A light at the end of Ponson's tunnel
Wow, that's a nasty visual.
If my math is correct, it's been 38 months since the Orioles terminated Sidney Ponson's contract after his latest alcohol-related arrest. The players association filed a grievance on his behalf, and we've waited for a resolution...and waited...and waited.
Past hearings were postponed for a variety of reasons, including one instance when the St. Louis Cardinals released him before the club traveled to New York. That's where Ponson was supposed to meet with an arbitrator.
Ponson's agent, Barry Praver, confirmed tonight that another hearing is scheduled for next month (Dec. 17 in Baltimore), with the Aruban right-hander hoping to collect the remaining $11 million on his contract.
In the grand scheme of things, it probably doesn't matter to fans here. It's not like Ponson is going to rejoin the Orioles if he wins, or we have to take up a collection to pay him.
By the way, Ponson is a free agent. Any takers? He won't require another $22.5 million deal.
(Somebody is going to make an "innings-eater" joke. I just know it)
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Categories (click for archive)Roch Kubatko | Roch Kubatko Orioles |
nom nom nom innings-eater!
I am concerned that if the hearing goes in the O's favor, it will scare FA's away. Who wants to play for an owner who can just cut you & void your contract? Its kind of an Al Davis / Lane Kiffin scenario
Another point,,,there are some very good players who serve as reps for the union. Im sure they were unhappy w/ the O's decision to try to void Ponson's contract. Seriously, there could be some backlash.
"XD23 Author Profile Page said:
I thought they said Offensive minded SS. I am pretty sure we have enough SS possibilities that can get on Base more the .299 % of the time. If he comes here he will be a huge bust. And not the good kind."
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Actually, I just looked at his statistics on ESPN. He's a switch hitter which would give us tremendous balance at the bottom of the order. Plus, you say .299 for OBP, but I think you're looking at his career for that number. So that's not really fair since numbers vary season by season. For example, he had a .319 OBP for last year, so at least that's a bit better. Really, he could just be our number 9 hitter, and give us that speed/switch hitter thing. I mean, if Andy MacPhail is talking about a defensive SS, Izturis certainly fits the bill.
Speaking of offense-minded SS, I seem to remember that the Orioles wanted defense with a bit of offense, but defense was at the top of their list. Isn't that correct, Roch?
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It seemed like the list kept changing, but yeah, they don't want to sacrifice defense. They just want somebody who can pick up the ball AND make contact with hit. No automatic outs. - Roch
oh don't be silly. innings don't have nearly enough calories nor fat content for one to keep such a... um... svelte figure as he has.
yes, i used the word "svelte". it's friday.
Anybody else who behaved the way Ponson did ON THE JOB would have been s---canned in a heartbeat.
I've been fired for much less...several times.
Roch- They say you can't buy love. I prove that statement wrong every time I see the bright lights of Las Vegas, but, do you think the fans would do a 180 if Angelos signs texiera?
Also, do you think it is a good sign for the O's that the Angels are thinking 8 years and 153 million as a starting point? I would have said if they start at 10/200, that the O's are out eventually. I think a 48 hour timeline offer of 10/185 would land him if the Angels are at 8/153.
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Unfortunately, that's just a starting point for the Angels. And I can see the Yanks and Bosox in a bidding war. The price will skyrocket. - Roch
Roch, It might have been a good idea to have the food reference in the same entry with Ponson. Anyway, Panera's broccoli cheddar along with smoked ham and swiss on tomato basil. Amazing.
Concerning pitchers, who do you think of Carl Pavano?
Pros: may come cheap, looked decent at the end of last year; nasty slider; has something to prove.
Cons: coming off injury; five-inning pitcher at this point (O's have enough of those; spurned O's four years ago.
Any thoughts?
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He'd definitely come cheap. I seriously doubt the Orioles would take the risk. Like you said, they have plenty of five-inning guys (or less). At least those guys have been healthy. - Roch
Ray -
Yes, I do feel a bit better, thanks for asking. It was a bit of a rant and your comments were much more calm. I shall try to keep a lid on the rant part.
You say: "Your curent employer seems hesitant to offer market value. What would you do?"
I think I would start by asking my employer for fair market value. "Hey boss, the competition is offering me x and I got ripped the last time by my own union. Can you give me x? Or x+1? Or x-1 that becomes x+2 with incentives? Help me out here, dude, and let's go play some ball."
That would be what he owes his EMPLOYER/BOSS, nevermind what he owes his fans/customers/teammates.
You said: "What matters is that the player feels appreciated and receives fair treatment... Management proves that by offering market value contracts. Peter Angelos never offered Mussina that."
My understanding is that Mussina committed to the front office that he would talk to them before accepting another offer so that the Angelos could do exaclty that - or at least have the opportunity to shake hands and part company on a friendly basis. What happened instead was, that in addition to leaving, breaking his commitment to talk to the front office first, and going to the hated rivals, Mussina also let everyone know that he blamed Angelos, that Peter was somehow careless or negligent or unappreciative or worse. EVEN IF THAT WERE TRUE, making that claim was 100% self-serving for Mussina who already got his payday AND it significantly hurt the team in all future negotiations. Think about it. We may never know the exact truth about whether Angelos was a horrible man to negotiate with. But we all got to hear our hero make those claims and persuade us that it was all Peter's fault. It was classless, self-serving and gutless. And no, it is not covered by the fact that Mussina may have believed it was true. There is no reason and no advantage to ripping your former organization when you are jumping ship. You just cause more pain to your former customers, teammates, and other constituents.
You say: Also, we(the Orioles) did bring him to the majors, but we did not make him a star. He earned that as a kid growing up in a small town. He earned a scholarship to Stanford and then cruised through the minors. Just like the Orioles aren't going to make Matt Wieters a star.
We fundamentally disagree about this. The Orioles will, in fact, contribute in significant ways to making Weiters a star and did so with Ripken and Mussina. Yes the players have natural talents and gifts. But they don't get there by themselves. Some team has to invest in them, teach them, give them opportunities. Hell, they need 8 other players on the field with them at all times. It is not an "I-me-mine" sport and it is not an "I-me-mine" world.
For Mussina to receive the millions he got from us, some businessman somewhere had to build a team, a fan base, a marketing approach to drive the creation of revenues that are used to support and create the player-star. The fact that the "system" was created over the past 100 years and is fairly well-established does not mean the current player beneficiaries can ignore the sense of gratitude they should have for the system and for the current folks who keep it going for them.
And lastly, to return to an earlier point - the front office is not and should not be the source of the player's feelings of appreciation, self worth, or fair treatment. In a free agent world, a contract is a contract. Ownership thanks the players every payday. The teammates, the field manager and coaches, the fans, even the press are much more important sources of how appreciated a player should feel. If you violate this concept, here is what happens:
A great player, loved by fans and teammates and press can get in a stupid tit-for-tat misunderstanding of an arms-length business negotiation with the owner. Instead of resolving the misunderstanding in a mutually respectful or at the very least in a professinal and businesslike manner, the player can get to an antagonistic stance and allow emotions to guide him into doing something that is not even in his own best interest and ignores all of the other much more important pieces to the puzzle. And then nobody wins. Sound familiar?
The reason that I am a bit passionate (and wordy) about this is that Mussina perfectly crystalizes several huge flaws in our current version of the National Pasttime:
- Free Agency stealing the fans' sense of continuity in a team
- Obscene riches corrupting players' and owners' motivations
- Labor/Ownership acrimony leading to terrible outcomes for fans
Mark C...I stopped reading at:
Ray
...and to think we could have gotten Adrian Gonzalez from Texas for Ponfat if we would have eaten some of his salary. Another nice move by the front office.
Roch, that's like trying to interest Alec Baldwin in a newly-single Kim Basinger.
I would rather eat a can of shaving cream than the Orioles sign that judge-punching toad.