PAYROLL: METS & YANKEES

METS:

Opening Day payrolls for 25-man roster
(salaries plus pro-rated signing bonuses):

o 2008: $137,793,376
o 2007: $115,231,663
o 2006: $101,084,963
o 2005: $101,305,821
o 2004: $ 96,660,970
o 2003: $117,476,429
o 2002: $ 94,633,593
o 2001: $ 93,674,429
o 2000: $ 79,800,000



YANKEES:

Opening Day payrolls for 25-man roster
(salaries plus pro-rated signing bonuses):

o 2008: $209,081,577
o 2007: $189,639,045
o 2006: $194,663,079
o 2005: $208,306,817
o 2004: $184,193,950
o 2003: $152,749,814
o 2002: $125,928,583
o 2001: $112,287,143
o 2000: $107,588,459

SALARY CAP:

o 2011: $178,000,000
o 2010: $170,000,000
o 2009: $162,000,000
o 2008: $155,000,000
o 2008: $155,000,000
o 2007: $148,000,000

The penalty for going over the salary cap is....
22.5% for first time offenders, 30% for second time and 40% for third time and beyond. All of this money is then divided among small market teams. The tax has been implemented ten times and the Yankees have been taxed five times.

JETS PLAYOFFS??

WOW! i was just fiddling around with some numbers and came across this:

If the Phins and Pats both lose this week and the Jets win vs SEA
AND the Jets lose to the Phins in the last game of the year they still lose the division!!

here is the rundown - Pats also win their last game then:

a) they will all be tied in record 10-6 (Jets, MIA, NE)
b)All 3 head-to-head are 2-2(all split games vs each other)
c)All 3 teams are 4-2 in division
d)Common Games: Jets are 8-6 with 2 other wins coming vs Cinci and Tenessee, Phins are 10-4 with 2 other losses vs HOU & BAL, and Pats are 10-4 with 2 other losses vs PIT & INDI
e)Pats and Phins left...both teams are tied in conf record 7-5
f) Strength of Victory - MIA +14 NE +48..
PATS WIN DIVISION..

So...the Jets must win their last 2 games of the year in order to win the division and their only likely shot at the wildcard is the Ravens losing their last 2 games (Jets lose 1 game)..

PS JUST WIN!!

PINCH HITTING AT LoHuD

SAM I AM SPORTS BLOG UPDATE

Hi Everybody,

As I was skimming through the blogs i read every morning and I came across one of my favorites.
The LoHuD Yankees blog which is updated multiple times a day. The Author of this blog isn't your average Tom , Dick, or Harry that has a Sports blog (Such as myself).

The Author of this blog is an established New York Yankee Beat reporter (My dream Job) for the Journal News .

This Blog gets thousands upon thousands site hits a day. to say the least , it is extremely popular.
Pete , posted today that he will need a few pinch hitters in his absence. Naturally , I shoot him an email asking if I could get a shot.
To my disbelief , He told me "your in".
Now, i must think of a topic to write to my national audience.
This is where you guys (and gals)come in .

What should my topic be about?

Q & A: OMAR MINAYA

Steve Serby of the NY Post does a great job in his interview with Mets GM Omar Minaya..
They talk about what he did immediately when he landed in Vegas and how the JJ Putz deal got done...click here for entire article...

Some excerpts:

Q: The first call you made when you landed in Las Vegas and checked into the Bellagio?

A: The very first call really was to get together that night with Frankie Rodriguez and his agent (Arn Tellem).

Q: Were you optimistic? (about K-ROD)

A: They were at three years and vesting for a fourth. We were at two years vesting for a third.

Q: What was the game plan at that point?

A: We were not sure if Fuentes was going to sign before Rodriguez. We felt being patient was the key here. Fuentes might have been waiting to see what Rodriguez got. They felt Rodriguez was gonna drive the market.

Q: You were supposed to meet with Trevor Hoffman, as well.

A: His plane got delayed. We were never able to meet with him.

Q: K-Rod had one concern.

A: He also wanted to know "Who's the guy that's gonna give me the ball?"

Q: What did you tell him?

A: "Look, we're gonna try to trade for a guy." I didn't want to give him false hope.

Q: But you wouldn't trade your young pitching prospects Jon Niese or Bobby Parnell.

A: So what happened was, he asked me, "Can you get me (outfielder Franklin) Gutierrez and (Aaron) Heilman? I called Mark (Indians GM Mark Shapiro) and asked, "Will you do Gutierrez for (Joe) Smith?" 'cause they like Smith. He said, "Let me think about it."

Q: Do you think you've closed the gap on the Phillies?

A: I don't believe in winning championships on paper; I think we're a better team. I think like last year, it's really who gets the stroke of luck. Unfortunately for us, we haven't had the stroke of luck. They're champions, and we respect that. One of these years, we'll get a stroke of luck.

Q: You're the talk of the town.

A: Being a Met fan, it's a passion. I just want Met fans to know we all care. I say, "Look, if you're afraid of your heart being broken, you cannot be a baseball fan," but you can't be a Met fan if you're afraid of your heart being broken. We overcome tough losses. It's like relationships in life - you overcome them. You bounce back. The fact that it's Christmas in the city, waiting for spring to start for new hope of a better year - they (Mets fans) should feel ownership and the front office will continue to do everything they can to provide them a championship team.

For the entire article click here.

METS: K-ROD CONTRACT DETAILS

3 years/$37M (2009-11), plus 2012 option

• signed by NY Mets as a free agent 12/9/08


• $2M signing bonus


• 2009:$8.5M, 2010:$11.5M, 2011:$11.5M, 2012:$17.5M option ($3.5M buyout)
  


• 2012 option becomes guaranteed with:
• 55 games finished in 2011, and
  
• 100 games finished in 2010-11, and
• doctors declare Rodriguez healthy after 2011
  

• Rodriguez receives $3.5M termination buyout if 2012 option does not become guaranteed
• annual performance bonuses, 2009-11:
  
• $0.15M each for 50, 55 GF; $0.2M for 60 GF

• 2012 performance bonuses:
  
• $0.3M each for 50, 55 GF; $0.4M for 60 GF
• (GF means "Games Finished")
  

• limited no-trade clause allowing Rodriguez to block deals to 10 clubs

WEEK 16: AFC PLAYOFF SCENARIOS

Okay! here are the Jets playoff scenarios:

Most important thing is to win vs MIA otherwise they lose their edge in division record and in conference record which is vital in any tie-breaker situation!

To win the division:

a) Win both games - simple!

b) lose vs SEA win over MIA; Pats need to lose to ARI or BUF (hold tie-breaker with MIA in head-to-head)

c)win vs SEA lose to MIA; MIA to lose to KC; Pats need to lose to either ARI or BUF; then it goes to best record among the three..Jets 2-2...MIA 2-2, Pats 2-2..then it goes to division record(if Pats lose to BUF then they are out) otherwise all tied at 4-2; then it goes to best record in common games and your on ur own there...

To win the wildcard:

Only team that is realistic is the Ravens (since Colts have 2 game lead on Jets) and if tied with Pats or Phins then division rules apply so see above..

a)As of now they are both tied in Conf record at 7-4..that is first tie-breaker..so if Jets lose to SEA and Ravens lose to JAX then Jets get in..

b) If tied in Conf record then goes to common games in which they have played:
CIN: Jets win; Ravens 2 wins
OAK: Jets lose; Ravens win
TEN: Jets win; Ravens lose
MIA: Jets 2 wins (if they win last game); Ravens win

So as you can see the Dolphin game comes in again, so it is a must win..

c) If common games is tied then it goes to Strength of Victory in which i believe it means points for subtract points against...in that case as of now the Jets are +66 and the Ravens are +112 so we lose there...

I hope I didn't lose you!

IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY:

Titans - Bye and Home Field throughout playoffs
Steelers - Bye
Ravens @ Jets
Colts @ Broncos