Hooray. It appears the Yanks will stink again this year.

[mmmbeer]

It's small-minded, but I enjoy it when the Os finish above them.

[Deleted]

The Steinbrenners seem obsessed with keeping the payroll down below the $189 luxury tax threshold. The Yankees are currently sitting just under $226 million in payroll commitments and they're getting very little bang for their biggest bucks. A-Rod is done, Sabathia is barely a league-average pitcher at this point, Jacoby Ellsbury has been a disappointment, and Chase Headley has been just plain awful.

I suspect that the Yankees will wait until after 2017, which is when they'll jettison their largest contracts. That's also when guys such as Bryce Harper and Manny Machado will become eligible for free agency. I'm guessing that the Yankees will make pitches for one if not both, luxury tax be damned.

[mmmbeer]

I also see Manny heading for greener ($$$) pastures. If his knees hold up, he will have an absolutely fantastic career. The Os need to get that figured about before his last trade deadline so he doesn't walk for free.

[Deleted]

The longer Machado goes without an extension, the harder it's going to be for the Orioles to get him locked up.

I don't believe, however, that the window is completely closed in this regard. Although Machado is in the enviable position of hitting the free-agent market at just 26 years of age, I'm sure even he's aware that anything can happen between now and then. He might be forfeiting millions by forestalling his free agency, but on the other hand, he could suffer a catastrophic, Tony Conigliaro-like injury and wind up with less than $10 million in career earnings.

Machado stated at the end of last season that he'd be open to an extension, and I think there's still room to get something done. It cost Toronto some $29 million to buy out Josh Donaldson's last two arbitration years, so that could be a bellwether of what it might take to defer Machado's right to walk for, say, another two years. He'd have guaranteed money in the bank for four more years and could still test the free agent waters while still in his prime at age 28. The Orioles, meanwhile, will have the best third baseman in the game at less than market value through the 2020 season.

If Machado's situation is not resolved heading into his contract year, however, then I agree that the Orioles should start looking to make other arrangements. They need to start shopping him and get the best possible return. (And trades are the best way to quickly replenish a farm system.) They can't let him play out his last season and get nothing but a compensation pick in return. That would be absolute foolishness on their part.

[Evil Yoda]

As sad as it makes me to say it, because I don't like to wish ill on anyone, this is true: the fans' best hope for the Orioles to keep Machado is for Peter to die before he's a free agent, AND for the son who will run the team (John, I think, I believe Louis works at the law firm) to be more willing to open the purse. If Angelos is still alive, Machado is gone.

But I doubt he will go north. The Marlins would love to have a Latino superstar for marketing purposes, and Manny would get to play where he grew up. I expect he'll wind up there.

We should assume he's gone, and just enjoy him while he's here. In fact, that's probably true of any really talented player.

[Deleted]

May 7, 2016 14:44:18 GMT -5 Evil Yoda said:

As sad as it makes me to say it, because I don't like to wish ill on anyone, this is true: the fans' best hope for the Orioles to keep Machado is for Peter to die before he's a free agent, AND for the son who will run the team (John, I think, I believe Louis works at the law firm) to be more willing to open the purse. If Angelos is still alive, Machado is gone.

But I doubt he will go north. The Marlins would love to have a Latino superstar for marketing purposes, and Manny would get to play where he grew up. I expect he'll wind up there.

We should assume he's gone, and just enjoy him while he's here. In fact, that's probably true of any really talented player.

In fairness, Angelos did open the vault this past offseason to retain players such as Chris Davis and Darren O'Day. Hard to believe, but the Orioles spent more this offseason than any team in the majors.

If Machado hits free agency, he's likely to command somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 to $350 million, if not more. I'm not sure if Angelos is going to be willing to go there, however. Come to think of it, I'm not sure I'd want to lay out that much for one player.

[Evil Yoda]

May 7, 2016 23:02:37 GMT -5 @mdrunning said:

In fairness, Angelos did open the vault this past offseason to retain players such as Chris Davis and Darren O'Day. Hard to believe, but the Orioles spent more this offseason than any team in the majors.

He did, and they did. I've heard the Chris Davis deal criticized as overpayment, but that's an (educated) guess at this point. We don't know. I've also heard a rumor that Angelos told Duquette that there was money for Davis, but him only: he Duq wanted some other player there was no money for that. If that's true, it's micromanaging to a level the owner should not engage in, if he has confidence in the people he hired to do that job for him. It may also mean Angelos decided to spend that money for that reason because (a) he likes Davis as a person, or (b) he thinks Davis will put butts in chairs. There's some precedent for (b), but neither one of them is a sound criterion for picking a player, IMO. Time will tell.

May 7, 2016 23:02:37 GMT -5 @mdrunning said:

If Machado hits free agency, he's likely to command somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 to $350 million, if not more. I'm not sure if Angelos is going to be willing to go there, however. Come to think of it, I'm not sure I'd want to lay out that much for one player.

Well, that's probably the future of a superstar player. They'd have to decide if Manny is the next Cal: the player fans come to see and that they can build a team around. I don't know if he is or not.