Ibanez to Phillies

[Ex-hippie]

So long to a good guy, citizen, teammate and hitter. Best of luck and I'll be rooting for you.

We'll also miss your amazing lawn dart skills:



(Image courtesy of Lookout Landing.) In the NL, you'll be able to show that off full-time.

Oh, and thanks for the draft picks.

[BlackMamba]

i really liked ibañez and was the most "consistent" producer for the team in the last seasons... sigh...

[Ex-hippie]

:(
i really liked ibañez and was the most "consistent" producer for the team in the last seasons... sigh...

So did I, but I don't want to pay him $30 million for a contract that will take him to age 40 during a period when the M's probably won't contend anyway. And if we ever want to enhance the trade value of Washburn, Batista and Silva (or any other pitchers), should be happy with an Ibanez-less outfield of Chavez, Gutierrez and Ichiro. And don't forget those compensatory draft picks. All told, letting him go was absolutely the right thing for the franchise to do.

I especially can't believe how much money he's getting in what should be a buyer's market for good-hit, bad-glove outfielders. Ibanez is the least valuable of a group that includes Manny, Dunn, Burrell and Abreu. Did Burrell demand so much money that Philly thought giving $30m to Ibanez was a good deal? I would have waited out the market if I were Ruben Amaro.

[Basketball Jesus]

The one guy with worse defense than Burrell and the Phillies sign him.

His bat will play well there but his glove will negate any value he may have.

Still, it’s sad to see him go.

[Bulltalk]

Love the "lawn-darts" thing. LOL

"Say what, 31.5 million for Ibanez turning 37 next season?" Good for him, but Jesus Christ. I'm out of touch, evidently.

[Ex-hippie]

:(
i really liked ibañez and was the most "consistent" producer for the team in the last seasons... sigh...

I especially can't believe how much money he's getting in what should be a buyer's market for good-hit, bad-glove outfielders. Ibanez is the least valuable of a group that includes Manny, Dunn, Burrell and Abreu. Did Burrell demand so much money that Philly thought giving $30m to Ibanez was a good deal? I would have waited out the market if I were Ruben Amaro.

Just thought I'd bump this after Burrell wound up with fewer years, at a lower annual value, and in a better position (DH) than Ibanez. Wow. Milton Bradley also signed for approximately the same deal that Ibanez got, or perhaps for slightly less. I'd say this market is weakening and definitely believe that Ruben Amaro should have waited things out. This is like an auction rotisserie draft where it seems like all the best talent gets away from you early, but you can scoop up bargains at the end for $5.

Meanwhile, I think this market became more interesting for any buyer who wants a lefty power bat to DH -- teams like, oh, I don't know, any suggestions?

Anyway, the Rays -- Kazmir, Garza, Shields, Price, Sonnanstine, Balfour, Navarro, Pena, Iwamura, Bartlett, Longoria, Crawford, Upton, Joyce and Burrell (with Brignac waiting in the wings, Zobrist hanging around and Willy Aybar as a valuable chip) -- look really, really, really good for the foreseeable future. I'm looking for a weakness and am coming up with things like "well, maybe Sonnanstine isn't so great without that defense behind him" and "we haven't seen David Price dominate as a starter... yet," but that's the back of their rotation I'm talking about.

[Basketball Jesus]

Snicker all we want at the Phillies overpaying for Ibanez but you got to be happy for Ibanez. He got a big payday right before the market went and threw up all over itself. It’s always nice when it happens to the good guys.

[Ex-hippie]

Sure I'm happy for him. Although I think it's going to be a little bittersweet... when I try to think of cities where fans are very forgiving and don't mind if a player doesn't earn his salary and isn't as good as the player he replaced, Philadelphia isn't the first place that comes to mind. He'll enjoy the money but he might have a rough time there.