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Thursday October 27, 2011

MLB reports – Jonathan Hacohen:  An interesting news story caught my eye today.  Scott Boras, agent to superstar second baseman Robinson Cano, contacted the New York Yankees to discuss renegotiating Cano’s contract.  Cano signed a 4-year contract for $30 million, with a $14 million option in 2012 and $15 million in 2013.  A fair chunk of change in my estimation.  After successfully tweaking the Francisco Rodriguez contract upon his trade to Milwaukee, Boras is back at it again.  This time, he would like for the Yankees to rip up the team options for Cano and negotiate a new contract. 

After a down year in 2008, Cano has been climbing since to upper-ranks of baseball stardom.  This past season was one of Cano’s finest.  Cano hit 28 home runs with 118 RBIs, 104 runs scored, batting .302 with a .349 OBP and .533 SLG.  Fantastic numbers, without a doubt.  The only blemish in my estimation is the continued knock on Robinson.  He only walked 38 times while striking out a career high 96 times.  For Cano to reach the next level, his BB/K ratio will need to reach the next level.  But considering his overall numbers, the Yankees will live with Cano if he maintains his current levels.  The secret for Cano is that he plays a premium position (2B) and is young (29).  For an aging Yankees, Cano is a building block for the next 5 seasons.  The question is whether he is worth locking up at this point.

I don’t fault Scott Boras for attempting to get Cano a bigger contract at this point.  A down year could easily cost Cano tens of millions of dollars.  Cano is also comfortable in New York and the Yankees fans love him.  Boras is counting on the hometown team wanting to lock up its own rather than risk losing him to free agency down the road.  Scott Boras making such a call is a smart move- he is doing his job.  I am unsure if the timing is right though on this move.  We are entering a tricky time in baseball.  The Yankees were burnt by Alex Rodriguez in the past when he opted out of his contract and essentially forced the team to give him an exorbitant contract that has turned sour quickly.  The Yankees are facing the same dilemma with staff ace, C.C. Sabathia.  The big man can opt out of his Yankees deal soon and word is that he is looking for a bigger share of the pie from the Yankees to stay put.  The Yankees, in making the decision on Sabathia, are thinking to the past decision they made on A-Rod.  There are parallels to the scenarios and the team may not be so keen on pulling out the wallet this time around.  With the uncertainty and bad feelings surrounding the upcoming Sabathia decision, the last thing the team wanted or needed was the Cano headache.  The team knew that they could retain their player for 2 further seasons and delay contract talks for some time.  Demanding a new contract at this juncture may not be seen as favorable by the team’s brass.

On the other hand, Boras may have picked the perfect time to talk turkey with the Yankees.  Aside from the Sabathia decision, the Yankees have to decide whether to pick up the option on Nick Swisher.  Boras may have sensed that by waiting to bring up Cano’s contract, the Yankees may have proceeded to lock up Sabathia and retained Swisher, as well as signed a free agent or two.  By then, the team’s budget (yes, they do have one contrary to reports) would be squeezed and Cano would have been put on hold.  By raising the issue now, Boras may be trying to grab the wallet while the dollar bills are still warm.  An interesting strategy and one that may not be unreasonable.

No matter where this saga leads, we now one thing is certain.  Robinson Cano will be a New York Yankee for at least 2 more seasons- and likely longer.  I would like to raise the point that when an athlete like Cano is playing well, the player and agent have no issue trying to renegotiate terms and grab more money.  But when a player is playing poorly, he will usually have no problems to continuing collecting his paycheque no matter how large the contract with no refunds to the team.  The only exception is Kenji Johjima, who left millions of dollars on the table in Seattle to return to Japan, as he felt his play did not justify his pay.  A rare, honourable move by a classy individual, but definitely the exception to the rule.  Instead, we are in a different age of baseball.   Even general managers (see Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer), are moving on to new teams and bigger contracts despite having existing contracts in place with their old teams.  If management can break their commitments, surely players can as well. 

As much as we all love baseball, it is first and foremost a business.  Robinson Cano and Scott Boras are doing what is best for the player in this case.  In other years, I could see how the Yankees could give in to such a request.  But considering the blunder of the A-Rod deal and the issues surrounding Sabathia in his opt-out, my feeling has enough on its plate without worrying about Cano’s contract status.  I expect Robinson Cano to have at least one of his option years picked him.  Perhaps the Yankees will renegotiate with him in 2012 or wait until he becomes a free agent.  The dollars will come to Robinson Cano.  Just not in the timing that he and his agent hope.  At some point I would like to see players honor their contracts and let their play do the talking.  With solid numbers on the field, the contracts will inevitably follow.  But in the “pay me now” age that we live in, news of Cano’s request should come as no surprise.  But answer me this:  what is the point of signing long-term contracts if they rarely work?  One side will either want more money or the other side will end up regretting it.  Rarely are there two happy parties by the time the big deals are all said and done.   If Cano gets out of his deal because he deserves more money, can the Red Sox get out of their contract with John Lackey because they overpaid?  Welcome to the strange economics that is Major League Baseball.     

Jonathan Hacohen is the Lead Baseball Columnist & Editor for MLB reports

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