Candles

Fruit Yankee

What is a Free Agent?

   A free agent is a player with 6 years of experience who is not under contract and is available to sign with all thirty major league baseball franchises.

   Also, a free agent could be a player who entered the major league draft but was not drafted or a player who was drafted but did not want to sign with that team, might still enter   the market and become a free agent. This sometimes works well.

   Something else you might here about is arbitration. A player with over 3 years or a very good player with 2 years of major league experience is eligible for arbitration.  You might ask yourself "What in the world is arbitration?" When a player is offered arbitration, they go to an arbitrator. The team and the player both make offers. The arbitrator decides which offer is the best. Sometimes the arbitrator sides with the player. Sometimes he sides with the team. Or sometimes they don't offer player arbitration at all and let him be a free agent. Sometimes a player is offered arbitration by a team, but does not want to go through that. If the player is a type A player (see below) then the team that will sign him must give the team that he was offered arbitration a signing club's first-round draft pick and a supplemental pick between the first and second rounds. If the player is a type B player, they must give the other team just the  supplemental pick between the first and second rounds. Confused? Here is a way of understanding it.

   There are two sides, the team and the player. The team gives a price they think that is fair and the player gives a price that he thinks is fair. Then the arbitrator chooses the price that he thinks is fair. The player must accept. If the team offers to go into arbitration but the player does not want to, he becomes a free agent unless he signs a contract before the December 12th non-tender date. The team the player signs with will give up draft spots. If the player is very good, the team he signs with must give up two draft spots. If they are only okay, they must give up only one. Or a team can choose not to offer it at all and let the player be a free agent. Make sense now? 

   Here's an arbitration success story.

   The Phillies originally had the 41st pick in the MLB 2006 June draft. But they signed Tom Gordon, a relief pitcher. Gordon had been offered Salary Arbitration by the Yankees, his former team, but declined. So the Phillies had to give the Yankees the 41st overall pick in the draft. The Yankees used that spot to secure iconic pitcher Joba Chamberlain.

   You might also wonder what type A and B free agents are. It's basically a way of providing draft picks to clubs for signing free agents who are offered arbitration and ranked in the top 50 percent of Major League players, as ranked by a company called the Elias Sports Bureau. The top 20 percent are Type A players, you see. These players are in the top circuit of players. They are the best free agents. The type B players are sort of the secondary players. They aren't as good. So, the type A are great and the type B are okay. Sometimes a team will offer arbitration to a player just for the draft picks.  

   There are also special rules for different players with different years of experience. If a player has less than 3 years of major-league experience, he can just have his contract renewed. That is, if his contract runs out, and the two sides can't agree on a contract, the team can just pay at least 80% of what he made last year to play for the team again for one more year.

    A player is only eligible for arbitration if he has between 3 and 6 years of major-league experience.

                                                      History of free agents

   When baseball became very successful in the 1890s, owners tried to think of a way to limit salaries. They knew if players could go from team to team, the salaries would be enormous due to the competing teams constantly upping the money to attract the player. So they came up with a "reserve clause," which pretty much kept a player bound for life to a team unless they were traded, sold, released, or retired. The salary was an agreement between the owner and player, but if they couldn't agree, the player had two options: play for a reduced amount or don't play. This was how it was until 1969, when slick fielding center fielder Curt Flood was traded from the Cardinals to the Phillies, but he refused! He demanded Commissioner Bowie Kuhn to make him a free agent, but he would not. This went all the way to the Supreme Court. Flood had filed a lawsuit, claiming the team had violated the nation's anti-trust policy. His efforts would eventually help establish free agency and make him a forgotten hero who cleared the path for the multi-million dollar athletes today. Flood never really even got to enjoy the fruits of his labor, by the way, as he played only 13 games for the Washington Senators before retiring. Jackie Robinson was great, and everybody will remember him, but in a way, Flood stood up for his rights, too. Although he is not a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Flood is an unsung legend of the baseball world.

                                                 Japanese Free Agents

   Sometimes, star Japanese players want to make a change. They want to come to America. They become free agents. Baseball is huge in Japan, but it's even bigger in the US. The fans, the lights, the media, the money! These star Eastern players love the US. Here are a couple of former and current Japanese stars.

          Hideo Nomo-Dodgers, Mets, Brewers, Tigers, Red Sox, Devil Rays, Royals

   Hideo Nomo burst onto the scene in 1995 as the National League Rookie of the Year with a league leading 236 strikeouts along with 13 wins and a 2.54 ERA. Over his 12 year career, he won 123 games and struck out 1918 batters. Nomo enjoyed 5 successful years in Japan before becoming a huge star in the US, proving Japanese players were as good as any other ones.

                                                     Ichiro Suzuki-Mariners

   The best and most recognizable Japanese player, Ichiro has continued his amazing run of success in the states. He's only been here since 2001 but he's set numerous hitting records, the most amazing a record-setting performance of 262 hits in 2004! He also had an outrageous .372 batting average. Ichiro has had 200 hits and a .300 batting average every year he's been in America. Ichiro broke Wee Willie Keeler's 108 year old record for most consecutive seasons with 200 hits, with nine since his inaugural season.

                                            Hideki Matsui-Yankees and Angels                       

   Hideki doesn't have the name ‘Godzilla' for nothing. He's put up monster numbers since his MLB debut in 2003. He finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting in 2003. In 2004, he hit 32 home runs. He played in a record 519 straight games to start off his career before breaking his wrist in a freak accident. He put up more numbers this year, hitting 28 homers with 90 RBI's and winning the World Series MVP Award last season by hitting .615 in the Fall Classic. He has hit 140 homers in America, a record for Japanese-born players. After 7 years with the Yankees, Matsui signed a 1 year, $6.5 million dollar deal with the Angels to be their 2010 designated hitter.

                                               Daisuke Matsuzaka-Red Sox

   Matsuzaka was the top-sought Japanese free agent before the 2007 season. The Red Sox nabbed this star who put up a 2.95 ERA with 108 wins and 1,335 strikeouts. He posted a 15-12 record with a healthy 4.40 ERA and 201 strikeouts in his rookie year. He led the Red Sox to a World Championship in 2007. In 2008, he had a great year, winning 18 games and finishing with an excellent 2.90 ERA. Although he had an injury plagued 2009 season, he still helped Boston win the wild card to get into the playoffs for the 3rd straight year.

                                                Kosuke Fukudome-Cubs

   Kosuke had a great 2008 rookie campaign, starting the All-Star game in Yankee Stadium, and earning 6th place in Rookie of the Year voting. The former Chuchini Dragon followed that up by raising his batting average in 2009.

                                                         Big Signings

   There have been a couple of $100 million dollar deals in the history of the game, even some $200 million! Here's a look at some of the biggest free agent signings in history.

                                    Alex Rodriguez-$275 million, 10 years

   It appeared to be "see ya!" for Alex Rodriguez and the Yanks when A-rod used the opt-out clause (see below) on his contract after 2007, as Hank Steinbrenner said "It's good-bye". A-rod knew he made the wrong decision, and, with the help of his billionaire friend Warren Buffet, signed with the Yankees a record-setting deal. He could make more then $300 million if he breaks Barry Bonds's home run record. He's on his way, as due to 35 and 30 homer campaigns in 2008 and 2009 and has 583 homers at the age of 34. Alex tasted the sweet champagne of victory as he won his first title in 2009.

                                         Alex Rodriguez-$252 million, 10 years

   A-rod signed a huge contract with the Texas Rangers (who traded him to the Yankees after 2003) which included an opt-out clause after seven years. A-rod used this (see above).

                                           Mark Teixeira-$180 million, 10 years

   Teixeira, already a premier first baseman with the Rangers, Braves and Angels, came to the Yankees seeking one thing- a world championship. The Annapolis, Maryland native with the big bat and big wallet got it in 2009, helping the Yankees get there by bashing 39 homers this past season. He won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger this year, and hopes to win several more in his next 7 years in the Bronx.

                                             CC Sabathia- $161 million, 7 years

   The 6'7, 290 pound southpaw signed this big contract, like Teixeira, looking for one thing-a world championship, and like Teixeira, he got it. The 2007 AL Cy Young winner was great again in 2009, winning 19 games and nearly striking out 200 batters. He previously spent his whole career with the Indians except for half of the 2008 season with the Brewers where he made several starts down the stretch on 3 days rest to help them reach the playoffs. It was that durability the Yankees were looking for when they signed him to the biggest pitcher's contract ever.

                                          Manny Ramirez-$160 million, 8 years

   Manny was been great in Beantown, crushing opposing pitchers. Manny still bashes homers. He led the league in 2004 with 43. Manny had led the Sox to two World Championships, one in 2004 and one in 2007. He was traded to the Dodgers midway through 2008. Manny's contract came to an end when Los Angeles declined the slugger's 2008 option, but he signed a new contract with them.

                                           Alfonso Soriano-$136 million, 8 years

   Alfonso signed this contract with the Cubs just before 2007. This one-time 40-40 man (40 home runs, 40 stolen bases) had a great year in 2007, bashing 33 homers and accumulating a .299 batting average. He'll be looking to add a World Championship ring after he led the Cubbies from last in 2006 to first in 2007, nicking out the Brewers by an eyelash. He led them to the NL's best record in 2008, winning the NL Central.

   As you can see, Major League Baseball has a very complex but successful free agent system that is beneficial to both the players and teams. I hope, that after reading this article you have a better understanding of the free agent system.

www.mlbdisabledlist.com

About the Author

James Vaughn is a baseball fan whose detailed articles have appeared on many sites around the web.

The Fancy Yankee Stadium Suite