OnlyBucs

So now we get on with the season and hope that if he is not traded that he will play it as a "contract" year and help the Bucs get into the post season. I expect him to be gone by next season anyway.

I am glad he isn't being a baby about it either.



Let's play ball.

Enjoy him all the way up to the trade deadline.



NH has traded closers at the end of their team control regularly.



As with Cutch, the season will be a two-edged sword. If Watson/Cutch under-perform, the season probably will not be going well making it easier to trade them though with decreased value thanks to poor performance. If they perform well, we're probably "in the hunt", and trading either will be very unpopular despite a better return. Watson probably goes either way.



Watson won't have the base salary to warrant a $17M qualifying unless he gets sprinkled with fairy dust and turns into Kershaw2.

2235231402020E610 wrote: Enjoy him all the way up to the trade deadline.



NH has traded closers at the end of their team control regularly. 



As with Cutch, the season will be a two-edged sword.  If Watson/Cutch under-perform, the season probably will not be going well making it easier to trade them though with decreased value thanks to poor performance.  If they perform well, we're probably "in the hunt", and trading either will be very unpopular despite a better return.  Watson probably goes either way.



Watson won't have the base salary to warrant a $17M qualifying unless he gets sprinkled with fairy dust and turns into Kershaw2.


Exactly. Watson will also be 33 in his FA year of 2018. No way they are going to re-sign him so he's gone at the trade deadline.

I expected him to be traded over the winter. I wonder if teams thought the price was too high, or if NH really preferred to keep him. It may have been that NH is waiting to see how some of the other left handers do this spring before making a final decision.