Yesterday, Cliff Lee was traded from the struggling Seattle Mariners to the surging, first place Texas Rangers. The Rangers exchanged prospects and 1st baseman Justin Smoak for Lee and reliever Mark Lowe. Sounds pretty cut and dry, doesn’t it? However, the Texas Rangers are currently being run by the league. The club declared bankruptcy recently, and as a result Major League Baseball has taken over the ownership duties for the club. This normally severly inhibits an organization’s ability to make big free agent transactions, because the club is already in debt and is being monitored by Major League Baseball. The Rangers have been fortunate enough to play well with the players it has had, without the club making any big free agent transactions. However, the trade for Cliff Lee is a trade that should never have happened, and is unfair to the other potential Cliff Lee suitors.
In this deal, the Rangers will have to pick up about $2 million of Lee’s remaining salary. It is difficult for me to understand how an organization can bring in Lee and pay an extra $2 million when it has already declared bankruptcy and is under the jurisdiction of Major League Baseball. How could the MLB do this? How can the MLB rightfully allow the Rangers to make such a deal when the club is already so far in debt? I find it completely unfair to the rest of Major League Baseball, and if I were Bud Selig, I would send a message to the rest of Major League Baseball that declaring bankruptcy is not a postion in which an organization wants to be, or a position in which an organization can thrive. Think about the precedent that is being sent. While no one wants to declare bankruptcy, in terms of baseball status, it isn’t a bad thing at this point. Even in its bankrupt state, the Rangers have no problem signing an elite pitcher, and have no problem paying half of his remaining salary.
If a club declares bankruptcy, it should no longer have full control of its personnel decisions, and should not be able to take on extra salary. It isn’t fair to teams that actually have the money to make the deal. For example, both the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies had expressed interest in acquiring Cliff Lee. These teams are 2nd and 3rd in the NL East, respectively. Both teams were looking for a top of the rotation type starter to give themselves a spark in the 2nd half of the season and to catch the surging Braves. However, because the Rangers were able to acquire Lee and pick up a portion of his salary even while in bankruptcy, neither of these teams could pick up Lee. This could have a large impact on the tight NL East race. It is the same situation that exists in the AL East and the AL Central, among other divisions, and it isn’t right.
[…] does not seem right that they were about to get this done considering the franchise has no money. Click here for more information on how the trade just is not […]
[…] does not seem right that they were about to get this done considering the franchise has no money. Click here for more information on how the trade just is not […]