Philadelphia Phillies Cardinals

Philadelphia Phillies Cardinals

MLB Tickets - Phillies Ink Howard to Huge Extension, Set Contract Precedent

As the Philadelphia Phillies continue their hot start on the backs of their talented lineup, they decided it was the right time to reach out to slugger Ryan Howard. The Phillies signed Howard to a $125 million contract extension that will keep his services in Philadelphia until at least 2016. But the signing doesn't just have an impact for Howard's accountant and the city of Philadelphia; the St. Louis Cardinals certainly are also taking note with their superstar Albert Pujols soon ready for a big pay day.

With the amount of run production that Howard puts up every single year, it's hard to argue that he's not worth mega money, even if you still think his $125 million extension is a tad high. Howard has averaged a jaw-dropping 49.5 homeruns over the past four seasons and averaged 143 RBIs in the process. Certainly Howard has benefitted from a tremendous overall lineup, but numbers like that are nothing short of eye-popping.

Pujols, on the other hand, has been even more dominant, which would likely make his potential pay day even bigger. With multiple MVP awards already under his belt, Pujols isn't just the best hitter in the game but his first nine seasons have arguably been the greatest first nine seasons any player has put up in the history of the game. In a bigger ballpark, Pujols hits a few less home runs than Howard on average but also has a career batting average of .334, which is .55 points higher than Howard's career average. Add in that Pujols has done it longer, is a Gold Glove winning first baseman and a superior base runner, and it's fairly clear that Pujols has more overall value, particularly in terms of helping the Cardinals sell <a href="http://www.stubhub.com/mlb-tickets/MLB tickets</a>. Simply put, we're talking about a great slugger in Howard and one of the greatest ever in Pujols.

No one has to tell St. Louis fans or the organization Pujols' value, but the question remains whether or not they can afford to sign him to a $30 million per season extension. Even at slightly less than what Pujols is worth on the open market, the Howard deal could significantly impact the way the Phillies go after free agents in the future. With a smaller payroll, the Cardinals could be plunged into a precarious position if they have to ink Pujols to a mega deal after they exercise an option on Pujols for the 2011 season.

But that doesn't mean that Pujols will be walking when his contract is up as the Cardinals need to start thinking about some potential other options, perhaps ones a bit more creative. One was offered recently by ESPN analyst John Kruk. Instead of the Cardinals reaching deep into their checkbook for $30 million a season for five more years, it might be wise to pay Pujols considerably less money per season but to spread it out over his entire lifetime. In essence, a deal like this would make Pujols a minority owner of the Cardinals who will always have say in the franchise for as long as he lives. Considering the impact he has already had on St. Louis, it could work into a win-win situation. This, of course, is a radical idea that baseball general managers rarely consider, but this is also a rare circumstance.

Pujols has made it known that he would love to stay in St. Louis, but a slugger of his stature also doesn't want to play on a non-competitive team that can't afford to sign other free agents. This option, though absurd when first thinking about it, would allow the Cardinals to free up plenty of money from year to year to attract other free agents who can keep them competitive. Nobody wants to see Pujols put up the numbers Alex Rodriguez put up in Texas, where his numbers were incredible but also incredibly irrelevant. Much like the Twins keeping Joe Mauer in Minnesota, keeping Pujols in St. Louis would be good for all of baseball. Instead of simply following Philadelphia's lead, they need to consider all their options.

About the Author

Written by David James. <a href="http://www.stubhub.com/">StubHub</a> has sponsored this article. StubHub.com is a great place to get <a href="http://www.stubhub.com/mlb-tickets/MLB tickets</a>, as well as tickets for other sports teams, theatre performances, concerts and special events.