Non-Phillies Hot Stove and Off-Season News/Notes

[andyb]

The point on the hedge fund loophole is that income that for most people would be regular income, gets taxed as capitol gains for hedge fund managers. They get a percentage of account value for managing that account. There is very little risk in them getting a percentage of existing funds. Thus they are taxed at 15% instead of an overall rate in the 35%-40% range.

It is not about whether capital gains should be taxed at a lower rate. It is a debate as to whether the hedge fund manager's income should be considered capital gains. This is a very large part of the reason why hedge fund managers have become so rich. They pay lower taxes on other people's risk.

[tom81]

I have no problem with capital gains being taxed at a “somewhat “ lower tax rate than ordinary income as long as it is taxed. (And this doesn’t include the “hedge fund” manager). I have a problem with capital gains never really being taxed. There should be a mark to market of assets such as stock at year end and unrealized gains taxed at that lower rate. If there are losses, they can be carried forward to use against other capital gains.

[julio]

There should be a mark to market of assets such as stock at year end and unrealized gains taxed at that lower rate

I'm not sure I can agree that unrealized gains should be taxed. That creates a strong incentive to sell something, since unless the investor sells something (realizes gains, or losses), the investor may not have the cash to pay the tax on unrealized gains. Do we want to encourage (or force) investors to sell short-term, or would we prefer incentives to stay in productive investments?

My own stock/bond investments have typically been with the goal of long-term growth. If I have to sell a percentage each December to pay income tax on unrealized gains, I'm very likely never going to get there.

[tom81]

I hear you Julio, but as in many other things currently in the tax code you could put in an exclusion for the 1st x amount of capital gains so as not to force non wealthy investors to sell some of their investments to pay this tax. I believe we need a mechanism to tax the wealthy who borrow against their stock while never selling it and thus never paying and real taxes.

[zambonir]

Still find it fascinating that Correa, the best available SS, the SS without a QO, and the guy most think could stay at SS the longest (at least of the three big bats) just ends up as a 3B.

People are also saying that because Cohen has discussed the deal publicly (unlike Dombrowski when Turner was first said to have signed) it's unlikely to fall through.

This also highlights both sides of a long delay between the announced signing and an official signing. Sometimes the player is merely on vacation. Less often - but now rather prominently - there's an actual issue.

All that stood between Correa and a decade-plus tenure in the Bay Area was a physical. That did not take place immediately. It is not uncommon for a gap to exist between agreement and examination. Judge agreed to his nine-year, $360 million contract with the Yankees on Dec. 7, took a vacation in Hawaii and only upon his return did he undergo a physical. The Yankees named him team captain at a press conference on Wednesday, a full two weeks after the initial agreement.

Inside Carlos Correa's stunning pivot from Giants to Mets : ‘Correa-mas’ came...

[flyers19rw]

After the misfire with Judge, the Giants were desperate to nail a different signing of a big name player. With the Dodgers where they already are and the Padres loading up, the Giants needed something big to stay in the hunt with their West coast competition. For them to have agreed to a deal with Correa and then back out over a physical issue that they say was not related to past back problems should be a cause for concern. This is more than the Giants backing out of a deal for a lack of money.
Before anointing the Mets as being overly astute with their off season signings, let's play the games in '23 and see how it all rolls out. They may have hit the jackpot or it may end up being snake eyes.

[zambonir]

The Mets may well fail spectacularly but I think these medical disputes are generally just gamesmanship. Correa has been no less durable or more injury-prone than Harper, Hoskins or JT. And as we've seen all kinds of teams are taking crazy risks on pitchers with injury history. How would Eflin even pass a physical, per se? What did the Giants see that the Twins didn't last year? (I doubt it's a new issue.)

There is no way the Giants wanted this to end with them going 0 for 2 on star free agents. But they gave Boras an opening and he wasn't willing to negotiate with them. He said execute the deal we already agreed to or I walk, and then he walked. I don't think that's what SF wanted to happen, they expected to simply agree to a re-structured deal, and didn't think two teams would get back into the market so fast (and that one of them is crazy).

What's crazy about all of is it the Mets could succeed incredibly, and then, as with last year (for the Dodgers too) still get nothing for it.

[Philsmania]

Mets trade McCann & $19 million of his $24 million to the Orioles for a PTBNL. McCann will likely back up Rutschman. Orioles get a backup catcher for $5 million for two years.

Orioles Acquire James McCann From Mets

[zambonir]

Amazing. Listen, I realize that Steve Cohen is much, much wealthier than Middleton, and I don't think the Phillies should necessarily be busting through multiple tiers of the CBT (which has other penalties besides money). But what this latest news highlights is that when the time comes to move on from a few of our best-paid declining players, just eat the contract.

[fish]

They didn’t get to be billionaires by regularly making bad investments. Maybe Cohen is a true believer and just wants his team to win regardless of the cost.

Wanting to win aside, it may be that he recognizes the revenue he could tap if he can get the Mets to the next level and have a run (several runs) like the Phillies had in 2022. The only way to get to that level of success for the Mets is to pad the roster with stars and a massive payroll even if it means operating at a loss- at least until they win and it isn't a loss anymore. The old spend money to make money schtick.

[BostonRoss]

This isn't the first time a New York team signed a shortstop when they already had one, and moved the new guy to 3B.

I wonder whether the Mets may spend more money on players not playing for them than other teams are spending for all their players. (Including Bobby Bonilla.)

[andyb]

Conforton to the Giants. Seems a bit expensive to me and not sure he is a good fit for their park. Other side of the coin is obviously a short deal with some upside. The Giants do have prospects coming too.

Conforto, Giants agree to 2-year, $36 million deal

[zambonir]

Well they were in a bit of a pickle weren't they?

[BaseballCat]

Well this is interesting …

Mets Have "Raised Concerns" Over Carlos Correa's Physical

[julio]

Well this is interesting …

Mets Have "Raised Concerns" Over Carlos Correa's Physical

[starts to chuckle...is overtaken by a second round of unexpected mirth...hee hee!...Oh, the humanity!]

[allentown]

This is evidence that DD made the correct choice in picking Turner over Correa, even with the difference in comp/no-comp.

[RolenRules]

Yes, I must agree and I was one who had advocated for Correa.

[zambonir]

Yes, but only in hindsight. No indication the Phillies had any clue about this issue. And also no way to know if it will actually be an issue. But what's funny is, the medical concern also raised questions about what was otherwise supposed to be Correa's greatest selling point (besides the lack of QO): youth and sticking at shortstop.

[julio]

Hmm. Correa had a nasty fibula break in 2014, apparently in or near the ankle. Per a story in the Athletic, the break apparently required a permanent repair with a metal plate.

Mets concerned with Carlos Correa's physical: Sources

“He just hit my plate,” Correa told reporters. “I had surgery and he hit it. Just kind of felt numb. Vibrating. So I was just waiting for it to calm down. It was a little scary, but when I moved I knew it was good.”

Does this kind of a repair have a service life? Is it something that can be expected to weaken, or cause long-term issues? I don't know; any orthopedic surgeons here?

[Aquapong]

I wonder why the Twins didn’t have issue with it?