The Law of Supply and Demand

Wednesday's other hot baseball headline came out of Philadelphia: the Phillies signing A.J. Burnett to a one-year $16-million contract. Ridiculous number, right? Well, remember that old economics lesson in college -- the law of supply and demand?

The Phillies just became baseball's embodiment of it. With word that their ace Cole Hamels had "shoulder tendonitis" and would miss the beginning of the regular season (and who knows how much more)... a team that felt it needed to win now to reverse a slide and attendance and TV ratings felt it needed to fill Hamels spot NOW. In steps Burnett, taking full advantage of the limited supply of available quality starters and Philadelphia's obvious need.

With Cliff Lee still in red pinstripes and Hamels hopefully returning before schools let out, the Phils might have one of the best starting rotations in the National League. And GM Ruben Amaro Junior certainly showed fans that in a crisis, he wasn't going to sit on his hands? We'll see how wise the investment is when the season rolls on -- especially with Burnett pitching half his games at the home-run-friendly park in South Philadelphia.

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