Do the Red Sox recieve preferential treatment from Bud Selig and the suits at MLB? Just a few weeks ago, the Sox were granted an extension to negotiate with Curt Shilling promting this response from Mike C:

It was disconcerting to see Bud Selig extending the deadline for the trade to Saturday. I know that the trade was completed on Friday, and now Theo Epstein is being heralded as the genius du jour. But it seems that Bud is incapable of going out of his way to help his cronies in Boston.

Whether it's laundering a player in baseball-owned Montreal before turning him over to the Sox (Cliff Floyd) or rescuing a player from a contract he's already signed with a professional Japanese team so that the Sox can sign him (Kevin Millar), the commish just has to get involved in John Henry's business. Epstein, who may not be old enough yet to rent from Avis in some states, apparently is a genius who still needs to have the training wheels on his bike.

Now, MLB appears willing to help the Red Sox land Alex Rodriguez. According to The Boston Globe:

In a breakthrough that could hasten a historic swap of baseball's only $20 million-a-year superstars, Red Sox principal owner John W. Henry has scheduled a high-stakes meeting this week with Alex Rodriguez and his agent, Scott Boras, about restructuring the MVP shortstop's extravagant contract to clear the way for a trade involving Manny Ramirez, industry sources said yesterday.

Henry and Rodriguez recently held at least a preliminary discussion after the Sox received permission from commissioner Bud Selig to waive a rule prohibiting teams from discussing business with players under contract, according to a highly placed baseball official.

...One reason Selig may have approved such a rare negotiation between Henry and Rodriguez is Major League Baseball's preference for A-Rod, one of the sport's most magnetic personalities, to escape the obscurity of Texas and play on the big stage in Boston.

Peter Gammons reports that this deal is about Rangers owner Tom Hicks, and Boston's owner John Henry, along with Alex Rodriguez and his agent, Scott Boras. Clearly, A Rod is going to have to bend—i.e. give up some money—in order for the deal to go down:

On Friday night, things had begun to fall apart, because the Red Sox say they cannot make the deal unless Rodriguez downsizes his contract. And now Boras is in it, and not in favor of re-doing any of the contract. "If Alex doesn't take some of the money back, this thing is dead," says one person close to the deal. "If he wants this to happen, he is going to have to make it happen."

...Henry, Tom Werner and Larry Lucchino are very wary of the A-Rod contract, and they know there's only so much he can do to restructure it as long as the shortstop is part of the Major League Players Association and represented by Scott Boras. Still, their marketing folks remind them that their three current stars --Garciaparra, Ramirez and Pedro Martinez -- are reluctant to schmooze the potential clients from Fleet Bank (re: Bank of America), Ford, Volvo, Bob's Stores, etc. They know that Alex can be the face of the franchise for the next seven years, during which time he may well be heading for 600 homers, which may not sell tickets for a franchise that sells out most games, but becomes the frontpiece of NESN as that local sports network gets overhauled.

Rogriguez in Boston is a match made in Heaven. You can argue the merits of giving up two stars in Garciaparra and Ramirez for one, but in terms of star power and marketability, Rodriguez is second only to a guy named Jeter who plays in New York. And not only does A Rod have the charisma and star appeal that Jeter does, he also happens to be the best shortstop in the history of the game not named Wagner. Yup, A Rod in Boston is too good to be true. The Red Sox know it and so does Rodriguez. My feeling is that, with a little push in the right direction, the deal gets done sooner rather than later. Theo Epstein might be able to relax by the time he gets to New Orleans next weekend, kick back, and celebrate.