Schuerholz and Wren Blast Furcal’s Agents

Here are John Schuerholz’s comments to the AJC regarding Furcal’s Agents:

“Having been in this business for 40-some years, I’ve never seen anybody treated like that,” Schuerholz said. “The Atlanta Braves will no longer do business with that company — ever. I told [agent] Arn Tellem that we can’t trust them to be honest and forthright. I told him that in all my years, I’ve never seen any [agency] act in such a despicable manner.

“It was disgusting and unprofessional. We’re a proud organization and we won’t allow ourselves to be treated that way. I advised Arn Tellem that whatever players he represents, just scratch us off the list. Take the name of the Atlanta Braves off their speed dial. They can deal with the other 29 clubs and we’ll deal with the other hundred agents.”

And here is Arn Tellem’s response (We can only assume he’s related to Soulja Boy?) as found on SI.com:

“With regard to the negotiations between the Atlanta Braves and Rafael Furcal, the essential facts are clear and cannot be disputed.

1. “There was never an agreement reached between Rafael Furcal and the Atlanta Braves.

2. “In fact, the Braves were fully aware that Furcal was not prepared to make a decision but had requested an opportunity to sleep on it, before deciding.

3. “Moreover, the baseball rules which all agents and teams operate under are clear that no deal exists between a player and a team unless and until: (i) there is a signed and executed player agreement or; (ii) the Player’s Union and the Commissioner’s office have otherwise confirmed the deal. Neither occurred here.

4. “Furcal ultimately decided to accept the Dodgers’ offer, taking into consideration a number of factors, the most important of which was his desire to continue playing shortstop and not make the position change to second base that the Braves were requiring.

5. “Losing out on an All-Star player like Furcal is always disappointing, and we understand the Braves’ frustration with the outcome of this negotiation, but it does not change in any way the fact that we conducted ourselves with integrity and complied with all rules of major league baseball throughout this process.

6. “Our primary obligation is to serve our clients best interests, and we will continue to do so in accordance with all relevant rules governing MLB negotiations and the utmost integrity.

7. “If it serves our clients, we will continue to present opportunities to the Braves, which in accordance with the rules governing Major League Baseball, the Braves must entertain. We hope that once emotions have subsided, the Braves will act in a manner consistent with not only their obligations under the Collective Bargaining Agreement and The National Labor Relations Act, but also the best interests of the franchise. In short, we would not want this incident to color their better judgment.”

Here’s my two cents (if you care):

Arn Tellem and Paul Kinzer need to realize that business is about trust and relationships. You don’t build a relationship with someone by negotiating a deal, asking for a signed term sheet, and then slapping that same team in the face with the fact you haven’t been upfront about other deals in the making. You don’t make that team want to deal with you. And you pissed off the wrong people – John Schuerholz and Frank Wren are very respected people in baseball. It’s not like we’re the Kansas City Royals.

Remember that all relationships are about trust – from the people you date to you and your boss’ interactions in the office. Build trust by being up front with those people. Don’t blast that trust – because in real life, a 7 point email refuting why they’re pissed off won’t do jack for you. You’ll end up single, without a job, or become someone nobody will rely on. 7 point emails do not make steps towards rebuilding that trust when they don’t apologize for betraying trust.

Arn Tellem and Paul Kinzer, go sell your mediocre players to other teams. I don’t see ANYONE on your player list that we need on the Braves. Also, good luck negotiating with people that have reason to doubt your word now. The whole baseball world will watch their backs around you now. You may not go out of business, but you will see fewer players select your company to represent them because teams will now be wary of your agency now.

Furcal Shuns Braves, Expected to Sign With Dodgers

At this point, we’ll be lucky to have anyone on the roster come Spring. The offseason continues much the way it has begun, with Rafael Furcal shunning the Braves’ contract offer and likely signing with the Dodgers.

Frank Wren said that he and Fucal’s agent Paul Kinzer negotiated all contract details Monday night and sent a term sheet over for Furcal to sign and return Tuesday morning. The term sheet was never returned, and Furcal appears to have reached an agreement with the Dodgers today.

Kinzer, who now reportedly won’t return voice messages left for him by major news outlets, but he said recently that there was no agreement reached Monday night and Furcal was going to sleep on it. By the way, Kinzer’s based in Atlanta, if you want to send him some holiday cheer.

Wren does not expect Furcal to end up in Atlanta. He’s quoted in the AJC as saying “I have not heard anything back yet. I don’t expect anything. What I’m hearing is that he’s going to L.A.”

Nothing is for sure – he could still end up in Atlanta, but I wouldn’t hold your breath.

And so the offseason continues.

Source: Furcal Coming Back To Braves

Fox Sports reports that Rafael Furcal is close to signing with the Braves and that a contract agreement will be announced today. The contract is believed to be for three years with a vesting option for a fourth. Assuming this report is true (you all remember how Furcal played for Atlanta – the only thing you need know is he had back issues in 2008 but was quite productive after he returned), what are we supposed to think?

Option 1

We have the most awesome double-play combo in the history of baseball. Watching Furcal and Yunel up the middle will be wicked-sick. Imagine the range and speed you’ll see displayed this season. That’d be ridiculous-awesome. Don’t know where Kelly Johnson would go, though.

Option 2

Yunel Escobar is now trade bait. He was the cornerstone of the Jake Peavy discussions and could potentially be used if the Braves made another offer to the Padres for Peavy. Furcal would play up the middle with Kelly Johnson, and maybe we’d see a pitcher come to Atlanta via trade. Escobar has quite a future in front of him, and many teams would love to see him on their roster.

Either way, I’m not sure how I feel about Furcal signing. If we’d already traded Escobar for someone else, I’d feel a lot better, but it feels like we’re signing Furcal with nowhere to put him. I’m sure Frank Wren and his genius staff have a plan, so I can trust them on this, but I want to know what they’re going to do to make our pitching staff not suck. This sure doesn’t fill the role of the power bat we need either.

What do you think? What are your thoughts?

Peavy Rumors And More

Greetings folks – it’s Thursday and time for some random updates.

• The AJC’s Braves blogs appear to be abuzz with the possibility of trading for someone like Jake Peavy, who would certainly be fitted for the Braves, who need an ace for the upcoming season.  The 2007 Cy Young winner was only 10-11 last year, but he did play for the Padres, who, for lack of a better phrase, absolutely sucked. Apparently Peavy is available for the right price, though a proposal has probably not been put on the table yet. Do you think he’d be a good fit?
• Maybe Furcal is cheaper after committing three errors on the Dodgers’ way to the showers for the season, eh? I’d take cheaper.
• What sort of power outfielder do you think the Braves have more chance of landing?  A Matt Holliday type? A Manny type? Xavier Nady? Or should we trade our best box of toothpicks for Andruw (I’m kidding, I’m kidding).

To me, I’d love to see Peavy on the team – but no way of knowing if we can swing it. We NEED an ace. Is Peavy the dude for us?

Back Off, We Want Manny (and Furcal)

I have to write this.

The Ropolitans wrote recently that the Mets must sign Manny at all costs in 2009.  I see where he’s coming from, but I have something to say about it.

The Braves need to line up for long-term success. The Braves need a power bat in the outfield, and they need it now. The Braves need Manny to push their offense from good to absolutely pummeling. The Braves should also spend some cash and re-sign Rafael Furcal to play up the middle of the infield with Yunel (sorry, all you KJ lovers). That’d be just fun to watch.

Imagine the lineup:

Rafael Furcal
Yunel Escobar
Chipper Jones
Manny Ramirez
Brian McCann
Gregor Blanco / Josh Anderson
Casey Kotchman
Jeff Francoeur

That’s a scary lineup from a power aspect. That’s a scary lineup from a speed aspect. That lineup could just plain rake.  And, we’d still have some money to get some young pitchers and an ace (hopefully) to bolster the rotation.

Have I mentioned that we have TONS of money to spend this offseason? Let’s get creative and build a fun-to-watch Braves team in 2009. Watch out, Mets. You have competition (I hope).