are the kind of articles that allow me to be grateful for being an independent thinker who has never been paid for an article. My Steven Kwan article, if followed, would have saved the Guardians 50 to 100 million dollars long term if they had never signed Josh Bell to a 32 million dollar deal, and had instead invested in Steven Kwan's long term future as a Guardian after his first gold glove season.
My other article about Michael Brantley displays my other talent, connecting dots. I pointed out that Michael Brantley signed a Grady Sizemore number of at bat incentive style of contract that is the WORST kind of contract for an established veteran coming back from an injury to sign.
Sure enough, 2023 would be Brantley's final season in baseball. I don't follow the Astro's closely enough to know if Brantley either came back too soon in 2023, or, early on realized he signed a bad contract and lost interest in baseball as a result. Brantley did say he wanted to spend time with his kids, so he has a built in alternative reason. Yet the case can be made that incentivizing at bat thresholds for an established veteran athlete coming back from an injury is insulting, and ineffective.
One need not look farther than the amazing year that David Fry is having in 2024 while having one half the at bats of an everyday player, to see that incentivizing number of at bats matters less than the quality of at bats.
Los Angeles Emmy winning Producer Alessandro Machi combines his editing, camera and observational skills to provide unique insights into the World of Sports.
