By: Mike Carter
As my school semester ends, here are some random firings of neurons in my brain this weekend.
Is it just me, or has the offseason seemed like it has been six months long?
I know, I know: these are first-world problems in a world that has been besieged by problems in 2020. The good news is that the Covid-19 vaccine appears to be on its way to many locations, leading to something missing in this terrible year: hope. I think if anything, 2020 has taught us that we are not in control of many things in this world other than our own attitudes and personal behaviors. I feel like it’s healthy to let go of the idea that we can control much around us. We should try and be more stoical, and less impacted by the behavior and choices of others. Control yourself, we are all works in progress.
The Hot Stove has been a slow simmer so far. Free agent catcher James McCann signed a four-year deal with the Mets for a reported $40 million contract. The White Sox (my true love) traded for right-hander Lance Lynn this past week, and also signed free agent outfielder Adam Eaton to help plug their right field hole. Otherwise, it has been a slow, long December.
Still, many MLB teams have long Christmas wish lists. One thing it does not appear that NL teams need to do is find a designated hitter. It’s an abomination of the game that pitchers will continue to hit if we have a regular 2021 baseball season. That being said, it looks like the DH could be universal in 2022, and we will no longer need to watch guys bat who haven’t hit since high school.
One thing that should be very interesting to watch is how teams spend, or don’t spend, this offseason. Rumors circulated about many teams and their financial situations after a 2020 that saw zero or limited fans into the stadiums. Before they hired Dave Dombrowski to be their general manager last week, word on the street was that the Philadelphia Phillies were trying to move large salaries for prospects. The Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts stated in June 2020 that MLB owners were suffering “biblical losses” due to the pandemic and not being able to open stadiums to fans and their wallets. Many fans like me find this hard to believe, and no owners will open their Spreadsheets and show us the facts. Not exactly a startling idea, but some teams will spend, some will not. And there are likely to be some bargains for teams who wait to sign players until later in the winter.
As a teacher and administrator, I do not have a great mind for finance. It’s been widely reported that major league baseball payrolls dropped by $2.47 billion collectively. Recall that players all had prorated salaries in 2020; players made approximately 37% of their normal annual salary. Yet owners in MLB refuse to let anyone see their books, for a wide variety of reasons, including not wanting to share private information as well as avoiding possible audits. But for fans like me, it’s hard to say that owners lost so much in one year when you consider how much they have made over the last ten years. I find I have little sympathy for what I consider billionaires when I know many people who lost their incomes and their jobs in 2020.
We can see cost-cutting measures already. Many teams furloughed or laid off hundreds of staff people. We have seen a large number of team’s buyout 2021 options on valuable players. The free agent market is saturated with players who did not have their options picked up: Eddie Rosario, Kyle Schwarber, to name just two. The snail’s pace of the Hot Stove looks to continue into the New Year; I am guessing there will some bargains had in early 2021.
This bodes badly for the upcoming collective bargaining agreement. I will say this, and it is a “duh” moment: without more transparency these negotiations will be the most acrimonious yet. Put on your seatbelts. It never ceases to amaze me, yet I should never be surprised, at the attempts to ruin the greatest game on the planet fighting over more cash than any player could have conceived 100 years ago. Babe Ruth was purchased by the New York Yankees in January 1920 for the then-unheard-of sum of $125,000. Today’s minimum salary in MLB is more than four times that amount. Just a little perspective, maybe?
In lighter news, perhaps, in January 2021 we will find out who is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Will this be the year that the accused PED users like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens get welcomed to the hallowed halls of Cooperstown? Curt Schilling likely gets in this year, and I remain unconvinced that he belongs in there. Recall too that there was no induction ceremony in 2020, so hopefully this coming summer, we will see Derek Jeter, Larry Walker, Ted Simmons and Marvin Miller get their plaques on that weekend in July. What will fans’ reactions be if in the midst of this awful year we see tainted players on the stage in Cooperstown this summer? Could be more controversy the game does not need.
Spring Training will officially begin on February 27th. Pitchers and catchers start reporting February 16th. That’s only 76 days away. Opening Day is April 1st. Dear God, please get here, Spring Training.
I find myself looking for things to do as winter closes in around me here outside Chicago. I did get my Baseball Forecaster this week, so I will surely self-isolate at times in the next few weeks and get ready for the 2021 fantasy baseball season. I luckily received the first dose of vaccine last week. I am trying to walk or bike each day to get some air and take care of me a little more as we end this craziest of all years. Since I can’t really go out, I plan to try some new beers in the coming weeks and try some new slow cooker recipes. Do not be jealous of the sexy life I lead here in suburbia.
I know it has been a difficult year for all of us, with changing financial situations, working from home, teaching our kids while on remote, the needle on our gas tanks being low these days. My sincere wish is that people take some time this holiday season to ensure our physical and mental health, with hope that the vaccine and improved outlook for 2021 will allow us to put this nightmare behind us. Take care of yourselves, hug your loved ones a little tighter and make the best of this situation.