Today in The Journal News
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Oct 29, 2007 
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Alex Rodriguez turned his back on the Yankees and opted out of his contract.
Meanwhile, the next manager of the team appears to be Joe Girardi.
————–
Spoke to some people who were in Denver for Game 4 last night. The Red Sox fans at Coors Field gathered behind the dugout to celebrate the victory and at one point started chanting, “Don’t Sign A-Rod!”
Given their cozy relationship with Scott Boras, anything is possible. There are people who believe Boras made a side deal with Boston before having J.D. Drew opt out of his contract with the Dodgers last season.
We know only this: Rodriguez will go where the money is best. He obviously doesn’t care what people think about him. His legacy will always be more about his contract than championships.
Hopefully he ends up in the American League, if only to hear what 55,000 people in the Bronx booing as loudly as they can sounds like.
I wash my hands of you A-FRAUD. Enjoy the money because you’ll never achieve the status of being a Yankee great. You could have been mentioned in the same breath as Mickey, Roger, Joe D and the Babe, but you chose to be a superstar in relative obscurity. Good riddance to bad rubbish, I say, and much success with your new team who’ll be saddled with the most selfish player of all time, a distinction that will stay with you as long as this game is still played.
I hope the Giants sign him. They’re in need of a much hated slugger, and who better to lead them to perenial third place status in their division than A-Rod?
Well, I know what Alex will be wearing on his back next year, it’s a $ (dollar sign).
And I am with the vast majority in agreeing that Rodriguez will end up the loser in the end. Money can’t buy you love and in most cases, it can’t buy you happiness either.
Alex,like Sean above me states, you lost the chance to be one of the all-time Yankee greats. I hope the money was worth it. No Yankeeography for you.
I hope the Yankees spend wisely this off season and get quality for their money. No one player is worth all the hassle.
As much fun as booing Arod would be, I hope he signs in the NL. In his career, he’s always killed the Yankees, which is one of the reasons I was glad to have him with us instead of against us.
I disagree, it was it only about the money, It certianly would have made sense to at least meet with the Yanks to see what the offer would have been.
Pete,
Do you think A-Rods timing of opting out has anything to do with George Mitchell’s report? MAybe A-Rod wanted to get signed before the report came out. Could his name be on the list??
Not that it really matters in the end but I wonder if A-Rod actively chose to opt-out or if he is so devoid of character that he basically lets Boras control him like a circus animal.
I’m interested to see what Wilson Betemit can do as the starting 3B for a full season and no one threatening his job. I think he can put up .255, 28 HR, and 80 RBI. Not a horrible replacement. Take the A-Rod money and buy a thumper at 1B.
He already knows what 55,000 booing fans sound like.
there are no thumpers available at 1b
When AMerc goes into the Hall Of Fame, he’ll have a Dollar-sign on his hat.
This explains why he seemed relaxed this year. For the A rod supporters let me mentioned that this wasnt even the worst thing he did in a year span. After last years playoff debacle he refused to accept a trade anywhere. Thus handcuffing the yanks in the offseason. Knowing he would burn the team in the end by opting out and we getting nothing in return.
This is the best thing that could of happened. We havnt won anything with him and every team he defects seems to get better record wise. Now we can finally get back a team concept like the good ol days.
I hope the rumors are true about Girardi. Its time to have a hard nosed guy run this team. This team to the attitude of Torre and seemed too layed back last year. Maybe now we will see more fight from the team and more unity.
May Arod be bood everywhere he goes and end up on a team that doesnt make it to the playoffs, so we could here him whine like a byatch as he did in Texas. Farewell you fraud you made hearing the red sox win much easier to swollow knowing we are done with you. And our curse is finally over.
Dr. A- Somebody was talking about Rodriguez’s Hall of Fame plaque last night. The only plaque that he should get now is that buildup that gets inside a person’s mouth.
A-Rod is dead to me. RIP
Let’s be honest here — the loss of A-Rod and Torre (who should be replaced by Mattingly) really, really sucks, and when combined with Boston’s win, makes this about as miserable a month for a Yankee fan as possible. I’m afraid that next season could be a tough one; it’s not like Boson is going to get any weaker (hell, their no-hitter rookie pitcher didn’t even make the playoff roster). A-Rod’s the only reason the Yanks actually made the playoffs. Ugh.
The Lady you are wrong, not everyone was booing him. I can tell you in 2006 I wasn’t. But in 2008 I will be.
Let the Joba and Phil Hughes era begin.
As much as I felt A-Slump will stay, I say good-bye and hello to 3 new players for that salary. Maybe bolster up our Pen. Pitching is what wins. If Lowell becomes available I will take him. Especially what he has proven in the playoffs. Let’s get a First baseman. I hope A-Slump goes to Tampa so he will never see another playoff game again.
Does anyone know for sure whether we will get a first round pick from whatever team signs him? I have seen some speculation both ways but nobody seems to be sure. If we do get a pick, everyone cross ur fingers for the Giants to sign him! He’d fit in perfect there with Barry Zito…two overpaid underachievers. Peas in a pod!
A-Hole will alway be a loser. See Ya A-Hole.
ha.
Welcome back, 1980′s.
We’ve missed you.
Yankees headed for the cellar in the AL East.
“The Red Sox fans at Coors Field gathered behind the dugout to celebrate the victory and at one point started chanting, “Don’t Sign A-Rod!â€?”
Typical Sox fans, more obsessed with the enemy than anything. They can’t even enjoy a World Series victory without tainting themselves with hatred.
I bet these were real die-hard Sox fans too, the kind that have been around for a while and stuck with the team through it’s losing. Since they’re from…Colorado, you know.
“For the A rod supporters let me mentioned that this wasnt even the worst thing he did in a year span. After last years playoff debacle he refused to accept a trade anywhere. Thus handcuffing the yanks in the offseason. Knowing he would burn the team in the end by opting out and we getting nothing in return.”
this is not true. the yankees got a playoff berth in 2007 and 2 draft picks. the fans got an enjoyable season, b/c believe me, the 2007 Yankees would have been pretty awful without A-Rod.
i don’t understand this notion that A-Rod should have agreed to a trade to HELP OUT the yankees.
he owns his NTC. his agent bargained for it, and the rangers gave it to him. it’s his. and the yankees traded for him KNOWING he had a NTC. he doesn’t owe it to the yankees to agree to a trade.
it’s naive to make arguments like this.
The Steinbrenner era has ended with a DUD.
Welcome Joe Girardi as Yankee manager, just announced on ESPN
If we do get a pick, everyone cross ur fingers for the Giants to sign him!
no. the Yankees want a GOOD team to sign him so they get a 1st round pick. the Giants’ first round pick will be protected.
the Giants would be one of the worst destinations from the yankees’ perspective.
Honestly with the players still on the team how could anyone say that it’s going to be the 80s all over again. This has been the largest upheaval in New York for more than a decade, and that’s very unsettling, but pitchers and catchers will report in a few months, and there will be 24 good players on the roster, ready to go.
You know, when ARod gets voted into the Hall of Fame, as he should, it may be the first time teams are saying they DON’T want him to wear their caps!
I am curious, though, if his new contract with his new team will include an opt-out clause, or if such an inclusion would be a deal-breaker for more than a few teams, given what happened to the Yankees and the Dodgers. The Dodgers were shocked that Drew opted out because he, too, was saying how happy he was in L.A.
MLB Rumors has posted that if the pick is protected, the Yanks will receive 2 Sandwich picks.
If, as an example, the Angels sign ARod. The Yankees would get their 1st round pick, plus a sandwich round pick after the first round.
Can anyone else confirm this? Did they hear is elsewhere, we know how espn has been wrong before.
YES JOE!
What are the chances that Mattingly will accept a minor league managing position – since that was the most glaring gap in his resume? Would that still signify a lack of faith in Girardi?
Jennifer- ESPNEWS has it on the bottom that he has been offered the job. No word yet on his decision, at least from them.
Guys, realize, A-Rod had 0 desire to come back. If so, pick up the phone when Hank and Hal called, meet them for lunch, hear the offer, and then opt out a few days later if you don’t like it….he never did that…..Peter’s right, he never wanted to come back…..can’t blame the Yankees for this one.
I wonder what Rivera and Posada will do. They might feel disrespected so they might leave.
Forget Mike Lowell. Do you really think the Yankees want to give up their first round pick to the Red Sox for a free agent who might only have one or two good seasons left but will take a four year contract to get?
I’m not going the route some of you guys are going I’ll say this Alex good luck on watever team you end up, thank your agent but also look to the mirror on why your not back.
I’m glad Joe Girardi was offered a the deal again Joe you better accept it !!!
Tony Pena for bench coach
hmmmm,
I didn’t realize that the top 15 picks were protected in the draft now.
Now my only hope is that if the Yankees do go after Mike Lowell Boston doesn’t offer him arbitration. I would hate for Boston to get the Yankees pick especially since as of now the Yankees will be picking higher than Boston in the draft.
As an aside I don’t really feel any way towards A-Rod opting out. In today’s business climate there is no job loyalty so why not go to where the money is greater?
DISRESPECTED?????????????? they go where the money is have you not been paying attention. if the yankees want then back they will bring them back.
ESPN is citing Andrew Marchand and 1050 AM
Buster Olney just said he has been offered, Mattingly and Pena have been told also Donnie has said he doesnt want to be back as a coach.
A-FRAUD is a piece of garbage and he has a JINX. I’m from Dominican Republic and down there we believe that certain people/players whatever carry certain “FUKU’” (pronounced foo koo in english) or JINX. This guy is the biggest fuku that there is!! At least Bonds reached the world series twice I believe…this MOFO hasn’t even reached that far and yet it’s clear that he is a fraud, a liar and a mercenary that reflects everything’s that’s wrong with the business of baseball. As a Yankee fan, I am excited he’s gone forever. He hasn’t learned one iota from his mistake of signing with the Rangers and I hope that he never makes it to the World Series..ever. We’ll be much better off without him. Nuff said.
So yea, what happens with Mattingly? No one’s really said much about this, but I will miss seeing him on the bench. In the “long” term (someday) I would really like to see him as manager of the Yankees.
“According to George King of the New York Post, the Dodgers are negotiating a buyout of manager Grady Little with the hope of replacing him with Joe Torre.”
Joe has some unfinished business with Proctor’s arm
I can’t see Girardi saying no to the offer. Why would he have interviewed if he wasn’t interested?
He already heard the 55000 boos in 2006 so it will be nothing new for him.
But seriously, how can you expect a player, coming off of one of the greatest seasons in recent memory, to stay off the free agent market? He will never have that kind of season again, so it is in his best interests and the best interests of his family to be a free agent and make the maximum amount of money that he can make. He’s doing this for his family ans himself. The Yankees were rumored to be willing to commit 240 million to the guy. If another team wants to commit 300 million, how do you leave 60 million on the table??? Wouldn’t you take that deal as well? It’s common sense.
Look at it like this. If the Mets go insane and offer Jorge 80 million over 5 years, the Yankees won’t match. Would anybody be angry at Jorge for leaving the Yankees “for the contract”? Would his legacy be about the contract, not the championships?? Of course not. Some people would be mad, but most of the anger would probably be directed towards the Yankee brass for “letting him go.”
The only reason ARod’s situation is different is because it is for a lot more money, and Yankee fans love to hate on him already and this gives them an excuse to turn on him like they have been waiting to do since the beginning of the season.
All players should go for the money. It’s common sense.
I find the notion ridiculous that the Red Sox winning the World Series puts a damper on Yankee fans. They are not the reason why we didn’t win. They did many things right. We didn’t. Good for them. At least they won’t soil the championship the way yet another fly-by-night champion like this year’s Rockies, or last year’s Cardinals, would have.
Welcome to last place? Perhaps, but how about “Welcome to building the type of TEAM that won us championships in the late 90′s?”
News flash: The past few years WERE the 1980′s. Next year could be our 1995, or better, again.
Good riddance, A-Rod. We’ll find our Scott Brosius again.
If Girardi gets the job, its the right move. The guy is a very, very solid choice.
He adds an edge to this team that has been missing for years. A toughness that’s lacking in this team.
If guys don’t want to play for him, then you don’t want those guys on the team.
Marchand said that it wouldn’t surprise him if Mattingly went to the Dodgers to be a coach for Torre if they fire Grady Little. It’s also possible that Donnie isn’t even in baseball next season, or so Marchand said.
Yeah–
I think we all would have had a lot more respect for Arod is he had at least listened to what the Yankees had to offer. To not even listen to their offer after the past 4 years and after he said he loved playing in new York slaps us all in the face. I think we all thou8ght he would opt out if Boras is your agent that i the M.O but to not even listen tells us all he didnt wqant to be here.
*Breaking Video*
Hallelujah – It’s JOE!
http://tinyurl.com/3x6x4s
If Arod left the Yankees because of Girardi’s hiring, then that is as much of a ringing endorsement us Yankee fans should need to embrace Girardi now.
It appears the Arod and Mattingly curse have both ended in the past 24 hours.
YANKEE TRAITOR
Dr. Acula, Joe accepted?
Breaking Video
Hallelujah – It’s JOE!
(this works)
http://snipurl.com/1suzj
With A-Rod gone, your going to have a more of small ball aggressive style of baseball. Girardi was clearly the man for the job.
Will be interesting to see what Mattingly does.
raymagnetic-
they’ll only say “offered”
But I’m sure he didn’t go through a 10 hour interview for nothing.
Mattingly goes to the Dodgers with Torre. Then when Girardi bombs, he’ll come back and save the day. Just kidding, Girardi might be just what this team needs right now. He’ll be a more proactive manager than Torre, that’s for sure.
Question,if Torre lands the Dodgers job, what are the chances that Mo and Jorge follow him there? Maybe even Pettite.
ABC says Girardi is “expected” to accept.
Arod moving on isn’t the issue. Its HOW he did it.
Its much easier to move on when a guy does it the way he did it.
With all the crap the Yankees dealt with re: his on and off-field stuff, you would think he would show them a little more respect. Not doing so is a slap in the face to a number of people who went to the wall for him in his 4 years in pinstripes.
If he wanted to stay, at least listen to the Yankees offer. He didn’t and its over and, in the long run, the Yankees will be better for it.
At some point, enough is enough. You just have to think about 25 guys instead of one. Its going to be easier for the Yankees to re-load without him than with him.
Too much drama, which really isn’t what the Yankees are about.
The names aren’t on the uniforms for a reason. Its about the TEAM. Now, it will be easier for the Yankees to get back to that attitude.
Sure, the short term hit (especially PR-wise) is big. However, its STILL the New York Yankees. They aren’t going to finish is last place just because Arod isn’t there. That’s just stupid talk.
Frankly, I’m more excited about the future than I have been about the present. I LIKE change. I think its healthy and I think the team will be better for it.
LA is a long way away for people who have family as well as business etc in NYC.
I am interested if Girardi takes the job if he is allowed to talk to Gary Tuck who was his coach in Florida. I was listening to XM MLB this am and they were talking about how much Tuck meant to the bullpen this year, how he worked with the bullpen a lot. Tuck is a former Yankees coach and has been credited a lot for the catchers work during the glory years.
SJ44,
Well said! You have my total agreement!
Let’s start the Girardi Wining Era!!!
The Yanks have let Torre and mattingly go in a 10 day period. I think Girardi will be a good manager. But Donnie leaving for good (in a coaching/managerial sense) a week after Torre left for good is a sad day in Yankee history.
“News flash: The past few years WERE the 1980’s. Next year could be our 1995, or better, again.”
i like this idea.
Dr. Acula, I agree that he wouldn’t have interviewed if he wasn’t going to accept. I wasn’t sure if the video you posted was of Joe actually accepting.
Our warmest congratulations and BIG shout out to Joseph Elliot Girardi – the 32nd manager of The New York Yankees !!
That was supposes to say “Winning” era, ther’s been anought whining!!!
Maybe I can get it right THIS time! The Girardi Winning Era! There’s been enough whining!
Question,if Torre lands the Dodgers job, what are the chances that Mo and Jorge follow him there? Maybe even Pettite.
i think the Dodgers are all set at catcher.
Congratulations Joe Girardi!!!
This day keeps getting better. PayRod is gone… Girardi is in….
Wow… wait, there is a not at my door… brb
Guess who that was… WS #27!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We know A-Rod goes where the money is best, but is it for him or his agent?
Plus I like A-Rod I can never Boo a guy who tries hard. But do you think he cares about Yankee fans booing him? I mean they booed him when he was on the team and would drop a fly ball while Bernie Williams could do the same and get cheered the next time he came up to the plate.
YES!
LET’S DO THIS!
Dodgers have Russell Martin, who is prob the best catcher currently in the NL, and Broxton and Saito at the back end of the pen.
“Marchand said that it wouldn’t surprise him if Mattingly went to the Dodgers to be a coach for Torre if they fire Grady Little.”
his son is in the Dodgers’ system, so it might make sense.
So “offered” means that they are negotiating a contract right now. It shouldnt be hard for them to come to an agreement, the Yanks arent cheap its not like they are going to offer him $1.00 like Boston would. If that is true about Torre and the Dodgers then they were willing to take whoever was the Yanks left over meat. Torre or Girardi?!!
Now it is time to get over Arod. Yes he put great numbers during the year but he never even gave the Yanks a chance to offer a contract and had to do it during game 4, which was awful, he is a phony and a selfish #####. None of his teammates liked him, I wonder why…bye bye.
Given the maturity level of the fans posting here and the ‘media’ I can’t imagine why Alex would ever think of leaving the Yankees (rolleyes). The name calling just reminds me of a bunch of 5 year olds who didn’t get their way.
The way it was announced was odd and not the wisest decision, but I don’t believe for one second the Yankees KNOW he was going to opt out. If you believe they didn’t already know then explain the huge desire they had to all of a sudden to meet face to face with him present?
I’m all for new management and changes they need to make but they need to quit giving ultimatums and then being shocked when the other party turns them down (Joe did it and now Alex) who’s next? They need to leave some options open for themselves.
Yeah—- that is ridiculous. This is about Arod’s complete lack of sincerety and honesty. All year before he opted out, Drew said how much he loved LA. Same with Alex this year about NY. One lie on top of another. Sure, he is entitled to go where the most money is (although hopefully he just left the place where the most money is). But most of us diehard fans wanted to believe there was an element of sincerety to his words, that Yankee pinstripes meant something to him, that his teammates meant something to him, that he aspired to secure an honored place in the Yankee pantheon. Clearly, he doesn’t care a whit about any of those things, and that is very disappointing, at least to me. Again, his right, but it is our right to now hate him for his blatant dishonesty and insincerety and for the fact that he is essentially defecating on the Yankee logo by the way he left (not agreeing to meet with the Yankees and not returning the owners’ phone calls?). Has to do what is best for his family? Please. By staying he would have earned at least 300m over the next 8 years. That buys a lot of “F*ck You” tees for the wife. Bottom line, if I truly believed that this is ONLY a business, that players NEVER care about such things, I’d give up the game. And every time I am tempted, an Andy Pettitte restores my faith by turning down much more money from the bosux because he could not play fro that team.
“Arod moving on isn’t the issue. Its HOW he did it.”
EXACTLY. I have no problem with A-Rod going to free agency and trying to maximize his contract, but to not even listen to the Yankees offer before doing it really rubs me the wrong way.
IMO,lets have Cano move to third and sign Marcus Giles to play 2nd. Unless we have someone in the minors that might be ready to play 2nd and is better? If not,how far away are they?
Beck,
Mattingly not coming back to coach is not sad. I’m sure he was offered something else in the organization. It’s very possible that he turned it down. It gives a glimpse as to his expectations and really, his true intentions. Good for him to set the bar high, but really, birthright doesn’t guarantee anything in the job market.
I just hope we give someone the #13 jersey next year, so I can still wear mine.
Pepper Brooks-
Those two hotties (Mystic and Aura) knocked on ya door? Lucky Bum!
If we by some chance lose Jorge I see that Torrealba is a FA this year. I dont really know much about him other than what I saw in the playoffs. Is he a servicable catcher , is he an option worth looking at??
Hmmm- Yeah I forgot about Preston Mattingly there.
S.o.S.27,
Marcus Giles is done. Even with Petco weighing down his numbers, he’s not worth bringing in as an everyday player.
If you are Mo and Jorge and you’ve won 3 or 4 rings with a huge NY on them, why would you want to be a Dodger?
I think A Rod is moving to LA. He and David Beckham could be friends. They have a lot in common.
I bet if you pooled some Manchester United fans, they’d have similar things to say about the rich stars…
its girardi
* i mean poled
In case you didn’t notice the Yankees have already been a very good TEAM over the last few years.
The main reasons they have not won the title in a while is because of starting pitching
’05 – Johnson and Mussina bombed 2 of the 5 games
’06 – Johnson and Wright bombed 2 of the 5 games
’07 – Wang bombed 2 of the 4 games
You’re not going to win any 5 games series when you have 2 completely terrible starts from your pitchers in the series.
The reason they lost isn’t because this is a “collection of stars” like Peter implied yesterday. The pitching just needed to get better. The bats were already the best in baseball. With Cashman’s moves in recent years we have good reason to expect the pitching to get better once Joba and Hughes and Kennedy find their groove in the big leagues.
Sure change is good. But losing your best hitter, and not getting much more than a draft pick or two in return is not a good change. That should be pretty obvious.
And who the heck is going to be the third baseman in 2008 anyway? Betemit? Cano? Unless Cashman pulls off a trade for Miggy Cabrera, the Yankees are going to have a hell of a time trying to replace this guy’s production.
Change is good when you have other reasonable options, like promising young talent ready to take over for an aging player. But the Yankees have no third base prospects in the minors. And moving Cano to third means the Yankees have a hole at second. And one of the things that makes Cano so valuable is that his bat is superior to every second baseman in the league except for Utley. By moving him to third he is not even in the top 5 of hitting third baseman. He plays pretty good defense at second. I don’t know why people are clamoring for him to move to third.
If the Yankees want to win the big one over the next few years it is in their best interests to keep Alex. THis idea that letting him walk will free up money to spend elsewhere is not true anyway. The Yankees money is the resource that separates them from every other team. They always have nough money, even with a 200 million dollar payroll. Giambi, Farnsworth, and Mussina are all off the books after next year anyway. Bringing Alex back would have been the best way to go, but it looks like they won’t even negotiate with him now.
WRONG.
AROD did this for us.
He wanted to take away the pain of a red sox win in the series by giving us an outlet for our vitriol.
He succeeded masterfully.
I really hope Torre gets the Dodgers job. First off, it would expose him as a phony “again” since the Dodgers would have to get rid of Little. Does Joe want to help put the knife in Little’s back? Not very classy Joe. Second, Joe would have to take much less cash to manage them. Don’t think the NY media won’t notice that Joe. Next, we will see the pre-Yankees Clueless Joe that managed the Braves, Mets, and Cardinals. Without the huge payroll and gritty stars, Joe will be lost. Dodger fans will quickly realize they were duped. Third, Scott Proctor. Run Scott!
Dr Acula…
Sucker for those Eva Mendes twins…
polled?
Mel,
I didnt say the Yanks owed Mattingly anything. George brought him here 4 years ago to eventually be the manager. But george isnt running things anymore and the Yanks have the right to hire whomever they want. I for one think Donnie would have been a real good manager. i think the people that kill him for his inexperience are kidding themselves. Girardi managed 1 year in Florida. That’s not exactly a great reseume. That being said, i have no problem with girardi getting the job and i would have been fine with pena getting it too. My point in my previous post had to do with the fact that us yankee fans won’t see Mattingly in pin stripes again. And to me, and to many others, that is sad.
mel – wow, thanks
dont forget, ARod is almost assured to make it to the ASG next season, no matter who he plays with… so even if he goes to the NL, 55K people in Yankees Stadium on the Midsummer Classic stage on national TV would be good enough.
The Yankees have what it would take to trade for Garret Atkins; Cashman can make that work… they asked about Farnsworth, and we want him gone. Throw in 2 B+ pitchers, and away we go.
to lose arod and torre, and potentially mo, jorge, and pettite, is a big blow for a team that has looked overmatched lately.
but – the red sox are the new evil empire – in a year or two i feel another young 1996esque team coming on!
to lose arod and torre, and potentially mo, jorge, and pettite, is a big blow for a team that has looked overmatched lately.
but – the red sox are the new evil empire – in a year or two i feel another young 1996esque team coming on!
Oh, Eva!
I need to put something together, this week. She reminds me of Michelle Rodriguez
“If Girardi gets the job, its the right move. The guy is a very, very solid choice.
He adds an edge to this team that has been missing for years. A toughness that’s lacking in this team.”
sj44-
i can’t argue with that, but you underestimate how out of touch with the present baseball marketplace hank is. the dominoes are just starting to fall. why are you giving hank a pass here? no one player is more importantt than the team, but how many players can the yankees lose because of misreading the marketplace before even a joe girardi can’t save them?
as long as hank is at the helm , the yankees are screwed. there was no tactical advantage in announcing that if arod opts out, goodbye arod.
that’s the ultimatum of an amateur negotiator. don’t be surprised if the next dominoe is posada leaving for the mets.
yeah -
yeah.
you pretty much summed it up from a baseball perspective. having money freed up doesn’t really help when there is nothing appealing to spend it on.
however, it seems to me like Alex just wanted out of NY and wanted a little more of himself and his family’s privacy back. i don’t know if the yankees could have prevented this.
I apologize if it’s innapropriate to post the link here, but I decided to start a blog to discuss this, because it’s just too long to write in a post. I welcome you to visit http://arodanalysis.wordpress.com/
You will see that there are no ads there, this is in no way a money-making venture.
Thanks.
“Bringing Alex back would have been the best way to go, but it looks like they won’t even negotiate with him now.”
They wanted to sit down and talk to him, but A-Rod wouldn’t have it. Why the hell would they negotiate with someone who slapped them in the face? Peter is right on that count. They would be the biggest frauds and fools to talk to F-Rod now. Screw him!
“Sure change is good. But losing your best hitter, and not getting much more than a draft pick or two in return is not a good change. That should be pretty obvious.”
I am not crazy about giving my best hitter $300 million til he is 40 either. Here is a fun fact. A-Rod has been the best hitter in baseball the past 8 years and his teams have won NOTHING. How about we replace his production with better pitching? How about we manufacture runs rather than wait for A-Rod to hit a three run homer. How about we become a team again like 96-00?
Hey Mr.yeah, either you are Scott Boras or an idiot. Since I doubt Boras posts on blogs, you must be the other.
Boras now saying someone in his camp or Legends Field leaked the story during the game last night. I guess they leaked all those Boras quotes, too.
A-rod is gone. If he didn’t burn the last part of the bridge, Hank certainly has. There’s no rule that says that you have to replace his production at 3rd base. You upgrade and squeeze out runs. Which if they had done this year just a few more times may have had home field advantage and maybe even win some games in the postseason.
This team was getting soft. I’m so excited about the changes. The last few years have been heartbreaking. As Dolly Parton says, “If you don’t like the road you’re on, pave a new one.”
Frankly, I’m more excited about the future than I have been about the present. I LIKE change.
good, because the yankees need a new owner.
“Frankly, I’m more excited about the future than I have been about the present. I LIKE change.”
good, because the yankees need a new owner.
“as long as hank is at the helm , the yankees are screwed. there was no tactical advantage in announcing that if arod opts out, goodbye arod.”
i kindof agree, but do you really think that a-rod wouldn’t have opted out anyway? i think he decided before the season to leave.
we’ll know when we see where and what $$ he signs for.
if he signs for 10 years, $300M, the yankees were not going to match that no matter what.
if he signs for something similar to the rumored yankee offer but signs somewhere in California, then he just wanted to get out of NY.
if he signs in Boston for something close to the yankee offer, then the yankees made a colossal miscalculation and i will be very worried about the future.
hmmm, I think you’re right that the Yankees probably could not have prevented this. Alex didn’t even listen to their offer so that’s a good indication that what you’re saying is true.
His timing was definitely awkward and seems disrespectful. But I just get upset when people try to say that this team will be better by losing the best hitter in the game, especially when there are no replacements available. It just makes no sense to me! It’s like trying to say that the Twins will be better if Santana walks as a free agent after next year.
Hopefully Cashman can pull off a trade for a Cabrera or even Atkins. The Yankees certainly have enough young pitching to make a trade. But getting Cabrera without giving up Hughes or Joba will be difficult, and probably not worth it. Maybe the Marlins will bite on some other prospects.
I think Ken Rosenthal is right, ARod has a deal somewhere else. Just like JD Drew last year, Boras isn’t about to take a chance and cost his client money. They must believe on some level that the Yankees are totally out of it, and Alex didn’t want to be a Yankee anyway. There has to be a sure thing on Boras’ agenda to walk away from what the Yankees would have offered. And I don’t believe the posturing about organizational instability, he went to Texas for the money knowing full well they would be in last place for the entire time that he was there. There’s a deal.
That being said, look the guy didn’t want to be here and therefore he shouldn’t be with us. He had that right, and he’ll go and make more per game than any of us make per year and again that’s his right. If actors get $20 mill a movie, he can make $30 mill a year. The Yankees just have to stay a little calm and continue to develop players. They’ve been doing it for two years and now 3/5 of the rotation came from our own farm, and those three are better than any young three in the game. Put the money into the team and develop our own new HOF bound third basemen. I know Alex is a once in a lifetime talent, but he’s also not a winning player.
I also think that when the dust settles, Yankee management has to find a way to give Torre a front office job. He should be a Yankee for life. Love him or hate him for the last few years, he did great things for us and needs to stay.
Andrew Marchant via 1050 ESPN just reported since it’s expected Girardi will be the next manager, Don Mattingly is leaving the Yankees
ADIOS DONNIE
Heres how I look at it. We dont have to replace 54 h.r. and 150 r.b.i. with a third baseman. Why not use the money for some solid pitching especially the pen. Get someone to play third that has lets say 20 h.r. and 85 r.b.i.’s and find a first baseman with the same stats.
We shouldnt be thinking of how to outscore teams, but how to out pitch them and finally win those 1 run games. We are used to thinking that we need to score 6 runs to win. Why not have it where 4 will do the trick.
Don’t believe the hype
The Sox struggled all September, and we beat them 5 out of 6 times. They would have blown the division had it not been for two gimmes by the DRays.
Are they a good team? Yes, they have the 2nd highest payroll in baseball. But don’t fall for the hype.
Honestly, Randy, I don’t see the problem with Hank Steinbrenner. I really don’t.
What has he done wrong? EVERYBODY predicted the Steinbrenner family would go the “safe” route and hire Mattingly. Hank said The baseball people would decide it and he would follow their recommendations because he’s not a baseball guy. Isn’t that what we want from an owner?
The baseball people wanted Joe Girardi. He didn’t overrule them.
Joe Torre? The time had come for a change. Was it handled badly? Yes and no. When it comes out that Torre has ALWAYS had incentives in his contract, and another Hall of Fame manager (Bobby Cox) has been operating on one year contracts for years, its hard to feel sorry for Torre.
Arod? Honestly, you can’t blame Arod on Hank Steinbrenner. Arod was always going to chase the last buck on the table because he gives up his professional life to Scott Boras.
Its hard for me to criticize Hank Steinbrenner for Arod.
The guy has shown he’s the “Anti-Steinbrenner” in the sense that he has given his baseball people free reign to make decisions.
Let’s remember, Hank Steinbrenner also opened the wallet to sign all the top draft picks well over the cap in this years draft. Guys like Brackman, Angelini and Suttle were considered “tough signs” by many. Yet, the Yankees signed them.
Its why I don’t buy the, “Yankees need a new owner” stuff. Because they wanted to change managers and didn’t turn over the franchise to Alex Rodriquez, that means the guy is a bad owner?
I just don’t see it that way.
I see a guy who, despite what many people said, not only let the baseball people make the call on the manager but, he BACKED THEM1
It tells me the guy has the makings of being a good owner.
I don’t dissect every public comment with the vigor some do on the board. I prefer to let actions speak and, so far, I don’t see where the guy is going a bad job.
Chris the Yankee teams from 96 to 2000 were not very good at hitting in the postseason either. These “timely hits” you recall are mostly a product of the better pitching. Look at the Arizona games. The Yankees scored a whopping 0 and 1 run through the 8th innings of Games 4 and 5. They were down by 2 runs in each case. So when the Yankees “waited for” 2-run homeruns by Tino and Brosius to tie up those games, the only reson those homers are remembered is because the pitching held Arizona’s ofense down to a point where one swing couyld change the game.
Look at game 4 this year. Wang and Mussina put the Yankees ina huge hole. If that game was within 2 runs, like the Arizona games were, then Abreu or ARod or anyone else who we might have “waited” to hit a homer might be heroes right now. Why is this so tough to understand?
Exactly what kind of hit do you want ARod or Abreu to get that would be better than the homers they hit in game 4? People call them meaningless homers, but that’s only because the pitching let the game out of hand.
Look at the postseason stats iof guys like Tino, Brosius, Bernie, Posada. They are mostly terrible. They just happened to get a hit in a situation that they had no control in designing.
So before you go around insulting me, perhaps you should do some research. The pitching was the big difference between the championship teams and the rececnt teams. The Yankees offense has been superior over the last few years. It’s the pitching that needed improvement.
Dr. Acula
October 29th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Oh, Eva!
I need to put something together, this week. She reminds me of Michelle Rodriguez
Throw Salma in there.. Trifecta!
“Put the money into the team and develop our own new HOF bound third basemen. I know Alex is a once in a lifetime talent, but he’s also not a winning player. ”
except the yankees won a ton of games with Alex. they averaged about 97 wins a year with him here.
they didn’t succeed in the postseason, but everyone here was telling me all last week that the postseason is a crapshoot.
now i’m confused. which is it? it’s one thing in our Torre arguments but another in our A-Rod arguments?
i just want to be clear.
The talk about the team improving by losing ARod is just denial. We lost our best player and probably the best player in the game. His departure could work out fine for us in the long run – he could decline for whatever reason and not be worth the megadeal he will get. But in the short run, this is almost certainly a big blow for us. If calling him a phony or loser helps you deal with it, fine, but the team is certainly not getting better because ARod is gone.
ARod did not handle his opt-out in a classy way. But New York has never been classy to him. For the most part, the NY media has treated ARod like garbage whether he deserved it or not. I’m sad to see ARod go but I’m not sad that I won’t have to read any more amateur psychoanalysis about him.
Whatever team is fortunate enough to sign ARod will get better with him. A lot better. And it might win the World Series, because ARod does not project a mystical anti-championship field, regardless of what some people say.
ARod played hard and gave us four great seasons, including two MVP seasons. For that I wish him the best, except when he plays against the Yankees.
Although if he signs with the Sox, screw him.
Also this crap about “manufacturing runs” versus “waiting for homeruns” is absurd. Those ’96 to ’01 teams waited for plenty of homeruns in october.
Bernie’s walk off homer in the ’96 ALCS.
Leyritz’s homer in the ’96 world series
Tino’s grandslam in Game 1 of the ’98 world series.
Brosisu’s 3-run homer in the ’98 series.
Chad Curtis’s walkoff HR in the ’99 world series.
Jeter’s leadoff homer in the 2000 world series.
Soriano’s walkoff homerun in the 2001 alcs.
Tino’s game-tying homer in 2001 Game 4 of the world series
Jeter’s walkoff homer in game 4 of 2001 world series
Brosius’s game-tying homer in game 5 of 2001 world series
Soriano’s go-ahead homer in game 7 of the 2001 world series.
And I’m sure I’m missing a few.
So explain to me exactly how wiating for a homerun” is a bad thing? Aren’t some of these homeruns your favorites moments as a Yankee fan? They are certainly mine. Come on, get real. There is no argument for “manufacturing runs” versus “waiting for homeruns”. I’ll take runs any way they come. If they come more frequently by homers, then so be it.
“Soriano’s go-ahead homer in game 7 of the 2001 world series.”
exactly.
this HR is the perfect analogy to A-Rod’s HR in game 4 of the 2004 ALCS.
if Mo holds on…but he didn’t.
i’m thinking boras already had something lined up for arod.
yeah and hmmm have already done admirable jobs responding to Chris’s mindless post, but I’d like to add one thing: in what twisted understanding of baseball did ARod fail to “manufacture runs”? He led the league in RBI. He was the best “run manufacturer” in the AL.
Why is anyone surprised by something A-Rod has done. He was always about himself and the money. The only reason the Yankees went after him was to kept him away from the Red Sox rather than because they really wanted him. The Yankees will still be great, it’s about pitching anyway. And Rodriguez will continue to shrink in the playoffs when it gets tough.
True story… One of my very best friends (a Sox fan, we fight sometimes) was at the game last night and stayed at the same hotel as the team. Late in the night, he happened to get in an elevator with Theo and asked “So, are you going after Arod now?” Theo’s tipsy response: “F*ck Arod”, so I don’t see them making a play.
ARod’s excuses hold no water.
As ‘yeah’ said we lost playoff series because of pitching.
‘‘05 – Johnson and Mussina bombed 2 of the 5 games
‘06 – Johnson and Wright bombed 2 of the 5 games
‘07 – Wang bombed 2 of the 4 game’
Dont forget Kevin Brown. (I remember being 3-0 up against Boston and thinking we were screwed. Looking ahead at the pitching matchups I knew we had no hope unless out offense got amazingly hot one game or Schilling was too hurt to pitch well.)
Now though our starting pitching is looking better than ever for the future. Wang, Hughes, Joba and Kennedy are the future of this franchise. Jackson and Tabata will be in the outfield in a couple of yrs along with about 6 top relief prospects in the pen. A yr or 2 later Betances, McAllister and Brackman will be in town with Suttle, Angelini and others possibly here too. No franchise can offer ARod the security of these sort of young players AND the ability to pay for top vets every yr.
The Yanks future looks very very strong with or without him. And Boras knows this. He scouts teams prospects and plots their economic futures more closely than they do.
As for his excuses the link someone posted above breaks it down perfectly.
He had his best season in NY this year. And a half decent post season. He can try to convince himself and others that he cracked NY, made it his own. The truth is he is scared to play here. Scared of being locked into a long deal here. Scared of failing here over in over in the post season.
Dear A-Rod:
Good riddance, man. We knew you’d never carry us past October. We spent delusional years cheering for every meaningless homerun you hit in the regular season and defending you from BoSox players and detractors who said you suck. We kept hoping you’d come through in October and give us what we really wanted: World Series title No. 27. Last night, you proved you’ll never be a champion. Sure, you’ll have more money than you can spend in a lifetime and more stats than *Bonds, but you know what? You’ll never be a true Yankee. We’re so glad Jeter didn’t move to third base to make room for an over-paid diva. Over-paid? WTF? you ask. You bet your bi-racial behind you’re overpaid. You’ll go down as the highest paid player never to win a WS, because it’s all about you and your salary. Good riddance, Mr. Choke-tober. We want another World Series, with or without you. And when you look back over your career or when analysts look back over your career, they’ll always compare you to Jeter. And just like a playoff game where you fail to come through, you’ll always fall short.
I for one won’t boo ARod when he returns. We as a fan base didn’t deserve to keep him; you booed him every chance you got, and help him to an impossible standard. The people this hurts the most are those, like me, who stuck with him the whole way, but there’s no way this isn’t his collect “F*** you to Yankees fans and the local media. Does money have something to do with it? Certainly, but not as much as you’d think. He was due close to 30 million a year for the next three years, and had a $150 million extension on the table, plus the neverending endorsements that would’ve come from being the face of the Yankees (a title he took from Jeter during this season). I don’t think he’s going to get much more than that wherever he goes. The fact is the fans and the media (including you, Peter) treated him like crap every step of the way. When he returns, I’ll stand and cheer for his four seasons, during which he carried us to the brink of the World Series, then won two MVPs over his final three as he twice carried us almost singlehandedly to a playoff spot. If the Yankees do better next year, it will be because the younger players have gotten better and the manager is smarter, not because of an improvement at third base.
small schools,
hate to say it,but you’ve been dissed BADLY by the guy you stood by. I stood by him too and never booed him in the dozens of games I saw him play. I’m not sure if you paid attention this year, but at the 15 games I attended the fans did not boo him once,regardless of the situation.
But PayRod just gave us all the middle finger when he opted out without even listening to the Yanks offer. Alex Rodriguez needs to be booed, harrassed and made to wet his pants all the way back to therapy. NOBODY disses the fans and should get away with it.
drive 4-5, you’re right, he did just give us the middle finger. My point was that we deserve it. You say “nobody disses the fans and gets away with it,” but it isn’t like he started it. He took loads of abuse for three years, even while being the best player in the game over that period, winning an MVP, carrying us to the 2005 division title, and oh yeah playing well in the clutch in 2004 (nobody remembers anything but the slap, but the slap showed me that at least he wanted to win while it seemed everyone else had already given up). I think he decided before this season to give us the finger, and when he said he’d “finally come full circle in New York” he probably meant he’d finally won the fans over, and now he could screw them over without being a loser. He certainly didn’t leave solely for money, he isn’t gonna make more anywhere else.