Jeff Samardzija (Split From Colvin Con-call Thread)

[Chocolate Milk]

I have heard conflicting info on Samardjza's fastball. I have heard mid to upper 90's and mid to upper 80's. What's the deal?

[goonys evil twin]

I have heard conflicting info on Samardjza's fastball. I have heard mid to upper 90's and mid to upper 80's. What's the deal?

 

I've heard upper 80's and lower 90's, never upper 90's.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

I have heard conflicting info on Samardjza's fastball. I have heard mid to upper 90's and mid to upper 80's. What's the deal?

 

Sounds like he's been in the upper 80s this season but has been in the low 90s (topping out at 94) in past seasons. That's just a guess...

[Chocolate Milk]

I have heard conflicting info on Samardjza's fastball. I have heard mid to upper 90's and mid to upper 80's. What's the deal?

 

I've heard upper 80's and lower 90's, never upper 90's.

 

An American League scout said he was at the Big East Tournament two weeks ago when Samardzija threw 99 miles per hour twice, 98 three times, 97 six times and 96 about 10 times.

 

http://nwitimes.com/articles/2006/06/05/sports/top_sports/9978694a89c432e4862571840005582f.txt

 

Not sure how seriously to take this.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Guess I was wrong. Strange that the Cubs media guy said he threw in the upper-80s after the Colvin interview.

[Chocolate Milk]

Guess I was wrong. Strange that the Cubs media guy said he threw in the upper-80s after the Colvin interview.

 

That's pretty much what I have heard from everyone but this source (NW Indiana Newspaper). Source could be suspect but I'd figure I'd throw it out there.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Guess I was wrong. Strange that the Cubs media guy said he threw in the upper-80s after the Colvin interview.

 

That's pretty much what I have heard from everyone but this source (NW Indiana Newspaper). Source could be suspect but I'd figure I'd throw it out there.

 

BA:

 

Cubs Nab Golden Domer

4:06 p.m.: The Cubs, as expected, took Jeff Samardzija in the fifth round with their second pick. The Notre Dame righthander and All-America wide receiver intends to play both sports, which scared off teams enough to help him drop to the Cubs. The Cubs might spend first-round money on Samardzija in what's sure to be a back-loaded deal that allows him to play football this fall, a commitment Samardzija has made repeatedly. Samardzija has first-round talent with a fastball up to 94 mph and a developing slider that has shown improvement this spring as his season progressed and he got deeper into baseball season. The Cubs have a strong relationship with Notre Dame, as both scouting director Tim Wilken and especially GM Jim Hendry are longtime friends of Irish coach Paul Mainieri.

-- John Manuel

 

Hopefully we can throw the upper-80s thing out the door.

[Fro]

I can't imagine Samardzija would play baseball, particularly as a pitcher.

 

He'll definitely be a 1st round NFL pick.

 

Unless he really loves baseball, he's not going to turn down that NFL draft money, which will be much more than what the Cubs pay him.

[da bears]

This has definitely been an interesting draft. Hopefully some of the later round picks are steals, especially with the fifth round pick being iffy at best.

[Outshined_One]

This has definitely been an interesting draft. Hopefully some of the later round picks are steals, especially with the fifth round pick being iffy at best.

 

I wouldn't be that down on it. If he decides to commit to baseball over football, he could end up being the steal of the draft.

[CubinNY]

I can't imagine Samardzija would play baseball, particularly as a pitcher.

 

He'll definitely be a 1st round NFL pick.

 

Unless he really loves baseball, he's not going to turn down that NFL draft money, which will be much more than what the Cubs pay him.

 

IMO, he would be crazy to play football over baseball. Football contracts are not guarenteed, unless he is a top 5 WR he won't make that much money, his carrer is likely to be much shorter, even bad starting pitchers make $4 mill a year.

 

I guess more money up-front (potentially) but much less money over the course of a career.

 

If the Cubs give him 1st round money or close to it, it would be hard to turn down.

[Chocolate Milk]

I can't imagine Samardzija would play baseball, particularly as a pitcher.

 

He'll definitely be a 1st round NFL pick.

 

Unless he really loves baseball, he's not going to turn down that NFL draft money, which will be much more than what the Cubs pay him.

 

IMO, he would be crazy to play football over baseball. Football contracts are not guarenteed, unless he is a top 5 WR he won't make that much money, his carrer is likely to be much shorter, even bad starting pitchers make $4 mill a year.

 

I guess more money up-front (potentially) but much less money over the course of a career.

 

If the Cubs give him 1st round money or close to it, it would be hard to turn down.

 

I agree with those reasons. The only reason that would support his decision to play football is if he truely thinks he's a better football player. Why be good in one sport when you feel you could be great in another? If that's how he feels, I could understand that.

 

With Brady Quinn throwing to him, in that offense, his numbers should be pretty great this year.

[YearofDaCubs]

Do you guys think Cubs had discussions w/ him before they drafted him?

[goonys evil twin]

I can't imagine Samardzija would play baseball, particularly as a pitcher.

 

He'll definitely be a 1st round NFL pick.

 

Unless he really loves baseball, he's not going to turn down that NFL draft money, which will be much more than what the Cubs pay him.

 

IMO, he would be crazy to play football over baseball. Football contracts are not guarenteed, unless he is a top 5 WR he won't make that much money, his carrer is likely to be much shorter, even bad starting pitchers make $4 mill a year.

 

I guess more money up-front (potentially) but much less money over the course of a career.

 

If the Cubs give him 1st round money or close to it, it would be hard to turn down.

 

An NFL player's contract is no less of a guarantee than a pitching prospects career turning out. Mike Williams got a $10m signing bonus as the 10th pick last year for Detroit, and the salary cap has gone up considerably since then. He will get far more guaranteed up front money in football than in baseball, and it won't take nearly as much time for him to sign his next contract, (assuming he works out in either). And the likelihood of a top football prospect succeeding dwarfs that of a pitching prospect.

[CubinNY]

I can't imagine Samardzija would play baseball, particularly as a pitcher.

 

He'll definitely be a 1st round NFL pick.

 

Unless he really loves baseball, he's not going to turn down that NFL draft money, which will be much more than what the Cubs pay him.

 

IMO, he would be crazy to play football over baseball. Football contracts are not guarenteed, unless he is a top 5 WR he won't make that much money, his carrer is likely to be much shorter, even bad starting pitchers make $4 mill a year.

 

I guess more money up-front (potentially) but much less money over the course of a career.

 

If the Cubs give him 1st round money or close to it, it would be hard to turn down.

 

An NFL player's contract is no less of a guarantee than a pitching prospects career turning out. Mike Williams got a $10m signing bonus as the 10th pick last year for Detroit, and the salary cap has gone up considerably since then. He will get far more guaranteed up front money in football than in baseball, and it won't take nearly as much time for him to sign his next contract, (assuming he works out in either). And the likelihood of a top football prospect succeeding dwarfs that of a pitching prospect.

 

Yes, I just read your discussion with 1908 in the other thread. I don't follow football that closely so I had no idea that football players made that much money.

 

I suppose it will depend on how much the Cubs are willing to pony up with the dough.

 

What do you think are his chances of signing with the Cubs?

 

If he doesn't sign it will be a wasted pick, with their second pick no less.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Do you guys think Cubs had discussions w/ him before they drafted him?

 

Probably with his advisor and coach at ND. If they didn't do their homework, they should all be fired.

 

EDIT: I really think they did their research here.

[jjgman21]

does anybody honestly believe the guy has upper round NFL WR speed?

 

not even close. good hands. good knack for getting open. not a top NFL pick by any means.

[goonys evil twin]

NFL WR vs MLB P

 

If you are a likely top 10 15 draft selection as a wide receiver in the NFL, you are going to get between $8-12 million in guaranteed money in your first contract. Any success and you will have a new contract with new guarantee money within 4 years. Look at Randle El's deal, as a #2/3 receiver 4 years after the draft. $8m signing bonus, $27-31m potentail totel. The ND kid could make $25+m in his first 4-5 years in football, with anywhere from $8-12 guaranteed.

 

How much could he get in baseball? Would it be realistic that he gets more than $8 million guaranteed as a 5th rounder, even if he gets 1st round money? Isn't $8m reserved for most elite draftees? Let's say he does somewhere sign a deal that guarantees him $8 million. If everything goes great and he makes the bigs after 2 years, it will still be another 4 years before he makes his first significant money, which could be about $3-6m, if he does really well in his first 3 pre-arby years. So, within 6 years of signing, he might makes $15m if all goes well. Add in the fact that he'd be a pitcher, which has a much bigger failure rate than NFL WR, and he could easily make more money in the NFL.

 

Everybody likes to talk about the non-guaranteed contracts in football. But pretty much every contract is virtually guaranteed for at least the first few years because of the salary cap implications of cutting a guy early in the deal. Baseball players typicall have to play between 6-8 years in their organization before having any rights.

[goonys evil twin]

What do you think are his chances of signing with the Cubs?

 

If he doesn't sign it will be a wasted pick, with their second pick no less.

 

I have to assume the odds are very high. They wouldn't have wasted their 2nd pick on the guy if they didn't plan on signing him. I just don't know why you'd sign a pitcher and then let him go play football. Huge risk.

 

The only way this makes sense is if they believe he will quit football.

[Fro]

does anybody honestly believe the guy has upper round NFL WR speed?

 

not even close. good hands. good knack for getting open. not a top NFL pick by any means.

 

He could be bulked up into a TE.

 

The ND football forums I went to, to check on him think he can somehow pitch in the minor leagues while he's playing in the NFL, since a pitcher only has the pitch "once every 5 days". Never mind how badly he'd get dinged up in the NFL and how tiny injuries can screw up your mechanics.

Edited June 6, 2006 by Fro

[goonys evil twin]

does anybody honestly believe the guy has upper round NFL WR speed?

 

not even close. good hands. good knack for getting open. not a top NFL pick by any means.

 

Everything I've heard has him in the 10-20 range of the first round. If he drops into the 2nd round, Mark Bradley got about $2 million in guarantees.

[texascub]

does anybody honestly believe the guy has upper round NFL WR speed?

 

not even close. good hands. good knack for getting open. not a top NFL pick by any means.

 

He could be bulked up into a TE.

 

The ND football forums I went to, to check on him think he can somehow pitch in the minor leagues while he's playing in the NFL, since a pitcher only has the pitch "once every 5 days". Never mind how badly he'd get dinged up in the NFL and how tiny injuries can screw up your mechanics.

 

I don't think he's got the frame to bulk up and be a TE. He's tall and slender, TE's are much wider.

[VicCub]

I think the kid will choose baseball. It is a better quality of life for an athlete.

[NorthsideAvenger]

What do you think are his chances of signing with the Cubs?

 

If he doesn't sign it will be a wasted pick, with their second pick no less.

 

I have to assume the odds are very high. They wouldn't have wasted their 2nd pick on the guy if they didn't plan on signing him. I just don't know why you'd sign a pitcher and then let him go play football. Huge risk.

 

The only way this makes sense is if they believe he will quit football.

 

My guess is they'd offer him 1st/2nd rd type money if he would quite football. He would say, I promise ND I would return for my senior yr, and the Cubs agreed. But after his senior yr at ND, he would have to give up football, for good. That's my guess.

 

What's with the Cubs drafting football/baseball players? Matt Mauch, Quincy Carter, Kyle Farnsworth, Andy Sisco, etc, etc...Don't the Cubs know, there is ALREADY a football team in Chicago?

[CP_414]

Len Kasper just said he heard Samardzija will try to play both baseball and football professionally. I don't know if that is a good idea for a pitcher to be getting knocked around in the NFL in the winter, but if he can pull it off that would be very impressive.