The content herein is exclusive to Sox Machine supporters on Patreon. The contributions of supporters help keep the site lean, mean and ad-free, and thus should be appreciated by everybody.
If you already support Sox Machine on Patreon and have a user account, log into your Sox Machine account first. If you support Sox Machine but do not have a site account, one will be created for you upon login.
To view this content, you must be a member of Sox Machine's Patreon at %%currency_sign_front%%2%%currency_sign_behind%% or more
Machado is still looking for an offer in excess of $300MM, according to Jon Heyman of Fancred (Twitter link). The White Sox and Phillies are the only two teams known to have made formal proposals, neither of which have reached that value. Of course, the Philadelphia organization is reportedly set to put in another offer, the details of which remain unknown. The Yankees have also still yet to officially put anything on the table for Machado, Heyman adds.
Will there be significant movement? If so, when and by what mechanism? MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand hears that the markets for Machado and Harper are “heating up.” As his sources have it, the Phillies are “turning up” their efforts for the former, while the Nationals have “momentum building” to bring back the latter. Bruce Levine of 670theScore.com also cites a sense of market movement, but he hears it’s the White Sox who are gaining “momentum” on Machado. Levine also mentions a fourth, unknown potential suitor for Machado, though Heyman claims there’s “still no word” of a shadowy pursuer.
I’m shocked how winnable this bidding war is looking to be. Time to zig while these other teams zag (by not wanting to ante up for these premiums talents).
100%, this is all own Jerry now, there isnt some 450 mil offer out there where you can just say… oh well a team got crazy. Its time to get machado or harper or sell the damn team.
I agree. No reason for him not to go to $300M for Machado. If he does, I’m sure they’ll get him. It’s all up to Jerry. If he wants another championship in his lifetime, he has to step up now.
On the one hand, as long as the Sox have the top bid, I’m not particular about the exact figure, even if it’s below the predictions. Although they’d better reinvest the savings back into the roster.
On the other, I hope the top bid is also top dollar. Because if the Sox end up with a below-market deal here due to teams suppressing salaries, it’ll be hard to see the championship-aborting work stoppage as anything other than just desserts.
I respect your enthusiasm. But you must be patient. You have to give these things time.
What if your neighbors were to say to you, “Go out and buy a new Porsche, or else sell your house and move out!”
Jerry Reinsdorf & Co. have already spoken with the Porsche dealer. They’ve also been downtown to see the Lamborghini dealer. Negotiations are well underway.
In the meantime, they’ve spent the last couple of years in their own garage, putting together several Ferraris.
Brewers just inked Grandal to a one year deal for a little over 18 million…Seems to me it might of been wise for us to beat that offer and lock the catcher spot down for three years
Saw that. Lot of outrage on Sox twitter. Here’s what I’d say: He’s gonna be a free agent in a year. By then we’ll know a lot better what we have in Collins/Zavala (and possibly getting a C in the draft). And I believe Wellington is up after this year too. Point is – if we need him, we can still get him.
And the deal he got with Milwaukee wouldn’t have made sense for the Sox; it’s obvious that he didn’t want the multi-year deals that were out there and wanted to take his chances next winter without the QO attached.
That’s almost enough reason to stifle the outrage.
The problem is that even though they’ll dodge a year of contract and injury risk, plus get a second bite at the apple, their pitchers are still going to be wearing it.
It may make some sense for the sox to wait on him for a year… but this is another guy who could upgrade so many teams in baseball unable to get a multiyear deal…. ( I know he may have turned down a big offer from the mets) but this is gonna be a contract the union points to when collusion talks come up. Way too many teams are satisfied making money and not winning games.
Collusion is absolutely the right word. Front offices didn’t arrive at this approach by individually tapping into the collective unconsciousness. There are far too many similarities to chalk up to circumstantial coincidence or parallel evolution.
In 1985, MLB’s ownership agreed, behind closed doors at one of Ueberroth’s mandatory owners meetings, that position-player free agents would receive, at maximum, three-year offers, and free-agent pitchers would receive a max of two years. Players also weren’t going to be allowed to change teams unless their previous team was fine with letting them go. This meant that players like Gibson never received an offer from anyone besides his previous club, the Tigers, despite putting up the kind of season that should have had the entire league chasing him. And it’s why George Steinbrenner pulled his offer to Carlton Fisk — Jerry Reinsdorf spoke with the Yankees’ owner, and Fisk was forced to return to Reinsdorf and the White Sox when no other offers appeared.
There aren’t 30 bidders because teams are deliberately choosing to sink to the bottom of the rankings. The top of the market are pleading the soft salary cap is too onerous. Which leaves a couple teams who are telegraphing their offers in the press.
The question isn’t whether owners are colluding, it’s whether the MLBPA can prove it with the preponderance of evidence.
From MLBTR:
I’m shocked how winnable this bidding war is looking to be. Time to zig while these other teams zag (by not wanting to ante up for these premiums talents).
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/01/harper-machado-rumors-1919.html
100%, this is all own Jerry now, there isnt some 450 mil offer out there where you can just say… oh well a team got crazy. Its time to get machado or harper or sell the damn team.
I agree. No reason for him not to go to $300M for Machado. If he does, I’m sure they’ll get him. It’s all up to Jerry. If he wants another championship in his lifetime, he has to step up now.
On the one hand, as long as the Sox have the top bid, I’m not particular about the exact figure, even if it’s below the predictions. Although they’d better reinvest the savings back into the roster.
On the other, I hope the top bid is also top dollar. Because if the Sox end up with a below-market deal here due to teams suppressing salaries, it’ll be hard to see the championship-aborting work stoppage as anything other than just desserts.
knoxfire;
I respect your enthusiasm. But you must be patient. You have to give these things time.
What if your neighbors were to say to you, “Go out and buy a new Porsche, or else sell your house and move out!”
Jerry Reinsdorf & Co. have already spoken with the Porsche dealer. They’ve also been downtown to see the Lamborghini dealer. Negotiations are well underway.
In the meantime, they’ve spent the last couple of years in their own garage, putting together several Ferraris.
We have not yet BEGUN to drive!
Except there are only two Porsches available this year and your neighbors don’t pay your bills for you.
And the 2020 Porsche’s may be bought up before he has a chance to buy one.
and these porches seem to be on sale relative to what we all thought a few months ago
“Do you have any idea how many Hyundais we could afford for the price of those two Porsches?”
-Jerry Renisdorf
Vastly underrated
Brewers just inked Grandal to a one year deal for a little over 18 million…Seems to me it might of been wise for us to beat that offer and lock the catcher spot down for three years
Saw that. Lot of outrage on Sox twitter. Here’s what I’d say: He’s gonna be a free agent in a year. By then we’ll know a lot better what we have in Collins/Zavala (and possibly getting a C in the draft). And I believe Wellington is up after this year too. Point is – if we need him, we can still get him.
And he can’t get the qualifying offer again.
And the deal he got with Milwaukee wouldn’t have made sense for the Sox; it’s obvious that he didn’t want the multi-year deals that were out there and wanted to take his chances next winter without the QO attached.
That’s almost enough reason to stifle the outrage.
The problem is that even though they’ll dodge a year of contract and injury risk, plus get a second bite at the apple, their pitchers are still going to be wearing it.
Yeah, I don’t see why there couldn’t have been any middle ground between Grandal and McCann. Just someone who doesn’t kill you back there.
It may make some sense for the sox to wait on him for a year… but this is another guy who could upgrade so many teams in baseball unable to get a multiyear deal…. ( I know he may have turned down a big offer from the mets) but this is gonna be a contract the union points to when collusion talks come up. Way too many teams are satisfied making money and not winning games.
Collusion is the wrong word. The system just doesn’t work anymore.
Collusion is absolutely the right word. Front offices didn’t arrive at this approach by individually tapping into the collective unconsciousness. There are far too many similarities to chalk up to circumstantial coincidence or parallel evolution.
karko;
For collusion to be effective, owners would all have to agree not to be greedy/selfish. That’s tough to accomplish with two bidders, let alone 30.
@Hit4cycle They’ve done it before. Jerry Reinsdorf was involved:
There aren’t 30 bidders because teams are deliberately choosing to sink to the bottom of the rankings. The top of the market are pleading the soft salary cap is too onerous. Which leaves a couple teams who are telegraphing their offers in the press.
The question isn’t whether owners are colluding, it’s whether the MLBPA can prove it with the preponderance of evidence.
We would have to give up a pick in the 30s – the brewers are giving up a pick around 100
Pretty good outcome all things considered.
Having the Brewers store Grandal for his priciest year — but the one least valuable to the Sox — that could be serendipitous….
Willard;
I like the way your mind works.