Jump to content

Hardy Extension Announced Today

WarehouseChatter

By WarehouseChatter
in Orioles Talk

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 328
  • Created
  • Last Reply
mdbdotcom Hangout Grand Counsel

mdbdotcom

Posted
Posted
I'm not too worried about that. I did a small study of shortstops in this age range, and most top fielders lose very little range between ages 31-34. Like several other posters, I think the biggest risk with JJ is just whether he will be healthy enough to play 135 games or more each year over the life of this contract.

I wonder how many people realize that the first year that we had Mike Bordick and moved Cal over to 3B, Bordick already was 31 years old, same as Hardy this season. I'd say Bordy held his defensive value pretty well the next several years, wouldn't you?

Perhaps I should have said "if" instead of "when."

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DrungoHazewood Hangout Grand Counsel

DrungoHazewood

Posted
Posted
As long as JJ is prepared to move over to 3B when he starts losing a step, this should be fine.

Why would that be fine? Who wants a 34-year-old third baseman learning the position with a .650 OPS? I think you could find a .650 OPS third baseman with a decent glove for a small fraction of what Hardy is making. Hardy's value is all tied up in his ability to play short well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CanadianOriole Major Leaguer Cup of Coffee

CanadianOriole

Posted
Posted

Just in terms of pure numbers I'm not sure I would love the extension. Hardy has been declining and history shows middle infielders decline quickly as they enter those mid 30s. But there's something happening with this team over the last 3 years and especially this year where they are more than the sum of their parts. There's a camraderie and a chemistry happening with this baseball team that is difficult to quantify. We're in the ALCS and at most books favorites to win the World Series. Hardy is a big part of that - and taking care of him is part of keeping the goodwill between players and management going. When I read that the pitchers are high-fiving hearing the news of the extension - that's just more of that goodwill building. Management/ownership taking care of a cog like Hardy makes us that much more attractive to our own free agents and free agents in other organizations.

If we were a 4th place team right now I wouldn't like this deal on its face - even though I like Hardy - but the risks for a deal like this with players of his profile likely outweigh the benefits in a vacuum. But we've got a window to potentially be a playoff team in all the years covered by this extension. As a long suffering O's fan that seems insane to me - but it's reality. Of course it could all crumble - but this move keeps the train rolling down the track and could help us continue to stack up not just winning seasons - but playoff seasons over the next few years - and that I am 100% in favor of.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
hoosiers Hangout Grand Counsel

hoosiers

Posted
Posted
That's the thing. This year's team won without Manny (mostly), Wieters (mostly), and a Chris Davis who didn't look like a shadow of his 2013 self. Factor in a (potentially) full season from Gausman in 2015 and a (potential) contribution from Bundy, and next year's team could be better than this year's.

Sure, this happens when one figures all the positive things happen again and the negative factors are reversed (we'll see if Steve Pearce is a 6 WAR contributor next year and Zach Britton and Darren O'Day both pitch lights out again). I wonder how much better you expect our divisional competitors to be given how injured they were this season - if you were to look at them in the same favorable light.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Dagger420 Major Leaguer Cup of Coffee

Dagger420

Posted
Posted
That's if you are a team that should be paying market value for wins, I don't think the Orioles should be.

Haters gonna hate. A good organization rewards the folks who bring it success - within reason, of course. I'd rather that kind of coin go to JJ than anymore Ubaldos... I feel that tells the young guys that if you work hard, do well and stay loyal, you'll be rewarded...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
mdbdotcom Hangout Grand Counsel

mdbdotcom

Posted
Posted
Why would that be fine? Who wants a 34-year-old third baseman learning the position with a .650 OPS? I think you could find a .650 OPS third baseman with a decent glove for a small fraction of what Hardy is making. Hardy's value is all tied up in his ability to play short well.

I have no doubt that he could handle the position change smoothly, and if we reach a time when it makes sense for Manny and JJ to trade places, I hope JJ takes it in stride. I think the only thing we can count on with his offense is that it will be unpredictable. We don't know what he'll do offensively over the next three years. Bordick put up a .601 OPS at age 31 and .783 at 34.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
weams Hangout Grand Counsel

weams

Posted
Posted
I have no doubt that he could handle the position change smoothly, and if we reach a time when it makes sense for Manny and JJ to trade places, I hope JJ takes it in stride. I think the only thing we can count on with his offense is that it will be unpredictable. We don't know what he'll do offensively over the next three years. Bordick put up a .601 OPS at age 31 and .783 at 34.

Yeah. Well. If JJ can't play short I guess he'll have to DH. I don't see his shoulder working for third. I hope Manny can stay healthy enough to play third base through to play short until he leaves in 2019.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
srock Veteran All-Star

srock

Posted
Posted
You think him signing with the Yanks would cause a decrease in attendance?

I think folks would threaten it, but in the end would go anyway.

I could be wrong, I don't fully relate to fans with that viewpoint.

It would hurt merch sales a bit.

But more importantly, the stupid Yankees winning more hurts our playoff chances.

And the negative reaction by fans would be felt at the box office down the road when the team is "rebuilding".

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing


  • Posts

    • orioles119
      How "fired up" are you with this Yankee series?

      By orioles119 · Posted

      Great, now they're going to go 6-0.
    • Roy Firestone
      How "fired up" are you with this Yankee series?

      By Roy Firestone · Posted

      How about..." we wont win another game in the regular season"?
    • Fiver6565
      AL playoff picture

      By Fiver6565 · Posted

      i still like that winning your division matters, at least a little bit.  So I think there's a happy medium between how unbalanced it was, and what you are suggesting.  13 games vs each division team feels right to me, but there are going to be years where that skews the WC thing a bit, because there's always one really bad team, it seems, somewhere (not always as bad as the ChiSox, of course).  I'm not sure how else to further balance it.  Maybe cut back on the NL stuff a bit and play more games against your non-divisional conference rivals so at least there's more head to head to base the WC on.
    • Fiver6565
      I need to be a better fan

      By Fiver6565 · Posted

      Apparently this post of mine from one year ago killed this thread, as it was the last before today's bump.  In re-reading that, I am reminded (by a past version of myself, LOL) of why I love this sport.  It was actually a bit invigorating reading that back to myself.  LETS GO BIRDS!
    • spleen1015
      I need to be a better fan

      By spleen1015 · Posted

      I've found the older I get, the less interest I have in watching my teams lose. It's a waste of time so I find something else to do. Watching my team lose is not enjoyable so I'd rather do something I'd enjoy. It's not like I'm that old either, just 47. I get a lot more enjoyment out of watching good games with other teams, to be honest. Watching the Bills in the first half last night was fun. The Redskins/Bengals game was fun to watch. Man City and Arsenal on Sunday was great. The Chiefs/Falcons game was a good game. There were a few decent college football games this last weekend as well. I'll watch the game to start tonight and if the O's are down 3-0 after the 1st inning, I'll find something else to do, probably watch some of the other MLB games that have playoff implications.
    • SemperFi
      How "fired up" are you with this Yankee series?

      By SemperFi · Posted

      It will be interesting to see if there is any carry over from the HBP's culminating in Heston's beaning.  Hate to say it but that's around when the .500 play started, now much worse.  I did like the way HK stared down Holmes after being hit-I think this series will mean a little more to him.
    • Orioles West
      How "fired up" are you with this Yankee series?

      By Orioles West · Posted

      It’s O’s and Yanks. Good guys versus bad guys. Baby Birds up against the Evil Empire — and another trip to the post-season is in the cards. I’ve been cheering for the O’s and very specifically against the Yanks going on six decades, and I’m getting good at it. So, yeah. I’m fired up. Now ask me about hopes and dreams. I don’t think this Orioles team is going to make a run to WS this year.  They have scuffled, they have failed — but I’m reminded, even in the platinum age of data — baseball is still a game of failure.  And man, runners in scoring position over the last week, I’m not sure I want to know that number. They’re still my guys. As long as they’re in it, so am I.

  • Popular Contributors

×
×
  • Create New...