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Levine: Sox won't offer more than 7 years for either player


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Still think a 7-year deal benefits these guys.  You get more $/year now, then you give yourself a shot at one more huge $ contract at age 33 instead of 36.  By the time inflation kicks in, they will end up with a ton more than an extra 3 years of a front-loaded 10-year deal signed today would give them.  

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All the teams connected to Harper and Machado really have nothing to lose (in terms of the perception of their fan base) but the...Phillies and White Sox.

Cubs, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves, Cardinals, Padres, etc., fans will be pretty much be okay no matter what.   Either they don't want their franchise to have so much payroll tied into one player or their franchise doesn't typically sign deals like that see (see Cardinals.)   Of course, the Padres learned their lesson signing guys like Shields and Hosmer years before the rebuild was actually ready to produce.

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5 hours ago, fathom said:

please tell me I'm not the only one with deja vu today with the year limit when compared with the outfield hunt a few years ago when Nightengale said the Sox wouldn't go more than 3 for anyone?

You're not. I thought of it immediately. I'm just avoiding all this conjecture, It's pretty pointless to try to figure everything out by reading tweets. Everybody draws their own conclusions. I'll just show up at the finish line.

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I'm  pessimistic on the Sox chances but holy crap, I will be the most annoying Sox fan in the world if we somehow sign Harper to my Cubs fans friends. The bias is so nauseating.

Edited by Brian
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4 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

Bruce did his spot on the score and he is adamant that Boras is waiting on the cubs, and made his case that what do the Sox really have to offer at the major league level.  

Bruce is a complete joke of a journalist because it’s so evident that Cubbie blue bleeds through through his little heart.  Just like with Kapman, he’s completely unable to be objective when discussing either team.  What the Sox have to offer at the major league level is irrelevant if they offer a fuckton of money.  That’s free agent 101 & Bruce needs to study up.

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7 hours ago, FT35 said:

Still think a 7-year deal benefits these guys.  You get more $/year now, then you give yourself a shot at one more huge $ contract at age 33 instead of 36.  By the time inflation kicks in, they will end up with a ton more than an extra 3 years of a front-loaded 10-year deal signed today would give them.  

 

That’s where opt outs kick in.  If I’m Harper or Machado negotiating with the Sox, I’d want one a few years in if the rebuild isn’t going well and another with a few years left to hit the market early if I’m still performing at a high level.  

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14 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Bruce is a complete joke of a journalist because it’s so evident that Cubbie blue bleeds through through his little heart.  Just like with Kapman, he’s completely unable to be objective when discussing either team.  What the Sox have to offer at the major league level is irrelevant if they offer a fuckton of money.  That’s free agent 101 & Bruce needs to study up.

What the Sox have to offer at the MLB level is somewhat irrelevant, especially if what they can offer for the future is promising.  And that's exactly what the Sox have going on right now.  One of these guys has the opportunity to THE centerpiece of a potential perennial contender for quite a while.  Obviously we can't count on every prospect living up to their expectations, but even if some hit this team is going to be good.  Adding a Machado or Harper makes them a lot better and would result in the team making more moves.

But to your point, a metric shit-ton of money speaks very loudly.

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I'm guessing the economic value of each competing team's offers for both Harper and Machado will be 'within the bandwidth' of one another. We can speculate on the emotional side of the decision making process but who knows how these guys value the non-financial side of their choices. My sense is they may both very well end up in Chgo, with Manny to the Sox and Bryce to the Cubs. What I really hope is that we have some compelling 'plan B' options in the queue if we come up empty. There is so much money being mentally earmarked for either/both player that could otherwise attract 2/3 strong additions. For instance, would it make sense to pursue Grandal, Moustakis and maybe Wade Miley for similar (and shorter) annual outlay?  

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38 minutes ago, hogan873 said:

What the Sox have to offer at the MLB level is somewhat irrelevant, especially if what they can offer for the future is promising.  And that's exactly what the Sox have going on right now.  One of these guys has the opportunity to THE centerpiece of a potential perennial contender for quite a while.  Obviously we can't count on every prospect living up to their expectations, but even if some hit this team is going to be good.  Adding a Machado or Harper makes them a lot better and would result in the team making more moves.

But to your point, a metric shit-ton of money speaks very loudly.

I agree with everything you say here and a promising future could be important if the money is similar with a team like the Phillies.  But at the end of the day, 9 times out of 10 these things come down to the money and if we aren’t prepared to spend then the soft stuff doesn’t really matter.  Our non financial value prop will outdue the Yankee’s.  If Hahn & KW don’t understand, then the franchise is in really big trouble.

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36 minutes ago, Harry Chappas said:

Until Harper signs elsewhere  the Cubs are the front runners...... if they move money......that's a big if. 

Nobody needs sources for that, that is a fact.  He wants to go there and if the money is right they will get him at a nice discount than what we thought he'd get.

There is nothing to suggest that Harper would take a nice discount to play for the Cubs, that’s just Sox fans letting their nightmares get the best of them.

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1 hour ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Bruce is a complete joke of a journalist because it’s so evident that Cubbie blue bleeds through through his little heart.  Just like with Kapman, he’s completely unable to be objective when discussing either team.  What the Sox have to offer at the major league level is irrelevant if they offer a fuckton of money.  That’s free agent 101 & Bruce needs to study up.

This is the truth 1000% Levine is starting to enter Kaplan territory. 

Edited by Jack Parkman
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5 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

There is nothing to suggest that Harper would take a nice discount to play for the Cubs, that’s just Sox fans letting their nightmares get the best of them.

I think its correct to say though, that if he signs with the Cubs, it will be at a discount.  If the reports are true that he is waiting for the Cubs, we know he would like to play for them, it will depend on the creativity of the discount.

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2 minutes ago, Jack Parkman said:

This is the truth 1000%

While the terms may end up being 8-10 years overall, I do not think it is crazy for teams to begin the negotiations with 7 year deals across the board. Teams are smarter than they used to be in terms of handing out long term deals and realizing how much a players value declines as he ages (typically). Sox are very much in on both players, meaning they have a chance. Hard to peg how good that chance is still. 

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Just now, ptatc said:

I think its correct to say though, that if he signs with the Cubs, it will be at a discount.  If the reports are true that he is waiting for the Cubs, we know he would like to play for them, it will depend on the creativity of the discount.

Boras for sure is not going to be interested in letting his client sign for a "discount" when he has a chance to be the top AAV player in the MLB. 

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4 minutes ago, steveno89 said:

While the terms may end up being 8-10 years overall, I do not think it is crazy for teams to begin the negotiations with 7 year deals across the board. Teams are smarter than they used to be in terms of handing out long term deals and realizing how much a players value declines as he ages (typically). Sox are very much in on both players, meaning they have a chance. Hard to peg how good that chance is still. 

Levine is inferring that the Sox aren't making competitive offers which I refuse to believe. If the Sox are offering 6-7 years and the other teams in the bidding are offering 10+ how does it make sense that the Sox remain involved?? Jerry, Kenny and Rick could not possibly be this stupid. They had to know what they were getting themselves into and the dollars and years it would take to get the job done. Otherwise, lying to the fans like that is a good way to alienate them and become a villain similar to Bill Wirtz and Pulford. The only reason they'd have any reason to lie to the fans like that is if they want to alienate them so nobody cares when they pack up and leave town. 

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5 minutes ago, Jack Parkman said:

Levine is inferring that the Sox aren't making competitive offers which I refuse to believe. If the Sox are offering 6-7 years and the other teams in the bidding are offering 10+ how does it make sense that the Sox remain involved?? Jerry, Kenny and Rick could not possibly be this stupid. They had to know what they were getting themselves into and the dollars and years it would take to get the job done. Otherwise, lying to the fans like that is a good way to alienate them and become a villain similar to Bill Wirtz and Pulford. The only reason they'd have any reason to lie to the fans like that is if they want to alienate them so nobody cares when they pack up and leave town. 

Wow it's almost like the Sox are "using" Bruce to make it sound to the baseball world that their offers aren't as competitive as others.

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Everything, except for Levine's babbling points to the Sox making competitive offers to these guys.  The Sox could possibly be offering only 7 years but with a bunch of money.  However, I believe they are offering more than 7 years for both of these guys.

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2 minutes ago, fathom said:

Wow it's almost like the Sox are "using" Bruce to make it sound to the baseball world that their offers aren't as competitive as others.

I honestly don't think it is anyone with the Sox. I'd put it as a source with the Phillies tbh. They'd have every reason to plant something like this, especially before Harper goes to meet with them. 

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As someone that doesn't get that upset about perceived media slights I was also struck by how contemptuous Levine sounded on a radio update this morning (or a replay of his update).

There is a weird tendency in baseball media types right now to both moan endlessly about how many teams are tearing it down while also ridiculing any team that adds on when it doesn't align perfectly.

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19 minutes ago, ptatc said:

I think its correct to say though, that if he signs with the Cubs, it will be at a discount.  If the reports are true that he is waiting for the Cubs, we know he would like to play for them, it will depend on the creativity of the discount.

Or he’s waiting on them to free up enough money to make a compelling offer.  He may very well take a discount to play for them over say the Sox, but there’s nothing to suggest it would be anything of significance.  Him & Boras both want a record breaking contract.

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10 minutes ago, Jack Parkman said:

I honestly don't think it is anyone with the Sox. I'd put it as a source with the Phillies tbh. They'd have every reason to plant something like this, especially before Harper goes to meet with them. 

Why would Philly plant something like this?  Harper has full known knowledge of his offers.  This is either a White Sox leak intended to make other teams think our offer is low or a Boras leak trying to stir up some more interested parties.  I would heavily lean towards the former based on everything we know and the fact the Sox are still in the mix for both players.

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