Still no contact between parties. Not that there's a set window to this, and we were told that they'd only sit down and try to hammer something out somewhere within a span of several weeks, but when Alan Nero said there's "no urgency," he wasn't kidding.
I'm not concerned that the Mariners are somehow undervaluing their star pitcher, or that they don't much care to keep him around. Nobody is more aware of how good Felix is than the people who employ him. Thought it might be a new front office, it's a new front office that's been around long enough to see Felix pitch like a legitimate ace at the age of 23. They get it. They know how to recognize a good talent, a good WAR, or a good repertoire when they see it, and they know what the package is worth.
No, the reason I'm concerned is that this is just the latest bit of evidence to the suggestion that the new M's have done little to foster a connection with their stud. Sometimes it's not enough to want a guy to stick around. Sometimes you have to let the player know how important he is and how highly he's valued. You know how, even in the most committed relationships, it's better to say "I love you" too much than too little? This is kind of like that. Felix knows that he might be the face of the franchise, but he could be the face of a lot of franchises, and to date the M's haven't done enough to make themselves more than just one of 30 teams. They're the organization with which he signed and the organization with which he blossomed, but they haven't worked to strengthen that bond, and it's hard to expect someone to be loyal to you when you've given little indication that you're loyal to him.
Sometime before too long, the Mariners and Nero will sit down, and the M's will present what they feel is a fair and competitive contract extension. Of that there's no doubt in my mind. I just wonder what effect all this is going to have. It may not mean anything. Nero's an agent and both he and Felix understand that, more than anything else, baseball's a business. If presented with a good offer, they may jump at the chance to get Felix his money. It's just that...generally speaking, you want both sides in a negotiation to be in a positive state of mind, and to be honest, I'd understand if Felix is feeling a little bit bitter.
This whole situation just sucks.
0 recs | 50 comments
Jack needs to give Felix...
a personal fluffer
basebliman - October 30, 2009
I can be that man.
EnglishMariner - October 30, 2009
Robert would like to have a word with you.
He’s out through the back door.
JLProck - October 31, 2009
Don't teams normally hold off on big announcements until after the playoffs?
That might be why it’s so quiet.
pdb - October 30, 2009
They should still be talking to Felix
Apparently they’re not
Graham MacAree - October 30, 2009
I will stab.
royalcurve - October 30, 2009
how exactly do we know that?
this front office is pretty tight lipped
basebliman - October 30, 2009
Yeah but there are insiders who have some access to what the organization is doing behind the scenes that provide this information
And them not hearing a peep so far is not really a good sign that the org is pursuing this with as much vigor as they should be (in my view at least).
OlSalty - October 30, 2009
Two parties are involved in these talks
Graham MacAree - October 31, 2009
I just don't understand
why they wouldn’t be doing everything they can to communicate with Felix right now. It may not be urgent to Nero, but it should be pretty damn urgent to the M’s.
stupidquestions - October 30, 2009
I think it's business as usual.
At this time last year, Jack wasn’t making any deals either.
Janic - October 30, 2009
This time last year, Jack had been in charge for about 7 days.
CapSea - October 30, 2009
Jeff and I disagree about how important this is, I think
I don’t think it matters. I’m not even sure that developing a loving relationship between team and player is a good idea – it certainly makes it seem like much more of a betrayal when you decide it finally is time to move on, and with 99.9% of all players, there is certainly a time to move on at some point in their career.
Would Felix maybe be 0.001% more likely to re-sign if Jack were sending him hug-o-grams everyday? Maybe. And maybe other players would be 0.001% less likely to sign here after they saw the way that Raul Ibanez was low-balled and replaced with a fourth outfielder, but we all think that was handled the right way, I’d imagine.
In the end, if the M’s offer him enough money, he’ll sign. If they don’t, he won’t. And how many times Jack called in October just won’t really matter.
davidcameron - October 30, 2009
Wow. THE dave cameron crossing over...
You’re making me cry here. But, in many ways, you’re right.
But also, in many ways, I don’t want you to be.
sirbrianwilson - October 30, 2009
Really? I definitely want him to be right.
Because if he is, then this not-talking-to-Felix stuff isn’t anything to worry about. And I love the combination of “Felix” and “isn’t anything to worry about.”
stupidquestions - October 30, 2009
Dave comes here sometimes to get away from the morons who post on Fangraphs.
The Typical Idiot Fan - October 30, 2009
Yeah, it's not that rare to see Dave here.
Now, seeing DMZ post on LL, that’s a much rarer thing.
urchman - October 31, 2009
There is that other little thing, a World Series ring, that all ace pitchers would like to have
to mark their careers. When it comes time to become a FA, they take that in to consideration to try to sign with a competitive team that makes it into the post season and has a chance at winning a WS. It is one thing rich ball players can’t buy with all that money.
44FAN - October 30, 2009
Like why A-Rod signed with Texas
Unless players are in the twilight of their careers and want to win a WS on the way out, $$ trumps pretty much everything else.
CMC_Stags - October 30, 2009
I waver back and forth on whether or not it really matters
Where I think we’d see it manifest is in the money. Failure to develop a stronger bond will make Felix less likely to settle for a lower price. Which, in return, reduces the probability of his re-signing, even if only by a little bit.
It’s not a huge factor, but in this particular case, I do believe it’s a factor.
Jeff Sullivan - October 31, 2009
Maybe there is just no realistic chance that he settles for a lower price and the front office knows it?
They may not have had serious contract discussions with him yet, but maybe they have some idea of the ballpark offer he is looking for and they either commit to paying a lot for him now or wait to see if a trade offer materializes that they feel would be more beneficial for the team in the long-run than committing to that ballpark figure, one that is better than those already offered.
That’s my crazy conspiracy theory.
OlSalty - October 31, 2009
Reading it again this doesn't make a whole lot of sense
So I’ll just say that I want Felix signed and I want him signed as soon as humanly possible and I don’t much like periods of time going by where he is not signed.
OlSalty - October 31, 2009
Correct me if I am wrong
but didn’t Felix take the Mariners lower offer instead of the Yankees or Braves because he felt like they respected him and cultivated their relationship with him better than the other teams?
Robert - October 31, 2009
As reported by Larry Stone
that’s what Hernandez said.
I tend to think a minority of players care about their clubhouse/their fanbase/how they like their team etc, a larger number care about being on a competitive team, and the majority care about money first. Whichever category Felix falls into I don’t think there’s that much harm in cultivating a good atmosphere.
ChristopherA - October 31, 2009
Beltre too paid lip service to signing with the Ms over the Dodgers because, in part,
of how he felt wanted by Seattle. And in turn, A-Rod has mentioned how he felt the Ms never acted like they cared about him after 2000.
Just PR fluff? Maybe.
Matthew - October 31, 2009
Maybe Felix isn't a robot like you, Dave.
Maybe he wants a little lovin’ now and then. You ever think about that?
But maybe it doesn’t have to come from Jack and Co. Maybe we, as fans, should each buy Felix a nice bouquet of flowers and a teddy bear and send it to him. I think he’d like that, and it’d probably help him feel appreciated.
JLProck - October 31, 2009
Obviously Dave has Lost That Lovin' Feeling.
Slurvey - October 31, 2009
Aw, come on!
I hate it when he does that.
JLProck - October 31, 2009
Soundtrack for the offseason:
“Never can say goodbye” by Jackson 5. I got it blasting now with my fingers crossed…
sirbrianwilson - October 30, 2009
.
=(
seattlebruin - October 30, 2009
Even after reading this post, it hasn't occurred to me that I should be concerned in the least bit. Something great will come out of this
I’m waiting for the cavalry, which will be coming directly This is what I think of when I think of Zduriencik these days.
Kermit. - October 30, 2009
I dont think it means much that we havent heard any news about a felix deal.
I doubt they would announce this kind of thing during the World Series anyway. And I trust Zduriencik, he is not goign to screw this up in any way.
ARock - October 30, 2009
This post was about that the M's haven't contacted Felix, not that they haven't signed him
seattlebruin - October 31, 2009
How do we actually know that they havent contacted him?
ARock - October 31, 2009
You'll have to trust Jeff on that.
Matthew - October 31, 2009
You do realize that preparing us for if he is traded isn't going to prevent the apocaLLyspe from occuring if it happens right?
Goose - October 30, 2009
We've survived the trading away of several icons so ultimately this shouldn't be too different
Poochie - October 30, 2009
We were happy when Betancourt got traded
seattlebruin - October 31, 2009
If Betancourt was an icon, then he was a green frowny face with its tongue sticking out.
JLProck - October 31, 2009
Some of us were happy when Betancourt got traded
Robert - October 31, 2009
Indeed. Some of us were happy when Betancourt got traded
Matthew - October 31, 2009
Indeed
Poochie - October 31, 2009
Some of us were ecstatic.
Sec 108 - November 2, 2009
If he is traded, it'll all depend on what we get for him.
If we get enough, I’ll be happy. He is my 2nd favorite mariner right now (after Guti), but I’d rather have a playoff team than have any particular player.
ARock - October 31, 2009
Are we guessing how Felix feels or do we actually know?
ThundaPC - October 31, 2009
I don't like to post guesses
Jeff Sullivan - October 31, 2009
: *< (
OlSalty - October 31, 2009
After waiting on pins and needles for months on end during the '07-'08 offseason to see what would become of Adam Jones and Erik Bedard
I’m resigned to accepting that whatever happens, happens. If Felix returns with a huge contract, I’m thrilled that we get to keep him. If he’s shipped to Boston for a boatload of prospects, then great; I’m sure whatever return we get will be exciting.
katal - October 31, 2009
The only good thing about this is that
if Felix doesn’t resign, he’s still got long enough with the team to make packages for him START at what the Phillies offered for Halladay and hopefully get enough bidding on him to maybe get the moon for him on a three-team deal that gets the Mariners a boatload of prospects from TWO teams.
Craig341 - October 31, 2009
We really don't want prospects for Felix
we want three Franklin Gutierrezes
seattlebruin - November 1, 2009
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