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Monday, January 14, 2013

Nationals players vote to include scouts, staff in playoff shares

Washington Nationals players voted last year to split a full postseason share among personnel in the organization’s scouting and player development departments.

While there is precedent for such action by a team, it isn’t routine. Players more frequently include employees who are around the club every day, such as clubhouse attendants and bullpen catchers.

For every playoff team, the distribution of shares is voted on before the postseason begins by players who spent the entire year with the club. The Nationals awarded 49 full shares, each valued at $37,045.32.

Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said “a few key veterans” led the push to include the scouting and player development staff in the bonus pool.

Esoteric throws a 'hard slider' Posted: January 14, 2013 at 07:36 PM | 29 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
Tags: nationals, washington

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1. TerpNats Posted: January 14, 2013 at 08:38 PM (#4347086)

Nice move.

2. Jolly Old St. Nick Done Jumped The Ship

Posted: January 14, 2013 at 08:48 PM (#4347093)

Who says Washington is all bad? It'd be nice if this started a trend.

3. The Yankee Clapper Posted: January 14, 2013 at 08:49 PM (#4347094)

Not to fault the players, but wouldn't it be more appropriate for bonus compensation for scouting & player development personnel to come from the owners' share? Granted, that would cut into their profits, but . . .

4. depletion Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:30 PM (#4347142)

Idiots.

5. Darren

Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:35 PM (#4347143)

Yeah, I would guess the guys who've made $10M+ in their career were a lot more gung-ho about watering down their $50K bonus than they guys haven't cracked a Mil.

6. Esoteric throws a 'hard slider' Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:36 PM (#4347145)

Idiots.

?????

7. Forsch 10 From Navarone (Dayn)

Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:36 PM (#4347146)

Nice call. Should be SOP.

8. Darren

Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:37 PM (#4347147)

And doesn't $37K sound low? Maybe I'm thinking of WS shares.

9. KT's Pot Arb Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:40 PM (#4347150)

Super nice of the players to reward the people who helped build the team, but its really ownerships job. Why should wealthy vets help take money from younger, minimum salary players and minor league call ups who don't have long term contracts and likely wont be long term members of the organization, to reward Rizzos staff?

10. Esoteric throws a 'hard slider' Posted: January 14, 2013 at 10:48 PM (#4347157)

Super nice of the players to reward the people who helped build the team, but its really ownerships job. Why should wealthy vets help take money from younger, minimum salary players and minor league call ups who don't have long term contracts and likely wont be long term members of the organization, to reward Rizzos staff?

11. depletion Posted: January 14, 2013 at 11:28 PM (#4347179)

S O'Teric, I really think it was a very nice gesture of the team. There is a certain precedent for posters calling generally admired players "idiots".

We're not talking about a situation where inconsiderate veterans are ripping the bread out of starving young rookies' mouths, after all.

Besides, the rookies are supposed to do what they're told around the clubhouse. 400K plus playoff money is pretty good cash, so if they drop a bit on the scouts and development staff they're still doing well.

12. McCoy Wilfong for Money Posted: January 15, 2013 at 12:50 AM (#4347242)

Perhaps a good point, but if it wasn't going to happen absent a vote by the players, then isn't this still the right thing? Remember: even the lowest-paid bench/utility player making league minimum still pulls down a salary that is easily triple (and probably quadruple or quintuple) that of what the scouts and staff make. We're not talking about a situation where inconsiderate veterans are ripping the bread out of starving young rookies' mouths, after all.

Only if they were on the roster the whole season. Eury Perez didn't make 400k this year and he sure as hell didn't get 37k as his playoff share. Plus there is no guaranteee that this 5 year minor league veteran is going to be on a major league roster next year. Scouts and staff should be paid by the employer not the employee. Ownership should say thanks for the offer but we got this.

13. KT's Pot Arb Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:39 AM (#4347275)

Remember: even the lowest-paid bench/utility player making league minimum still pulls down a salary that is easily triple (and probably quadruple or quintuple) that of what the scouts and staff make.

As Mcoy pointed out, that's not true for many, it's pro-rated. And scouts/FO personnel have careers. Most minor league players have summer jobs and a dream, and when both disappear they have to start new careers in fields where they are now years behind everyone else.

14. jdennis Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:43 AM (#4347277)

if i was a player, i would define my postseason share in my contract. put in a formula to derive the amount or set an amount per GP in the postseason. it seems odd to me that they would determine the postseason bonus amount willy nilly like this.

15. Pat Rapper's Delight Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:44 AM (#4347278)

I thought they were voting on 2013 World Series shares since this is the season where they're going to play for real.

16. Karl from NY Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:01 PM (#4347481)

And doesn't $37K sound low? Maybe I'm thinking of WS shares.

Yeah. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball_postseason#How_the_Bonus_Pool_is_determined

The World Series winner gets 36%, the World Series loser gets 24%, both League Championship Series losers get 12%, the four Division Series losers get 3.25%, and the two Wild Card playoff losers get 1.5%.

17. Karl from NY Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:05 PM (#4347484)

18. Fernigal McGunnigle has become a merry hat Posted: January 15, 2013 at 01:17 PM (#4347492)

Also, don't misread the players' generosity here. If I'm reading right, they split one share among all the scouting and development personnel. If that is 20 employees, that is $1,850 each. It's not $37k each. We're talking like new TV money, not car or house money.

The vote the division of shares before the playoffs, don't they? If the Nationals had won the World Series then the share is worth ~$410,000, so $20K for each of those 20 employees. The share is small because they lost early.

19. McCoy Wilfong for Money Posted: January 15, 2013 at 02:37 PM (#4347583)

Also, don't misread the players' generosity here. If I'm reading right, they split one share among all the scouting and development personnel. If that is 20 employees, that is $1,850 each. It's not $37k each. We're talking like new TV money, not car or house money

Perhaps it has changed in the last 5 years or so but the most a AAA veteran can make in a year is around 25,000 dollars. It took Eury Perez 4 seasons to get above single A where in those 4 seasons he made significantly less than 25,000 a season. I'm sure Eury is glad you've decided that the money being taken out of his pocket by players like Jayson Werth to be given to scouts doesn't amount to much and he doesn't need it.

20. Der_K Posted: January 15, 2013 at 02:42 PM (#4347590)

Perhaps it has changed in the last 5 years or so but the most a AAA veteran can make in a year is around 25,000 dollars.

Incorrect then and now - some make six figures. That said, a guy who hasn't reached minor league free agency and hasn't made a 40 man (not these guys here, of course) makes very little.

21. Ray (RDP)

Posted: January 15, 2013 at 02:50 PM (#4347604)

Idiots.

?????

It's not that much (a share of $37K split several ways), ownership should be the ones to pay it, and the younger players who haven't made a lot should be excluded from contributing anyway.

I don't really see why people here are getting themselves all wet over this.

Besides, ownership owes the team after tanking the season last year. Everyone's shares could have been more.

22. SoSH U at work Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:11 PM (#4347629)

It doesn't have to be either/or. The players can vote the staff guys a share (though it would be more meaningful if they did it without cutting into the shares of the league minimum guys) to show appreciation for their contributions*, and the owners can do likewise.

* Which is really all this is. It's a thanks for a job well done, rather than an obligation that SOMEONE has to undertake.

23. McCoy Wilfong for Money Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:16 PM (#4347633)

If vets like Jayson Werth want to give scouts and coaches a thousand dollars then they should just cut them a check for a thousand dollars each.

24. Ray (RDP)

Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:21 PM (#4347638)

If vets like Jayson Werth want to give scouts and coaches a thousand dollars then they should just cut them a check for a thousand dollars each.

Exactly, rather than pressuring everyone else to contribute.

25. SoSH U at work Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:22 PM (#4347640)

If vets like Jayson Werth want to give scouts and coaches a thousand dollars then they should just cut them a check for a thousand dollars each.

That's an option, sure. OTOH, they did have a vote, so it was presumably more than just Jayson Werth who felt like including the staff in some way (unless the Nats' gave voting shares by salary).

26. McCoy Wilfong for Money Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:30 PM (#4347646)

The players that get to decide are the players that spent the entire season on the roster.

So who voted?

Werth
LaRoche
Espinosa
R. Zimmerman
J. Zimmerman
Gonzalez
Jackson
Detwiler
Clippard
Bernadina
Lombardozzi
and probably a few more.

For the most part a bunch of guys making a ton of money with a few guys on the bottom rung. So for the most part, in my opinion, a group of guys that shouldn't be voting on whether or not to take money out of their fellow player's pockets and should have simply wrote coaches and scouts a check from their own bank accounts and not the player's pile.

27. SoSH U at work Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:35 PM (#4347653)

For the most part a bunch of guys making a ton of money with a few guys on the bottom rung. So for the most part, in my opinion, a group of guys that shouldn't be voting on whether or not to take money out of their fellow player's pockets and should have simply wrote coaches and scouts a check from their own bank accounts and not the player's pile.

They're not taking money out of anyone's pocket. They're already charged with determining how much money to give to those bottom rung guys - they can give them a full, half or no share. If they go cheap on the minor league guys to throw the staff a bone, then this certainly isn't worthy of praise (nor condemnation, that's how the process works). If, instead, they're being generous across the board, then the carping about this is just ######## for ########'s sake.

28. JJ1986 Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:36 PM (#4347654)

and probably a few more.

Strasburg, Storen, Burnett, Mattheus and Stammen from eyeballing it. Maybe Henry Rodriguez. Most of them are making a small amount.

29. Joey B. has ignited his October #Natitude Posted: January 15, 2013 at 03:50 PM (#4347670)

Breaking news: the Nats have just signed Rafael Soriano to a 2 year, $28 million deal.

Pennant, here we come!!

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Monday, January 14, 2013

Nationals players vote to include scouts, staff in playoff shares

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