If you like being irrational that is... You don't tell Boras "I'll beat your best offer." What good is a team of one player? Wow we have Beltran for 7 YEARS!!!! But we lose Oswalt, Berkman and every other FA cz we can't afford them due to Beltran's contract. I loved the guy as much as all of you but if you want to field a winner it takes 9 guys a night out there and not just one. Lets shore up our bullpen get Estes to be a #3 or 4 starter (depending on Clemens) and make the Soriano trade because it looks like we wont have to give up Backe. Then we'll basically have the same team we all thought was going to the World Series before the season last year. Remember our miracle run happened in September with Beltran driving in only 9 runs. I know he was HUGE in the playoffs but give the other guys some credit.
What an ignorant post. "Uncle Drayton's" spending got us within one game of the muther****ing world series last year.
I dont think I could have said it any better Nero What "spending" exactly helped us last year, OH, the 30 million we spent on Andy ? Or was it the 5 we spent on Roger ? We got lucky with Lidge, cause we knew Drayton wasnt gonna pay Billy, he tried with Ducky, and then when Ducky wasnt cutting it, we got Carlos through trade. Its the same thing everytime, we "hire" some expiring contract, and then point the finger when we cant sign them, woe is us, we cant compete, we lose money. Drayton played the fans, he had us all thinking we were in the running for Beltran, when in acuality, Boras told Drayton we were out weeks ago. He had us believing that he was doing all he could, raising his offer, waiting on Boras. It was smoke screen, Drayton low balled, he wanted to bully Boras. Next thing the fans read, we arent aloud in Puerto Rico, when did you have to have an invitation to fly to Puerto Rico, last time I checked you could go when you wanted. Drayton says that Boras wouldnt tell him what it would take to get Beltran, why didnt he just offer to match the highest bidder, no, not Drayton, instead, he offers to write a joint statement saying Carlos will be playing elsewhere ?? What was that ? The more I look at the whole thing, the more I think Drayton never really had any intentions of bringing Carlos back. He wasnt prepared to spend the money. He didnt want to pay Carlos and have to also pay Berkman, Oswalt, and Pettitte, cause thats what it was gonna take. He isnt commited to winning, he is commited to putting fans in the seats, and the cheapest way to do that, is make a trade late in the season for an expiring contract, roll the dice, and hope for the best
And that McLane made the moves to get the Astros within one game of the World ****ing Series last year. Ingrates.
OK, here's the problem with that. You don't go offering the farm on you first offer, ESPECIALLY to Boras. We offer him 7 and 112, then he'll say it needs to be 8 or 9 at 120 or 130. Plus, only WELL AFTER the Astros 5yr and 75mill offer did Boras actually come and say he had five teams offering around 112 and that no teams will be considered who meet that threshold. And here's my last point and its just as important. At the time the Astros offered the 75mill, they were the ONLY serious team vying CB's services. The Mets didn't come into play until about 3 weeks later, the Yankees were still a mystery and the Cubs were still a long, long, longshot at best. So why overpay at such an early stage when you're the only team in the running. I know why, cause you don't wanna be the Rangers pt. II
I am gonna go out on a limb here, but, I am guessing Gerry had a hand in most of the moves made, Drayton did have final say, but, after looking at his first "deal" without Gerry...... You make the call
Newsflash: All teams have GMs. He's still the owner of the team and the one that approved the deals. Ingrates.
I've got your back man. Dryaton is what makes things happen for this team. I am actually not too upset that we didn't get Beltran, thanks to Chance, but I am upset that we wasted the entire (or most of) offseason with this dream.
So the mets offered the farm right out the box ?? Drayton didnt even try to match the Mets in the end. He tried to fight Boras and lost, plain and simple. Rangers ?? LOL, Drayton wishes he had the stones to throw a 252 million dollar contract around, hell, I would be fine with being the Mets right now
What cracks me up the most is that we have ingrates here who are believing the word of an agent who has already had one MLB team refuse to do business with him over their owner who has helped bring the most successful run of baseball this city has ever seen. Ingrates.
Ok honestly, where were you during these negotiations. When during that whole time did Drayton low ball carlos. When he came out with the 75mill offer, most people seemrf to suggest it was a fair starting bid cause 5 at 75 is 15 a year, very fair. Then when it became clear it wasnt enough, Drayton raised it to 7 at 105, again, a very fair offer. So I don't get this lowballing crap. Drayton may have played cheapskate before, but not this time, because he knew (from the postseason) what a winning team can do for his bottom line and he knew that brining in CB would create a winning team. As for the flying to Puerto Rico thing, you don't just fly out there, come to CB's doorstep and say, lets talk. It just doesnt work that way. Astros offered to go, Beltran and Boras never invited them, plain and simple. If we had gone w/o an invite, we probably would lost out right then and there. As for matching the highest offer. Drayton asked Boras for that right...but Boras refused. Go back and check the Beltran thread cause somewhere in it theres a few pages that talks about that issue. In fact, maybe you should go re-read that thing to get your facts straight. And if Drayton never really wanted to bring Beltran back, why didnt he just save face a long time ago instead of playing the game to literally the final hour. That doesnt make sense, and neither does all your complaining. I dont think we'll ever know what truly transpired, but some of yall are just making me sick with all this hatin... when it seems so clear Beltran and Boras played the Astros for fools.
Actually, thats were you are wrong, I dont feel like I am an ingrate, but I certainly never said I believed Boras, everything I quoted, came from Drayton, he admitted to low balling, and then he admitted that he wasnt prepared to go over 75 mil, then he admitted to knowing he was out of the running for Carlos because he wasnt prepared to come up to the 100 mil level. I mean, I am not here trying to upset you, and jump off the wagon. I just think we got played, the fans, and Drayton pulled the strings, thats all I just dont smell those same roses
So we should say, "Thank you very much Drayton, we are quite happy with our good season last year. Don't you worry about improving the team for next season. We're fine if you get rid of our top RBI man, our post-season hero and a former top starter for us. We've had our fun and we're happy for eternity!" RM, you are what's known as a sunshine pumper and are out of touch with reality and people's expectations. ...but congrats on discovering a new favorite word.
Um yeah they did... they overpaid for Pedro...then they go and overpay for Beltran... they're offer of 112 was 8-10 mill more than any other offer out there... but they did they give him 112..no they gave him 119 (when no other team was even in the bidding no less). Minaya overpaid to make sure he got Carlos...just like Rangers did.... you may want a team w/ GM's and owners like that. As for me..i want a team and front office that knows not to throw everything at one player at the expense of creating a winning team. Cause newsflash, the Rangers are still suffering from the A-Rod deal and the Mets have plenty of holes even w/ Beltran. And I'm pretty sure Drayton has the "stones" to throw a 250mill contract at someone...he is one of the richest men in baseball. But then so is Steinbrenner...and neither or stupid enough to spend that much on one player.
Dude, I understand how you can feel that way. But we have been 'competitive' long enough. There are loads of little soccer leagues and things that want to teach all the little kiddies that all that really matters is that you play, and they don't even keep score. Don't want the little ones to have that bad feeling of losing, don't want all that awful *competition* getting in the way of their little touchy-feely feelgood fairy-tale lessons they are trying to teach kids. Fact is, if you didn't win the Championship, then you were just one of the other losers. The only thing that matters is winning the whole thing. Not getting within one game. And maybe if we had had a bullpen that was not comprised of people who didn't belong there, maybe we would have gone on and won the whole thing. Perhaps we got to within one game of the WS in *spite* of Drayton, instead of because of him. Maybe Gerry tried to get us some more bullpen help, but Drayton would not let him spend the money. Don't know any of that for sure. I just know you are giving way too much credit to the owner.
I look at it like this. With Carlos gone, and possibly Roger, Drayton does stand to save lots of money this season, and I gotta say, its the perfect excuse to say, we were so commited to signing carlos that we put everything on hold, that way, you dont add anymore payroll to your team while you are "committed" and then when you miss out on carlos, you can say, well, we tried boys, but, looks like we have some money to spend this year, we might make some trades, but I doubt we pick up some FA's You very well could be right. But like you said, we will never know what transpired. You have your view of it, and I think I have expressed mine
Just to be clear though... Im not saying that im 100% behind what the Astros do and have done regarding personnel decisions. I know they have lowballed in the past, which has frustrated me. But they did not lowball this time...and I for one am looking at this thing optimistically..Carlos is gone..lets get over it... we can find out what our young guys are capable of and bring in some other free agents and see what we do... the future's not that bleak. And know what... whose to say Beltran would ever have brought us to the promise land anyways...he was after all a no-show during our terrific run to make it to the post-season. Woulda been really nice to have him..but we gotta move on.
Well I do agree with you there... cause just cause we have money now doesnt mean Drayton's gonna spend it.... it was all for Beltran and since we don't have him he could easily pocket it and go the re-building route...woudn't surprise me. As for everything else...as you said...to each his own view.
