Corey's 25 Man Roster Challenge -- Salary Cap Edition
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by user Coreyisarealboy
I decided everyone was taking the easy way out and sticking to anybody in the majors. So, I wanted to make the cheapest, Marlin-style roster with this challenge. So, here I go, with the Marlins' payroll, here is my 25-Man Roster.
I know there's no salary cap in baseball, but I was mulling a best baseball team for cheap article, and then the 25 Man Challenge came along, so I decided to do one of each in the same article.
And I know everyone's probably sick of seeing these (this is like the 20th just today), but hopefully this one will still open some eyes.
Starters
Note: Because I root for a National League team, there will be no DH. This is also due to the fact that most DHs are paid stupid amounts of money and cost me precious space.
C - Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves - Using McCann meant no Joe Mauer, but using Joe Mauer meant no Francisco Liriano. I think McCann's bargain basement price tag of $333,500 would fit on this team quite nicely.
1B - Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies - Howard is an easy choice, considering most first basemen with this kind of power go for $10 million-plus these days. Salary: $355,000
2B - Dan Uggla, Florida Marlins - Finally he gets the nod (leave it to the salary 25-man challenge to do that for the kid). After I used Howard, Chase Utley was nixed, and Uggla slid easily into the opening at second. Salary: $327,000
3B - David Wright, New York Mets - You absolutely have to love the salary rules in baseball when you can get a guy like Wright on your team for $374,000. This takes care of Ws and a team with a very large payroll.
SS - Jhonny Peralta, Cleveland Indians - I wanted to put Bill Hall here, but Hall gets shunned due to the Howard selection. It's an easy trade off, as I'm not losing a whole lot with Peralta. Salary: $750,000
LF - Raul Ibanez, Seattle Mariners - My salary cap killer. And really, should I have expected it to come from any other team but the Mariners? With a general lack of quality I's around the league, I had to choose Ibanez, but it's not like his $4,916,667 is entirely outrageous. More on the left field dilemma later.
CF - Ryan Freel, Cincinnati Reds - Choosing Peralta freed up enough cap room to get Freel, who is a decent option in center. Salary: $1.3 million.
RF - Alex Rios, Toronto Blue Jays - The question: Jonny Gomes or Rios? The answer: Need Scott Kazmir, pick Rios. But for just $354,000, I get a cool .330 BA and .383 OBP. Not bad.
Bench
C - Josh Bard, San Diego Padres - Almost went with Henry Blanco as my backup catcher and B. What a silly move that would've been. Blanco's salary: $1.5 million. Bard's salary: $353,400.
IF - Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox - I really could've gone with Papelbon from the Sox and Michael Young as my Y, but Peralta fit the bill for a cheap, efficient shortstop, and Youkilis is a more than adequate backup that can play several positions. Salary: $354,600.
IF - Garrett Atkins, Colorado Rockies - My original plan was to have Matt Holliday in left, but Howard's inclusion made that impossible, so I was left to search for a left fielder and a Rockie. Atkins was a no-brainer for the latter, but the left field problem led me to splurge on Ibanez, someone I didn't really want to splurge on. Salary: $335,000.
OF - Andre Ethier, Los Angeles Dodgers - Ethier's currently batting .340 with 6 homers and 33 RBI on a minor league contract. Easily killing two birds with one stone with selecting a Dodger and an adequate E.
OF - Esteban German, Kansas City Royals - You know, for a team with as low of a payroll as the Royals do, it was awfully hard picking a player from that team. German gets in, thankfully, because I was able to slide in Peralta at short in front of Khalil Greene.
IF - Lance Niekro, San Francisco Giants - Niekro, who's on a minor league contract, is the ultimate filler guy from the team filled with overpaid, useless major leaguers.
Starting Pitchers
SP - Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Devil Rays - On the teams with the lowest payrolls, you're bound to have a few dilemmas, but this one was a no-brainer. Salary: $371,700.
SP - Francisco Liriano, Minnesota Twins - Thanks to McCann, I was able to get Liriano. Salary: $327,000.
SP - Ervin Santana, Los Angeles Angels - I wanted this guy on here so bad because he solved a huge problem with the Angels, and it also gave me an All-Star caliber No. 3 at the price of just $350,000.
SP - Zach Duke, Pittsburgh Pirates - Even though he's going through his sophomore slump right now, he's not a bad No. 4 guy to have, especially when his $335,000 salary is taken into consideration.
SP - Claudio Vargas, Arizona Diamondbacks - A waste of money on a filler guy, but I was almost forced to. I almost put Chad Tracy on the team, but then I realized I had too many infielders. Sliding Ethier and German in allowed me to not only have a T available, but to use my V on Vargas. Salary: $1,275,000.
Relievers
CL - Bobby Jenks, Chicago White Sox - The only thing that I struggled with on this selection was whether to put him as my set-up man or my closer. Salary: $340,000.
RP - Chad Cordero, Washington Nationals - Why would I put Jenks as my set-up man? When there's 40-plus saves sitting next to him in the bullpen. Salary: $525,000.
RP - Derrick Turnbow, Milwaukee Brewers - The exclusion of Tracy opened the door for Turnbow, but with the way he's been pitching lately, to hell with him being my closer. Salary: $658,667.
RP - Chad Qualls, Houston Astros - Yep, this guy is an absolute gem at Q. Salary: $376,000.
RP - Joel Zumaya, Detroit Tigers - Ditto at Z. Salary: $327,000.
RP - Will Ohman, Chicago Cubs - See: Lance Niekro. Salary: $610,000.
In order to come to a final number, I estimated the minor league contracts of Ethier and Niekro at $350,000, which is probably exaggerated, but oh well. If anyone would like to tell me their real salaries, I'd be happy to update them.
As for my total salary: $16,235,537. Eat that, Florida.
Teams not used: Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, New York Yankees
Date
Wed 07/19/06, 8:15 pm EST
