RichmondPhilsFan wrote:

Eem wrote:It'd be a 100-game suspension

Good point. Awesome.

Look at the bright side, if he gets suspended, his salary doesn't count towards the luxury tax!

It's going to be fun having a top 5 pick.

Good numbers for Byrd:

-412 foot average HR distance: 7th in MLB last year, suggests it was not a fluky HR year with a bunch of wall scrapers

-13.2% HR/FB at Citi Field last year...again, showed legit power in a cavern of a park

-37% FB% last year (32% career)...if he can sustain this, no reason he can't get to 20 bombs again

Scary numbers:

-Obviously the BB rate, but also K rate: 25% (vs 18% career)

-Swung at 56% (!) of pitches last year, vs 50% career. His contact rate went down to 73%, vs 79% career

He could be really really bad if he loses the power stroke from last year. But at 2 years, no draft pick, and ostensibly a big defensive upgrade in RF, this is a fine move IMO

Its going to be hilarious when we spend ~45 million on Marlon Byrd, Piercynwhatever, and a couple middle aged relievers.

JFLNYC wrote:Frankly, I'm thrilled we now have at least one OF who can play defense.

I am too. Revere might be good defensively eventually but he might not be a Phillie next year and he has that bad ankle injury which might doom him anyway.

Brown and Ruf are awful. Cesar is athletic but he looked pretty lost out there last season.

Maybe Kelly Dugan and Cam Perkins can pick it out there.

Wonder if we could get Peter Bourjos?

Keith Law doesn't like it but of course he was outraged when Obama got a multi-year term

Read somewhere that he changed his swing in a pretty big way. That would explain the power surge and increase in swingandamiss at strikes I guess.

Eem wrote:Keith Law doesn't like it but of course he was outraged when Obama got a multi-year term

The best thing I can say about it is that it is almost certain to be a non-impactful move in 2014 and a sheer waste of money in 2015.

The downside is that he will play every day (at least for the first few months) and there's real opportunity costs to paying market value or higher for a mediocre player at one of the few spots at which you can improve the offense.

But look at all the homers he will hit in the bandbox.

I really don't know what more evidence people need to see regarding Amaro.

seriously tho we should all be thankful it wasn't paul byrd

Hopefully this means they non-tender John Mayberry now.

Trent Steele wrote:The best thing I can say about it is that it is almost certain to be a non-impactful move in 2014 and a sheer waste of money in 2015.

The downside is that he will play every day (at least for the first few months) and there's real opportunity costs to paying market value or higher for a mediocre player at one of the few spots at which you can improve the offense.

If he gets hurt or suspended for titty drugs again I don't think it would stop them from upgrading the spot next offseason. And other FA upgrades vis a vis 2014 will cost more years/money and/or picks

It seems like the power was real last year too. Compare his HRs (412 ft average) to another guy who had a fluke HR season, Coco Crisp (368 ft average)

Rube has this backwards. You're supposed to sign a great player after a mediocre year, not the other way around.

We'll see what happens this year, but if it goes south, I hope it goes REALLy south. It might be the fastest way to get rid of his smugness.

OCCUPY CITIZENS BANK PARK

I mean I feel like I'm on Team Byrd now (though I'm expecting like 130 games of 110 wRC+) but there wasn't a move for a RF that you guys wouldn't have killed Rube for. Real talk

Pence just got 5-90, this is wind pissing

joe table wrote:I mean I feel like I'm on Team Byrd now

hehe

he is also coming from a team that appeared in the playoffs, so he will bring that winner mentality that the phillies need.

joe table wrote:

Trent Steele wrote:The best thing I can say about it is that it is almost certain to be a non-impactful move in 2014 and a sheer waste of money in 2015.

The downside is that he will play every day (at least for the first few months) and there's real opportunity costs to paying market value or higher for a mediocre player at one of the few spots at which you can improve the offense.

If he gets hurt or suspended for titty drugs again I don't think it would stop them from upgrading the spot next offseason. And other FA upgrades vis a vis 2014 will cost more years/money and/or picks

It seems like the power was real last year too. Compare his HRs (412 ft average) to another guy who had a fluke HR season, Coco Crisp (368 ft average)

I guess. I a see a 36 year old guy with a 16.4% HR/FB ratio who's previous best was 10.4% and is 9.3% for his career. Not sure I would be jumping on that before Thanksgiving.

Ultimately, the move in isolation is just whatever.