I am starting to think the same thing. I am thinking, Jerry is gonna offer like an 8yr $240 mill deal, knowing Harper turned down 10yr $300 mill, so he can give the illusion that the Sox are trying.

Sending Thome on a fool's errand? Unlikely. Offer must be legit.

I think Harper is the wrong guy. He has too many down seasons to be a $400M player.

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Be well

GO BEARS!!!

And Machado is?

His peaks are not as impressive but he more consistent. You don't want to be dealing with a combination of Schwarber and and Aramis Ramirez for $400M. A guy who takes months off and then has a Babe Ruth month to bring his stats up but has a shitty batting average in the end.

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Be well

GO BEARS!!!

Hope is something we gave up on long ago.

This is just entertainment.

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Yeah. If they get them they will be a bust but then we can send them on free agent recruiting trips after they retire to get new free agent busts.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I don't disagree. I like Machado's versatility in playing SS and 3B. And I value those two positions more than OF. But, I like Harper's attitude and I do not like what MAchado's attitude in the playoffs. If you were to make the case of spending the $40mill per year on 2-3 guys, I would agree with that over Harper/Machado, but I think one of those players just signed with the Nats yesterday.

Harper turned down 300 million because there were no opt outs.

Both of the contracts that each of these players sign will have an opt out by year 4 so that they can hit the free agent market yet again at age 30. If I were the agent I'd want one in year 3 to hit the market again at 29. If I were an owner, I would look at these as 3-4 year contracts. But I'm just me. I hope that is good enough for everyone

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Would you give these guys $45-50M a year for the first few years? I would. Let them walk after then. Their next contract won't be worth it.

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Be well

GO BEARS!!!

Are you saying to front load it with an opt out?

Yep!

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Be well

GO BEARS!!!

I think you can get as crazy as you want, if you think he is going to stay the entire length of the contract. I think this would lessen the later years of the contract, when he is older. But, if you sign a 10yr deal with a 4yr buyout, would you be winning a WS or amass the talent because of him to continue to compete after the buyout?

You have to be going for a WS.

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Be well

GO BEARS!!!

Jerry doesn’t care because he won’t be the one paying his salary. The next owner will.

8ys $240 million-- provided the first 3-4 years pays $80-100 million and there is an opt out in year 3 and/or year 4-- might get it done.

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And what if Jerry lives another 10yrs?

Still begs the question, are you winning a WS in those 3-4yrs?

You know he can sell the team before he dies, right?

Didn't we have those indications a couple years ago? Letting the beer contract run out? Stuff like that. If he were to sell, he would of already. Are you suggesting he is going to pack the roster with talent, so he can sell? And it starts with Harper?

Obviously nobody can guarantee that, but you better be doing everything you can to try and win one. For example, if you have a top top prospect but a glaring need on your MLB ballclub (i.e., trading Torres for Chapman), you have to be ready to make that deal at a moment's notice.

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I am not against the buyout, just wondering what else happens.

You win a Championship and revel in that. Or, lose in the DS or CS, they leave via free agency, and you move on. Just like what happened to the Nats.

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Harper or Machado

Harper and Machado are the 2 top free agents this year. I think it was brought up earlier that the last FA splash the sox made like this was Albert Belle.

For all you young mathematicians out there....that is 21 consecutive years of NOT signing top free agents. I'm sorry, but I don't think the Sox are signing either one.

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Nobody should use a 22 year old transaction as evidence to back up an assertion like this. The fact that the transaction in question was terminated after only two years because Reinsdorf refused to cough up a $4.25 million raise divided over three years makes it even worse.

Why would he take a deal that pays him less over the first 3-4 years than the average of the contract? Does he want all the money deferred, after he opts out?

Because he can make about $25million a year and still go after another ginormous contract before he turns 30/31. If he's ouchy or as a Heyward like regression, he sticks around and makes another boatload of cash over the rest of the contract. Its win win for the player.

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I think you're right about Harper and Machado getting opt outs, but I think you're wrong in looking at these contracts as 3 or 4 year contracts. What if one of these guys ends up chronically injured, like Griffey Jr., or just plain sucks like Heyward or Darvish? You're going to get saddled with the entire contract.

The fact of the matter is, the vast majority of the time, these mega contracts do not work out. It's really not worth the gamble, because whether they sign one of these guys or they don't, this team is only going to go as far as their young talent takes them.