Carlos Beltran in pinstripes? Maybe not Carlos in pinstripes? The horror By Eric Neel Page 2 Hola Señor Octubre, How you feeling right now? Huge? You deserve it. Electric? That's all you. Clutch? You put da man in "You da man," Carlos. Eight home runs in 10 games. Eight home runs in 10 games and the eighth, with the Astros' season on the line and the ball just an inch above your shoelaces, the best of them all. That's 18 hits, 18 runs, 14 RBI, 3 stolen bases, a .462/.543/1.154 line, and a partridge in a pear tree. Good god, man. What's it all about, Alfie? You make an out about as often as Chris Mathews takes a pause. You stand there, with that easy, layback stance, like you're kicking it on the stoop, spying a pretty girl across the street. Then you come through, with that sweet C of a swing, and finish high and hard, slapping the bat on your back, throwing bolts like Zeus, quick and unforgiving. You know you're in an other-wordly zone when you're hitting this pitch for a home run. And it's not just the hits. Let's talk about running up that hill Monday night. Backwards. With the unhurried grace of Hines doing a soft-shoes. Let's talk about your death-to-flying-objects dive on Renteria's sure double. That was something. A play Texas kids will be talking about when they're aging Lone Star lions. It was a Tommy Agee play, a Kirby at the wall play, a play Willie might have made. And the thing about it was, there was never any doubt you were going to glove it. You're so dialed right now it was a gimmee. We can only imagine the feeling. Are you tuned to sub-atomic waves? Do you smell the pheromones of the flies that once landed on the hide that became the ball that is hurtling toward you in slow motion? Is this a simple game for you, governed by the most basic principles of physics? Are you so deep in it now that you can't for the life of you understand how others might find it difficult to play? We ask because, like Jordan that night in Portland, like Mastrantonio down in the abyss, you're in uncharted waters. Tell us what it's like. Bring home stories from your adventures. And man, what a time to do it. Two weeks in October. With the whole world watching. Two scorching pennant-fever weeks in October. And you a free agent when it's over. That must taste sweet. How many times a day does Scottie B call you right now? Six? Seven? Does he actually talk or does he just shout "Cha-ching!" and giggle hysterically? Life is sweet right now for Houston's Mr. October. They don't have charts for the climb in your stock; the little green arrow just keeps shooting up past the edge of the screen. The phone won't stop ringing now, you know. The big boys are about to come calling, and they're bringing their checkbooks with them. You've got five tools and a long line of zeroes laid out in front of you. It's your world, Carlos. The rest of us are just visiting. And you know who the first visitor will be, don't you? That's right, The Shipbuilder. He's going to tell you Bernie, god love him, is on his way out. He's going to wax poetic about Joe D and Mickey, talk to you about a legacy and a lineage, about your spot in the history books. He's going to bring a pinstriped jersey and a mountain of cash to your door. And all the while, Scottie B's going to be rubbing your shoulders the way Angelo rubbed Ali, giving you the full Jesus Shuttleworth treatment, saying, "You're beautiful Baby, you're beautiful." And he'll be right. And you'll deserve everything they throw at you. And you should swoop on this chance like a gull going for a toddler's lunch at the beach. You've earned this. Fate and your talent have conspired to bring you fortune. Congrats. Except -- and we know we have no right to ask this -- we want you take a pass on the Yanks. It's not a hater thing, it really isn't. It's an A-Rod thing. Look at him. Richest man in sports and nobody cares. He stood where you stood now, in front of a big buffet full of greenback dollar bills. He had ungodly sums of money on the one side and the chance to be the greatest shortstop of all time on the other side of the line, and grabbed the dough. And the thing is, once you grab the dough, that's who you are. There's no undoing it. We can only hope that Beltran's future doesn't point to pinstripes. You can wrap yourself in a cloak of "playing for a winner," like he's done now with the Yanks, but it doesn't change who you are to most baseball fans, not even a little. You're a money guy, a Me guy, you're nothing but a Boras robot, programmed for cash and incentives. It ain't pretty. And what's worse, it ain't special. You take George's high bid and you're a cliché, a symbol of modern greed, and, maybe worst of all, you're just one of the pinstriped guys, lumped in when people love or hate the Empire. It doesn't have to be like that. You can go another way. You can do the one thing, the only thing, that could make you hotter than you are today. You can do what A-Rod didn't do. You can do what Schilling did. You can become an icon and a legend. You can keep your underdog stripes. You can sign, the way Sheed Wallace did in Detroit this summer, for less, because you're signing for more, because you're signing for comraderie, maybe, or the chance to maintain your identity, or the opportunity to stick it to fat cats. We know we can't ask this of you. We know it's crazy. But we've seen you play these last two weeks, and we know you're capable of some mad, mad things. Best of luck tonight. Sincerely, Loyal Lovers of Baseball Everywhere http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=neel/041020 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- After reading a lot of Beltran articles, I believe we have a strong chance of resigning Beltran, if we can bring back Berkman and Oswalt. Clemens staying one more year could actually help us resgin Beltran too. Joining the Yankees would be all about the money not about winning. For whenever the Yankees win a World series, it really doesn't count, for its like you bought the championship. Thus if you really play the sport for about the competition, you would play for another team with the mindset of taking down the Yankees.
As I said before... Beltran's emmense success on the national stage actually HELPS our chances to sign him. Sure, the Yankees were gonna make a run at him no matter what, and had we not gotten this far, we would have made our "token" offer (like we did to Randy Johnson in 98) and have gracely succumbed to the evil empire, all the while saying "we made a competitive offer... we tried." But, the fact that this team has had so much success, and a lot of it is due directly to him being on this team, will lead the Astros into a "do-or-die" mode when it comes to re-signing this guy. That would not have been there had we a.) not made the playoffs, b.) not won a playoff series, and c.) had he not had one of the greatest post-seasons ever. Now, it becomes preposterous of the 'Stros DON'T do everything in their power to keep him (short of paying him over $20 million... no player is worth that much).
As an Astros fan, damn straight I want Beltran on the team. But, I'm not one of those fans who constantly bashes McLane for keeping the payroll in check. I understand it is a business and he may want to make some income. That said, how much can the Stros give Beltran and still be successful? Would they pick up Biggio's option? Will Kent retire? Is Burke ready? How is our stock of talent in the minors? Clearly, I think an outfield eventually of Beltran, Taveras and Lane could be great, with Berkman at first. More questions for later...we need to keep winning now.
IMHO, the Yanks, Red Sox and the Astros that really have a chance of signing Beltran. If the Yanks offer Carlos $20M and up then all bets are off. I know some of you will say $20M is too much but remember Beltran is better than A-Rod in baseball and personality (on and off the diamond). I don't the see the Sox outspending the Redsox though. Carlos WILL NEVER.....I repeat NEVER sign with or for the Cubs. The Cubies should set their sights on someone else. Carlos has more class than that. The biggest problem here with us retaining Carlos is his agent. We know what he did with A-Rod's free agency. The difference here (hopefully will help us out here) is that Carlos is not as money grabbing as A-Rod. If Carlos goes to the Yanks or BoSox for $20M I will not begrude him. We can offer him arround $15M-$17M though for 5 - 8 years.
Its gotta be a combo of money and happiness. Carlos is happy here... we already know that. He'll be even happier when we guarantee him that we'll do everything in our power to extend Oswalt and Berkman as soon as we get him in the fold. Then comes the money... 15-17 million $$$ a year vs. the 18-20 million the Yankees will ultimately be willing to give him. You can go into how techincally his contract could be worth more in Texas because of no state income tax, but then you realize that a superstar in New York will probably have a shot at many more endorsements than a superstar in Houston. Then again, Yao Ming, T-Mac and David Carr are all changing that perception... they are some of the most recognizeable faces in their respective sports, and they've all never played for a New York team. I like the Astros odds to sign him... and I'd be real suprised if he considered options other than New York and Houston.
does anyone know the actual numbers of how much more expensive it is to live in new york.. like is 15 mil in houston about the same as 18 mil in new york?.. state income tax wise etc...
Talking about this right now is beyond pointless. Furthermore, it's not going to be a money issue with Beltran. If he & his family want to stay in Houston he'll be here, and vice-versa. Go Stros.
behad... does it matter to any of us? no.... but the way some of these athletes spend their money.. they need ever bit of cheap stuff they can get!
If I'm McLane and I am trying to start a new regional sports network and I have the hottest athlete on the planet to throw in the mix, hmmmmmmmmmmm............. Maybe this isn't the Arod situation. Maybe Beltran IS worth $20-25 mill to a mid market team?. If I'm Les Alexander and I'm starting a new regional sports network and I have Yao Ming and Tmac and my new partner can bring the hottest athlete on the planet to the table, hmmmmmmmmm............. Maybe I could become a minority owner of a baseball team for say, I don;t know, maybe a $5 mill a year contribution tho the Beltran fund? This is a no brainer. If it doesn't work in a couple of years you ransack the Yankee system for prospects, make the trade and go about your business.
No freaking chance in hell do we pay that much and no freaking chance in hell do I want them dropping that kind of money on Beltran. I love the guy and want him in an Astros uniform but not at the expense of our team. You learn from other teams (Rangers) mistakes and do not duplicate them. I will be pissed if we drop that kind of money on him.
I'd personally cap out bidding at $18 mill, if I were McLane. If the Yanks offer $20+, so be it. Evan
Yanks need pitching, not Beltran Quick, name a starting pitcher on the Yankees that Steinbrenner wants to run out there in a must-win game . . . That's right, you can't. There isn't one. Fact: yanks have no proven number 1 starter Fact: yanks have little proven depth in the middle of the rotation. Fact: yanks won their championships because clemens, pettitte, wells and the like were nails. Fact: yanks already have one of the 3 best lineups in baseball. so, will steinbrenner spend silly money on Beltran? Or will he throw all that money at 2 top flight starting pitchers? (don't say both. Even Steinbrenner has some limits.) The need is clearly starting pitching. The Yanks wont be in a position to break the bank and wild-ass outbid us. If the going rate is about $120MM/7 years (about 15 per year), the Astros can do that. If it shakes out like I think it will, then we have a level playing field. Beltran will decide based on whether he wants to wear the pinstripes and tempt fate by taking off the Stros jersey, or build on the legacy he has already established here. I bet it's the Stros. edit: query, will Steinbrenner outbid us or drive up the price just out of spite because us taking Clemens and Pettitte? It's possible.
The best thing about being in the playoffs is that it's not the offseason for the Stros. Not yet. Forget about contracts and retirements and the 2005 spring training roster. Today, it's not about Scott Boras or Drayton McLane or that idiot Steinbrenner - it's about the Killer Bs and Roger Clemens and 9 innings of baseball, decided on the field. Money can't buy what the Astros have given us this season.
The word in NY is that Georgie will be going after pitching in the form of Pedro Martinez. He will also be going after the best centerfielder in the game, Carlos Beltran.
