damn this shit caught me by fucking SURPRISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
they actually spent some money...i knew when we got that young GM from the Braves last year he was gonna come in and start makin shit pop..
http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/NA...ontent_id=1754190&vkey=perspectives&fext=.jsp
5000
they actually spent some money...i knew when we got that young GM from the Braves last year he was gonna come in and start makin shit pop..
KC changes perception with Meche
Small-market club makes big splash in free-agent market
Time will tell if the Royals overpaid for Gil Meche, but the move sends a message about the club's future direction. (John Froschauer/AP)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Perhaps the little guys can play the big-spending game. Or at least one of them can.
As the Winter Meetings came to a close on Thursday, the Kansas City Royals created one of the biggest splashes of the gathering, signing free-agent starting pitcher Gil Meche to a five-year contract for a reported $55 million.
It was an out-of-character move for the normally tight-fisted Royals. And Meche, 28, while he has always been considered to be a pitcher of considerable promise, has a 55-44 career record with a 4.65 ERA. His most productive season was 2003, when he went 15-13 with a 4.59 ERA. These are not numbers that appear to command a $55-million deal, particularly from a team that has historically operated under budgetary restrictions.
But this is one way for the Royals to change the perception of their club. After a 2003 season that appeared to be a breakthrough, they lost 310 games over the next three years. They were generally perceived to be a small-market operation with a typically small chance for success.
Now, under a new baseball administration, they must be regarded as a small-market operation that is willing to take a large chance and expend a great deal of capital, at least on this occasion, for this pitcher.
General manager Dayton Moore, who was brought on board to revive the Royals, said of the acquisition of Meche:
"He fits in with our long-term plan. He's the guy that we focused on. He's the youngest guy out there with the best raw stuff entering the prime of his career. He's a guy who can anchor our pitching staff going forward."
A number of clubs were extremely interested in Meche, including the Chicago Cubs, who have been the most aggressive spenders of this offseason. It was generally thought that Meche would emerge with a contract of roughly the same type that Ted Lilly received, which eventually was a four-year, $40-million package from the Cubs. But the Royals' simply out-spent the competition in their pursuit of Meche.
And it appears that the Royals are not done spending. They are in the hunt for more starting pitching and are among the clubs pursuing another free-agent pitcher, Miguel Batista. It has been believed that Batista would receive a three-year contract in the range of $25 million. But almost all of the general estimates on the size of contracts during these Meetings have turned out to be conservative estimates
The signing of Meche in itself broke a few free-agent molds. Typically, a pitcher such as Gil Meche would be signed by a contending club -- a well-heeled contending club -- that was seeking to fill out its rotation. In the case of the Royals, they cannot yet be considered a contender, particularly in the rugged, competitive terrain of the American League Central. And with them, Meche, rather than being something like a No. 3 starter, will now be the focal point of their rotation.
Given the rest of their pitching staff, the Royals have obviously improved themselves with the addition of Meche. Is this actually $55 million worth of improvement? The next five years will tell.
But more than anything, with this very large expenditure for one pitcher, they have challenged the perception of their club as a small-market also-ran, operating somewhere just above the subsistence level. That kind of thing can be worth more than money, even if the current price tag for altering this perception appears to be a hefty $55 million.
Small-market club makes big splash in free-agent market
Time will tell if the Royals overpaid for Gil Meche, but the move sends a message about the club's future direction. (John Froschauer/AP)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Perhaps the little guys can play the big-spending game. Or at least one of them can.
As the Winter Meetings came to a close on Thursday, the Kansas City Royals created one of the biggest splashes of the gathering, signing free-agent starting pitcher Gil Meche to a five-year contract for a reported $55 million.
It was an out-of-character move for the normally tight-fisted Royals. And Meche, 28, while he has always been considered to be a pitcher of considerable promise, has a 55-44 career record with a 4.65 ERA. His most productive season was 2003, when he went 15-13 with a 4.59 ERA. These are not numbers that appear to command a $55-million deal, particularly from a team that has historically operated under budgetary restrictions.
But this is one way for the Royals to change the perception of their club. After a 2003 season that appeared to be a breakthrough, they lost 310 games over the next three years. They were generally perceived to be a small-market operation with a typically small chance for success.
Now, under a new baseball administration, they must be regarded as a small-market operation that is willing to take a large chance and expend a great deal of capital, at least on this occasion, for this pitcher.
General manager Dayton Moore, who was brought on board to revive the Royals, said of the acquisition of Meche:
"He fits in with our long-term plan. He's the guy that we focused on. He's the youngest guy out there with the best raw stuff entering the prime of his career. He's a guy who can anchor our pitching staff going forward."
A number of clubs were extremely interested in Meche, including the Chicago Cubs, who have been the most aggressive spenders of this offseason. It was generally thought that Meche would emerge with a contract of roughly the same type that Ted Lilly received, which eventually was a four-year, $40-million package from the Cubs. But the Royals' simply out-spent the competition in their pursuit of Meche.
And it appears that the Royals are not done spending. They are in the hunt for more starting pitching and are among the clubs pursuing another free-agent pitcher, Miguel Batista. It has been believed that Batista would receive a three-year contract in the range of $25 million. But almost all of the general estimates on the size of contracts during these Meetings have turned out to be conservative estimates
The signing of Meche in itself broke a few free-agent molds. Typically, a pitcher such as Gil Meche would be signed by a contending club -- a well-heeled contending club -- that was seeking to fill out its rotation. In the case of the Royals, they cannot yet be considered a contender, particularly in the rugged, competitive terrain of the American League Central. And with them, Meche, rather than being something like a No. 3 starter, will now be the focal point of their rotation.
Given the rest of their pitching staff, the Royals have obviously improved themselves with the addition of Meche. Is this actually $55 million worth of improvement? The next five years will tell.
But more than anything, with this very large expenditure for one pitcher, they have challenged the perception of their club as a small-market also-ran, operating somewhere just above the subsistence level. That kind of thing can be worth more than money, even if the current price tag for altering this perception appears to be a hefty $55 million.
5000
