On the heels of my post about the Minnestoa Twins achieving the perfect balance of winning and thriftiness, I read this. Justin Morneau, the reigning MVP, who turns just 26 in May, who hit .321 with 34 homeruns and 130 RBI last year, who is no doubt an integral part of the Twins' future (along with Joe Mauer, Johan Santana, and to a lesser extent Joe Nathan), signed a one-year deal for $4.5 million dollars.
In the words of Porky Pig, "That's all folks."I know it's arbitration, not free agency. But the fact that he only asked for $5M, the fact that the Twins wouldn't even give him that, and the fact that Morneau actually agreed to take less, blows my mind.
To put this contract into perspective, here's a starting lineup and a few pitchers who make a whole lot more than will make in '07.
C Jason Kendall $11.6M
1B Mike Sweeney $11.0M
2B Kaz Matsui $8.1M (the Rockies aren't laughing)
SS Edgar Renteria $10.0M
3B Adrian Beltre $12.9M
OF JD Drew $11.4M
OF Luis Gonzalez $10.7M
OF Shawn Green $10.2M
SP Andy Pettitte $16.4M
SP Randy Johnson $15.6M
SP Mike Hampton $14.5M
SP Javier Vazquez $12.0M
RP Eric Gagne $10.0M
Ouch for the A's, Royals, Rockies, Braves, Mariners, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Braves (agian), White Sox, and Rangers. What I find interesting about this list is that, with the exception of Mike Sweeney, every single guy will get this outrageous amount of money because they signed a big free agent contract. That really shows the value of being able to build from within, like Minnesota has, rather than having to build from without (via free agency) where you have to outbid and ultimately overpay for players who simply aren't worth it.
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