Smiths contract is up I thought, so not sure they have to cut him. Given Casey's cut, I find it hard to believe Pablo was not let go as well.
If Hinchey's willing to publicly, on twitter, call out the players from the past regime who didn't live up to his expectations, I'd like to see if he can publicly own up to his own mistakes in the same way. No need for a press conference. After all, didn't you say earlier you're all for his attempts to outreach?
At least 2 (Zapata and Edu). Nane wasn't international slot was he? I would argue Freeman is as good as Kimura. They have differing strengths and their weaknesses, but I don't think that Freeman is an overall downgrade from Kimura. He just doesn't work the crowd like Kimura so people don't "love" him like Kimura. I think you are missing how big of an impact Thomas can have. They've already nicknamed him El Patron or "the boss." I do think the team needs Moor to be a stronger leader, but I think Thomas will also help with that. I do agree that this year is a referendum, but I wouldn't use those two reasons as primary examples of why.
We freed up 3 international spots (Edu, Nane, Zapata) EDIT: 2 spots, Nane got his green card before this season.
Some comments about "giving" Casey away instead of getting something for him. Remember when trying to trade Casey now, the new team is going to have to want him at his current $400K salary, which means spending $65K in allocation money or making him a DP, not to mention finding $335K in their cap for next year. Trading him at mid-season had similar problems. Either you're committing to 400K in 2013 (and the pro-rated amount in 2012, you're getting the Rapids to pick up a chunk of his contract, or you're renting a player for the last 3 months of the season with plans to cut him just like the Rapids did. In the latter two options anything we would get in that trade would be minimal, and given the negative PR around the team in mid-season the trade might hurt off the field as much as it helps on the field. So the only way to get value for Casey this year was to trade him to a team that could absorb a $400K player in 2013. Possible, but not easy, especially when negotiating from weakness due to his injuries over the last year+ and the fact that (even without Hinchey's tweets) everybody knew the Rapids were trying to fit Casey into PAreja's new system and it wasn't going to be smooth.
Yeah, but I also said I didn't have a problem with him calling Omar out for shanking a sitter. The fact is, Omar DOES have to bury those. In my opinion (which I acknowledge isn't shared by others on this board) nothing Tim said in that exchange was inappropriate. Seems to me that this story of Tim calling players out has grown legs to the point where people forget exactly what was said. Regarding your request, anything he could possibly say about the three guys now would simply be mean spirited after they have been released. The message has been sent to them ("you didn't work out"). No need to publicly say "we made a mistake bringing these guys in. They sucked and we should have known better."
We'll have to agree to disagree on Freeman - and I do like Freeman. I just like him more as an alternate starter/secondary tournament starter than I do the every day starter. For me, he played as well as Kimura did in Portland last season - and that's not a compliment. In hindsight, we traded Kimura at the right time, but we didn't find an equal to me. I was never one of those people who liked Kimura because of his playing to the crowd, though it's undeniably a part of why he was a general fan favorite. But in terms of his defending and contributions to the attack, his form from '09 to '11 was very good for what we paid him and I don't think Freeman doesn't play at that level. I never ruled out Thomas (or anyone on the roster now, or anyone they pick up in the future) filling that leadership void. I'm simply saying it wasn't filled fully last year, and in the next 12 months they have to fill that void (either with Pablo back, or someone new they signed/someone stepping up) or we're going to get the same results and end up with the chopping block scenario.
You're saying that if a player is traded, the new team is forced to pick up a player option? In the case of being cut, I get it (somewhat) but being traded?
I also seem to recall when we brought him in that his career goal was to be coach of Jamaica. I think he was great in club house, but had lost too many steps to be effective when we needed him. Wish him the best and hope coaching works out for him.
Yep. The acquiring team picks up the entire contract, including player options. The only way he gets that money is if someone claims him in the first round of the waiver draft (or whatever its called).
Not forced, but why would you trade for Casey today if you aren't going to pick up his option? Just so you can cut him in a week? Unless the team trading for him thinks that for some reason they can get him to agree to a lower contract when he wouldn't agree to one in his hometown. If you trade for him in mid-season, same problem, though maybe his time on the new team gives him more of a willingness to take a lower contract, but I find that unlikely.
According to people who went to a function of some sort that Hinchey was at (I can't remember if it was a STH event?), he also called out Omar and Conor publicly. We can agree to disagree on whether the tweet was inappropriate. Simple: "We expect more from our future signings and are doing everything within our power to acquire players who better compliment what we are trying to build here." Not too backhanded, not mean-spirited, just a simple acknowledgment of their needing to scout better.
Matthew Doyle tweet: Did everybody looking at Casey and saying "Injury-prone, 31-year-old center forward? That'll never work!" forget about Alan Gordon?
Perhaps to unload a contract of your own that you don't love so much and cannot put on the waiver wire? It's the only scenario I can think of, otherwise your point is good.
I'll take that over the Kimura for unused intl. spot trade I was more thinking along the lines of...Kris Boyd, Mwanga, JPA, Shalrie Joseph, any of the DPs in Vancouver, Feilhaber, Edson Buddle, Adu. Not that any of those players is my suggestion of who we should pick up (most of them I wouldn't want) - just listing players who would fit that scenario.
Interesting note, all of last off-season we cut or moved 6 players. Today, at the official start of off-season, we cut 8.
What's all this about him playing to the crowd? I think the majority of his fans like him because he never gave up on a play, and it wasn't false hustle. Now, sometimes his mistakes caused the problems, but gave it his all. Most of the time those sorts of players become fan favorites.
Last season was terrible, given almost zero effort to re- make team for new style. Only 1 of these guys would be under 30 in 2013, this needed to happen.
Huh? Wahl is 28, Joyce is 27, Nane is 25. Though the average age of the 8 is 30 and a half, with the other 5 over 30. The only players 30 and over now on the roster are Cummings, Pablo, Mullan, Pickens, and Smith.
Had Wahl wrong, had it my head he was 29 this year. Joyce doesn't matter and Nane is the one I was counting. I am also wrong on Smith's contracting being up? Cummings, Mullan and Pickens are only 3 I expect to be on roster for 2013.