I'll start off with our plump green fuzzy homeboy the Philly Phanatic being named sports' best mascot ever. Growing up a Phillies fan I always loved the Phanatic's playful shenanigans and to this day still appreciate the humor he brings to the ball field. Glad to see he got top honors in Sports Illustrated's poll and on Forbe's list, because if Mr. Met would have won I'd have severed that dumbass baseball head right off his shoulders.
Eric Bruntlett and Ryan Howard aren't too happy with the Phillies front office right now. Why? The Phils brass is low-balling them. Newly acquired utility man Bruntlett is asking for 800k and the Phils are offering 550k...I think a compromise can be made here at 725k. Howard's situation is a bit more hairy, where the Phils don't really care if they piss off Bruntlett because he's likely packing his bags after the '08 season anyway, but Howard is a dude that should be kept happy because they want him around...
Original Story:
I still say F-it, lock him up for 7 years, give him around what Chase got, and focus on locking down the rest of the field with All-Star players.
According to THAT logic, Pujols should have only received what was the highest total for a 1st year arb player was, up to THAT point. But NO, the Cards saw the value of this player and showed their respect and appreciation by extendeding him the unprecedented $7 million offer.
Is NO ONE ever going be allowed to break that ceiling? How many years should go by before even an adjustment for inflation comes into play? If Howard can't break the ceiling with a ROY and MVP under his belt, who WILL be worthy?
Slightly below average defensively, yes. Strikes out a lot, yes (like his MVP year of 181 k's). Do the K's affect his production? Logic would say yes, but Jesus Christ, if you're getting REAL production thats lead the MAJORS (for the last 2 years) in RBI and HRS(a lot of walks too), from your clean up spot, what more do you want?
Its almost like complaining about why your center(in basketball) has a problem with steals or bringing the ball down the court well, but leads everyone in the league in blks and points scored. In my opinion, you're missing the forest for the trees
Law says:
For comparison purposes, a player may be compared to players in the same "service class" in the current year or in prior years, and third- and fourth-time eligibles may be compared to free agents who have signed in the current year or in prior years. Single-year salaries are more powerful comparisons than multi-year deals, since the individual salaries within a multi-year deal may be skewed due to bonuses, backloading, or other factors.
Law notes that Howard's comp could be Miguel Cabrera, who made $7.4MM last year. Howard logically deserves more than that based on a stat comparison, making the Phillies' $7MM submission seem low.
*I may be wrong in this case after all, maybe the Phils are being cheapskate bastards.