49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

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49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by RonCo » Thu Nov 18, 2021 5:42 pm

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To pretty much no one’s surprise, Dong-po Thum opted into the deal that will pay him $31M this coming season. That’s a lot of salami. And that’s before adding in the $3M he’ll get simply for walking to the plate at least 50 times, and the nearly $1M more he can get for various awards and All-Star bonuses. Add it up, and you can guess that Thum is a pretty happy guy.

And the fact is that the deal is perhaps the rare Mega-contract where the player and the team are happy to have. Thum has posted 9.1 and 8.6 WAR the past two years, and if he manages that kind of production again, he’ll be paid about $3.4M/WAR, which is just a tad higher than the general rule of … um … thumb.

There are concerns, of course.

I mean, when you’re dealing with this kind of cash, you have to see concerns. Ultimately it’s a deal that cost the Nine players like Robert Chenoweth and Al Colbert—or at least made them get to scurrying to replace parts of their production. If something goes haywire, it could be the major monkey wrench in the grinder, so to speak. And the Nine have some history with that, seeing Hall of Famer Lucas McNeill hit a 0 WAR turd of a year while earning $40M in total debacle that was 2037. Things happen. Thum is known for his gregariousness and his work ethic, but still fans ponder whether the money will get to him.

Will he stay focused? one fan asked.

Will the team stop yanking him around the infield?

(Note—2048 was the first year for a helluvalongtime that Thum did not win a Zimmer glove, and part of that is probably that he split time between shortstop (39 starts) and second base (109 starts)

Will they let him hit in the middle of the order? another asked, playing off the concern the Thum has often said he’d prefer to hit in the #3 hole rather than lead-off like he generally does.

Perhaps the biggest question of all is simply the date. Thum turned 31 a short while ago. While few people really worry about his aging, it’s true that he’s on the wrong side of the 30-year-old dividing line. And while the future Hall of Fame candidate has been durable throughout his career, age has a way of making flexible things become brittle. With $31M of the team’s cap money riding on his back, one has to fret at least a little.

“I feel good,” Thum said while at a recent charity event. “I’m sticking to my regimen. I hope the fans will see the real Thum again!”

Regardless, there’s no one in their right mind who would have suggested it was bedst for the team if Thum had opted out. His career .330 batting average is best in franchise history, and his .394 OBP is tied with John F. Kennedy, Jr. (who, no mater how many Q-idiots are still lining the streets in Dallas, is not coming back). Thum's career 75.1 WAR sits exactly 0.9 WAR behind the aforementioned Lucas McNeill for tops of the chart. He’s #2 to McNeill in runs scored, #2 in hits and total bases. And doubles. He’s #1 in triples and #7 in HR—29 behind team owner Bo Jordan. There is a better than average chance he’ll surpass McNeill in career SB, too, which would put him at #1 in franchise history.

(A nihilistic cynic would pause here to say he’s tied with McNeill for career Brewster Championships, too, but that’s going too deep for this kind of thing).

The bottom line is that, sure, there are reasonable questions and reasonable concerns about Dong-po Thum. But, really, it’s December and the word is a fresh sheet of paper. Enjoy the idea of seeing Dong-po Thum play here as long as you can.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by Dington » Thu Nov 18, 2021 5:47 pm

Hope he doesn't buy any extra security with that money. I've got a few hits out on him.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by DugoutDesperado » Sat Nov 20, 2021 11:14 pm

One might say at $31M that you might have a green Thum? :)

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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by Trebro » Sat Dec 17, 2022 6:19 pm

Interesting to stumble upon this looking for something else. Thum almost immediately slipped and is now about 10 million per WAR, not deadly but also not what you're looking for in a salary cap league. Hos defense however is. if anything, better than ever since getting a few starts off every week.

But boy howdy I would be shocked if I ever sign anyone to a deal like that, whether on the Nine or elsewhere. I love one team per career players but I don't see how you can do that in a cap league without hamstringing yourself.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by ae37jr » Sun Dec 18, 2022 1:19 am

I hated that contract as soon as I saw it. Usually the first two things to decline for a hitter are contact and range. Those were Thum's two main attributes. His range has actually held up better than I thought so far. Once that dips to mid to low 8... He is nothing more than a replacement player.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by Trebro » Sun Dec 18, 2022 2:01 am

ae37jr wrote:
Sun Dec 18, 2022 1:19 am
I hated that contract as soon as I saw it. Usually the first two things to decline for a hitter are contact and range. Those were Thum's two main attributes. His range has actually held up better than I thought so far. Once that dips to mid to low 8... He is nothing more than a replacement player.
I would just be devastated if he opted to retire before the contract runs out. Just simply devastated.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by RonCo » Thu Jan 12, 2023 5:53 pm

I was contemplating the likelihood of needing to release him and eat a season or two...which would have been hard, but doable if the budget was still high.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by Trebro » Thu Jan 12, 2023 6:29 pm

What's really funny is after a slow start he's on pace for 4.0 WAR in less than 120 games. It's going to be rough but at that pace he's actually not bad to have on the team.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by tylertoo » Thu Jan 12, 2023 7:45 pm

Trebro wrote:
Thu Jan 12, 2023 6:29 pm
What's really funny is after a slow start he's on pace for 4.0 WAR in less than 120 games. It's going to be rough but at that pace he's actually not bad to have on the team.
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Injury Bot: Monday, August 4th , 2053 - Yellow Springs Nine: 2B Dong-po Thum was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: knee contusion. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 2 weeks.
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Re: 49.03 - Nine Questions: #7 “Will $31M Make Thum Fat?”

Post by RonCo » Thu Jan 12, 2023 7:50 pm

At 3 WAR he's still workable, depending on the rest of the team around him.
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