I'm still trying to get my mind around it. Good for Ryan, but I don't think this one will end well. My first thought (Christine's too) was that this means the Phillies are conceding that Jayson Werth will be a worthless Yankee next year. But Todd Zolecki, who I concede is the better authority on these things, said the opposite:
I've gotten the sense recently that the Phillies think they can sign Jayson Werth to a contract extension. It might be because they realize they have to have at least one right-handed bat in the middle of their lineup. But I don't think today's deal means Werth is gone. Now, if Werth wants a five-year, $100 million deal, yeah, the Phillies probably won't sign him to something like that. But if it's a fair deal -- the Roy Halladay, Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins contract extensions seemed to work out for both parties -- then I see a chance at Werth sticking around. They could use him, too.
Rob Neyer doesn't like the deal. Christine doesn't like Neyer because she thinks he hates the Phillies. Not so - he even has praise for them while ripping this deal {I guess Greg has never heard of a backhanded compliment}:
Ryan Howard's new contract is a testament the enduring power of the Are-Bee-Eye. It's also a testament to old-school ignorance: ignorance of aging patterns, ignorance of position scarcity, ignorance of opportunity costs ... hey, take your pick. The Phillies have done a lot of things right over the last few years. But this is a big bowl of wrong.
In another surprise signing, the Red Sox signed a catcher from Cuba, Adalberto Ibarra. And I thought Jason Varitek (four Are-Bee-Eye tonight) was having a bounce-back year.
Tonight's games: Josh Beckett blew a 5-0 lead to the Blue Jays, but the Red Sox have come back and lead 8-6 in the 4th. I'm sure this one will change a few times before it's over. The Phillies play really late in San Francisco. I had a long day, so I may conk out before their game even starts.
No comments:
Post a Comment