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Howard hopeful of salary agreement

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37 comments

Howard hopeful of salary agreement

POSTED: Wednesday, January 28, 2009, 6:48 PM

Daily News staff

Ryan Howard has been working out in Clearwater, Fla., since Jan. 5, he said tonight on Comcast SportsNet's "SportsNite" program. He also talked about his salary arbitration situation with the Phillies.

Howard asked for $18 million while the Phillies offered $14 million. If the sides cannot agree on a contract, the case will to go arbitration. Howard said he was hopeful of a deal without arbitration. "Maybe we'll be able to get something worked out," he said.

He was asked about the possibility of a long-term deal with the Phillies. "That would be beautiful," Howard said. "That would be beautiful. That would be something we would want to see happen."

37 comments

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Comments (37)

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:48 PM, 01/29/2009

All you folks who think Howard should get a long term deal, on par with Texiera and A-Rod, please read the following...very interesting on how he projects over the rest of his short career. http://www.tedsilary.com/johnshiffert.htm John's a regular contributor to BaseballLibrary.com, and author of several baseball books. This Phillies club is deliberately contructed thru the 2011 season, when a major rebuild (with the exception of Chase, possibly Rollins and Hamels) will begin. Only player on current roster signed beyond then is Chase. We will rent Howard till then, while his numbers continue to decline (steady 3 year decline in avg., obp, ops, and walks, increases in strikeouts.)

— bigredmachinefan

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 1:02 PM, 01/29/2009

Gary, I agree that the others signed when free agents (except for Pujols). However, the value or worth of something isn't dependent on their availability. Tha't a question of whether you can obtain your worth. My point is the market says he's worth it. Obviously he'll get either teh 14 or 18 million and have to be happy-he's not a FA. The point being, this whole thread, the who argument of whether to pay him or not-is just a waaste of time until grapefruit league begins

— jeff gross

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 1:14 PM, 01/29/2009

Jeff - but Pujols is "worth" more than his contract, because he wasn't a free agent when he signed it and if he was, it would have been much more. Just like Howard. His market value isn't $20 mil +, its whatever $$ he can work out with the Phillies - at max $18 mil. But he appears to be trying to get FA value now. To your other point that the argument is a waste of time until Grapefruit League play starts, well then so is every single conversation had on this or any other blog between October 29th and February 14th.

— Gary Varsho

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 2:28 PM, 01/29/2009

Heller - Pujols only spent 1 year in the minors and quickly moved from Single A to AAA, and was ROY at age 21.

— Gary Varsho

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 4:59 PM, 01/29/2009

Heller...what gives with the "Howard has been an MVP at every minor league stop too" stuff? So was I, big deal....it has no relavance to today or the fact that the guy still can't run, field, throw or even make contact on a consistent basis. Those are the facts that determine payroll TODAY!...He's not worth the money and he's gonna get old real fast or at the very least more injury prone as the next few years roll by..see Thome, as his age advanced. Big sluggers with big cuts, who miss often get hurt. Nothing like having an $18 million dollar albatross hanging on the DL for ya. Ask the Red Sox about Mo Vaughan, the Mets about Bobby Bonilla or the Dodgers about Andruw Jones....millions upon millions of wasted money. Burrell was let go at the right time, Howard will be too.

— Mark1npt

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 5:24 PM, 01/29/2009

As much as we like Ryan Howard the team does have other options as his act is growing old. The best option might be dealing Howard for prospects and moving Utley to first to extend his playing time if his groin problems persists. Jason Donald appears to have the chance to be a great one and is already being compared to Ryne Sandberg. Just read a recent story that appeared in an Allentown Call story: A shortstop, Donald went to the Arizona Fall League to work on playing at second and third, and got strong reviews from one of his coaches, Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg. ''Listening to Ryne's game reports about Jason, you almost thought he was talking about himself,'' Steve Noworyta said.

— Dull