Photo Courtesy of SonsOfSamHorn.net
Jason Bay, one of the two premier free agent hitters along with Matt Holliday, has agreed to a four-year, $66 million deal with the New York Mets. Bay had rejected a four-year, $60 million offer from the Red Sox earlier during the regular season as well as during the offseason and his market never developed fully. After originally seeking a deal with a guaranteed fifth year with a value of nearly $20 million a year, Bay relaxed his demands once he realized that the market just wasn’t there. The Mets still tossed in a $14 million option as a fifth year for Bay pending that he reaches a certain number of plate appearances (avoiding serious injury). Including that year, the deal comes out to $16 million a season.
Considering Mark Teixeira received an eight-year, $180 million contract last season, Bay’s deal would seem to be a steal for the other New York team. Here is Teixeira’s stat line from 2008 before he signed that mega-deal and Bay’s stats from last season:
| |
ABs |
Hits |
2B |
HR |
RBI |
BB |
SO |
AVG |
OBP |
SLG |
OPS |
| Teixeira |
574 |
177 |
41 |
33 |
121 |
97 |
93 |
.308 |
.410 |
.552 |
.962 |
| Bay |
531 |
142 |
29 |
36 |
119 |
94 |
162 |
.267 |
.384 |
.537 |
.921 |
Those are pretty similiar statistics and Bay is only a year older than Teixeira was last season. The economy slashed contracts slightly, but the gap between Bay’s deal and Teixeira’s is still massive. The first reason is defense. Teixeira is a very good defensive first baseman while Bay is below-average for a left-fielder. In the cavernous Citi Field, Bay’s defensive woes will be more pronounced. On the offensive, playing at Citi Field will certainly bring down Bay’s numbers, especially considering Bay played in the friendly confines of Fenway Park last season. Add in the fact that Bay is a very streaky player and the Mets need a consistent bat and the deal does not look so great. Read more…
Photo Courtesy of AP
The Phoenix Coyotes ownership is in disarray. The management and coaching is a mess. The team has the lowest salary totals in the league. With all that being said, the Coyotes must be one of the worst teams in the league, right? Wrong! Phoenix currently sits at the 4th in the Western Conference, just five points behind the league-leading Chicago Blackhawks.
So how are they doing so well while spending so little money? Time to go to the numbers.
The Coyotes have just two players with more than ten goals. No player has 25 or more points. However, what Phoenix lacks in star power, it makes up for in consistency. Twelve players have double-digit points with nine of them having 17 or more points. Fourteen players average more than fifteen minutes on ice per game. Most importantly though is the Coyotes goalie, Ilya Bryzgalov. Bryzgalov ranks fourth in the NHL in GAA and is tied for third in save percentage. He leads the league in shutouts, is second behind Martin Broedur in wins, and is tied for second in games played. Bryzgalov has carried the Coyotes all year.
Bryzgalov is making $4.26 million per year. That’s good for 16th in the league among goaltenders. How’s that for a steal.
Shane Doan’s 24 points are the most on the team and his salary, $4.55 million, leads all forwards. Radim Vrbata has the second highest salary ($3 million) amongst forwards and his third on the team with 22 points. Matthew Lombardi has the third highest salary ($1.817 million) and the second most points (23). Read more…
Week 16 of the NFL season is upon us and the races are incredibly close.
Photo Courtesy of AP
Historically close.
The San Diego Chargers blew out the Tennessee Titans on Friday night to clinch the number two spot in the AFC behind the Indianapolis Colts who continue their pursuit for perfection Sunday against the New York Jets. Besides the Chargers and Colts, the rest of the AFC is effectively up for grabs.
Here is the current playoff situation:
Division Leaders
1. Indianapolis Colts (14-0)
2. San Diego Chargers (12-3)
3. New England Patriots (9-5)
4. Cincinnati Bengals (9-5)
Wild Card Leaders
5. Baltimore Ravens (8-6)
6. Denver Broncos (8-6)
In the Hunt
Miami Dolphins (7-7)
New York Jets (7-7)
Houston Texans (7-7)
Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7)
Jacksonville Jaguars (7-7)
The Patriots and Bengals are in the best place as if either wins, they clinch their division. The Ravens and Broncos control their own destiny as well, but any slip up by them opens the doors for any of the Dolphins, Jets, Texans, Steelers, or Jaguars. So many things can happen, but let’s look at some of the games this week
Jaguars at Patriots - The Jags travel up North into the Cold to face Bill Belichick’s Patriot team. After a couple of turbulent weeks, New England enjoyed its first real home win of the season last weekend and have put the Randy Moss saga behind them. Meanwhile, Jacksonville fought valiantly against the Colts last week, but came up four points short of the upset. This should be a great game, but I’m giving the Pats the edge mostly because New England excels in cold weather and Florida teams don’t. New England Read more…
