veto power over any deal. ------------------
This is from Bagwell's official site: shuffle123: I’m a diehard Astros fan no matter if we’re in first or last place. In your opinion, what do we need for next year? Personally, I think we’ve got the players we need (except for pitching), but we just need them all to be healthy. Jeff: We have to make a decision on which way we’re going. We’ve got a lot of rookies here. We’ve got to find out if the young guys can play, who can help us and who can’t, maybe add a couple or three pitchers, and we should be all right. LOIVOSCHAVES: On talk shows they often mention that you would love to play for the Red Sox. Will you Jeff? Jeff: It’s no secret that I grew up a Red Sox fan and they drafted me. But obviously I have a lot of friends here and have spent my entire major-league career here (in Houston). I like Houston and want to be a part of a World Series here. On the other hand anything is possible. ------------------ In order to be a success in life, you need 2 things: 1. Don't tell everything you know.
I desperately want the Astros to resign Jeff Bagwell. He's one of my favorite athletes ever. But ultimately, it depends on whether or not you can still field a competitive team if you sign him to a huge contract, given Drayton's self-imposed salary cap. I don't think it's impossible for the Astros to be a better team WITHOUT Jeff Bagwell. I imagine that Seattle Mariner fans didn't think their team would be better without their best position player ever, Ken Griffey, Jr., at the beginning of this season. But right now the Mariners are playing as well as they've ever played. Baseball is so different from other sports where one player can make such a difference for you. In baseball it's such a long, grueling season and you rely so much on all aspects of your team. A little different from hoops where, arguably at least, one player can make a last place team a playoff contender. ------------------
sirhangover, Look it sometimes takes a while before everything works out in the playoffs. Granted the year that the Astros got Randy Johnson they should have gotten by the Padres. But that is water under the bridge. But for you to think that Bagwell somehow pads his numbers against the Phillies or Brewers scrubs is flat out wrong. During the years that the Astros were winning the NL Central it had alot to due with Bagwell. I mean he has always been so consistent with his numbers. His numbers are always above average. So he is not your run of the mill player. He is a SUPERSTAR. Sure he plays in Houston and we get no respect from the national media. Can you imagine what kind of publicity Bags would get if he were playing in Atlanta, LA, or New York. I mean Bags is a proven star. You have some sorry ass pitchers who are making over 7-10 million per year. Just look at some of the pitchers the Cubs are paying. But the fact remains that Bagwell has proven throughout his career that he is a Superstar. So yes without any question you pay him the max. He has earned it. ------------------ Titan's fanatic!!!! It was the first time the Titans sent an offense to the line of scrimmage with Eddie George in the backfield behind McNair to go with Wycheck at tight end and Carl Pickens, Kevin Dyson and Yancey Thigpen at wide receiver. So many choices, with a full season still ahead. "I think that might be scary for a defense," Dyson said. [This message has been edited by Dream34 (edited October 05, 2000).]
Sounds to me as if Bagwell is basically going through the motions of being traded to a big spending team. Maybe the yanks??? I'll bet you anything right now Gerry is fielding offers for Bagwell. ------------------ Be sure to water your grass
BobFinn, I hate Griff, so take this with a grain of salt. I don't think Griff is one of the two best Centerfielders in the majors, much less best players. ------------------ "Only Hakeem Olajuwon is a better athlete." Dick Versace, when referring to Antonio McDyess before the draft.
Guys, even though I am a huge Red Sox fan, I still like the Astros because I live in houston. HONESTLY. Wouldnt you guys be happier for Bags if he capped his remarkable career with a World Series ring??? It would be so awesome for Bagwell to return to Boston to win a World Series. And even though the Stros have a good team, the pitching staff simply isnt good enough to win games in Enron field. The Red Sox have a great overall pitching staff (includes bullpen) that did amazing this year considering the incredibly low run support they got. If Bagwell played for boston, he would win his ring. ------------------ Starting at shortstop, for the Houston Astros, Nomar Garciaparra. or Starting at First Base, for the Boston Red Sox, Jeff Bagwell!!!
Boston doesn't have what it takes (no great prospects and no starting players that Boston would part with or Houston would want) to bring about a trade involving Bagwell in which you would hope to get any where near adequate compensation for him. If someone does try to trade for him they are going to have to break the bank. A future ace. He's worth nothing less. ------------------ Be sure to water your grass
i will get pounced on for this but i could care less about bagwell.. he always impresses me against the phillies in the 8th when the phillies have their scrub number 12 pitcher in and he hits a jack.. he has never shown anything (when it really counts) but his ability to choke in important games or playoff situations which leads me to belive that he isnt the player that people here make him out to be and he definitely is not a leader... he is already stating at this point that he wont re-sign if the astros arent commited to bringing in great players to strive for the championship...well mister bagwell you are supposed to be that great player.. he really isnt a leader but is happy to be a role player and let other players lead...he is obviously admitting that he cant do it by himself much less with alou, hidalgo, biggio, wagner, reynolds, etc (those players are not tomato cans guys)... in short the athletics and the giants(barry bonds is good i know), white sox and other similar teams IN THE PLAYOFFS do not necesarily have the payroll nor the 'leaders' that bagwell wants to be (and all of you think he is) but freely admits that he cant be saying that he needs to see all sorts of other star players signed... dont get me wrong bagwell is a better than normal player and he has his moments but by no means shoudl we overpay this playoff choker and by no means should we give the guy the whole bank.. simply put he is not worth that... i dont really care if you guys want to bring me stats (that he pads against the brewers in the 9th inning) tell me what he has done in the playoffs and what kind of a leader he is...dont talk to me about his mvp type year the strike year...show me what he has done when it counts..right now i dont see it and every year in the playoffs i consistently see the guy whiff swinging for the fences.. while you re looking at stats show me his strikeouts..i bet its not pretty.. sorry i just dont think this guy is all that..although i agree we need him to move forward... he is not a god... ------------------ I think people are forgetting that we are the rockets... WE DONT REBUILD...WE RELOAD....remember that..
One man can not do it alone in baseball. Just look at Ken Griffey jr. and Barry Bonds. They are probably the 2 best players in the game today (Bagwell being third) and they have not produced in the playoffs either. To base a man's worth on playoff performance alone is rediculous. What about the long season where Bags plays all 162 games? That means nothing. What about the game winning RBI's? Means nothing. Without these stats, the Astros wouldn't even be in the playoffs. To suggest that Bagwell pads his stats on the Brewers relief pitching shows you don't know what Bagwell is all about. ------------------ In order to be a success in life, you need 2 things: 1. Don't tell everything you know. [This message has been edited by BobFinn* (edited October 05, 2000).]
So you'd rather have a player that doesn't get to the playoffs? Bagwell gets you there. Once there you've got to scratch out some wins. Many great players have struggled against the Braves. Bonds included. It's no secret that batting averages dip against the Braves and other great pitching teams. He's not choking. He's just not producing. ------------------ humble, but hungry.
This is Bags's new entry on his web site: I Want to Play in a World Series We didn't make it back to the playoffs, so to me the season was a major disappointment no matter what I did individually. The bottom line is winning, that's all that matters. I put up some good numbers, but the thing you want more than anything is to go to the World Series. That's what everybody looks at, that's what people remember and that's what I want to do. We've never made it past the first round of the playoffs, and after three straight years of winning the division we dropped to fourth this year. It's a disappointing year no matter how you look at it. I would have rather hit half as many homers and had a World Series ring. Maybe next year we will be a better team. Like a lot of people I'm curious to see what we do between now and spring training. I think it's important that we take steps to make the team better. We've lost some very good players the last few years, guys like Randy (Johnson), DK (Darryl Kile), (Mike Hampton) and (Carl) Everett. I'd like to see us add some players to improve the team this time. Nothing against the guys we got, but we're a young team, and you can't replace talented veterans with young guys and expect them to do as much right off the bat. The young guys need time. I'd like to get something worked out with management on my future. I can't see myself going into next year without knowing something more about my situation. I've only got one year to go (on the current contract) and I hope I'm not going into next year with just the one-year deal. Hopefully we'll get something worked out. To me it's not about money -- it's about security sure -- but that's not the only issue. It wouldn't be smart to pay me a bunch of money and not be able to pay anybody else. That's not what I want. I want to play in a World Series. I want to be sure the organization is willing to do what's necessary to get there. I believe they are. We'll see. ------------------ In order to be a success in life, you need 2 things: 1. Don't tell everything you know.
Next season Bags will be on the Red Sox. ------------------ please venture to atheistalliance and rocketsonline I AM SPARTACUS
