I would presume his order is to try and procure the best deal for his client. At the end of the day, its always the player's decision. Its pretty clear what they're trying to do. Leaking actual potential dollar figures screams "please top this offer"...
Funny you mention this. I heard from my sources that Altuve had a procedure in the offseason to shrink his core which will reduce his strike zone but should also increase his power. Dr. James Andrews performed the procedure early in November.
http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...trade-clause-new-york-mets-was-key-agent-says Astros were probably reluctant to give him one.
All I've heard so far is that it is for sure a hard cap. Do these QO system changes automatically go into place? So the Astros wouldn't have to give up their 1st to sign Encarnacion?
There's no hard cap. There's a luxury tax of total payroll beyond 189 mil that will increase to over 200 mil in the next few years (5 teams are beyond it now; Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers, Tigers & Cubs. Don't think they mind paying it) Teams over the luxury tax will compensate the previous team of a free agent they lure away with a pick (no longer a 1st rd pick) None of this effects players who refused qualifying offers this season (Toronto would get the Astros 1st rd pick)
They've been designated "small market" for years, automagically receiving a payout at the end of the season purely based on that. However, there are rumors that they've been profitable for a while now, they haven't attempted to put a good enough product on the field, and given their geographic area, they could actually be mid-market if they just put effort behind it. So I think they're being phased out of the small market designation because they're not one--and because people think the owners are taking advantage of the designation to make a profit vs. put a useful team on the field consistently.
Literally the only reason I liked the baseball all-star game more than any other sport... I'm sure their reasoning is terrible.
Really? This is the best part of the new CBA in my opinion. Why in the bloody hell would an exhibition game (where Royals' fan get their undeserving players in) have such an important outcome like determining home field advantage in the World Series? I am by no means a Cubs fan, but that fact that they didn't get home field advantage last year was ridiculous, as they were clearly the best team in the league for the entire season. I'm glad they put an end to that stupid Bud Selig gimmick (cue the hate for Bud Selig - it's well deserved). There should be parades for this, they got it right.
Eh, I like the way you put it, maybe you are right.. I just liked the fact that the players had more on the line and reason to try harder. I guess I do like the NBA where they just ball out with zero defense for 175-166 games...
They also changed the amateur status requirements for Cubans from 23 years old & 5 years of pro ball to 25 y.o. and 6. No idea if this affects other pro leagues like Japan but I'd imagine so. And yeah, the ASG factoring into the WS was one of the dumbest things in MLB. Haven't read, is it now best overall record or will they go back to alternating? edit: it would be a small sample but how about best record against common opponents? Just thought about that.
The reason is because the Cubs only got 3 games at home. I haven't watched an all-star game since they went to the new rule. It was such a stupid idea.
It only makes more sense now thanks to interleague play being a daily occurrence. But even then, records could still very well be more division or league dependent. I think using cumulative interleague records would be better than just alternating or best overall record... the AL has dominated the interleague matchups for several years.
Best overall record may/should also cause teams to think about their rotations once they have clinched. In the past, teams would rest guys or only throw them a handful of innings. Now, if the best record comes down to the last game or series of the season, do you throw your ace or save him for the first playoff game?
