What is the ultimate number that Fielder gets in a Contract?

[PilprinBuddha]

I would go 5 - 125 for the Brewers.

 

I am sick of the carosel of players....Build on Fielder and Braun and go from there. I was in the camp of trade Prince, I now feel like we should do everything to keep him. Hart can be moved IMHO.

[Invader3K]

It takes two to tango, as the saying goes. They've already tried extending him twice, and he has rebuffed them both times. He and Boras haven't shown much inkling to even negotiate with the Brewers, reportedly.

 

It seems to me Prince isn't interested in staying here beyond 2011, as actions speak louder than words. Give him what he wants and show him the door...in exchange for a high quality trade return, of course.

[Baldkin]

I agree with end. Fielder should be better over the life of his contract than Howard is for his. I like that in Fielder's "down year" he is still OPSing over .900. Toss out the RBIs...I don't think you can downplay the significance of a slugger's ability to reach base. Even when Prince was going bad, he was still getting on base almost 40% of the time. When a guy like that is on, he can OPS over 1, and how many players like that are there in the game?

Patience at the plate for a slugger is certainly an asset, but he's paid to drive in runs when the opportunity presents itself.. Fielder is hitting .178 this year with RISP. Howard is hitting .288. Granted Fielder is taking quite a few walks in those situations, but that's less helpful than hits in that situation and many times its the preferred outcome for opponents.

 

No doubt Fielder has the added burden of seeing lefties almost exclusively late in games especially with men on, but so does Howard, so that's why it's fair to compare their numbers.

 

Bottom line is you can't "toss out the RBI's". I know it's an "old time stat" but runners rarely score without a batter knocking them in, and the object on offense is to score, not see how many guys you can get on base.

The object on offense is to not make outs. If no one makes outs, you score. A LOT. If guys hit for a high average, and don't walk, they do not score a lot. Look at the Royals this season.

And you can't just "toss out the OBP" and act like RBI aren't a function of opportunity more than anything else.

ABs with Runners on, 2007 to 2010: Prince: 966, Howard: 1064

ABs with RISP, 2007 to 2010: Prince: 517, Howard: 631

ABs with Bases Loaded, 2007 to 2010: Prince: 42, Howard: 65.

 

So, Howard has had 20% more opportunities with RISP than Prince over the last 4 seasons. But, that just makes Howard better.