Jacob deGrom signs 5yr, 185M contract with Texas Rangers (37M avg)

BaseballJones

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Oct 1, 2015
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Last two years:

age 33 - 92.0 ip
age 34 - 64.1 ip

I mean, his numbers are still off the charts elite, but those innings....for 37 mil a year for 5 guaranteed years?

I'd have been ok with the Sox signing him to like a 2 year, $100m contract and taking that kind of risk on a short deal, but obviously he wouldn't have taken that given what the Rangers gave him.
 

mikeford

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He'll be 35 mid season. He has missed a billion games already. And he's gonna be signed til he's 40?

Well shit I'm glad it ain't us.
 

E5 Yaz

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So, I know pitchers and hitters are apples and oranges ... but if DeGrom is getting rough-math $37.5 a year, what is Judge going to get?
 

RG33

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What is a reasonable Over/Under for the life of that contract that Degrom could throw? I mean, I honestly think Vegas would set it at around 300-350 innings???

EDIT: he’s thrown about 640 innings the last 5 seasons in his age 28-33 years for context.
 

nattysez

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$92m for DeGrom, Seager and Semien next year, plus $48m for Marty Perez, Jon Gray and Jake Odorizzi. Curious to see how they fill in the rest of the squad.
 

djbayko

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Last two years:

age 33 - 92.0 ip
age 34 - 64.1 ip

I mean, his numbers are still off the charts elite, but those innings....for 37 mil a year for 5 guaranteed years?

I'd have been ok with the Sox signing him to like a 2 year, $100m contract and taking that kind of risk on a short deal, but obviously he wouldn't have taken that given what the Rangers gave him.
Also, 180 pounds on a 6'4" frame is...yikes. That doesn't feel like a body which is going to have longevity when it's already shown that it can't hold up. He's a tall Pedro.
 

Marciano490

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I kinda love the Rams model to franchise building. Swing big. It’s boom or bust, but entertaining from the outside.
 

Minneapolis Millers

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Texas should be ecstatic if they can get 2 healthy seasons out of the next 5.

But serious question, how much does he move the needle for them? Is Texas a threat for even 85 wins? They need more.
 

Petagine in a Bottle

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If you believe in the Pythagorean stuff, the Rangers run differential last year suggested a 77 win team (Sox were 75). DeGrom, if healthy (ha!) is probably like a 7 WAR guy. So theoretically this puts them in the playoff mix, I guess? Imagine they will add some more pieces to up their estimated win total; decent core but they had really poor depth last year.
 

Hank Scorpio

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I’m shocked DeGrom is 34. If you asked me before reading this thread, I would have guessed 29. Really thought he was a lot younger for some reason.
 

Petagine in a Bottle

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I’m shocked DeGrom is 34. If you asked me before reading this thread, I would have guessed 29. Really thought he was a lot younger for some reason.
Drafted out of college at 22, 4 years in the minors, wasn’t a huge prospect and didn’t debut until he was 25.
 

nighthob

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So, I know pitchers and hitters are apples and oranges ... but if DeGrom is getting rough-math $37.5 a year, what is Judge going to get?
He’s going to get 14/700 from the Yankees and the board will publicly cover itself in sackcloth and ashes and wail about John Henry’s miserliness. Meanwhile New York will ultimately pay about $35 million/WAR over the life of the deal.
 

Marciano490

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Maybe now that he’s set forever, he can throttle back a little and stay healthier? Could probably still be very good with a few mph off his fastball.
 

glennhoffmania

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OK. But I'd say making over 100m is set for life if you're not a fucking idiot.
 

mikcou

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I really wish people, especially those who are supposed to know better, stopped saying dumb shit about taxes. That's not how it works.
He lives in Florida in the offseason so yeah it kinda does work that way at least for all home game checks. He'll have to pay tax on game checks for his road games, but moving from a NY home team to a Texas home team is like a 4% kicker for having a zero effective state tax rate on half his earnings compared to 8%+.
 

jon abbey

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Heyman says deGrom is an anti-vaxxer who wanted out of NY if possible:

"Some Mets people seemed to think somehow things were turning the corner, and maybe they were to a degree. But he seemed sullen a lot from here, and word is, deGrom’s people got early word to Texas they were interested. That shouldn’t surprise. He’s very much a DeLand, Fla., guy. Folks around the team say this came out in the pandemic when he openly talked against northern rules and masks and vaccinations, even though it meant extra precautions and greater risk to the team (he wasn’t alone there, as the Mets were one of the least vaccinated teams)."

https://nypost.com/2022/12/02/jacob-degrom-deal-shows-even-the-mistakes-are-bigger-in-texas/
 

johnmd20

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This contract isn't as bad as Russell Wilson's. That is the only one on the list.

This deal already sucks and it's hours old.
 

BigSoxFan

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Certainly not a good value contract and one I wouldn’t want the Sox to take on but I do like it when non-traditional powers get aggressive so I’m good with this.
 

YTF

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Verlander would seem to make a lot of sense for the Mets. He and Scherzer are ancient but are actually far more reliable than the younger DeGrom.
Is it safe to say that Verlander is perhaps looking for something in the neighborhood of 35M per, probably for 3 years? The Mets can afford it if they want him, but then you're talking 75-80M tied up in him and Scherzer. I would consider one or the other to be a risky proposition and not sure that I can see the combo as making " a lot of sense". That's a shit ton of aging eggs to be carrying in one basket.
 

BigSoxFan

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Is it safe to say that Verlander is perhaps looking for something in the neighborhood of 35M per, probably for 3 years? The Mets can afford it if they want him, but then you're talking 75-80M tied up in him and Scherzer. I would consider one or the other to be a risky proposition and not sure that I can see the combo as making " a lot of sense". That's a shit ton of aging eggs to be carrying in one basket.
Depends on the price but they have a short window with Scherzer so adding another aging ace at least aligns with that window. Clearly, there would be age risk but Verlander looked good this year and is generally durable.
 

Deweys New Stance

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Heyman says deGrom is an anti-vaxxer who wanted out of NY if possible:

"Some Mets people seemed to think somehow things were turning the corner, and maybe they were to a degree. But he seemed sullen a lot from here, and word is, deGrom’s people got early word to Texas they were interested. That shouldn’t surprise. He’s very much a DeLand, Fla., guy. Folks around the team say this came out in the pandemic when he openly talked against northern rules and masks and vaccinations, even though it meant extra precautions and greater risk to the team (he wasn’t alone there, as the Mets were one of the least vaccinated teams)."

https://nypost.com/2022/12/02/jacob-degrom-deal-shows-even-the-mistakes-are-bigger-in-texas/
Gee I thought it was only the Sox front office that trashed people as they headed out the door.

If this is true, it just confirms that the Mets are probably way better off overpaying Verlander for three years than matching/exceeding this deal.

edit: I felt dirty clicking on a Heyman/NYPost link, but it's amusing to see Heyman calling this deal 'nutty' and 'crazy'. Certainly would never say that about a Boras deal.
 

glennhoffmania

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He lives in Florida in the offseason so yeah it kinda does work that way at least for all home game checks. He'll have to pay tax on game checks for his road games, but moving from a NY home team to a Texas home team is like a 4% kicker for having a zero effective state tax rate on half his earnings compared to 8%+.
No it doesn't. People say shit like, if he leaves CA and plays for a TX team he'll save like 12 percent! That's completely wrong. They pay tax in every state in which they they play, like you said. They also spend about two months in spring training. They can still maintain their residence wherever they want. There's no way he'll cut his rate in half because he'll spend about 90 days in TX.

But the main issue is that I'm 99 percent sure that this doesn't matter to the players. They want the biggest deal, not the biggest after-tax cash flow. He's going to earn over 300m in his career. He's not making decisions based on his state apportionment.
 

mikcou

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No it doesn't. People say shit like, if he leaves CA and plays for a TX team he'll save like 12 percent! That's completely wrong. They pay tax in every state in which they they play, like you said. They also spend about two months in spring training. They can still maintain their residence wherever they want. There's no way he'll cut his rate in half because he'll spend about 90 days in TX.

But the main issue is that I'm 99 percent sure that this doesn't matter to the players. They want the biggest deal, not the biggest after-tax cash flow. He's going to earn over 300m in his career. He's not making decisions based on his state apportionment.
Sure, it doesnt work that way and while I agree with your general sentiment that are a number of over the top articles on this topic, the tweet also didnt say that It said he was going to no income tax state, which is true and in Degrom's case is adding a significant amount of after-tax cash. I think the most you can say about this tweet is basically the problem with all of Twitter - all complex issues are reduced to their most simplistic form due to character caps.

I dont think its the driving factor but guys clearly are advised on this and the habits of MLB players living in no income tax states makes me believe they are aware of what they are getting into (never mind the NFL practice of guys going to their no-income tax homes during bye weeks for apportionment purposes). Its probably not as big a deal with MLB players because there's less opportunity to apportion to the home team state (practice days for away weeks can be apportioned to the home state) where as MLB road trips are true out of state duty days, but the prevalence of all of these factors leads me to believe they know and consider these points in making their decisions. Are they going to turn down 5-10% more? Of course not, because they know that the impacts are never going to be that significant. But at the margins and as tie breakers? Sure, absolutely.

Edit - It may be that he was lucky in that he didnt go broader and doesnt understand, but sometimes its just as good to be lucky as good,.
 

Murderer's Crow

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Heyman says deGrom is an anti-vaxxer who wanted out of NY if possible:

"Some Mets people seemed to think somehow things were turning the corner, and maybe they were to a degree. But he seemed sullen a lot from here, and word is, deGrom’s people got early word to Texas they were interested. That shouldn’t surprise. He’s very much a DeLand, Fla., guy. Folks around the team say this came out in the pandemic when he openly talked against northern rules and masks and vaccinations, even though it meant extra precautions and greater risk to the team (he wasn’t alone there, as the Mets were one of the least vaccinated teams)."

https://nypost.com/2022/12/02/jacob-degrom-deal-shows-even-the-mistakes-are-bigger-in-texas/
I honestly love this. Get out.

I've had to work in the city a lot the last few weeks and I think right now is possibly the most I have ever enjoyed Manhattan outside of my financial district happy hour days in my 20s. It is less crowded, cleaner in many places, bars and restaurant reservations have been easier (I went to Carbone day of 2 weeks ago), and the people here seem much more local with way less B&T. I don't think it will last and December is the worst for Manhattan tourism but I genuinely think now is as good a time as ever to spend time in NYC.