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Breaking News Overbay, Downs Avoid Arbitration
The Blue Jays agreed to terms with Lyle Overbay and Scott Downs for one year contracts, avoiding arbitration.

Overbay's salary for 2006 will be $2.525 million and Down's salary will be $705,000.

This leaves the Jays with three arbitration eligible players - Lilly, Walker and Hillenbrand. The deadline to exchange arbitration figures is tomorrow so it's possible that the remaining players will agree to terms by then.

Here's where the Jays payroll currently stands. 

PLAYER	          	
Rotation		
Halladay	12.750	
Burnett	         1.000	
Lilly	         5.000	*
Towers	         2.300	
Chacin	         0.375	
		
Bullpen		
BJ Ryan	         2.000	
Chulk	         0.400	
Frasor	         0.400	
Downs	         0.705	
Walker	         1.000	*
Schoeneweis	 2.750	
Speier	         2.250	
		
Catchers		
Quiroz	         0.327	
Zaun	         1.000	
		
Infield		
Glaus	         9.000	
Hillenbrand	 5.500	*
Hill	         0.375	
Overbay	         2.525	
Adams	         0.375	
Hinske	         4.300	
MacDonald	 0.500	
		
Outfield		
Wells	         4.300	
Rios	         0.375	
Cat	         2.700	
Johnson	         1.425	
		
Other		
Burnett Bonus	 1.200	
Ryan Bonus	 1.200	
Koskie Bonus	 1.000	
Koskie Salary	 3.250	
		
Total	        70.282	
ML Contracts	25
* Arbitration eligible - salary is an estimate.

The announced budget from the team has been $75 million for this season so there's approximately $5 million remaining.

Personally, I would sit on that remaining $5 million right now. Any player that the Jays were to acquire - like a Molina or Craig Wilson - wouldn't necessarily make them that much stronger of a team. And I think the Jays need to see how Rios looks in RF for at least half a season. The positional prospects in the organization are thin right now and Rios' low salary over the next few years will come in handy if he can play well.

The other benefit to sitting on the remaining money in the budget is that it becomes more powerful as the season goes on. As each month of the season goes on a player's future commitment is 1/6th less.

Hypothetically, say a Bobby Abreu type player is in the last year of his contract and makes $15 million. When the trading deadline comes around at the end of July two-thirds of his salary will already be paid so there will just be one-third of his salary left - or $5 million. While you would only get this player for the remaining two months of the season (as opposed to a $5 million player for the entire season) I think there'd be a greater impact. Additionally, the player pool at the end of July will be greater than it is now as teams fall out of contention. Right now all 30 teams are tied for first place, have some hope of success and aren't looking to shed salaries. Waiting also allows the team to identify their needs during the season, whether those needs arise by poor performance or injuries.

You can always spend money on players - why not wait until the best opportunity arises instead of settling for a limited pool of players?

Posted by Pistol on Monday, January 16 2006 @ 05:40 PM EST.
Overbay, Downs Avoid Arbitration | 44 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
binnister - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 06:58 PM EST (#139802) #
Was this what was expected for Overbay? I was almost expecting Hillenbrand-type dollars (guess service time plays a large roll here).

$700,000 is also pretty darn good for Downs.
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Flex - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 07:18 PM EST (#139803) #
I'm fully with Pistol on this, though I fret that Ricciardi's impatience won't allow it to happen. But, all things being equal and salary being a true reflection of worth, I'd much rather pay a $10 million player for the second half of a year than a $5 million player for a full year.
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nicton - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 07:25 PM EST (#139804) #
I was expecting around $2 mil for Overbay. Not too far out of line.


Wouldn't Ryan's bonus be $2 mil ( 10 mil bonus over 5 years ) a year?


Using new math, the Jays have $8 mil in dead money from next year's payroll ( Koskie $3.75 + $1 mil sb Ryan $2 mil sb Burnett $1.2 mil sb. ) Ryan's and Burnett's salaries increase from $3 mil combined to $ 17 mil combined.
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Jim - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 07:49 PM EST (#139806) #
I know I wouldn't pay Walker ~1MM with the multitude of bullpen arms the Jays have waiting in the wings.
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TamRa - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 08:01 PM EST (#139807) #
Well, due to some minor discrepencies, the total I got was very close to yours, but I think the observation that Ryan's share of his bonus should be $2 million instead of 1.2 is accurate, so that puts you a tic of $71 million.

But I also thing you are anywhere from 2-2.5 million too high in the combined salaries of Lilly, Shea, and Walker. I doubt pete makes much if any more than downs, I can't see Lilly getting an almost 70% raise based on last year (note for reference AJ's salary last year) Anything over 4 million would suprise me...and I don't think Shea will clear $5 million - especially given the gratitude he ought to feel for JP's commitment to him.

The total I got was roughly $69 million.
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eeleye - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 08:14 PM EST (#139809) #
Something is not adding up for me. I was under the impression that BJ RYan was making about 9.5 million a season and Burnett 11 million - I know how their salaries are staggered with bonuses and such (Burnet 7, 12, 12...; Ryan 2, 11, 11...), but the Jays are still paying them THAT money, so where does it add up? In the following years payroll, by the same logic, their salaries would be something like 16 million per pitcher.....????
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nicton - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 08:27 PM EST (#139812) #
eeleye99
2006: Burnett $2.2_______Ryan $4
2007: Burnett $13.2______Ryan $7
2008: Burnett $13.2______Ryan $12
2009: Burnett $13.2______Ryan $12
2010: Burnett $13.2______Ryan $12
Total: Burnett $55_______Ryan $47

Atleast by my count....
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MatO - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 08:27 PM EST (#139813) #
The Jays have been calculating payroll for accounting purposes by amortizing the bonuses over the life of the contract. I don't particularly agree with the way they're doing it but that's how they're calculating how much they're spending so that's what we're using.
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greenfrog - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 08:58 PM EST (#139814) #
I don't mind the Jays passing on Wilson but I'm torn about Molina. I think we could use another good receiver. Molina fits that bill and he can hit respectably. I would much rather see Molina start 100 games and Zaun 60 (with Q playing full-time in Syracuse) than Zaun 110 and Quiroz/Phillips 50. Our pitching staff is young and progressing nicely. I think Molina could make a big difference in maintaining that trend.

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nicton - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 09:19 PM EST (#139815) #
Isn't Q out of options????


Two problems with waiting until mid-season to acquire players is 1.) the talent you have to give up and 2.) who is available. Matt Lawton was the best position player available last year. Shawn Chacon was the best pitcher.
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Rob - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 09:25 PM EST (#139816) #
Two problems with waiting until mid-season to acquire players is 1.) the talent you have to give up and 2.) who is available.

While I agree with your second point (I still remember the superstar talent the Jays picked up from Tampa Bay on July 31, 2000), let's not forget that sometimes in the offseason, you can give up a lot of talent. Gold Glove second basemen and above-average starting pitchers, for example...

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eeleye - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 09:29 PM EST (#139817) #
when you look at it this way: yowzers. That's gonna be 20 next year and 25 the last three....(and who knows how they will be playing by those fourth and fifth years)...our payroll is gonna be huge and much more limited, which is why I say sit on the 5 mil. How much do you think V. Wells will want to resign?
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Thomas - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 09:55 PM EST (#139818) #
This is off-topic, but two young men, Simon Fraser students, fell to their deaths on Burnaby Mountain on Friday night after an evening of drinking.

One of them was a youth named Joseph Stryjak, 21. He was the catcher for the Little League team from BC that was Canada's representative in the Little League World Series for 3 straight years (I think), which is a Canadian record. Adam Loewen was a pitcher on that team and apparently he and Stryjak were good friends, as Stryjak also caught him throughout high school baseball.
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VBF - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:12 PM EST (#139819) #
I think, eeleye, is that the Jays management are banking on major attendance increases this year, and spending money now will give them more money in the future for payroll.

I pray to God that Ted Rogers doesn't give us a similiar 3 year payroll plan for 210 million in 2007. If the Jays plan on re-signing Halladay and Wells and want to maintain their position as free agent sweepstakes players, they will need an 85 million dollar payroll from 2007 and onward. In otherwords, fans are going to have to put an additional 15 million in the club through tickets, merchandise, ratings, etc.

From various interviews, Paul Godfrey expects 2.5 million fans to go through the turnstiles next year, a 500,000 improvement from 2005, and an average of about 31,000 a game. Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun reported last week that ticket sales were up 46% (!!) from this time last year (And those are just season subscriptions, not even single game seats!). If that trend were to continue (with a strong start to the season), the Jays would be looking at an average attendance of 36,000 a game. That would be more than enough to justify an 85 million dollar payroll.
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JayFan0912 - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:14 PM EST (#139820) #
I just don't think that either wilson or molina would be a good idea. While molina would be an improvement over zaun at the plate, it would create some tension in the clubhouse, since each would expect to start. Molina and Zaun are also in their contract years ( assuming molina signs a 1 year contract ), and this is a position that could impact the performance of the pitching staff. Another drawback is that quiroz will be lost on waivers, which could develop into a serviceable and cheap catcher. You need these type of players if you pay the likes of burnett and ryan.

Wilson just signed a contract, and I am not sure he can be traded. He is probably going to hit better than cat. next year, but not by much. And he is going to cost a prospect to acquire, while we create another bench player (cat. or wilson). Playing wilson or cat in RF is a big downgrade on defence, and their contributions at the plate aren't worth seeing runners extend singles to doubles, doubles to triples, and (with cat there) score on balls to shallow RF.
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Pistol - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:19 PM EST (#139821) #
"Wouldn't Ryan's bonus be $2 mil ( 10 mil bonus over 5 years ) a year?"

$4 million of that $10 million bonus isn't paid until 2007 so Ryan's bonus is $1.2 million this year and $2.2 million the next 4 years.
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TamRa - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:41 PM EST (#139822) #
I saw an article somewhere that went into some detail about new revenue streams that began this year for every team. One was the sale of the Nationals, another was based on some internet broadcast rights I believe. Anyway, the upshot was that most every team could expect a boost of about 15 million annually for the next few years.

I have NO clue where I read it. but it jibes nicely with the otherwise inexplicable extra spending by team like the Royals and Pirates.
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Pistol - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:48 PM EST (#139823) #
"I pray to God that Ted Rogers doesn't give us a similiar 3 year payroll plan for 210 million in 2007."

I believe the 3 year plan is a rolling three year plan so the Jays will always have a pretty good idea of where they'll be with their payroll for the current year and the following two years after that every year.

I suspect that the Burnett and Ryan contracts were done in a way they were so that the payroll increase was a gradual one over a few years instead of one huge jump as you feel the wrath of Bud otherwise (I believe Blair said this in a 'hit and run' a few weeks back). The 'real' payroll amount is around $79 million right now, with apparently $5 million left (this is the actual cash being paid this season) but is being announced as $70 million with a $75 million self imposed cap.

I'd be surprised if the payroll in 2007 and beyond is less than $85 million unless there's a significant, unplanned event that changes things. If not the Jays will have to get pretty creative next year.

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greenfrog - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 10:56 PM EST (#139824) #
I think the problem is that a lot of our pitchers would benefit from throwing to a quality catcher. (I'm thinking of Burnett, Chacin, Towers, Chulk, Frasor--not to mention McGowan, League and Marcum.) Pitching has a lot to do with confidence. Molina is a very good receiver, knows the league, has playoff experience, and would take some of the burden off Zaun, who faded badly in August and September. He could also help mentor Quiroz, assuming you can find a spot for all three on the big-league roster.
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rtcaino - Monday, January 16 2006 @ 11:50 PM EST (#139827) #
http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/2006/1/12/195533/812#commenttop

Discussion re the future of the AL East. I haven't read it yet, but looks interesting.
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Jabes - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 01:39 AM EST (#139830) #
Did anybody go to that "autograph session" the Jays had last week? I was considering going but now I'm glad that I didn't.

Josh Towers was the best they could get? It's commendable that Josh showed up, but how much are the Jays paying AJ Burnett and BJ Ryan? They couldn't get either of these guys to show up? No Vernon Wells? No Roy Halladay? What the heck were Aaron Hill or Russ Adams so busy doing?

I really hope this wasn't the organizations version of a fan-fest. That would be really disappointing for Jays fans.

I'm not sure if the same people are also responsible for the lame BJs ad campaign last year; the one featuring the Jays in a criminal line-up. It was really bad. "Somebody should have lost their job" bad.

The Jays marketing divison needs some help.

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einsof - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 04:07 AM EST (#139831) #
Could someone explain to me why we only signed Overbay for One year? Wouldn't we want to lock him up for a few years?
What is his official status after his one year contract expires? I know he hasn't played long enough in the Majors to become a free agent after his contract expires, so what is the process? Excuse my ignorance on this subject.
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Chuck - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 07:17 AM EST (#139832) #
Could someone explain to me why we only signed Overbay for One year? Wouldn't we want to lock him up for a few years?

Since Overbay won't be a FA until after the 2008 season, he is, in a sense, already locked up. In each of his arb years, he has the right to request arbitration if he and the team can't come to a salary agreement.

I would guess that if he has a solid 2006, the Jays might offer him a 3-year deal to forego his final 2 arb years and his first FA year.

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melondough - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 07:26 AM EST (#139833) #
Jeff Blair reports JP spoke with Bengie Molina's agent last week and that the offer probably did not top $4 million for one year (although JP would not confirm). Apparantly, JP says the Molina camp is waiting only on one other offer before replying to back (I say yah to all you nay sayers!).

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20060117/JAYS17/TPSports/Baseball

I would love to have Molina at that price. Although I agree keeping money in the coffers makes sense for later, I also think Ted will make this money available if the Jays are contending in late July. It does not make sense to trade for Wilson if we have to give up a good prospect or roster player - not if he can't play defensively.
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andrewkw - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 08:10 AM EST (#139834) #
I had planned on going to the autograph session but I decided not to once I found out who was going to be there. Kevin Elster? I didn't even know who that was until I looked him up turns out his brother is vice president of marketing, maybe he's to blame for poor list. I don't see why they need him to promote the met's series now. The return of Carlos should sell itself. It's great they had a hall of famer in Ferguson Jenkins but he has no ties to the Blue Jays. Just Towers and Cito and not to bring them down but there really should have been more players there, at least one of the new guys I expected.

Also I agree that I think the Jays should wait until the deadline to add players since 5 million will go further, but with everyone adding payroll expect the marlins will there be many salary dumps?
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hugh - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 09:12 AM EST (#139835) #
Completely off-topic here:

Friend of mine works down by the Rogers Centre, says they're doing extensive renovations right now there, there are dumpsters full of stuff going out all the time, including seats.

I know there was some discussion earlier about what was going on this off-season, but I can't find it... Does anyone have any dirt on this? I'm curious what they're doing to the place!


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andrewkw - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 09:16 AM EST (#139837) #
I'm surprised they aren't selling the seats. Although I don't think the old turf sold well so I doubt the seats would. I bought one last year and it was supposed to be limited to 5000 I believe. Now they are giving them away with flex packs.

The seats being taken out are the back rows of the 100 level that are under the 200 level, I remember reading about this a while back sorry don't have a link.
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Wildrose - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 10:53 AM EST (#139842) #
Actually I can understand why the team has interest in Molina. I was running some numbers comparing last years team to this years coming team, and I noticed the importance of having depth in case of injury when making these projections. The team is most vunerable at catcher. If Zaun was hurt, and given his reckless style that may happen, I'm not sure a Phillips/Quiroz combo is good enough for an extended period of time.

Depth wise the team is in good shape except for the middle infield, Ryan Roberts developing would really help this situation. I think the team would take quite an offensive hit if Adam's/Hill were lost for the season.
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Ryan Day - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 11:43 AM EST (#139844) #
Odd comment from Ricciard in The Star about Walker:
Walker, the dependable veteran who pitched out of the bullpen last year, will compete for a job this spring.

"With some of the young kids we have like (Dustin) McGowan and (Shawn) Marcum, he's going to have come in and win a job," said Ricciardi.

Which begs the question of why would you offer arbitration to a guy might who not even have a job?

[ Reply to This ]
Mike Green - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 11:51 AM EST (#139846) #
Marcus Giles signed with the Braves for $3.85 million. A bargoon for the Braves, considering this is Giles' 2nd arb year, and he is a great player (12 WSAB, 7.8 WARP last year- an average one for him).

What is it with the Giles boys? Everyone else is cashing in, and they take chump change. Maybe they're too nice.
[ Reply to This ]
Wildrose - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:08 PM EST (#139847) #
I thought it would be of some value to look at the 2007 salary picture using Pistol's template.

PLAYER
Rotation
Halladay 12.8
Burnett 12.0
Lilly Free agent- resign? *
Towers 2.9
Chacin 0.400

Bullpen
BJ Ryan 9.00
Chulk 0.450
Frasor 1.5 (?) (arbitration eligible)
Downs re-sign?
Walker re-sign? *
Schoeneweis Free agent, re-sign?
Speier Free agent, re-sign?

Catchers
Quiroz 0.350
Zaun Free agent, re-sign?

Infield
Glaus 10.5
Hillenbrand Free agent, re-sign? *
Hill 0.400
Overbay 4.0
Adams 0.4
Hinske 5.625
MacDonald 0.600

Outfield
Wells 5.6
Rios 0.400
Cat Free agent, re-sign?
Johnson 2.0

Other
Burnett Bonus 1.200
Ryan Bonus MLB 4U has it being payed out in lump sum.
Koskie Bonus 1.000
Koskie Salary 3.75

Total: 74.475

The team will have 5-6 million to play with, to fill several holes. They really need some young pitchers to come on to fill some spots in the bullpen.

Given how they pro-rate bonus money, it's hard to get a handle on exact figures.
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rtcaino - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:21 PM EST (#139849) #
""The team will have 5-6 million to play with, to fill several holes. They really need some young pitchers to come on to fill some spots in the bullpen.""

Not too mention that spot in the rotation. If I was a gambling man, I'd say at least one of our guys should be ready for a spot in a Major League rotation a year from now. My bet would be on McGowan. However, there is a lot of baseball to be played, and he has a lot of work to do.

An even bigger question is the LF and DH holes. What is JFG's status for then? I assume he hasn't used up any options.

Lind may be ready by then. He is certainly somebody that a lot of people here, and in the Jay's front office, will be watching with keen interest this up coming year.
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Wildrose - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:35 PM EST (#139850) #
The 2007 budget picture is a lot tighter than I'd imagined. I do think however, that they may have to rob Peter to pay Paul, in other words, they may have to use some 2008 funds in 2007 to remain competetive. This is a slippery slope however, that takes a lot of finesse. Glad the G.M. is tied up until 2010.

They really need Hinske to step forward and establish some value. I think McGowan will replace Lilly.

I'm glad to hear Ricciardi is not talking long term contract with either Hillenbrand or Lilly, the potential draft choices these two could provide, would really help re-stock the farm system, although offering them arbitration, and having it accepted, may require some budgetary juggling.
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Marc Hulet - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:36 PM EST (#139851) #
If JF Griffin gets sent down this season at any point, his last remaining option will be used up.
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nicton - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:40 PM EST (#139852) #
I assume payroll to be $85 for 2007.

Your model has 17 players signed and $10 - 11 mil to fill the other holes. This would eliminate Lilly and Hillenbrand from re-signing. McGowan should be able to step into the rotation. Maybe one FA, using tricky math. Next off-season may be a little less eventful then this one....
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Wildrose - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 12:49 PM EST (#139853) #
Actually Nicton it's quite confusing, they had $160 million to spend in 2006/2007, Pistol has them ( and I believe he's correct) spending 79 million in real terms this year. They have 75 million in potential obligations in 2007, leaving only 5-6 million to spend of the original 160 million dollar pie.

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The Bone - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 01:16 PM EST (#139854) #
Here are the numbers as I see them:

We spent about 46-47.5 in 2005 real money depending on whose totals are believed. We will spend 77.5-79 million in real money this year depending on arb numbers for Lilly and Shea. That number includes all of Burnett and Ryan's bonuses and Koskie's 2005 payment to the Brewers. Thus, we'll be real close to 125 million spent in 05-06 and thus likely to have 85 in 2007. As far as money obligated for 2006 (or at the minimum salary) we have:

C: Empty
1B: Empty (Overbay in ARB)
2B: Hill 0.355
SS: Adams 0.36
3B: Glaus 10.75
LF: Hinske 5.625
CF: Wells 5.6
RF: Empty (Rios in ARB)
DH: Empty

C: Empty (I'm going to call a Quiroz a prospect rather than a guaranteed backup C)
MI: Empty (McDonald in ARB)
CI: Empty
UO: Empty (Johnson in ARB)

SP: Doc 12.7
SP: Burnett 12
SP: Chacin 0.36
SP: Towers 2.9
SP: Empty

RP: Ryan 9
RP: Empty
RP: Empty
RP: Empty (Walker in ARB)
RP: Empty (Downs in ARB)
RP: Empty (Frasor in ARB)
RP: Empty (I'm not 100% sure on Chulk being ARB-eligible)

Koskie: 3.75

Total: 63.5

Prospects:

Group A (likely to be ready for 2007): League, Marcum, Mcgowan

Group B (reasonable to think they may be ready for 2007): Griffin, Quiroz, Santos, Lind, Rosario, Vermilyea (assuming Boston returns him), Purcey

Group C (possibly ready in 2007, but unlikely): Cannon, Negron, Roberts, Thigpen, Banks, Janssen, Romero

Group D (not really prospects, but could help in 2007 in a pinch): Hattig, Gronk

So about 21.5 million to spend with 10 roster spots filled, maybe 4 prospects being ready and 7 fairly affordable ARB cases...still, the budget will be tight

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VBF - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 01:24 PM EST (#139855) #
Re: Autograph Session

I was offered a ticket but didn't go due to other obligations. I am quite confident that when they have their 'Fan Fest' it will be on a grander scale than that--last year it was at the Eaton's Centre and was a big success. This signing was just a throw in amenity to flex pack purchasers--hardly anything to get worked up over. I can only imagine that the new acquisitions are gearing up and getting in shape for the upcoming season. I'd rather they do that than signing some petty autographs.

I do agree about the marketing though. The marketing department is totally incompetent. Their ideas may be well and good, but they have failed to execute anything well. When was the last time any of their commercials were actually about--well--baseball?

I took a tour of the RC a week or two ago (on the weekend of the Softball Tournament) when the stadium was in full baseball setup. The irony was that when the guide took us to the 500 level, he actually led us to section 518. So there I was, sitting in section 518, with a full baseball field in front of me. Only problem was that it was January. Totally bizarro.

The press relase about the renovations said iirc that the last 3 rows were being removed. It was actually more like 5 or 6 from where I could see. When it's all said and done, I imagine a small part of the concourse will actually be open air, without a concrete ceiling over your head. It will also definitely improve the wheelchair seating.

I'd love to get my hands on a seat, however I don't think it's possible because the framing for the seats were constructed in groups of ten, so if you wanted to get a seat, you would only be able to get a row of 10. Of course, they could cut the individual pieces out and it would work. I actually just called them and the customer service rep I was talking to said that no information about it had been released.

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Brian W - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 01:54 PM EST (#139857) #
TSN reports Ted Lilly signed for 1 year, $4 million to avoid arbitration.

http://www.tsn.ca/mlb/news_story.asp?id=151187
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Wildrose - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 03:19 PM EST (#139868) #
Bone I liked your formatting, I think you may be right about Rios/Chulk being arbitration eligible as "super two's". I'm doing some more research on this. The Koskie/Burnett pro-rated bonus payments need to be accounted for somewhere in 2007.
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Mike Green - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 03:41 PM EST (#139870) #
Josh Banks has had a year and a half at double A. Purcey's the better prospect, but Banks is probably closer to ready perhaps in a relief role.
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ayjackson - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 04:10 PM EST (#139874) #
Bone, you have Griffin and Quiroz as 2007 prospects, but both will be out of options, i believe....so they should be classed as "better be ready", rather than "may be ready".
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daryn - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 04:42 PM EST (#139876) #
>Given how they pro-rate bonus money, it's hard to get a handle on exact figures.<

sure is.. my numbers were high by almost 10Mil.

very hard to know what's in and out
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The Bone - Tuesday, January 17 2006 @ 11:42 PM EST (#139906) #
"may be ready" accounts for the distinct possibility they will never be quality regulars, whether they have options or not
(which they wouldn't)

I was doing the math based on real money spent, which accounts for the fact that while the team can claim to spread the bonuses out over the life of the contract, in reality, Koskie's bonus was paid last year and the Burnett/Ryan bonuses were paid last month...I already counted them, so I dont need to count them in 2007...at least thats what I thought was the right way to do it
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