True, but Crane stays in Houston with or without Bregman and can find a replacement, while Bregman has to move his entire family over a few million dollars. Seems like he's willing to do that so the stand-off continues.
Because Bregman isn’t worth 30. That’s why nobody is offering him 30. If someone does give him 30, it will probably be over 2 years maybe 3. Not 6 or 7.
I’m assuming someone has done this math for Bregman, but as a guy on track for the “hall of very good”, I think there’s a substantial difference in brand value for him in staying with one team his entire career vs going elsewhere. Endorsements and whatnot over the next 5 years might not be much different, but if he ends up playing 12-13 seasons with Houston he will have a steady stream of endorsement deals for decades after he retires; that won’t be the case if he plays a handful of years in Toronto or Detroit before hanging it up.
That’s moving the bar. He’s 30. 35 is much further than 2 years away. A decline to under 3 WAR 4-5 years in the future would not be rapid.
Ok do it for 33. Bregman is entering his age 31 season. Bregman’s already been maximizing relatively limited physical tools thru hard work and intelligence. Once his already limited speed and power start to go, he’s ****ed. He’s not a 3B who just slows down and can still be viable at 1B or in LF. And all that ignores that he’s already dealt with multiple significant injuries that have a tendency to recur. Im not saying there’s zero chance Bregman is really good 3-5 years from now. All I said was if I were him I’d be trying to maximize my total guarantee right now, regardless of contract length.
Nobody offers a player the amount he gets until they do. Why does Bregman need to settle on what's being offered today when it's his right to wait and see what might be offered tomorrow?
I think he's more valuable to the Astros than any other team. The things that make him great (leadership, clubhouse presence, intangibles) don't really transfer over well to a new team on the back end of his career. And yeah, the local endorsements do make a difference. I can't imagine he would get a whole lot of endorsement deals from local Boston or Toronto companies after playing 2 years there vs Houston companies after you played your entire career here. See Craig Biggio.
I don't get why people care so much. At this point, Bregman doesn't seem to be holding us up. It isn't like we are planning to offer that money to somebody else. Until February 18th, when position players report, what difference does it make to anybody?
Exactly - he's a FA and can do what he wants. Just like the Astros can do what they want. I don't get why people think Bregman has to do what's best for the Astros as opposed to whatever he wants to do for himself. Maybe it'll work out better; maybe it won't - but it's a choice he gets.
For one, Crane isn’t the sole owner of the team. He owns 40% I believe so he doesn’t have the ability to just spend endlessly even if he wanted. Secondly, Bregman isn’t worth $30M over an extended contract. He’s unsigned for a reason right now…his demands are ridiculous.
LOL So what? It's his right to have ridiculous demands. He's under no obligation to play for whatever the Astros are willing to offer him. This is not a player holding out - he's a free agent and can do what he wants.
We’re lucky they aren’t the GM…the team would be sunk with stupid Springer, Correa and Bregman contracts right now
Bregman has already been getting 30/year the last two years… on a deal that he signed back before 2019. Inflation and total contract value escalations aside, it’s easy to see why he doesn’t feel he should be making less money next year vs what he’s been making already.
Sure - the difference is that he's making life decisions about his future. You're acting like a petulant child because someone else won't do what you want on your terms on your timeline. Its just speaks to quality of character.
