Red Sox/MLB Buffalo Blue Jays - Mookie Betts agrees to sign 12-year, $365 million contract extension with LA

[McGarnagle]

On the subject of parks, I honestly think my favorite one I've been to (aside from Fenway) is Dodger Stadium. It's a great experience and has an atmosphere of LA and history. It's not just the stadium itself, but driving up the big hill overlooking the city to get there. It feels magical.

On the other end of the spectrum, Anaheim sucks. It's a lifeless experience, like an oversized minor league park in the middle of a bunch of strip malls and urban sprawl, and a terrible gameday presentation from the operations department.

 

[LSCII]

Kind of throws a huge wrench in the "he's absolutely going to test free agency" theory I heard as the argument for why they "had" to trade Betts.

Mookie Betts expected to sign long-term deal with Dodgers

Seems like it was really more that the Sox didn't want to and would not go to the magic number he was looking for to not test free agency. Ironic that the Dodgers aren't having that same issue, no?

 

[McGarnagle]

Starting to look like he just didn't want to be in Boston.

 

[RoccoF14]

On the subject of parks, I honestly think my favorite one I've been to (aside from Fenway) is Dodger Stadium. It's a great experience and has an atmosphere of LA and history. It's not just the stadium itself, but driving up the big hill overlooking the city to get there. It feels magical.

On the other end of the spectrum, Anaheim sucks. It's a lifeless experience, like an oversized minor league park in the middle of a bunch of strip malls and urban sprawl, and a terrible gameday presentation from the operations department.

I've been to both as well and totally agree with you.

I've probably been to 20 or so different ballparks. My top 10, in no particular order are:

Post reno Fenway
Post reno Wrigley (although getting there is a giant pain in the ass)
Camden Yards (Baltimore)
Petco (San Diego)
Dodger Stadium (LA)
Citizens Bank Park (Philly, great ballpark, asshole fans)
PNC (Pittsburgh)
Target Field (Minneapolis)
Miller Park (Milwaukee, tailgating in the parking lot is a Wisconsin tradition)

....if I'm honest, Busch Stadium in St Louis is nice as well, but its very, very hard for me to ever say anything nice about the St Louis Cardinals

 

[LSCII]

Starting to look like he just didn't want to be in Boston.

Or, and I get this is a tough thing for some people to accept, Boston didn't want to pay him and never offered him what he was looking for to not test free agency. Crazy to suggest, I know, but certainly possible.

 

[McGarnagle]

Or, and I get this is a tough thing for some people to accept, Boston didn't want to pay him and never offered him what he was looking for to not test free agency. Crazy to suggest, I know, but certainly possible.

The luxury tax wouldn't allow it. They couldn't possibly sign him to the $350 million deal without it costing the team $700 million in taxes. it just wasn't possible. That's why they had to reset this year by trading him and Price. They cleared all the space to bring him back if he wanted to test free agency, but I guess he doesn't?

 

[LSCII]

The luxury tax wouldn't allow it. They couldn't possibly sign him to the $350 million deal without it costing the team $700 million in taxes. it just wasn't possible. That's why they had to reset this year by trading him and Price. They cleared all the space to bring him back if he wanted to test free agency, but I guess he doesn't?

I get the reasons why they couldn't do it. I take issue with them because they were self created issues and could have been easily avoided had they not been idiots, but I guess my real question is whether they wanted to be on the hook for what it's going to take to sign Betts. My guess is no, and that the luxury tax issues were nothing more than a convenient excuse for them. Imagine they moved Betts for cap space and have it turn out they didn't have to do that? The fans would lose their minds.

Keep in mind that this is the same ownership group that desperately tried multiple times to get out from underneath that Manny Ramirez deal that they inherited from The Yawkey Trust, even though they had the space.

 

[KrejciMVP]

Wonder if the Sox held onto him he would have been more incentivized to sign right away with the Covid crisis like he's doing now with the Dodgers instead of testing free agency

 

[Killer Orcas]

Wonder if the Sox held onto him he would have been more incentivized to sign right away with the Covid crisis like he's doing now with the Dodgers instead of testing free agency

I believe the Covid has definitely changed his attitude about signing. Nobody knows how this is gonna play out and teams may be reluctant to hand out big money deals. Dodgers would have never thought he'd sign for 30 per before this pandemic guaranteed. I'm pretty sure read somewhere he wanted 420 million over 12 years from Sox.

 

[CDJ]

Let’s not act like things are the same as they were 6 months ago. The players are facing a tremendous amount of uncertainty next offseason and I was reading stuff saying Betts would be lucky to get $250 mill this offseason. He’s definitely not going to set the market like everybody thought he was going to before all this craziness hit. If I had to guess it will be 12 years and somewhere in the 300s


Teams are probably going to hemorrhage money. I don’t think free agency will be as lucrative as it once was

 

[Gator Mike]

 

[McGarnagle]

Let’s not act like things are the same as they were 6 months ago. The players are facing a tremendous amount of uncertainty next offseason and I was reading stuff saying Betts would be lucky to get $250 mill this offseason. He’s definitely not going to set the market like everybody thought he was going to before all this craziness hit. If I had to guess it will be 12 years and somewhere in the 300s


Teams are probably going to hemorrhage money. I don’t think free agency will be as lucrative as it once was

I can't wait until the Phillies go bankrupt and have to trade Hoskins and Nola and the Philadelphia fans turn on Harper and blame him for making so much money.

 

[CDJ]

...........



It’s fine to me if the Sox don’t go out and get an inferior $300 million dollar player. I get the idea of spreading those resources around, just don’t go out and use that money on a Pablo or Hanley or basically any big name free agent pitcher.


With the reset next year go get Springer for like 6/150 and start to make things happen

 

[CDJ]

I can't wait until the Phillies go bankrupt and have to trade Hoskins and Nola and the Philadelphia fans turn on Harper and blame him for making so much money.

There’s a very real chance that happens to Bryce

 

[N o o d l e s]

I'm totally cool with the Red Sox not paying any player that much until he's 40

 

[LSCII]

Less than Trout, but still big money. Good for him.

 

[LSCII]

I'm totally cool with the Red Sox not paying any player that much until he's 40

I agree. If the team isn't comfortable extending themselves for that amount over that time period, I fully understand. What I fault them for is for not being open and honest about it. If you don't want to tie up that kind of $$$ on a term that will run well past when he's a productive player, just say it. I'd at least accept and respect that more than the dog and pony shows they put on.

 

[Ben Grimm]

Now Heyman is saying 12 years for $350M. Still a great deal.

 

[CDJ]

Yeah guaranteeing yourself $350 million in the middle of a pandemic with an upcoming CBA renegotiation is definitely not a bad thing


probably my favorite player to ever watch wear the uniform....it hurts. But I get it.

 

[Smitty93]

Kind of unbelievable that the AAV is as low as it is, but I guess if you're getting paid until your 40 then it makes sense. I probably would have signed him to that deal, but it wouldn't have necessarily been a good decision.

Maybe he just didn't want to stay in Boston, but the annoying thing is that their shitty contract management made it so it was going to cost them a lot more money to re-sign him than anyone else, so it just comes back to bad management. Since Theo left, they've had no consistency in direction. Hopefully Bloom's here for the long haul and we'll get back to not making crazy, spur-of-the-moment decisions.

 

[KrejciMVP]

I agree. If the team isn't comfortable extending themselves for that amount over that time period, I fully understand. What I fault them for is for not being open and honest about it. If you don't want to tie up that kind of $$$ on a term that will run well past when he's a productive player, just say it. I'd at least accept and respect that more than the dog and pony shows they put on.

at the end of the day Dodger fans will get to watch an elite player for the foreseeable future while we (Henry I mean) saves money. Im excited! aren't you?

 

[LSCII]

at the end of the day Dodger fans will get to watch an elite player for the foreseeable future while we (Henry I mean) saves money. Im exited! aren't you?

No, not at all. I like Mookie as a player and don't think the drop off will be huge given his game isn't built on power like a JD Martinez is. Since he's more of a contact hitter and speed guy, I think he cam still produce at a decent rate even when he's on the decline.

 

[LSCII]

Kind of unbelievable that the AAV is as low as it is, but I guess if you're getting paid until your 40 then it makes sense. I probably would have signed him to that deal, but it wouldn't have necessarily been a good decision.

Maybe he just didn't want to stay in Boston, but the annoying thing is that their shitty contract management made it so it was going to cost them a lot more money to re-sign him than anyone else, so it just comes back to bad management. Since Theo left, they've had no consistency in direction. Hopefully Bloom's here for the long haul and we'll get back to not making crazy, spur-of-the-moment decisions.

I think the shitty cap management gave them an out and that their interest in Mookie at that kind $$ for that kind of term was very low. If he'd have taken a really bad hometown discount, sure, but short of that, they wanted to get away from it if possible. Their own ineptitude gave them that out, which was fitting.

 

[KrejciMVP]

No, not at all. I like Mookie as a player and don't think the drop off will be huge given his game isn't built on power like a JD Martinez is. Since he's more of a contact hitter and speed guy, I think he cam still produce at a decent rate even when he's on the decline.

great year for the Sox bridge year though, I bet that fake crowd noise won't be booing anyone

 

[McGarnagle]

Yeah guaranteeing yourself $350 million in the middle of a pandemic with an upcoming CBA renegotiation is definitely not a bad thing


probably my favorite player to ever watch wear the uniform....it hurts. But I get it.

Front load the contract, invest the entire signing bonus in Tesla today before earnings, then he'll turn that money into way more than Trout