Mets Paid $142 Million to Finish Fourth in NL East in 2011
by Matthew Artus on Dec 28, 2011 12:01 PM EST
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PrintSpending boatloads of money just doesn't buy what it used to, does it?
The next time someone tells you that Sandy Alderson should simply throw more money at the problems facing the New York Mets for the foreseeable future, tell them about 2011. We begrudgingly understood that 2011 would be a hump year until the Wilpons' rapidly-diminishing financial capabilities morphed that molehill into a mountain and paralyzed the club's payroll for 2012 and beyond. That's why we settled for the likes of Chris Capuano and Chris Young instead of Cliff Lee and Carl Crawford; there was no point in spending the money.
And there was no point because the Mets apparently already did spend the money. Over at the Biz of Baseball, Maury Brown released his MLB end-of-year salary rankings for the 2011 season and the Mets finished a lot higher than I would have guessed given what I heard of the team's paltry payroll situation.
Here's the money quote:
The clubs lost a reported $70 million and has had to take out more than one loan, but the New York Mets actually saw player payroll rise 11.51%. At $142,244,744 they ended the season ranked 5th behind only the Yankees, Red Sox, Phillies, and Angels.
Brown then speculates that the Mets' payroll will likely drop down next season and in seasons to come, with the departure of Jose Reyes to the Miami Marlins as Exhibit A in the club's spendthrift strategy. (He also includes the full rankings for MLB in 2011, which reflects a the largest spike in final player payroll since 2008 and a growing chasm in spending between the New York Yankees and the rest of the league.)
Still, if you had to guess a number off the top of your head, did you really think the Mets still spent $142 million to cover their players this past season? Based on everything we've been told, that just seemed ridiculously high actually came in about $3 million less than where Alderson projected it in Spring Training. (Ed. note (12:47 p.m. ET): For some reason, I thought the projected number was lower. Or I expected lower. That's on me, not the Mets.)
That said, let's not paint this as an indictment of Alderson being two-faced in his comments regarding player payroll. 2011 represented his first chance to untangle the web of poor contracts left behind by Omar Minaya and came in a year where Spring Training invitations were still extended to Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo. This was always a hump year for a reason; now we just see the actual size of the hump.
Considering the club's troubled standing in terms of finances going forward, it should also serve as proof positive that the "spend smarter" strategy being employed by Alderson couldn't possibly go any worse than the "spend harder" strategy which led to this past debacle of a season. Sure, you've gotta spend money to make money -- but trying using that to ease the minds of Jason Bay's detractors.
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I would have guessed around $140 million, yes.
Johan, Beltran, and Bay combined for about $60 million. Reyes, Wright, K-Rod were probably at another $40 million. Perez, Castillo, and GMJr were another $20 million. Deduct 10% from that because of trade relief, overestimations, etc. and you’re at $108 million. You’ve only filled about 4 or 5 roster spots though, and assume the rest averages at about $1-2m, and you’re at $140 pretty easily.
Learn something new every day: http://dlewis.net/nik
GMJr was only $2m
The Angels covered the lion’s share.
How is this calculated for these stats?
GMJr’s salary was still on the roster, but the Mets received salary relief from the Angels. That may mean that the salary is part of the payroll, but it gets balanced with income somehow.
It makes sense when you do the math.
I’m not ultimately surprised, but it caught me off guard. I knew Alderson felt it was too high, and ultimately did come in $3 million less than the $145-150 million range he projected in Spring Training. But I guess I expected a bit more payroll magic given the talent on the field, or I basically ignored the “talent” kept off it while the latter continued to collect paychecks.
Jagr? Seriously?
by Matthew Artus on Dec 28, 2011 12:35 PM EST up reply actions
spending harder kinda worked
I still feel like it was the ‘best’ play at the time. Didn’t work out, but given the options to buy Santana I’d still do it coming off 2007.
This ‘wait and see’ strategy of hoping our prospects work out, or some other miracle of production shows up to raise profits, doesn’t seem like it’s likely to be much better though. It’s more of a spend noncommittally tactic.
Of course, there’s a pretty fair shot that the payroll of the players on the field in 2012 is greater than that of 2011.
-Ceetar, the Optimistic Mets Fan
While I'll agree with you on the Santana contract
we should have never been paying Ollie anything at all, let alone 3 years. And Castillo should have been off the books a year before, had Omar not sprung for that 4th year.
by MetsFan4Decades on Dec 28, 2011 12:55 PM EST up reply actions
$140-145 million was projected starting around last April, I think.
The Mets are by no means kings of the wasted payroll, though. The Cubs of the immediate past aside, I seem to recall the Orioles having the leading payroll for four or five seasons in a row back in the 1980s and not getting within smelling distance of the playoffs.
Disappointing ROI but not a suprise at all
The $140m number has been out there all year in a number of sources. Cot’s had it at $142,797,166
I corrected it in the post.
For some unexplainable reason, I just thought the number would end up lower. Does make the drop to a $95-$100 million payroll feel that much steeper, though.
Jagr? Seriously?
by Matthew Artus on Dec 28, 2011 12:50 PM EST up reply actions
Well you have to figure...
the 2012 payroll would have in all likelihood been lower than the 2011 amount even if the Mets were still competitive and profitable.
by MetsFanXXIII on Dec 28, 2011 1:12 PM EST up reply actions
It's all about expectations
When Sandy first took over the plan was to suck it up for a year and get Castillo, Ollie & K-Rod (they were never going to let the option vest) off the books which would give us $25m to spend this off-season. Enough to sign Jose & pick up another piece, maybe two. But then of-course the Wilpon’s financial crisis either deepened or was finally fully disclosed and the credit-cards were cut up and the club put on a crash-diet.
So it’s not really that going from $140 to $95m feels steeper but that the original plan was to have at lest some of the “dead 2011 dollars” available to be re-spent for 2012. That’s the killer.
That about covers it.
It also feels like we’re riding into a canyon because our other division opponents have been spending.
That's why a lot of use scoffed so hard at the ealy reports that the '12 season's payroll would be $70M-$80M.
It would require the payroll to be slashed in half.
Save Jenrry Mejia!
2012 Amazin' Avenue Offseason Plan: 2nd place
yeah that wouldn't even be possible would it?
Unless they just dumped everyone who wasn’t on a long-term prospect and replaced them with min guys. And even then I’m not sure they could get to 70 million.
one does not simply walk into mordor...unless winter is coming
The money in 2011 was wasted money
And we knew that going in. Santana was hurt, Bay was an albatross, and Castillo, Perez, and GMJR weren’t going to make the team. That’s not an indictment of money being bad, though. Like all things, you have to spend money intelligently. That’s 60 million right there, which no one expected anything from, bringing us down to 80 million for the year.
Factor in injuries to guys like Wright and Reyes, Beltran and K-Rod being traded, and you have to figure the Mets got what they paid for. It was pretty clear Alderson’s offseason plan for last year and this year involved not spending any money, and filling out the roster with minor leaguers and 1 year deals to reclamation projects. It’s a top heavy team plagued by bad contracts and owners losing lots of money, so I don’t think you could expect anything different.
I’m more interested in seeing what our floor is next year…are we going to start adding players for a future push, or do we continue to wait out Bay, Johan, and Wright’s contracts?
"I only wanted a few things out of life -- a wife, children, to play baseball and to hunt deer." - Turk Wendell
The "spend smarter" strategy might work in 2012
The “spend smarter” strategy being employed by Alderson might be
a much better strategy then spending on high priced long term contracts for
top prospects which can kill the franchise for years.
Look at Tampa Bay they spent 41 mil and came in 2nd to the Yankees.
In 2011 the Mets had the 2nd best NL team batting average, 2nd only to
St Louis who won the World Series! St Louis has a payroll that
is never in the top 10 but they won more world series (11) that any
team except the Yankees
The Mets also had the sad record of losing 21 games in 2011 with leads
going into the 7th (bull pen meltdown). If their home game record was the
same as the away game record in 2011 they would have won 86 games.
Smaller stadium in 2012 might help.
Wright, Bay, Davis and Duda should be among those benefiting
as the Mets pull in fences to make Citi Field more hitter friendly.
Then we have outfielder Andres Torres. Torres’s had a career
year in 2010, when he helped the San Francisco Giants win the World Series.
( 268 with 16 homers and 63 RBI in 2010.) Maybe 2012 will be a repeat!
They need an improve the bull pen!
They added Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch , both of coming off good seasons and
picked up Ramon Ramirez. All of these moves are good,
as it fortifies the back end of their bull pen.
And they have Johan Santana in 2012, maybe a great or good season?
The Mets might have a better season in 2012 that most might think.
If everything works out they could have a good season on a limited budget.
Did you mean to note
Francisco and Rauch are NOT coming off good seasons. If you didn’t, I suggest you take another look at their numbers from 2011.
by Common Knowledge on Dec 29, 2011 9:01 AM EST up reply actions
Tampa Bay
“Look at Tampa Bay they spent 41 mil and came in 2nd to the Yankees.”
It think that;s what the goal is for 2014. Less than $50 million, perhaps less than $30 million. I get the feeling that Alderson believes you have to get to 85 wins home grown before you spend more than the absolute minimum, and only then sign free agents other than one-year lower order players.
I think Alderson is the un-advantageous position of not really knowing what his budget is from year to year
or maybe even month to month, week to week!
by BurleighGrimes on Dec 28, 2011 4:13 PM EST up reply actions
I Can Guess What It Is
For the next two or three years, the budget is as close to the major league minimum as possible. At that point, the Wilpons will have either started to get out of the hole or have lost the team.
People think of egomaniac owners using money earned elsewhere to subsidize the team, and cities subsidizing the teams with stadium deals. The Mets have debts on the stadium poorly timed to a recession and downturn for the team, and the Wilpons need profits on the Mets/SNY to prop up their real estate/Madoff losses.
I wouldn’t think the Mets will have a budget for anything else until the real estate stabilizes, the Madoff losses are paid for, and the big contacts are gone.
by WT Economist on Dec 28, 2011 4:24 PM EST up reply actions
Tampa had luck on its side
a team cant really hope to replicate what they did, 10yrs of 70 or less wins before they got good, and whos to say we draft as good as them? and we’ve seen they wont pay for people to stay, can they really replace longoria/upton/price/shields when its time to pay them?
by Donovan Rice on Dec 28, 2011 4:28 PM EST up reply actions
Their method is to pay them before they're established.
IMO, it can be a much more rewarding strategy, because you get a homegrown player’s prime years for team-friendly amounts, as opposed to paying crazy amounts for a player’s declining years. They have Longoria under team control through 2016, Shields through 2014, heck they just locked up Matt Moore through 2019. Some players, like Price, might not be so receptive to this kind of deal, but even if that’s the case, they’re still in their primes, so Tampa could trade them for a massive haul if they thought they wouldn’t be able to retain them. It’s a winning strategy, provided the farm system is maintained throughout in order to provide a pipeline of new players to replace the old ones. Even if the young players they lock up don’t pan out, they still come with much less risk than, say, signing an aging Jason Bay, because the amount of guaranteed money is still smaller. What you call luck, I call brilliance.
by MetsFanXXIII on Dec 28, 2011 5:47 PM EST up reply actions
Tampa Bay the baseball team that could
ESPN, Mike Francesa, NY Post, NY Daily News, Fox Sports = Propaganda
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this is a fallacy that's been proven wrong
only 4 of the players on their 2008 draft were top draft picks, and one of those was whats his name that was always injured (rocco?).
one does not simply walk into mordor...unless winter is coming
yeah
and another one was david price who was only used in the bullpen, so basically it was just upton and longoria who came from the top picks. Everyone else were low round picks they nailed, free agent signings or gotten in trades. There was a big post about it on btb but I can’t find it now, I guess everything eventually gets lost on the internets on sbn.
one does not simply walk into mordor...unless winter is coming
David Price is probably their best starter
You might be thinking of Jeff Niemann (unless you’re only referring to the 2008 season).
"Let them be stud muffins"
-Tom Seaver
Proud Mets, Jets, Knicks, Islanders fan.
Yeah I think she's referring to the 2008 playoff push and appearance.
Save Jenrry Mejia!
2012 Amazin' Avenue Offseason Plan: 2nd place
You can find the study in the DBR annual
In lobby for: Jaime Cevallos, Zack Lutz, orange unis and Rickroll as the 7th inning song.
The Unwritten Rules of AA
All I know is i want the Wilpons gone so we can have money, but ultimately, so we can win games.
Yogi on the 1969 NY Mets....." overwhelming underdogs "
They will be projected to suck regardless of the Wilpons this year
If they sell the team this offseason, that may make people happy but the team won’t be a lick better.
"Let them be stud muffins"
-Tom Seaver
Proud Mets, Jets, Knicks, Islanders fan.
What happens in 2015 anyway?
I’m much more excited for the debut of David Wright Jr come 2034. The spewing out of arbitrary dates to look forward to is extremely tiresome.
Even then, having something to look forward to doesn’t correlate to money, at least not for me. Free agency is the last mile in building a major league team, and if you don’t have anything worth spending money on, don’t spend it. People were excited to see George Foster suit up in the orange and blue, but he turned out to be a sideshow attraction rather than a viable piece to the solution. I’m tired of the band-aids. I don’t care if the team goes down to a $100 payroll, they will work with what they have.
"Let them be stud muffins"
-Tom Seaver
Proud Mets, Jets, Knicks, Islanders fan.
We're Talking $50 Million Here
The thing that bothers me most isn’t that the Mets are this bad with such a high major league payroll, but that the Mets farm system is below average (after having been bad) with such a bad record.
I think that to truly turn around, we’ll be relying not only on the last draft or two but the next two or three. And the decision to end overslot just when the Mets were starting to play the game means they will be worse off than their competitors have been, and worse off than they would have been if nothing had changed.
by WT Economist on Dec 29, 2011 7:30 AM EST up reply actions
I don't think it's below average any more
It’s perfectly middle of the pack
"Let them be stud muffins"
-Tom Seaver
Proud Mets, Jets, Knicks, Islanders fan.
So
should we bring back Lee Mazzilli to replace the sideshow attraction?
by Common Knowledge on Dec 29, 2011 9:03 AM EST up reply actions
Please don't reply to my comments
"Let them be stud muffins"
-Tom Seaver
Proud Mets, Jets, Knicks, Islanders fan.
Break It Down to Build It Up
The Wilpons would make all Mets fans happy if they sell the team, but even if that happens, they have to get prospects. Ollie and Castillo are gone, Beltran and K-Rod too – for the most part, last year that’s what we wanted and got – ok, Reyes is gone too (nobody wanted that).
by nj colgate field 24 on Dec 28, 2011 7:41 PM EST reply actions
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