GM Ruben Amaro Jr. of the Philadelphia Phillies did what no one thought possible- he brought back SP1 Cliff Lee to the Phillies almost a year to the day after having traded him to the Mariners. To do so, Lee had to leave over $30 million on the table, as his offers from the Rangers and Yankees were at least that much higher. Now let's not kid ourselves- $120 million is enough money to send Mack and I to Spring Training every season from now until they start playing on the moon- and, oh yeah- we can take the entire state of Rhode Island with us!! But it's nice to see that a player like Lee, who could have signed for the highest amount a pitcher has ever received accept a substantial amount LESS in order to come back to the place he most wanted to pitch; it's just sad for the rest of the NL East (or LEAST) that it happened to be Phillie that held the top place in his heart.
The Phillies payroll, according to the great Cot's Contracts is going to be somewhere north of $150 million, once Lee's total number is factored in and the payments due back to the Phils to off-set Oswalt's contract are figured in. That's an amazingly high payroll for the Phils, considering their lower ticket prices, smaller ballpark and lower merchandise sales versus their bigger-market brethren. That being said, from a purely baseball-fan standpoint, one has to take a step back and admire GM Amaro's gutsy move, in assembling perhaps the best starting rotation since the days of the old Cleveland Indians of Feller, Wynn, Lemon & Garcia. Sure, their payroll has gone way beyond that which their ballclub "should" be able to bear. Definitely, they've maintained their place as the oldest ballclub in baseball. Certainly, they'd have to be considered the pre-season favorite in the National League, if not in all baseball, for another World Series title. But, in order for that to happen, not only do they have to stay healthy, but they need to receive a bounce-back year from shortstop Jimmy Rollins; improved health from second baseman, Chase Utley; a better performance from all-star first baseman, Ryan Howard; and at least career-average seasons from Polanco, Ibanez, Victorino, Ruiz & Lidge. Pitching and timely hitting took the Giants to the World Series last season; there's little reason to guess that it won't do the same for the Phillies in 2011. Beyond that, well, that's anyone's guess, but they will have $50-$60 million coming off the books if they don't re-sign Rollins, Lidge and company after next season - and that brings up a whole different kettle of problems for Amaro to handle. But let's not put the cart before the horse. Should the Phils win in 2011, whatever happens after that, Amaro will have delivered the 3rd World Series title in team history, and his place in team lore will be cemented forever.
There's no guarantees in the game of baseball- just ask Giants fans- but the Phillies, at worst, have just made the coming season that much more interesting...
How does this effect the Mets? Well, the Mets have to continue to act like the Red Sox of 2003 and beyond while the Phils act like the Yankees- we'll stay the course and build a long-lasting team, and hope that the Phils, like the Yankees of old, fall over and break their hips from their bloated payroll.
Remember- the Phils wouldn't have made it to the World Series if the Mets didn't collapse first, as my fellow Met fan Ramie quickly reminded everyone last night after learning of Lee's signing. Let's not panic- but let's give credit where credit is due. For one day, at least, Ruben Amaro Jr. is at the top of the baseball world...drats!!
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