For starters, it's a first offer. The first offer he's received from anyone. So it's not the final offer. There may be more money coming, or Drew-clauses that allow him to opt out, or bonuses, or who knows what.skmsw wrote:But honestly, if they made an offer with an AAV of $14, it sort of falls into the lip-service, appease-the-fans category for me. Bay has turned down multiple offers with AAV of $15+. I know the total dollars matter, but an AAV of $14 seems like it is not even in the ballpark. But the team can say "we offered 8 years!" "we offered more than $110mm!" They have a point, but is there really a reason to think that would get it done?
Second, it said AAV ranging from $14-16M, not just $14M.
Third, the years do matter, especially if nobody else is offering more years. Given that Jason Bay is begging clubs for a fifth year, I'd say an offer of 8 years is significant. At this point, we'll have to wait to see how the market plays out- i.e. if anyone offers him more money or the same years. He'll be a 37 y.o. OFer at the tail end of that deal and he'll still be getting paid the way he was getting paid at 29.
I don't know what you'd expect. Not every team is the Red Sox or the Yankees. Not every team can outlay that kind of cash, and 8 years/$112-128M is a serious commitment for the St. Louis Cardinals to make, one that leaves them very vulnerable to a ton of risk if Matt Holliday [expletive] the bed at any point during the contract.
And yes, they're entitled to "lip service" as you put it. They DID offer more than $110M. They DID offer 8 years (again, assuming what we're reading is legit). It's a realistic offer that stretches the limits of what this organization can handle. If fans want to be cynical about that, that's their own problem.
