Current team/payroll figures

[Sports Guy]

C- Wieters: 400K

1st- Lee: 7.25M

2nd- BRob: 10M

SS- Hardy: 7M(approx)

3rd- Reynolds: 5M

LF- Pie: 420K

CF- Jones: 2M(approx)

RF- Nick: 10.25M

DH- Scott: 6.5M(approx)

Bench/bench candidates:

Izzy- 1.5M

Reimold- 400K

Harris- 1.75

Andino- 400K

Fox- 400K

Tatum- 400K

Rotation:

Guthrie- 5M(approx)

Matusz- 400K

Tillman- 400K

Arrieta- 400K

BB- 400K

Pen:

Koji- 3M

Gregg- 5M

Gonzo- 6M

Accardo- 1.08M

JJ- 1.5M(approx)

Berken- 400K

VDH- 400K

I fully expect a lefty to be signed and added to that group, with VDH likely joining the rotation in AAA or Berken/Accardo to start season on DL.

That puts the current payroll at about 78 million. As I said, I feel they add one more lefty to the pen and one more bench player...I also think they will foolishly add a starter, likely trying to include Harris in the deal to help offset some salary.

I figure the final payroll will be around 85M or so.

[JTrea81]

Connolly says:

We’ve heard the Orioles are pretty much at their 2011 budget right now.

So I doubt they add anybody else on a ML deal.

$78-80 million is going to be the payroll for this team, and with their resources, it's pathetic...

[Sports Guy]

We’ve heard the Orioles are pretty much at their 2011 budget right now.

So I doubt they add anybody else on a ML deal.

$78-80 million is going to be the payroll for this team, and with their resources, it's pathetic...

Its exactly in the area where they should be right now. The fact that you don't get that is mind boggling.

Now, if you want to argue that the resources should have been used better in the past so that they could spend more now, that's fine...But based on what has happened, no one should have expected the payroll to be much more than 80-85 million. It was never realistic to expect more than that going into the 2011 season.

[ChaosLex]

I'm a little puzzled as to why they're having a hard time meeting Vlad's asking price, considering the O's offered close to $50 million for VMart and Dunn.

[Sports Guy]

I'm a little puzzled as to why they're having a hard time meeting Vlad's asking price, considering the O's offered close to $50 million for VMart and Dunn.

Maybe its not that they can't meet it, more of them not wanting to meet it.

Plus, we don't know what his asking price is, especially his asking price to come to Baltimore.

[JTrea81]

Its exactly in the area where they should be right now. The fact that you don't get that is mind boggling.

Now, if you want to argue that the resources should have been used better in the past so that they could spend more now, that's fine...But based on what has happened, no one should have expected the payroll to be much more than 80-85 million. It was never realistic to expect more than that going into the 2011 season.

Explain to me why this team should be at only this mark for payroll.

Take away Andy MacPhail and Peter Angelos for a second.

Why can't the Orioles with the MASN money, with the money they are getting from MLB for merchandising and TV rights, do more to field a competitive team?

What are their limitations other than the GM and owner?

[DrungoHazewood]

Connolly says:

So I doubt they add anybody else on a ML deal.

$78-80 million is going to be the payroll for this team, and with their resources, it's pathetic...

The Orioles were 21st in franchise value in MLB in 2010 according to Forbes, and 19th in revenues. They were 23rd in payroll, about $5M behind 20th place.

Where exactly should the roughly 20th-most prosperous team in baseball's payroll be? 10th? 5th? 1st?

[JimDH]

Roughly how much more might be paid out for incentives?

[DrungoHazewood]

Explain to me why this team should be at only this mark for payroll.

Take away Andy MacPhail and Peter Angelos for a second.

Why can't the Orioles with the MASN money, with the money they are getting from MLB for merchandising and TV rights, do more to field a competitive team?

What are their limitations other than the GM and owner?

Revenues and expenses.

The O's are exactly in line with other comparable MLB teams in what they pay and what they bring in.

[Sports Guy]

Explain to me why this team should be at only this mark for payroll.

Take away Andy MacPhail and Peter Angelos for a second.

Why can't the Orioles with the MASN money, with the money they are getting from MLB for merchandising and TV rights, do more to field a competitive team?

What are their limitations other than the GM and owner?

The resources aren't as great as you assume them to be.

They can be and I think they will be but they aren't right now.

The Orioles need to see a big jump in wins this season and then have an exciting offseason next year...You do that and the fans start coming back. When that happens, MASN brings in more money and, you finally start to see ticket sales jumping up quickly.

We can contend with a payroll in the 80-90 million range and I think we will see them go higher eventually.

The problem is what we are spending it on. The Orioles continue to hand out these middling contracts to middling players. That's ok to do if your payroll is going to be 120+ million or if you are in another division and don't need 95 wins to contend. But the Orioles can't do that.

[Singleton]

The resources aren't as great as you assume them to be.

They can be and I think they will be but they aren't right now.

The Orioles need to see a big jump in wins this season and then have an exciting offseason next year...You do that and the fans start coming back. When that happens, MASN brings in more money and, you finally start to see ticket sales jumping up quickly.

We can contend with a payroll in the 80-90 million range and I think we will see them go higher eventually.

The problem is what we are spending it on. The Orioles continue to hand out these middling contracts to middling players. That's ok to do if your payroll is going to be 120+ million or if you are in another division and don't need 95 wins to contend. But the Orioles can't do that.

What contracts do you have a beef with? Kevin Gregg this year and Gonzalez last year? That it? I'm not going to defend the contracts but both were 2 year deals so don't have huge long term implications.

I agree that there are better ways to have spent the $ but just don't see it as that crippling.

[Sports Guy]

What contracts do you have a beef with? Kevin Gregg this year and Gonzalez last year? That it? I'm not going to defend the contracts but both were 2 year deals so don't have huge long term implications.

I agree that there are better ways to have spent the $ but just don't see it as that crippling.

Not a big fan of the BRob contract...Never have been. Not saying it is hurting us and he likely isn't a middling player in 2011 but I think he will be in 2012 and 2013.

Gregg and Gonzo are bad contracts.

[Prayin4Reign]

Its exactly in the area where they should be right now. The fact that you don't get that is mind boggling.

Now, if you want to argue that the resources should have been used better in the past so that they could spend more now, that's fine...But based on what has happened, no one should have expected the payroll to be much more than 80-85 million. It was never realistic to expect more than that going into the 2011 season.

Explain to me why this team should be at only this mark for payroll.

Take away Andy MacPhail and Peter Angelos for a second.

Why can't the Orioles with the MASN money, with the money they are getting from MLB for merchandising and TV rights, do more to field a competitive team?

What are their limitations other than the GM and owner?

He can't. Anyone who thinks this team doesn't have the resources or perhaps better...the capacity for a higher payroll is kidding themselves. SG and others are making Peter Angelos a very happy man.

[Crazysilver03]

He can't. Anyone who thinks this team doesn't have the resources or perhaps better...the capacity for a higher payroll is kidding themselves. SG and others are making Peter Angelos a very happy man.

We know the team has the resources for more, but at the current time, it is not "necessary."

People don't understand that we have a very cheap core right now and they won't be cheap any more beginning in two years.

[Sports Guy]

He can't. Anyone who thinks this team doesn't have the resources or perhaps better...the capacity for a higher payroll is kidding themselves. SG and others are making Peter Angelos a very happy man.

This is foolish.

What kind of resources does a team have that has an attendance less than 2 million the last few years?

You and Trea are wrong.

The resources have been wasted, there is no doubt about that and because they have been wasted, the Orioles don't have the resources you believe they have. You look at what they SHOULD have and say that is what they have. Hopefully you can figure out that there is a difference.

And also, this is a business...PA has all the right in the world to profit off of that business.