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Rodriguez Opts Out!

Frayed Knot Oct 28 2007 08:52 PM

"Alex Rodriguez notified the Yankees on Sunday that he's opting out of his record $252 million contract, [url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/specials/playoffs/2007/10/28/rodriguez.contract/index.html]SI.com has learned[/url]. Rodriguez's agent Scott Boras said he sent word of the opt-out in writing Sunday and left phone and text messages for Yankees general manager Brian Cashman. According to team president Randy Levine, the Yankees were unaware of Rodriguez's decision. This comes after the Yanx had been trying to arrange a meeting but Bor-Rod had been putting them off and are now officially blowing them off. According to what the Yanx have been saying all along, this ends any chance that he'll be with their club next year. I'm suprised they bailed without even hearing what the Yanx were going to offer (reported recently as 4 to 5 extra years and $25-30/per). Boras must either think (know?) that he has a fish on the line that's willing to blow past those numbers or that ARod was so unhappy in Yanqui-land that he'l take a similar or lesser deal just to get outta Dodge.

metirish Oct 28 2007 08:59 PM

Not unexpected but still a WOW, yeah it's a surprise that they didn't even hang around to listen to what was to be offered.

metsguyinmichigan Oct 28 2007 09:00 PM

OK, this is one time when the truth got me! I saw the thread title and assumed it was a joke referring to ARod not showing up for his Hank Aaron Award tonight. I'm glad he's out of there. And it leaves a huge, gaping hole for the MFYs.

DocTee Oct 28 2007 09:02 PM

Leaves 72M on the table. Incredible. Here's hoping he gets injured this offseason and never plays again. j/k

Edgy DC Oct 28 2007 09:04 PM Re: Rodriguez Opts Out!

Frayed Knot wrote: Rodriguez's agent Scott Boras said he sent word of the opt-out in writing Sunday and left phone and text messages for Yankees general manager Brian Cashman. "B- AROD SEZ L8RG8R. U SUK. JTLYK! LOL! -S" Is that contractually binding?

metirish Oct 28 2007 09:05 PM

Mike Lowell will probably be happy to hear about this, Boston apparently won't over two years for him so the yankees will probably give him three or four.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Oct 28 2007 09:06 PM

]According to what the Yanx have been saying all along, this ends any chance that he'll be with their club next year. Here's hoping they try to blow this off the back page with an astonishingly bad managerial hire, then a few win-NOW trades. But I'd be surprised if they really walk away. See ya, Rod. Job at Shea if you need one but it's BYO tent.

Frayed Knot Oct 28 2007 09:06 PM

metsguyinmichigan wrote: OK, this is one time when the truth got me! I saw the thread title and assumed it was a joke referring to ARod not showing up for his Hank Aaron Award tonight. I would never do soemthing like that for one very good reason .... I'm not clever enough to have thought of it. If I was, of course, I would have done it in a heartbeat.

metirish Oct 28 2007 09:09 PM

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Here's hoping they try to blow this off the back page with an astonishingly bad managerial hire, then a few win-NOW trades. But I'd be surprised if they really walk away. See ya, Rod. Job at Shea if you need one but it's BYO tent. From the NY Times. Steinbrenner, a son of George Steinbrenner, the Yankees’ principal owner, offered no hints as to who the choice would be. But a person who has spoken with the Yankees’ decision-makers said he felt strongly that Joe Girardi would get the job. The person spoke on condition of anonymity.

Fman99 Oct 28 2007 09:21 PM

How great. Look at this line from ESPN.com's article: "Boras said during a telephone interview that Rodriguez made his choice because he was uncertain whether Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte would return to the Yankees. " 'Alex's decision was one based on not knowing what his closer, his catcher and one of his statured pitchers was going to do,' Boras said. 'He really didn't want to make any decisions until he knew what they were doing.' " What a line of horseshit that is. I love it.

metirish Oct 28 2007 09:23 PM

Not mentioned there was that Rodriguez also said that all those guys might not be there but the piece of shit Jeter would be.

metsguyinmichigan Oct 28 2007 09:25 PM

Typical MFY activity, trying to steal the thunder from the Red Sox on what should be their night.

Edgy DC Oct 28 2007 09:29 PM

So win-win for the Sox that it basically redefines win-win.

Valadius Oct 28 2007 09:39 PM

I wouldn't be surprised to see Lowell and A-Rod switch places. And has anyone else noticed just how much of the blowhard gene Hank Steinbrenner has inherited from his father?

Frayed Knot Oct 28 2007 09:43 PM

metsguyinmichigan wrote: Typical MFY activity, trying to steal the thunder from the Red Sox on what should be their night. Well the team had nothing to do with this one. In fact, they have to be horrified. They've been getting the best player in baseball for approx 70 cents on the dollar (and would continue to for the next 3 seasons) and now they're being told that not only is that discount out the window but that any new deal is going to cost even more than the one you were getting a discount on. This is not a good day in Yanqui-land. The only person in NY sports happy about this story breaking tonight is Chad Pennington.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Oct 28 2007 09:56 PM

Chad and me.

metsguyinmichigan Oct 28 2007 10:44 PM

If Lowell and ARod switch, I believe that would make him the second World Series MVP not to return to his team the next season. The first? Ray Knight, of course! There might have been another since Knight, but I'm not sure.

Edgy DC Oct 28 2007 11:12 PM

John Wetteland.

Gwreck Oct 29 2007 12:32 AM

Also Jack Morris.

attgig Oct 29 2007 06:54 AM

didn't wright saying something about moving over for arod?

Benjamin Grimm Oct 29 2007 07:17 AM

What does JTLYK mean? Wright offered to move to second for Rodriguez earlier this year. I think I'd rather see him move to first and the Mets could deal Delgado. (Or move him to catcher! JTLYK!) If the Yankees are really out of the picture as they say (and that remains to be seen) then this is nothing but good news. When the Yankees got Rodriguez, I never would have dared hope that he'd play four years for them and never appear in a World Series game. Despite the two MVP's, the A-Rod in the Bronx thing didn't turn out badly at all. Despite the fact that Rodriguez is prissy and snively and likes Toronto lap dancers, I'd welcome him to Flushing. My guess though is that his most likely destination is Wrigley Field. Should be interesting to watch this story continue to unfold.

metirish Oct 29 2007 07:21 AM

It does remain to be seen but here is Hank. ] "It's clear he didn't want to be a Yankee," Hank Steinbrenner told the Daily News last night. "He doesn't understand the privilege of being a Yankee on a team where the owners are willing to pay $200 million to put a winning product on the field. "I don't want anybody on my team that doesn't want to be a Yankee."

John Cougar Lunchbucket Oct 29 2007 07:25 AM

I love it. Hank is just as a big a douche as his dad ever was, maybe even more since it's apparent he hadn't learned anything. And I love the cigarette they picture him with. This morning's Daily News back cover is awesome.

Edgy DC Oct 29 2007 07:30 AM

I don't want anybody on my team that doesn't want to be a Yank... Hey, where's everybody going? JTLYK! = text message shorthand for "Just to let you know!" Yes, I looked it up. When did they become Hank's team?

metirish Oct 29 2007 07:35 AM

In my happy haste I forgot to add this quote. ] "We're not going to back down," Steinbrenner said. "It's goodbye."

Edgy DC Oct 29 2007 07:37 AM

Yeah, I'd say he's taking this well.

metirish Oct 29 2007 07:40 AM

Hank is used to dealing with horses so maybe he thinks what worked there will work in the Bronx, this could be a laugh for a while. More..... ] "I'll tell you this: the commitment from my family is '78 through '96," Steinbrenner said of the team's direction. "We will never go 18 years without a championship again. That's our commitment."

Benjamin Grimm Oct 29 2007 08:05 AM

Then they have eleven years remaining on the desperation clock.

soupcan Oct 29 2007 08:48 AM

Yancy Street Gang wrote: Wright offered to move to second for Rodriguez earlier this year. I think I'd rather see him move to first and the Mets could deal Delgado. My initial reaction is that I do not want ARod on the Mets. But that's really kind of stupid isn't it? He is at least the best player of this generation and in the prime of his career. Wright, Reyes and ARod in the same infield looks pretty sweet on paper and I'm not the one (technically) paying the salaries so why should I care how much ARod makes? On the other hand, offense wasn't the Mets problem this year and Alex doesn't appear to have the greatest effect on teams chemistry-wise. Good luck with this one Omar.

MFS62 Oct 29 2007 09:05 AM

I think he'll go to the Cubs. He likes Pinella, and that would be a great park for him to play in if he is going to compile career stats. Also, he will be compliling them as a shortstop. But if the contract is going to be more than 7 years, it might be an AL team, so he can finish out his career as only a hitter. Later

John Cougar Lunchbucket Oct 29 2007 09:32 AM

We'd be fools not to pretend to be interested.

metirish Oct 29 2007 09:37 AM

I'd give him anything he wants , even Shea Stadium.

sharpie Oct 29 2007 09:51 AM

And your 2008 Yankee third baseman is currently Wilson Betamit.

metirish Oct 29 2007 11:03 AM

Edgy DC Oct 29 2007 11:06 AM

Dumb pun.

Benjamin Grimm Oct 29 2007 12:09 PM

From the New York Times: ]In an interview before Boras’s announcement, Steinbrenner said he would try to impress on Rodriguez the value of winning titles and making his legacy as a Yankee. He related a story of talking to Joe DiMaggio, who told him his championships would not have been half as meaningful if he had won them for any other team. “Does he want to go into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee,” Steinbrenner said, “or a Toledo Mud Hen?” How great would it be if the Mets and the Red Sox each won 24 World Championships over the next 48 years?

Edgy DC Oct 29 2007 12:19 PM

Yankee or a Toledo Mud Hen? What a snot.

Rotblatt Oct 29 2007 12:27 PM

="Edgy DC"]Yankee or a Toledo Mud Hen? What a snot. Yup. And what's so bad about the Mud Hens, anyway? At least they've got a mascot, for Christ's sake.

Frayed Knot Oct 29 2007 12:27 PM

Hank Steinbrenner has gone virtually "unquoted" - at least in the baseball arena - for half a century now, from his birth until just about a week ago. The last week however has raised the probability that some real stupid shit is going to be regular fare under his regime. And I'm loving it.

metsguyinmichigan Oct 29 2007 01:04 PM

="Rotblatt"] ="Edgy DC"]Yankee or a Toledo Mud Hen? What a snot. Yup. And what's so bad about the Mud Hens, anyway? At least they've got a mascot, for Christ's sake. I've actually seen a bunch of Mud Hens games over the years. They used to be in a suburban park that was once a horse racing track. It was a fun place. I booed Derek Jeter as a Clipper there -- knew even then he was a punk. Attached was the Ohio Baseball Hall of Fame, and they had one of Tom Seaver's Reds jerseys. It was a beautiful thing.

Nymr83 Oct 29 2007 01:48 PM

Frayed Knot wrote: Hank Steinbrenner has gone virtually "unquoted" - at least in the baseball arena - for half a century now, from his birth until just about a week ago. The last week however has raised the probability that some real stupid shit is going to be regular fare under his regime. And I'm loving it. its great, its like the old meddling george is back. soon they'll be irrationally firing people and bringing in over the hill free agents like its the late 80's.

soupcan Oct 29 2007 01:54 PM

One can only hope.

OlerudOwned Oct 29 2007 02:02 PM

I think it would be hysterical if he took less money to go to Boston and then spent 19 games a season absolutely pounding the pulp out of the Yankees.

sharpie Oct 29 2007 02:06 PM

He ain't going to take less money to go nowhere.

Benjamin Grimm Oct 29 2007 02:07 PM

Unless he has to, of course. He'll take the best offer he gets, but it might turn out to be less than what th Yankees were prepared to offer him.

metirish Oct 29 2007 02:09 PM

When can the two or three teams line up to bid on him?

Frayed Knot Oct 29 2007 02:53 PM

metirish wrote: When can the two or three teams line up to bid on him? Same rules apply to him as with all FAs. The Yanx are still the only ones who can negotiate with him until the 10th of November or thereabouts. All the opt out does is effectively cancel the remaining 3 years of the deal he signed 7 years ago. That the Yanx announced they have no intention of doing so doesn't change anything. He'll be in a holding pattern until then, able to contact to other teams in the interim but not (cough, cough) discuss contract terms.

sharpie Oct 29 2007 03:03 PM

I think it's the 7th of November that their exclusivity runs to (10 days from the end of the World Series).