i really think he just didn't want to move
Earlier this year, my thesis advisor accused me of being a Barry Zito fangirl. (He was right, as people who hold doctorates from Harvard often are.)
My irrational fangirly love of #75 thus admitted, the seven-year, $126 million deal that he signed with the Giants today might just be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard of.
Yes, he's got a Cy Young award. Yes, he's got three All-Star appearances to his name. Yes, he led the A's rotation admirably over the last two years, and yes, he's, like, so totally adorable. But Zito's worth $7m or $8m a year, tops. With the free agent market being what it was this offseason, he could have reasonably commanded $11m. But $18m a year? Pedro Martinez has never topped $17.5m per, and he's Pedro Freaking Martinez.
This isn't meant as a knock on Zeet; it's a knock on the idiot who's actually willing to give him that much money. I've long maintained that Brian Sabean is one of the worst GMs in baseball today, and this goes a long way towards proving it. Not only does he drastically overpay for Zito, but he's wasting money -- the Giants are greyer than my premature Lily Munster streak (which I am currently ridding myself of, thanks to Miss Clairol), and they've got maybe one year before everything starts to break down. Zito will turn into the Miguel Tejada of the future -- an ex-Oakland player with a fat contract on a very bad team.
On a lighter note, I'd pay good money to witness the first clubhouse meeting between Barry Zito and Barry Bonds, almost as much money as I'd pay to see Beyonce Knowles and Tyra Banks engage in a fierce weave-off.
My irrational fangirly love of #75 thus admitted, the seven-year, $126 million deal that he signed with the Giants today might just be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard of.
Yes, he's got a Cy Young award. Yes, he's got three All-Star appearances to his name. Yes, he led the A's rotation admirably over the last two years, and yes, he's, like, so totally adorable. But Zito's worth $7m or $8m a year, tops. With the free agent market being what it was this offseason, he could have reasonably commanded $11m. But $18m a year? Pedro Martinez has never topped $17.5m per, and he's Pedro Freaking Martinez.
This isn't meant as a knock on Zeet; it's a knock on the idiot who's actually willing to give him that much money. I've long maintained that Brian Sabean is one of the worst GMs in baseball today, and this goes a long way towards proving it. Not only does he drastically overpay for Zito, but he's wasting money -- the Giants are greyer than my premature Lily Munster streak (which I am currently ridding myself of, thanks to Miss Clairol), and they've got maybe one year before everything starts to break down. Zito will turn into the Miguel Tejada of the future -- an ex-Oakland player with a fat contract on a very bad team.
On a lighter note, I'd pay good money to witness the first clubhouse meeting between Barry Zito and Barry Bonds, almost as much money as I'd pay to see Beyonce Knowles and Tyra Banks engage in a fierce weave-off.
posted by Suzie at 7:09 PM
3 Comments:
"The 28-year-old left-hander spent the last seven seasons across San Francisco Bay pitching with the Athletics, and staying in the area appeared to be a factor in his decision." - espn.com
Methinks you're right about Zito just flat-out not wanting to rent a U-Haul and load up the guitar, yoga mat, and assorted puka shell jewelry.
But, seriously. $126 million?! 126 million freaking dollars? I really like Zito, but come on.
Here's hoping his move across the bay does not replicate the rousing success of the rest of the Big Three in their post-Oakland careers. I hope the sarcasm was evident there?
All I know is that Scott Boras must have some serious blackmail material on a lot of GMs out there. Come to think of it, I wonder what he had on Theo that was worth over 12 billion Yen...
In an offseason that has seen an influx of ridiculous contracts, this doesn't surprise me. What does surprise me, however, is that Zito got himself the largest contract EVER for a pitcher yet he has just one 20-win season under his belt (and only three with more than 15 wins). Um... yeah.
This is the stupidest offseason in history. Just incredible. Also - notice the Yanks being somewhat fiscally responsible with the signing of Igawa. What is going on with this league?
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