Angelos may be mandating the signing of Fielder!

[BrunoCherrytown]

Lets see...

Fielder...going to be too expensive...

Cepedes...going to be too expensive/unknown talent for price...

Darvish...with posting fee, going to be too expensive/track record of transition to the majors...

To me this reasoning is growing as tired as...

Orioles...last place. But we've got payroll flexibility!

[Dipper9]

I have been a real sarcastic bastard in every Fielder thread so far. This time I will try to look at things open minded.

Why Fielder makes sense?

1. Orioles need a first baseman, middle of the order bat, and Fielder fits that mold. So, Fielder is a fit for the Orioles.

2. Signing Fielder would allow Reynolds to either move to third, or preferably, be the full time DH.

3. Although seemingly unwilling to spend it, Peter Angelos does have the money to spend on a player like Fielder.

4. No loss of players is necessary, just the highest offer on the table. So we can add a MOO player and not lose any other talent, ie young pitching prospects.

Why Fielder doesn't make sense.

1. Contract demands. While Angelos has the dough, he has been unwilling to spend the kind of money needed to bring in the "premier" talent. And in this case, its easy to argue that it would not be wise to spend 20% of your payroll on one player.

2. Adding one slugging first baseman will not improve our pitching, and on a team with 69 wins last year, how long before Fielder really makes a difference on this team.

3. Fielder is a large individual. Right now he is able to overcome his weight issues due to his youth and athleticism, but for a large overweight man such as himself, one would imagine his productivity would tail off quickly and he'll be nothing more than a very expensive DH halfway through this contract.

4. Luring Fielder or any other big name to a 69 win team is never going to be easy. Even IF we were to put the highest deal on the table, its completely possible that Fielder would take slightly less to play for a team that has a better chance at winning. Until we turn this team into at least an 82 win team, its going to be hard to sign the premier talent.

5. Peter Angelos. In 14 years he has not cared that we are an under .500 team or that one of the greatest parks ever to be built sits at 20-25% capacity on most nights. He has run this organization into the ground, and while I always give people the benefit of the doubt that they can change, its becoming increasingly more obvious that Peter Angelos cares more about turning a profit than he does about making the Baltimore Orioles a winner again.

Verdict? I know what I think, but I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Fielder is not coming here!

[utvolzac]

Whether your pro-Fielder or anti-Fielder, no one should feel good about Angelos mandating something baseball related.

If DD feels that Fielder is a wise investment, then I'm okay with it. But if Angelos' meddling is the reason we sign Fielder than nobody should be happy with it because we know how this story ends.

[Dipper9]

Whether your pro-Fielder or anti-Fielder, no one should feel good about Angelos mandating something baseball related.

If DD feels that Fielder is a wise investment, then I'm okay with it. But if Angelos' meddling is the reason we sign Fielder than nobody should be happy with it because we know how this story ends.

I disagree. With a player that demands a salary like this, you absolutely need the owner's buy in to be able to bid. Nobody is denying that Fielder will help the team, the only question is whether the contract would cripple the organization. If Angelos is telling Double D its okay to try to get him, that's fine with me. Now, if we were to get him, and then Angelos tells DD that there is now no money for scouting and development, etc, then you're absolutely right and it was a dumbass move yet again from Angelos.

In any case, I don't put much stock in Heyman's tweet nor do I have any false expectations that Fielder will be an Oriole.

[Dipper9]

Whether your pro-Fielder or anti-Fielder, no one should feel good about Angelos mandating something baseball related.

If DD feels that Fielder is a wise investment, then I'm okay with it. But if Angelos' meddling is the reason we sign Fielder than nobody should be happy with it because we know how this story ends.

One more thing. There were multiple rumors and reports that Angelos "really wanted Tex" and told MacPhail to do what was needed to get him, and we all saw how that worked out, so even IF the Heyman tweet is accurate, it still doesn't mean squat!

[Enjoy Terror]

3. Fielder is a large individual. Right now he is able to overcome his weight issues due to his youth and athleticism, but for a large overweight man such as himself, one would imagine his productivity would tail off quickly and he'll be nothing more than a very expensive DH halfway through this contract.

Just to flush out this thought a little bit.

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/tag/_/name/cecil-fielder

"Prince Fielder is a big dude. In fact, according to Baseball Reference.com, he is the only position player in baseball history to weigh over 250 pounds while measuring under six feet tall (he's listed at 5-foot-11, 270). Fielder puts his size to good use, though. Over the past three seasons he has hit 130 home runs, second among all major leaguers. It's no surprise that many Milwaukee Brewers fans dread the 2011-2012 offseason, when Fielder will reach the six years of service time required to hit free agency.

Last winter, Mark Teixeira signed an eight-year, $180 million contract, and he?s not a significantly better hitter than Fielder. But, considering the risks a multi-year deal poses, teams may consider Fielder's weight a deterrent. Only 14 position players in baseball history have weighed more than 260 pounds, and all of them have at least a few inches on Fielder. This leaves us with few players for comparison in terms of body mass.

The two best comparables on the list are Carlos Lee and Dmitri Young. Lee hasn't faced many weight-related issues, and in fact has remained healthy for most of his career. The only significant time he missed over the past seven years was the result of a Bronson Arroyo pitch that broke his pinky finger in 2008. Young provides a more cautionary tale. Baseball America's No. 29 overall prospect in 1997, he started his career strong, hitting 72 home runs and 157 doubles in his first five MLB seasons. He posted inconsistent numbers over the next seven seasons and was out of baseball at 34.

Two other names stand out as comparables. Mo Vaughn struggled during his first two years in the league, but broke out at age 25 and became one of the league's premier sluggers. By age 31 his performance was in decline, and he missed all of his age-33 season to injuries, before finding himself out of the game by 35. Prince's father, Cecil Fielder, was also out of baseball by age 35.

Prince will be 27 in the first year of his new deal. Chances are, if he continues to produce, some team will take the risk that he can buck the odds and remain a marquee attraction deep into his 30s."

[Roll Tide]

Just to flush out this thought a little bit.

So a six year deal would be safe.

[Nigel Tufnel]

So a six year deal would be safe.

I'm not sure how you arrived at that conclusion, although at the same annual salary the shorter the deal, the safer it is. Still not sure I'd call it safe, though.

[ChaosLex]

We will be singing Prince Fielder any moment now!

[Hank Scorpio]

Really? The next decade huh? The Orioles have both Bundy's(especially Dylan) who may be a year and a half away, they have Britton, Matusz(yes..he'll be back), Arrieta(good arm and getting better), still have (at this writing) Guthrie, Simon, J Johnson, and perhaps a retooled Tillman. A decade away huh? Add Wieters,

Hardy, Reynolds, Nick,a rising hitter in Reimold, and perhaps Machado and you really think this team is THAT bad?Ive been around the Orioles for 50 years. Just

because I think signing Fielder and some more pitching and going over 100 million in salaries makes the Orioles better..that makes me a neophyte? You can

debate all you want to..and I DONT think Fielder will come to Baltimore...but that doesnt make people who want it filled with naivete . Just agree to disagree.

People can have a difference of opinion and not be some moron.

Personally, my issue isn't so much with the desire for Fielder. I won't be completely devastated if we sign the guy or anything. He's obviously a capable offensive player.

It just drives me bananas when people see inferences from a guy like Heyman (inferences that go well beyond the realm of what could be reasonably expected from this organization) and swallow that drivel hook line & sinker like its gospel. No offense to Johnny, because I like the dude and he's a pretty sharp guy. But what reasonable Orioles fan would believe for a half second that Peter Angelos would be mandating the signing of the biggest fish in the free agent market?!?!?! I mean, really? I have to imagine Heyman & his buddies sitting around saying, "What is the most ridiculous, outlandish assertion we can make?" Then posting it, then giggling uncontrollably while everyone in the know in the business is going, "LOL!!!!!!!!!!"

Just funny to me.

[Dipper9]

Personally, my issue isn't so much with the desire for Fielder. I won't be completely devastated if we sign the guy or anything. He's obviously a capable offensive player.

It just drives me bananas when people see inferences from a guy like Heyman (inferences that go well beyond the realm of what could be reasonably expected from this organization) and swallow that drivel hook line & sinker like its gospel. No offense to Johnny, because I like the dude and he's a pretty sharp guy. But what reasonable Orioles fan would believe for a half second that Peter Angelos would be mandating the signing of the biggest fish in the free agent market?!?!?! I mean, really? I have to imagine Heyman & his buddies sitting around saying, "What is the most ridiculous, outlandish assertion we can make?" Then posting it, then giggling uncontrollably while everyone in the know in the business is going, "LOL!!!!!!!!!!"

Just funny to me.

If you literally mean biggest, then I hear ya. But the biggest fish in the sea is Albert Pujols by far! Even at 4 years older than Prince, I predict Pujols will be productive for longer than Fielder.

[Tony-OH]

Why on Earth would ANYONE logically look at the past 14 years and start a thread with this title based off of a tweet by Jon Heyman of all people!?!?!?!? And hey Jon Heyman, nobody in Major League Baseball is going to believe for a second that Peter Angelos is MANDATING that his new general manager spends $150+MM on one player.

Get a new schtick. Most of us weren't born yesterday. No offense intended everyone, but give me a break with this stuff!!!

This. Once I see Heyman's name and realize it's a Boras client, I stop reading.

[Hank Scorpio]

If you literally mean biggest, then I hear ya. But the biggest fish in the sea is Albert Pujols by far! Even at 4 years older than Prince, I predict Pujols will be productive for longer than Fielder.

Well, the biggest most reasonable target. Fielder is a reasonable target, I'll admit it. He offers well above average offensive production at a position of extremely dire need. Pujols is a true pipe dream. Fielder is just an extreme stretch but if the Orioles decided to hand him a Tex type offer, he might jump on it. Or try to jump on it. Okay, okay, he might fall on it. Then wheeze.

But look, we have a brand new general manager. On the job like 45 days or so. MacPhail jumped ship and they decided on Duquette after much deliberating. Duquette has laid out a road map over the last 3-4 weeks while mentioning a flat payroll (which he later added a caveat to, but not a significant one.) Roch & Melewski have mentioned ad nauseum that Fielder is unlikely.

But, Heyman says Angelos has MANDATED HIS SIGNING. Pfft.

[Sports Guy]

The ironic thing about this is that Heyman is a huge PA basher.

So now, all of a sudden, he says that PA has mandated we spend eight gazillion dollars on Fielder?

[TonySoprano]

The ironic thing about this is that Heyman is a huge PA basher.

So now, all of a sudden, he says that PA has mandated we spend eight gazillion dollars on Fielder?

Obviously he has a phone tap on Angelos' phone.