NJ -- come on....they made him a more than fair offer. the mets overpaid. that's it. the astros didn't even know the figure they were working against, with boras on the other end of the line. you never know if what he says is true...you never know if you're bidding against yourself. so you get proactive...establish a high-water mark..and let the number sit. honestly, i think the mets ended up outbidding themselves in this deal. their offer went up twice...the astros didn't after they finished at $105 million. i wouldn't play that game, either. there are other players. there will be other offseasons. i know we missed out on the prized gem of moises alou...but somehow, i think we'll be ok.
I think its ridiculous that people are saying its all about the money, like the Astros are the Yankees and the Mets are the Devil Rays. We are talking about an organization that was in the World Series just a few years back.
More than fair doesn't cut it when you HAVE NO PLAN B. They went after him to be the future of the franchise...period. Dont say that the Astros didn't know what numbers they were working against...or that we didn't know what it would take etc...last time I checked, Boras made it pretty clear that it would take 7/112 (or it may have been 7/119) TO EVEN GET TO THE TABLE. Guess what??? Looks like he isn't such a liar after all. In fact, I'd say he was pretty accurate in dishing out a figure that would get it done...or at least keep us in the ballpark. Frankly, once Boras said 10/200, Drayton should have said "Well, even if he is lieing...and he will settle for 110-120, we still won't pay that so forget it! Lets move on and explore some other possibilities". He didn't...he played a game of chicken and lost. As for there will be other free agents etc.....you know what? You are right...but we as Astros fans are 4 months removed from getting a serious....and I mean very serious look at playing in the World Series and now we go from the proverbial penthouse to the outhouse overnight. Its unacceptable IMO.
winning percentage over the past 10 years...Mets rank 15th in the league...Astros rank 5th. the mets have some fundamental problems, mostly with their meddlesome owner. my initial reaction was similar to yours, in that regard...but i look at the mets nucleus and i don't think it comes close to the astros nucleus. young and old players alike.
ok..enough arguing. you won't convince me...i won't convince you. i will point out that boras was all over the board with figures....remember he started at 10 years, $200 million. you always know what you'll get with boras...the unexpected...you can't rely on anything he says. you don't mortgage everything on one player. no one else caught their fancy. they have a budget, and that should come as no shock to you. moving on...Go 'stros.
fine... whats the scoop on the trade front? any ideas? Is this soriano thing a possibility or are they asking for backe AND lane?
i wouldn't give up backe for soriano. i would give up lane...but that won't get it done. randy winn?? he could hold down CF until Tavares is ready...assuiming tavares will ever be the man out there.
You guys have my solemn oath that I will only pick the absolute best Beltran images to put on his cards.
I don't think the Stros made a mistake passing on Beltran. Those numbers were crazy, and a no-trade is a big deal. Still, I don't agree with Max and others saying "it's cool, there will be other offseasons". Sure, there will. But you're missing the enormity of THIS offseason, the historical importance. We're coming off a season where: (1) the Astros win a postseason series for the first time, ever; (2) they have an aging nucleus, including a Cy Young-winning pitcher who is absolutely at the end of his career - for Roger, there is no certainty of a "next season." These two competitive scenarios are paired with two revenue issues: (3) highest attendance ever in the team's history; (4) a new TV deal guaranteeing increased revenues for the club. Adding those together, this is a crucial season. The Astros anticipate significantly more revenue this year than they expected last year, but the fans expect a winner. Give that to them and you get even more fans, more advertising revenues, etc. It's a stone rolling downhill, picking up momentum. Deliver a dud of a season or even worse, "rebuilding" and the fans won't turn out. Heck, attendance is going to drop some just because they lost so many good players. It's easy to drop from a mid-high market to a low-mid market team if you fail to compete. Look at Cleveland for an example. It is absolutely incumbent on this team to make moves to compete this season. If you don't like the free agent market, make a trade. Randy Winn isn't the answer.
Sam -- I don't disagree with anything you just said. I think you misunderstood me. I'm only saying what you're saying...you can't pretend this is the only free agent ever and spend in excess of $17 million/year on a guy as if that's the case. I agree whole heartedly with everything you just posted. I didn't say this particular offseason was unimportant...but just don't think that any one player is ever worth locking yourself into overpaying for 7 years.
Ah, ok. I misunderstood then. Baseball isn't basketball, where one superstar player wins you games. Too many players, and your best hitter seldom gets "the ball" when it's time to win the game. He hits 4 or 5 times a game. Seattle survived the loss of Griffey and ARod and Unit (but not at the same time!) by spending and trading smart. Pupura has to get something done this offseason, to address our significant holes. I don't really like Soriano at 2B with Burke available to man that spot. I think he needs to go after a CF, or a very good corner OF, and possibly a starting pitcher, and definitely some bullpen help, before the season. It's not going to be easy.
Maybe you could do a "Billy Ripken" card for him. http://www.sperts.net/editorial.php?page=5&author=Jim Margalus
Just skimmed through the last 10 pages or so... Guys this is on Beltran, Drayton made a very fair offer equitable with deals given to Vlad and Pujols. Beltran said all the right things, "I want to play with a winner, I love the fan support in Houston," blah blah... then he just waits until another team finally jumps in with a serious offer that really wasn't that much more even before you calculate taxes, cost of living, etc. Maybe I'm just naieve but I honestly believed winning and playing for a team and city that loves you would be enough to overcome a few million dollars. I know Carlos has no real ties to Houston but if he thinks the Mets have a better chance to make the playoffs than the Stros he's nuts. And for whoever posted everyone here would have taken the bigger offer as well, don't generalize like that it's just stupid. When you're talking about 100 million dollars you can just throw all that out of the window. I mean c'mon give me a couple of mill and I could invest it and live very comfortably. Anyone who feels like there's a huge difference between 105 and 119 million needs to seriously readjust their priorities. *sigh* time to change the sig...
Factor in taxes and cost of living and the difference is really only a few million, if that. Beltran is a punk. I will kick his ass.
For some reason, Ive used that line a number of times on numerous message boards. I think I need to use it as my sig.
The Beltran situation...... My take on this situation is that it is a complete joke. I am of the opinion that we would have definitely gotten Clemens back if we had resgined Beltran. I honestly have no idea how much influence the no trade clause had on the situation but most superstar players have no trade clauses. If another 12 million and a no trade clause cost us Beltran and Clemens then that simply isn't a committment to winning in my opinion. Even if we trade for Soriano he doesn't address many of our teams needs. He's horrible defensively and he strikes out too much. I think the only reason we are even considering dealing for him is absolute damage control. Soriano does not solve our problems even remotely. The Astros (barring any major moves that we are not aware of) are in serious trouble next season.
