Ohio State forward Trevor Thompson declares for NBA Draft
March 28, 2016LeBron James notches 52nd Eastern Conference Player of the Week award
March 29, 2016On the bright side, maybe Nick Swisher will be able to find a contender to fill a part-time role this season. His contract demands should be pretty reasonable thanks to MLB and its collectively bargained deal that guarantees player contracts. That being the case, Nick Swisher will get all of the $15 million owed to him for the 2016 season, even though we now know it won’t be as a member of the Atlanta Braves.
Braves have released Nick Swisher. He's owed $15M this season, some of which will be covered by $ Cleveland sent in trade last year.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 28, 2016
So, maybe the Braves aren’t on the hook for all $15 million as Jeff Passan reminds us the Indians sent some of that along in the deal. That’s a big part of this story for Indians fans who saw the Indians swap Swisher along with Michael Bourn for the Braves’ Chris Johnson last August. The Indians cut Johnson in December despite being on the hook for $17.5 million, including $9 million in 2017 and a $1 million buyout in 2018. Chris Johnson is collecting a cool $507,000 with the Marlins this season, and it probably doesn’t hurt a bit because he’s playing with house money. If you add up the amount of wasted money between the Braves and Tribe that’s $32.5 million being paid to players in order to have them not play for either team.
None of this is to mention the third piece of the deal with the Indians and Braves, namely Michael Bourn. Bourn is still considered likely to make the final Braves roster and that means he’ll have to play for his $14 million this year. His deal was complex, and he didn’t make a ton of money in the early stages of his contract, but he’ll collect $48 million over four years.
Back to Swisher, none of this likely came as a surprise to him. He’d been hearing the word “rebuild” and was amenable to a change in scenery in quotes to Pete Caldera recently to The Record.
“I keep hearing the word ‘rebuild.’ Well, I don’t have time to rebuild, I want to win now.”
And on top of that, Swisher admits it’s been a while since he had fun playing baseball. And, we all know how much Nick Swisher values fun.
“I want to go out and just have fun again, man. It’s been two years since I’ve had a good smile on my face,” Swisher said. “And I want to get that smile back.”
Honestly, I wasn’t the biggest Nick Swisher fan from the beginning. I desperately wanted the Indians to sign him, but I had thought he would come as an expensive player to the tune of $10 million a year as he worked his way toward retirement. The amount of money he signed up for combined with the injuries he suffered made it so his name was more of a punchline than any meaningful part of a plan to compete on the field. That’s unfortunate for both the player and the fans. It turned an otherwise nice guy and good player into an example of why Cleveland shouldn’t even bother to try and sign expensive free agents. I don’t agree with that, mind you, but it’s the kind of bitter logic that reigns in the wake of a disastrous signing that weighs a team like the Indians down for years to come. It is similar to the Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner contracts bearing down on the team’s payroll for years, while they spent more time on the DL than the field.
In the end, I think most Indians fans knew it was time for Swisher to go. I think most Indians fans wish him well wherever he ends up. I just know that it will be difficult for him to end up anywhere unless he can find a little bit more productivity left in that 35-year-old frame that failed him in Cleveland to the tune of just 272 games, 32 home runs and 113 RBI in just over two seasons with the club.
How quickly things change too. Nick Swisher was excited, and Dick Vitale was talking about the Indians. Crazy times.
Wow! What a crazy few weeks. Hey Cleveland! Are you ready? Because I’m coming home! #RollTribe
— Nick Swisher (@NickSwisher) December 23, 2012
@NickSwisher Really happy 4 you – u will love playing 4 Terry – u have earned this deal
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) December 23, 2012
12 Comments
This is no knock against Swisher the person, but I saw Swisher, the athlete, on rehab in Eastlake last year, and he is done. I mean completely done. The guy could barely walk straight let alone run. He was great with the fans and with the kids on the team, but he was walking like Scatman Crothers off the field.When you get thrown out by 5 steps on what should have been an easy double, in low A ball, well Father Time is calling.
ummmm , if i made what swisher is making , it wouldn’t be hard for me to find my smile … suck-it-up , sally !!!!!
l hear that his teammates thought that he was a a-hole.
What a bum.
First, it has to be tough to be Swish. His knees betrayed him and there’s not much you can do when you cannot stand. A guy who has always been a great athlete can barely move; not easy for anybody.
Now, my favorite Swish w/ Atlanta story…
Braves have a bell in their locker room given to them by the Army Rangers (I believe, might be the Navy Seals or Marines – apologies if I have it incorrect). It is the bell they use to signify that they are giving up on whatever training they are doing at the time, which is (of course) brutal. Well, the Braves had a huge comeback win and Swish is running in the locker room and just ringing the bell like a madman. To celebrate. He didn’t know (obviously), but found it funny nonetheless.
Not the biggest Swisher fan but it is sad when you are physically unable to keep doing something you clearly love. Best of luck to him in whatever future endeavours he undertakes.
having no knees is not a good recipe for athletic excellence.
SEALs. It’s used at the BUD/S course (initial SEAL training). If you want to quit trying to be a SEAL and just go back to the fleet and being “Fireman 2nd Class,” or whatever, instead of “badass warfighting special operator,” you simply walk up and ring the bell. No questions asked. Thanks for giving it a shot, but don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
Rangers don’t need no stinking bells. You just cry and go home.
Thanks
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