Offseason Roster Thread

[FireAlexAnthopoulos]

I think signing Price and extending Bautista gives us 2-3 chances to win the World series here

 

Everyone should want this everyone should want a championship. Wasn't last year amazing. Imagine 2 or 3 more years like that

 

...until Price chokes in the playoffs again and we get zero rings.

[BigBounceyBlueBalls]

I know it's Eric Thames but if your the Jays do you take a flyer and grab him, now that he can play 1st and bats left handed too?

1st, OF and bench bat with speed to steal a base or two.... Hmmmmmm

[King]

I know it's Eric Thames but if your the Jays do you take a flyer and grab him, now that he can play 1st and bats left handed too?

1st, OF and bench bat with speed to steal a base or two.... Hmmmmmm

 

I don't think any teams would offer him a guaranteed MLB contract and I don't think he would want to come back on a minor league one.

[Ehjays]

I know it's Eric Thames but if your the Jays do you take a flyer and grab him, now that he can play 1st and bats left handed too?

1st, OF and bench bat with speed to steal a base or two.... Hmmmmmm

 

No thank you, I do not want to revisit that again.

 

His defence was absurd

[saskjayfan]

No thank you, I do not want to revisit that again.

 

His defence was absurd

 

I've never seen him play first though and that beard he's sporting is pretty cool.

[Brownie19]

I know it's Eric Thames but if your the Jays do you take a flyer and grab him, now that he can play 1st and bats left handed too?

1st, OF and bench bat with speed to steal a base or two.... Hmmmmmm

 

Steroids are banned in MLB. Therefore Thames won't return...

[burlingtonbandit]

I don't think any teams would offer him a guaranteed MLB contract and I don't think he would want to come back on a minor league one.

 

I would think he would get a guaranteed contract after putting up those numbers. He could make more in Korea though probably.

[King]

I would think he would get a guaranteed contract after putting up those numbers. He could make more in Korea though probably.

 

I dont know how much he's making in Korea

[gruber92]

Eric Thames is making $800K US in Korea and has one year left on his contract. He was on the Blair show last week and said he's totally open in coming back to the MLB for the 2017 season. He also said he has totally matured as a hitter as he has learned to recognize and lay off the off speed stuff out of the strike zone, which led to him drawing 103 BB (91K) in 142 games.

 

He put up video game type stats this year..

 

.381 /.497 /.790 47HR / 140RBI

 

He also stole 40 bases while getting caught only eight times.

 

I know it's Korea but he seemed to have turned a corner. Someone will probably give him a ST invite and has a decent chance at a guaranteed league minimum deal for one year. He could be a LHH Colabello type with more speed.

[baseballsss]

Eric Thames is making $800K US in Korea and has one year left on his contract. He was on the Blair show last week and said he's totally open in coming back to the MLB for the 2017 season. He also said he has totally matured as a hitter as he has learned to recognize and lay off the off speed stuff out of the strike zone, which led to him drawing 103 BB (91K) in 142 games.

 

He put up video game type stats this year..

 

.381 /.497 /.790 47HR / 140RBI

 

He also stole 40 bases while getting caught only eight times.

 

I know it's Korea but he seemed to have turned a corner. Someone will probably give him a ST invite and has a decent chance at a guaranteed league minimum deal for one year. He could be a LHH Colabello type with more speed.

 

Why does other players that come out of Korea who have far worse numbers then that get guranteed MLB deals and paid in the millions but Thames only gets an invite to spring training?

[SaskJaysFan_2]

Why does other players that come out of Korea who have far worse numbers then that get guranteed MLB deals and paid in the millions but Thames only gets an invite to spring training?

 

I thought the same thing!

 

If I'm a GM, and have a LF need, I get this guy ASAP. A small 4-year (like 8-10M) might do it. He's a good clubhouse guy, and he's shown that he has some skill out there. Great bench piece at a minimum.

[Grant77]

I thought the same thing!

 

If I'm a GM, and have a LF need, I get this guy ASAP. A small 4-year (like 8-10M) might do it. He's a good clubhouse guy, and he's shown that he has some skill out there. Great bench piece at a minimum.

 

Oh my....

[Stangstag]

Why does other players that come out of Korea who have far worse numbers then that get guranteed MLB deals and paid in the millions but Thames only gets an invite to spring training?

 

Because Thames has proven he can't handle major league pitching?

[BTS]

The problem with Thames is that he's an atrocious defender. Like Colabello bad. I don't think he's ever really played 1B, so you're looking at gambling money on a DH.

[TBJ12]

Because Thames has proven he can't handle major league pitching?

 

Ya, because no player has ever been successful after making an adjustment to there approach at the plate. Another season like 2015 in the KBO and I'd be surprised if Thames doesn't find himself a guaranteed MLB deal.

[TBJ12]

The problem with Thames is that he's an atrocious defender. Like Colabello bad. I don't think he's ever really played 1B, so you're looking at gambling money on a DH.

 

I believe he's a first baseman in the KBO. No idea what his defense is like there though, can't see it being very good.

[Stangstag]

Ya, because no player has ever been successful after making an adjustment to there approach at the plate. Another season like 2015 in the KBO and I'd be surprised if Thames doesn't find himself a guaranteed MLB deal.

 

I wouldn't be surprised to see his "new approach" go completely out the window when he has to face MLB pitchers again. The breaking pitches are just so much better than any other league.

[RealAccountant]

Matt Hague to go Eric Thames in Japan

[TBJ12]

I wouldn't be surprised to see his "new approach" go completely out the window when he has to face MLB pitchers again. The breaking pitches are just so much better than any other league.

 

Thats possible, but it doesn't change the fact that another big season in the KBO likely gets him a MLB deal.

[Brownie19]

Eric Thames is making $800K US in Korea and has one year left on his contract. He was on the Blair show last week and said he's totally open in coming back to the MLB for the 2017 season. He also said he has totally matured as a hitter as he has learned to recognize and lay off the off speed stuff out of the strike zone, which led to him drawing 103 BB (91K) in 142 games.

 

He put up video game type stats this year..

 

.381 /.497 /.790 47HR / 140RBI

 

He also stole 40 bases while getting caught only eight times.

 

I know it's Korea but he seemed to have turned a corner. Someone will probably give him a ST invite and has a decent chance at a guaranteed league minimum deal for one year. He could be a LHH Colabello type with more speed.

 

I thought we already acknowledged they don't test for or care about PED's in Korea - and Thames, well, loves the juice.

[RealAccountant]

I thought we already acknowledged they don't test for or care about PED's in Korea - and Thames, well, loves the juice.

 

Sir are you implying that the man is on the juice

 

It's completely natural to have 300 lb of lean muscle

[SaskJaysFan_2]

Because Thames has proven he can't handle major league pitching?

 

So how a guy performs as a youngster means that's the way he will always perform?

 

#EE #JB #JD

[TBJ12]

I thought we already acknowledged they don't test for or care about PED's in Korea - and Thames, well, loves the juice.

 

You have any proof of this? Why isn't this ever mentioned in articles discussing KBO players coming to MLB?

[Dr. Dinger]

Eric Thames is making $800K US in Korea and has one year left on his contract. He was on the Blair show last week and said he's totally open in coming back to the MLB for the 2017 season. He also said he has totally matured as a hitter as he has learned to recognize and lay off the off speed stuff out of the strike zone, which led to him drawing 103 BB (91K) in 142 games.

 

 

No s***.

[z3r0s]

That's the kind of guy you try to get on a minor league deal with an ok salary and an opt out to go back to Korea if he doesn't get called up after X days. See if he dominates the IL and never let him see the OF.

[Governator]

Can someone explain to me the higher taxes that players would be paying as a Jay vs an American team, I'm confused by it?

 

Our highest federal tax bracket is 29% (albeit changing soon with the liberals) and the highest provincial tax bracket I believe is 13.16%. I'm not sure if just 'adding them up' is a fair comparison to our American friends, I'm sure the great mind of RealAccountant can fill us in but a collective 42% is not much higher than the US federal tax of 39% + $119K + state taxes (where applicable).

 

Not looking for an argument, just information as I was under the impression there was a larger gap between our taxes and theirs.

[KingKat]

Can someone explain to me the higher taxes that players would be paying as a Jay vs an American team, I'm confused by it?

 

Our highest federal tax bracket is 29% (albeit changing soon with the liberals) and the highest provincial tax bracket I believe is 13.16%. I'm not sure if just 'adding them up' is a fair comparison to our American friends, I'm sure the great mind of RealAccountant can fill us in but a collective 42% is not much higher than the US federal tax of 39% + $119K + state taxes (where applicable).

 

Not looking for an argument, just information as I was under the impression there was a larger gap between our taxes and theirs.

 

IIRC, the perception is worse than the reality. The Blue Jays actually have accountants that go through this with free agents and explain to them how it's not worse than most U.S. places. You only save money by signing in certain states (I'm thinking probably Florida and Arizona).

[43211234]

Can someone explain to me the higher taxes that players would be paying as a Jay vs an American team, I'm confused by it?

 

Our highest federal tax bracket is 29% (albeit changing soon with the liberals) and the highest provincial tax bracket I believe is 13.16%. I'm not sure if just 'adding them up' is a fair comparison to our American friends, I'm sure the great mind of RealAccountant can fill us in but a collective 42% is not much higher than the US federal tax of 39% + $119K + state taxes (where applicable).

 

Not looking for an argument, just information as I was under the impression there was a larger gap between our taxes and theirs.

 

Here is a very relevant article: http://www.mondaq.com/canada/x/227546/tax+authorities/Hitting+Dingers+But+Not+Getting+Dinged+A+Look+At+Taxation+Of+Professional+Baseball+Players+In+Canada

 

Another baseball season approaches, and for the first time in 20 years there is much optimism and excitement surrounding the only Canadian team in Major League Baseball (MLB) - the Toronto Blue Jays.

 

This optimism stems from some key off-season acquisitions, which bring new blood and more talent to the team. While sports fandom was abuzz with excitement, many media outlets (mostly those south of the border) picked up on that other "constant through all the years"- taxes. They seemingly love to point out that players moving from Miami to Toronto are going to take extreme hits to their wallets.

 

It is very easy for these sports pundits to simply compare federal, provincial and state tax rates and sensationalize the differences. Those differences do make for great headlines. For example, in Ontario, home province of the Blue Jays, the top combined federal and provincial tax rate is a staggering 49.53%. By comparison, in the pre-fiscal-cliff world when the acquisitions took place, a combined U.S. federal and Florida personal tax rate sat at only 35%.That's a mind-blowing 14.53% difference! On a $100 million contract, could that mean that a player who is traded from the Florida Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays is now paying $14.5 million more in taxes?

 

That's how it looked to a lot of people... but looks can be deceiving.

 

In actual fact, the math is not so simple. Let's take a closer look at how baseball players are really taxed in Canada.

 

To illustrate, assume that the traded player remains a non-resident of Canada and a resident of the United States. Most players leave their families and belongings behind in the U.S. and come to Toronto only long enough to play out the baseball season. They then return home to the U.S. for the off-season.

 

Residency can be a complicated topic due to the mobility of professional athletes, and is beyond the scope of this article. To learn more about this topic, click here.

 

Canadian tax rules state that a non-resident is taxable in Canada if he is employed here – specifically, if he performs any of his duties in Canada. That means that a player from any club that plays games in Canada is subject to Canadian taxation, whether he is a member of the New York Yankees or Toronto Blue Jays. Does that mean every time MLB players come to the Rogers Centre for road games that they have tax bills to pay to the Canadian government? Happily for them, no. A tax treaty between Canada and the U.S. exempts players of U.S. teams from paying taxes on those games.

 

By the same token, a U.S. resident on a Canadian team who performs a portion of his duties outside of Canada would not be subject to Canadian taxation on those days. So, a Blue Jays player does not pay Canadian taxes on income he earns for games he plays outside of Canada – effectively, road games and spring training.

 

The Blue Jays spend roughly 45% of their time in Canada. Therefore, a U.S.-resident Blue Jay pays tax to Ontario and Canada on only 45% of his total employment income.

 

The player gets credit for the taxes he paid to Canada when he files his U.S. return – so he avoids double taxation. Effectively, a Blue Jays player ends up paying the higher of the two tax rates between Canada and the United States (factoring in his U.S. state of residence) on his "home game" income.

 

The comparison of a player's tax burden does not stop with the home game vs. road game factor. Other significant factors come into play. Employees in Canada are very restricted on the expenses they can claim against their income. This is not the case for athletes in the U.S., who can claim agent fees and training expenses as deductions against their income. Agent fees generally run at least 3% of a player's income – potentially a big number! This further inflates the Canadian tax burden as compared to that of the United States.

 

But countering this effect is the United States' vastly increased tax rates, which came into effect in January 2013. The U.S. now has a top federal rate of 39.6% and a Medicare tax rate of 2.35%. While Canada's social security costs are marginal (Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance premiums) and less than their corresponding taxes in the United States (FICA), there is no meaningful Canadian equivalent to the Medicare tax that exists in the United States. Further, an employee of a U.S. organization pays this Medicare tax on his entire income (including the other 55% of his income – the equivalent of his road appearances).

 

Rising U.S. tax rates and steep Medicare costs significantly narrow the gap between Canadian and U.S. taxes for professional athletes. There may also be other ways for athletes to reduce their Canadian tax bill. This may involve restructuring their contracts to receive a signing bonus. (Signing bonuses get preferential tax treatment under the tax treaty between Canada and the United States.)

 

Ignoring contract restructuring and using all the variables described above, we computed that the tax bill for a player who is a resident of Florida and moves from the Marlins to the Blue Jays with $100 million left on his contract is only an additional $2.7 million, over the life of the entire contract. It is a significant number, but it is far lower than the $14.5 million some sports reporters would have us believe.

 

For comparative purposes, if that same player was traded to a team in California, instead of Canada, he would actually be worse off financially! In that case, he would pay an additional $3.5 million in taxes. A move to a team in New York State (where tax rates are similar to Toronto) would cost the player an additional $2.5 million in taxes - assuming that player does not want to live in a swanky Manhattan condo, where city taxes would cost him a further $1.7 million.

 

Florida and other non-taxed states such as Texas are only a few examples where large tax discrepancies may exist when a player is traded to a Canadian team. However, as illustrated above, the added tax costs for a player moving to the Blue Jays would be no different than if he moved to the Dodgers or the Mets.

 

While the trade from Florida may cost a player $2.7 million in taxes, the players who came to Toronto this offseason from San Francisco and New York are likely no worse off than before – and may be even better off financially.

 

The bottom line is that it is time to eliminate taxes as a potential reason for athletes staying away from Canada. Baseball players should focus on factors other than taxes when deciding to play here: a beautiful and lively city with fine restaurants and nightlife, and playing meaningful baseball games all summer long in a stadium packed with the best fans in baseball. Those things will help curb any costs.

 

 

 

Tax is almost always brought up by American media when discussing free agent contracts and the perception is much more damaging than the reality I think. I remember AA saying once that they did their own look at the tax situation for all mlb teams and they thought they were around 20th in the league in terms of the how much players would pay. Not great, but certainly not as bad as the media often mindlessly says.

 

Even though Arizona is also a good tax state, I doubt the Blue Jays would ever leave Florida for spring training.

[AdamGreenwood]

Matt Hague is going to Japan. A bit disappointing, as was looking forward to having Hague as depth.

Not sure why Jays would let him go for $300,000. Can only assume Hague had a chance to make some decent money and Jays didn't want to stand in his way, and couldn't make the same commitment.

[Brownie19]

Matt Hague is going to Japan. A bit disappointing, as was looking forward to having Hague as depth.

Not sure why Jays would let him go for $300,000. Can only assume Hague had a chance to make some decent money and Jays didn't want to stand in his way, and couldn't make the same commitment.

 

Jays need the extra cash to sign Price