Starting a separate thread for this since I am sure we are going to be hearing so much about this over the next 12 months or so that our ears will begin to bleed…
“I love this organization. I love the Astros. I would love to be an Astro for life,” Correa said. “I hope they’re on the same side I am. If they’re on the same side, I would love to be an Astro for the rest of my life. This is where I got drafted. This is where I’ve played. This is where I’ve developed and grown as a man. Nothing would make me happier than to represent this organization and be a franchise player.”
I was on the fence about re-signing Correa prior to last season because of his injury history and his likely asking price. However, watching him step up last season as a leader following the sign-stealing scandal changed my mind. The Astros also should have the long-term financial flexibility to afford such an extension.
Also, it doesn’t hurt that there are four other elite shortstops available in Correa’s free-agent class: Francisco Lindor, Trevor Story, Javier Baez and Corey Seager.
He’s never said it that I know of, but there’s been talk of him wanting to go back to the Northeast for a while. Disappointing indeed, but man we got some great memories.
I imagine I’ll be paying more attention to Toronto than I have since the Cito Gaston glory days. Those were fun teams.
Cole is very different from other departing FA in my mind. I don’t expect a guy to stick around if there’s a better offer elsewhere—it’s just business, I guess—but the Boras cap after the G7 loss was spiteful and unnecessary. Springer isn’t on that level.
I do not mean personal characteristics. All I am talking about, especially with Springer, is chasing dollars with no thought of the organization which developed their talents and played a large part in success on the field. Cole was a talented but mediocre pitcher before Houston.
I do not expect my 1950s attitudes to have much of a following here, but I value loyalty and put it pretty high on my personal list. Both Cole and Springer chased money, and good for them, but I am finished rooting for them.
How does your thinking look at the organization manipulating the service time clock and impacting the players earning potential early in their career? Should the player take that into account in the FA calculus?
Does what the org did delay FA by a year? I guess there is a debate about when the player is ready, but if the player’s main goal is to be a FA ASAP and to get the highest bid in that process, I suppose they will think they should have been there last year.
For me who has never had big money, the thought is “how fucking much money do you need? Have you been paid fairly?”
I don’t remember it exactly, but wasn’t it something like that if the team called him up on September 30, he would get free agency a year earlier than if they called him up on October 1, so they called him up October 1. Is that right?
I only mentioned it because of your question. I remember at the time that many thought that the team was being too smart by half, and that yeah, the team pretty deliberately delayed his free agency, and that it wouldn’t instill much loyalty.
Loyalty? Are you fucking kidding me? If the org had any idea he was going to the highest bidder at FA, I do not blame it for wanting to have him for an additional year.