Analysis: Braun's deal a watershed moment for Brewers
MILWAUKEE -- Those Wisconsin residents who weren't so caught up in Green Bay Packers hysteria during the mid-1990s to realize that this state still possessed a Major League Baseball franchise probably remember it well.
How many times did former Milwaukee Brewers owner-turned-commissioner Bud Selig tell us that Miller Park needed to be built to give the Brewers an opportunity -- i.e. the cash -- to field a club that could compete with the New Yorks and Bostons of the big league world?
"Hope and faith" was Bud's catch phrase then, and sure, his rhetoric about large and small economic markets in baseball got old at times. And at one point on that night-turned-morning of Oct. 5-6, 1995, the Brewers' long-term survival here appeared all but over.
Thankfully, though, in large part because of state senator George Petak of Racine and his reversed stadium funding vote, that turned out not to be the case.
And now May 15, 2008 -- remember that date, too -- will be heralded as another watershed moment in Brewers' history. It's not a stretch to say that now, as then, their future success and longevity is dependent on whether it again works out.
We're referring, of course, to present owner Mark Attanasio and Co.'s decision to sign reigning National League Rookie of the Year Ryan Braun to an eight-year, $45-million contract through 2015.
The deal, which includes a $2.3 million signing bonus, is the longest and largest in franchise history. It includes a full no-trade clause for its first four years and limited no-trade provisions after that.
Most importantly to the Brewers, they were able to "buy out" at least Braun's first two years of free agency.
And even though Braun hasn't even officially signed it yet, the buzz Thursday already centered on whether a domino effect will follow in which the Brewers can also lock up some of their other core of players in their early-to-mid-20s -- Prince Fielder, Corey Hart, Rickie Weeks, J.J. Hardy, etc. -- to similar long-term deals.
Though they each emphasized that such a decision is up to the individual player and his family's best interests, Braun, Attanasio, general manager Doug Melvin and manager Ned Yost were among those in the Milwaukee organization who expressed optimism Thursday of that ultimately occurring.
"We have a lot of great young players and I know we have a lot of guys that enjoy playing with each other and enjoy being around each other," said Braun, the first player in major league history to tally at least 40 doubles and 40 home runs within a year of his big-league debut (May 25, 2007).
"I certainly hope this starts a trend. Obviously we have a lot of great young players and it'd be great if we could all play together for quite a few years to come."
However, Fielder, the burly first baseman who has only five home runs this season (compared to Braun's team-leading 10) after becoming the youngest player ever to hit 50 last year, didn't give any clues Thursday about whether he'd like to follow in Braun's footsteps. Fielder created a mini-firestorm in spring training when the Brewers renewed his contract for $670,000.
"I don't know. I don't know," Fielder said coldly when asked whether there was any chance he'd agree to a lengthy contract.
(With perhaps the most powerful agent in pro sports, Scott Boras, representing him, the prevailing assumption has been that Fielder would prefer to test the free-agent market as soon as he's eligible and meanwhile test his financial luck before an arbitrator.)
When further questioned about whether he was excited that the Brewers made such a big financial commitment to one of their own, Fielder added: "Yeah, but I'm here for six years regardless. Whatever is whatever. I'm just happy for Braun that he's able to get his contract. A pretty good feeling for him, I'm sure.
"That's not my goal right now. I'm just trying to play baseball and not deal with that whenever that's around."
By agreeing to such a lengthy contract, Braun passed up the chance to potentially earn millions more through arbitration and free agency. But as a "zero-plus" player with only 129 days of major league service entering the 2008 season, he realized -- like Fielder -- that the Brewers would "control" him for at least his first six years of service time.
"The fact that I have less than a year in the big leagues is something that really puts it in perspective of how far I've come and how fast it has come," Braun said. "For me, just the opportunity to secure my future financially is something that really means a lot to me.
"I just feel like I was ready to make this commitment to the city of Milwaukee, to the fans and to the Brewers organization. For them obviously to step up give me this type of deal, this type of offer, is unprecedented and means a lot to me."
Because it's guaranteed money, the Brewers are taking the huge gamble here. Longtime followers of the franchise only need to hear names like Teddy Higuera, Ron Robinson, Franklin Stubbs, Jeffrey Hammonds and Sean Berry to realize how injuries and/or pathetic on-field performances from players awarded lucrative multi-year deals can have a crippling effect on a franchise for years.
But the guess here is this one won't go that route. A Pat Listach-esque flash-in-the-pan Braun certainly does not appear to be. And he's been a model of good health ever since the Brewers made him their 2005 first-round draft pick.
Attanasio insisted the deal represents far more than simply a public relations ploy. It was painfully evident by some of the decisions made by former Brewers executives over the past 20 years regarding the aforementioned injury-riddled and/or ineffective players that that wasn't always true.
"You can't just do things to show commitment because if the player is a bust, the fans aren't going to come to see a player with a bad contract who doesn't perform," Attanasio said. "In the case of Ryan Braun, I know Doug and (assistant GM Gord Ash) are very confident in his performance. Obviously, injury is always a risk but we don't think we have a high risk of performance with Ryan."
Like Braun, Melvin said the opportunity to strike a deal with one of his team's young stars -- a growing trend in baseball -- was too good to pass up.
"The Prince Fielders, the Ryan Brauns come along every 10, 12, 15 years," Melvin said. "Like Yount and Molitor, look at how many years that it's taken to get players where Robin and Paul are not always names that are brought up (in Milwaukee).
"So it takes a long time for those kinds of players to come along. It doesn't happen every other year. So when you get that kind of player, you feel like you need to step up and make an effort to sign them to keep them in your system."
If the Brewers (20-21) -- who lost 7-2 to the Dodgers on Thursday at Miller Park -- tank on their 10-game road trip, which starts Friday at World Series champion Boston, the high hopes of fans and members of the organization for 2008 will take a severe if not deadly hit.
But as for their long-range prospects, having a talented and, from all accounts, high-character guy like Braun signed through 2015 can only be classified this way: as a home run.
Morry Gash/Associated Press
Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun breaks his bat Thurday against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Milwaukee.
