Levine: Eyre done deal. 3 years $11 million

[MPrior]

Scott Eyre will make $3 million next year and $4 million in 2007 under the terms of his three-year deal. His player option for 2008 is worth $4 million. Eyre will also receive annual bonuses of $100,000 for 70 appearances and an additional $200,000 if he pitches in 80 games. There is also wording that would give him additional money should he become the Cubs' closer, though there's no reason to expect that to happen. Also, a no-trade clause is included in the deal Nov. 18 - 2:35 am et

Source: The Associated Press

 

 

If the breakdown of Eyre contract has been posted, then I apologize, but the bolded area gave me :shock: ](*,) . When does a solid, but unspectular reliever get a "no-trade clause?" Something tells me, the Cubs were the only team to even offer a no trade clause.

 

No trade clause ?????????

 

Is that a common relief pitcher contract clause ???

 

I wonder if Perez has one too.

 

The good thing about being Neifi Perez (other than the existence of Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker, and their InNeiffable man love for him) is that he already kind of has a no trade clause.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just in case this was too subtle a point, what I mean to say is WHAT GM IN HIS RIGHT MIND WOULD GIVE UP TALENT SO THEY CAN PAY NEIFI PEREZ $2.5 MILLION DOLLARS???

[CuseCubFan69]

Eyre is a reliever who allows a lot of baserunners via the walk

 

He should fit right in.

 

I thinks it's ironic that Hendry is getting these guys that can catch the ball but yet gets a pitcher that walks them. As far as I know there is no defense for a walk.

C'mon Cuse... hasn't Baker taught you anything? Allowing all those walks IS defense. With all those runners bottling up the basepaths how can anybody score?

 

I must apologize for going to that well again. Sorry.

 

Baker has taught me something BK that's for sure. Baker has created that well and I'm sick of him making us fall into it over and over again.

 

By the way, how do you feel abut Snyder retiring?

[Guest]

Eyre is a reliever who allows a lot of baserunners via the walk

 

He should fit right in.

 

I thinks it's ironic that Hendry is getting these guys that can catch the ball but yet gets a pitcher that walks them. As far as I know there is no defense for a walk.

C'mon Cuse... hasn't Baker taught you anything? Allowing all those walks IS defense. With all those runners bottling up the basepaths how can anybody score?

 

I must apologize for going to that well again. Sorry.

 

Baker has taught me something BK that's for sure. Baker has created that well and I'm sick of him making us fall into it over and over again.

 

By the way, how do you feel abut Snyder retiring?

Mixed feelings. He definitely has a special place in my heart for turning a once laughable program into a perennial powerhouse. (At least it was a powerhouse in the years I held season tickets. :() He's also a great guy and does a lot for the Manhattan community aside from his resuscitation of K-State's football program. That being said, he is getting on in years and the sport is increasingly looking like a younger man's game. His last couple of teams have also been dreadful underperformers, so perhaps it is time for him to go.

 

I wish him the best and am glad they're renaming our stadium after him. Still, I'm looking forward to some fresh blood getting pumped into our lagging program.

[katway]

There been a lot of discussion of Eyre's value in terms of BB, SO, ERA, etc... But, I really a big factor in his overall value is appearances. He seem to have a rubber arm that can be effective in over half the games played in a year. We all know how Baker can overuse a guy. Looks like Eyre can take that kind of punishment.

[USSoccer]

Scott Eyre will make $3 million next year and $4 million in 2007 under the terms of his three-year deal. His player option for 2008 is worth $4 million. Eyre will also receive annual bonuses of $100,000 for 70 appearances and an additional $200,000 if he pitches in 80 games. There is also wording that would give him additional money should he become the Cubs' closer, though there's no reason to expect that to happen. Also, a no-trade clause is included in the deal Nov. 18 - 2:35 am et

Source: The Associated Press

 

 

If the breakdown of Eyre contract has been posted, then I apologize, but the bolded area gave me :shock: ](*,) . When does a solid, but unspectular reliever get a "no-trade clause?" Something tells me, the Cubs were the only team to even offer a no trade clause.

 

Wow. Combine the NTC and the player option for 2008, and we're likely to see a very old , very costly lefty specialist in 3 years. Why would you pay more, then give a NTC on top of that? Why not one or the other?

 

 

I just don't get it.

[USSoccer]

Giles wants alot of YEARS, and at some point he will drop of dramatically.

 

 

Kerry Wood. Games 1 and 5, 2003 NLDS. Entire month of September 2003.

Carlos Zambrano. ERA below 3 after the ASB from 2004-5.

Mark Prior: Games 3 NLDS, Game 2 NLCS.

 

Those stats are good, but we have nobody in the bullpen to get that cruical out. Not to mention, it would be nice if the Cubs can have a full season of pitching from the twin ragdolls.

 

First of all, Scott Eyre is a nice reliever. He's not worth the years and money we gave him though. Coupled with the other 2 signings, it's bad money management.

Next, if you want to question Wood's ability to stay healthy, that's fair game. But Prior has been hurt 4 times as a Cub. 3 of them have been complete freak things. It's a bit unfair to label him a rag doll.

 

Also, Giles's best asset is his batting eye. That generally stays with players as they age. And I haven't seen any offer longer than 3 years yet for him. That's the same number of years they just gave to Scott Eyre, who's about the same age, and who plays a position where guys drop off the face of the earth production wise at random.

That's true only if the Cubs payroll is low enough that it prohibits Hendry from acquiring the kind of players the Cubs need to win.

 

You are making a sound and educated guess, but you are forgetting to qualify your statement as only a guess. We don't know what the Cubs payroll will be next season and we don't know that the players Hendry will eventually acquire will have the team win or not.

 

It may be bad money management. It may not be.

 

I think that even if payroll stay at $105, or goes up or down an additional $5m it's still bad money management. You don't pay a premium for something that you already have in bulk, and something that isn't really in demand, either. Neifi and Rusch were not going to get close to what they got in the open market. Rusch, maybe, but even if he goes, you have a slew of guys that could be a spot starter or a long reliever. Rusch isn't a better 5th starter than Williams, so why bring him back at 10x the cost of one of the many pitchers we have in our system?

 

Neifi, well...utility IF that can field and not hit are pretty easily found. Heck, even if Cedeno crashes and burns he's still every bit as good in the field as Perez, and again, he's 10x cheaper. So it's needlessly throwing away money, and I'd hold that belief even if the Cubs payroll was $200m.

 

The fact that it's likely to be around $105 just makes it more glaring.

 

I will tell you one way Hendry can sort of make up for this: make sure he non tenders Macias. With Cedeno at $350k and Neifi at $2.5m, you cannot tie up more money in a utility player who's 3rd on the depth chart. If Hendry does that, it will lessen the blow from Neifi and Rusch signing for what they did.

[Bruno7481]

UK (among other posters) has pointed out that Eyre has given up fewer hits than inngings pitched over the last few years, making his BAA stats look impressive. While that's certainly true, A closer examination of Eyre's stats makes me even more wary of him.

 

First of all, while Eyre's H/9 is pretty good, he still walks quite a few people. His career BB/9 is over 4.5, and he's only had a BB/9 lower than 4.0 once in the past few years (2005). So he still allows his fair share of baserunners, though not a lot of them have ended up scoring. Why is that? Well, ignoring whatever effect subsequent Giants relievers may have had on the runners they inherited from Eyre, I think SBC itself may hold the answer. Eyre gives up a LOT of fly balls. His K rate is generally no better than average, though it was up last season. In addition, his GB/FB ratio shows a pronounced lean to the FB side, allowing 25-30% more balls in the air than on the ground over the past couple of years. Now this is a good and bad thing: Flyballs drop for hits less often than grounders, so that's a big reason why Eyre's BAA has been as good as it has. Unfortunately fly balls are also the ones that leave the park, so flyball pitchers also tend to give up HR.

 

What does this have to do with SBC? Well, SBC is a very forgiving ballpark towards pitchers, particularly to those pitchers who primarily face left-handed hitters. Right and right-center fields are absolutely cavernous, turning quite a few balls that would have been HR in smaller parks (such as Wrigley) into routine flyouts. Dodger stadium and later PetCo are also death to long flyballs, though I suppose the opposite could be said of Coors and the BOB. Still, I think parks are a big reason for Eyre's success (at least as far as ERA and BAA go) since coming to SF.

 

2005 was a very solid year all-round for him, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that he can continue that success over the life of this contract. I'm just not too convinced he will maintain that success. The list of players who enjoy prolonged success after first "figuring it out" in their mid-30s has got to be pretty small, I'd think. Furthermore, Eyre is a reliever who allows a lot of baserunners via the walk, doesn't strike out a particularly impressive number of batters, and one who appears as if he may be prone to allowing the longball if he were to move to a less forgiving stadium. I don't know about you, but that recipe doesn't sound too appealing to me. (Particularly after the waiter brings me the check.)

 

That being said: Prove me wrong Scott... prove me wrong. ;)

 

Eyre last year at SBC

 

33IP

26H

13BB

31 K's

4.01 ERA

.220 BA

 

On the Road

 

34.2 IP

22H

13BB

34K's

1.30 ERA

.180 BA

 

He can pitch outside of SBC. I know its just one year, but the numbers show that he's effective outside of SBC as well.

[jyoung55]

UK (among other posters) has pointed out that Eyre has given up fewer hits than inngings pitched over the last few years, making his BAA stats look impressive. While that's certainly true, A closer examination of Eyre's stats makes me even more wary of him.

 

First of all, while Eyre's H/9 is pretty good, he still walks quite a few people. His career BB/9 is over 4.5, and he's only had a BB/9 lower than 4.0 once in the past few years (2005). So he still allows his fair share of baserunners, though not a lot of them have ended up scoring. Why is that? Well, ignoring whatever effect subsequent Giants relievers may have had on the runners they inherited from Eyre, I think SBC itself may hold the answer. Eyre gives up a LOT of fly balls. His K rate is generally no better than average, though it was up last season. In addition, his GB/FB ratio shows a pronounced lean to the FB side, allowing 25-30% more balls in the air than on the ground over the past couple of years. Now this is a good and bad thing: Flyballs drop for hits less often than grounders, so that's a big reason why Eyre's BAA has been as good as it has. Unfortunately fly balls are also the ones that leave the park, so flyball pitchers also tend to give up HR.

 

What does this have to do with SBC? Well, SBC is a very forgiving ballpark towards pitchers, particularly to those pitchers who primarily face left-handed hitters. Right and right-center fields are absolutely cavernous, turning quite a few balls that would have been HR in smaller parks (such as Wrigley) into routine flyouts. Dodger stadium and later PetCo are also death to long flyballs, though I suppose the opposite could be said of Coors and the BOB. Still, I think parks are a big reason for Eyre's success (at least as far as ERA and BAA go) since coming to SF.

 

2005 was a very solid year all-round for him, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that he can continue that success over the life of this contract. I'm just not too convinced he will maintain that success. The list of players who enjoy prolonged success after first "figuring it out" in their mid-30s has got to be pretty small, I'd think. Furthermore, Eyre is a reliever who allows a lot of baserunners via the walk, doesn't strike out a particularly impressive number of batters, and one who appears as if he may be prone to allowing the longball if he were to move to a less forgiving stadium. I don't know about you, but that recipe doesn't sound too appealing to me. (Particularly after the waiter brings me the check.)

 

That being said: Prove me wrong Scott... prove me wrong. ;)

 

Eyre last year at SBC

 

33IP

26H

13BB

31 K's

4.01 ERA

.220 BA

 

On the Road

 

34.2 IP

22H

13BB

34K's

1.30 ERA

.180 BA

 

He can pitch outside of SBC. I know its just one year, but the numbers show that he's effective outside of SBC as well.

 

I was going to post those numbers as well as running directly contrary to what Keeper was saying.

 

Although I don't like the money and years(why should I care anyways?), I liked his home/road splits and lefty splits (meaning this isn't Remlinger part deux). I think this is a pitcher that Baker can actually use properly so its a positive signing.

[Mark Priors Calves]

I'm wasn't crazy about the deal yesterday but now seeing that Eyre has a no trade clause, I'm strongly against this signing. These kind of contracts are handed out to relievers that are "lights out". While Eyre is a solid reliever, and hopefully will be a good addition to the team, I don't like how the contract is structured.

[E.J.]

Wait, Eyre gets a no-trade clause too??? Someone please tell me this is a joke. :x

[BigbadB]

Wait, Eyre gets a no-trade clause too??? Someone please tell me this is a joke. :x

 

3.6m a year is sort of its own no trade clause.

[Guest]

Eyre last year at SBC

 

33IP

26H

13BB

31 K's

4.01 ERA

.220 BA

 

On the Road

 

34.2 IP

22H

13BB

34K's

1.30 ERA

.180 BA

 

He can pitch outside of SBC. I know its just one year, but the numbers show that he's effective outside of SBC as well.

Touche. I still say relying on a middle-aged, high-walk, middling-strikeout, flyball pitcher is a risky proposition, though. (You'll also note that he gave up 50% more HR on the road than at home from 2002-2004.)

Edited November 18, 2005 by Anonymous

[YearofDaCubs]

ritalin can make you pitch better?

 

 

Where's my minor league contract????

I know the league will be testing for amphetamines next season. Let's hope Ritalin isn't also on the list. :wink:

 

His treatment is a lot more than just drugs, though. I read an interesting article about it. Its a little dry, but for those interested in understanding more...

 

Link

Good article.

[fromthestretch]

I would appreciate it if you did not group most of us with Jim Hendry. We're just along for the ride...and the funeral of the 2006 Chicago Cubs.

 

As ugly as this offseason has started, I hope it's a closed-casket ceremony.

[goonys evil twin]

He can pitch outside of SBC. I know its just one year, but the numbers show that he's effective outside of SBC as well.

 

No, it shows he was effective last year. The history of baseball, especially the past 10-15 years, is littered with marginal relievers who have had 1 or 2 good years, surrounded by several seasons of garbage. We're talking about a guy who has been less effective out of the pen than Kyle Farnsworth, who was run out of town after supposedly being too inconsistent for somebody making $1.5m. Would anybody have been willing to go 3/11 on Farnsworth? I really liked the guy and wouldn't have considered it.

[Lefty]

Hendry is clueless.

 

We'll all be winners this year. Either the Cubs win, and then who cares how or why, or Hendry and Baker are gone.

[Mark Priors Calves]

He can pitch outside of SBC. I know its just one year, but the numbers show that he's effective outside of SBC as well.

 

No, it shows he was effective last year. The history of baseball, especially the past 10-15 years, is littered with marginal relievers who have had 1 or 2 good years, surrounded by several seasons of garbage. We're talking about a guy who has been less effective out of the pen than Kyle Farnsworth, who was run out of town after supposedly being too inconsistent for somebody making $1.5m. Would anybody have been willing to go 3/11 on Farnsworth? I really liked the guy and wouldn't have considered it.

 

But is Eyre gutless?

[Chocolate Milk]

30 pages on Erye? That's almost as exorbitant as Erye's deal!

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

30 pages on Erye? That's almost as exorbitant as Erye's deal!

 

It was a slow evening.

[YearofDaCubs]

Hendry is clueless.

 

We'll all be winners this year. Either the Cubs win, and then who cares how or why, or Hendry and Baker are gone.

Don;t bet on it. There's a good chance Hendry and Baker will be here win, lose, or draw. If we don't make the playoffs both SHOULD be gone IMO.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Hendry is clueless.

 

We'll all be winners this year. Either the Cubs win, and then who cares how or why, or Hendry and Baker are gone.

Don;t bet on it. There's a good chance Hendry and Baker will be here win, lose, or draw. If we don't make the playoffs both SHOULD be gone IMO.

 

Didn't someone just post a link here last week how they were both likely to get extensions done before opening day?

[YearofDaCubs]

Hendry is clueless.

 

We'll all be winners this year. Either the Cubs win, and then who cares how or why, or Hendry and Baker are gone.

Don;t bet on it. There's a good chance Hendry and Baker will be here win, lose, or draw. If we don't make the playoffs both SHOULD be gone IMO.

 

Didn't someone just post a link here last week how they were both likely to get extensions done before opening day?

Who knows but that was the speculation for a while now. Really bad move if you ask me.

[sethuel1]

Well, ritalin=methamphetimine, I wouldn't be surprised

 

Ritalin is not methamphetamine

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Well, ritalin=methamphetimine, I wouldn't be surprised

 

Ritalin is not methamphetamine

 

My wife who is a pharmacist would find this part of the thread very funny.

 

Here's some information on ritalin.

[fromthestretch]

I don't know if anyone posted this already or not, but Eyre got a 10th place vote in the NL MVP voting.

 

No slight to Eyre, who had a fine 2005, but whoever gave him a 10th place vote should have their BBWAA voting privileges revoked immediately.