RT Checks the Wire 8/11/09
Posted On Tuesday, August 11, 2009 at at 8/11/2009 08:00:00 AM by KoskiBaseball
* When your starting pitcher walks the first hitter of the game on 4 pitches, you are going to lose. I actually turned off the game and did something productive with my evening. How many of you did the same?
* The Dodgers signed Manny Ramirez so they are going to win the West. The Giants didn't sign Manny Ramirez so they won't. I don't think baseball has ever been this simple.
* True or False. The Red Sox don't really want to win the division because they own the Angels in the post-season and would rather face them than an AL Central team? (Hint: True)
* The A's win and again ... nobody cares.
* The player du jour is Eugenio Velez. When he starts to struggle, here are the odds on the next utlity player that everyone will hail as a hero: Ishikawa 2 to 1, Juan Uribe 3 to 1, Bowker 5 to 1, Ortmeier 20 to 1, Aurilia 200 to 1. My money is on Aurilia.
Football
* I hate pre-season football. Here is your meaningless Raiders article.
* I hate pre-season football. Here is your meaningless Niners article.
* I hate pres-season football. Here is your meaningless Stanford article.
Soccer
* Speaking of meaningful football ... USA v. Mexico tomorrow.
Should the Giants Sign Manny Ramirez?
Posted On Thursday, February 5, 2009 at at 2/05/2009 10:28:00 AM by Koski
The argument for signing Manny by RT:
Manny or Bust
Do you like the idea of winning a World Series? I understand that most Giant fans don’t expect a World Series trip this season and why would they when the front office has turned the off-season into the annual “who can we overpay for this year” event. This year’s winner was Edgar Renteria who is being overpaid by exactly $18 mm because Orlando Cabrera is a better player and he is currently without a team. In addition to overpaying for players, the Giants brain trust continues to think having a collection of good not great players can lead you to a championship. Allow me to make something clear – having a few great players doesn’t guarantee your team a championship but not having any great players guarantees your team won’t win a championship. (Feel free to write that on your wall at home). With this thought in mind we come to Manny.
Manny Ramirez is the most feared right-handed hitter of my lifetime. He does not think or hit like any other hitter in the league. While Vlad will swing at anything, Pujols needs to give me a few more good years and A-rod will psych himself out for weeks at a time, Manny is rock solid consistent when he wants to be. The only reason anyone would not want him on his team is because he checks out once and awhile. The only legitimate reason to not sign Manny is because you fear his temperamental personality. We are all familiar with the concept of risk vs. reward. When your reward is a player that can carry a lineup for an entire season, it is almost impossible to justify not taking that risk.(I would like to thank Manny Ramirez for single-handedly costing the Red Sox the World Series. I have to admit I have a soft spot for this guy. )
Let’s talk economics.
Here are some basic realities of the coming season for the Giants if they don’t do anything else this off-season:
No Manny
Ticket Sales: ~2,500,000 x $25 = $62,500,000
Merchandise Sales: ~$3,000,000
Payroll: ~90,000,000
TV Revenue: ~$20,000,000
Manny
Ticket Sales: ~2,800,000 x $25 = $70,000,000 (this projection is conservative)
Merchandise Sales: ~4,000,000
TV Revenue: ~$22,000,000
Comparison: Manny vs. No Manny
Ticket Sales: $70,000,000 - $62,500,000 = $7,500,000
Merchandise Sales: $4,000,000 - $3,000,000 = $1,000,000
TV Revenue: $22,000,000 - $20,000,000 = $2,000,000
Manny vs. No Manny = $7,500,000 + $1,000,000 + $2,000,000 = $10,500,000
Obviously, $10.5 mm does not get it done so one more move has to be made … trade Randy Winn to the Yankees for two interns and a bag of cool ranch Doritos. You now save $8,250,000. So what do you pay Manny? I am thinking $90,000,000 over 4 years. I think everyone wins with that deal. Here are the updated numbers for 2009:
$22,500,000 (Manny) – $8,250,000 (Winn) – $10,500,000 (Manny factor) = $3,750,000
In conclusion, the Giants would have to expand their budget by a measly $3,750,000 to instantly make them the favorites in the NL West. It’s too bad the Giants don’t have a dominant starting pitcher like Cole Hamels that can carry them to the World Series. Oh wait, they have Tim Lincecum. The signing of Manny is starting to make a whole lot of sense to this financial professional.
In conclusion, the argument for not signing Manny because of money does not add-up.
Sign Manny!
(Did I mention that the Dodgers team, front office and fans would be demoralized? Did I mention that Matt Holiday does not scare any pitcher in baseball and he will go to the Red Sox anyways? Did I mention that the Giants need to do something to prove to their fans that still believe they can win a world series that winning is one of their top priorities?)
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Should the Giants Sign Manny Ramirez?
Posted On at at 2/05/2009 09:37:00 AM by KoskiThe Argument against signing Manny by Koski:
No Mas Manny
The Giants should stay away from Manny Ramirez. Granted, he’s a future hall of fame player who put up Super MVP statistics after he was traded to the Dodgers last season, but Manny will not be signing a discount contract this winter. Manny forced his way out of
What would signing Manny Ramirez mean to the 2009 Giants? Certainly, it would mean more wins and a more entertaining offense for Giants fans. I won’t argue against that, but would it automatically make the Giants World Series contenders? NL West contenders? The Dodgers won the NL West last year by two games, not even reaching 85 wins. Manny was playing out of his mind on a team with much better compliments than the Giants will have next season. Which group of supporting players has the better chance of reaching the World Series with Manny Ramirez: Russell Martin, James Loney, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Raphael Furcal or Bengie Molina, Aaron Rowand, Pablo Sandoval, Randy Winn and Fred Lewis? Payroll flexibility is key for the Giants moving forward. Barry Zito and Aaron Rowand will be making a combined $30+ million dollars a year from 2010-2012. Add Manny Ramirez into the equation and the Giants would be paying $50-$60 million for three players, three! The best course of action is for the Giants to be patient and see who becomes available during the season. Usually, expiring contracts are NBA trade pieces, but the state of the economy could force MLB teams’ to rethink acquiring those contracts. The Giants have a glut of expiring contracts after 2009: Bengie Molina ($6mm), Randy Johnson ($8 mm), Randy Winn ($8.25mm), Dave Roberts ($6.5 mm), and Noah Lowery ($4.5 mm). The Giants shouldn’t waste their money on Manny Ramirez. Save the money for Matt Holliday and Brain Roberts or desperate teams who want to move their pricey stars.
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