Should the Brewers extend Weeks? [Latest: Won't negotiate once Spring Training starts]

[paul253]

I have absolutely, positively HATED Derek Lee ever since he became a Cub, but he would look good in a Brewer's uniform!

[Invader3K]

There are other solutions out there. Even Lyle Overbay might not be a bad (and cheap) stopgap solution until someone from the minors is ready.

[monty57]

I've absolutely hated watching Derek Lee rob Brewers of doubles down the line. If Fielder is indeed traded, I'd love to pick up Lee, even though he is on the downswing. In addition to adding a good player, I'd like to hear all the Cubs fans reaction to Lee going to the Brewers. I'd just chide in "but at least you've still got Soriano in Left" and sit back and enjoy.

[WisconsinSportsRule]

I wish there was some news on the situation. There was an article a page or so ago, but we haven't really heard much from Melvin and co.

 

I have a big fear that the brass is waiting on the Prince situation, and that would be a big mistake, IMO.

[Legacy25GT]

One thing I just thought of (but might have been mentioned before... I haven't read all 100+ posts) is that signing Weeks to an extention might help the brewers get a discount when negotiating with Fielder considering they're really good friends.

[HOF4canrake]

I'm all for getting Rickie locked up for a handful of years. He is a dynamic player that can impact the game in a variety of ways...not unlike Paul Molitor did.

 

I actually did some research to write an article about Weeks, and I found Weeks' and Molitor's career paths to look eerily similar, though Weeks is 1 year behind the progression and 2 years older than Molitor in the progression.

 

It's a lengthy piece, so I didn't know if I should post it here, but you can find it at Brewersmix.com. If people would prefer, I could post it in the forum, however.

 

Molitor is my favorite player of all-time, so to see Weeks as a parallel is quite exciting.

[FVBrewerFan]

One thing I just thought of (but might have been mentioned before... I haven't read all 100+ posts) is that signing Weeks to an extention might help the brewers get a discount when negotiating with Fielder considering they're really good friends.

Boras would never be involved in signing a contract with hometon discounts or "friend" discounts. I would never say players don't give discounts to play where they want to play. Heck, we need look no further than Braun. But Boras prides himself in getting every dollar he can for his clients, and he would never allow a discount-at least not one that would be substantial enough to make any difference.

 

 

[Gobias Industries]

One of Melvin's best moves might turn out to be hanging on to Rickie after the 2008 season, where a majority of Brewer fans wanted him gone. He should definitely look into an extension, but I fear there isn't much upside from Rickie's pov.

 

3 hits today, all to RF. Props to Svuem (and Randolph). It would have taken a months worth of games for Rickie to have three hits to right a few seasons ago.

[RockCoCougars]

One of Melvin's best moves might turn out to be hanging on to Rickie after the 2008 season, where a majority of Brewer fans wanted him gone. He should definitely look into an extension, but I fear there isn't much upside from Rickie's pov.

 

3 hits today, all to RF. Props to Svuem (and Randolph). It would have taken a months worth of games for Rickie to have three hits to right a few seasons ago.

For sure. Many wanted to trade him for Brian Roberts. Glad that Melvin didn't bite on the Chad Cordero deal either.

[paul253]

Yeah I think they need to get going on an extension. They have the money for it, but the longer the wait, the more expensive he will get.

[zzzmanwitz]

I think some of the contracts that people have put on this thread are low balling rickie a bit. I would think he won't take anything less than 4 years/30 Million. Team option in 2012.

 

2010 - $3.5

2011 - $6.5

2012 - $9.0

2013 - $11

2014 - $12.5 (team option)

[BrewCrewForever]

I could live with 4 years $30 mill. Do it Doug!

[bobskube]

God, I love this post. 3 years ago people wanted to run Rick out of town. Now he is becoming a cult hero. Good to see people now on the Rick bandwagon. I need to dig up some old posts on some of the regulars on here. Where is billhallfan these days?

 

Definitely extend Rickie. 4 yrs/30 million. Goes up every week so Brewers need to get it done sooner than later.

[BrewCrewForever]

I can admit, I was quite upset with Rickie and was ready to run him out of town. I was stupid, but I think it was because I knew how good he could and should have been. Just turns out it took him a little longer to figure "it" out. I am just glad Doug and Gord had more patience with Rickie then I did. But that is why they do what they do.

[theavrock]

While I agree that he should be extended I do think it sucks especially from a financial side of things that he has been hurt so much during his cheap years. I would obviously love to see him stay healthy and productive, but I wish we would have gotten some healthy time from when he was still cheap.

[44Fishy]

This is from NBC's blog Hardball Talk (which is great, by the way. my apologies if there's a better way to post and credit items from another source)

Rickie Weeks: All-Star

Thu Apr 22,2010 6:30 PM ET By Matthew Pouliot

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/weeks.jpg

We know who the NL's best second baseman is, and Chase Utley doesn't figure to lose his title any year soon. Second in line is an open question. Brandon Phillips is an excellent defender and a solid hitter, albeit one who is miscast as a cleanup man in Cincinnati. Dan Uggla last year reached the 100-home run mark faster than any second baseman in major league history, doing so in his 502nd career game. However, he's a liability defensively who probably belongs at the hot corner.

It's possible we're seeing a couple of new All-Star candidates emerge this year. Martin Prado, who overtook Kelly Johnson for a starting job in Atlanta last year, went into Thursday with a .400/.469/.545 line in 55 at-bats. Rickie Weeks has been even better. He's batting .339/.473/.610 after Thursday's 20-0 rout of the Pirates. In 15 games, he's scored 16 runs and knocked in 12. Only Matt Kemp has more runs scored among National Leaguers.

Of course, Weeks has always scored runs, even when those whining about his subpar batting averages wanted him removed from the leadoff spot in the Brewers order. In 497 major league games, Weeks has scored 350 times. He's scored 0.163 runs per plate appearance in his career. Let's compare that to the rest of the guys who have spent the bulk of the last five years batting leadoff:

Career runs scored per plate appearance

Rickie Weeks - 0.163
Johnny Damon - 0.157
Grady Sizemore - 0.152
Rafael Furcal - 0.151
Jose Reyes - 0.150
Ichiro Suzuki - 0.147
Jimmy Rollins - 0.146
Chone Figgins - 0.146
Brian Roberts - 0.143
Juan Pierre - 0.132

If you want to throw Derek Jeter into the mix, he's also at 0.163 in his 608 career games as a leadoff man, but much of that was achieved during a higher-scoring era. In 160 games since he returned to the leadoff spot last year, he's at 0.151, even though he's a better hitter than Weeks batting at the top of a better lineup.

Weeks' knack for finding home plate really is remarkable. He hasn't played for particularly strong offenses, and while he has more power than most leadoff men, he doesn't match Sizemore and Rollins in the department.

What remains to be seen is whether this will be the year Weeks puts it all together. He was off to a fine .272/.340/.517 start in 37 games last year, only to be undone by the latest in a string of wrist injuries. Weeks averaged just 95 games per season from 2005-09.

Weeks also has a poor defensive reputation, though the numbers say he's gotten a lot better and I think most scouts would agree. UZR has him at negative 24.4 runs from 2005-08, but at positive 5.1 runs in 49 games since the beginning on 2009. It's far too early to say that he's now an above average second baseman, but I do believe he's a whole lot better than he was.

If Weeks stays healthy, then I fully expect him to be the NL's second-best second baseman this year, even if he ends the year hitting .270 or so. He'll have a nice OBP regardless, and he could well score 110-120 runs. He's also a possibility to hit 20 homers. Maybe Phillips has more upside if he turns in a career season, but I don't think anyone else does.

[Invader3K]

Definitely extend Rickie. 4 yrs/30 million. Goes up every week so Brewers need to get it done sooner than later.

To me, while that seems reasonable, it still feels like an overpay based on how much he has been hurt. I guess I would do it, but I would be extremely leery.

[chadomac]

Like someone had previously mentioned.... unless Weeks really loves it in Milwaukee - why should he sign an extension when he's this close to free agency? Seems like there's little reason for him to do it, knowing he's so close to a big deal elsewhere.

 

PS- HOW close is he? Is he a free agent next year?

[endaround]

Weeks, Hart and Fielder all have the same service window-free agents after 2011.

[dlk9s]

Like someone had previously mentioned.... unless Weeks really loves it in Milwaukee - why should he sign an extension when he's this close to free agency? Seems like there's little reason for him to do it, knowing he's so close to a big deal elsewhere.

The same reason many guys do it - long-term job security. Weeks would actually have more reason to sign an extension than many players, considering how often he has been injured. I'm not saying he should or should not, but there are a number of reasons to do so, security being number one.

[Invader3K]

Right. That would be the big incentive for him. That article above mentions he's averaged only 95 games between 2005-2009. One more big injury this season could cause him to be perceived as having relatively little value moving forward. Part time 2Bs don't get $7-8 million per year.

[The Ignitor]

I think some of the contracts that people have put on this thread are low balling rickie a bit. I would think he won't take anything less than 4 years/30 Million. Team option in 2012.

 

2010 - $3.5

2011 - $6.5

2012 - $9.0

2013 - $11

2014 - $12.5 (team option)

I think this is too much. Given his injury history, I don't think he'll get this much on the market (especially if you look at the last two seasons free agent market). Orlando Hudson can barely get a contract on a year to year basis given his injury history. Now, before you overreact, I agree that Ricky is better, has far more upside, but it does show that the 2nd base market is not all that strong. I would say 4 year, 24-mill (maybe with the 4th year as mutual option) would be a fair deal to both sides. Much more, and I would be concerned given the injury history.

[monty57]

Okay, now we have something of a comp with Ben Zobrist:

 

Weeks career:

2005 96 G, 360 AB, .333 OBP / .394 SLG / .727 OPS

2006 95 G, 359 AB, .363 OBP / .404 SLG / .767 OPS

2007 118 G, 409 AB, .374 OBP / .433 SLG / .807 OPS

2008 129 G, 475 AB, .342 OBP / .398 SLG / .740 OPS

2009 37 G, 147 AB, .340 OBP / .517 SLG / .857 OPS

2010 16 G, 64 AB, .468 OBP / .594 SLG / 1.062 OPS

 

Career 498 G, 1826 AB, .356 OBP / .422 SLG / .778 OPS

 

Zobrist career

2006 52 G, 183 AB, .260 OBP / .311 SLG / .572 OPS

2007 31 G, 97 AB, .184 OBP / .206 SLG / .391 OPS

2008 62 G, 198 AB, .339 OBP / .505 SLG / .844 OPS

2009 152 G, 501 AB, .405 OBP / .543 SLG / .948 OPS

2010 16 G, 66 AB, .319 OBP / .409 SLG / .729 OPS

 

Career 313 G, 1045 AB, .344 OBP / .456 SLG / .800 OPS

 

Zobrist's five year deal buys out all three arby years and two years of FA in 2014 & 2015, so he doesn't have the service time of Weeks, who is in year 2 of arby. Zobrist's contract is five years / $30MM. The final two years are team options, 2014 is $7MM, 2015 is $7.5MM ($2.5MM buyout).

 

Those calling for Weeks to make over $7-8MM in free agency are probably overpaying. I'd still say if we extend Weeks for 4 years (not including this year), 4 years / $24 MM is probably fair. If we sign a 4 year deal including this year (like Yo), 4/$24MM is way too much.

 

They're probably comparable players, as Zobrist has started his career better, but he's a year older than Weeks, so he wasn't rushed to the majors like Weeks.

[jrodbrewcrew]

Do it Doug!

This made me laugh...made me think of "Mallrats". Hopefully someone knows what I'm thinking of.

 

Anyway, I would totally agree with a 4-5 year deal in the $30 million range. With the nice start he had last year and the blazing start this year, try to lock him up on the cheaper side. Just imagine if they were able to sign Fielder as well. With either Gomez or Escobar in the 2 spot and McGehee in the 5 spot, we could have a very, very nice 1-5 for the next 4 to 5 years.

[TooLiveBrew]

They're probably comparable players, as Zobrist has started his career better, but he's a year older than Weeks, so he wasn't rushed to the majors like Weeks.

 

Good post, and def. an interesting comparison. I just don't agree that Weeks was rushed. If anything, he rushed himself by obliterating MiLB pitching (with the exception of Huntsville). Are you're referring to the fact that his defense wasn't ready?