December 09, 2004
Delgado Delgone-O
I'm very surprised the Blue Jays did not offer salary arbitration to Carlos Delgado. Carlos is a great hitter and a sought after free-agent. I wouldn't think, given the low-ball offer the Blue Jays made to Delgado, that Carlos would even think of coming back to Toronto. Ricciardi must have seen a risk that he didn't want to take.
I'll venture that Ricciardi believes that the offers for Delgado's services will be lower than Carlos wants. In that case, he may be better off with an arbitrator. He can argue from his $19 million salary of last year, and end up with much more than the $6 million the Blue Jays are offering. I guess the draft picks just aren't worth that risk.
Update: Rich in the comments suggests that there is minimum amount teams have to offer in arbitration, 80% of the previous year's salary. However, page 67 of the CBA says that doesn't apply to free agent arbitration.
If the Player accepts the offer to arbitrate, he shall be a signed player for the next season and the parties will conduct a salary arbitration proceeding under Article VI, provided, however, that the rules concerning maximum salary reduction set forth in Article VI shall be inapplicable and the parties shall be required to exchange figures on the last day established for the exchange of salary arbitration figures under Article VI.
If Toronto offered arbitration and Delgado accepted, the lowest amount the Jays could offer was $14.2 million. That's a big chance for Toronto to take if Delgado accepted arbitration.
I think it's also that Delgado really wanted to stay in Toronto, so he's more likely to accept than most players.
Its tough for the Blue Jays. In the AL Central, they'd have a chance, but in the East its pretty tough to beat both the Yankees _and_ the Sox (not to mention the resurgent Orioles).
Of course, maybe things will change. A little over a decade ago the Jays had the highest payroll, the largest attendance - and the best team.
I really like Carlos - he's fairly durable, an outstanding hitter, and a class act. Depending on what he does over the next 3-5 years, he's got a decent shot at the Hall, and it would have been nice to see him as the first (or second, depending on what hat Alomar wears) Blue Jays inductee.
I was going to say the same thing that Rich said before I saw David's comment. If it's true that they wouldn't have been bound by the 20% paycut limit, then the Blue Jays really blew this one.
I'm confused why the Blue Jays were so afraid to keep Delgado for even one year. They have no good replacement and would only be responsible for one year. It seems like an ideal situation for the Blue Jays. Delgado reamains a great hitter, his second half was consistent with the numbers he put up during 2003 when he was 2nd in MVP voting. Just because the A's win with Scott Hatteberg doesn't mean having a great hitting first basemen is a mistake.
If Delgado were to get a quality long term contract, then the Blue Jays would get the draft picks they so desperately need to compete with the Yankees and Red Sox.
Arbitration does not always replicate what would take place in a rational market. The Blue Jays are probably terrified that an arbitrator would say "yeah, he's been down a bit, so he only gets $17 million this year instead of $19 million." And I can't believe that an arbitrator would take a lowball offer like $6 million into consideration.
Delgado is good, but his contract is a millstone around the necks of the small-market Blue Jays.
Ron - I really have the opposite view of Delgado as far as being a class act. He's weak defensively, has had only one year in the last 4 where he hit .300 or slugged over .550 while making huge coin. He'll be 33 this season and it will take a few years, minimum, before the Jays are in contention again. He also seems strangely uninterested in whether his team wins or loses which is the part that bothers me. Since I haven't seen any of the contenders showing much interest in him I think that a lot of people are looking at him the same way. Maybe I'm wrong and somebody will sign him and he'll carry them to the WS but I doubt it.
David, you are wrong. The relevant provisions are on pages 13 (maximum salary reductions) and 15 (special salary reduction provision for arbitration) of the CBA.
Oops. Sorry Dave, you were right. The Maximum Salary Reduction provisions don't apply.