Will others follow Ryan?
Jays still chasing starter Burnett and slugger Giles ‘You’ve got to be impressed,’ says outfielder’s agent
It’s safe to say A. J. Burnett and Brian Giles — free agents everywhere, for that matter — duly noted yesterday’s Blue Jay signing of pricey closer B. J. Ryan. But does it get Burnett and Giles, two more Blue Jay prime targets, any closer to Toronto as well? General manager J. P. Ricciardi can only hope.
“ We’ve called their agents to let them know what we’re up to . . . keep them in the loop,” said Ricciardi at the presser that formally, finally introduced this landmark acquisition.
“ We’re still talking. How close we are, I couldn’t answer that. You never know how close you are until you get that final call.”
Like the one they got from Ryan’s representatives heading into the weekend. The five years and $47 million ( all figures U. S.) would be fine, thank you very much.
Naturally, other team executives are in an uproar — the cost of doing business going up several notches across the board. Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports. com
even quotes one as saying, “It’s so shocking, it’s almost laughable.”
Ricciardi could see this coming — Ryan could, too — but, given that he fully intends to stay within a budget that’s expected to fall between $70 million and $75 million, felt it really nobody else’s business how the Jays spent their new- found cash.
“ It’s a by- product of our industry,” said Ricciardi. “ We’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t. If it wasn’t us, it’d be somebody else.
“ You also have to take into account that you have to get what you can get when you can get it and, for us, if we waited on this guy and (Billy) Wagner signs first, we probably don’t get this guy.” But the Jays came out fast and hard and, now, all manner of dominoes may begin to topple.
“ Generally speaking, when you look at what the Blue Jays are trying to do here, you’ve got to be impressed,” said Joe Bicks, agent for the outfielder Giles, soon to officially become an exPadre. “ They’ve got a plan, they’re in the process of executing it, we know they’re good people and everybody knows Toronto’s a gorgeous city. Where does this all fit for us? I can tell you Toronto’s getting serious consideration.” Added Ricciardi: “ People have to remember that Paul Molitor and Jack Morris and some other great free agents chose Toronto at one time. Maybe this ( Ryan) is the start of a bunch of guys following.” Darek Braunecker, agent for Burnett, the one- time Florida Marlin fireballer, could not be reached for comment but, word is, Toronto has scored ample points here, too. Burnett, however, still pursued by seven or eight teams, likely won’t sign before next week’s winter meetings in Dallas.
Ricciardi would dearly love to have another piece in place by then — more likely, Giles — but, in any case, now has some pitching to deal, a prime candidate for this being last year’s closer, Miguel Batista.
“ It’s a nice thing to have,” said Ricciardi. “ When you look at all the clubs trying to acquire pitching, maybe those clubs that don’t get some of the things they want now come on your radar. This will be the first winter meetings we’ve gone to with a chance to do a lot of things as opposed to just maybe one or two.”
Other dominoes?
Well, how about Ricciardi talking about staying beyond the contract that runs out after 2007? How about Jays revisiting the four- year, $42- million extension Roy Halladay got after his Cy Young 2003? Well, preliminary talks have already begun.
Ryan’s signing represents the largest contract, in total dollars, ever doled out to a reliever — never mind to one who has mustered all of 42 career saves and exactly one season, for last year’s Baltimore Orioles, as a full- time stopper.
That mark will hold through the off- season, too, since Wagner, he of the 284 career saves, is expected to sign a four- year, $ 43- million deal with the New York Mets today. Can Ryan possibly be worth that much?
“ I don’t know,” said the amicable 6- foot- 6 left- hander out of Louisiana. “ I guess you get on the field and see. It didn’t matter who I signed with, I knew this was going to come up. When you sign a deal like this, you just want to be sure you hold up your end of it.”
That $47 million breaks down like this: A $ 10- million signing bonus divided over the first two years — $6 million and then $4 million, to go along with $2 million in base salary for 2006, which rises to $5 million for 2007 and to $ 10 million for each of the final three years.
“ At the end of the day, the paycheques don’t matter,” said Ryan. “ It’s the wins and losses that everybody’s going to remember.”