Mark Teixeira is on record as saying he would like to have a new team and contract before Christmas, and many news outlets are reporting he's close to making a decision about where he'll play in 2009. That said, every Red Sox fan should be wishing for Mark Teixeira this Christmas.
Boston is definitely a passionate city when it comes to sports, however that passion rarely translates into intelligence. I've read and heard some incredibly stupid comments regarding the potential signing of Mark Teixeira, perhaps some people playing devils advocate, and for the devil's sake, I hope they are.
With that said lets debunk some of the reasons fans don't want to sign Teixeira:
"If we sign Teixeira we would have to trade Lowell, I like Lowell ." I also like Mike Lowell and he's still a good player. However Lowell is going to be 36 and his best days are behind him, not to mention he's coming off hip surgery. Bottom line here is the Sox sign Teixeira, put him at first, and move Youk to third, overall you're a better and younger ball club.
"It will cost too much to sign Teixeira!" This is my favorite one. Of course contracts in baseball are ridiculous, but that's not going to change if the Red Sox make a stand with Teixeira. If the Sox don't offer him 8 years $160 million there are at least 4 other teams that will. Lets not think that beer prices are going to decrease if we cut payroll, if that was true I might be on the other side of this, however it's not so neither am I. Besides, they print their own money down on Yawkee Way.
"I'm not convinced he's worth the money." If you think this you are stupid and should never watch baseball again. Ok that was harsh, I apologize. In the real world no one is worth $25 million/year, however in the world of baseball some people are. Last year Tex hit .308 with 33 home runs and 121 RBI. By the way he's a switch hitter, gold glove first baseman, and he walked 97 times while only striking out 93 times! Lastly I'll point out his on-base percentage was .410 (thats right he gets on base 41% of the time) and he played half of last year on the Atlanta Braves, not one of their best years. A full season in Boston and I can see his numbers going up, why wouldn't you want this guy?
One of the reasons, other then injuries, that the Sox lost to the Rays in the ALCS was their lineup went to the plate without their bats, figuratively speaking. With the exception of the game 5 comeback in Fenway the Sox never found their groove last October. Pedroia and Youk had good Octobers, that's about it. No one knows for sure what Oritz is going to do this year, but I think his 50 home run years are behind him, point is the Sox could use some pop in their lineup.
Of course there are some good reasons not to sign Teixeira, the Sox might not want to commit to a 10 year deal, thats reasonable. However, the goal is to win a World Series, and not signing Mark Teixeira if the Sox have the opportunity is just stupid. As always, comments are welcome whether you agree or disagree or are somewhere inbetween.
ITM News and Notes:
The Yankees are reportedly pushing hard for Manny Ramirez, could be looking at a 3 year $25 million per year deal. The Yanks need someone to hit behind Arod if they don't get Teixeira.
Buster Olney of ESPN reported that Scotty Boras is trying to convince the Sox to sign Varitek and Mark Teixeira as a package deal. Interesting move by Boras, as the market for Varitek hasn't really developed, perhaps this pushes the Sox to offer Tek a contract if they want Tex bad enough.
One of the smartest moves Theo Epstien ever made was offering Jason Varitek arbitration. Tek of course declined as we all know, so if another team signs him the Sox would get a sandwich pick between the first and second round of the 2009 draft.
Wednesday, December 17
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Red Sox potential line up if Teixeira signs.
1. Ellsbury
2. Pedroia
3. Ortiz
4. Teixeria
5. Youk
6. Drew
7. Bay
8. Lowrie
9. Tek (if they sign him)
If Pedroia and Youk can put up stats that even remotely resemble this past year....and Ortiz can come back to be the Ortiz of old, this lineup is downright scary. There are a lot of "ifs" though.
Baltimore is apparently out of the Teixeira sweepstakes. Dying for a decision to be made!
To me, this deal is a no brainer. I love Mikey Lowell as much as the next guy, but we all know this is a business and this city is in the business of winning championships. Adding a cornerstone player like Tex would solidify our competitiveness for years to come (given the surrounding young talent). Lowell is owed 24 million over the next two years, combine that with his rehab and it could be more difficult to move him than originally thought.
...then again, we've got to land Tex first....fingers crossed.
1. We don't have to move Lowell. Sox did fine with four outfielders last year and I wish they had kept Coco this year. People are going to get hurt an people are going to slump.
2. Another problem with paying someone like Teix more money then the (possibly) greatest right-handed hitter in the history of baseball (Manny) made is you're setting a precedent. Last year Youk put up similar numbers to Teix. If Youk puts up the same numbers as Teix the next two years....are you going to pay Youk 22 million a year for 8 years?
Joe Murph here responding to Dale Sams:
1) Personally, I don't think you can use a guy of Lowell's caliber (nevermind his 12m per) as a utility. Even if we have to eat part of Lowell's contract (and I don't think the amount will be as substantial as some do), I think it makes financial sense to move him. I also think there would be a big morale factor. Lowell has been a huge factor in clubhouse happiness the past couple years. He's not going to be happy in a utility role. A brooding Mike Lowell, I suspect, could seriously reverberate through the locker room; more so than a traded Mike Lowell.
2) I do think there are some legitimate concerns from this signing and our ability to negotiate with Youk. The two actually share quite a few attributes, but I think that most would agree (and that Youk will find this if he tests the free agent market) that Tex's ceiling is way higher than Youk's. The power isn't going to get greater for Youk, and to me, that's the key difference. Tex has the potential to be consistent 40-50 homers. And that makes a big difference in the free market on players---agree with the power mentality or not. I wouldn't be surprised if Youk gets his feathers ruffled a little, but my guess is he stays with the Sox and signs something reasonable like Pedroia. We'll see.
Post a Comment