The Cost Of Looking Good (Guess These Players!!)

Let’s compare two players without revealing who they are until later, just so that I can surprise you with a point that surprised me. Both players are in their age 28 season and have been in the majors for 6 seasons. Player B’s first two seasons were better than Player A’s, but I am going to ignore that fact and look at the numbers for the last 4 seasons, including the current year.

My Stepson, My Lover film

Moondance Alexander move

OPS+
Player A: 120, 122, 111, 95
Player B: 125, 127, 92, 127

Doubles/Homers/RBI/Runs

Star Trek full movie

Player A: 142/65/283/311
Sukiyaki Western Django video
Player B: 98/95/281/317

Walks/K’s/Steals
Player A: 157/358/77
The Reign of Terror aka Black Book movies

• The Black Dahlia download

Player B: 329/479/7

Offensively, these two guys are very close. A closer look at the numbers suggests that Player B is the more valuable offensive player who had his numbers dragged down a bit by one poor year. As I mentioned above, if you include the first two seasons of their respective careers, it becomes clear that Player B has been the better hitter to this point. Defensively, Player B is rated by most metrics as an average fielder. Player A, on the other hand, is a gold glove caliber fielder. Due to the fairly close nature of their offensive output, this makes Player A the proper selection, but it is a very close call. However, one last comparison makes it clear that their value is perceived differently.

Salary:
Player A: In year 2 of a 7-year, 69.835 million dollar contract signed prior to the 2008 season, with a club option at 13.5 million for 2015.
Player B: In year 3 of a 5-year, 26.75 million dollar contract signed prior to the 2007 season, with a club option at 10.25 million for 2012.

Becoming Jane move

You may have already figured out that Player B is Nick Swisher. This comparison was spurred on by the following from Jeff Blair:

Anyhow, my sense is general manager J.P. Ricciardi’s all but at the bag of balls stage; that he’s decided any money saved in off-loading Rios or Wells is more important than what’s brought back in return, and that it would have been done by now had Travis Snider not been hurt. The Blue Jays are in danger of a serious revenue crunch that will impact their ability to do on-field business next year. Money’s not coming in, and Roy Halladay needs to be paid.

My Blue Heaven full movie

Player A is Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Alexis Rios. I set out to do a column on pursuing Rios and was surprised when I glanced at his numbers. As I noted above, Rios’ superior defense makes him the selection when choosing between the two players, but it is much closer than I would have expected. When considering the contracts, it is clear that either Swish is undervalued, Rios is overvalued, or some combination of the two.

Broken Windows psp This brings me to the point of my article. The money being paid to Rios is the premium for a player who looks good on the field. Rios looks like the most talented player in the world out there on a regular basis, and is therefore held in much higher esteem than the awkward Swisher. Quite frankly, the disparity in their contracts in ridiculous, and suggests that there are still market inefficiencies for smart teams to exploit. If clubs can get past what looks good and properly identify who produces more, they can avoid falling for tools and start paying for results.

Follow Me On Twitter