Kuzul

Before anybody gets excited here, this is just a hypothetical situation. 

It’s a situation created in order to prove a point, and to create an awareness of the value of top prospects.

But are they really worth the insanely high price tag placed upon them?

That’s what I hope to accomplish with this article. 

By the time you are done reading this, I want you to question the train of thought of general managers around the game when they deem a minor league kid untouchable. 

That’s probably a good place to start—deeming minor leaguers untouchable.

General managers always declare their first round draft choices untouchable. With all they hype surrounding the “future star,” teams hope to bank in on the potential of their newest player. But “potential” is clearly the most important word here.

Prospects like Matt Bush (2004), Brien Taylor (1991), Bryan Bullington (2002), Jeff Clement (2005), and Eric Munson (1999) were all number one overall picks in their respective drafts. They all failed to be quality Major League players. 

They were all untouchable.

Teams rely heavily on their farm system. Whether they actually depend on it for talent, or for exploiting the other team’s desire for prospects, is a question that will continue to be asked for as long as prospects have value in the sport.

The high tier prospects who aren’t untouchable, though, are often shipped off to other teams for established Major Leaguers.

Oftentimes, these deals leave me utterly confused. 

For example, when the Brewers received several months of CC Sabathia for “the next great power hitter” in Matt LaPorta, I was left speechless. Sabathia went on to pitch absolutely lights out, leading Milwaukee to the playoffs, and LaPorta has still yet to make anything of himself in the bigs.

It happens every trade deadline. Countless prospects are shipped out to bring in veterans who already have a good reputation around the league.

This is my question for the teams giving up the established talent: why would you ever do such a thing?

Sure, sometimes GM’s are so enticed by the hype that they salivate when another GM offers their top prospect for a veteran player on their team. But, come on.

Who would you rather have, the player who has actually hit 30 home runs in each of the past three seasons, or the player who has the potential to hit 30 home runs for several years to come?

By now I’m sure you can all tell what my answer is, but think about it. 

What do you think?

So herein lies the question—if you are Cardinals GM John Mozeliak, and Nationals GM Mike Rizzo were to offer you his best prospect, 18-year old Bryce Harper, for the decade’s best slugger, Albert Pujols, would you make the deal?

Harper has been compared to the second coming of Jesus Christ, and everyone in the baseball world expects him to be the next Babe Ruth.

Pujols, on the other hand, is arguably the best player in the game today. He’s already being considered one of the greatest first basemen of all time, and he still has several years ahead of him.

Harper may very well turn out to be the games next legend, but he isn’t one yet— but Pujols is. He is every bit one of the best players this game has ever seen.

So, the game’s best prospect for the game’s current best player. 

Would you pull the trigger?

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Can the St. Louis Cardinals afford to let Albert Pujols slip through the cracks? Could the St. Louis fanbase even fathom the notion of their beloved team without their adored first baseman?

Well considering that possibility could perhaps become reality, the Gateway City may well be facing a heavy aftershock of seismic proportions.

The ripple-effect of marquee players leaving for greener pastures is a situation that all teams—and their fans—inevitably have to deal with at some point:

Brett Favre to the Jets, and then to the Vikings of all teams; the irony of Mark Teixeira—California’s “Angel”—going to the evil empire known as the New York Yankees; and of course, the coup de grace, LeBron James leaving the deprived Cleveland area for the lavish life in Miami.

Well, move over boys, there’s a new coal burning on the hot stove and the media collective are waiting on bated breath for something—or someone—to give in St. Louis.

The news of Albert Pujols and his ongoing contract saga, shouldn’t be an antique headline. Contract talks, questions of Pujols even attending spring training, and even speculation of the MLBPA being involved have taken a stranglehold on just about every major sports site across the country.

But it doesn’t stop there.

Rumors of rival teams champing at the bit for Pujols’ upcoming free agency—such as the Chicago Cubs, and their “supposed” 10-year, $275 million deal just waiting on the table to be presented—have added just enough fuel to a fire already out of control.

But while the organization and the player, throw down negotiating “fisticuffs,” the St. Louis fanbase is caught in the cross fire.

The Cardinals’ organization and their faithful followers, have already been through the mire and back thanks to their current hitting coach—and previous adored first baseman—Mark McGwire.

As if that whole debacle isn’t enough, this team hasn’t even been to a World Series since 2006.

How possible would it be to get to the Fall Classic without the face of the franchise?

The purpose of this little piece isn’t so much to delve into who’s right and who’s wrong in this chronicle, but rather, what type of long-term effect it will have on this organization and their congruent fanbase—a fanbase that quite frankly has been through enough.

If Albert Pujols wants a long-term deal, then there should be no qualms about inking such a contract. Let us not forget, this is a player who bleeds Cardinal Red, and requests such a deal to ensure that he will be a part of this great city and their supporting cast for years to come—a difficult achievement in this modern day world of sports.

The aforementioned modern day of sports doesn’t always favor what is right, in regard to the player and the fans, but there always seems to be obvious exceptions that just make sense.

For instance: You should entertain signing Pujols to a 10-year deal; you should not entertain signing Colby Rasmus to a 10-year deal.

In the grand scheme of things, it is the opinion of this writer that Albert Pujols stays—no matter what the cost. Is that statement a bit premature, even made in haste? Perhaps.

But, there is little room to argue against this player’s stance, a player that has the right to possibly, one day, become an indelible mark in St. Louis Cardinal history.

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            The Cardinals were widely expected to win the National League Central last season. The acquisition of Matt Holliday was expected to provide some pop for the lineup and protect Pujols well – which he did. A fully recovered Chris Carpenter was predicted to be back to his old Cy Young form – which he was. There were many reasons why the Cardinals should have shown a better record in the standings, yet they weren’t able to beat out the Reds for the division crown. 

            There is reason to believe that the Cardinals might be back at the top of the division this year, however I have some very reasonable arguments that show they may not be up to full potential and that distractions and problems in the lineup could arise.

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One of the more publicized offseason baseball stories of the year has been the ongoing negotiations (or lack thereof) between arguably the best player in baseball, Albert Pujols, and the St. Louis Cardinals.

For those who may have forgotten, Pujols publicly stated that he would not negotiate a new contract during spring training or the regular season, and if a deal was not agreed upon by the time he arrived for spring training, Pujols would become the most sought after free agent since Alex Rodriguez (we know what kind of deal he received).

With no deal currently in place and Pujols scheduled to arrive at spring training on February 16th, the chances of a new contract happening look slim. Pujols and agent Dan Lozano have been requesting a 10-year deal worth around $300 million.

Keep in mind, Pujols is currently 31, meaning a deal like that would last until he was in his 40s, so it’s understandable the Cardinals are more than hesitant at giving “The Machine” that many years or that kind of money.

As the deadline approaches, maybe Pujols will realize that instead of making sure the best player in the game makes the most money, by setting his pride/ego aside, he could change Major League Baseball forever.

How? Take less money to stay in St. Louis.

Now, I don’t mean dropping it to $250 million. I mean dropping it to $100 million guaranteed with tons of incentives for around seven years. Let’s say that reaching every incentive (MVP, lead league in categories, play in 150-plus games) could end up making the deal worth as much as $150-200 million.

Now I admit, the likelihood of this actually happening is virtually zero, but hear me out.

First, by having the best player in the game take a dramatic pay cut, it will prevent guys like Barry Zito and Jayson Werth from making double or triple their actual value simply because when compared to a guy like Pujols hardly anyone deserves to make more than him. Owners could use Pujols’ contract as a baseline for free agents, which would prevent them from drastically overpaying players.

After all, $100 million is an incredible amount of money that only the absolute best athletes deserve to earn (and even that is a little outrageous).

While Zito was very good at the time of his deal and Werth is a good player now, neither deserve anything close to $100 million, let alone $120 million-plus.

Second, Pujols could actually set a trend in baseball. I don’t believe for a minute that a human being NEEDS more than $100 million to live as long as they aren’t completely inept at spending/saving their money. It’s always been about ego and wanting to be paid comparable to their fellow players.

If the best guy in the league is making $100 million, a guy like Werth isn’t going to look for $120 million-plus because everyone in the world knows he isn’t $20 million better than the best player in the game.

Third, by using incentives to sweeten the deal, it would reward the guys who deserve to be paid.

Had Zito’s contract been incentive-based, there’s no way he would have made half the amount of money he did this year. On the other side, a guy like Josh Hamilton, who won the MVP, would have been paid far better than his $3.3 million he made last season (granted, he just signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Texas Rangers).

Fourth, and finally, the deal would give other great players on the small- to middle-market clubs the idea of taking less money to stay with their original team and allow the franchise to go after free agents or re-sign other players to make the team better.

This has been done before (Evan Longoria is a good recent example), but not on as great a scale.

So, Pujols has two options: to listen to Lozano and get one of the biggest contracts ever for one of the best players in the past 40 years, which would further increase contracts exponentially like they have been in the past 15 seasons (which is completely understandable and incredibly likely), or sacrifice the ego and take less money which could change MLB contracts forever, and in my opinion, for the better.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

I was not born in St. Louis, and I don’t plan to live in the Gateway City past high school. But in the relatively short time that I have lived here, it has become clear that there is no city in the entire country that loves one athlete, make that one person, more than St. Louis’ love affair with Albert Pujols.

Seeing someone wear an Albert Pujols shirt or jersey in St. Louis is as common as seeing Longhorn apparel in Austin or Patriots sweatshirts in Boston.

Even I, a diehard Giants fan who despises most of Cardinal Nation, own a shirt with the No. 5 on the back. 

Albert Pujols is by far the most beloved figure in the St. Louis area, even more so than Stan “The Man” Musial, and the thought of him leaving never struck people here, until very recently.

Now comes the cold hard truth that The Machine may actually take his talents elsewhere, perhaps to New York or Boston and maybe to the hated Chicago Cubs.

It is fair to say that if Pujols leaves, Cardinal Nation will enter a state of emergency, one that Matt Holliday or Yadier Molina could not possibly heal. 

The 402nd pick in the 1999 MLB draft has turned out to be one of the top hitters in all of baseball and could potentially go down as the greatest home-run hitter of all time. His talents are invaluable and along with his personality, it’s no wonder why Cardinal fans like the guy so much.

He is pretty much the polar opposite of Barry Bonds in that he has a friendly relationship with his fans and the local media. He loves St. Louis almost as much as St. Louis loves him back.

The two make a perfect match, and that is why it has been such a surprise that Pujols has not accepted an offer from the Cardinals but instead has rejected their offer, according to USA Today.

Pujols has said multiple times that he wants to spend the rest of his career as a Cardinal, but we all know that money can sometimes trump hometown loyalty.

A lucrative $300 million, 10-year contract from the Yankees might be enough to separate Pujols from St. Louis, assuming the Cardinals couldn’t match a $30 million a year deal.

Who knows, maybe Pujols is one of those few guys who can put his fans first, money second. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen too much these days. 

Albert Pujols has brought so much joy to this city, including a World Series title in 2006 but it is time for St. Louis to accept the reality that this season may be the last time we see Pujols in a Cardinals jersey.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Let’s be serious for just a little while.

Albert Pujols is (whether you believe it or not) the face of the Cardinals’ respective franchise, and that’s just how things are.  And if a new contract is not offered to St. Louis’ sporting savior, Pujols will not be involved in contract negotiations through Spring Training, nor the regular season.

This is a problem.

As much as you’d love to disagree with the fact that Pujols is the most important asset the Cardinals currently attain, the fact of the matter is that it is true.

Here are five of the most essential reasons why St. Louis must seal-up Pujols—no matter what the cost.

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It seems like a ridiculous statement to make, but at $100 million ($116 million since St. Louis exercised their 2011 option) over the term of his last contract, Albert Pujols was an absolute steal for the Cardinals. It is safe to assume that his next contract will not be quite the bargain for the team that winds up signing him this coming off season.

Speculation will follow Pujols throughout the season about his next team and contract if he is unable to reach a deal with the Cardinals before the start of Spring Training. There is little doubt he will have multiple options in the off season. The Yankees, Angels, Dodgers, Giants, Mets and Cardinals all would have the ability to sign Pujols (the Giants and Mets are my own speculation, while the other teams have been publicly speculated to have interest). Just to throw in my two cents, I believe Pujols will eventually resign with the St. Louis Cardinals, although I do expect him to fully explore free agency if no deal is reached this spring.

Early rumors have Pujols seeking a ten year contract worth as much as $30 million per season, or $300 million in total value. If Pujols finds an employer willing to spend this amount of money to include him in their lineup for the next decade he will push Alex Rodriguez out of the record book for largest contract in baseball history. Alex Rodriguez and Albert Pujols will likely wind up at the top of several all time lists by the time their two playing careers have finished, so it is fitting that they would wind up the number one and two highest paid players in the game. Is Pujols deserving of the higher salary? Or should “A-Rod” remain baseball’s richest annual player?

A quick glance at the back of his baseball card, or Internet site of your choice, will give you all the information you need about Albert Pujol’s importance to the Cardinal organization since his debut in 2001. Pujols has been the most dominant player in the National League over the past decade. He has won three MVP awards and would have won more if not for Barry Bonds. Pujols has also finished second in MVP voting four times in his career. He is an annual staple at the All-Star game, making the roster in all but one of his professional seasons, and he ranks second all time in Cardinals history for RBI behind only Stan Musial.

Rodriguez has also had his fair share of success in the league, playing for the Mariners, Rangers and Yankees. A-Rod is also a three time MVP, thirteen time All-Star, and is sixth on the career home run list with 613 round trippers.

Both players have helped their team to one World Series Championship.

Alex Rodriguez has been in the league seven years longer than Pujols, giving him considerably higher career totals. For the sake of comparing their production, we will focus on the years they were both in the league, and then just for fun, we’ll take into consideration each players’ career statistics through age 30. Alex Rodriguez actually has a 188 game advantage over Pujols before he turned 30, so again the numbers understandably come out in favor of Alex Rodriguez in most categories.

Before the age of 30 Rodriguez had amassed more hits (2067 to 1900), more runs (1358 to 1186), more RBI (1347 to 1230) and more home runs (468 to 408). Pujols, however, has the better career batting average (.331 to .305), better on base percentage (.426 to .371), slugging percentage (.624 to 0.537). While Rodriguez has the edge here in the numbers that traditionally show up on the all-time lists, Pujols has had more success in his opportunities, although the two players are fairly close.

Albert has managed to keep his name clear through all the steroid controversy dating back to the BALCO investigation and beyond, a claim A-Rod can not make. Rodriguez publicly admitted to steroid use after the media published a list of players, with A-Rod on the top, who tested positive for steroids during the 2003 season. Rodriguez was also implicated in the steroid scandal in the second book written by Jose Canseco. In the minds of many fans, Rodriguez’s career statistics are tainted by his inclusion in the steroid scandal, and there will always remain doubt about just how much the steroids aided his statistics.

Alex Rodriguez likely will wind up at the top of home run list, breaking the record set by Barry Bonds, before his playing career is complete. He will also finish with over 3000 career hits, a number he should reach within the next three seasons, if not sooner. Steroid controversy aside, Alex Rodriguez has earned his contract in comparison to baseball’s other $20 million annual players.

Unfortunately for Rodriguez, his controversial personality has likely cost him several endorsement deals, and marketing opportunities within Major League Baseball (don’t get me wrong, he still does very well). A series of on and off field incidents have given critics plenty of opportunities to bash Rodriguez throughout his career.

Albert Pujols will likely wind up the player most capable of challenging the numbers and records set by Alex Rodriguez. He will restore credibility to the record books as he is widely considered to be a clean player. He is more marketable to both his eventual employer and Major League Baseball as he approaches each milestone. And for the fans, he is much easier to stand behind and openly root for.

If we are to assume that Alex Rodriguez is worth the $275 Million, ten year deal he signed with the New York Yankees, then Albert Pujols is worth every penny of the $300 Million, ten year deal he is seeking this off season.

Here’s to hoping Albert starts knocking Rodriguez down the all-time lists starting this off season by dropping A-Rod to number two on the highest paid list. Albert, you deserve it!

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

It’s true: The Cardinals without Albert Pujols is like Corn Flakes without the milk. It’s like the Colts without Peyton Manning. It’s like Oney Guillen without his Twitter account. 

But it could happen. Pujols has set a February 19 deadline to strike an extension deal with the Cardinals, and reports say the two sides will need a lot of steam to iron out these differences.

A recent article by Fox’s Ken Rosenthal says that Pujols wants to be recognized as the premier player in baseball, with a contract in excess of Alex Rodriguez’s 10-year, $275 million deal.

However, with Pujols now 31, the Cardinals have to weigh his immense value against the potential downward arc of his career as he approaches his mid to late thirties. Then there’s the financial handcuffs they might wear for the duration of a deal, and the potential for injury, and the pressure to generate revenue if they reach an agreement, and on and on.

One thing is clear—if Pujols walks, it won’t be the end of the Redbird world. There are options for replacing Pujols, and while none of them has the cachet that Pujols wields in the Gateway City, they could keep the Cardinals moving forward after 2011…

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Albert Pujols is the face of the St. Louis Cardinals and the superstar of his era. In fact, he’s likely up there with Ozzie Smith and others who are considered Cardinals legends.  As a result, when he asked for a Spring Training deadline to negotiate a contract extension, I figured they would be able to get it done.

Instead, with less than two weeks to go until that deadline is up, negotiations are not going well. The talks are being held in private, so this could very well be smoke and mirrors, but if he does end up becoming a free agent, there is a very real possibility that he will be gone when the 2012 season begins.

I would love to see Albert Pujols finish his career in St. Louis and stick with one team for his entire career.  Having said that, here are 10 reasons why he will not finish his career with the Cardinals.

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Albert Pujols has made his demands to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Redbirds have until Spring Training to sign the Dominican slugger or he will put his name in the hat and become the biggest free agent the world has seen since Jennifer Aniston was dumped by Brad Pitt.

FoxSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal reported on Saturday afternoon that talks between Prince Albert and St. Louis were at a stalemate, and the deadline for Pujols arrival to camp, February 18, is quickly approaching.

With Pujols seeking a contract extension comparable to Alex Rodriguez contract with the Yankees, and the St. Louis front office seeming unlikely to comply, what does the future hold for St. Louis?

Who are some likely replacements for Fat Albert via trade or free agency?

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