Where'e The Beef?

It seems to be everywhere today; that is people having a beef with the league and the Galaxy after the New York Red Bulls traded Clint Mathis to LA for a 3rd round pick. There has been a lot of complaining by New York fans that they've lost a great player. More grumbling has been about how the league is playing favorites with Los Angeles yet again by letting them get Mathis on the cheap.

First off, I can't blame anyone for accusing the league of playing favorites. The DP-rule should have been a big step toward putting that sort of claim to rest. However, the league just went back on it's original DP-rule and said old signings like Landon Donovan wouldn't count as a DP in 2008.

As you can see below, Clint's output wasn't bad. It was a clear improvement over his time in Colorado and Salt Lake City. But it was still nothing near what one would expect from a player on a $400,000 salary in the MLS. Getting a that sort of production for a 3rd round pick may seem like a steal. But remember NYRB didn't give much for Clint to begin with, just a 4th round pick plus a conditional pick in the 2009 draft.

The real kicker in all this is that Mathis is out of contract. That's right, NYRB's technical director Jeff Agoos just gave the thumbs up to trading a player they have no way of guaranteeing that they'll have back in 2008. Los Angeles just gave up a third round pick for a player that hasn't shown he's worth $200,000 a year in the league; a player coming off of $400,000 salary that will surely still be looking to make a healthy six figures. Now exactly how is that a steal?

Clint Mathis

Regular Season Stats

YEAR	TEAM	GP	GS	MIN	G	A	SHT	SOG	FC	FS	C	EJ
2007	New York	26	19	1,723	6	2	47	22	16	15	2	2
2006	Colorado	25	16	1,346	2	1	31	9	19	14	3	1
2005	Real Salt Lake	27	27	2,123	3	4	45	17	26	28	7	1
2003	MetroStars	22	22	2,019	9	1	84	35	39	40	6	1
2002	MetroStars	14	14	1,106	4	2	40	20	20	24	3	1
2001	MetroStars	10	10	905	7	5	44	17	15	26	6	0
2000	MetroStars	21	20	1,796	13	13	61	31	23	42	6	0
	Los Angeles	8	8	724	3	1	33	16	9	11	0	0
1999	Los Angeles	27	20	1,890	7	6	63	19	22	26	1	1
1998	Los Angeles	30	15	1,550	5	10	50	14	23	19	5	1
Career		210	171	15,182	59	45	498	200	212	245	39	8

Playoff Stats

YEAR	TEAM	GP	GS	MIN	G	A	SHT	SOG	FC	FS	C	EJ
2007	New York	2	0	68	0	0	3	1	1	0	0	0
2006	Colorado	3	2	236	1	0	9	4	1	4	1	0
2003	MetroStars	2	2	180	0	0	4	2	3	4	1	0
2000	MetroStars	5	5	460	3	2	16	12	11	12	2	0
1999	Los Angeles	6	6	509	0	1	11	4	17	10	0	0
1998	Los Angeles	3	0	49	1	0	2	1	3	0	0	0
Career		21	15	1,502	5	3	45	24	36	30	4	0

All-Star Stats

YEAR	TEAM	GP	GS	MIN	G	A	SHT	SOG	FC	FS	C	EJ
2003	MetroStars	1	1	45	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2002	MetroStars	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2001	MetroStars	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Career		1	1	45	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0