By Tim Dierkes | at
Jon Heyman, Dan Graziano, and Ed Price are reporting it: Alex Rodriguez is nearing a ten-year, $280MM contract with the Yankees. Heyman says the deal would have tons of incentives, allowing it to go "well over $300 million."
And of course, Scott Boras is deeply involved in the negotiations. Covert talks have been going on for days, apparently. Perhaps A-Rod won’t be seen as such a villain now. $28MM would be a pretty fair deal for him, maybe even a bargain.
By Tim Dierkes | at
UPDATE: An official statement from A-Rod – he and his wife spoke with the Steinbrenners today. Contract talks are expected to continue and it looks positive. I’m also getting emailers from readers who have heard from John Sterling, Yankees radio announcer. Sterling apparently has a source close to Rodriguez saying that the chance of A-Rod re-signing is 101 on a scale of 1 to 100. So there you go.
UPDATE: Ken Rosenthal notes that A-Rod would need to fire Boras for the Yankees to exclude him from negotiations. Otherwise, it would be a violation of the Basic Agreement.
This is a shock to some, not so much to others. Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden are reporting that the Yankees are in contract talks with Alex Rodriguez.
Two stipulations from the Yanks: the contract would have to compensate for the lost Texas money, and they don’t want Scott Boras involved. Rodriguez would have to talk directly to the Steinbrenner brothers before anything could be completed. Taking a "below-market" deal might be a way for Rodriguez to improve his public perception. Would Boras still get a 5% commission?
The Yankees have surveyed the third base market and may have realized that they can’t afford to lose Rodriguez’s production. Perhaps they feel Mike Lowell at four years is questionable, and acquiring Miguel Cabrera creates too many new holes.
Peter Abraham, by the way, doesn’t buy any of this. He’s certain it’s posturing, and expects Rodriguez to make a point to talk about coming back to the Yankees on Monday’s MVP conference call. ShysterBall leans toward skepticism as well.
By Tim Dierkes | at
UPDATE: Hank Steinbrenner confirms the offer as 3/45. Not sure what Rivera is waiting for…no need to haggle over a no-trade clause since Rivera would be a 10 and 5 player.
According to Tyler Kepner of the New York Times, the Yankees have a very aggressive offer on the table for closer Mariano Rivera: three years, $45MM. $15MM a year for a closer! It’s unheard of. Billy Wagner makes $10.5MM annually, but he signed two years ago. Rivera’s next deal could inflate Francisco Cordero’s contract.
If Rivera pushes for a higher average annual salary or a fourth year, I think the Yankees would be right to pass no matter what kind of media backlash they might receive.
By Tim Dierkes | at
First day for teams to negotiate with free agents, always a good time. Here are today’s odds and ends.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Mark Feinsand has the scoop: the Yankees beat the buzzer and signed Jorge Posada to a four-year, $52MM contract. Omar Minaya was ready to pounce, but Brian Cashman got it done. Posada jumps above Ivan Rodriguez as the game’s highest-paid catcher.
The Yankees probably could’ve signed Posada for three years, $30MM back in February. His huge season cost them big-time, though it’s still slightly less than I expected.
Feinsand also says re-signing Mariano Rivera is something that should happen this week.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Brian Cashman was unable to reach an agreement with either of his big-name free agents tonight. Both Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada will hit the open market despite receiving improved offers from the Yankees. Rivera hinted that he could follow Joe Torre to the Dodgers. That seems an unlikely way for the Dodgers to spend $40MM+.
Honestly I thought the Yankees would extend themselves to get both deals done by midnight tonight. I’m surprised to see this pair hit the open market, where any team is liable to overpay. Peter Abraham speculates that Posada might require four years, $56MM, because that’s what Mike Lowell wants.
Speaking of Lowell – the Red Sox don’t seem willing to stretch to add that fourth year. They’re still negotiating, so maybe something creative can be done before Lowell starts fielding offers from other clubs.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Here are some hot stove links to digest this evening.
By Tim Dierkes | at
UPDATE: A colleague of Abraham’s snagged some quotes from Posada tonight, and they do sound favorable for the Yankees. Posada said, "we’re really close."
Peter Abraham of the Journal News gives his take on the Yankees’ situations with Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada. He says the Yankees have offers out to both players, and negotiation is ongoing.
Abraham seems certain that Rivera will remain a Yankee, noting that other teams probably feel the same since other suitors have not surfaced.
Posada, on the other hand, has the Mets, Blue Jays, and Marlins lining up. Abraham contends that Posada’s family situation and home will certainly compel him to stay in New York. The only question is whether Omar Minaya will jump in with an irrational offer – say four years at $16MM per. The New York Daily News has a source indicating that Posada is intent on exploring the open market.
By Tim Dierkes | at
It’s been a long, strange journey. The New York Post’s Joel Sherman reports that the Yankees plan on releasing oft-injured starter/punchline Carl Pavano before November 20th. The 40-man roster spot will be needed to protect more valuable players. At the latest, the Yanks would release Pavano before Spring Training.
The $13MM still owed to Pavano has to be treated as a sunk cost. At most he might be able to pitch for two months in 2008 following Tommy John surgery.
Has a lesson been learned here? Just last year the Yankees committed $46MM for five years of Kei Igawa, seemingly as an answer to the Red Sox getting Daisuke Matsuzaka. It doesn’t seem likely that they’ll go after any of these free agent landmines this winter.
By Tim Dierkes | at
How about Ken Davidoff this winter? The Newsday reporter has been digging up some great hot stove rumors so far. Today, he has some new info about Johan Santana.
While Santana isn’t up for bidding quite yet, he should be soon after the Twins make their token offer. The Yankees will certainly be in on him. Davidoff says a package of Phil Hughes, Melky Cabrera, and a prospect wouldn’t cut it, even though those players are very valuable. The Twins are one of few teams that actually feel good about their pitching, so the focus is on acquiring a star position player. With that in mind, they’d demand Robinson Cano from the Yankees. Cano is more expensive than a Hughes or Cabrera, but the Twins would free up $13MM by dealing Santana. Plus you have to think Cano would be better for public relations/damage control.
Random speculation on players the Twins might covet for Santana: Josh Hamilton, Chris Young of Arizona, Jacoby Ellsbury, Delmon Young, Carlos Gomez, or Garrett Atkins.
In contrast to all of this, Ken Rosenthal speculates that the Twins would want "elite pitching" in return for Santana.
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