Leaving $$$ on the table

[JackReacher]

So in the past 24 hours, Cliff Lee left, what, $50 million on the table? And Gus Malzahn turned down $3 million a year from Vandy to stay at Auburn and earn $1 million per year.

Kinda nice to see.

What other big-name athlete/coach has done this recently? Can't be many, right?

 

[derwood]

Lebron James.

 

[zagoshe]

So in the past 24 hours, Cliff Lee left, what, $50 million on the table? And Gus Malzahn turned down $3 million a year from Vandy to stay at Auburn and earn $1 million per year.

Kinda nice to see.

What other big-name athlete/coach has done this recently? Can't be many, right?

But in Malzahn's case it had a lot more to do with the fact that he knows there will be far better jobs to come down the pike in the next year at places he has a chance to actually succeed.

So I don't think turning down a career-killing job is in the same category as a free agent baseball player deciding he doesn't want to just take the offer of the most money.

 

[JackReacher]

Good point about Malzahn, Zag.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

A-Rod was willing to give up a significant portion of his contract to be traded to the Red Sox, but the union wouldn't let him do it.

I'm guessing the union isn't too happy with Lee today either.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

That seems like poor economic reasoning on the union's part. If Lee is willing to take less money to go to a place he liked, won't teams that think they might not be liked (that is, the Yankees), offer even MORE money to the next free agent they're pursuing in an attempt to compensate? If Greinke doesn't really want to pitch in New York, about the only way to make him change his mind is put even more dough on his plate.

 

[cranberry]

A-Rod was willing to give up a significant portion of his contract to be traded to the Red Sox, but the union wouldn't let him do it.

I'm guessing the union isn't too happy with Lee today either.

The union wouldn't allow the club to ignore maximum paycut provisions in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (nor should it) so Larry Lucchino had a hissy fit and called off any potential deal despite an offer from A-Rod to rework the terms.

The union has no problem with Lee's new contract because even though it's not seven years the AAV remains high for determining comparable salaries.

Otherwise, good guess.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

A-Rod was willing to give up a significant portion of his contract to be traded to the Red Sox, but the union wouldn't let him do it.

I'm guessing the union isn't too happy with Lee today either.

The union wouldn't allow the club to ignore maximum paycut provisions in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (nor should it) so Larry Lucchino had a hissy fit and called off any potential deal despite an offer from A-Rod to rework the terms.

The union has no problem with Lee's new contract because even though it's not seven years the AAV remains high for determining comparable salaries.

Otherwise, good guess.

That makes sense.

 

[Azrael]

I'd quibble with the notion that anything was "left on the table." The contracts pay about the same annual salary. One offered more years.

 

[cranberry]

I'd quibble with the notion that anything was "left on the table." The contracts pay about the same annual salary. One offered more years.

There's something to be said for $30 million or so guaranteed. Come 2016, Lee may be wishing he'd taken those extra years.

 

[TigerVols]

Cam Newton will leave money on the table when he declares for the NFL draft.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

Not exactly the same thing, but Steve Spurrier walked away from $15 million guaranteed when he quit as coach of the Redskins rather than waiting to be fired.

In a strange way, I totally respect that.

 

[cranberry]

Albert Pujols left a lot on the table last contract. Doubt it will happen again.

 

[Dick Whitman]

People are going to praise Lee to the high heavens for being "unselfish" in taking this deal, because he left money on the table.

I doubt his fellow players will see it as an unselfish move.

Quite the contrary.

 

[Sic semper tyrannis]

I think most regular folk will have a tough time deifying anyone who will make more than $100 million in five years, even if he did "leave money on the table"

 

[JackReacher]

Who's deifying him? I just said it's kind of nice to see someone turn down the extra cash to play somewhere he WANTS to play. That's all. Even moreso that the Yankees were the team turned down.

 

[Moderator1]

And the union may not be happy with him? Screw the union. Cliff Lee is well within his rights to sign wherever he wants - being happy where you live and work is pretty key in life, regardless of how many zeroes are in your contract.

Years ago, I had a chance to move somewhere and make a decent bit more than I was making. One problem. I didn't want to live there. So I said no.

Being comfortable where you are matters. I, too, applaud Cliff Lee. Though I think his ass could have been comfortable in D.C., too.


We should start a pool, or a poll (where's our resident poll starter): Which of the Phillies' Big Three of Aging Men breaks down first and when? I say 2011 will be gold and then it will start to disintegrate.

 

[LongTimeListener]

When Mark McGwire retired, he turned down a two-year, $30 million contract from the Cardinals. He would have gotten the money just for pinch-hitting or being on the DL.

 

[Armchair_QB]

And the union may not be happy with him? Screw the union. Cliff Lee is well within his rights to sign wherever he wants - being happy where you live and work is pretty key in life, regardless of how many zeroes are in your contract.

Years ago, I had a chance to move somewhere and make a decent bit more than I was making. One problem. I didn't want to live there. So I said no.

Being comfortable where you are matters. I, too, applaud Cliff Lee. Though I think his ass could have been comfortable in D.C., too.


We should start a pool, or a poll (where's our resident poll starter): Which of the Phillies' Big Three of Aging Men breaks down first and when? I say 2011 will be gold and then it will start to disintegrate.

Don't know when it will start but my guess is Oswalt will be the first to go.

 

[Dick Whitman]

And the union may not be happy with him? Screw the union. Cliff Lee is well within his rights to sign wherever he wants - being happy where you live and work is pretty key in life, regardless of how many zeroes are in your contract.

Without that union and all it has done, Cliff Lee isn't signing anywhere close to the deal he received today. He's probably still in Cleveland, in fact, either signing his next one-year deal under the reserve clause or holding out.

The foundation of a union is solidarity, and that unity is precarious when guys go off the grid like this.

Does Cliff Lee have a "right" to sign where he wants? Sure. Does that make it the right thing to do? Not necessarily. If I were a member of the MLBPA, I would be quite unhappy with him today.

Is Cliff Lee signing with Philadelphia going to bring down the union? No. But you always have to be cognizant of the possibility of death by a thousand paper cuts.

I hope at least one columnist tomorrow sees it from the other point of view, instead of heaping universal praise on him. Too bad Indianapolis is not a baseball town. After his Sean Payton column in January, Bob Kravitz would seem like the most likely guy to write this one.