The Joys of Guaranteed Contracts

Some days news break and I think to myself, is there really anything more excellent than guaranteed contracts? You get the contract based solely on past performance and "expectations" of how you will perform in the future but in reality you don't even have to do a single of worth following signing your name to a piece of paper.

Take BJ Ryan for example. The Blue Jays cut his ass last night because he was the worst pitcher in their bullpen this season and they needed to make roster room for Scott Downs, their current closer, who was coming off the DL. The Blue Jays didn't have many options at their disposal. They couldn't trade Ryan, because he makes way too much money. They couldn't send him to the minors, because he would just deny that. And logistically there was no benefit to keeping him in their bullpen because he's been so dreadful this season. So they made the decision to dump him.

Now Ryan has a few options he can A) Sit on his ass and just relax and watch the Blue Jays continue to fill his bank account for the next two years because they owe him 15$ million dollars. Or B) he can attempt to pitch for another contract for another team. Likely at 33 he doesn't want to retire just yet and likely he doesn't want to go out like this, but damn option A has its appeals. For instance, he can live somewhere not in Canada. He can play golf all day. He doesn't have to get shit on by a fan base because after his injuries he's not good anymore. I'm guessing he's going to sign on somewhere soon but think about it for a second BJ. Beaches or Baseball?

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M E T S = Mercifully End The Season

Do it before David Wright gets Hurt!

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Numbers On Steroids: Mickey Mantle

Numbers on Steroids is a look at baseball players during the 90s to see if anything screams out at you. This week it's throwing a curve ball and looking at All Time Great Yankees. Players that we know did not take steroids to see if this gives a defense to any of the players 'convicted' by Numbers on Steroids. Time to look at my dad's favorite athlete of all time, Mickey Mantle. Averages Say: What's with the mysterious dip at 27 and then the uptick? At Bats Per Home Run Says: That's a mighty jump from 22 to 24 Explaining As If It Was the 90s If you take a look at the numbers there are two time frames which in the 1990s would be questioned. First would be the incredible leap he took from his first year in the big leagues to his first MVP season in 1956. His batting average jumped 50 points. His slugging percentage jumped 90 points and he hit 15 more homers than his previous high. This wouldn't merrit a conviction nowadays though because the young age he...

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Guest Post: Thoughts on Sabathia Signing

I asked Grutt what his thoughts were on the Sabathia signing and I thought his response pretty much nailed it. So here it is. I don’t know. Every year I get a little more disenchanted with baseball. Yea, it’s great we signed the top pitching free agent. But we were supposed to. No team was even in the ballpark of the Yankees offer yet they still needed to jump from the already ridiculous price of $140 million to $160 million to close the deal. Now I hear we are going to sign more pitchers who will also get large contracts and the position player gaps are still glaring. Each new, large contract just adds to the feeling that the Yanks are supposed to win it all. “I think we have a good chance this year.” That is a lost feeling. If they don’t win I’ll wonder why, like there has to be some other reason besides that it’s a sport you can never predict how things will work out and some years just aren’t yours to be won. If they win I will be pleasantly smug. It gets a little more...

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