Carlos Ruiz headed to Mexican club Veracruz
Carlos Ruiz stands to make upwards of $400,000-plus from his deal with second tier Mexican club Veracruz. In turn, the Union can lift his $306,671 salary off the books.
Carlos Ruiz headed to Mexican club Veracruz
Jonathan Tannenwald
The following comes from Kerith Gabriel of the Daily News:
Three weeks ago I asked Carlos Ruiz about the all the reports from south of the border that had him rumored to playing for Mexican second division club Veracruz.
Ruiz looked me square in the face and said: "Honestly, this thing about me leaving Philadelphia has gotten crazy. I don't know who has started this gossip, but I am going to say this again: I am not moving anywhere, I am very happy in Philly, all my family is coming in 2 weeks to stay with me, so this is not a chance to leave this city."
He then added: "Why would I leave MLS where all my family and friends are to play for some second division team in Mexico?"
Here’s an answer that will shock you: Money.
According to the source Ruiz stands to make upwards of $400,000-plus from his deal with second tier Mexican club Veracruz, a deal I am told was made because Veracruz believes "Fish" is its missing link in hopes of returning to Mexico’s top flight.
In 14 games with the Union, Ruiz tallied six goals and had an assist, and while he may have a lot of haters in this town, I’d like to believe his knack for scoring would have been beneficial in a loss to Colorado last Friday in which the Union created so many chances I’m unable to count them on all my fingers and toes.
In turn, the Union can lift his $306,671 salary off the books in a few days once this deal has been official. Additionally, with the releases of Ruiz, defender Jordan Harvey and third-string goalkeeper Thorne Holder, the Union have freed a total of $411,795 sans additional incentives.
The club should now have the opportunity to add a big name or a (few small, but talented names that can finish) to its roster before the close of MLS transfer window on Aug. 14.
The only number I don't know is the transfer fee that MLS and the Union will receive. Stay tuned to see if I can get that number too.
Chooch!— mikemaddog- He mistook "Chooch" for "boo". Simply lost in translation.— eres
- Dayum Chooch is leaving the Phillies???— seeker58
The Union must be short of $$ or otherwise why would their best & 2nd highest player be leaving. Get your Union jerseys now before they become collector items and the price goes up.
HappyBob "speaker of the truth and beacon of light on this gloomy board of sports darkness" has spoken.— HappyBob- Aww, Bobby... Are you still frumpy about your fuzzy DRPA math for this recent trolling? Or are you still upset about the $5000 check you will be writing to the Bernadine Center in Chester on opening day 2015? Tsk, tsk. You should know exactly why the Union sold him. His salary will be used to bring in a top flight striker off the transfer market, and the allocation money from the Harvey deal means a negligible cap hit.
I'm honestly bummed to see Ruiz go, but its what he wanted all along. He's probably upset that when he had his picture taken with Ruiz of the Phillies, and switched Ruiz jerseys, they both had 51 on them, not 20 for the fish. - Also unknown is the amount the Union received from Vancouver for Jordan Harvey. That amount could be a significant part of the "additional incentives" category.— Ed Farnsworth
- I didn't like Ruiz at first. But he seemed to be a different player after returning from the Gold Cup. Maybe he was, or maybe I was just seeing him differently after getting used to him. Not sure which.
All told, he clearly has a ton of talent with the ball on his foot and a knack for scoring. But I don't think he ever truly meshed with the other players on the team - especially Le Toux and Mwanga. I'm OK taking a small step backward right now if it aids the development of Mwanga (who should be a 90 minute player), Mcinerney, and Torres.— Zherog - So Carlos "la cuentera" Ruiz let's revisit your stated reasons again over the past few weeks of why you wanted to leave Philly . . . you aren't leaving because you were booed by the fans, you aren't leaving because your family doesn't like the area, and you aren't leaving because you are unhappy at the way you are being utilized. No it turns out the reason you are leaving is option D as in dollars or 'dinero'! You are leaving because you are greedy. I don't begrudge you your extra $100K salary, but let's call it like it is Carlos and not throw the fans, the city and your manager under the bus as an excuse . . . you did it all for the money. Greater footballers than you have done it, but the way you did it just speaks volumes about your class Carlos . . . or rather lack of class. You would have had much more respect from the loyal fans if you just called it like it is and said "I'm sorry I have the opportunity to get a 25% raise and with probably only a few years of quality football left and I just couldn't pass it up". In these times the fans would have understood and respected your honesty. But to weasel out by blaming everyone and everything else is just cowardly Carlos, not very machismo!
In anycase enjoy playing for Veracruz Carlos. I'm sure in six months you'll be longing for "greener' pastures, as in whichever organization can offer you the most greenbacks and saying how awful the city and fans of Veracruz are so you can jump to your next paycheck. Thanks for the goals. Take care, have a nice life and please try to stay on sides down there.— shane-56 - I don't know what kind of big name is out there that we can afford. Most big names cost $10 million and up. I don't expect to be blown away by whoever comes in next. I think Jack McInerney might be the best option. I also think we'll see a lot more of Paunovic in the next two matches. Danny Mwanga had 90 minutes on Friday night and did not score, and not because he didn't get the ball. He always took two touches when he should have taken one, three when two would have been better. Very disappointing.— Osager
- The money involved clears things up. It wouldn´t be to far fetched that at 31, Ruiz, like many football players at that age, is looking towards retirement. If he got a good offer playing with less pressures....many of the big ones have done it, from Pele to the Cosmos to Beckham to the Galaxy just to name a couple!— GuateRob
- Well said @shane-56.
Carlos, thanks for the goals. Good riddance. Your selfish play and lack of making anyone around you better will not be missed. You are classless and we don't want anyone that doesn't want to be here.
Mwanga....1 touch and shoot!— rideordie77
Reach Jonathan at jtannenwald@phillynews.com or 215-854-2330.
