Joe Mauer Contract On the Horizon?
by Jesse on Feb 2, 2010 2:04 PM EST
in News
103 comments
Update 1:05 pm - Some related news from around the internet...
- Peter Gammons has had a couple of Mauer-related Tweets today, saying "OK, the Joe Mauer signing story is 40 miles of bad road ahead of itself. But it can be done" and, about an hour ago, "Mauer contract is far from done, and could be quite some time before it's completed".
- Meanwhile, Bob Nightengale insists Joe "laughed at reports that he agreed to a 10 year contract with the Twins". I'm not sure what to think of that, as it pretty much calls Rosen's story ridiculous.
- Sticking with the Tweet-land theme, Aaron Gleeman wonders what it would have been like had a blogger, and not Rosen, broken the preliminary agreement news yesterday.
- Over at NBC Sports, Gleeman says the Twins are still talking, and doubts that the deal will be for a decade.
Good morning, Twins fans!
It was said best by Eric In Madison yesterday: There's too much smoke for there not to be any fire. While Rosen's WCCO report of a ten-year extension for Minnesota golden boy Joe Mauer may have been called premature, bits this big don't just fall out of the air. Here's what we know so far...
- Early Monday afternoon Mark Rosen of WCCO reported that the Twins and Mauer had come to a preliminary agreement on a ten-year contract extension.
- Ensuing reports could not confirm that an extension had been agreed upon and signed.
- There's been speculation that the framework for a deal has been laid out and likely agreed upon (from "two people close to the Mauer family"), but that the two sides are still working on the small print: deferred payments, details on incentives, and whether or not Minneapolis will now be called Mauerapolis.
- Whatever kind of contract this ends up being, it will be a "Legacy Contract": "It will recognize what Mauer has done for the franchise until now, and what he will do in the future, and it could be worth at least $20 million per year." I'd replace the word "could" with "will".
- There have been confirmed reports that clueless Yankee and Red Sox fans are doing one of two things: pretending they never made ignorant predictions about Mauer playing in New York or Boston, or crying. Intelligent Yankee and Red Sox fans resigned themselves to this deal months ago.
- This deal could now come at any time.
Stay tuned...
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In other less important news
the Oakland A’s have claimed Infielder Steve Tolleson off waivers from the Twins.
It's pretty much always put best by
ericinmadison. If I do say so myself.
In fact, might I recommend that for the blog tagline?
“Twinkietown: Put best by ericinmadison” has a nice ring to it.
lol
"You can't sit on a lead and run a few plays into the line and just kill the clock. You've got to throw the ball over the damn plate and give the other man his chance. That's why baseball is the greatest game of them all."
~ Earl Weaver
"In God we trust. All others must provide evidence."
~ Billy Beane
SWEET!
Best. Day. Of. My. Life. (which says a lot more about my life than it does this blog).
Thank you, Jesse!
by Eric in Madison on Feb 2, 2010 9:48 AM EST up reply actions
Wonderful
"There are only two things that are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein
Hahaha
"Don't take life for granted, because tomorrow isn't promised to any one of us." -Kirby Puckett
"All morons hate it when you call them a moron." -Holden Caufield
by less cowbell, more 'neau on Feb 2, 2010 11:09 AM EST up reply actions
I need this contract done
I want to only think about Huddy, Slowey’s wrist and Justin’s back. I also need to stop constantly checking
This made me laugh...
Intelligent Yankee and Red Sox fans
White Sox Fans
Tend to get more depressed when they fully realize that they’ll have to compete with him for (About) 10 more years.
Also, watching Yankee fans and Red Sox fans cry over Joe Mauer makes my day a little brighter.
+1
Winning is great. But even better? Revenge against our enemies! They should die like pigs in Hell.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
Oops, forgot the sacasm font
Winning is great. But even better? Revenge against our enemies! They should die like pigs in Hell.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
Haha,
Pickin’ on the new guy? I like it.
+1
for one of the great movie quotes of all time!
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
by the Real Thor on Feb 2, 2010 3:28 PM EST up reply actions
Joe Mauer...
is so powerful, that he can make Yanks/Sox fans cry in a variety of ways.
But kind enough to make them feel better about it after.
RonGarde: Target Field is going to be exactly like Progressive Field, except you'll have a chance to die of frostbite in the middle of July
"Hey guys"
“No hard feelin’s okay? How about I take you out for an ice cream? And maybe we can have a catch later?”
I always loved that one.
I really wish this deal would just get done and announced.
Far too much of my time is being taken up by refreshing mlbtraderumors and here.
RonGarde: Target Field is going to be exactly like Progressive Field, except you'll have a chance to die of frostbite in the middle of July
I hear ya there
But it’s kinda like a week-long birthday! :-)
Dear Joe
We caught you a delicious bass.
Would you sign an extended bazillion dollar contract with us?
Circle one:
Yes
No
Maybe
Thnx
♥Twinsfans♥
"Don't take life for granted, because tomorrow isn't promised to any one of us." -Kirby Puckett
"All morons hate it when you call them a moron." -Holden Caufield
by less cowbell, more 'neau on Feb 2, 2010 11:22 AM EST reply actions 3 recs
Ummm Bass. Arghlarghlarghl
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
"it could be worth at least $20 million per year"
Seriously? That could be more meaningless than at least every sentence I’ve ever read.
Best line of all
and whether or not Minneapolis will now be called Mauerapolis.
"A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have"
Thomas Jefferson
by RileysCannibalJct on Feb 2, 2010 11:37 AM EST reply actions
With Billy Mauer opening his new Chevy dealership...
…and the Pohlads already being in the auto business, my question is does Joe have a silent role? Are the Pohlads behind this dealership? Interesting?
When the deal is announced...
I think its becoming increasingly obvious that the deal won’t be announced until after the Super Bowl. The Twins timed this perfectly. There aren’t any other huge free agent signings (other than Hudson, but that is very different than this time last year) in the MLB as a whole, and once the Super Bowl is over, the Twins re-signing Mauer is by FAR the #1 story in the sports world, making the organization look that much better.
It will be announced some time in the middle of next week. Until then, let’s hope for Mr. Hudson.
Gleeman's "bloggers get no respect" line is wearing a bit thin
You know, ‘cause Aaron, you built your whole career on blogging and you owned your own home at age 25 or something based on your career prospects at the time. I don’t know too many print journalists who can say the same.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
Aaron has done very well for himself
and deservedly so. More and more bloggers are able to spin it into a career of sorts, although few so successfully as him.
I do still get what he’s saying. Traditional media would love nothing more than to rip into a blogger, who they already deemed to have zero credibility simply because they are “a blogger”, simply to hammer down their own premise that bloggers aren’t credible journalists. For Rosen, instead of being blasted as not being credible, it’s simply a premature report.
Umm...all of your updates are really kinda downers.
:(
RonGarde: Target Field is going to be exactly like Progressive Field, except you'll have a chance to die of frostbite in the middle of July
But apparently not for the reported 10 years.
Which is sad. And not anytime soon…even more sad.
RonGarde: Target Field is going to be exactly like Progressive Field, except you'll have a chance to die of frostbite in the middle of July
You would think it has to be done...
But I think it has to get done before the start of the season or else I’m going to worry.
I can imagine the whole Mauer clan is pitching in their views… after all this one decision will change all their lives for a generation if not more…
It'll get done before Spring Training
You heard it here 217th.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
2/9, 10, or 11
It’ll happen next week Tuesday-Thursday (2/9-2/11).
$180 mil over 7 years.
I don't know...
… I don’t hear anyone saying they have information that the Twins and Mauer AREN’T working on a 10-year framework. Rosen keeps getting slammed, but I haven’t heard anyone credibly contradicting him. They just keep saying a deal isn’t finalized (duh.).
Is anyone else actually MORE concerned about Hudson?
Seriously. I am very confident that the Twins will get it done with Mauer. It would just be silly not to. I expect Mauer to be the face of our franchise for at least the next 7 years (and hopefully a decade).
Yes. It would be awesome to have it done and over with so we can move on and talk about the contract and all that. But honestly, I am more concerned with Hudson or F-Lopez. Where I feel Mauer is a lock to sign an extension, absent some sort of nuclear apocalypse, the second base situation is not. I really don’t want to be trotting Harris AND Punto out there every day. But I could live with trotting one or the other out at 3B.
So yeah.. let’s get the Mauer deal done so we can throw confetti and sing kumbayah.
But damn it, let’s get a Hudson/F-Lopez deal done too!
Agree
I couldn’t agree more, but would put a different angle on it.
If the talks with Joe are going well, a signing of Hudson or Lopez to a 2 or 3 year deal would further show the Twins are serious about getting deeper in the playoffs, and might give them a little more bargaining room with Mauer to defer some of his compensation for the first few years of the extension.
No, I didn't spell Maurer wrong, Joe did.
Along these lines,
are we likely to see a trade before a Hudson/Lopez signing, due to the roster considerations?
$180 mil/7yrs
My prediction is a $180 million base over 7 years. Announced middle of next week (2/9-11).
Correction
I mean to say $160/7 years. That makes a lot more sense.
by bbeeck on Feb 2, 2010 11:49 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Hey Twins fans
I’m curious to know how far the Twins can stretch their payroll. I know on one hand having Mauer and Morneau under contract for the next several years will put a strain on the payroll but at the same time the Twins should draw a lot of fans with the combination of the new stadium and overall talent of the team.
Any thoughts?
"Bob Gibson is the luckiest pitcher in baseball. He's always pitching when the other team doesn't score any runs." - Tim McCarver
by RhodeIslandRoxfan on Feb 2, 2010 4:40 PM EST reply actions
Right now their payroll for next season is right around 90 million dollars
that is a team record by a significant amount. I don’t think they’d commit that much for next year if they didn’t expect that to be the new standard for the foreseeable future.
by ckb on Feb 2, 2010 4:42 PM EST up reply actions
ckb is right.
The Twins won’t be strained with both Mauer and Morneau under contract. This additional payroll won’t change the way the Twins do business, but it will allow them to keep their superstars.
keeping their superstars
is all I’ve ever wanted the Twins to do and I think will result in a good long run of success…
Imagine if we still had Santana and Hunter.
"Don't take life for granted, because tomorrow isn't promised to any one of us." -Kirby Puckett
"All morons hate it when you call them a moron." -Holden Caufield
by less cowbell, more 'neau on Feb 2, 2010 5:34 PM EST up reply actions
hmmm
let’s see
C- Mauer
1B – Morneau
2B – Punto
SS – Hardy
3B – Harris
RF – Cuddyer
CF – Hunter
LF – Span
DH – Thome
Rotation
Santana
Baker
Slowey
Blackburn
Liriano
yup, I’d like the Twins chances against anyone… maybe now even though the names won’t be the same the Twins will one day be able to field teams that could be considered not just AL central champs but possible MLB champs…
There is a good chance
that Liriano will completely blow Pavano away this year
by ckb on Feb 2, 2010 7:57 PM EST up reply actions
WOW Pavano over Liriano?
Has FL’s injury really messed him up that much?
You can't have Hardy without trading Santana for Gomez
But we could always just assume that the Garza/Bartlett trade doesn’t go down, making us even better….
by Steven Ellingson on Feb 2, 2010 6:13 PM EST up reply actions
I'm pretty sure we could have found a way to make that work.
the team clearly would have had an advantage in terms of trade assets with Santana compared with without him
by ckb on Feb 2, 2010 7:58 PM EST up reply actions
I'm glad we're not paying Hunter that much
I would like to have Santana back but there’s no way it would have happened. I just want a take-back on the Delmon Young trade.
SS – Hardy
2B – Bartlett
LF – Kubel
CF – Span
RF – Cuddyer
SP – Garza, Baker, Slowey, Blackburn, Liriano ($7M cheaper and better!)
I'm just fine with no Hunter
no Santana does hurt, but he’s having arm problems so who knows.
Beadlemaniacs - Award winning* college basketball blog
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Besides
Santana turned down an offer that is similar to the one Mauer is about to accept. He didn’t want to play here. Time to move on.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
?
If I recall, the contract offer we supposedly made to Santana was a 4 year contract extension at $20M per season. I agree he didn’t want to play here, but it was obvious that offer wasn’t going to get it done. I’m not saying we should have ponied up a 5th or 6th year, but that was the market.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 3, 2010 7:19 AM EST up reply actions
I heard 5/100 with an option for 6/120
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
Point is, it was $20 mil a year
And he said he was worth $28 mil a year, so he tore up the offer and said, “We’re done here, your options are: trade me now or let me go to free agency at the end of 2008.”
To an offer of $20 million a year, Mauer said, “That’s a good start. Let’s see how we can make that work.”
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
I totally agree there's a critical difference between
the way Santana and Mauer appear to be approaching the negotiations. Some of this may be Mauer versus Santana as a person, but some may be the Twins organization wanting to break the bank on a position player versus pitcher, local boy versus Venezuelan.
I think both sides (player and organization) have treated these negotiations differently. The Twins are apparently willing to go above, far above $100M for Mauer. They weren’t for Santana. While I think this is the right call, it’s a crucial distinction.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 3, 2010 4:34 PM EST up reply actions
Sid Hartman on 28 Jan 2008
Two days before the Mets trade. Link here.
The offer, which includes Santana’s current $13.25 million contract for 2008 plus four more years at $20 million per year, is still being discussed with the agents of the two-time Cy Young Award winner, Antony said.
Of course, this is Sid Hartman.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 3, 2010 4:29 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah, I think the offer I heard about was from Olney
And it was offered after that one. After he rejected that one, I heard they offered to rip up 2008, give him $20 million a year for 2008-2012 plus a $20 million option for 2013.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
I know a lot of people have soured on Torii here
but he had a 126 OPS+ last year in CF while playing barely below average defense. That was good for 3.8 wins above replacement even though he missed a good portion of the season.
That would have tied him with Span for 2nd most valuable on the team behind (waaaaaay behind) Baby Jesus.
That's also a whole win more than Johan was worth for the Mets
Torii Hunter is still one hell of a baseball player
He had a career year last year
stuff happens. He’ll lose roughly a win of his value this year, and he’s getting paid like 18 million. No thanks.
Beadlemaniacs - Award winning* college basketball blog
You know you like college hockey
In other words, Hunter provided as much value
as Denard Span, who played for the league minimum last year. I like Torii, but the contract he signed with LA would have caused us a number of problems with payroll come 2010 and 2011. I miss his power from the right side though.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 3, 2010 7:22 AM EST up reply actions
For sure
but so would Johan’s. Torii was in fact cheaper and more valuable than Johan last year.
And if Denard’s value/dollar is your baseline, probably 80% of baseball players are horribly overpaid.
I just think Torii deserves a bit more respect than many people here give him.
+1
TorII’s great, but not worth $18 mil a year to this club.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
I dont think he is to anyone
He’s like a 3 WAR guy, which is good, but that’s still getting overpaid by like 6 million
Beadlemaniacs - Award winning* college basketball blog
You know you like college hockey
When the Angels
signed Torii, there was talk that they had overbid, even then.
Two years in, Torii’s been a great hitter, particularly for a CF. .287/.354/.485 with 43 homers and 63 doubles…certainly better than I expected, he looks like he’s getting better as he’s getting older.
If he keeps this up, he'll be a HOFer
How many more years does he need at this level?
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
I don't know about that one.
But it’ll be a fun conversation in a few years if he does keep this up. Even another five years, coming out of his age-38 season he’d be lucky to crack 350 career homers (235 now). He’d have to win a WS, right? Maybe some kind of post-season award?
9 consecutive GG’s, 3-time All-Star…Torii might belong in the Hall of Very Good by the time he’s done. And I’m an unabashed Torii lover.
I will take the under on him being a HOFer
not that that’s really an over/under type of bet, but you get the idea.
Beadlemaniacs - Award winning* college basketball blog
You know you like college hockey
Last year was his best season ever
5 WAR. If he repeat his career year 6 more years, he’s close. He’s not even Willie Davis or Vada Pinson right now.
Best CF of his generation?
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
For all around game,
he really might be. Who else is in the conversation? Mike Cameron, Vernon Wells, Andruw Jones…Torii probably looks the best going forward.
Depends on how wide a window you consider "his generation"
Hunter is 34 years old. Guys who I would put in the conversation, in addition to those you note above:
Ken Griffey Jr. – 40 years old
Grady Sizemore – 27 years old
Carlos Beltran – 32 years old
by Adam Peterson on Feb 4, 2010 7:31 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I'd include Beltran. But not the other two.
27 – 40 is a big range, especially considering Griffey started playing in…‘89? I mean, it’s totally semantics because I’m not sure what kind of hard border you can put on a term like “of his generation”, like you said, but I’d probably limit it to guys within three or four years of age either way…30-38-ish. Probably include Juan Pierre or Eric Byrnes in that group.
Particularly with the two guys you mentioned, if we’re talking about Griffey’s generation then we’re talking about Roberto Kelly, Marquis Grissom, Kenny Lofton, Craig Biggio or Bernie Williams. With Sizemore, I’d include him with guys like Granderson, Ellsbury, Kemp and Victorino. Obviously there’s some overlap, I’m just saying that for me there’s a big split between Sizemore, Hunter and Griffey.
I agree, big split
was just trying to go through all the teams, those are the three I could add to the list. Torii is in pretty good company.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 4, 2010 8:46 AM EST up reply actions
Beltran wins
Edmonds was better than Torii also.
Edmonds I'd put into the Griffey generation.
But yes, he was very good for a very long time. 95 – 06 is a good run of productivity.
And I’m not so sure about Beltran. If their careers ended today, absolutely, especially based on offensive numbers. But I’ll reserve judgment until they’re both done playing…I’m interested to see how Beltran comes back this year.
Payroll strain
Mauer and Morneau would take up a good portion, but with a $90M+ payroll, we’re only talking about a third or so. Given the minor league depth in the OF and bullpen, I suspect come 2012 we won’t be paying Nathan or Cuddyer big bucks, but that money will probably be consumed by the starting pitchers once they get closer to free agency.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 2, 2010 7:07 PM EST up reply actions
I could even see some of our starters gone by that point
We’ve got so many solid prospects that I think in two years you’re going to have 2 of Bromberg, Guerra, Robertson, Gibson in the big league rotation. Then there’s still guys like Swarzak, Manship, and Duensing that have barely started their service time. Depending on how the talent pans out form the minors I think the Twins would be willing to explore trades with one or two of our current young starters (Baker, Slowey, Blackburn, Liriano) to maybe bolster the farm system and keep the payroll manageable.
Peyton's good but have you ever heard of Jeff George?
Rotation
You are so right. The Twins should be able (health permitting) tradeoff starters one-by-one. Baker first, before his next contract. Then Balckburn in 2012. Slowey in 2013. By then you have Gibson and Bromberg in the rotation and some otehr Young Turk (BJ Hermsen, Shooter Hunt).
What’s interesting is that youc an patch holes with free agents these days for less than arbitration rulings, especially in the third year of such rulings.
Year One $400,000
Year Two $450,000
Year Three $500,000
Arbitration One $1-1.5 million
Arbitration Two $5 million
Arbitration Three $8-11 million
Whew!
Visit www.TwinsCards.com and check out "rosters" to see my collection!
I think you're right
which is why it’s so important to have a solid stream of starting pitching coming up from the minors. After this season, Slowey, Blackburn and Liriano’s contract status will depend on 2010 performance. A Baker type extension could make a lot of sense for one or more of our guys.
by Adam Peterson on Feb 3, 2010 7:26 AM EST up reply actions
Thanks for the info everyone
Glad to see the Twins won’t have too much payroll strain with this new contract.
As a fan of the Rockies I tend to root for the Twins in the AL because they do such a great job at bringing players up from their own farm system. Hope you guys can hold on to as many of them as possible. The franchise deserves it with all the talent they have brought up.
"Bob Gibson is the luckiest pitcher in baseball. He's always pitching when the other team doesn't score any runs." - Tim McCarver
by RhodeIslandRoxfan on Feb 3, 2010 2:39 AM EST up reply actions
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