Poll: As a MLB GM would you sign?

[Beninator]

This is shaping up to be a busy postseason for area MLB teams. This is also a result of a conversation that I had with some friends last night.

--also not meant to be a team vs team poll--

[Beninator]

My thoughts:

I chose pitching as I think that the contract negotiations for Fielder and Pujols will get a little on the crazy side. Both players will demand long term contracts and deservedly so. Pujols is 32 which scares me a little for a long term contract, and Fielder's body type scares me as well from a potential injury standpoint. First base is a position that can be filled fairly easily, so I would allocate money towards building a quality pitching staff. An MLB team can never have enough pitching.

[Buesch N Chips]

None.

[lake Camelot]

Well it is impossible to answer unless you are a certain team. I will choose as a Cubs fan. My first choice would be sign nobody big name. Do all you can to get rid of A=RAM,Soriano,Zambrano, any overpayed under-effort players. I know you will have to eat most of their salaries. Then play younger players. You will have a very bad record for a few years. Who cares. Then when the younger players devlop you can pay some free agents to go along with them. If I am any other team, or if I am picking who the Cubs should sign if they are going to sign someone. I pick Feilder, assuming Puhols still insist on that long of a contract.

[mrcoachdude]

Thinking we are talking Cubs here:

Pitching...if its available..if not Fielder, he is younger than Albert...

Really could Cub fans handle the former Cardinal? Don't they dislike him greatly(did not want to use the hate word)...

[CubbieBear]

Pitching--Pitching--Pitching

Fielder is a below average fielder (no pun intended) with power--only 28 but too expensive(for poor "D")

Pujols is 32 (going on 3--for 1 or 2 years--yes! For more than 4 years absolutely a bad investment IMO

Buy & build around pitching---fill in the rest and it will work

[Beninator]

Well it is impossible to answer unless you are a certain team. I will choose as a Cubs fan.

Thinking we are talking Cubs here:

Pitching...if its available..if not Fielder, he is younger than Albert...

Really could Cub fans handle the former Cardinal? Don't they dislike him greatly(did not want to use the hate word)...

I will not hide the fact that I am a Cubs and Yankees fan and ecstatic to get Theo Epstein!

Keeping things generic on purpose.. Just playing GM on a gloomy Central Illinois day to see how everyone would prioritize.

As a Cubs fan, I will state that I very much wanted them to pick up Adrian Gonzalez by any means possible last year to avoid this situation!

[spoon]

My thoughts:

I chose pitching as I think that the contract negotiations for Fielder and Pujols will get a little on the crazy side. Both players will demand long term contracts and deservedly so. Pujols is 32 which scares me a little for a long term contract, and Fielder's body type scares me as well from a potential injury standpoint. First base is a position that can be filled fairly easily, so I would allocate money towards building a quality pitching staff. An MLB team can never have enough pitching.

Who would you be targeting pitching-wise? It's not a very deep market.

[Beninator]

Who would you be targeting pitching-wise? It's not a very deep market.

Very true. Depending on how negotiations go, I would look at CJ Wilson and I have always liked Mark Buhrle as an inning eater type pitcher.

[sousaman2089]

Sign CJ Wilson and Joe Nathan. I don't think Albert is ever going to be close to leaving the Cardinals and, I know it sounds crazy, but I think the Nationals are going to throw the bank at Prince Fielder.

[spoon]

Personally I think that someone is going to severely overpay for CJ Wilson, probably the starting pitching-starved Yankees. Wilson is also on the wrong side of 30, so a multi-year deal might be a bit of a risk. I have a feeling the Cubs are going to have to take flyers on some low-risk / decent-reward players. We're going to pay Zambrano to take a hike, and realistically, the Cubs need an ace in a market where there isn't one. It's going to be another rough pitching year, and maybe a couple pitchers like Capuano, Piniero, Francis, or Davies could come in and try to redeem themselves after recent hardships and injuries. Offensively I think Ramirez is gone, but unfortunately Soriano stays. Too many years left on that clunker of a contract. For first I believe Pena comes back, but if not I'd take a look at an under the radar guy like Michael Cuddyer, who has been consistently productive throughout his career. I'd also love to explore a trade for David Wright to play 3B, and hopefully we see some Brett Jackson next year.

But I suppose anything can happen... well, except for a world series...

[Future Walk-On]

This makes no sense in less we know what team we are managing....I assumed this was a Cub's roleplay? in that case OTHER.

NO WAY should the cubs try and sign a BIG player....when they have no core....

For instance the cardinals are consistent because they have such good prospects. They have around 10 players making around 400,000 and 2 under a million that are major contributors...and all but 2 are cardinal former minor leaguers.


14 of their 25 active roster members are homegrown. Anyways I think that building a strong farm system is vital...then you don't have to break the bank to get great production (for a while)

[Beninator]

Personally I think that someone is going to severely overpay for CJ Wilson, probably the starting pitching-starved Yankees. Wilson is also on the wrong side of 30, so a multi-year deal might be a bit of a risk. I have a feeling the Cubs are going to have to take flyers on some low-risk / decent-reward players. We're going to pay Zambrano to take a hike, and realistically, the Cubs need an ace in a market where there isn't one. It's going to be another rough pitching year, and maybe a couple pitchers like Capuano, Piniero, Francis, or Davies could come in and try to redeem themselves after recent hardships and injuries. Offensively I think Ramirez is gone, but unfortunately Soriano stays. Too many years left on that clunker of a contract. For first I believe Pena comes back, but if not I'd take a look at an under the radar guy like Michael Cuddyer, who has been consistently productive throughout his career. I'd also love to explore a trade for David Wright to play 3B, and hopefully we see some Brett Jackson next year.

But I suppose anything can happen... well, except for a world series...

+1 for the most part. Although I would add that the Cubs should trade Marmol!

[Beninator]

This makes no sense in less we know what team we are managing....I assumed this was a Cub's roleplay? in that case OTHER.

NO WAY should the cubs try and sign a BIG player....when they have no core....

For instance the cardinals are consistent because they have such good prospects. They have around 10 players making around 400,000 and 2 under a million that are major contributors...and all but 2 are cardinal former minor leaguers.


14 of their 25 active roster members are homegrown. Anyways I think that building a strong farm system is vital...then you don't have to break the bank to get great production (for a while)

IMO, you don't have to over analyze this. Basically, this is just an opinion as to which player you would sign if you had the chance and why. It is the type of debate that is going to be prevalent throughout the postseason.

Some writers have already voiced their opinion without team specificity.(albeit a little dated)

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/joe_sheehan/06/23/pujols.fielder/index.html

Players such as Ryan Howard who is in his early 30's have signed huge contracts and have seen their production decline and the teams have been second guessed about the remaining money on the contract.

http://joeposnanski.si.com/2011/10/11/the-worst-contracts-in-baseball/

I threw in the pitching and other categories as I think that a team can be better off by allocating resources elsewhere.

[spoon]

+1 for the most part. Although I would add that the Cubs should trade Marmol!

Absolutely. If you look at advanced statistics, not only is Marmol one of the least effective closers in baseball, he's one of the top 5 least effective of any pitchers. That contract was just another mistake on the long list of bad contracts.