As a Philadelphia Phillies fan, I was disheartened when I heard Jayson Werth had signed a fat contract with the Washington Nationals. At first. How could our star right fielder abandon his fans in the city of Brotherly Love for these suspect wannabes in the capital city? Why switch from a perennial winner to an abject loser? Philly cheese steaks for Ben’s half smokes?
The short answer is money. With security. The Washington Nationals offered Werth $126 million over seven years. That’s 18 million smackers per year. Werth will turn 32 in May. He’s guaranteed a spot on the roster and a fat check until he’s 39.
Good for Jayson. But is it bad for the Phillies? Good for the Nats? More to the point for sports fans in and around the nation’s capital — why do Washington sports owners want to pay huge sums for Philly stars who might be past their primes? (Hello, Donovan McNabb?)
I sought comfort in the sports pages of the Philadelphia Inquirer. First, I found this column by Bill Conlon about Werth’s agent, Scott Boras.
“Scott Boras sold the Nationals 1,000 acres of oceanfront property in the Sahara desert. Convinced owner Ted Lerner it’s a great deal because Ted’s buddy, Al Gore, says in a few hundred years the Mediterranean Sea will be lapping at the edge of the property. Just think of the condo potential.”
Here’s Phil Sheridan on the deal: “It is not so great for the Phillies, who lose a really good player and key contributor to their superb three-year run as the class of the National League. But it is worse for the Nationals, a dead-on-arrival franchise that is gambling Hall of Famer money on a guy who may very well be a product of his place in the Phillies’ powerful lineup.”
That hurts.
“It’s a lot of money,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said. “It’s a lot of years. We feel this is the start of something.”
I think it’s the start of Nationals owner Ted Lerner behaving like Redskins owner Dan Snyder. Rather than build from the farm system and the draft, the Lerners threw a mountain of cash at a veteran — who might not be worth the risk. Where’s the legendary Lerner patience?
There are no quick fixes in pro sports. Snyder bought McNabb but didn’t give him targets or runners or linemen. McNabb looks like a loser. If the Lerners don’t add pitching and more bats to Werth, he’ll be a bust, too.
And when it comes to fan friendliness, Werth is no Adam Dunn. The big lug, who signed with the Chicago White Sox last week, was a fan favorite here. Whereas Dunn is sweet and happy, Werth is taciturn and sullen. I don’t see fans getting cozy with Werth.
Seems to me that’s the goal in building a franchise. You want a winning team, and you want fans to bond with the players. The Nationals don’t advance their interests in either with Werth.
So on second thought, this Phillies fan is OK with Jayson coming to town.
Harry Jaffe’s column appears on Tuesday and Friday. He can be contacted at [email protected].
