I previously stated back in July that we shouldn't trade Soriano if it meant absorbing most of his contract. I stated in my last post that I was happy the Cubs didn't trade him at the deadline because we would get more value for him in the offseason.
Right on both accounts.
Only 5 players rank ahead of him in home runs in the NL and only 3 are ahead of him in RBI in the NL. No one who's primary place is as a DH has better numbers.
Yes, I know it's just one season, but it's the whole season. This year Soriano has been less streaky, better defensively, and just overall a much improved player. I'm calling for everyone out there to let the past years go and judge Soriano on how he played for us this year.
But we're rebuilding, right? Like I said in an earlier post, I think having a veteran presence for the "kids" coming up is a good thing. But this leaves a big problem: only one outfield spot for their up-and-coming players. For this reason, I really believe DeJesus has to go. But I don't see that as likely. I think the Cubs will capitalize on Soriano's good season and deal him.
If they do, I'm fine with it, as long as they get good value for him. If we can get at least one highly regarded pitching prospect and not have to absorb ANY of his contract, I'd be fine with that.
It's time MLB teams wake up and stop undervaluing Soriano, stop acting like you'd be doing the Cubs a favor by taking him off our hands. If you want him, and you should, we're doing YOU a favor.
Showing posts with label Alfonso Soriano. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alfonso Soriano. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Soriano
The average salary for a designated hitter is around $6.8 million dollars. If you put Soriano's stats up against the players who primarily play DH, without researching the facts, I would venture to say he's probably the second or third best DH in baseball. This means he's worth more than the "average" salary for a DH. David Ortiz is the best DH and is being paid $14.575 million. Based on the facts, an argument could be made that Soriano, if traded to an American League team to play DH is worth somewhere around $10 million a year.
Soriano is owed $46 million for the remainder of his contract. Many articles are speculating that the Cubs will have to absorb $44 million to get a trade done, meaning AL teams are willing to pay him $1 million a year to be their DH, which is WELL below the average salary for that position. This also means that these teams rate him as the worst DH in baseball. The fact is, he's not the worst.
Many Cubs fans have (rightly so) compared his actual numbers to the money he's being paid. When they do this, the numbers don't add up at all. When they do this, they form a negative opinion of Soriano. Let's put that to the side for a second. If Soriano were being paid $1 million a year, would you absolutely love him? I think so.
Obviously, what I'm saying is that we should absolutely not trade Soriano if we have to absorb most of his contract.
But what about prospects? No, I'm not forgetting this. Let's now add in the possibility of prospects. The Cubs recently signed our #1 draft pick for #3.9 million dollars. If we absorb $44 million of Soriano's salary and get prospects in return, we should get 11 #1 draft picks. Do you think we will get ELEVEN #1 draft picks? No, I don't think we can. Now lets say that a Triple-A player, who's almost major league ready is worth more than a newly signed draft pick. Picking a number out of a hat, let's say, $10 million. If this is the case, we should get 4 Major League ready prospects and one #1 draft pick. Do you think we'll get that? Me neither.
The end result is that we will not get any amount of comparable value for Soriano if we trade him this year. Maybe things will be different next year, but for now we should keep him.
Another side fact: Soriano plays hard and has a good attitude. This kind of veteran is a good presence to have around as we continue to bring up the "kids" which in turn makes Soriano's value to the Cubs even higher.
I am aware of the fact that Soriano is being paid too much, but the contract is done and can't be changed. Paying him to play elsewhere is not the answer here. For now, if it were my money, keeping Soriano a Cub is the best direction we should take.
Soriano is owed $46 million for the remainder of his contract. Many articles are speculating that the Cubs will have to absorb $44 million to get a trade done, meaning AL teams are willing to pay him $1 million a year to be their DH, which is WELL below the average salary for that position. This also means that these teams rate him as the worst DH in baseball. The fact is, he's not the worst.
Many Cubs fans have (rightly so) compared his actual numbers to the money he's being paid. When they do this, the numbers don't add up at all. When they do this, they form a negative opinion of Soriano. Let's put that to the side for a second. If Soriano were being paid $1 million a year, would you absolutely love him? I think so.
Obviously, what I'm saying is that we should absolutely not trade Soriano if we have to absorb most of his contract.
But what about prospects? No, I'm not forgetting this. Let's now add in the possibility of prospects. The Cubs recently signed our #1 draft pick for #3.9 million dollars. If we absorb $44 million of Soriano's salary and get prospects in return, we should get 11 #1 draft picks. Do you think we will get ELEVEN #1 draft picks? No, I don't think we can. Now lets say that a Triple-A player, who's almost major league ready is worth more than a newly signed draft pick. Picking a number out of a hat, let's say, $10 million. If this is the case, we should get 4 Major League ready prospects and one #1 draft pick. Do you think we'll get that? Me neither.
The end result is that we will not get any amount of comparable value for Soriano if we trade him this year. Maybe things will be different next year, but for now we should keep him.
Another side fact: Soriano plays hard and has a good attitude. This kind of veteran is a good presence to have around as we continue to bring up the "kids" which in turn makes Soriano's value to the Cubs even higher.
I am aware of the fact that Soriano is being paid too much, but the contract is done and can't be changed. Paying him to play elsewhere is not the answer here. For now, if it were my money, keeping Soriano a Cub is the best direction we should take.
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