Was it the Blue Jays who refused to negotiate during the season?
It is both fair to say that contracts in the early 90's had less risk than today, but also those were legitimate, top-end signings (the Morris contract was the second highest AAV ever and the highest for a pitcher, when they re-signed Carter after '92 that was tied for the second highest AAV ever).
And your Encarnacion/Molitor thing is inaccurate IMO. Encarnacion is Dave Winfield. When Winfield (who had a rather big playoff hit of his own) rejected the Jays initial offer in '92 and then wanted to test the market during the winter meetings, Gillick also went out and immediately replaced him instead of letting the market play out. But he went and signed one of the elite hitters in the game for three years, not Kendrys Morales and Steve Pearce.
(In all fairness to our management team, that is also the product of the two different ownership teams in place at their respective times).
e: just on some of the other points
- The romanticising of the Jays spending is basically related to the fact they won. If they had lost in the ALCS in '92/'93, with how things played out over the next 10 years the Jays would probably be in Portland or something right now. But Gillick tried to win with the homegrown core, then it kind of failed (if three ALCS failures in 7 years is failure), and then he just went all in. And there has to be a ton of credit to ownership for not just going all-in once, but doing it again (even moreso) after the '92 season and then doubling down to pick up one of the highest paid rentals at the '93 deadline. Then everyone just kind of ignores the fact that the Jays were a really medicore highly paid team in '94 with minimal upside because the strike came and flushed it all away. Couldn't have worked out much better for Gillick.
- Not that I was alive it for the start of it, but with SkyDome holding about 60% more people than Exhibition Stadium and having an extra 100-ish corporate boxes, I wouldn't be surprised if the Jays revenue outright doubled from 1988 to 1990. Which is probably why they had the extra payroll going forward. And the CAD also got consistently better from '86 onwards.
Trade Donaldson next offseason. Lets do this teardown right.
As for the rising CAD, doesn't that kind of support Rogers' spending? They're still likely to be among the top 10 in payroll based on the belief that they still have ~30m left over, and this is with the dollar being in worse shape than it was from '90-'93.
In fact, the Cdn dollar has been stronger from 2012-16, than it was during 1990-93 run. About 2c stronger over the last few years. So the argument about the dollar doesn't hold water. The ball club is getting ripped off from its lack of a true TV rights contract. How do the Oakland A's get more for local rights, than Rogers pays the Jays? That is the real question.
In fact, the Cdn dollar has been stronger from 2012-16, than it was during 1990-93 run. About 2c stronger over the last few years. So the argument about the dollar doesn't hold water. The ball club is getting ripped off from its lack of a true TV rights contract. How do the Oakland A's get more for local rights, than Rogers pays the Jays? That is the real question.
If we dont make the playoffs that will be the situation and we will be getting a huge haul for him.
He is going to want 5 years at $125 million easily
Why are you bringing up 2012-2015? Shapiro/Atkins were not in charge during that time. 2016's CAD had a lower US exchange rate than any of the years from 1990-1993.
Sometimes I have trouble pinpointing what exactly people are arguing against. Do you hate "cheapkins"? Rogers? Both?
Canadian viewership is worth less in advertising than American ones.
So the Jays because EE is gone and JB probably is too, are in tear-it-down mode?
Not many prospects in the pipeline and no desire to spend money. What is the alternative?
Not many prospects in the pipeline and no desire to spend money. What is the alternative?
They are not interested in overpaying. They made legit offers to EE and Fowler.
Budgets.
Rogers has money.
Lots and LOTS of money. Kind of what happens when you have basically shared monopoly over the internet/cable with bell that you overcharge in collusion. While at the same time using that money to buy up all the sports franchises in Toronto including the incredibly lucrative Toronto Maple Leafs.
Nope...no budgets, Rogers is just trying to field as cheap a team as possible that's able to sell beer. As such I see through their ******** and I'm done with the Jays. Thankfully because of the cap, this attitude can't carry over to the Leafs...yet.
Rogers has money.
Lots and LOTS of money. Kind of what happens when you have basically shared monopoly over the internet/cable with bell that you overcharge in collusion. While at the same time using that money to buy up all the sports franchises in Toronto including the incredibly lucrative Toronto Maple Leafs.
Nope...no budgets, Rogers is just trying to field as cheap a team as possible that's able to sell beer. As such I see through their ******** and I'm done with the Jays. Thankfully because of the cap, this attitude can't carry over to the Leafs...yet.
I'm not sure why fans always go this route with bashing ownership for being "cheap". They've been top 10 in the last 4 years for payroll. The Orioles ownership is "cheap". The Rays ownership is "cheap".
These people think that because Rogers is a mega-corporation, the baseball team's payroll must be unlimited. They don't realize that virtually every bottomless-payroll team in baseball is owned by either individuals or ownership groups who have heavy emotional interest in the sport. It is a little bit different when comparing a telecommunications giant of which the Blue Jays are literally just one of many subsidiaries, to a situation like the Tigers wherein the team is owned by an old billionaire who is about to die and just wants to see his team win at any cost. Rogers runs the Blue Jays like a business because that is what they are. Top Rogers execs don't go into work every morning and base their days around how the Blue Jays are doing. The Red Sox are owned by a sports investment firm which does nothing but own sports teams and other sports-related businesses. Get the point?
The whining is annoying because the Jays are clearly given enough resources to build a winning team. Would it be nice to have the biggest payroll in MLB? Sure, but its not reality, so who gives a ****? Don't try and pretend like we're the Tampa Bay Rays or something.
The club offered EE 4/80 with a 5th year option... it was the highest offer he got... why should the Jays bid against themselves?