2016 Cubs Payroll Update (12/12)

In Commentary And Analysis, News And Rumors, Transactions by dmick8988 Comments

The Cubs had a busy week and it's been awhile since I updated the payroll chart. The contract terms for Jason Heyward aren't yet available so I just used his annual average value of the contract.



Player 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Jon Lester 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00    
Jason Heyward 23.00 23.00 23.00 23.00 23.00 23.00 23.00 23.00
Miguel Montero 14.00 14.00            
Edwin Jackson 13.00              
John Lackey* 12.50 17.50            
Ben Zobrist 10.50 16.00 16.00 12.00        
Jason Hammel 9.00 **2.0            
Anthony Rizzo 5.29 7.29 7.29 11.29 ***2.0      
Trevor Cahill 4.25              
Jorge Soler 3.67 3.67 4.67 4.67 4.67      
David Ross 2.50              
Rex Brothers 1.42 Arb2 Arb3 FA        
Gerardo Concepcion 1.20              
Brendan Ryan 1.00              
Ryan Sweeney 0.50              
Adam Warren # 1.50 Arb2 Arb3 FA        
Clayton Richard # 1.10 FA            
Chris Coghlan # 3.90 FA            
Jonathan Herrera # 1.10 FA            
Travis Wood # 6.40 FA            
Pedro Strop # 4.70 Arb4 FA          
Jake Arrieta # 10.60 Arb3 FA          
Hector Rondon # 3.60 Arb2 Arb3          
Justin Grimm # 1.00 Arb2 Arb3          
 
Total 160.72              

 

 

Notes

  • Contract terms for Jason Heyward have yet to be announced with exception of opt-outs after year 3 and year 4
  • * Lackey has a $7 million signing bonus, $2 million paid December 2015 and $5 million paid in 2017 (salary in 2017 above includes this 2017 bonus
  • **buyout
  • ***$14.5 million club option or $2 million buyout for Rizzo in each of 2020 and 2021

That's quite an increase over last year's payroll. Too bad the Cubs still have Edwin Jackson, Gerardo Concepcion and Ryan Sweeney getting paid. Oh well.

Those players starting at Adam Warren and below are arbitration eligible. I used the estimates provided by Matt Swartz on MLB Trade Rumors.

There are 24 players under contract, but the MLB payroll includes all the players on the 40-man roster. 3 of the players included aren't on the 40-man roster. That leaves at least 4 auto-renewal players (league minimum of $500K) and 15 at $50,000. That's about $2.25 million total.

The Total Cubs payroll is about $163.22 million at this point.

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  1. Smokestack Lightning

    Well, that completely surpassed even my wildest expectations. Didn’t think we’d get anywhere near this high. Cubs did that “play it close to the vest” thing for once. Nothing I read indicated dollars like these were getting spent this year.

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  2. Author
    dmick89

    I thought $150 million. I would have been disappointed with less than that because there just wasn’t a way to really improve the team without going at least that high. If the reports of the trades are accurate, we could be looking even higher. Especially if they get Carlos Carrasco, which is what I’m hoping for. If that’s true, I think we can at least expect Austin Jackson or Denard Span. My hope is they’d bring Fowler back, but that’s probably a bit too much.

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  3. Smokestack Lightning

    Meanwhile, I find stuff like this baffling:

    Why so much pain?
    It is not like Heyward was Albert Pujols or Bib Gibson.

    But Heyward has hurt the pride of “Cardinals Nation.” The national narrative is that this is baseball Mecca and everyone who has had the chance to play in this “culture” would never turn his back to it. That was a point of pride of The Fan himself. We had chosen the right team, and every player chooses us if only he gets a chance to know us.

    And unlike others who come and go, Heyward was brought in with an implied public declaration by Mo: we are so damn confident about our culture we are willing to give up something very valuable to get Heyward just to allow that culture to work over him. He will have to say “yes,” even if we do not offer opt outs or other things that make our offer the most lucrative.

    Mo said at the meetings, almost despondently, that it now appears that it is all about the money after all.

    But even after acknowledging that, he tried to further the narrative by offering a deal that would allow him to say, if it had been accepted, that “he chose the Cardinals even though our offer was less valuable to the player. That is because of our culture.”

    Mo did so even though the team Chairman gave him the dollars to just make the most valuable offer.

    Apparently, narratives mean the most.

    Indeed, it is because our narrative — that speaks to us as fans — was so discredited yesterday that we feel so much pain. Pain that should be reserved only for folks like Pujols and Gibson.

    by CardsRule on Dec 12, 2015 | 5:03 AM reply rec (4) flag

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  4. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89,

    Agreed. The highest I was letting myself dream, prior to the Zobrist signing, was around 150MM.

    But once the Superfriends landed Zobrist, I started to wonder a bit about whether the Cubs weren’t stepping on the gas for once. No logical reason to land Zobrist unless there was room for someone like Heyward. None.

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  5. Author
    dmick89

    Price and Greinke sign for over $30 million per year. Heyward gets $23 million. Even at this point, I’m still surprised such things happen. How can supposedly smart men who run these teams value those two pitchers so much more than Heyward? It’s beyond stupidity. Heyward was the best free agent available. We said it on day one and talked about it almost every day since.

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  6. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89,

    Someone needs to let that poor soul know there are no “right teams” or “wrong teams,” there’s just teams.

    And you, my friend, happened to pick the red team. The one with the bird. Doesn’t make you a superior human being.

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  7. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89,

    Heyward is the FA tipping point for player valuation. A lot of execs who claim to value metrics just as much as the cool kids got a little squishy once they finally had to pay for them.

    I forget who, maybe Robothal, asked Theo about Heyward at the winter meetings and about his lack of eye-popping RBI numbers and such. Apparently Theo chuckled and said, “This ain’t 1970 anymore.”

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  8. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89:
    Smokestack Lightning,

    As you know, I thought the Zobrist signing was about the end since I was still thinking $150 million. I’m thrilled to be wrong.

    And there were more than a few times I feared you were right. The only thing I kept thinking was that if no Heyward, then Zobrist (and even to an extent Lackey) were completely out of character for this FO. Not that they were necessarily terrible moves by themselves, but without a larger hike in payroll they were a much poorer use of funds relative to what else we could have gotten for the same amount. They would have been moves that looked closer to desperation and if there’s one thing this FO hasn’t been throughout its time here, it’s that. Would have been a shocking abandonment of The Plan and at the exact moment of its fruition.

    Would have been a fireable offense, imo. You don’t just build this way, this wisely, and then go fuck it for Lackey and Zobrist.

    Or maybe not fireable. But at least no dinner. For a while.

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  9. andcounting

    I had to bite my (Twitter) tongue not to ridicule people who suggested the Cubs might get Heyward. This all appears to be money really shrewdly spent, if you can be shrewd with $165 million.

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  10. Author
    dmick89

    According to the poll on MLBTR, 60% of the people think Heyward was paid too much. I intentionally didn’t do a post on how much Heyward would be worth because the figure would be astronomical and I knew he’d get nowhere near that amount. Still, he’s worth far more than he was paid.

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  11. Author
    dmick89

    Sob Baget,

    He’s an auto-renewal player and gets roughly league minimum. This table looks at only people getting a contract to this point. The total figures include the auto-renewal players and non-25 roster guys who are on the 40-man. I’ll update the table with those auto-renewal players as their contracts become known, which is usually around spring training or opening day.

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  12. andcounting

    Rice Cube,

    Sure, with the money they have, but not always the money they spend. The Trib was shrewd with the money they didn’t spend on good players, and they raked in quite a bit regardless.

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  13. Author
    dmick89

    Heyward value projection, first crack at it.

    Year Steamer Win Value $WAR
    2016 4.8 8 38.4
    2017 4.8 8.5 40.8
    2018 4.3 9 38.7
    2019 3.8 9.5 36.1
    2020 3.3 10 33
    2021 2.8 10.5 29.4
    2022 2.3 11 25.3
    2023 1.8 11.5 20.7
    262.4

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  14. JonKneeV

    Before this, I ran the Steamer numbers and put a post together. I’ll put it up Monday. 2016 looks pretty swell, you guys.

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  15. JonKneeV

    The craziest thing – if he’s able to slightly tweak something to tap into more power and hit, say, 30 homers, he probably tops 7 WAR.

    I mean, he has the frame and raw power for it.

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  16. Author
    dmick89

    Huey:
    Sob Baget,

    And Bryant?

    Again, auto-renewal. Those are added in after.

    There are 24 players under contract, but the MLB payroll includes all the players on the 40-man roster. 3 of the players included aren’t on the 40-man roster. That leaves at least 4 auto-renewal players (league minimum of $500K) and 15 at $50,000. That’s about $2.25 million total.

    3 of the 4 auto-renewal players will, in all likelihood, be Russell, Bryant and Hendricks. The chart only includes those players with a contract to play next season with the Cubs and players who are arbitration eligible.

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  17. Smokestack Lightning

    JonKneeV,

    That’s another reason to love the move so much. At 26 there’s still a chance (smallish tho it may be) he takes another step forward offensively. With that we’ve got ourselves another potential 7-8 WAR beast and that point I begin to pity the rest of baseball.

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  18. Author
    dmick89

    Smokestack Lightning: I read somewhere that Cubs are at 98 wins right now.

    That can’t be. I have a hard time buying any team projections for 98 wins even before the season starts, but in December? There’s no way to know since most of the teams are far from complete.

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  19. Author
    dmick89

    I think 30 home runs is possible for an individual season, but not an average rate. Heyward doesn’t hit many doubles either. Here’s his extra-base hit totals in his career:

    2010: 52
    2011: 34
    2012: 63
    2013: 37
    2014: 40
    2015: 50

    I’m perfectly OK with that type of hitter he is now. I wouldn’t mind seeing some improvement vs. lefties though.

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  20. cerulean

    dmick89:
    Price and Greinke sign for over $30 million per year. Heyward gets $23 million. Even at this point, I’m still surprised such things happen. How can supposedly smart men who run these teams value those two pitchers so muchmore than Heyward? It’s beyond stupidity. Heyward was the best free agent available. We said it on day one and talked about it almost every day since.

    A great pitcher is likely to be the difference between winning the wildcard game and not, between taking the best of series and not. Because of their leverage in deciding games, pitchers should be valued more to teams with aspirations that lack a frontline starter (or two).

    The Red Sox got great value for Price even relative to the risks because they had no one at the top. It did not make sense for either the Cardinals or the Cubs to offer $31M a year. Looking at the supposed offers should give us more confidence in this FO, whose $23M AAV contract for Price wad exactly inline with what they offered for Heyward. For the Cubs, they are equally valuable. Arrieta and Lester make it so.

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  21. Author
    dmick89

    I just love the possible lineups for next year. I imagine we’ll see Heyward bat 3rd and 4th a few times (when Rizzo or Bryant get a day off). He’ll probably bat 2nd or 5th most of the year. I think he gets a few games at leadoff too.

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  22. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89,

    I don’t. Not in the actual number. Cubs could win “only” 93 games next year and be strides better than they were in 2015. I do put stock in what that “100 win” number represents, tho.

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  23. Author
    dmick89

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I’m guessing PECOTA would have them at around 94-95 wins. That’s far more realistic than the 100 number. Regardless, they’re almost certainly going to be projected to be the best team in the NL. Possibly all of baseball. I’ll take that. They’ve got a great shot to avoid that silly play-in game altogether.

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  24. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89:
    I don’t get what the Pirates are doing this offseason.

    Best I can tell… saving money. MLBTR has them connected to reclamation projects like Latos and Masterson.

    Fairly easy to project what the Cardinals might do in response—Cueto, Davis, etc—a bit harder with the Bucs.

    Who knows? Maybe they feel fine right now as their place in the NLC hierarchy appears to be unchanged at this point. Cubs and Cards swapped 1st and 3rd in their minds.

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  25. Smokestack Lightning

    All right, last bit from me then I’ll shut the fuck right up.

    So where are we rest of offseason? Victory laps and cigars until March or Soler and/or Baez goners for SP and the Cubs spend a little more dough on a defensive-minded CF?

    I’m landing squarely on the Cubs deal Soler space. He’s the most redundant piece at this point and has the most juice for a deal. As much as the Cubs claim they can play Heyward in CF, and they probably will regardless some days, I have my doubts they don’t put him largely where he’s saved all the defensive runs his entire career and find a Marisnick/Austin Jackson type to man CF in the interim. Playing him out of position with continued subpar defense at the corners doesn’t quite jibe with what this team’s stated goals were re: OF defense.

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  26. Author
    dmick89

    Smokestack Lightning,

    My guess is they continue to work on a deal including Soler for a quality starting pitcher. Most likely Ross since they’ve seemingly had a billion discussions about a him at this point. I’m hoping for Carrasco. Salazar would be fine too. It will cost more than Soler probably. I doubt the Cubs want to deal Baez at this point because they need someone who can move around the field. He’s currently playing CF in the winter league supposedly so it’s entirely possible they could trade Soler for pitching and go with Baez in CF.

    My best guess is that if they do that, they sign Span, Jackson or Fowler to play CF. I’m hoping for Soler Plus for Carrasco and that they sign Fowler. Baez is the super utility player who plays LF and RF against tough lefties when Schwarber and Heyward need days off.

    At this point, they may as well go all out. They can afford it.

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  27. cerulean

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I somewhat agree. Soler gets off to a slow start and his value plummets. But by the time the deadline comes around, he may be a monster. So I am conflicted. I do believe that if there is a good deal that addresses a weakness on the team, they will do it, but they are in the enviable position of being able to bide their time.

    All the young, cheap talent at all levels makes me think that they may be buyers and sellers this summer. I may be wrong, but I have the impression that getting a big haul is more likely at the deadline when teams are a piece away and still have a shot halfway through the season. And with their surplus depth, they could give up a big haul for an impact player on a team that is transitioning.

    We live in interesting times.

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  28. Smokestack Lightning

    Ken Giles, some other 2nd player —————-> Astros
    Phillies <——————–Velasquez, Oberholtzer, Eshelman, Arauz, AND the player Mission Control so wisely picked in front of Kris Bryant

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  29. Smokestack Lightning

    It would seem Mr. Heyward likes his new digs (dying laughing)

    https://twitter.com/JasonHeyward

    Pretty quick change. I think Lester waited until the PC before making his twit-stuff Cubs.

    And I’m sure it had nothing to do with the outpouring of graciousness and understanding by the BFIB yesterday.

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  30. cerulean

    A sobering thought:

    What if the Pirates had access to the funds the Rickettses have now given the Superfriends when they were breaking good at the end of 2011?

    Buying a team doesn’t guarantee success, but money does complement a young and deep team quite well.

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  31. allan birmantas

    Smokestack Lightning,

    Pujols left too. There is little loyalty left in baseball, especially from players who only spent one year with a team. Look what loyalty did for Castro? Rizzo too signed a team friendly contract, but they would trade him too if it was going to improve their roster.

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  32. Suburban kid

    Robothal on Cubs’ interest in Inciarte.

    It will be interesting to see if the Braves flip newly acquired outfielder Ender Inciarte, who is under club control for the next five seasons.

    Inciarte, 25, was the eighth-toughest player to strike out in the majors last season and a combined plus-34 in defensive runs saved at the three outfield positions.

    The Cubs, one of a number teams that inquired on Inciarte after the D-backs traded him to the Braves, seem more inclined to trade for a starting pitcher, dangling outfielder Jorge Soler or, perhaps less likely, infielder Javier Baez.

    Still, if the Cubs acquired Inciarte to play center with Heyward in right, they perhaps could live more easily with Kyle Schwarber in left. Keep in mind, too, that the Cubs have numerous prospects to trade behind Soler and Baez; one scout said third baseman Jeimer Candelario was the best hitter in the Arizona Fall League.

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  33. Author
    dmick89

    Suburban kid: Still, if the Cubs acquired Inciarte to play center with Heyward in right, they perhaps could live more easily with Kyle Schwarber in left.

    Why do people think the Cubs would need two defensive wizards in the outfield to make up for Schwarber, who was just learning the position last year? Terribly small sample, bur during the regular season Schwarber’s UZR was -0.7 in LF. That’s about -4 for a whole season. That doesn’t tell us much about his defense, but a lot of people are judging his defense on 4 games and not the entirety of the season. I’d much rather look at the whole season with the understanding that he did OK, was learning the position and could end up being terrible, average or good. In other words, right now, we don’t know based on what we saw. If scouts think he sucks so much you need two ridiculously good defensive outfielders, the Cubs would probably be wise to trade him for as much as they could get at this point, which would be a whole hell of a lot.

    Fortunately, the Cubs aren’t idiots.

    I would like Inciarte, but he’d probably cost too much for what I’d be willing to pay. Trade Soler and Pierce Johnson for Carrasco and sign another CF still available. Then start planning the parade next November.

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  34. Author
    dmick89

    allan birmantas: There is little loyalty left in baseball, especially from players who only spent one year with a team. Look what loyalty did for Castro? Rizzo too signed a team friendly contract, but they would trade him too if it was going to improve their roster.

    I don’t think there was ever any loyalty in the sport. There was just the illusion of loyalty prior to free agency when teams owned the players and could paid them next to nothing.

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  35. Author
    dmick89

    If the Cardinals would have kept both Lackey and Heyward, that’s a projected 7.7 WAR. They’ve lost Lance Lynn who was projected for about 3 WAR. So they’ve lost 10.7 projected WAR so far and the Cubs have added the 7.7 in Heywacky and 3.3 for Zobrist and maybe about .5 elsewhere for a total of about 11.5.

    Obviously the Cardinals still have a lot of money and are probably going to make some trades too to make up for that somewhat.

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  36. Smokestack Lightning

    allan birmantas:
    Smokestack Lightning,

    Pujols left too. There is little loyalty left in baseball, especially from players who only spent one year with a team. Look what loyalty did for Castro? Rizzo too signed a team friendly contract, but they would trade him too if it was going to improve their roster.

    Of course, and they should.

    But, ftr, Castro did not sign that “team-friendly contract” out of any sense of loyalty. If that’s what you’re referring to. It was how he (and his agent) prioritized his financial incentives at the time the contract was offered, not because he hearts Clark.

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  37. Suburban kid

    dmick89: Why do people think the Cubs would need two defensive wizards in the outfield to make up for Schwarber, who was just learning the position last year? Terribly small sample, bur during the regular season Schwarber’s UZR was -0.7 in LF. That’s about -4 for a whole season. That doesn’t tell us much about his defense, but a lot of people are judging his defense on 4 games and not the entirety of the season. I’d much rather look at the whole season with the understanding that he did OK, was learning the position and could end up being terrible, average or good. In other words, right now, we don’t know based on what we saw. If scouts think he sucks so much you need two ridiculously good defensive outfielders, the Cubs would probably be wise to trade him for as much as they could get at this point, which would be a whole hell of a lot.

    Fortunately, the Cubs aren’t idiots.

    I would like Inciarte, but he’d probably cost too much for what I’d be willing to pay. Trade Soler and Pierce Johnson for Carrasco and sign another CF still available. Then start planning the parade next November.

    Ever since the Heyward deal happened, way back on Friday I think it was, giddy fans have been rubbing their hands together and wondering what little extra edge can be gained, what with the team now apparently having a pile of money as well as surplus players to spend. So they’re looking at strikeout v contact rate and outfield defense, and starting pitching and maybe back end bullpen. None of those areas are weak, but there is a such a sense that it can be done right now that such greedy speculative tinkering is rampant–at least since Friday.

    Your points about Schwarber are taken. I thought he looked rough the whole time, not just in the playoffs, but I also think he’s athletic enough to eventually become a passable left fielder. At least I hope so.

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  38. Author
    dmick89

    Suburban kid: Your points about Schwarber are taken. I thought he looked rough the whole time, not just in the playoffs, but I also think he’s athletic enough to eventually become a passable left fielder. At least I hope so.

    I have no eye for defense so take my words above with a grain of salt. I don’t even bother forming a solid opinion about a player’s defense unless it’s way above average or way below average. In other words, unless it’s so obviously noticeable, I don’t recognize it. I stopped trusting my eyes long ago when it comes to defense.

    The larger point I was trying to make is that if Schwarber’s defense is so awful that you need two great defensive outfielders, your best bet is to trade Schwarber for another area of weakness. The Cubs could get an insane amount for Schwarber. That gets the Marlins interested in dealing Fernandez. If he’s that bad defensively, the Cubs will continue to take him out late in games, probably killing as much as 10% of his possible plate appearances. He struggled vs. lefties and didn’t play much against them down the stretch. That could very well continue too. That could be another 30% of his potential plate appearances. If he doesn’t improve vs. lefties (I think he will), he’ll end up being platooned and taken out late in games.

    That’s what would happen even if they got a great defensive CF because it would optimize the Cubs win potential. That is, if all the possible negative things happen to Schwarber all at once.

    To be clear though, I don’t want the Cubs to trade Schwarber. I like watching him kill baseballs too much for that, but if he’s such a weak link defensively as some think, he’s the guy the Cubs should be dangling in trades.

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  39. cerulean

    dmick89:
    Smokestack Lightning,

    Exactly. There’s no loyalty between player and team. There’s just the financial interests of each party.

    I disagree with this statement. As social animals, loyalty is hardwired into the brains of most us.

    However, loyalty almost always has a price, and I think that price is seldom more than five or six figures—in other words, a drop in the bucket relative to the contracts being signed. As we have seen with Zobrist and Heyward, there are other factors that have enormous value for the individual, but loyalty at these rates is not one of them.

    Compounding the issue—neither the team nor the player is indebted to the other if either are any good, further diminishing the value of loyalty. It’s business, and at this scale, it trumps the personal.

    Maybe that’s part of why Trump is such an asshole.

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  40. Author
    dmick89

    cerulean: As social animals, loyalty is hardwired into the brains of most us.

    I agree with this, which is why an athlete’s interests are represented by an unbiased party.

    cerulean: Maybe that’s part of why Trump is such an asshole.

    Trump’s just an asshole. I’m not even sure the guy is of sound mind at this point. It’s like a crazy switch went off and he thought it was a sign to run for president.

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  41. cerulean

    dmick89,

    I think people grow into becoming an asshole. And business success helps. Trump has been rewarded handily for his business success. And since it was by being an asshole, unlike Warren Buffett’s accumulation of wealth, his abrasive assholery is the basis of his brain’s reward system.

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  42. cerulean

    Has anybody seen Mr. Robot? I kept hearing great things about the show so I watched the first and second episode—and they were really great, really well done (with accurate representations of technology, one of my pet peeves).

    And then there is the third episode, and it just killed it for me. Part of me thinks it was a misdirection, but really I got the feeling that it was edgy for the sake of being edgy, sacrificing real character in the process.

    Given the high praise for the show, it’s likely just me, but I wanted to ask if anybody else had a similar experience.

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  43. cerulean

    dmick89,

    That was probably the episode. I think there were three solid WTF moments:

    Two You are just going to forgive this douchebag? Really!? and one You couldn’t think of another way to get access to a dude’s phone?

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  44. cerulean

    In baseball news, it’s looking more and more like a Carrasco deal won’t materialize for the Cubs. I don’t think the Diamondbacks helped much in that regard. I am OK with nothing substantial the rest of the offseason, but it would be nice.

    I firmly believe that trades can benefit boths teams most of the time. This unwillingness to part with talent by the teams in the middle is the essence of mediocrity.

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  45. Rizzo the Rat

    cerulean,

    I consider myself a loyal Cubs fan and hate the Cardinals, but if someone offered me a million dollars to switch loyalties, I’d trade my blue caps for a Yadier Molina jersey. I’m tribal, but it’s just a game after all.

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  46. cerulean

    Rizzo the Rat,

    Only the most stubborn of fans wouldn’t do that. Though there does seem to be some who lack the imagination to realize the overwhelming difference between trading team allegiance and being a traitor (presumably killing one’s entire family).

    But maybe I am an anomaly since I have only ever harbored a good-natured hatred for the Cardinals, and I grew up liking both the White Sox and the Cubs (neither team was ever good at the same time and both were on TV).

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  47. cerulean

    cerulean,

    I should point out that almost no one if actually given a million dollars to do so would not don the jersey of their hated rival team. But such a ridiculous scenario is easy to deny when the opportunity is never going to happen.

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  48. cerulean

    dmick89,

    The amount would be total wealth times how much one’s wealth is tied to that identity times duration of lets’s say the sponsorship. It would cost a lot for the Ricketts, for instance, but very little for a homeless guy.

    Rice Cube:
    dmick89,

    It’d have to be at least $250k after appropriate taxes for me.

    That’s a reasonable anount for about five to ten years of a lifelong fan that doesn’t need need the money but finds it nonetheless life-changing.

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  49. Suburban kid

    dmick89: I have no eye for defense so take my words above with a grain of salt. I don’t even bother forming a solid opinion about a player’s defense unless it’s way above average or way below average. In other words, unless it’s so obviously noticeable, I don’t recognize it. I stopped trusting my eyes long ago when it comes to defense.

    I’m one of those assholes who thinks he can tell, but I understand I’m not an expert and I’m probably wrong about it often.

    What I saw from Schwarber seemed to be inexperience rather than lack of ability. Hesitation, uncertainty, poor routes. On other (easy and hard) plays, he made them just fine. So I’m hopeful that with a full season in the outfield under his belt, he’ll be much better.

    I also saw this from Soler, but with him it shouldn’t really be inexperience at this point. Granted, it seemed like an isolated stretch of several bad games so maybe he was hurting somewhere. I don’t know.

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  50. Ryno

    If Robbie Gould could make a field goal, the 49ers would be in the running for the top pick in the draft. Thanks, Robbie asshole.

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  51. Ryno

    Mucker,

    Plus the more they lose, the less hope you have for next season.

    I don’t think SF is this bad (losing by two TDs to CLE), but I could be wrong.

    I think CHI will be much improved next season. And BTW, I think I’ll be able to identify potential CHI draft picks even better than SF picks with the new coaching staffs.

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  52. cerulean

    Ryno,

    My favorite bit:

    So do me a favor. Now that the Cubs are coming off a huge success of a season (despite the NLCS loss) and appear headed to bigger and better things, can we all just say we’re on the same page, forget that I am such a an asshat*, and not look back?

    *subtext added.

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  53. Mucker

    Ryno,

    Make sure you post them on here.

    What are your thoughts on Gabbert?

    I think Bears are about 7 positions away from being a contender……2 ILBs, SS, 2 DEs, C and LT. Nothing too serious. (dying laughing)

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  54. Perkins

    Many people learn something about themselves after being provably wrong on a consistent basis. Glad to see Alvin isn’t one of them.

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