Showalter says lifetime ban for A-Rod will put Wieters in pinstripes

A “USA Today” article from this morning quotes Orioles manager Buck Showalter as being quite unhappy with the fact that the Yankees could get off the hook from Alex Rodriguez’s monster contract once the Biogenesis suspensions are announced.

According to the article by Paul White:

Getting Rodriguez’s $25 million salary off their 2014 books would effectively reset a Yankees payroll projected to exceed a $189 million luxury tax threshold the club hoped to slip under. And if they’re freed from the $86 million owed Rodriguez from 2014 to ’17? Showalter fears Commissioner Bud Selig’s zeal to ban Rodriguez might turn the Yankees into free agent predators again.

The reason Orioles fans are so unsettled about the article is Showalter’s response:

“If Bud lets them get away with that, they’re under the luxury tax,” Showalter told USA TODAY Sports. “If they can reset, they can spend again and I guarantee you in two years Matt Wieters is in New York.”

It’s a bit odd for fans to even think about what will happen two years from now. There’s a reason Orioles fans should be upset however, and it’s not because of what Showalter said. He’s right. The O’s skipper nails it right on the head, and I have no problem with him coming out and saying such a thing.

The issue fans should have is with the system in general. Knowing that the Yankees could be out from under such an obscene contract with no penalty would grind the gears of anyone who doesn’t rock the NY on their cap.

The real problem is that there’s not much Bud Selig, or anyone, can do about the matter. While the type of suspension A-Rod is going to endure will be unprecedented, the Commissioner has no say in controlling the financial aspect of what the Yankees will have to pay him. The Yankees will be able to get under the luxury tax without Rodriguez on the books, and neither Selig nor Showalter can do a thing about it. That’s something that is protected by the labor agreement.

We all know the Yankees are prone to spending more for players than any team, especially the Orioles. That’s not really the issue here. The conflict is that of a bit of “baseball morality.” New York knew exactly what they were paying for when they signed Rodriguez to a 10-year, $275-million contract a few years ago. His decline has sharpened ever so rapidly each season since. If A-Rod gets a lifetime ban, which has been suggested and reported for weeks now, all of that money owed to him that’s on the books for the Yankees disappears. The fact that the Yanks are likely going to get out of that deal after haphazardly throwing the money around like there’s an unlimited supply of it is the part that is tough to deal with it.

The idea of Matt Wieters in pinstripes is no doubt unsettling to Orioles fans. It brings back vivid memories of Mike Mussina leaving Baltimore after the 2000 season for more money in the Bronx. I’ll never blame a player for going to greener pastures for more green. These are people who are trying to provide for their families and earn as much money as possible, just like everyone else.

The other issue for the O’s is actually on the field, away from the back offices where these monster contracts are all signed.

Wieters has been a staple in Baltimore for a few years now, providing a stable backstop and a decent bat in the lineup. He may not have lived up to the “switch-hitting Jesus” or “Joe Mauer with power” labels that were placed on him early in his career, but the options elsewhere in baseball are thin.

Matt Wieters is a top-five catcher in the game. The Cardinals have Yadier Molina, the Giants have Buster Posey and the Twins have Mauer. When you add up the defensive outlook along with the offensive numbers, I’d put Wieters in a class just below those four. The drop off after the top five or six catchers in the game these days is significant. There are not many great, let alone good catchers in the game right now. Having a guy like Wieters is a plus and there’s no doubt the Orioles would like to keep him around for the long haul.

Even if Wieters left in a few seasons and went to play elsewhere, there’s no place Orioles fans would be more upset to see him go than New York. Unfortunately, as Buck Showalter has made clear, that’s an idea that fans may have to get used to.