Brocail signs with the Astros for $2.5 million
by DyingQuail
on Dec 2, 2008 9:47 PM CST
34 comments
****UPDATE 9:45PM****
While this post has devolved into a discussion of the reasons we love JD, a few hours of perspective has lead me to this conclusion:
Ed Wade is a negotiating GENIUS
Think about it. He declined Doug Brocail's $3.25 million option for 2009 and then took away his extreme opportunity cost as a Type A free agent. As of 11 PM last night, Doug Brocail was one of the better relievers on the market -- he wouldn't cost a negotiating team anything except his 1 or 2 year contract. The Mets, the Brewers...the list could go on of teams who desperately needed stable bull pen arms. His market value had to SOAR last night after he got his arbitration declined.
And somehow, someway Mr. Edward Wade talked Doug Brocail into taking a $750,000 pay cut. It's just incredible.
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From CBSSportsLine, more will be posted as it comes.
Ed Wade most be a negotiating genius, that's a $750,000 pay cut from his declined option.
****UPDATE**** It's official.
I'm still shocked we got him to take a pay cut.
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First Post here at the Crawfish Boxes...
This is my first post here at the Crawfish Boxes. I started blogging on SB Nation over at the New Orleans Saints website canalstreetchronicles.com. I’ve lived in the Houston area since 1987, and have been an Astros fan ever since ‘86, when I lived in Louisiana, and I saw my Dad run out of his office hoopin’ and hollerin’ because he was listening to the radio as the Astros clinched the Division with Scott’s no-hitter. I was 10.
I’ll be back more often as the season gets closer. My question is this:
What does RIP FJM, 2005-2008 mean?
By the way, I CAN’T STAND Richard Justice…
7-9, Here We Come...
by Hollywoo! on
Dec 2, 2008 5:30 PM CST
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the firejoemorgan.com blog
has come to an end.
welcome
by lnewcomer on
Dec 2, 2008 5:43 PM CST
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HA!!
I’ll restart it!!! Don’t get me started on those 2 clowns…The worst announcers in baseball! How they keep their job is beyond me…
JD on the other hand, is the BEST color man in baseball. We’re lucky to have him.
7-9, Here We Come...
by Hollywoo! on
Dec 2, 2008 5:56 PM CST
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You know, a lot of people hate JD
I mean.. not us. We love him… the other guys.
by entropic soul on
Dec 2, 2008 8:05 PM CST
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Nazis?
Because they hate everybody, anyways.
Who could possibly hate JD?
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 8:14 PM CST
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If you go check out other blogs
And some people have to listen to our guys on MLB.com or something.. a lot of people trash JD because he’s wacky and a homer.
by entropic soul on
Dec 2, 2008 8:18 PM CST
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but
He’s not wacky. He’s funny, but I wouldn’t characterize his humor as “wacky.” Nor is he a homer. I mean, he’s paid by the Astros to broadcast Astros games, so he’s bound to have some partiality, but JD is (I always thought) very even-handed. And he’s one of the few analysts out there with truly interesting things to say.
Can’t please everybody, I guess.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 8:33 PM CST
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hmmm
You might be on to something there.
On the other hand, I’ve encountered so many bewilderingly nonsensical beliefs in my life (particularly amongst baseball fans), that I wouldn’t find it at all surprising that someone out there thinks JD is the worst commentator ever.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 8:52 PM CST
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I'm just saying..
that’s what the other guys think. Go check out the other blogs when we play.
by entropic soul on
Dec 2, 2008 9:48 PM CST
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I know
you’re not saying that.
So I looked through some of our opponents’ threads from the season (I got nothin better to do, you see). All I got was a chuckle from that game when Berkman hit his first walk-off homer against the shitbirds. All but a few of the Cards fans start bitching about the Crawford Boxes (that homer hit the fuckin wall! Boxes didn’t aid that one).
So, speaking of irrational hate… why do fans seemingly forget that MMP’s short LF is there for everyone? It’s not like it retracts during the away innings.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 10:06 PM CST
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Retracting during the away innings....
hmmmmm….I think I’ve got a new ballpark idea that Drayton might be willing to invest in!
by AstroAndy on
Dec 2, 2008 10:10 PM CST
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I still think
we should dig a trench around infield. That will make fielding popups much more interesting.
Seriously, hearing other fans complain about the hill or the flagpole or left field is half the fun of Astros baseball.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 10:13 PM CST
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I think there should be more Home Run giveaway targets. The Fowl Poles are nice, and I do love me some Chik-Fil-A, but nobody hits those poles often enough. The minor league games I’ve been to have been filled with giveaway stuff…they should do stuff like free oil changes if they hit the Conoco pump!
by AstroAndy on
Dec 2, 2008 10:32 PM CST
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I imagine that if an Astro hits a Cubs fan in the face with a line drive, that’s a prize in itself.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 10:34 PM CST
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Some bloggers feel that they have to hate other teams' broadcasters.
Perhaps they are just pissed because their webcast was switched to the opposing teams’ broadcast. But most of what I see from non-Astros’ blogs are complaints that JD talked too much about the Astros or says too much good stuff about Astros’ players. Of course, if they are listening to an Astros team sponsored broadcast, what do they expect? That is what I expect to hea (about the Cubs) if I listen to a WGN broadcast. However, I was surprised late last season when several Brew Crew Ball fans said they liked JD’s humor.
by clack on
Dec 2, 2008 9:42 PM CST
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agreed
JD is the best color guy ive heard on tv…brownie and he have tremendous chemistry
by HighLeveragePerformer on
Dec 2, 2008 8:19 PM CST
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BEN SHEETS BEN SHEETS BEN SHEETS
We are still missing a major piece of the puzzle!
by entropic soul on
Dec 2, 2008 5:44 PM CST
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+1
BEN SHEETS BEN SHEETS BEN SHEETS
by jonthefon on
Dec 2, 2008 10:17 PM CST
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You gotta actually give him the plus one
Through the Rec option. Click actions and then click Rec. Let’s give the Ben Sheets chant some overt love.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by DyingQuail on
Dec 2, 2008 10:38 PM CST
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Not worth the rec.
They’re saved for especially awesome things.
by jonthefon on
Dec 3, 2008 3:49 AM CST
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maybe this is what they are waiting for..
If Hampton pass the MRI and sign; Brocail signed with cut, that will mitigate my anger.
by HubertL on
Dec 2, 2008 6:43 PM CST
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Never let them rob you of your anger
Two small and minor victories shouldn’t over shadow the structural cluster fuck that is the foundation of this organization.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by DyingQuail on
Dec 2, 2008 10:00 PM CST
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lol: "structural cluster fuck"
I thought the Astros’ organizational foundation was entering Carlos Lee and Berkman in competitive eating contests.
by Only_A_Lad on
Dec 2, 2008 10:08 PM CST
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Something odd to me....
Astros.com article says that Brocail knew he wouldn’t be offered arbitration, because he had a deal in place with the Astros for some time. Yet Wade was quoted just a day or two ago as saying that he hadn’t made progress with Brocail and hadn’t talked to his agent in more than a week, etc. It makes me thing: during this off-season period, don’t believe everything you hear from Wade.
by clack on
Dec 2, 2008 10:03 PM CST
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Smoke and Mirrors
I know that in talking with HLP last night, we came to the conclusion that there’s just no way of divining the tea leaves. Whether that’s by design or not could be disputed though.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by DyingQuail on
Dec 2, 2008 10:17 PM CST
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In his chats online and in interviews with him, he flat out says that he doesn’t discuss his deals before they go through. And he definitely follows through on that. It’s very rare to get any information about who the Astros are considering (compare with the daily commentary from Padres GM Kevin Towers about who’s doing well in the Peavy sweepstakes).
The Brocail comment is interesting. Why might Ed Wade want to keep the Brocail agreement under wraps until after the arbitration deadline? The only things I can think of is that it was either (a) conditional upon whatever payroll number Drayton finally handed down; (b) if other clubs were expressing interest in Brocail, Wade might have asked Doug to keep fielding offers, just to get a feel for what the market was like; or © Doug didn’t know whether he was going to play in 2009, and they had an agreement to sign him if he wanted to come back.
by AstroAndy on
Dec 2, 2008 10:28 PM CST
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The paycut...
If I’m Ed Wade, I go to every single guy who I’ve got to sign a contract with and I say “Look. I’d love to give you what you deserve. But Drayton is putting the screws on me to keep the budget down. I want to improve our starting pitching so that this team can win more games next year, but I need to free up some money. The most important thing that you can do to help this team right now is to sign a below-market contract.” Maybe he had that kind of heart-to-heart with Brocail. I’ve seen other players say that it’s not about the money anymore…it’s about winning. And I can see Brocail going for it.
by AstroAndy on
Dec 2, 2008 10:51 PM CST
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True story and good insight
I hope that that exact conversation took place.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by DyingQuail on
Dec 2, 2008 10:56 PM CST
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Brocail may be a special case, in that regard.
At his current age, he wants to stay in Houston, and he has to take a pay cut to do it. Brocail said that everyone knew he wanted to play close to home, and it made negotiations tough for him, because both sides knew it.
As far as any other players who can provide any salary relief by taking a discount, that really would come down only to Wigginton and Valverde, since they are the only players who will get new contracts with sizeable increases. They might justly react by saying, “why do we have to shoulder this problem, particularly since we aren’t even free agents yet, and several teammates earn a lot more than us.” The players under current contract can’t renegotiate for smaller salaries, even voluntarily, because the changes have to be approved by the union.
by clack on
Dec 3, 2008 7:05 AM CST
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Oh, I figured it was just a leverage thing and that his choices were probably Houston or retirement. He probably would have jumped on arbitration had we offered it, too. As for other players taking a paycut….it never hurts to ask!
In reality, of course, with players like Valverde, a below-market salary this year would probably mean a guaranteed 3+ years with a backloaded contract. And I hate backloaded contracts.
by AstroAndy on
Dec 3, 2008 9:35 AM CST
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have to agree with clack
Altough it’d be nice, we really shouldn’t expect Wiggy or Valverde to take anything below market. We have four players eating up $60 million. I don’t know maybe that’s a problem the team should have avoided. Not having a strong farm system is really hurting right about now. At this point they’re left with having to trade wigginton and/or Valverde just to be able to sign a legit No.2 starter under the self imposed $100 mil cap we’ve been hearing about.
by Aron on
Dec 3, 2008 8:51 AM CST
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It's all finally biting us in the ass.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by DyingQuail on
Dec 3, 2008 9:06 AM CST
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