USAToday: Boras Quotes

[eddie83]

27 minutes ago, thezeroes said:

Since the year 2000 through 2019 532 players age 20 to 29 have put up a year with 4 plus offensive WAR

Since the year 2000 through 2019 316 players age 30 to 39 have put up a year with 4 plus offensive WAR

Of the 316 over  Age 29 players here is the break down as they age:

209 were over age 30

147 were over Age 31

drops to 98 over Age 32

drops to 51 over Age 33

drops to 25 when over Age 34

The chance of having a player at age 35 and older put up a 4 plus WAR gets rather slim so why would you long term any player over a certain age?

Good work here. 

My guess is these numbers are even much more tilted towards younger players in the last 6-8 years. All anyone has to do is look at the playoff teams. Core of those teams are younger played. The older players on those teams are starting pitchers, some relievers and everyday/bench players who fill the holes that the young talent didn’t cover. Why would a team like the Orioles getting into a bidding war for Michael Brantley and why would he want to play for a loser? There are fewer quality position players left in the market and the contending teams need them to fill holes. 

[eddie83]

29 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

But if you can get 1.8 WAR for 550K why pay 4/48 for 2.6/2.0/1.5/1.2 ?

Looking at players like Means and Santander on the Orioles. Will they continue to play well? We don’t know that but we do know the diminishing returns veteran players have.

A guy like Manny should making more than the minimum like he did in 2013. Fans would support that.  

[SteveA]

21 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

Looking at players like Means and Santander on the Orioles. Will they continue to play well? We don’t know that but we do know the diminishing returns veteran players have.

A guy like Manny should making more than the minimum like he did in 2013. Fans would support that.  

A large % of casual fans seem, for some reason, to take a position of knee-jerk supporting of owners in a lot of these sports labor issues.   They don't like "greedy players" getting paid huge amounts of $ to play a kids game, and they associate that with rising ticket/concession/etc prices even though there is not much evidence that owners would lower prices rather than pocket the profit  if they could get a player for cheaper.

I'm not talking about sophisticated fans on here who understand the issues, how the system is structured, etc.   But we make up a very small % of the butts that are actually in the seats.    In just about every sports labor dispute I have been familiar with, there's been a lot of fan sentiment for management and against "greedy players".   

[Can_of_corn]

Just now, SteveA said:

A large % of casual fans seem, for some reason, to take a position of knee-jerk supporting of owners in a lot of these sports labor issues.   They don't like "greedy players" getting paid huge amounts of $ to play a kids game, and they associate that with rising ticket/concession/etc prices even though there is not much evidence that owners would lower prices rather than pocket the profit  if they could get a player for cheaper.

I'm not talking about sophisticated fans on here who understand the issues, how the system is structured, etc.   But we make up a very small % of the butts that are actually in the seats.    In just about every sports labor dispute I have been familiar with, there's been a lot of fan sentiment for management and against "greedy players".   

The idea is that more of them would side with the players if they were talking about guys in the minors having a living wage and guys who excelled in their first few years in the league making more than the minimum.

It's an easier argument to make than Adam Jones needs a multi-year deal.

[Aglets]

1 minute ago, Can_of_corn said:

The idea is that more of them would side with the players if they were talking about guys in the minors having a living wage and guys who excelled in their first few years in the league making more than the minimum.

It's an easier argument to make than Adam Jones needs a multi-year deal.

yeah I agree with this 100%.     But would this then lead to all the minor league affiliates being essentially subsidized by the MLB club?    How much is that the case now?   I have to imagine the MLBPA is going to oppose that too.

[Redskins Rick]

I call Boras corrupt.

Scott is in it, for one reason only, himself, everything he does, helps himself out, and he doesn't always have the player's best interest at stake.

 

[Philip]

I see another post about Boras but I think this comment deserves a separate post:

” Boras said Wednesday that Many teams entered last season with the goal of rebuilding through hide raft pics and an attitude of,’ I don’t want to win 82 games. I want to win 69 games. You know why? Because I get rewarded for it.’”

That’s a legitimate point, and during a TradeRumors chat last season,  The suggestion was made that the first draft pick should go to the best of the last place teams.

That’s a great suggestion: it creates a legitimate race among the bottom six teams to see who could be the best. And that team gets the first pick. That makes it much more likely that no one will think, everyone will really try their best. So when the Tigers play the Royals, Fans will say, “we won, we’re closer to the first pick, Yay” Instead of,” We lost, we are closer to the first pick, Yay.”

Boras doesn’t care about anything except maximizing his client income, and he skews every comment for that purpose. But this problem is a real one and is easily addressed.

[LookinUp]

Baseball has a rebuilding problem, but it also has a pathway for teams to plan to compete with the Yankees on a much smaller budget. If you don't want more revenue sharing, this might be a fairly good option.

[Philip]

11 minutes ago, LookinUp said:

Baseball has a rebuilding problem, but it also has a pathway for teams to plan to compete with the Yankees on a much smaller budget. If you don't want more revenue sharing, this might be a fairly good option.

The union would probably like it because it makes it more likely that older guys can remain in the league a bit longer because there’s incentive to get better players so you can win a meaningful extra few games.

if you’re just tanking, it is more important to save money, so the older guys on the decline would be able to get a bit of extra work.

And I really think the fan bases would be more energized with a meaningful goal.

[webbrick2010]

38 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

The idea is that more of them would side with the players if they were talking about guys in the minors having a living wage and guys who excelled in their first few years in the league making more than the minimum.

It's an easier argument to make than Adam Jones needs a multi-year deal.

So tired of undefined terms

What is a living wage (Guys in the minors seem pretty healthy)?

What is a working class family ??

What is the "middle class"

Give me numbers

[wildbillhiccup]

3 hours ago, webbrick2010 said:

Talking an old man (possibly senile) into paying a one trick pony who had hit .196 only 12 months earlier into a 161 million dollar 7 year contract is corrupt

Even if he was senile, he's the one who chose to put those people in a position to influence him. I'm pretty sure he was still of sound mind and body when he fast tracked Brady for example. 

[Redskins Rick]

6 minutes ago, webbrick2010 said:

So tired of undefined terms

What is a living wage (Guys in the minors seem pretty healthy)?

What is a working class family ??

What is the "middle class"

Give me numbers

You could look it up, its relatively easy with google.

https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0912/which-income-class-are-you.aspx

[atomic]

4 hours ago, weams said:

“When you go to the zoo and half the bears are asleep,’’ Boras says, “you’re not able to enjoy the zoo. The industry is in a competitive hibernation, and the fans are reacting to it.

“We got a decline in attendance. We got owners charging more for generations that want to see the game, while we’re losing a generation of young people that are only interested in competition.

If you are purposely losing that is corruption. I agree with him.  I think the Orioles are in that boat. 

[atomic]

19 minutes ago, webbrick2010 said:

So tired of undefined terms

What is a living wage (Guys in the minors seem pretty healthy)?

What is a working class family ??

What is the "middle class"

Give me numbers

Guys in the lower minors are definitely not making a living wage.  Read some books about guys who have written about their minor league.   So the guys getting big bonuses are fine as they can live off of that but the guys with bonus' under 100k are going to suffer.  

I recently read Dick Hayhurst's "The Bullpen Gospels (A Non-Prospect's Pursuit of the Major Leagues and the Meaning of Life) "   That would give you a good idea what life is like in the minors. 

[spiritof66]

4 hours ago, webbrick2010 said:

Talking an old man (possibly senile) into paying a one trick pony who had hit .196 only 12 months earlier into a 161 million dollar 7 year contract is corrupt

Senility seems like a stretch. And unnecessary -- arrogance, ignorance, desperation to win now and lack of concern for the team's long-range future were enough to get a deal done.

Kind of like going to the zoo when half the bears are asleep, half are awake, and one is on speed, eager to race around the cage against himself.