Abusing Contracts

[Bad_Ash]

I don't currently like how it is possible to abuse contracts during the free agency bidding.

Some GM's are bidding on players for a single season contract for a large amount then after they win the bid they renogiate the contract to a longer term for a fraction of what their bid was.

Example: Sammy Sosa is signed to a 1 year contract for 150 points, the contract is then negotiated to a 7 year 50 points per season contract.

If someone is going to renogiate a contract they should get paid the difference(if the new contract is smaller) of the initial contract and the new one.

Going along with the example of Sammy Sosa he should get paid the full amount of his bid contract for that year then make his 50 points for the 6 years afterwards. Or maybe the GM should have to pay the difference to the player outright(consider it a signing bonus). Either way Sosa gets his 150 points that he was promised during free agency.

Badash

[Ancalagorn]

Everyone can beat old bids with longer running contracts with less salary per annum. Thats naturally, for even baseball-pros don't like the risk of being without work to early.

It would be bad , if only the highest bid for year one won, but for everyone can do this while the contract ist runnin, I do not see the problem.

Greetings

Ancalagorn

[Japherwaki]

The problem would be corrected if the game handled contract extensions they way they do in real life. That is, the extension doesn't take effect until the following year. That way, the person would be paying 150 points for Sosa in year one, and wouldn't get the 50 point per year contract until next year.

Japherwaki

[Particleman]

I agree, if someone signs a one year contract for a ludicrous amount during free agent bidding, they should not have the luxury of resigning the same player for less in a multi year deal.

[DBS]

I agree that Sammy' case is abuse of his contract, but I think that if that rule was instated, it should only apply to contracts that are over a certain amount, say 20 points. I say this because this "abuse" feature is very useful if you get a veteran pitcher in a trade earning 17 points, which is more than he is worth on the market, but he has good endurance and will be a handy 4th starter for 3-5 years. You can lock him up for 4 years at 10 a year. That is the only thing I have against taking that option out. You should not have to pay for someone else's stupidity.

DBS

[Slugger222]

What you said about real life is not exactly correct. When a contract is re-negotiated, that is exactly what happens. It is re-negotiated.

The team says, "Hey Joe Stud, we think that you are now worth 50 points a year for 7 years, instead of 25 points for one."

In real life, contracts can be re-negotiated at any time, but usually the existing contract runs it's course before another contract is put in place. Or, the contract is re-negotiated in the middle / end of the year when the existing contracts funds have been paid out. The result is that it looks like a change takes place at the beginning of the next season. Although that is not exactly what happens.

The change is generally immediate, and not postponed. However, two things are not represented in this game:

1. Signing bonuses and
2. Balloon payments (where the players take less $$$ early in the contract.

So, the Mogul guys have the right idea, but I agree that the $$$$ does not always make sense, from the players point of view.

I guess you could consider that the players are taking the bulk in a "bonus" that is not represented in the game.

But, that would be a bit of a rationalization.

[Particleman]

Yes, but renegotiated right after he signed his collosal 1 year deal? And before he has played a single game for the team? Anyways I agree that the exsisting deal should expire before the new one takes effect.

[Slugger222]

That is an interesting stratagy that I had not thought of. And it does smack of cheating to me.

One answer would be to make it so that you cannot renegotiate a contract in in the first year that it is signed. Or at least not until the season has started. That way, the team would not have those funds available for the duration of the rest of the draft.

It does fly in the face of reason the think that Sammy Sosa would turn down a, say 75 point contract for 4 years, sign for one year at 150, then immediately renegotiate it to 50 points for 5 years.