They're Not Really Free and I Don't Care
The majority of baseball fans won't see their team play or win the World Series. According to ratings, not many of them will even bother watching the World Series if their team isn't playing. Fans of the St. Louis Cardinals probably didn't want October to end, but for the rest of us, the drama begins all over again the day after the World Series. The season is officially over and from every team players being announcing their status as free agents. Suddenly your lackluster infield has reason to hope, the hole in your starting rotation is soon to be filled, your aging bullpen can get some young blood and your line-up can finally secure that elusive power hitter.
The day when free agents annouce their availability begins a time of hope for baseball fans. Even fans of terrible teams have reason to believe that their front office will set up the blockbuster trade of the off season, and put their players back in contention. It is also a time when you can begin to bury the pain of the previous season, look critically at what your team needs, search through lists of who you could possibly get and then pray each night before bed that you do.
There are so many aspects of teams that free agents need to consider. Location is a big one for many, how close a team is to a player's home, and hoe disruptive it would be to move. Others need to consider the weather of a certain city. Many analysts pondered if Kenny Rogers' late season success this year was partially due to not having to play in the murderous heat of Texas in July and August.
Many free agents will want to use their status to join a team they think will immediately be in contention (Johnny Damon to the Red Sox). Others will join a team regardless of contention as long as they are given a chance to play (Julio Franco to the Mets). Some will join a team for one season, even if that team has no shot, in order to attain greater personal status (Alfonso Soriano to the Nationals) and others will join a team a few years out, hoping to be part of a larger rebuilding strategy (Ramon Hernandez to the Orioles).
There are quite a few high profile free agents this year and fans will be eager to find out where Barry Zito will end up, who will win Daisuke Matsuzaka, and if Roger Clemens will go back to Beantown. We will look at the mega stars, Thomas, Bonds and Garciaparra, and wonder if they will get contracts that end up lasting longer then their skills. We will try to guess which youngster will find the best fit and the team he'll play on for the rest of his career.
Fred Claire, in his MLB.com column insists that free agency is about money, and about players leaving teams that cannot afford them. No one can argue that this isn't the case, but this is nothing new. Everyone knows that wealthier teams have an edge in acquiring the top free agents. Unfortuantely for those teams, money guarantees nothing. The Yankees, with the largest payroll in baseball choked in the first round of the playoffs. The Marlins dumped all their expensive players and still had a shot at the NL Wild Card.
I think it would be great if every team had the same amount of money, and if players joined teams they wanted to be a part of. I respect those players who stick with their teams in order to make something happen, the Detroit Tigers are a great example of this. But in the meantime I want to enjoy the optimism of free agency without getting pissed yet again that my team doesn't have a New York payroll. Good teams lose, healthy players get injured, top prospects choke at the plate, no name pitchers throw perfect games and teams that win fewer than 90 games can apparently win the World Series. I want to hold on to my optimism, no mater how fruitless and I plan to embrace whomever my team selects.
I know in baseball you have to consider the politics, the money, the steroids and the smudges on the hands. But I think there's still a lot of magic left to the sport, and I think free agency season is a pretty fantastic one: let the bidding wars begin.
The day when free agents annouce their availability begins a time of hope for baseball fans. Even fans of terrible teams have reason to believe that their front office will set up the blockbuster trade of the off season, and put their players back in contention. It is also a time when you can begin to bury the pain of the previous season, look critically at what your team needs, search through lists of who you could possibly get and then pray each night before bed that you do.
There are so many aspects of teams that free agents need to consider. Location is a big one for many, how close a team is to a player's home, and hoe disruptive it would be to move. Others need to consider the weather of a certain city. Many analysts pondered if Kenny Rogers' late season success this year was partially due to not having to play in the murderous heat of Texas in July and August.
Many free agents will want to use their status to join a team they think will immediately be in contention (Johnny Damon to the Red Sox). Others will join a team regardless of contention as long as they are given a chance to play (Julio Franco to the Mets). Some will join a team for one season, even if that team has no shot, in order to attain greater personal status (Alfonso Soriano to the Nationals) and others will join a team a few years out, hoping to be part of a larger rebuilding strategy (Ramon Hernandez to the Orioles).
There are quite a few high profile free agents this year and fans will be eager to find out where Barry Zito will end up, who will win Daisuke Matsuzaka, and if Roger Clemens will go back to Beantown. We will look at the mega stars, Thomas, Bonds and Garciaparra, and wonder if they will get contracts that end up lasting longer then their skills. We will try to guess which youngster will find the best fit and the team he'll play on for the rest of his career.
Fred Claire, in his MLB.com column insists that free agency is about money, and about players leaving teams that cannot afford them. No one can argue that this isn't the case, but this is nothing new. Everyone knows that wealthier teams have an edge in acquiring the top free agents. Unfortuantely for those teams, money guarantees nothing. The Yankees, with the largest payroll in baseball choked in the first round of the playoffs. The Marlins dumped all their expensive players and still had a shot at the NL Wild Card.
I think it would be great if every team had the same amount of money, and if players joined teams they wanted to be a part of. I respect those players who stick with their teams in order to make something happen, the Detroit Tigers are a great example of this. But in the meantime I want to enjoy the optimism of free agency without getting pissed yet again that my team doesn't have a New York payroll. Good teams lose, healthy players get injured, top prospects choke at the plate, no name pitchers throw perfect games and teams that win fewer than 90 games can apparently win the World Series. I want to hold on to my optimism, no mater how fruitless and I plan to embrace whomever my team selects.
I know in baseball you have to consider the politics, the money, the steroids and the smudges on the hands. But I think there's still a lot of magic left to the sport, and I think free agency season is a pretty fantastic one: let the bidding wars begin.
