Please sign the guestbook at www.signprince.com

[Crawdaddy A1]

I know it is an uphill fight to keep Prince, but perhaps a large guestbook that would demonstrate how important that Prince is to the Brewers now and into the future. Let's keep this team together! www.signprince.com

[logan82]

No. This is well traveled ground but I am not interested in keeping Fielder at more than $18m a year and no more than 5 years.

[monkeyman343434]

No. This is well traveled ground but I am not interested in keeping Fielder at more than $18m a year and no more than 5 years.

+1. As much as I like Prince, he's going to get way more $/year than what the Brewers can realistically give him and still stay competitive.

[Funketown]

No. This is well traveled ground but I am not interested in keeping Fielder at more than $18m a year and no more than 5 years.

This. Again. I love Prince and he has been a joy to watch, but the money can be better spent filling holes at SS and 3B.

 

Whoever Prince signs for I'll cheer for the big guy. He has been nothing short of a class act these years. He works hard to be the best ballplayer he can be and he runs out weak grounders like David Eckstein.

[Crawdaddy A1]

good points for certain.... but there are few teams who will pay what he wants. He wants to win, so that eliminates the bottom feeders. Why not dream that Prince will stick around if we step up and the competition for his services are few? Yanks & Red Sox are out... hometown discount, play ball with your best friends for a few more years. I think the farther we go into the postseason, the more realistic this becomes!

[RockCoCougars]

I think that the only way that Prince stays is if they go to the World Series and Attanasio is tempted to open the wallet in a big way. Even then, the odds are probably less than 10%. It all depends on whether teams throw some insane offers his way. I can't see him leaving for an extra few million a year, but if the gap is big, or someone's willing to give him an extra year or two he's gone.

[markedman5]

Scott Boros doesn't give "hometown discounts".

 

Somebody will pay Prince more then we can.

 

Thank him for his years of service and use the money elseware.

 

 

good points for certain.... but there are few teams who will pay what he wants. He wants to win, so that eliminates the bottom feeders. Why not dream that Prince will stick around if we step up and the competition for his services are few? Yanks & Red Sox are out... hometown discount, play ball with your best friends for a few more years. I think the farther we go into the postseason, the more realistic this becomes!

[Menace II Sobriety]

good points for certain.... but there are few teams who will pay what he wants. He wants to win, so that eliminates the bottom feeders. Why not dream that Prince will stick around if we step up and the competition for his services are few? Yanks & Red Sox are out... hometown discount, play ball with your best friends for a few more years. I think the farther we go into the postseason, the more realistic this becomes!

I agree with most of what you are saying, after being one of the best players on a mid-tier team for the last 6 years it should be a lot tougher to leave when the team gets to a top tier level. I don't want to throw out numbers as Mark A. has stated that he will pay extra for special players. I haven't made up my mind if this is a good thing for the team or not over the course of the hypothetical contract because we don't know how long it is or the monetary value. Blanket statements such as no more than 5/90 are easy to say but we don't have the books to know how much is actually available, how much Prince helps revenue, if the crew makes the playoffs even one extra time over the course of the contract does that offset the cost (not only in actual gate receipts but also in market value of the franchise)?

 

My main concern though is if/when Prince leaves the Brewers after this season all if not most of the teams bidding on Prince are in the bottom half of the standings this year, making the loss of Prince only worth a supplemental pick and a 2nd rounder. That would be a tough pill to swallow after the CC/Sheets thing a few years ago but right now I just want to keep winning games.

[logan82]

how much Prince helps revenue

 

I would address this point but it has been addressed several times in other threads over the last year and will be talked to death once the season ends. I have already posted once more than I should have in this topic.

[brettac1]

I'll pass.

 

He'll be reunited with Hardy in Baltimore and we'll all be able to cheer hard for him to do well over there as a DH.

[Warning Track Power]

I've become incredibly torn on this. I know we can't sign Greinke and Prince and we would likely be more competitive with Greinke than Prince, but I'm concerned about not bringing back Prince because he has undoubtedly become the leader of this team. With the way 2011 has played out, a Brewers team going forward minus Prince doesn't feel right. While it may not be feasible financially to bring back Prince I'm beginning to believe that Attanasio will instruct Melvin to explore shedding payroll in places like Wolf and Corey Hart after 2011 to give to Prince. Maybe its not the smartest move or the best way to build a lineup but if Braun, Weeks and a re-signed Prince are in place, I could see the Brewers filling the rest of the lineup with minimum salary veterans and or rookies i.e. Green at 3B, Gamel in RF, Lucroy at C, Schafer at CF, trade for a prospect SS. Like I said maybe its not feasible but I would think this conversation is being had by Brewers FO and is being given serious consideration.

[thebruce44]

Shouldn't the people signing this guest book be buying season tickets and additional households in SE WI instead?

[nate82]

I think that the only way that Prince stays is if they go to the World Series and Attanasio is tempted to open the wallet in a big way. Even then, the odds are probably less than 10%. It all depends on whether teams throw some insane offers his way. I can't see him leaving for an extra few million a year, but if the gap is big, or someone's willing to give him an extra year or two he's gone.

Depends on what teams are looking to add a big bat. It seems as though the Cubs ownership are looking at the future more than right now even though Prince would help them now and in the future. It doesn't look like the Cubs are going to be making a big splash in free agency this year. That leaves the Orioles, Brewers, and Cardinals as the top three teams looking at Prince, Pujols, and Berkman. There are some wild card teams in the Dodgers (I don't think they have the finances to do it), Rangers, and the Astros (not sure if they would be willing to go all in on someone like Fielder when they are really far away from winning.). The wild card teams are really shaky and they may as well just go with what they have in the Rangers and Astros case and the Dodgers may not be able to afford to keep the players they have let alone adding another superstar to the mix. The Dodgers are better served to keep Billingsley, Kershaw, Kemp, and Ethier than to lose one or more of those players and replace them with Prince.

I really believe the Orioles are going to go with Davis and Reynolds at 1B/DH and then look for someone to play 3B. If the Orioles go with that option that leaves realistically the Brewers and Cardinals as players for one of the three free agent first basemen. I believe Berkman will sign with the Red Sox and take over as the DH/RF replacing Drew. That leaves Prince and Pujols both of whom in this scenario stay where they are.

[Menace II Sobriety]

I am going to use the K.I.S.S. method on this for myself so that way 4 or 5 words out of a 2 paragraph post can't be misinterpreted.

 

Prince has 3 values going into the off season.

 

1. Free market value (tbd)

2. Perceived value to fans (6 months of debate)

3. Value to Mark A. (the most important)

 

My main concern is that if Prince leaves we get the picks that should be garnered for such a quality player.

[paul253]

The money needs to be spent on pitching. If I've learned anything watching the Brewers the past decade or so it's that this team is going nowhere, nowhere without solid starting pitching. The main nucleus of the team (Fielder, Weeks, McGehee, Braun, Hart) has been the same the past four or five years (and before that throw in Hardy and Hall) and team made the playoffs once. And even that year it could be argued that the pitching of C.C. Sabathia is what got them into the playoffs. To me it's not a coincidence that the year you drastically upgrade the pitching staff while keeping the offense essentially the same (though Morgan has certainly helped) is the year you are 22 games over .500 instead of 8 games under.

 

I like Prince as much as the next guy and really wish there was some way you could keep him, Marcum, and Greinke but I just don't think it's possible. Spend the money to re-sign Greinke and Marcum and keep a solid bullpen and go from there.

[nate82]

My main concern is that if Prince leaves we get the picks that should be garnered for such a quality player.

The thing is the Brewers are not going to get a 1st round pick for Prince. The teams that can sign Prince and will have interest in him will be teams with protected picks. So that means the Brewers will get a supplemental draft pick and a 2nd round pick if either the Orioles or Cubs sign Prince.

Will that player in the supplemental draft pick be equal to Prince? I don't believe the Brewers are going to get much of any value unless someone like a Josh Bell drops out of the first round. Even with someone of Bell's talent wouldn't be in the majors for another 3-6 years and realistically you are looking at 5 years. The second round pick may not be all that great either.

[Menace II Sobriety]

My main concern is that if Prince leaves we get the picks that should be garnered for such a quality player.

The thing is the Brewers are not going to get a 1st round pick for Prince. The teams that can sign Prince and will have interest in him will be teams with protected picks. So that means the Brewers will get a supplemental draft pick and a 2nd round pick if either the Orioles or Cubs sign Prince.

Will that player in the supplemental draft pick be equal to Prince? I don't believe the Brewers are going to get much of any value unless someone like a Josh Bell drops out of the first round. Even with someone of Bell's talent wouldn't be in the majors for another 3-6 years and realistically you are looking at 5 years. The second round pick may not be all that great either.

That's my point, after the Sheets and C.C. thing a few years ago and watching the Rays get 11 of the first 65 or so this year while losing Prince for only a supplemental and a 2nd rounder would hurt. I guess it is the cost to have a great season.

[Point Beer Is Best]

Shouldn't the people signing this guest book be buying season tickets and additional households in SE WI instead?

That's what I was thinking. It's easy to vote for someone else to spend their money. You want to keep Prince, then keep coming out to the ballpark.