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How is Craig Kimbrel still not signed to a team? (Update 6/5: Signed with Cubs)

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Austin

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
5,706
41
Dallas, Texas
I don't get it. Kimbrel is one of the greatest relief pitchers in history.
He's only 30 years old and healthy.

In only 8 seasons, he already has 333 saves, a 1.91 era, has an incredible 868 Ks in 532 innings and 5 top-10 Cy Young finishes, which is crazy for a reliever, especially in just 8 years.

Does he not get along with teammates or something? Is he asking for a ridiculous amount of money? The guy's a first ballot Hall of Famer in the prime of his career.

Also Dallas Keuchel. He's just 31 and last year led the AL in games started and won the Gold Glove. And no team wants him? What the hell?
 
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bstanwood

Well-known member
Sep 24, 2016
3,666
332
Mystic, CT
I thought the same thing until I heard he was looking for a 5 year $100 mil deal, he's a reliever, don't care how good he is or he thinks he is some one of better value is available if he won't go below that. I'm a Sox fan, we desperately could use him...but not at that price
 

chippernate

Well-known member
Same for the Braves, we could use both of them but Liberty just won’t spend money and games are hard to watch. From what I heard they both wanted huge contracts and Braves just don’t want to give out anything over 2 years it seems. Someone’s gonna cave eventually, wether it’s the teams or players
 

manningmurphyfan

New member
Aug 17, 2008
769
0
It’s also the draft pick attached to him if anyone signs him before the draft. Would be the Braves 60th pick and a little over $1M in slot money. Saying they can’t afford to give that up due to the loss of international signing ability.

Liberty Media is also cheap.
 

Super Mario

Well-known member
Mar 1, 2009
18,242
85
Mushroom Kingdom
After the Greg Holland disaster last season, I wouldn’t advise any team to sign a relief pitcher who doesn’t go through a full spring training.

Let them both sit this season, then everyone lowball them with offers next season and cost them both several million dollars.

They’re both idiots.
 

swish54_99

Well-known member
Dec 12, 2012
1,160
221
I agree with others, greed and over estimating their worth based on the changing FA market. They want deals that were given out 4 or 5 years ago and that's not what's happening today.

I wouldn't be surprised if Kimbrel is hurt based on his poor performance later in the year last year and no teams wanting to sign him. Also, Keuchel is 31. Not a young FA by any means, has 1-2 years left in his prime and of his 7 years in MLB only has really had 2 really good years in 15 &17. He's been mediocre the rest of his career. Based on similar players according to baseballreference.com, he is similar to Mat Latos, Carlos Carrasco, Jose Quintana, Julio Teheran, and Jaime Garcia.....would you give huge contracts out to any one of those guys?
 

fordman

Well-known member
Feb 22, 2013
3,190
32
Ohio
Im all for the players to get whatever they can. The agents for these players are also trying to cash in too. Just makes you wonder when the Mets pay Bobby Bonilla every year if the agent still gets his cut or if he got that on the front end. Btw, Barry Larkin is still being paid by the Reds too. He deferred millions to get Griffey Jr to Cincinnati.

Fordman

Sent from my LG-LS993 using Freedom Card Board mobile app
 

Super Mario

Well-known member
Mar 1, 2009
18,242
85
Mushroom Kingdom
Im all for the players to get whatever they can. The agents for these players are also trying to cash in too. Just makes you wonder when the Mets pay Bobby Bonilla every year if the agent still gets his cut or if he got that on the front end. Btw, Barry Larkin is still being paid by the Reds too. He deferred millions to get Griffey Jr to Cincinnati.

Fordman

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Bruce Sutter is still getting paid and he retired in 1989.

19..........89...........


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smapdi

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
4,397
221
Is it a genius move, though? Instead of getting $1m a year for 30 years (to pick a number, don't know what these guys get), wouldn't getting, say, $2m a year for 15 years be better? With inflation, the last few payments would be worth significantly less than the first few million. Although, at the time Sutter's and Bonilla's contracts were done, interest rates were quite a bit higher all around, with bonds and annuities paying a lot more than they do today. If teams put money aside in some sort of interest-bearing instrument, it could be just about free to pay this out over so long a time. But now that interest rates have been so low for so long, it's probably about even for both sides.

Reading up on Sutter's contract, he is due for a balloon payment of $9.1m in 2 years, which would make him an average paid all-star closer today. Darren O'Day, who is listed with the Braves but doesn't seem to be able to pitch for the foreseeable future, is getting paid $9m this year.
 

ccouch (Chad)

Member
Aug 8, 2008
444
6
There's a lot of truth spoken in this thread. Kimbrel should be on a team -- he's clearly better than a lot of guys who are kicking around in the league. The problem is in how he perceives his value vs. how teams perceive his value. He's expecting to be paid according to his historical value rather than his likely value going-forward. And you can't blame him -- that's they way a lot of guys have been paid in the free agency era. But the paradigm has shifted. Teams have gotten smarter. Once could clearly see signs of a drop-off with Kimbrel last year... and the fact that teams aren't willing to pay him for his historical performance tells me that they don't see him returning anywhere near that level of value over 5-6 years.

From a player perspective, that's a tough explanation though given how compensation generally lags in the initial years of a player's career.
 

manningmurphyfan

New member
Aug 17, 2008
769
0
AA isn’t giving up the draft pick at this point.

Last I heard they said Kimbrel has dropped to 3yr/$39m or 4yr/$52.

No brainer for Atlanta to sign him at those numbers based on this bumpkin bullpen. Would be one thing if they thought they’re a .500 team, but they proved last year they’re ready to be a contender.

Just ridiculous they didn’t address the pen at all unless they plan on bringing up some of the younger starters to fill it out.
 

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