Schlereth optimistic Rockies can retain All-Star 3B Nolan Arenado
Feb 21, 2019, 3:50 PM | Updated: Feb 22, 2019, 9:28 am
With Manny Machado signing a 10-year, $300 million deal with the San Diego Padres this week, he likely set the benchmark for his National League West counterpart, Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado.
Though while general consensus might figure that kind of money might price the Rockies out of the running to retain Arenado, “Schlereth and Evans” co-host Mark Schlereth said he’s actually “encourage” by the prospects of Colorado keeping the five-time All-Star.
“We just talked to Pedro Gomez moments ago. We talked about this Manny Machado signing puts pressure on teams like the Rockies to actually spend the money on prime time players,” Schlereth said. “And why wouldn’t you spend the money on a generational player that is homegrown right here in Colorado?”
ESPN’s Gomez, who joined the program Thursday, said that he believes Machado signing with a smaller market team like the Padres for such a high figure actually “puts more pressure on the Rockies to get a deal done.”
“The Rockies can’t point and say, hey, only the Yankees or the Dodgers or the Red Sox can afford this level of players. I think this is a signal to fans almost everywhere,” Gomez said. “… If you’re a Rockies fan, you’re sitting there saying why can’t we, as Rockies fans, do the same thing here and have our ownership group keep our cornerstone franchise player in our uniform?”
Gomez said he believes there is “still a decent chance Arenado stays” in Colorado and that he’s not sure if management will let him walk.
“I think Rockies ownership realizes we have a once in a generation-type player here who we drafted, who’s come up through our system, who’s done great things, and we need to do everything we can to keep him,” Gomez said.
However, Schlereth’s co-host, Mike Evans, may not be so optimistic, saying on Tuesday if Colorado is unable, or unwilling, to pay that kind of money to Arenado, they need to get something in return for him.
“In my opinion, it’s a hard decision to make, but I think it’s a brutal one that they have to make. They have to trade Nolan Arenado before this season starts to get the most in return,” Evans said on Tuesday.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
