TBOH Debate – Week Three

Image Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports

Every week, the writers at That Ball’s Outta Here get together and discuss some of the issues surrounding the Phillies.

Joining me this week are Spencer Bingol, Alex Cheremeteff, Emily Gruver, and Michael Lecke!

Will the 3rd year of the Carlos Ruiz contract come back to haunt the Phillies?

Spencer

Short answer: “meh.”

Long answer: Ideally by that point a prospect will be ready/near ready (Tommy Joseph/Andrew Knapp), so Ruiz should be relegated as a backup in his final year (unless he really is going strong).

Basically if he’s counted on as the starter for most games, then maybe, but it’s not inherently because of him. Blame another failure in the farm system or first year draft, before his contract.

Alex

The third year of Carlos Ruiz’s contract probably will come back to haunt the Phillies.  He will be 35 in January.  He plays a physically demanding position which will only get tougher with each passing year.  He will probably regress offensively faster than he will defensively.  37 and 38 year old catchers are usually back-ups or out of professional baseball altogether.

But, they needed to bring him back.  As I mentioned earlier, he is an invaluable asset because of his knowledge of the pitching staff, the ability to call a game and handle the staff.  He will be a huge help to new pitching coach Bob McClure.

Emily

Yes, I believe it will. I just don’t think Carlos Ruiz will be able to produce at a high level at that age. As much as I love Chooch and what he brings to the Phillies, it’s just too risky.

Mike

Hopefully, the Phillies will have a young catcher ready to take over by that point.  If so, assuming that Chooch can still handle a backup’s worth of games, then spending about $9 million on the catcher position isn’t horrible.  If the Phillies don’t have a good young player ready in 2016, then they’ll have much bigger problems than how much Ruiz is making.

Michael

The third year on Chooch’s deal won’t haunt the Phillies as much as 2014 would have haunted them without him. There’s a thin market to replace a core player. A third year had to be done once it came this far. Kudos to Chooch’s agent for holding firm.

Image Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Would the Phillies have been better off signing Chris Young (assuming they gave him the same deal the Mets did) over Marlon Byrd?

Spencer

I was a big proponent of signing Chris Young. The upside is there. Despite his bad last season, he’s still been worth 12.5 WAR over the last four years, he hits right-handed, and he plays CF. He also is guaranteed to hit 20 HR a year. In addition, his poor last season could be tied to his BAbip, which coincided with his BA in having a 35 point drop from 12-13.

However, I understand WHY the Phillies went with Byrd. He’s infinitely more consistent, and a safe bet, and at a time where I think they’re more looking for someone to tide them over until prospects develop, that consistency is valuable.

In addition, the Mets signed Young for only $.75M less than Byrd per year. That’s a little higher than the $5M range I was looking for with him. Such is free agency this season.

Alex

The Phillies would have been much better off giving a contract to outfielder Chris Young rather than signing Marlon Byrd.  First, Byrd is 36, coming off an outlier season the year after a PED suspension.  Very conspicuous.

Young is six years younger and plays much, MUCH better defense.  Last year was an anomaly – he was hurt most of the season.  He strung together five very solid seasons with the Diamondbacks.  He would have been a MUCH better value – especially if the Phillies could have signed him for what the Mets did.

Emily

Yes, mainly because he is younger and overall a solid player.

Mike

It would be one thing if they could have bought low on Young, but buying low doesn’t seem to exist in free agency anymore.  Both guys carried a good deal of risk, and I suppose there’s less risk involved with a one-year deal, but it’s not like the Phillies have a plethora of outfield prospects that Byrd is going to be blocking.  Chances are, if they signed Young, they’d be going through this same dance again next year.

Michael

Marlon Byrd gives the lineup more help than Chris Young. I’m pleased the deals aren’t in reverse. I think Marlon Byrd will inject some fire into the Phillies in a way Young wouldn’t have done. Besides, Ruben doesn’t do young or Young anymore.

Image Credit: Jim Cowsert-USA TODAY Sports

Agree?  Disagree?  Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section.