"...so something will have to give"
Indeed. I guess we can say at least we will have a busy off season.

And in other news, supposedly Byrd's double wind-up isn't the only PED he used.
http://tinyurl.com/29fstu

Yay. Now comes the point when we happy citizens of Fluxville get to watch Boras rope-a-doping the dipshits who now run the Yanks. Somebody stop the fight already. It's not even fair.

Boras has wanted nothing more than to bring Rodriguez to market, you know, to motivate the lean mean 2008-> "performance based!"(tradmark) Yankees, and Team Genius in Tampa has kicked the door open for him.

Ain't this boogie a mess.

It sounds like if Joe wanted to put in the hours he would typically have put in as manager, he could blow $5m away easy. I guess it really WASN'T just about the money.

4 "I'm sorry, but I love my family too much to subject them to the image of me sitting between Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum on your channel" (whistling as he carries trashbags full of lineup cards and used teabags to the curb) ...

12 The Countdown To Ka-blooey! is on.

So does Huey Lewis... "They say the heart of Rock & Roll is forbidden, and from what I've seen I believe 'em..."

10 There are only so many banquets to speak, there are only so many books to write... I guess he could clear that $$ as a consultant/motivational speaker? Clemens came to my job a couple of months ago, I have no idea how much it cost to bring him there...

Heh. I imagine a smart businessman like him wants Alex Rodriguez to return for a cut in pay, and performance-based postseason incentives?

Of course that's what you want, Hank, but perhaps for the first time in your life, you're not going to get what you want.

Sliced gently puts his arm on Hank's shoulder (Joe Torre style).

"Nothing lasts forever. Right, big fella?"

Boys, learn your history and break the chain; free your mind and yo'ass will follow!!!

Also, are there performance incentives tied to having the new Yankee stadium completed on time - if so, you might want to check into that Mr. Levine.

And since this is a Boras thread - at this point - who are the really legitimate players for ARod?. The Angles seem to be out; the Cubs ownership situation is probably too murky.
Any sleeper teams? - I keep hearing the Phillies will be players with Mo, I wonder if they would make a run at ARod, plus, at that ballpark ARod should be able to amass a bunch of HRs.

Not sure about the parental abuse/neglect thing, but there's an undeniable divorce pattern going on in the "dirty sexy money" Steinbrenner clan. Everybody has their reasons, of course.

Now, lest I be accused of parental neglect I'm off to a fall festival with the wife and kids: apples, pumpkins, cider, crafts that one ought not purchase but will, and all that.

It is, after all, a gorgeous autumn day in Fluxville. Have a great one, all.

http://demause.net/mt/sw/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=4&search=randy+levine

*your paper isn't as good without Emma Span

Now, I'm off to the pumpkins for reals.

I just hope that it ends with him and that neither Hank or Hal continue the pattern of passive-aggressiveness, but with Hank it seems so far it will. Hoping that even at age 50, he can learn something from his father's history and change course from where he stands now.

But on a day like today, why spoil a good mood? I'm going outside and soaking up some nature. Have fun with the munchkins, SB and everyone have a good time! >;)

Also, if dudes like PAUL BYRD were juicing, who wasn't??? I'm freaking out about "The List."

"Report: Hank Steinbrenner fires back at Torre"

If the intention was to opt out no matter what, then why make this statement at all? It's a statement that matters only to the Yankees, and only before he opts out. Why make any of the statements he's made in the last couple of weeks? It has to be intended entirely for the Yankees' benefit; otherwise he could start making these arguments later, when the papers are starved for baseball news.

As others have pointed out, there may not be that much of a market for Alex. Boston? Maybe Philadelphia, maybe SF? Maybe the Angels are interested after all? That's not much to choose from, and no guarantee of topping any offer the Yankees make.

Manny career .313/.409/.593 vs. ARod career .306/.389/.578

25 Yes loved the free your mind 22 - but if we are going back to the 80s drama15 , just remember the Bronx keeps creatin it.

29 Yes - it's legal with a prescription. But my understanding is it is (supposed to be) only prescribed in very limited circumstances.
I wonder if the flip side of your Byrd statement is that it is a lot of the fringe guys that are using it to stay in the league?
I just hope KF is the only Yankee name on the almighty list.

32 Agreed - he is trying to get the Yanks to put their best and highest on the table right away. As people who have speculated about cashman's stance have pointed out - he will opt-out if he has a deal in place a la JD Drew.

And as for hank "firing" back at Torre, I don't see anything in there that isn't a decent point, and if Joe can "fire" at the Yanks, they can certainly "fire" back, not that anything in there is at all an attack...

Better to let things cool off, take a few lumps, then move on with the next manager and give him the full support. Really, if management believes they're right, then shut up and just quietly go about building the best team for next year.

Angels have said no.
Dodgers won't spend and are committing (theoretically) to the kids.
The Cubs spent big recently, are about to be sold.
The White Sox? I guess they could afford it.
The Red Sox. They can afford it and have a need at third. A-Rod seems to match up well with Fenway. But will they spend so big, and will they want him in Boston? I don't know if they take the fans into account but they really hate him up there.

Anyway, the bidding war would be between--the White Sox and Red Sox???

I don't think Philly will spend, they're always poormouthing. SF needs to rebuild.

I'm sure there are many things going on we don't know, but the best play for A-Rod and Boras might well be to re-sign.

"If Rodriguez returns to the Yankees, it will be as a true team leader. He is far more of a mentor to the younger players than Jeter"

Not sure what to make of that--never heard anything like it before.

Also, too much goes on behind closed doors that we don't know about. I know I read once that Jeter talked to Cano after the youngster messed up with the press.

What I'm trying to say is- why can't they both be mentors, and I'm sure they both are?

Maybe A-Rod. Possibly may be one factor of many that influences his decision making.

As for the timing, it has everything to do with being a Sunday (bigger sales for the biggest issue), and this being the only time of the year anyone cares about anything related to Paul Byrd.

They're literally insane, and Peter knows it: In today's post, he actually suggests they go outside and get some air!

Six of one, half dozen of the other, I suppose.

Yes.

I was wondering whether, if A-Rod is doing some mentoring, and feels attached to those guys, maybe that's something that would help tip the scales in favor of doing an extension instead of opting out.

I often disagree with his take on things, but the facts he reports are usually correct.

If Alex leaves, I hope Robbie and Melky stick to his workout regimen. I believe they've been tailing and emulating him in the gym.

53 HA! I agree- their handles are just awesome. Reason enough to wade through that mess a few times a week.

54 Are you serious - why?

55 I get what you are saying - I am not sure about tipping the balance, but it does seem he likes the role of being one of the leaders as opposed to being on an island.
Not to get all Dr. Phil sappy, but I think that is something that has been hard for some guys like Giambi when they come to the Yanks and don't really have anywhere close to the role they had on their previous team.

It's funny how happy Troy Aikman sounds without Joe Buck.

1. Get to Matsuzaka, and
2. Manny up with no one on base.

Speaking of which, I'm now hearing him referred to as "Man-Ram." I've spoken before about the plague that began with A-Rod: F-Rod, I-Rod, K-Rod, Dice-K and others that (thankfully) I can't think of right now. This has to stop. Please. Think of the children.

He's been called that for ages. Nothing new, and older than most of the names you mentioned by quite a bit.

Imagine how it would play everytime the Yanks faced the Sox. Ten years from now, we would still he hearing it on every national brodcast. You think you hear about 2004 too much? That's nothing compared to every hit he gets against the Yankees... or every walkoff.. or (God forbid) PS game win.

Frankly, to me, it's a nightmare in the EXTREME!

Yuck.

Even the biggest Boras basher has to see that it changes the equation significantly.

If the Yankees are smart, they will name a manager this week.

They will also call Alex and tell him that they are prepared to do whatever it takes to keep Posada. This is a must in my opinion, as there are no viable, congruous, replacements anywhere at any level.

As for Rivera. Great Yankee. First ballot HOF. One of the most amazing athletes I've ever seen. To do what he's done for so long. So steadily. To kill ML hitters when they pretty much know what's coming and yet can't do a damn thing about it. The guy is probably a once in a lifetime phenomenon.

That said, I believe the importance of Rivera, and all closers for that matter is overstated. If they can't get a deal done for him, I'm not going to shed too many tears about it.

In order of importance, here are the guys the Yankees NEED to bring back next year.

A-Rod
Posada
Abreu
Pettitte
.
.
.
.
Mo.