Hypothetical Question: Which Offer would you Take?
by Brandon C. on Jan 27, 2010 8:00 AM EST
in Miscellaneous
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PrintHere's the scenario before I ask the actual question:
You are 35, and a member of the San Diego Padres (randomly chosen NL team to delete bias) You are coming off one of your best seasons and you are a free agent. You have received many offers from many different teams. Important notes: You have never won a World Series, you only want to play until you are 40, and you have only gotten mediocre payments in the past (ex: 2 year 10 mil or 3 year 15 mil)
Knowing all this, which of these offers do you accept? (Remember this is hypothetical)
St. Louis Cardinals: (hypothetical best team in the MLB) 1 year, $5 million
Atlanta Braves (hypothetical midlle of the pack team in MLB) 2 year $14 Million
San Diego Padres (hypothetical team you played your entire career with, not very good team) 2 year $12 Million
Kansas City Royals (hypothetical worst team in MLB) 3 years, $27 Million
Which of these offers do you accept? Knowing that the Cardinals are a very possible World Series candidate and you do not have a ring. The Braves are a possible playoff team and they offer a good salary. The Royals offer is by far the best, but you will likely not win a ring for the three years while there. The Padres offer is not only average, but also they are not very good. You have played your whole career there, though.
Thoughts?
*The teams chosen were picked randomly and I made sure not to use the Yankees or their rivals so you would not be biased*
This question is solely to get an idea of how the average baseball fan thinks. Is it all about money? Winning? Personal Accolades? Playing your entire career with one team?
UPDATE: 10:20 AM: Wow, this is really close! Just to clear things up the Cardinals are like the current Yankees, the Braves are like the current Twins or Rockies. The Padres you played your whole career with, but they aren't very good, and the Royals are like the current Pirates.
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You want a shot at the playoffs, but you’re 35. You take $7M x 2Y over $5M x 1Y.
"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
I don’t buy the “mediocrity” of a player’s salary. If you played 10 years at league minimum, you’ve earned about $3M over the course of your career, you’re about to triple or quadruple those earnings, and you’re going to have a nice pension with full medical.
"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
Given that 'I'm 35'
and haven’t really made a ton of money, MLB-wise, I’m taking the dough.
Maybe after a year and a half of BS I force my way out of town with a trade…but $27 million is $27 million.
F a WS ring……
You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you are going, because you might not get there
My agent will call up Omar Minaya
to convince him to give me a easily attainable one-year vesting option on top of Dayton Moore’s offer. If not, $27M can buy me happiness in KC.
Braves
Cardinals offer too little, I mean, I would need SOME kind of money. 7 million for 2 years is better than 1 year 5 million. I know the other teams offer more money, but, if they are just going to lose, then is it really worth it? I would want a shot at a World Championship, and I would take the 7 million per year to have a chance at winning, rather than 9 million a year, and one extra year of losing and in last place (3 year offer).
So, I would go with the Braves. You couldn’t have the Yankees as a team up there? lol
I figured if I put the Yankees
or one of their rivals you would automatically pick the yankees/against the rivals
Writer for Pinstripe Alley.
"Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth."
"So I close in saying that I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for."
I would take
The 1 year deal with the Cards. Knowing how I am, I would rather take a little less to remain more competitive and know that I am actually playing for something. Which I believe would extend my career a bit further, rather than languishing on a Royals team making 9 mil per, knowing that I am not really playing for anything, except maybe spoiler in Sept.
I know I would be taking a risk by doing this because I could have an awful year, but I think the satisfaction of winning a World Series is definitely worth the lesser take home.
I like to think...
That I’d stick with the team that drafted me or go somewhere with a chance to win – but a difference of $13 mil is A LOT of money and I can understand why most players would go for the $27 mil. I mean there are much worse things than making $9 million a year to play baseball for a living for a bad team. That’s the kind of money that supports your family for generations.
by Let's Talk About Tex Baby on Jan 27, 2010 10:12 AM EST reply actions
If I'm 35
and I’ve only made about $5M/yr up to now, I take the $27M. It’s my last shot at it. Maybe when I’m 38 I catch on with a contender. For now, I do what’s best for the fam.
And by "taking care of the fam"
I mean securing their future for as long as possible. I do NOT mean “putting food on the table” as some players making millions like to say. “My family’s gotta eat”. Wow. How much does that disconnect you with 90% of America?
Busting your ass 10 hours a day to make $30k is “putting food on the table”. Nobody feels any sympathy for athletes that throw those kind of lines around.
3 years at 27 million
It’s all about security. I’d be employed for three years, and who knows, the team might get some great players by accident and compete for a title.
Fat chance. This is the Kansas City Royals you’re talking about here.
by Scooby Snacks on Jan 27, 2010 11:46 AM EST up reply actions
The Braves offer is best
You get to compete, and you get a much better salary than the Cardinals would give. Granted, you’re not the favorite to win, but you’re competing and if you make the playoffs, anything can happen. One or two good playoff runs and it might earn an even better contract further on.
No way I take the Royals or Cardinals, one gets you humility and the other gives you no security. Odds are if they’re competing, they can replace me. I’d consider the Padres, based on how much I like the fans, how I get treated etc.
I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious.
Vince Lombardi
Your update makes no sense to me. Anyways, I went with the most money because it’s always about the money. Plus, if you are one of the higher paid players on the Royals you are likely to get traded to a contender anyways.
Unless you're immovable like Jose Guillen
It’s just to create chatter. I’m thoroughly surprised that so many people hate SD and chose anything but KC.
by Scooby Snacks on Jan 27, 2010 12:09 PM EST up reply actions
The Update
Basically was explaining the situations around each team
I picked random teams for each position
The Cardinals are like this years Yankees, expected to win it all, etc
I didn’t want to use actual teams that Yankees fans would be biased by
Writer for Pinstripe Alley.
"Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth."
"So I close in saying that I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for."
Maybe old school, but
Time to start thinking about the possibility of an extended future (and my reputation) with my “home” franchise and local fan base, so I plan to go out where I started.
I think once I get to $6MM/year, given taxes etc a million or two additional in a year would not make much difference.
If SD were totally totally totally out of all “You gotta Believe” possibilities, the StL offer would be very tempting.
by Richard Deegan on Jan 27, 2010 12:37 PM EST reply actions
Pay me.
It’s probably my last contract, and who knows what kind of post-baseball income I’m going to have.
3 years, 27 mil, no pressure.
http://newyorksportsjerk.blogspot.com/
by New York Sports Jerk on Jan 27, 2010 1:15 PM EST reply actions
Excellent idea, though
this post doesn’t take into account family issues. At 35 perhaps you have children in middle school and would not like to move them across the country for an extra 2MM in Atlanta when you are in sunny SoCal.
realistically noone would ever take the cardinals deal
has anyone ever turned down an offer of 3yr/27mil for a 1yr/5mil deal in real life? i dont think so, that is way to big of a pay cut. if you have a bad year this upcoming season you just screwed yourself of 22 million dollars. its easy to say youd play for the best team in the mlb for a huge pay cut when its online taking a poll, but noone in their right minds would actually do that if it were ACTAULLY put in front of them
I stay loyal!
Sure winning a World Series is a heaven sent accolade in pro baseball, but not many players are loyal to their respective teams. These players either want the ring at any cost or a payday no matter what team! Me I stay loyal like the Kirby Puckett’s, Cal Ripken’s and Joe DiMaggio’s/Don Mattingly’s!
Loyalty is an attribute that has been absent in pro sports! I would rather be loyal than go for the ring or big payday! The team I played my entire career for gave me the opportunity and I will stick with them. Who knows maybe we win, maybe we do not, but at least I know I did my best for the team that gave me my major league dream!!
" The Survivor"
Pauliecanes
Oh I forgot...
I also would not want to move my family!
Questions?
Is there a no trade clause in this deal If so, than I stay in SD even more. I do not want to be sent to a team as a stopgap or a bat just to make the playoffs
What is my position? If I am a catcher, I have a few years to go on my knees, so maybe I move to an AL team. That would be the only way I take a bigger deal. I can prolong my career as a DH in the AL!
" The Survivor"
Pauliecanes
5 and 10
Any player with 10 years MLB service and 5 consecutive years with his current team full no-trade protection.
"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
The players you named are all superstars
Based on the hypothetical salary history above, you are not.
http://newyorksportsjerk.blogspot.com/
by New York Sports Jerk on Jan 27, 2010 3:05 PM EST up reply actions
If I'm 35 and still in the league..
That probably means I have had something a bit better than mediocre going on for at least part of my career, so I have probably cashed in on that at some point. I would like to think that I would go with the Cardinals because I would want to play to win, but 27 million dollars can change a lot of priorities.
35 years old is the key
If I take the one year deal, then I’m 36 with no job at the end of the season. I would need to have another great year. Too risky. Braves are interesting, but then when I get out of that I’m 37, and in even worse shape. Padres suck. Home discount only applies if your team is actually good.. Royals easily the difference between 5×1, 6×2, 7×2, and 9×3 makes it no contest I’m 35 I don’t have a ring yet then I don’t think I’ll ever get one. It’s not like I’m the Dan Marino of baseball I don’t need a ring to prove anything about my career sounds to me like I’m a slightly above average player trapped on a suckbag team for most of my career. 27 million period.
One problem I can see with this concept
presented here is that even if we were to try and put ourselves in these shoes, it’s still very enticing to think “well, why not take the deal with the best team?”
That’s simply not how the professionals and their agents operate. Odds are, they’ll be most enticed by the 3/27, but if we are to assume that they haven’t won a championship in their career, I assume they take the deal with the Braves (or Twins, or Rockies, etc.). Hell, if the player is so good, they might be one of the missing pieces towards lifting those teams toward a World Series title.
(and ftw, I think the Rockies and Twins are both better than ‘average’, whereas you cited the Braves as an average team, and said that “the Braves are like the current Twins or Rockies”. But that’s an off-topic nitpick.)
27 mil.
Who sits on a $27M lotto ticket and only takes $5M and a chance at jewelery? Its nearly double the next best offer. Its too much money to turn down.
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