Posted on 11/02/2013 12:13:15 AM PDT by nickcarraway
If that sounds like more than Jeter — who will turn 40 next year and played in just seventeen games last season, hitting .190 — is worth, it's because it is. But there's a benefit to the Yankees here: Jeter held a reported $9.5 million player option for next season, which the team couldn't stop him from exercising. But it's the annual average of a player's contract that counts for tax-threshold purposes, and with the final year included, Jeter's last contract would have averaged out to roughly $15 million a season. Jeter's new deal replaces the old one, which means his number for tax-threshold purposes will be $12 million next year. And right now, the Yankees care more about staying under the $189 million threshold than they do about actual dollars spent.
One report said that Jeter actually initiated the new deal, and despite serious questions about what he can contribute next year, it's not hard to see why he would: He and his agent surely understood the luxury-tax implications of a new deal, and he did have a bit of leverage. If he declined his option, he'd have become a free agent, and the Yankees would have had to make him a one-year qualifying offer of $14.1 million or else go through the messiness of essentially telling Jeter to retire or go elsewhere (for far less money) in what could be his final season.
Update: ... or maybe not. Some of the original reports about Jeter's new contract have been updated, and now suggest Jeter will wind up costing the Yankees even more for tax-threshold purposes next year. Chad Jennings explains that the annual value of his previous contract was artificially low, because it included the option year that's been replaced by the new deal. But, he explains, the Yankees have to make up that money. So, yeah, maybe this doesn't make a lot of sense for the Yankees.
Wow, can baseball players really contribute in their later years? Only watch the playoffs and series so not a real question by a fanatic but really...can someone this old actually contribute this much?
Maybe it’s a name thing...
I’m not sorry for the Yankees. Let’s see them try to compete using the Kansas City Royals’ payroll.
But where will he play? His defense at shortstop had already deteriorated badly -- and at 40 with a bad ankle, it's not going to get any better?
IIRC, George Steinbrenner was the only billionaire to die the year there was no death tax, so the can afford to do whatever they please.
2012 was possibly his best year. Definitely one of his best. He had no offseason conditioning this year and never got passed that. One injury led to another. Assuming the ankle heals and he starts workouts for a few months, he should be back to performing at a high level.
I don’t think his play at short stop was bad except when he was injured. We’ll have to see how he comes back from the injury in the preseason.
“Maybe it’s a name thing...”
I think that’s a lot of it. Yankees attendance was way down last year. They need some big names to put people in the seats...and they need those big names early to sell season tickets.
If Jeter isn’t up to the job they can use him a DH a lot or....back to the DL :-(
The Yankees are so 1927.....,
David Ortiz has been around for a while....
12 Million for Jeter! While Yankee fans go into debt to attend a game. What a waste of money. The guy was well paid for his career and now he’s over the hill.
$12 Million divided by 17 games would be a bit much don’t you think?
Using that name is an insult to our Secretary of State. The correct name is Manny Ortez!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.