12-14-2009, 11:10 AM
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->The Cubs Payroll Evolution
David Kaplan on 12.13.09
In 2003, the Chicago Cubs payroll was $80 million. In 2004, coming off a run to the NLCS, the Cubs payroll escalated to $90 million. 2005 saw the team shave the number to 87 million, and not until 2008 did the player payroll crack the 100 million dollar mark. So how did the Cubs go from spending 99 million dollars in 2007, to roughly 145 million, which is where their payroll is estimated to reach in 2010?
Several factors played into the scenario that now has the ball club among the top 3 spending teams in baseball. First, 2006 was an abysmal season that saw the Cubs finish 66-96, dead last in the NL Central. Consequently, attendance in the latter stages of the season plummeted, and fans stopped paying attention to the team by September.
Second, the White Sox reached the pinnacle of the sport, winning the 2005 World Series. Their success rekindled interest from their fan base, and saw legions of Chicago area youngsters wearing Sox hats and jerseys. Cubs management took notice of their half empty stadium in September of 2006 and decided that something drastic had to be done.
Drastic meant the firing of Andy MacPhail as team president and firing manager Dusty Baker. The club kept general manager Jim Hendry and gave him a blank check to try to right the ship. The Cubs knew with the resurgent competition in town and the fact that the franchise would soon be up for sale that they needed to increase the franchise's value to appease both the fan base and drive up the value for a prospective buyer.
In November of '06, after reeling in Mark DeRosa on a 3 year 13 million dollar deal, the Cubs signed Alfonso Soriano to an 8-year, $136 million contract, which was unprecedented for the Cubs after years of avoiding the premium free agents. Hendry then went to the Winter Meetings in December of 2006 and signed Ted Lilly to a 4 year 40 million dollar deal. This all came after the Cubs re-signed Aramis Ramirez to a 75 million dollar deal, re-signed Kerry Wood, and added Lou Piniella as their new manager.
And do you really think Hendry, after sitting third on the depth chart behind MacPhail and Baker, was really acting alone? No chance. The company had as much to do with the team's free spending as he did. In fact, Hendry was given a mandate by management to spend freely, try to win, and most importantly to management, to raise the franchise's value to aid the sale process.
That also meant that the contracts that were given out were to be back loaded as much as possible so that the new owner would pay much of the deals. However, the economy tanked, the credit markets dried up and the sale process took for longer than expected which made Hendry's job far tougher as he tried to navigate the deals that he had been asked to extend by his bosses.
Yet while the Cubs spent a tremendous amount to improve their team and improve their value, they added some enormous contracts of which the new owner would inherit the bulk. Consequently, the team has very little wiggle room to add marquee players now, or in the near future, since their payroll is tied up in players like Soriano, Zambrano, and Ramirez. Had the Cubs had more financial flexibility a year ago, what's to say the team wouldn't have been interested in adding Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay at the trading deadline?
Fueled by Hendry's rebuilding the Cubs went on to win back to back division titles in 2007 and 2008, and raised the hopes of an incredibly loyal fan base with the marquee 97 win 2008 season that had people dreaming of ending a 100 year drought with a World Series championship. However, after being swept for the second consecutive season in the playoffs, Hendry decided to re-tool his team to try to take the next step.
The money faucet which once was wide open was now closed shut by Tribune Company as they negotiated the final stages of the sale process and this forced him to creatively manage his payroll to add the bat that he felt was desperately needed. Management had allowed him to spend but when they got close to making a run at a title they decided against going all in. In managing that payroll, Hendry had to move contracts off the books.
<b>He made his first off-season blunder by trading clubhouse leader and jack-of-all-trades Mark DeRosa</b> to Cleveland for three prospects. The deal saved him $5.5 million, and combined with a trade of Jason Marquis to the Colorado Rockies, (which saved another 5-million) gave Hendry the room to add Milton Bradley at 10 million per season. Had he not traded both players the Cubs payroll would have been in excess of 150 million dollars.
With the team as close as they were to a World Series why was Hendry forced to trade DeRosa just to save a few dollars? Well, the sale process was nearing completion and the Tribune Company was going through the bankruptcy process. <b>The Cubs still needed a versatile infielder, and by forcing the trade of DeRosa it led to mistake #2 of the 2008 off-season: the signing of Aaron Miles to a 2-year deal for 4.9 million dollars.</b>
<b>The Bradley deal was awful from the start because of its length. No other team in baseball offered him a long term deal.</b> Bradley was the consummate con man in his meetings with Cubs brass, selling himself as a changed man who knew he had to mature, and wanting to be the final piece in the Cubs championship puzzle. While he has to bear some responsibility for the way 2009 went, the Cubs have to assume most of the blame because they should have known better.
<b>Bradley had never gotten a multi-year deal in his career, and the Cubs were the 7th team he'd played for, and the 5th in five seasons. Obviously, that should have sent up red flags to Cubs management, but they were fooled by Bradley and his agents. Don't blame Bradley for all of the problems that he caused this past season. He was simply being himself. Blame the Cubs for thinking they could change him.</b>
Also, don't forget that the Cubs were at or near the top of the division at the trading deadline and were unable to add any payroll to fix the problems the 2009 team had. No trade for a top flight starter. No bat to help fix the ailing lineup and thus the Cardinals who added DeRosa and Holiday pulled away to win the division comfortably. Hendry has a great track record of trying to help his team at the deadline having added Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton in 2003, Nomar Garciaparra in 2004, and
Now the Cubs are being forced to deal with the fallout from all of those long term deals that were signed under previous ownership. The payroll is bloated at 140 million dollars, leaving very little room for Hendry and his staff to upgrade the club's weaknesses. Trading Bradley is a must, but finding a taker is proving to be more difficult than the Cubs ever thought.
Has Hendry made mistakes that can't be pinned on the previous owners? Absolutely. The deal for Bradley was terrible as was the signing of Aaron Miles who was a dismal failure before he was traded two weeks ago to the Oakland A's. Some have criticized the signing of Kosuke Fukudome but don't forget that several teams offered Fukudome more money than he eventually got from the Cubs on a 4 year deal.
<b>Hendry has also made some tremendous moves. The signing of Ted Lilly and the trades for Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez were some of the best in Cubs history. The much maligned Cubs farm system has produced shortstop Ryan Theriot, catcher Geovany Soto, and pitchers Carlos Zambrano, Randy Wells, Sean Marshall, Carlos Marmol just to name a few.</b> For a franchise that did not have back to back winning seasons in over 30 years you would think that 3 NL Central titles in 7 years would have fans in his corner. Yet, because of the two playoff sweeps in 2007 and 2008 and a 2nd place finish in 2009 many fans have called for Hendry's head.
He has been given a chance to fix the problems that surfaced in 2009 but unless players such as Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto can rebound the Cubs are in a tough spot battling the Cardinals. Especially if St. Louis re-signs Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa and adds another starter.
<b>The Ricketts family wants to build the franchise the right way: through the farm system. But with the way the roster is currently constructed, with veterans throughout the lineup, the Cubs need to try to win with what they have until the farm system starts producing. </b>That means management needs to try to give this veteran group the best possible chance of winning by adding one major piece to the club.
That piece is Toronto pitcher <b>Roy Halladay, who has told friends that he would indeed approve a trade to the Cubs should it be presented to him</b>. Toronto management is looking for a reason not to trade their ace pitcher to the Yankees or Red Sox, who also play in the AL East. And with some excellent young players nearly major league ready, the Cubs have the chips to make a deal.
I know Halladay is entering the final year of his contract in 2010. But before the Cubs make a huge commitment to him, why not see how a large chunk of this season goes? Who says you can't approach him about a new contract next July or August, if both sides feel the marriage is working? Halladay is perhaps the best starting pitcher in baseball, and his presence in the Cubs rotation takes them from a team hoping to make a post-season run to a team with legitimate World Series aspirations.
Jim Hendry has a talented team with some question marks on it. But that team with Roy Halladay added to it can dominate a suspect NL Central. Payroll concerns can be tempered, as Aramis Ramirez can opt out of his contract after next season and his approximately $15 million salary could be gone. That money could then be earmarked for a new contract for Halladay, with one of the Cubs top prospects, third baseman Josh Vitters, expected to be ready by 2011.
So all you're really doing is taking a chance in raising the payroll for 2010 and trying to give the best fan base in baseball a championship.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Basically this has just repeated much of what we've discussed here over the last couple months. I find it interesting the Halladay would approve a trade here. I also find it interesting that JH was directed to blow the bank after 2006. I'm not sure I believe it 100% but it does make some sense.
David Kaplan on 12.13.09
In 2003, the Chicago Cubs payroll was $80 million. In 2004, coming off a run to the NLCS, the Cubs payroll escalated to $90 million. 2005 saw the team shave the number to 87 million, and not until 2008 did the player payroll crack the 100 million dollar mark. So how did the Cubs go from spending 99 million dollars in 2007, to roughly 145 million, which is where their payroll is estimated to reach in 2010?
Several factors played into the scenario that now has the ball club among the top 3 spending teams in baseball. First, 2006 was an abysmal season that saw the Cubs finish 66-96, dead last in the NL Central. Consequently, attendance in the latter stages of the season plummeted, and fans stopped paying attention to the team by September.
Second, the White Sox reached the pinnacle of the sport, winning the 2005 World Series. Their success rekindled interest from their fan base, and saw legions of Chicago area youngsters wearing Sox hats and jerseys. Cubs management took notice of their half empty stadium in September of 2006 and decided that something drastic had to be done.
Drastic meant the firing of Andy MacPhail as team president and firing manager Dusty Baker. The club kept general manager Jim Hendry and gave him a blank check to try to right the ship. The Cubs knew with the resurgent competition in town and the fact that the franchise would soon be up for sale that they needed to increase the franchise's value to appease both the fan base and drive up the value for a prospective buyer.
In November of '06, after reeling in Mark DeRosa on a 3 year 13 million dollar deal, the Cubs signed Alfonso Soriano to an 8-year, $136 million contract, which was unprecedented for the Cubs after years of avoiding the premium free agents. Hendry then went to the Winter Meetings in December of 2006 and signed Ted Lilly to a 4 year 40 million dollar deal. This all came after the Cubs re-signed Aramis Ramirez to a 75 million dollar deal, re-signed Kerry Wood, and added Lou Piniella as their new manager.
And do you really think Hendry, after sitting third on the depth chart behind MacPhail and Baker, was really acting alone? No chance. The company had as much to do with the team's free spending as he did. In fact, Hendry was given a mandate by management to spend freely, try to win, and most importantly to management, to raise the franchise's value to aid the sale process.
That also meant that the contracts that were given out were to be back loaded as much as possible so that the new owner would pay much of the deals. However, the economy tanked, the credit markets dried up and the sale process took for longer than expected which made Hendry's job far tougher as he tried to navigate the deals that he had been asked to extend by his bosses.
Yet while the Cubs spent a tremendous amount to improve their team and improve their value, they added some enormous contracts of which the new owner would inherit the bulk. Consequently, the team has very little wiggle room to add marquee players now, or in the near future, since their payroll is tied up in players like Soriano, Zambrano, and Ramirez. Had the Cubs had more financial flexibility a year ago, what's to say the team wouldn't have been interested in adding Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay at the trading deadline?
Fueled by Hendry's rebuilding the Cubs went on to win back to back division titles in 2007 and 2008, and raised the hopes of an incredibly loyal fan base with the marquee 97 win 2008 season that had people dreaming of ending a 100 year drought with a World Series championship. However, after being swept for the second consecutive season in the playoffs, Hendry decided to re-tool his team to try to take the next step.
The money faucet which once was wide open was now closed shut by Tribune Company as they negotiated the final stages of the sale process and this forced him to creatively manage his payroll to add the bat that he felt was desperately needed. Management had allowed him to spend but when they got close to making a run at a title they decided against going all in. In managing that payroll, Hendry had to move contracts off the books.
<b>He made his first off-season blunder by trading clubhouse leader and jack-of-all-trades Mark DeRosa</b> to Cleveland for three prospects. The deal saved him $5.5 million, and combined with a trade of Jason Marquis to the Colorado Rockies, (which saved another 5-million) gave Hendry the room to add Milton Bradley at 10 million per season. Had he not traded both players the Cubs payroll would have been in excess of 150 million dollars.
With the team as close as they were to a World Series why was Hendry forced to trade DeRosa just to save a few dollars? Well, the sale process was nearing completion and the Tribune Company was going through the bankruptcy process. <b>The Cubs still needed a versatile infielder, and by forcing the trade of DeRosa it led to mistake #2 of the 2008 off-season: the signing of Aaron Miles to a 2-year deal for 4.9 million dollars.</b>
<b>The Bradley deal was awful from the start because of its length. No other team in baseball offered him a long term deal.</b> Bradley was the consummate con man in his meetings with Cubs brass, selling himself as a changed man who knew he had to mature, and wanting to be the final piece in the Cubs championship puzzle. While he has to bear some responsibility for the way 2009 went, the Cubs have to assume most of the blame because they should have known better.
<b>Bradley had never gotten a multi-year deal in his career, and the Cubs were the 7th team he'd played for, and the 5th in five seasons. Obviously, that should have sent up red flags to Cubs management, but they were fooled by Bradley and his agents. Don't blame Bradley for all of the problems that he caused this past season. He was simply being himself. Blame the Cubs for thinking they could change him.</b>
Also, don't forget that the Cubs were at or near the top of the division at the trading deadline and were unable to add any payroll to fix the problems the 2009 team had. No trade for a top flight starter. No bat to help fix the ailing lineup and thus the Cardinals who added DeRosa and Holiday pulled away to win the division comfortably. Hendry has a great track record of trying to help his team at the deadline having added Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton in 2003, Nomar Garciaparra in 2004, and
Now the Cubs are being forced to deal with the fallout from all of those long term deals that were signed under previous ownership. The payroll is bloated at 140 million dollars, leaving very little room for Hendry and his staff to upgrade the club's weaknesses. Trading Bradley is a must, but finding a taker is proving to be more difficult than the Cubs ever thought.
Has Hendry made mistakes that can't be pinned on the previous owners? Absolutely. The deal for Bradley was terrible as was the signing of Aaron Miles who was a dismal failure before he was traded two weeks ago to the Oakland A's. Some have criticized the signing of Kosuke Fukudome but don't forget that several teams offered Fukudome more money than he eventually got from the Cubs on a 4 year deal.
<b>Hendry has also made some tremendous moves. The signing of Ted Lilly and the trades for Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez were some of the best in Cubs history. The much maligned Cubs farm system has produced shortstop Ryan Theriot, catcher Geovany Soto, and pitchers Carlos Zambrano, Randy Wells, Sean Marshall, Carlos Marmol just to name a few.</b> For a franchise that did not have back to back winning seasons in over 30 years you would think that 3 NL Central titles in 7 years would have fans in his corner. Yet, because of the two playoff sweeps in 2007 and 2008 and a 2nd place finish in 2009 many fans have called for Hendry's head.
He has been given a chance to fix the problems that surfaced in 2009 but unless players such as Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto can rebound the Cubs are in a tough spot battling the Cardinals. Especially if St. Louis re-signs Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa and adds another starter.
<b>The Ricketts family wants to build the franchise the right way: through the farm system. But with the way the roster is currently constructed, with veterans throughout the lineup, the Cubs need to try to win with what they have until the farm system starts producing. </b>That means management needs to try to give this veteran group the best possible chance of winning by adding one major piece to the club.
That piece is Toronto pitcher <b>Roy Halladay, who has told friends that he would indeed approve a trade to the Cubs should it be presented to him</b>. Toronto management is looking for a reason not to trade their ace pitcher to the Yankees or Red Sox, who also play in the AL East. And with some excellent young players nearly major league ready, the Cubs have the chips to make a deal.
I know Halladay is entering the final year of his contract in 2010. But before the Cubs make a huge commitment to him, why not see how a large chunk of this season goes? Who says you can't approach him about a new contract next July or August, if both sides feel the marriage is working? Halladay is perhaps the best starting pitcher in baseball, and his presence in the Cubs rotation takes them from a team hoping to make a post-season run to a team with legitimate World Series aspirations.
Jim Hendry has a talented team with some question marks on it. But that team with Roy Halladay added to it can dominate a suspect NL Central. Payroll concerns can be tempered, as Aramis Ramirez can opt out of his contract after next season and his approximately $15 million salary could be gone. That money could then be earmarked for a new contract for Halladay, with one of the Cubs top prospects, third baseman Josh Vitters, expected to be ready by 2011.
So all you're really doing is taking a chance in raising the payroll for 2010 and trying to give the best fan base in baseball a championship.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Basically this has just repeated much of what we've discussed here over the last couple months. I find it interesting the Halladay would approve a trade here. I also find it interesting that JH was directed to blow the bank after 2006. I'm not sure I believe it 100% but it does make some sense.
