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Mark Teixeira

Yankees Sign Mark Teixeira

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3:58pm: Joel Sherman says the Red Sox were at eight years, $168MM, so the Yankees outbid them by $12MM.

3:38pm: The contract does not include an opt-out clause, according to Danny Knobler.  Knobler agrees with Olney that the Red Sox fell about $10MM short.  He says the Sox are not inclined to react by "stepping up their pursuit of Derek Lowe or any other top starting pitcher."

2:55pm: Olney now agrees it’s an eight-year, $180MM deal ($22.5MM per year).  Bill Madden says Teixeira told the Yankees he preferred them all along, after the Angels and Red Sox backed off.  Ha.  Joel Sherman says the Yankees made this decision with the 2010 season in mind, given the weak free agent market.  He says they’ll now attempt to trade one of Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Xavier Nady, and Nick Swisher.

2:26pm: Buster Olney says the Yankees have reached an agreement with Teixeira on an eight-year deal worth more than $170MM.

Aside from the Red Sox, the Brewers and Blue Jays also lose here.  Each team’s draft pick from the Yanks is pushed back one round – the Brewers get a second-rounder from them for C.C. Sabathia, the Jays get their third-round pick for A.J. Burnett.

2:17pm: According to Jon Heyman, the Yankees are on the verge of signing Mark Teixeira to an eight-year, $180MM deal with a full no-trade clause.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Bradley, Burrell, Dunn

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Ken Rosenthal filed a new column earlier today.

  • The Angels are lukewarm on Manny Ramirez, and for now are talking about filling their lineup with internal candidates.
  • Kevin Towers says that if the Jake Peavy sweepstakes heats back up, "nobody is going to know it."  Rosenthal discusses the chances of the Angels or Cubs.
  • Mark Teixeira is "almost certain" to get an escape clause in his deal.
  • The Cubs are confident about signing Milton Bradley, but the Rays, Yankees, and Nationals are interested too.
  • Rosenthal looks at possibilities for Pat Burrell, discussing the Rays, Mariners, Rangers, and Reds.
  • The Brewers expressed interest in Adam Dunn as they were mulling a Mike Cameron trade (Corey Hart would’ve played center).
  • Bobby Abreu "remains in touch with the Yankees."  Surprisingly to hear, as the two sides reportedly had not spoken for quite a while.
  • The Rangers would like to move some salary, with Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, and Hank Blalock the candidates.
  • The Royals like Jerry Hairston Jr., but don’t have the money to sign him.

Teixeira Announcement Expected Today

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1:32pm: Heyman now has the Yanks in "deep discussions" with Tex; he says they’ve stepped up their efforts in recent hours.

1:02pm: Jon Heyman says the Yankees are still in it – they’re "talking seriously with Teixeira’s people."  He agrees that a decision could be made as soon as this afternoon.

12:42pm: Danny Knobler believes it’s down to the Nationals and Red Sox.  His sources say Teixeira hasn’t decided yet but is expected to make up his mind today.

12:08pm: Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has the Nationals at nine years, $180MM and the Red Sox at eight years and around $170MM.

10:55am: Chico Harlan of the Washington Post talked to a Nationals spokesman who is not aware of any plans for an announcement today regarding Teixeira.  WEEI’s Alex Speier notes that it is not a lock that Teixeira signs by Christmas.

10:28am: Buster Olney and Peter Gammons say Teixeira’s decision is "seemingly imminent."  The journalists say the Orioles’ negotiations for Tex "appear dormant."  They suggest the Yankees are lurking in case Boras offers Teixeira to them at a discount (or perhaps just to drive up the price for Boston).

10:20am: According to Thom Loverro of the Washington Times, "there will be an announcement today regarding the future of free agent first baseman Mark Teixeira."  Loverro says there are strong indications the Red Sox will be the victor, though it’s unclear whether those indications are based on inside information.

We learned from Roch Kubatko yesterday evening that the Nationals upped their bid to $178-184MM over eight years (Jim Williams says $178-183MM).

Odds and Ends: Boras, Wigginton, Burrell

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Tuesday linkage…

  • Changed my mind on the chat…we will not be holding it at 2pm today.  The time/day of the chat is TBD.
  • Here’s a list of the largest contracts in baseball history.  You can see why Scott Boras would want Teixeira to reach $190MM.
  • Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times notes that aside from Felipe Lopez, all of Boras’ free agent clients are unsigned.
  • Peter Abraham explains the Yankees’ large luxury tax.
  • The Reds have yet to open talks with Aaron Miles, Ty Wigginton, and Pat Burrell.  Talks are ongoing with Jerry Hairston Jr. and Willy Taveras, though Walt Jocketty is not making much progress with Rocco Baldelli.

Mark Teixeira Rumors: Monday

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8:07pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says baseball people expect Teixeira to sign before Thursday.  Rival execs see the Red Sox as the favorite.  The Orioles and Nationals remain engaged; the Yankees are the wild card.  Heyman says the Yanks would only want to spend slightly more than the $161MM they committed to C.C. Sabathia.

7:20pm: Roch Kubatko of MASN Online learned from multiple sources that the Nationals "have sweetened their proposal to Teixeira, offering him an eight-year deal worth $178-184MM."  He’s been told they’re willing to go nine years and there’s been talk of ten.

9:02am: ESPN’s Buster Olney sums up the Mark Teixeira situation in his blog today.  Olney says Teixeira’s "leverage has probably maxed out, and now only runs the risk of being diminished."  The status of the involved teams:

  • Angels: out of the running.
  • Yankees: Olney says they initially made an offer that was markedly less than other teams, and have since withdrawn it.
  • Orioles: Olney says they’re at seven years, $140MM (as opposed to the $140-150MM range we’ve seen reported).  Offer has not been upgraded.
  • Nationals: eight years, $160MM based on published reports.  Olney is not sure whether the Nats have raised this offer but heard from confidants of "one high-ranking executive" that they have not.  Olney’s Nationals sources expressed pessimism about their chances.
  • Joe Posnanski: out of the bidding.
  • Red Sox: Were willing to do $170-175MM when they flew out to meet Teixeira and Scott Boras; "might be nudged to $180MM."  We know that the Red Sox did not pull their offer, but haven’t spoken to Boras since Thursday night.
  • Olney wonders: will Boras shoot for $190MM with the intent of topping Derek Jeter’s $189MM?  If he tops it, Boras would secure the third-largest contract in MLB history for Teixeira (with his Alex Rodriguez deals taking the first two slots).

Odds and Ends: Napoli, Schilling, Bradley

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Links for Monday, to be updated as more come in.

Mark Teixeira Rumors: Sunday

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11:37pm: Kat O’Brien and Ken Davidoff have a new column up.  They say that despite John Henry’s Thursday statement, the Red Sox did not pull their $170-180MM offer.  The Yankees have not made an offer; they’re debating it internally.

6:18pm: The Angels confirmed to Mike DiGiovanna that they’ve pulled their offer and are no longer pursuing Teixeira.

6:02pm: Brown, who seemingly had the Angels’ withdrawn offer scoop first, has more.  He says Arte Moreno decided that Tex did not intend to play for the Angels and were being used to drive up the price.

Brown also learned that the Red Sox have not spoken to Boras since Thursday night.

5:15pm: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Angels withdrew their offer to Teixeira.  He says the Angels’ decision "appears more final" than Boston’s "not going to be a factor" statement.  Rosenthal believes the Angels offered around $160MM over eight years, but Tex wants to be on the East Coast.  Tim Brown says the Halos will not re-enter the bidding for Teixeira.

1:56pm: A few Mark Teixeira notes from Buster Olney’s blog this morning:

Olney talked to someone who talked to a member of the Nationals’ front office.  The word is that the Nationals "absolutely do not expect to win the bidding for Teixeira."

Olney also heard that the Yankees did make an offer to Tex at some point, but it’s now off the table.  Kat O’Brien explains that Scott Boras is trying to bring the Yankees into the bidding, and their front office is divided.

Dan Graziano says Teixeira is "as on-board with the Boras plan as any client he’s ever had besides his ultimate client, Alex Rodriguez."  Stan McNeal offers a Boras translation machine at Sporting News.

Murray Chass: Furcal, Sabathia, Lowe, Teixeira

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Murray Chass has a nice Sunday post covering some of the biggest names in the game.  Let’s take a look:

  • Chass summarizes the Rafael Furcal fiasco nicely, and explains the potential legal hazards that refusing to work with the Wasserman group could lead to.
  • Brian Cashman has said that his refusal to trade for Johan Santana last year was because the Yankees knew C.C. Sabathia was going to be a free agent this year. Chass looks at their numbers side-by-side and points explains how by not trading for Santana, the Yankees risked missing out on both aces.
  • The Mets are very interested in Derek Lowe, but not his pricetag. Boras wants similar money to Barry Zito – about $18MM per season – for the 35-year-old Lowe. The Mets also like Oliver Perez, but he’s another Boras client with a big price tag. The Mets don’t want to add another big contract.
  • Is there really a team with a $200MM+ offer on the table for Mark Teixeira? Chass isn’t so sure. It seems that Boras always has a "mystery team" in on the negotiations, but his client never seems to sign there… Don’t count the Red Sox out just yet.

Mark Teixeira Rumors: Saturday

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11:01pm: Michael S. Schmidt at the New York Times writes:

"The Yankees are interested in signing Teixeira, according to two people in baseball with knowledge of the matter, but for the moment are unwilling to pay him more than $160 million over eight years, one of them said."

10:18pm: An update from Kat O’Brien at Newsday says "the Yankees remain on the periphery of the bidding" for Teixeira.

Scott Boras has apparently contacted Brian Cashman to inform him that an 8-year/$180MM contract would be needed to land Tex. This contradicts recent reports that estimate that the Boston Red Sox have made such an offer, since they have not signed the free agent yet.

The article also reiterates the fact that the Yankees do not have an offer out to Teixeira.

6:50pm: Lyle Spencer and Bill Ladson of MLB.com report that Teixeira will decide on where to sign in the next few days. 

12:49pm: Jack Curry of the New York Times examines Boras’ "patient, defiant style" and suggests the Red Sox are throwing it right back at him.

Roch Kubatko talks about how Washington’s Ted Lerner is the one owner who could blow the other teams away with a Teixeira offer.  Many people seem to believe they’re willing to go to ten years, $200MM.  Bill Madden suggests Lerner could be this year’s "One Dumb Owner."

9:24am: Yesterday we tracked the Mark Teixeira sweepstakes as the Red Sox seemed to back out, but ultimately remained interested; the rumors continue today.

Jon Heyman writes that talks have resumed between Scott Boras and the Yankees and Angels. The Yankee front office is still deciding which slugger to pursue: Teixeira or Manny Ramirez. Heyman sees signs that "the Angels might be readying for a move," since owner Arte Moreno could consider boosting his bid from the $160-170MM range.

Heyman hears that the Red Sox bid close to $180MM, but ESPN.com reports that their bid was $165-170MM. ESPN heard from an "executive familiar with the meeting" between Teixeira’s people and the Red Sox that Scott Boras seeks an eight-year deal worth $195MM.

However, when Jerry Crasnick asked Boras about this figure, he heard it was "inaccurate" and that there was "very limited discussion of economic considerations" Thursday night.

Adam Kilgore heard from a GM involved with Teixeira who believes "the Red Sox have the best offer on the table."

Michael Silverman thinks the Red Sox need to go all out for Tex and Peter Schmuck doesn’t want a few million dollars to stop the O’s from signing him.

Gammons’ Latest: Teixeira, Cameron, Montero

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The latest blog post from ESPN’s Peter Gammons is up.

  • Gammons talked to a source close to Mark Teixeira who says Tex and the Red Sox are not that far apart.
  • The Yankees backed off on the Mike Cameron trade because Melky Cabrera is showing improved plate discipline in winter ball (his walk rate is up, though it’s only 15 games).  Additionally, Brett Gardner has believers in the organization.
  • The Diamondbacks were unwilling to trade catcher Miguel Montero to the Red Sox for Daniel Bard, while the Sox wouldn’t part with Michael Bowden.  Gammons says it hasn’t been seriously discussed but wonders if the Red Sox would eat the $22MM owed to Eric Byrnes to get Montero.
  • One part of the post that is getting attention is when Gammons names a bunch of things "we don’t know," implying that he suspects these things are possible.  For example: "We don’t know whether the Red Sox will decide not to pony up and sign Teixeira or whether there really might be a three-way deal among the White Sox, Angels and Reds that would put Jermaine Dye in Cincinnati, Joey Votto in Anaheim and Chone Figgins in Chicago."  So, not quite a trade rumor here.  The Reds would, of course, want more for Votto if he’s even available.  When this semi-rumor makes the rounds it must be discussed in the proper context – the paragraph’s theme was things we don’t know are accurate.
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