Thoughts on O’s coming up short in V-Mart sweepstakes
Reports indicate Victor Martinez is going to sign a 4 year, $50 million deal with the Detroit Tigers. Other offers on the table included a 3 year, $48 million offer from the White Sox, and a 4 year, $48 million offer form the Baltimore Orioles.
Victor Martinez is a guy that Orioles fans have heard rumblings about even before the 2010 season came to a close. He could have played 1B for the O’s, while also backing up C Matt Wieters, potentially eliminating the need to carry a backup catcher.
Browsing various message boards, some fans are upset that the Orioles did not offer a bit more for Martinez to get him to Baltimore, while some insist that Martinez wouldn’t even be worth the $48 million that the O’s offered him.
The notion that Martinez isn’t worth the money is one that I really do not care too much about regarding this situation. Andy MacPhail has been saving money ever since his arrival in 2007, waiting patiently for the time when the young core was developed enough for him to open up the checkbook and go for it. They’ve been waiting for years to “release the spears.”
Clearly, it’s a positive that Andy MacPhail and Buck Showalter feel that this team is close enough to start offering major money for major free agents. It is an even bigger positive that they acted on that thought and offered Victor Martinez a deal that was very competitive with his other offers.
Of course, the negative in these negotiations is that the Orioles simply offered a competitive offer, rather than the winning offer. In fact, of those three offers, the offer from the Orioles was the worst.
Now, I am not someone who supports recklessly throwing around big-time money on the free agent market. I’ve made it very clear that I feel the best way to build a team is through trades and development.
That being said, the core has arrived. The young core that Andy MacPhail has successfully assembled is ready to win, but they can not do so without being supplemented. Given these circumstances, some of the monetary cautiousness and restrictions have to go away.
Giving Victor Martinez this deal wouldn’t have been smart after 2007, 2008, or even 2009. But with Martinez added to the mix, assuming that the O’s are targeting other pieces as well, there is no reason why the Orioles cannot be a winning team for what would be the duration of Martinez’s contract.
If I am Andy MacPhail, and I identify Martinez as someone who I feel the Orioles need on their team, I am not settling at that 4/48 offer. I’m offering him 3/51 or 4/56.
All of the money that Andy MacPhail has saved is ready to be spent. Overpaying his main targets that he feels will get the O’s over the hump is not a bad thing.
For the Orioles at this point in time, overpaying is a good thing.
That doesn’t mean I want them to offer Cliff Lee $200 million or trade Chris Tillman for Carlos Beltran.
I want Buck Showalter and Andy MacPhail to identify what exactly the Orioles need. I want them to identify who they feel are the best fits, and I want them to do what it takes to get them.
No more settling for secondary, cheaper options. No more competitive offers.
Identify the target, and bring them to Baltimore. Period.
The money is there. The core is developed. Contracts for Brian Roberts and NickMarkakis are evolving. Service time for Adam Jones and the young pitchers is ticking by the second.
MacPhail and Showalter obviously felt that Victor Martinez was a key target. They wanted him.
There is no excuse why the Orioles could not offer Martinez a deal that beat both the Tigers and White Sox offers.
It’s about time this organization showed the fans that they are serious about bringing big-time talent to Baltimore. Until they do, this team will never legitimately compete in the American League East.
Until MacPhail proves otherwise, this offer to Martinez is nothing more than the token offer they made to Mark Teixeira two offseasons ago.
O’s fans are tired of entering these races, only to fall well short of the finish line.
They’re ready to win.
