Oakland A's tell MVP he's gone

[Guest oldschoolwrestling]

A's about to let another star leave town

March 15, 2003

By Scott Miller

SportsLine.com Senior Writer

 

 

 

 

 

PHOENIX -- The paupers took the offensive Saturday. Oakland A's owner Steve Schott simply threw his arms in the air and gave up.

 

No long, slow kiss this time followed by a cold slap in the face, like he got from Jason Giambi in 2000. No romancing. No fuss and no muss.

 

Just one big white flag flapping in the spring breeze.

 

 

Miguel Tejada has said he wants to stay in Oakland, but the A's can't afford to sign him.(Getty Images)

"I just think the world of him," Schott said of Miguel Tejada, Oakland's MVP shortstop. "The problem is there's absolutely no way we can sign Miguel to a long-term contract."

 

So the Miguel Tejada contract negotiations ended before they even started. The Athletics are poised to watch a second MVP step into the George Jefferson Express Elevator ("Movin' on up!") in four seasons.

 

And little of it makes sense.

 

I mean, while Oakland general manager Billy Beane had some informal conversations Tejada's agent, Pat Rooney, the A's say they never made a formal offer to Tejada. And Tejada says his side never made a formal offer to the Athletics.

 

They all kind of agreed to agree that Tejada was way too expensive for Oakland's Kmart budget without ever exchanging figures. (Estimates were that it would take something like eight-to-10 years starting at $10 million per to sign him.)

 

Then Schott makes this public pronouncement roughly eight months before Tejada will become a free agent.

 

What if things change between now and October?

 

What if the chill free agents experienced this winter frosts next winter as well, and there aren't as many dollars thrown at Tejada as expected?

 

What if Tejada decides he can't exist away from Jack London Square and offers as close to a five-finger discount as the A's could ever expect to get?

 

What if Oakland wins the lottery?

 

"I think, as much as anything, this is more of a testament to a player of Miguel Tejada's ability," Beane said during Oakland's 3-1 Cactus League victory over Seattle. "That taking a negotiating stance with a player of Miguel's caliber would be difficult in any market, let alone in Oakland.

 

"Our team has been fortunate to be successful, and sometimes there is a misperception when you have success, that sometimes you'll be able to go beyond your means."

 

This must be what Montreal was like in the mid-1990s. Superior talent. Inferior finances.

 

No. 1 in your hearts, and No. 1 in the export business.

 

This was one of the strangest news days you'll ever see in spring training this side of a David Wells book release party. Schott said he didn't make an offer because he didn't want to "insult" Tejada, and he spoke of how he thinks the world of his shortstop.

 

Then he met with Tejada just before game-time, first expressing concern that the shortstop would be "unhappy and hurt."

 

Or, perhaps, even ... disappointed?

 

"No, no, absolutely not," a personable Tejada said when he met with reporters after exiting the game. "That's business. I'm going to keep playing this year hard. He might change his mind."

 

As we were saying, perhaps if Schott hits a hot streak at the Las Vegas craps tables....

 

"We have this whole year. He might change his mind," Tejada said. "I'm going to keep playing like always. It's not my decision.

 

 

Jason Giambi won the 2000 MVP with the A's, and two years later he was a Yankee.(Getty Images)

"I would love to be here, but there's nothing I can do."

 

The thinking in some circles Saturday was that the Athletics were taking charge to prevent a replay of the Giambi sale, in which some thought they came across as the bad guys who waited until the very last minute before delivering an insulting offer to the 2000 MVP. Or, that by making this announcement now, the Athletics hope to put pressure on the city of Oakland to consider building them a new stadium.

 

Others wondered if perhaps this wasn't some sort of negotiating ploy by Schott, seeing as how Tejada has expressed a strong desire to remain in Oakland. You know, kind of the "Let's yank the rug out from under him early, and perhaps we can scare him into taking a lowball offer" variety.

 

"As long as a player is here, there's always that chance," Beane said, holding out at least a glimmer of hope. "At that point, though, I'd defer to Steve's statements and try not to stray too far from those."

 

One of Schott's statements Saturday: "We could lose two MVPs in two years to the system. Sure, it (ticks) me off."

 

Let's focus for a moment on the word "could."

 

Notice, Schott didn't say "We will lose two MVPs in two years to the system...."

 

The point is, right now, this is like projecting Al Gore to win a presidential election based on the Florida returns. The night is still young, and stranger things have happened.

 

The Athletics, who have been conditioned to this sort of news over the past few seasons, nevertheless were shocked -- probably at the timing as much as anything. Gold Glove third baseman Eric Chavez called Tejada's impending departure "bigger" than Giambi's. And Cy Young winner Barry Zito was telling me earlier this week that the storm clouds on the horizon worried him.

 

"We realize that the window (of opportunity for this group) is closing, obviously, with the possibility that Miggy could be gone." Zito said. "We're going to really focus on capitalizing. This could be the last year for this group. We don't have many more chances after this year if we lose Miggy.

 

"I mean, we're still going to be great, but to lose an MVP guy, that would be tough."

 

Tough, maybe, but in today's AL, it's become business as usual. To find the last freshly minted AL MVP to play more than three seasons with a team after winning the award, you have to go all the way back to 1993 and 1994, when Frank Thomas of the Chicago White Sox won it.

 

After that ... Boston's Mo Vaughn won in 1995 and was in Anaheim by 1999. Texas' Juan Gonzalez won in 1996 and again in 1998 and was in Detroit by 2000. Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr. won in 1997 and was in Cincinnati by 2000. Texas' Ivan Rodriguez won in 1999 and is in Florida this year. And Giambi won in 2000 and was wearing Yankees pinstripes by 2001.

 

As it stands, Tejada now is on course to join that exclusive Samsonite Club.

 

He expressed appreciation for Schott's honesty and said he wouldn't close the door on anything right now -- even a one-year deal ("Depends," he said. "Maybe."). Asked about potential landing spots, he said -- attention, New York tabloids! -- he wouldn't mind a reunion with Mets manager Art Howe.

 

Mostly, though, he said what he needs to do is focus on producing in 2003.

 

"Now I've got to prepare to play a very good year," said Tejada, who will make $5 million this year. "That's not because I want to go somewhere. I'm going to play hard because this is the year I think we can go to the World Series. If they go to the World Series, I want to be here with them."

[Guest alkeiper]

I've got the script figured out by now. The A's lose one of their stars, the media over-reacts, much hand-wrangling is made about how small market teams "can't compete," Oakland patches the departure quickly and efficiently (with Bobby Crosby in this case) and the A's win another 100 games. They're angling to spend their money on Chavez next season.

[Guest ant_7000]

Im sure the A's can get some compensation for Miguel in a trade for some young players.

[Guest bps "The Truth" 21]

I don't know if they can trade him. Unless the team bombs right out of the gate they should be in the hunt for the division title. They'd be stuck with him until he's unrestricted.

 

When does Eric Chavez' contract come up? Because I'll bet good money he wins the MVP the year before.

[Guest alkeiper]

Knowing the A's, they'll pick up draft picks as compensation like they always do.

[Bored 0]

I don't know if they can trade him. Unless the team bombs right out of the gate they should be in the hunt for the division title. They'd be stuck with him until he's unrestricted.

 

When does Eric Chavez' contract come up? Because I'll bet good money he wins the MVP the year before.

Chavez is a free agent after 2004 and I bet he will have his breakout year this year and long term I think he will be better than Tejada. The A's will probably end up keeping Chavez if he wants to stay because Jermaine Dye, who makes $11 million each of the next two seasons, will also be a free agent then so they'll let Dye go and then they'll have money to keep Chavez. But after that Tim Hudson is a free agent after 2005 and Barry Zito and Mark Mulder after 2006. The A's are a low revenue club but they also have an owner who refuses to do that little bit of extra spending to keep this club together and is doing all he can to get the A's out of Oakland. The A's REALLY need to win it all this year because this may be there best chance for years to come after the team starts to be broken up.

[Guest NoCalMike]

First off, the offer to Giambi was not insulting, it was for 90 f'n million dollars. Giambi's agent just didn't want the A's to be able to trade Giambi in the final year or two of the contract if the A's happened to be a bad team, so they could reel in like 2-3 players for him.

 

Bottomline is, can Tejada make more money in NY/LA/ATL/etc...yes. Could he still make millions in Oakland, YES. This is what boggles my mind about profressional athletes in america. They are making millions either way, yet they get so emotional over ANOTHER 2 million. Azif if 90 million dollars was ANYTHING for Giambi to complain about. Before I read this story, all indications seemed to point to Tejada desperately wanting to stay with this group of guys in Oakland. Maybe the money bug has hit even him.

[Guest NoCalMike]

Oh and as far as Eric Chavez goes. Well, the guy doesn't stink or anything, but everyone has been predicting the last 2 years that he was gonna break out. Right when Giambi left, everyone put their faith in Chavez to step up rather than Tejada. It was the other way around. So I would be overjoyed if Chavez finally lived up to his potential.

[Guest The Czech Republic]

On all this small-market stuff...

 

How are the A's a small-market team? The Bay Area of S.F., Oakland, and San Jose is like the 5th largest metropolitan area, at about 7 million. Chicago at 11 million can support two, the Bay Area can too.

[Guest Crazy Dan]

What I think the A's will do is spend all their money on their pitching staff. As long as you have good pitching, then you will always be a contender. For all the money you might spend on Tejada and Giambi, you could sign Zito, Hudson, and Mulder to long term deals. Also, a big problem with the A's is that they have poor attendence year in and year out. When a team can't bring in the revenue, they have a problem usually keeping their talent.

[Guest Phr33k]

Well shit, it's Montreal all over again.

[Guest NoCalMike]

Small market has a lot to do with revenue generated. Also, since baseball has no salary cap, a team is a small market club if the owner simply can't afford to pay 200million for one player.

[Guest treble charged]

I think 'small market' is a bit of a misnomer, though. 'Low revenue' probably is a better discription.

[Guest alkeiper]

Oh and as far as Eric Chavez goes. Well, the guy doesn't stink or anything, but everyone has been predicting the last 2 years that he was gonna break out. Right when Giambi left, everyone put their faith in Chavez to step up rather than Tejada. It was the other way around. So I would be overjoyed if Chavez finally lived up to his potential.

 

The last two years, Chavez has topped 30 HRs and 100 RBIs, along with superior defense. On top of that, he's still two years away from his prime years.

 

The thing with the Athletics is that they don't NEED a high payroll. They use their terrific scouting and player development to bring up players, let them go when they get expensive, and take the compensation draft picks to keep the minor leagues stocked. The scary thing is that they have pitching prospect Rich Harden in AAA, and he could turn Oakland's big 3 into Oakland's big 4 by next year.

 

Thing is with Oakland is over the last 4 years, they've won 87, 91, 102, and 103 games. That's outstanding, and even if they break apart in 3 years, they've still been one of the best teams ever.

[Guest phoenixrising]

First off, the offer to Giambi was not insulting, it was for 90 f'n million dollars. Giambi's agent just didn't want the A's to be able to trade Giambi in the final year or two of the contract if the A's happened to be a bad team, so they could reel in like 2-3 players for him.

 

Bottomline is, can Tejada make more money in NY/LA/ATL/etc...yes. Could he still make millions in Oakland, YES. This is what boggles my mind about profressional athletes in america. They are making millions either way, yet they get so emotional over ANOTHER 2 million. Azif if 90 million dollars was ANYTHING for Giambi to complain about. Before I read this story, all indications seemed to point to Tejada desperately wanting to stay with this group of guys in Oakland. Maybe the money bug has hit even him.

I think that the size of the contract becomes a status issue to many players, and they can't stand it when someone else is making more than they are. So even though they will make millions either way their competitive spirit gets the best of them and they try to ante up higher and higher contracts.

[Guest oldschoolwrestling]

First off, the offer to Giambi was not insulting, it was for 90 f'n million dollars.  Giambi's agent just didn't want the A's to be able to trade Giambi in the final year or two of the contract if the A's happened to be a bad team, so they could reel in like 2-3 players for him.

 

Bottomline is, can Tejada make more money in NY/LA/ATL/etc...yes.  Could he still make millions in Oakland, YES.  This is what boggles my mind about profressional athletes in america.  They are making millions either way, yet they get so emotional over ANOTHER 2 million.  Azif if 90 million dollars was ANYTHING for Giambi to complain about.  Before I read this story, all indications seemed to point to Tejada desperately wanting to stay with this group of guys in Oakland.  Maybe the money bug has hit even him.

I think that the size of the contract becomes a status issue to many players, and they can't stand it when someone else is making more than they are. So even though they will make millions either way their competitive spirit gets the best of them and they try to ante up higher and higher contracts.

I was listening to Bay Area sports talk yesterday and Tom Tolbert, who does a local radio show in addition to doing NBA games, said he talked to Giambi about the situation. Giambi told him that he had a huge dinner party planned with his agent, his parents and Billy Beane to celebrate the signing of his $90 million contract and then Beane called him before the party to tell him the A's weren't going through with it because of the no-trade clause. The man was happy to resign with the team and the team basically knew they didn't want to pay that much and sabotaged the deal. This time around they basically aren't going to lie to the fans and are saying straight up that they can't afford him.

[Guest Vern Gagne]

Thing is with Oakland is over the last 4 years, they've won 87, 91, 102, and 103 games. That's outstanding, and even if they break apart in 3 years, they've still been one of the best teams ever.

Best teams ever? With the lack of postseason successs, I'd say they've had a nice regular season run.

 

Maybe the A's should move out of Oakland. They couldn't even sell out Game 5 of the ALDS. Move to San Jose.

[Guest oldschoolwrestling]

Move to San Jose.

If they move 50 miles away isn't it the same fans who decide to go to the games or not? I agree they need a new ballpark but come playoff time new park or not, you've got to support your team.

[Guest alkeiper]

The A's had an inane ticket structure which really priced them out of their own market. I know a lot of people who thought it was simply too expensive.

[Guest Vern Gagne]

You'll likely get some of the same people, but 50 miles will likely bring new fans.

 

What does Oakland charge for tickets.

[Guest treble charged]

Here's their ticket prices, taken from their website.

[Guest Vern Gagne]

That doesn't seem that bad. Although watching it on TV, it looks like the upper deck doesn't have that great a view of the field.

[Guest alkeiper]

That's regular season. Playoff tickets went for around $30 for the cheap seats, IIRC.