Tough Guys

Now that the Yankee brass has shown Joe Torre
just how tough they can be, by low balling their
EX manager, and calling it respectful, let's see if
they can manage to stick to their guns with A-Rod.

The Yankees have come out publicly and said that
if Alex Rodriguez opts out of the final three years
of his contract, they will not negotiate with him.
Why? Well THAT is simple. The Yankees have had
their way with A-Rod while the Texas Rangers
foot a hefty chunk of that contract as a part of the
trade that was made for him, but if he opts out and
re signs then they are on the hook for the whole
ball of wax. I like their stance on this one, but can
they stick to it. This is the same ownership that
said they would not bring back Torre if they lost
to the Indians in the ALDS, and even though it was
a low ball offer that they made to Torre, it was an
offer, albeit a backhanded one.

Guys like Scott Boras have had their way with
owners George Steinbrenner for as long as I can
remember now, and I hope I'm starting to see a
trend in the opposite direction. The Oakland Raiders
made a point of sticking to their guns when it came
to the number one overall pick in this years draft,
and though I still think they gave too much in the
end, they definitely made him, sweat, wait, and
give some stuff up. Al Davis and company are
without question a much more savvy group than
the Yankees, and though Championships might
say otherwise, they don't just try to buy a ring,
and actually have a REAL salary cap to work with.

I really think that they might show some guts if
they stick to their guns on this one, as opposed to
being as spineless as they were with Torre. I mean
they can always take the stance that they didn't
fire him to their fan base, and save their face, but
we know that the NY sports fan is much too savvy
for that load of garbage.

I also believe that A-Rod, as big as his numbers were
this year would be taking a HUGE gamble if he opts
out and the Yankees are out as players for his
services. I can't see him making more than $20
Million per outside of NY and if owners are smart
they'll see that he is stuck between a rock and a hard
place as far as millionaire ballplayers go, so he can
be had for similar numbers, instead of inflated ones.
I CAN'T BELIEVE I JUST WROTE THAT.

I do however expect some idiot like Tom Hicks to
come along and bid against himself and give the
farm away when it isn't necessary. They may be
loaded, but I will argue that they ain't always bright.

This should be interesting.