Mark Teixeira Rumors: Thursday

No backup plan? That doesn't sound like Theo.

Yankeegirl pretty much nailed it. This sounds entirely like Theo. If he's got a move that will clearly improve the team in both the short and long term, like Teixeira, he will make it. Nothing else available on the free agent market is anywhere near as much of a present and future improvement as Teixeira and thus worth going all in on.

Signing Teixeira isn't even about the present - it actually complicates things in 2009, since Lowell will have to be traded. This signing is all about the future. The next two years offer very little in the way of impact free agent hitters. In the meantime, Ortiz isn't getting any younger. Sign Tex, and if Lars Anderson is ready in 2010, Theo might well trade Ortiz.

I say we give teix a deadline. Not that they have a backup plan and need a response, but you dont want him to say no after guys like derek lowe and smoltz are off the market.

I'd give him till the end of Friday. If he hasn't made up his mind, retract the offer and let him head back to Anaheim. Its about time some of these overpaid players learn a business lesson.

I'm wondering (ok, maybe hoping) if the Yankee "quietness" on Tex is not just what they want everyone to think. I know they got CC and AJ but still, I cannot see them letting the Sox get Tex without so much as a peep. Im wondering if Cash might have gone to Boras and said something along the lines of "get your best offer then come to us and we will decide if we want to match/beat it". Not probable, but not so far fetched either.

"I say we give teix a deadline...I'd give him till the end of Friday. If he hasn't made up his mind, retract the offer and let him head back to Anaheim."

Not that simple my friend. If you give him a deadline and he calls your bluff and doesnt sign you then are stuck in a lose-lose situation. If you werent serious with your deadline Boras can hold you hostage for money and you look like a fool (Yankees with A-Rod last year?). If you were serious about your deadline what is stopping Boras from going to the Yankees and saying "Hey, Mark really wants to play on an East Coast winner, and since Boston has dropped out you can have him for 7 years 154 million." You think the Yankees turn that down? No shot. Red Sox are in no position to offer a deadline right now, even if you think they are the ones sitting pretty.

"Im wondering if Cash might have gone to Boras and said something along the lines of "get your best offer then come to us and we will decide if we want to match/beat it". Not probable, but not so far fetched either."

I'm not sure that would fly with the league at large and starts to border on tampering. If the Yankees were legitimately serious in this, we would have heard something by now, ESPECIALLY with Hank's humongous mouth. He was unable to keep quiet about any of the free agents they have signed and I'm almost certain that Cashman can't keep him on enough of a leash to keep something like the Yanks getting involved in a bidding war over Tex quiet unless the last two seasons of Hank's blathering has been some kind of Machiavellian act set up to culminate at this very time in an effort to bag Teixeira.

bosox87: "Lowrie deserves more of a chance then a partial season wait til he plays another half a year then explore options at short."

I agree that catcher and 4th starter are bigger priorities, but if something good is available at short, I'd look at it.

Don't get me wrong. I like Lowrie a lot, but he's limited. He has never hit more than .280, had more than 8 HRs or 50 RBIs at any level (and none of those in the same season). And he'll never be confused with Alex Gonzalez in the field.

"They'd be best served waiting until Jason Bay walks as a free agent after 2009 and targeting Matt Holliday IMO."

Think Bay will stay, even if he is only a FB hitter and struggles with off speed pitches, have a feeling it would be Drew that is moved instead and Bay will get an extension since he is a couple years younger than JD.

Tex is the only real guy out there that would interest the Sox and offer a significant upgrade, so no reason to consider anyone else, even if Boston had looked to make a trade with Colorado earlier for Holliday it would have been virtually impossible to sign him and been just a rental with Boras as his agent, best wait for him to become a FA if Tex isn't sign, that is the only rational plan B offensive wise.

Good little line in the article also regarding Peavy also. Seems even Axelrod now may have seen the error of his clients ways and would be open to a trade to Boston since Cubs have nothing Padres want and Braves think they can get him for nothing.. Too late now and glad of it, would rather have the young pitching Sox have and Lars than 1 more top pitcher to got with Beckett, Dice-K and lester.

"Don't get me wrong. I like Lowrie a lot, but he's limited. He has never hit more than .280, had more than 8 HRs or 50 RBIs at any level (and none of those in the same season). And he'll never be confused with Alex Gonzalez in the field."

Wait what? That's not true, he's hit over .280 in multiple levels of the minors. He has a career line of .287/.381/.446 in the minors. Yes, his power is pretty much non-existent, but power hitting short stops are an extreme rarity. He's consistently hit well for average from both sides of the plate and has fantastic plate discipline. His defense is questionable, but has greatly improved in his time in the minors and having a gold glove potential first baseman instead of various odds and ends in the minors will likely help him greatly (As his primary defensive issue has always been sub-par throws).

Sure, if a better option comes along at a good price, the Sox will take it, but the same can be said of anyone on the team. As it stands, Lowrie's not a bad option to have and, at the least a great stopgap measure until Oscar Tejeda or Argenis Diaz are ready (The former being a solid offensive short stop and the latter being an absolutely sick defensive short stop).

Hmmm... Should have read "is nothing to sneeze at"

Obsessions: "Wait what? That's not true, he's hit over .280 in multiple levels of the minors. He has a career line of .287/.381/.446 in the minors."

D'oh! I was looking at the wrong column. Need more coffee.

Ramirez is at the same fielding level as Lugo and renteria, he has trouble getting the ball out of his glove, double clutches with his throws and also makes wild throws to 1st way to often. How well would the fans at fenway take to that after all the poor fielding SS at Boston (other than Gonzo) since OC? Wouldn't that affect his batting?

I watch an awful lot of Hanley's games and he just looks like he does not care all to often in the field. Many of his errors come during times when his team cannot afford it. Bad play to get him back for the great cost it would require.. very bad.

They'd be best served waiting until Jason Bay walks as a free agent after 2009 and targeting Matt Holliday IMO.

Posted by: melonis rex | December 18, 2008 at 09:15 AM

Is Matt Holliday really that much of an upgrade over Bay? I don't have numbers in front of me, but I know Bay has put up 30-homer years a few times in his career. He strikes out a lot, but he still produces.

Theo might well trade Ortiz.

Posted by: midtown | December 18, 2008 at 09:20 AM

He's a 10-5 guy, so he can't be traded without his consent at this point. Do you really think he's going to find a place that embraces him as much as Boston has? Why would Ortiz want to leave the Sox?

wow, heyman gives the sox even odds? not even a 2-1? i think it would snow in vegas before you get odds that good....wait a minute....

"Heyman expects Teixeira to sign next week, and agrees that the Red Sox are the favorites."

Jon Heyman's the guy who picked Francisco Rodriguez as the American League MVP. Translation: He's an idiot.

And here are a few more quotes from Andy MacPhail:

"We have indicated before that we have flexibility..."

"If they came back to us and told us what it would take and we thought that it made sense for us, then yes [the initial offer could be expanded]."

"You hear so many different things from day to day. Yesterday we were the favorites, today you are out. You learn to ignore [the rumors] and deal with the facts as they become available to you."

It's fun to speculate, but until we hear some facts, it doesn't make sense to count Baltimore out. Especially since Teixeira has said more than a few times that he would love to come home and play for the O's.

Here are my odds:

-Red Sox: 2-1 - Tex's best shot at an immediate winner. The Red Sox have the money to make it happen, but if they don't like the price, they don't need him.

-Orioles: 3-1 - A chance to come home and play for the team he rooted for growing up. A chance to help return a downtrodden franchise to glory. A chance to be just as important to Baltimore as Cal Ripken Jr. Tex's arrival would encourage guys like Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis to sign extensions. The 2009 arrival of Matt Wieters and the 2010/2011 arrival of Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman and Jake Arrieta makes this team relevant again.

-Angels: 5-1 - Tex doesn't seem to want to play on the left coast and Arte Moreno doesn't seem willing to break the bank to change Tex's mind.

-Yanks: 15-1 - A quarter of a billion already spent on two pitchers, one of which is a serious injury risk. The Yanks have money, but not that much money.

-Nats: 50-1 - Seriously? Tex seems to place winning and playing close to home over money. If he signs with the Nationals, it'll be clear that he's been lying for his entire career.

I think the Orioles myself are goint to make the final push. They really need him there, so yes I am not taking Baltimore lightly.

"Some suggest they have either hit the $200 million mark, or gotten very close. Or that someone else has."

... Or someone else hasn't or maybe someone else got very close, but maybe they didn't.

Way to cover yourself lol

"This we be a re-enactment of what the Yankees and A-rod did last year."

what exactly is that? from what i remember, a-rod opted out, the yanks said he would be a yankee again and in the end he was, how is this similar?

If CC opts-out, which is entirely possible, then his contract is a $69 million deal and not a $161 million deal. This means the Yankees actually have more $$ than you think they do.

It's also possible the Yankees are acting like they aren;t in on Tex to keep the cost as low as possible. If they were known to want him as much as the Red Sox do (and I think the Yankees actually want him more) think of the bidding spectacle that this would become?

Tex makes a lot more sense for the Yankees than for the Red Sox. They have an opening at 1B, could improve their D, need another impact bat - preferably one from the left side to balance A-Rod and they have the money to pay him.

BUT ZOMG!@! what a waste of monies on one playerrzzz?!?! Yankees should be ashamed spending so much in this economies!?!!?zzzz!!

right.

Mowses - I don't see them as big on Holliday, which is why I think they are more interested in Tex than they are letting on. There is no one else that fits that position as well and Pujols is going to stay a Cardinal. They are good at keeping people at team-discounts.

When Cashman is allowed to operate without interference from Hank or George he operates under the radar. Hal is calling the shots and he listens to Cashman. The Manny stuff is all fluff to distract. I could be wrong and it looks like we will know in a few days.

BTW, I also don't believe any of these nukbers that are being floated out there. If a team doesn't say how much they offered, I assume these are all lies by Boras to drive up the price. It's a negotiating tactic. If you keep talking about outrageous numbers and years, it deadens it to people's senses and they start to believe that it is more reasonable because they are familiar with it. 1 month ago, 8/160 was being badied about as the potential top mark and now it has morphed into the starting point. Why? because Boras keeps hammering the media with reports of $ and years.

"I bet even if the yankees sign tex they'd make a push for holliday next offseason and pujols in 2011. giving out to them something like 8/180 and 10/320....."

If the Yanks signed Tex, Holliday and Pujols, their 2011 payroll would look something like this:

Derek Jeter, 37: $21.6M
Alex Rodriguez, 36: $28M
Mark Teixeira, 31: $20M
Matt Holliday, 31: $22.5M
Albert Pujols, 31: $32M
CC Sabathia, 31: $23M
AJ Burnett, 34: $16.5M

So that's $163M for seven players, including a 37-year-old shortstop and two first basemen (one of which will probably never leave St. Louis). Even if that group made sense, it wouldn't be possible to put it together. I understand that the Yankees have a lot of money, but they don't have that much money. If they did, they would have signed Teixeira by now.

holy crap, i just saw that on the 5 myself!

Done deal to Boston IMO. Henry, Epstein and Luccino have all gotten on a plane together to meet about signings maybe twice. Schilling and Dice-K. It's wrapped up (unless Kinzer and Tellum swoop in and replace Boras LOL).

I hope it's true, though.

ok sox fans,

I'll trade you Ryan Madson for Mike Lowell?

any takers?

I really really hope the Yankees are bluffing about Manny. They dont need another outfielder or dh. What they need is a 1B!!! Nick Swisher was even worse than Jason Giambi last year. He can not be the Yankees 1B next year. The Yankees better wake up and make an offer to Mark Teixeira before it's too late.

Tex >> Manny

Angel fans crying right now, they traded Kotchman for nothing.

Hope this happens.

Not that it would happen but how funny would it be if, when all the Boston boys got off the plane in Texas and got to Teixeira's house and right when they were about to knock on the door, it opens and Brian Cashman walks out and just says, "Hey guys, how was the flight?"

I mean he has earned all those frequent flyer miles.. Haha

Good for Boston if they make this deal, but I hope even Boston fans realize that before Teixeira signs anything. Scott Boras will be placing a phone call to Brian Cashman just to see what he wants to do..

I mean imagine The Red Sox brass fly all the way out there just to lose him to the Yankees in the end.

Like I said, doubtful. But that image of them getting to his house only to see Cashman already there, would be pretty funny you have to admit..

Imagine how funny it would be if tonight the Yankees offer 10yr/200m offer with an opt out between 3-5 years. That would be great.

"Imagine how funny it would be if tonight the Yankees offer 10yr/200m offer with an opt out between 3-5 years. That would be great."

Yeah, go for it. I want Teixeira, but I don't think ANYONE wants him that badly.

I just think the Yankees need a good 1B after Jason Giambi failed in his position.

"Angel fans crying right now, they traded Kotchman for nothing."

"They'll get a first round draft pick and the first overall supplemental round pick (Tex was rated higher than CC by the Elias ratings right?). Not that it makes up for it..."

They may have the two draft picks, but the Angels are seething right now because they no longer have the power bat to complement Vlad. Forget about Peavy... they are gonna have to make a serious trade for some power or throw a lot of money at Manny

22 Million Dollars, per year, for 8 Years.

And we can't simply wake up one morning and go to the park to see a game with our kids.

Now it has to be planned, as an expense, an experience, like visiting Disney World.

Us FANS are the idiots because we keep buying the Jerseys, the tickets, the $9 beers, the $7 Hot Dogs, and the $8 bottles of water from people making minimum wage.

Okay, done venting now.

"To all you sox fans who think you are the chalk to walk into the playoffs this year guess what? it took you 50 years to realize that the team is only as good as tomorrows pitcher. The evil empire fell into that trap for the last 10 years and have fixed that problem and if my memory serves me correctly have won the head to head matchups with the sox for the past two years and thats without CC and Burnett. You wont be facing Rasner or Kennedy anymore. You better get Tex!!!!!"

Your memory doesn't serve you correctly... the Sox and Yankees have tied head-to-head for both 2007 and 2008 (9-9).

"Two draft picks, still power bats and Peavy available now."

How the f@&k does trading Kotchman make Peavy available?

"stats 2008
Peavy
A. Dunn 40hr 100rbi
M. Ramirez 37hr 121rbi

thats 77hrs and 221rbi's

I think Ill take this deal

Posted by: Islabaseball "

So your saying there gonna sign Dunn AND manny with the money they were gonna use for Tex? lol yeah ok.

If this goes through, then pitchers in the AL East are going to be very uphappy.

Pitching through a lineup of Ellsbury, Pedroia, Ortiz, Texeira, Youkilis, Bay, Drew, Lowrie and a catcher is freaking nuts.

Adding Tex gives Boston the best 2-3-4-5-6 of any team in baseball, bar none.

Going through Pedroia, Ortiz, Teixeira, Youkilis and Bay is just nasty.

Philly's got like Werth, Utley, Howard, Ibanez and Victorino.

Texas has Kinsler, Young, Hamilton, Davis, and Blalock.

Milwaukee has Hardy, Braun, Fielder, Hart and Cameron.

I think Boston would win..

"And we can't simply wake up one morning and go to the park to see a game with our kids."

That's not going to go away with a salary cap. If ticket prices went down, that might actually get worse if anything. It's a sad state of affairs, but the popularity of the sport is why these things are.

People aren't really talking about Mike Lowell and his value. If the Red Sox got Tex they also could get a quality player in a deal with Lowell. Maybe a 4th outfeilder, another arm in the bullpen, or a catcher. I think that is the directioin the Sox should go in.

Posted by: redsoxbaseball | December 18, 2008 at 07:13 PM

I agree. I could see the Sox making a deal with the Tribe for K. Shoppach. They would probably have to eat much of Lowell's salary or include a young arm such as J. Masterson in the deal to make it work.

"'And we can't simply wake up one morning and go to the park to see a game with our kids."

That's not going to go away with a salary cap."

He's right. A salary cap isn't going to make prices cheaper.

A salary cap is going to give owners the opportunity to pocket more money, while giving less to the players.

A salary cap would not be good.

And I agree that Lowell isn't a valueless player. The guy is a very good defensive third baseman, he was okay with the bat last year and has some upside, and his contract isn't brutal.

If the Red Sox can eat a few million, I'd be shocked if a team didn't bite.

Especially with teams like the White Sox, Twins, Indians, Astros, Brewers, Athletics, Rangers, and Giants not having great options at third base.

The Rangers and A's could fill their spots with Blalock and Chavez, respectively, if they could both somehow manage to stay healthy.

None of the teams have big time needs, but Lowell is a good player and could interest someone.

"I agree. I could see the Sox making a deal with the Tribe for K. Shoppach. They would probably have to eat much of Lowell's salary or include a young arm such as J. Masterson in the deal to make it work."

Uhh, it would cost some top prospects to land Kelly Shoppach. Not just Lowell with salary eaten and a mid-level guy in Masterson. You're giving up Michael Bowden to get Shoppach. Young + cheap + good + catcher = you're paying a bounty in trade.

Personally, I like the Twins better with Lowell/Denard Span for about $14 million per year v.s Cuddyer/Casey Blake for what would have been about $14 million per year as well.

Posted by: KangarooBoxer26 | December 18, 2008 at 07:57 PM

As do I. I've been hoping for a Tex signing all offseason, as I think the Twins & Red Sox would match up really well on this.

Lowell has to prove he's healthy in the Spring before any team would be interested.

I admire how the Red Sox get down to business and do what needs to be done. As an Angels fan it's disappointing. They have had the opportunity a couple of times to get a young player they can continue to build around in the future when Vlad and GA retire. Now they have an opportunity for a short fix by trying to get Manny, but even then who knows how he will play if they do.

thats sad if boston gets tex!! the rich get richer and poor get poorer! thats a joke if tex goes to boston! that means that tems like the rays,oriols and yays might as well be thinking about 2011 or sumthiin cus they have no chance of winning in the next couple of years unless one of these guys gets injured or juzt plain stnk

This deal will eventually bite Boston in the ass. I am all for it!