When should we sign Fielder long term?

[dayzedcrewfan]

Ok brewerfan.net, heres a little talking point. In light of Prince's current line of .306/.414/.601/1.015 with 33 HR 110 RBI, when do we consider a long term signing? I realize he is signed through 2010 at 10.5 million next year. And he also is up for arby in 2011. IMO his defense is well improved over the past years and the trade talk (even though he is a Boras client) should stop. What would it take after next year going into his arby year to sign him to a long term contract? Does anyone feasibly think that a deal such as 6 years 84 million would be financially good for the team and enough to keep him in Milwaukee? Depending on his production next year of course. Thoughts?

[trwi7]

We've already tried to sign him long term and he declined. It's not going to happen with Boras.

[Invader3K]

It'll take closer to 6 years and $100 million, maybe even more.

[jeffy]

Even if 6 years and $84 million is a good idea for the team, I think he would turn it down in the hopes of getting something like what CC did.

 

As always, I think that is a foolish risk to take and Ryan Braun made the right decision in securing enough wealth to exceed his lifetime needs/wants.

[Fatter than Joey]

As always, I think that is a foolish risk to take and Ryan Braun made the right decision in securing enough wealth to exceed his lifetime needs/wants.

 

I am not sure we should pretend to know what a person's lifetime needs or wants are.

 

Perhaps Prince wants his own Dorito factory in his guest house? -- In any case every professional should not be scorned or questioned for maximizing the amount of cash he can make.

[trwi7]

As always, I think that is a foolish risk to take and Ryan Braun made the right decision in securing enough wealth to exceed his lifetime needs/wants.

 

Fielder has already guaranteed himself about half of what Braun is going to make in his contract.

[joepepsi]

I have no problem offering him a 5 or 6 year deal this winter and tearing up next year's terms. It will send a message to the fans that after a disappointing season the organization is still committed to winning. 5 years/$90 million. That would take him through his age 30 season. If he's still hitting then he'll be able to get a big deal with the Yankees.

[Invader3K]

That seems reasonable. At the very least, putting that much money on the table would make Prince think long and hard about his long term career plans.

[craigharmann]

When should we sign Fielder long term? When Scott Boras allows him to, which is a quarter past never.

[fondybrewfan]

I would love to sign the guy long term, based on current finances the team could probably afford it, but if attendance ever dropped to under 2 million again, the Crew might have a hard time rounding out the team.

 

I think 6/90 would probably be in the ballpark but I just have a hard time believing that Fielder is not going to test FA. I would imagine Boston, NY, and the Angels would make huge offers to Fielder to play either DH or 1B. Probably can't count out teams like the Mets, Dodgers, and Cubs either.

 

I just have a feeling that Fielder will play out the 2011 year, and the Crew will make a huge effort to get him to come back (Kind of like CC) but someone else just blows us out of the water. The only way Fielder gets traded is if in either 2010 or 2011 the team is just terrible and he gets traded at the trading deadline. I would be shocked if he ever get traded during an offseason because it would probably have a huge effect on the upcoming season ticket sales. At least if you trade the guy in July, 85% of your tickets are already sold for the year

[Invader3K]

One thing Fielder should consider...in Milwaukee, and Wisconsin as a whole, he could basically be a god for years to come. He and Braun would be like Molitor and Yount were in this state in the '80s and early '90s.

 

Somewhere like Boston or New York, he'd just be another very good player on a team full of All-Stars. There would also be much more media scrutiny...if he thought the comments last year about his weight were bad, imagine what the New York media would do to him if he ever showed up to spring training looking a bit puffy.

 

I know he probably won't stay long term, but none of us know what's in his heart, either. Maybe he really likes playing here and would like the opportunity to stay as a center piece of the team, rather than just a role player like he would be with the Yankees or Red Sox. He also seems to have a connection with Ryan Braun, who is obviously going to be here for a long time yet. Maybe that will help the Brewers keep him.

[jeffy]

I am not sure we should pretend to know what a person's lifetime needs or wants are.

 

There is no pretending, Ryan Braun said that this was the case with his own comments. Also not sure why you think stating my own opinion on the matter is "scorning" and why you think I am not entitled to question the wisdom of these athletes and their agent's decisions. I happen to think security and the certainty of $50 million, or whatever, with the opportunity of another contract for more money subsequently, is a better financial decision than taking, say, a 10% risk of ending up earning only a couple million in exchange for a 90% chance at $100 or 150 million in an initial long term contract.

 

Fielder has already guaranteed himself about half of what Braun is going to make in his contract.

 

He had not done so at the time he turned down a long term contract.

[Invader3K]

Do we have any idea if Prince had a real chance to turn down the $60 million offer the Brewers made, or did Boras just say "no go?" Negotiations go through the agent and not the player, after all.

[DuWayne Steurer]

One thing Fielder should consider...in Milwaukee, and Wisconsin as a whole, he could basically be a god for years to come. He and Braun would be like Molitor and Yount were in this state in the '80s and early '90s.

I strongly suspect perks like this matter not at all to almost all players. In fact Fielder's been critical of the Brewer fan base in the past for booing players at home.

[jeffy]

I'd assume the agent has some sort of (legal or fiduciary?) responsibility to check with the player before turning down a $60 million contract.

[mothershipconnection]

When Scott Boras allows him to, which is a quarter past never.

 

Yet another reason, this time in our own selfish interests, to be sad about what happened to Cecil. If things hadn't fallen apart, leading to Prince getting rid of him, we'd likely have Prince locked up for a couple years beyond his 6th season.

[endaround]

I am not sure we should pretend to know what a person's lifetime needs or wants are.

 

There is no pretending, Ryan Braun said that this was the case with his own comments. Also not sure why you think stating my own opinion on the matter is "scorning" and why you think I am not entitled to question the wisdom of these athletes and their agent's decisions. I happen to think security and the certainty of $50 million, or whatever, with the opportunity of another contract for more money subsequently, is a better financial decision than taking, say, a 10% risk of ending up earning only a couple million in exchange for a 90% chance at $100 or 150 million in an initial long term contract.

 

Fielder has already guaranteed himself about half of what Braun is going to make in his contract.

 

He had not done so at the time he turned down a long term contract.

 

Yes he did. Braun signed before arby was even close to be seen. Unless Fielder had a career ending injury, something he's likely insured for, he was going to get that amount of money. He was a 24 year old coming off a 50 home run season.

[brewizard]

Good idea but not likely.

 

http://phoenix.fanster.com/files/2009/01/hellfrozenover.jpg

[nate82]

Well the Brewers did get a steal of a deal this offseason with Fielder. With the way Fielder has been playing this year he would definitely get more in arbitration than what he will be paid next season. Great move by Melvin and company to get Fielder locked up for at least 2 arbitration years. I'm guessing Fielder would get $12-15m in arbitration after this season for the year that he is having.

[Eddiehitsthefoulpole]

I don't think it matters what the Brewers offer. I think that if we offered something outlandish like $100,000,000 over 4 years, I think that Boras would turn that down because he though he could more than that out of a bigger market team.

[DHonks]

I recall hearing from sources that Fielder turned down a huge contract in spring training of '08 that Boras had approved of. Based on statements and assumptions, I was thinking the contract was in the 5/$75M range. I don't see Prince signing for less than 5 years and $90 million now.

[LouisEly]

The only hope is that with the downturn in the economy he may look at other deals that other players have been taking and think that 5/$80M or 6/$100M is as good as he will be offered. Well, hope #2 is that Braun can convince him to stay, but with TGJ already gone if they get rid of Cameron and Weeks then Fielder might not want to stay. Hope #3 is that he will look at the media scrutiny in major markets, and having already burned some bridges in LA, might think that a low media pressure market might be a good thing.

 

I'd say those three hopes add up to about a 30% chance of him signing a long term deal here though, which means 70% chance it doesn't happen.

 

I will say though that I am not in favor of riding it out and taking draft picks; even if he is the #1 FA on the market that year guaranteeing a first round pick and a comp pick (or two comp picks), they will get more for him in a trade than what they will likely get with those two picks.

[owbc]

If I were Fielder, I would decline 5/90M. He's proven enough to deserve Mark Teixeira money and contract length. If we want to be taken seriously, the offer should be around 6 years/130M or 7 years/150M at a minimum. If that sounds unreasonable, he should probably be traded in the offseason unless we are planning to "go for it" again next year and spend that money on FA pitchers.

[Fatter than Joey]

Also not sure why you think stating my own opinion on the matter is "scorning" and why you think I am not entitled to question the wisdom of these athletes and their agent's decisions. I happen to think security and the certainty of $50 million, or whatever, with the opportunity of another contract for more money subsequently, is a better financial decision

 

Just to be clear, the statement I made that you refer to, was a generality and not directed at you specifically.

 

That said -- I do think that there is a slippery slope in offering general opinions on financial risk and reward without truly understanding a specific person's financial situation entirely. We do not understand or know what Prince has for liabilities, assets or business ventures, therefore our opinions on what risks he should take are unfounded.

 

Also, speaking generally I do not like it when fans determine, that X Million dollars is "enough" for an athlete, and they are scorned for taking X+1 Million. I don't expect any athlete to leave any money on the table.

 

Lastly, I never said you could not or should not express your opinion -- I am just not in agreement with your position, and I am doing nothing more than arguing it. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[joepepsi]

Like CC, Carlos Lee, and CoCo, Melvin has to make a serious reasonable offer to Prince either this winter or next, or both. When he turns it down, Doug will have all the reason he needs for the fans to understand Prince must be traded.