By Kevin Gorman
February 23, 2019
Philadelphia Phillies' Andrew McCutchen signs autographs before a spring training baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Saturday, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) (Lynne Sladky)
Andrew McCutchen was sitting at his locker stall and twisting the locks atop his head when asked why he signed a free-agent contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.
McCutchen broke into a broad smile.
“See what they offered me?” McCutchen said, laughing in reference to his three-year, $50-million contract. “That’s an easy choice.”
If there was a constant reminder of choices for the Pittsburgh Pirates, it was opening Grapefruit League play Saturday against McCutchen and the Phillies at Spectrum Field. McCutchen got the big-money commitment from the Phillies that the Pirates weren’t willing to make when they traded him to the San Francisco Giants in January 2018 with a year left on the six-year, $51.5-million extension he signed in 2012.
“It’s a crazy dynamic of the game, how it’s changed so much,” McCutchen said. “When I was 25, signing my extension, I was like, ‘Shoot, I’ll be 32 at the end of it. I can get me another five-, six-, seven-year deal, even if I put up mediocre numbers.’ That was the market back then. But the market’s definitely changed. You’re not getting paid for past performance. You’re getting paid for projected performance.”
Thirteen months later, projections are the Pirates look like they made a smart baseball move with McCutchen. The five-time All-Star and 2013 NL MVP batted .255 with 20 home runs and 65 RBIs in 155 games last season, spending the final month with the New York Yankees after an Aug. 31 trade.
The Pirates were convinced they couldn’t afford that production at such a steep price tag. They went 82-79 without McCutchen, but attendance suffered. Turns out, the Pirates vastly underestimated the emotional attachment fans had to the player who was the catalyst of their turnaround from two decades of losing to three consecutive postseasons. It’s no coincidence one of their biggest crowds last season (34,720) was for Cutch’s return.
“It was really different seeing him in a Giant uniform,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said before the Phillies game. “He looks good in red — there’s not a big-league uniform he’s not going to look good in — and he’s ecstatic about his opportunity there. He’s one of our favorites. He did everything that an organization could ask a man to do. We’ll all be pulling for him in Philadelphia when we’re not playing him.”
Whether or not that feeling is mutual for McCutchen, he showed class by tipping his cap toward Hurdle and the Pirates after receiving a warm ovation upon being introduced in the starting lineup for the Phillies.
But McCutchen also feigned indifference when asked about starting the spring against the Pirates, coyly suggesting he only found out Friday. He said he follows the Pirates on Twitter and knew they finished above .500 without him but was well aware they are projected to have MLB’s second-lowest Opening Day payroll.
“I know their payroll is what it is — what, $68 million? — compared to everyone else,” McCutchen said. “That hasn’t changed. It’s always been that way. They have a different philosophy. It’s making things work without spending a lot of money to get big-name guys. That’s the way it’s always been. They did well for themselves last year. They had an over-.500 season. That was good. It shows you don’t always need the payroll to win. That’s always been their philosophy.”
The Phillies, meantime, are spending like they won Powerball. Not only did they sign McCutchen but they traded with Seattle for shortstop Jean Segura and the Marlins for catcher J.T. Realmuto and locked up 25-year-old pitcher Aaron Nola to a club-friendly contract. More important, they remain the frontrunner for Bryce Harper, the bonanza of free agency who could instantly change them from contenders to favorites.
“We all know what he can do. He changes the team. He changes it a lot of whatever team he’s on,” McCutchen said. “The Phillies have done a good job getting some guys here. … It’s a great team here, and he’s only going to make it better. It would be amazing. We saw a helicopter circling around here the other day, and we were joking that it would be funny if he just landed and got out. Who knows?”
We made the same joke upon seeing a helicopter flying over Pirate City, without any expectations whatsoever of a grand entrance. That’s the difference between these teams on opposite ends of the state. The Phillies aren’t just talking about winning a World Series, they are making every effort to attract the best free agents on the market. That was another thing they offered that made McCutchen’s decision easy.
“That’s part of the reason I came over here. I knew that the Phillies were a team trying to get big-name guys,” McCutchen said. “They did that with me, and I was pumped about that. And I knew they weren’t done. … I just want to win a championship, and I think this team is capable of that.”
McCutchen, however, also described how championship teams require certain chemistry. He was the centerpiece when the Pirates built a contender through draft and development and added complementary pieces, but also experienced the Giants going 79-83 after adding Evan Longoria, Austin Jackson and Tony Watson.
So, McCutchen knows buying big names doesn’t necessarily bring a championship. Where the Pirates are seeking internal solutions for power, the Phillies are planning to throw money at a power hitter. They are differing philosophies toward chasing a championship, so it will be interesting to see if the proof is in the payroll.
But having that choice sure makes it easier to accept what they are offering.
Kevin Gorman is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Kevin by email atkgorman@tribweb.com or via Twitter .
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