Who botched things for Ryan Madson?
Madson stuck with a 1-year deal
Who botched things for Ryan Madson?
Rich Hofmann, Daily News Sports Columnist
Nobody will need to hold a benefit for Ryan Madson. If reports are accurate, he is in the process of doing a 1-year, $8.5 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds. He is safely in the 1 percent. Again, no tears.
But how did this happen?
How did he and agent Scott Boras miscalculate the market so badly?
I still would love to know how the whole Phillies thing went down. Reports stated that a 4-year, $44 million deal with Madson was imminent, and then it suddenly wasn’t. The Phillies went instead for Jonathan Papelbon and for $50 million, and Boras was left to talk about what a strong market still existed for Madson and et cetera.
But was there a real offer on the table to Madson from the Phillies, and if there was, why was it pulled back? If Madson and Boras had said yes at some point in the process, would Madson still have been here?
And who miscalculated the dynamics of the marketplace so badly? Was it Boras, squeezing so hard that the Phillies said ouch? Was it Madson, insisting that he was worth more? Or was there never a real offer on the table, and just discussions that ended when it became clear to the Phillies that they could get Papelbon instead?
If the Phillies thing was real, it was a lot of money, and it came from Madson’s current team. It also was from a team that has, in recent seasons, proven itself to be a market trendsetter. The Phillies -- with Raul Ibanez and Ryan Howard, to name just two -- arrived early and with the keys to an armored car full of cash. They guesstimated the market and they acted first and they were willing to deal with the second-guessers who said they overpaid. In both of those cases, Ibanez and Howard, they likely did overpay and still did not care and still will not care as long as you keep buying tickets at the going rate.
So if there was an offer, or something pretty close to an offer, you wonder what it was like when Madson and Boras discussed it, either face-to-face or on the phone.
Did Boras tell him to sign it? Did Madson want to sign it? Did Boras tell him he could get more from somebody else? Did Madson insist that Boras promised all along to get him more?
In other words, who drove this bus over the cliff?
The spin undoubtedly will be that they decided to take the 1-year deal because the market was lousy, and that if Madson pitches well this season, he will be able to cash in next year -- and it might just turn out that way. But when you do the risk-reward calculation, the risk being carried by Madson is enormous. Pitchers have health issues because that is what they do for a living. Closers have consistency issues because that is the nature of the position, it seems. You pitch in a bullpen, and you do that as your life’s work, and you never know.
Now Madson bears all of that risk and Boras goes about his lucrative business and the Phillies go on with Papelbon. And the rest of us wonder if it was the agent or the client who botched this thing so badly.
Arrgghhh! This is horribly bad writing!
"...and et cetera."? Et is the Latin word for 'and". Et cetera, or more commonly etc., is Latin for the phrase "and so forth", or "and so on". Ergo [another Latin word! It means "therefore."], writing "...and et cetera." translates to "...and and so on."
Worse is the garbled next to last paragraph. In particular, these two sentences: "Pitchers have health issues because that is what they do for a living. Closers have consistency issues because that is the nature of the position, it seems."
Apparently pitchers have health issues for a living? Closers have consistancy issues because they are closers...it seems?
Apparently Philly sportswriters have issues writing clearly when they don't write about JoePa and Sandusky! Or could it be those pent up, unpublished articles on "Chester the Molester" Conlin that management won't permit?
— ngfs66- I am sorry to see Ryan Madson, a nice guy who developed into a very good closer, not get the multi-year deal he no doubt wanted and probably deserved. If I were Ryan Madson, I would be looking for a new agent.— Dave Clemens
- Boras is a clown. Combine that with the fact that Madson is not a proven closer over a great stretch of time and here you are, a one year deal. LOL. His wife thought she hated Philly, wait till they get to Cincy.— LennyFromPhilly
- my question is: who botched it for the phillies? because the reds are getting a better pitcher than papelbon for a fraction of the price and years.— Ryan
- Sam Crow ... and what if Madson blows out his arm this year?— lonestar2000
- That would be bad for him, but you're assuming there was a multi-year offer on the table for him from the Phillies for $40M. I don't believe there ever was because he's still unproven as a closer. Granted, he could have made the same $ or higher in arbitration with the Phils but he would have to go back to being a set-up guy. In this situation he wins because he's getting a chance to close, and Boras wins because he got him a contract and will be representing him again next year for a bigger payday. The Phillies are the losers because they overpayed for Papelbon and lost Madson.
— Sam Crow - WE NEED BATS!— phillynupe4
- I am amazed at anyone who could possibly blame the Phillies. Many baseball sources indicated that the reported 4 year, $44 million dollar offer was accurate. Logic would be that Boras told Madson that he could get the Phils to up their offer and he would use the offer to negotiate with other teams. In the meantime, Amaro kicked the tires on Paplebon and he agreed to the Phils offer without hesitation. It cost the Phils an extra $6 million dollars over four years to get a better closer with a longer track record. Did Boras forget that Madson had ONE successful year as a closer? ONE. He had very mixed results prior to last year in that role. Amaro hit a home run with this one. The Phils were more than fair in their offer and Boras literally cost Madson $35.5 million in guaranteed money. Madson, unforunately, was a victim of his agent's greed.— syddan26
- Boras' miscalculation reminds me of the major miscalculation this country makes every time it elects a Republican.— eldiablodelsol2009
- Boras' miscalculation reminds me of the major miscalculation this country makes every time it elects a Republican.— eldiablodelsol2009
- yeah, hows your boy doin' down there in DC ? — dmn
- It makes you wonder if the Phillies could have came back to him and signed him for much cheaper than Palpalbon. Madson has proven to be a great reliever, and he finally showed that he could close last year. If Pap was the same pitcher he once was, why would the Redsox, a team with bottomless pockets, have let him walk? The Phillies should have had a little patience on this one, and they might have ended up with a much cheaper and possibly better option.— Hemingway
- Call me crazy but 8.5 million for a one year audition is not that bad...........once he proves he can do it again consistently the big payday will come...— softballdude
- Attention "Dontlikeneocons" - that post of yours is beyond idiotic.— johnnykay
- I don't see how Madson botched anything? he is making 8 mil for one year vs 4 mil he was looking to get for multiple years...if he pitches good and I think he will (I bet he has a better year than Papelbon) he will be able to get an even better contract....— mbutley
