By Mack Ade & David Rubin
Editor's Note: This is the first in what we hope will be many collaborative pieces between David and me. Today, we look at the possibility of ALBERT PUJOLS joining the Mets, should his contract negotiations stall and ultimately fail with the Cardinals. We've all long-thought of Pujols as a life-long Cardinal, a la Stan "The Man" Musial...but what if he wasn't??
Mack:
Yeah, this qualifies right now as a big pipe-dream, but let’s explore this.
First, the Mets CAN afford it.
The Mets current contract obligations will drop from $123.7mil in 2011 to $61mil in 2012. There’s plenty of wiggle room to write Albert a $30mil per year check and still have enough money to pay the rest of the team. Remember, $38+mil alone is coming off the books for Carlos Beltran, Oliver Perez, and Luis Castillo.
Secondly, the deal is cheap.
Let me ask you - what if the Mets today traded Ollie, Beltran and Castillo for Pujois? (Not a "literal" trade- a change of contractual obligations) - AND, the Mets saved $8mil a year in the process?
Thirdly, an instant trade that favors the Mets develops.
Ike Davis may not be Mark Teixeira, but he easily would be coveted by 5-10 clubs throughout the bigs. The Mets could easily replace the loss of Beltran here with a front line outfielder, player for player.
Fourthly, Pujois would love New York.
And New York would love him back. The Mets would instantly become a contender and ticket sales would soar. And I haven’t even mentioned the bucks he could make on Madison Avenue.
And last, but most important… the phones would start ringing again.
It’s no big secret that most free agents these past few years aren’t putting any pressure on their agents to become a Met. Securing a player like Pujois to be in the same lineup with David Wright, Jason Bay, and Jose Reyes would definitely return the Mets to a “must call” from agents representing their clients that are looking for a great last contract, and a chance to win a ring as well.
David:
Funny enough, right before Mack and I spoke about this piece, I happened to be watching the MLB Network's daily "Hot Stove Report" and, of course, they featured a brief interview with one Mr. Pujols, who labeled the recent timetable given to the Cards as necessary to protect his teammates from the inevitable questions that would hound the team all-season-long if he didn't set parameters as to when negotiations would be held and for how long. Artificial deadlines almost never seem to be held to, but one has to guess that, with Pujols being a man of his word, that this would be one time where, indeed, if the Cards failed to get something done within the stipulated window, Pujols would, indeed, explore the free agent market come November, 2011.
Essentially, I agree with everything that Mack is saying. As this piece began, we KNOW that this is all a pipe-dream, and that odds are, Pujols WILL stay with the Cardinals, in spite of his ultimatum...but we also all know that WAY stranger things have happened (including just THIS SEASON, with Cliff Lee returning to a Phillie team that once upon a time seemed as likely as Sarah Palin receiving a television show) and that, where this type of money is concerned, anything and everything CAN happen!
With free agency, ANYTHING is possible- just ask LeBron James!! While we'd never consider "Pujols" and "Mets" in the same sentence, there are a number of things in favor of the Metropolitans making a deal SHOULD Pujols become available.
The Mets CAN afford it- and, quite frankly, so can the Royals, the Pirates, and any other team in baseball! WHY??? Because Pujols is the once-in-a-generation player that teams would be willing and able to spend their entire slice of revenue-sharing pie upon- because, quite frankly, there's Pujols, and then there's every other hitter in the game.
Putting aside the money coming off of multiple contracts, GM Alderson's aversion for long-term contracts for players of Pujols' age and the fact that Citi-Field is a pitcher's park, you STILL make a play for Pujols because he IS, quite frankly, THE most exciting player in the game of baseball. P-E-R-I-O-D!!! If you have a chance to sign him, you DO IT!!
Say what you will about Barry Bonds, whenever he came up to bat, everything stopped; I watched Bonds-haters in the San Francisco ballpark as well as in front of a television stop everything they were doing whenever Bonds came up to the plate- and ALBERT PUJOLS is all that - and, so-far (and hopefully forever-after) PED-FREE!!
Mack said "the deal is cheap" - and in spite of what you
might think, at $30 million or so a year, for approximately 8-10 years, it really is.
Just think of the accompanying publicity, followed by jersey sales, season ticket bumps, ratings jumps, various branding opportunities, not to mention the opportunity to create something that hasn't been seen in Flushing often enough these past 50 years - on-field revenue in October and November (play-offs and World Series games)!!!
At the end of the day, it's about winning because winning equates to money and this is still a business to the owners and, in New York, you don't make the big money unless you are a contender. Adding Albert Pujols MAKES the Mets a perennial contender (well, Albert and a motivated supporting cast!) Think "A-Rod" with a POSITIVE image- because Pujols, through his foundation, is one of THE most charitable and caring players in the game. I know he's loathsome to give autographs at times, and isn't always a great interview, but his bat (and glove, for that matter) speak VOLUMES!!! Surround him with Reyes, Pagan, Wright and Bay and watch him work his magic!!
And one last point - St. Louis is a market unique unto itself, with Chicago a close second. Cards fans are THE most loyal fans there are- knowledgeable, supportive loyal - you name it- and playing in the Mid-West creates a truly unique experience that is hard to sell-short.
However, IF the Cards can NOT come to terms with Pujols on a new contract, and should he actually BECOME a Free Agent, what better market in the world is there for him to play baseball in then NEW YORK?! He'd be the biggest start in NYC since Mantle and Mays, with a loyal multi-cultural fan-base ready and willing to buy more Pujols merchandise then any 2 other cities combined!! Baseball would instantly revert back to being a 2-team town, and Pujols would be THE most marketed sports personality this side of LeBron!! The money, prestige, fame and long-term fortune would all be his for the taking...
...I STILL don't believe it will happen, but the mind races at the mere thought...and wouldn't it be great IF the Mets were one of the few teams who COULD actually make this happen???
Yeah, this qualifies right now as a big pipe-dream, but let’s explore this.
First, the Mets CAN afford it.
The Mets current contract obligations will drop from $123.7mil in 2011 to $61mil in 2012. There’s plenty of wiggle room to write Albert a $30mil per year check and still have enough money to pay the rest of the team. Remember, $38+mil alone is coming off the books for Carlos Beltran, Oliver Perez, and Luis Castillo.
Secondly, the deal is cheap.
Let me ask you - what if the Mets today traded Ollie, Beltran and Castillo for Pujois? (Not a "literal" trade- a change of contractual obligations) - AND, the Mets saved $8mil a year in the process?
Thirdly, an instant trade that favors the Mets develops.
Ike Davis may not be Mark Teixeira, but he easily would be coveted by 5-10 clubs throughout the bigs. The Mets could easily replace the loss of Beltran here with a front line outfielder, player for player.
Fourthly, Pujois would love New York.And New York would love him back. The Mets would instantly become a contender and ticket sales would soar. And I haven’t even mentioned the bucks he could make on Madison Avenue.
And last, but most important… the phones would start ringing again.
It’s no big secret that most free agents these past few years aren’t putting any pressure on their agents to become a Met. Securing a player like Pujois to be in the same lineup with David Wright, Jason Bay, and Jose Reyes would definitely return the Mets to a “must call” from agents representing their clients that are looking for a great last contract, and a chance to win a ring as well.
David:
Funny enough, right before Mack and I spoke about this piece, I happened to be watching the MLB Network's daily "Hot Stove Report" and, of course, they featured a brief interview with one Mr. Pujols, who labeled the recent timetable given to the Cards as necessary to protect his teammates from the inevitable questions that would hound the team all-season-long if he didn't set parameters as to when negotiations would be held and for how long. Artificial deadlines almost never seem to be held to, but one has to guess that, with Pujols being a man of his word, that this would be one time where, indeed, if the Cards failed to get something done within the stipulated window, Pujols would, indeed, explore the free agent market come November, 2011.
Essentially, I agree with everything that Mack is saying. As this piece began, we KNOW that this is all a pipe-dream, and that odds are, Pujols WILL stay with the Cardinals, in spite of his ultimatum...but we also all know that WAY stranger things have happened (including just THIS SEASON, with Cliff Lee returning to a Phillie team that once upon a time seemed as likely as Sarah Palin receiving a television show) and that, where this type of money is concerned, anything and everything CAN happen!
With free agency, ANYTHING is possible- just ask LeBron James!! While we'd never consider "Pujols" and "Mets" in the same sentence, there are a number of things in favor of the Metropolitans making a deal SHOULD Pujols become available.The Mets CAN afford it- and, quite frankly, so can the Royals, the Pirates, and any other team in baseball! WHY??? Because Pujols is the once-in-a-generation player that teams would be willing and able to spend their entire slice of revenue-sharing pie upon- because, quite frankly, there's Pujols, and then there's every other hitter in the game.
Putting aside the money coming off of multiple contracts, GM Alderson's aversion for long-term contracts for players of Pujols' age and the fact that Citi-Field is a pitcher's park, you STILL make a play for Pujols because he IS, quite frankly, THE most exciting player in the game of baseball. P-E-R-I-O-D!!! If you have a chance to sign him, you DO IT!!
Say what you will about Barry Bonds, whenever he came up to bat, everything stopped; I watched Bonds-haters in the San Francisco ballpark as well as in front of a television stop everything they were doing whenever Bonds came up to the plate- and ALBERT PUJOLS is all that - and, so-far (and hopefully forever-after) PED-FREE!!
Mack said "the deal is cheap" - and in spite of what you
might think, at $30 million or so a year, for approximately 8-10 years, it really is.Just think of the accompanying publicity, followed by jersey sales, season ticket bumps, ratings jumps, various branding opportunities, not to mention the opportunity to create something that hasn't been seen in Flushing often enough these past 50 years - on-field revenue in October and November (play-offs and World Series games)!!!
At the end of the day, it's about winning because winning equates to money and this is still a business to the owners and, in New York, you don't make the big money unless you are a contender. Adding Albert Pujols MAKES the Mets a perennial contender (well, Albert and a motivated supporting cast!) Think "A-Rod" with a POSITIVE image- because Pujols, through his foundation, is one of THE most charitable and caring players in the game. I know he's loathsome to give autographs at times, and isn't always a great interview, but his bat (and glove, for that matter) speak VOLUMES!!! Surround him with Reyes, Pagan, Wright and Bay and watch him work his magic!!
And one last point - St. Louis is a market unique unto itself, with Chicago a close second. Cards fans are THE most loyal fans there are- knowledgeable, supportive loyal - you name it- and playing in the Mid-West creates a truly unique experience that is hard to sell-short.
However, IF the Cards can NOT come to terms with Pujols on a new contract, and should he actually BECOME a Free Agent, what better market in the world is there for him to play baseball in then NEW YORK?! He'd be the biggest start in NYC since Mantle and Mays, with a loyal multi-cultural fan-base ready and willing to buy more Pujols merchandise then any 2 other cities combined!! Baseball would instantly revert back to being a 2-team town, and Pujols would be THE most marketed sports personality this side of LeBron!! The money, prestige, fame and long-term fortune would all be his for the taking...
...I STILL don't believe it will happen, but the mind races at the mere thought...and wouldn't it be great IF the Mets were one of the few teams who COULD actually make this happen???
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