Steff Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Tigers get no budge by Pudge BY GENE GUIDI, FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER We found out Sunday which teams will be playing in the Super Bowl, but we still don't know if Ivan Rodriguez will be playing for the Tigers this season. The free-agent catcher and his agent, Scott Boras, are weighing the Tigers' four-year, $40-million offer, which the Free Press learned is accurate. With the team's offices closed today for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and Boras busy finalizing arbitration cases for other clients, it's likely we won't know Rodriguez's decision until Wednesday or Thursday. Boras has said another team or teams expressed interest in Rodriguez, but they've yet to surface publicly. And based on the offers made to Rodriguez earlier this off-season -- $24 million for three years from the Marlins and Orioles -- it's hard to imagine that any team at this juncture would top the Tigers' offer. The Tigers' four-year offer to a 32-year-old catcher surprised many because that hasn't been the norm this off-season. Since last season ended, six players have signed for more than three years: Javier Vazquez, Bartolo Colon, Miguel Tejada, Keith Foulke, Ichiro Suzuki and Vladimir Guerrero. But the Tigers knew the only way they could get a name free agent was to overpay. Now that the deal is on the table, the Tigers hope Rodriguez doesn't get cold feet -- literally and figuratively -- after visiting cold and snowy Detroit last week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 The Tigers are being used. Pudge is going to ride this out as long as possible. If no one steps up with anything, he'll go to Detroit. But I imagine someone will step up with something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Prawn Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 With only 1yr being the difference between the offers from the Marlins and the Tigers, I can't believe he'd rather be a Tiger than a Fighting Fish... EDIT - Just noticed the $2M difference...my lack of an ability to get oxygen in my body is to blame... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greasywheels121 Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 I can't stand I-Rod for even being in this position. If he actually cared about winning and a little more for the game he would have stayed with Florida for less money. It's a shame that it seems to be only about the money. I mean, it's good for the Tigers, because they have to start somewhere. But the game shouldn't be like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maggsmaggs Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 I read somewhere that the Expos might secretly be talking with Boras on a 3-year deal worth $24 million. It would make sense because Pudge is Puerto Rican and the Expos have a lot of hispanic players and play some games in Puerto Rico. Plus a better shot a winning. What would Pudge choose, losing and making $40 million or a shot at winning and making $24 million? Just ask Boras! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Critic Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Nobody else's offer is gonna "weigh more" than Detroit's, so I-Pudge better sign the dotted line if money's the deciding factor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texsox Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 If he cared about winning he wouldn't let money enter into the decision? WTF? Thankfully players do not think that way. Imagine a league that players begged Steinbrenner to let them play for the Yankees? If players would take less to play for a winner, what chance does some teams have? Imagine if very free agent decided the Cubs were thisclose and decided to go play there for the min. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnB Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 if pudge goes to the tigers, we're looking at the tigers doing a full-season sweep against us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2003 Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 As long as the Cubs don't get him :fthecubs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pale Hose Jon Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 if pudge goes to the tigers, we're looking at the tigers doing a full-season sweep against us. yeah he and arod on the same team couldn't get out of last place Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
witesoxfan Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Imagine if very free agent decided the Cubs were thisclose and decided to go play there for the min. That actually is pretty much the exact reason Todd Walker signed with the Cubs, was to play for a contender. Given, Todd Walker isn't every free agent, but I think you get what I'm saying. Some players do actually sign with a team because they want to win and they seriously don't care about the money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bighurt52235 Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 That actually is pretty much the exact reason Todd Walker signed with the Cubs, was to play for a contender. Given, Todd Walker isn't every free agent, but I think you get what I'm saying. Some players do actually sign with a team because they want to win and they seriously don't care about the money. I think that is funny, because he was on the Goddamned Red Sox, and he could have stayed there for the same price, even more. He must be a Cubs fan. I wonder why nobody makes a big deal that we haven't won the Series in forever. People want to play for the Red Sox and Cubs so they can win their first championship in a million years. What about the Chicago White Sox?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YASNY Posted January 20, 2004 Share Posted January 20, 2004 if pudge goes to the tigers, we're looking at the tigers doing a full-season sweep against us. Get real. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperSteve Posted January 21, 2004 Share Posted January 21, 2004 The Tigers are being used. Pudge is going to ride this out as long as possible. If no one steps up with anything, he'll go to Detroit. But I imagine someone will step up with something. Damn, look now. Says Mariners may be interested... Seattle Times Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greasywheels121 Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 I had a hunch that Seattle would get in the race for I-Rod or Maddux after Sasaki decided to leave the M's to stay in Japan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwsox Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 Damn, look now. Says Mariners may be interested... Seattle Times check out today's Free Press - they are getting steamed at Boras for playing the Tigers off versus the cubs as Boras represents Maddux and IRod - I will see if I can find the article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoxAce Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 Here is the most important part of the article I believe.. By trading Randy Winn, the Mariners would have a spot for Beltran. By trading Winn's $3.5 million salary as well, the Mariners would, for this season, take on only $5.5 million in payroll. The questions for the Mariners about Beltran are two: Are they willing to give up the prospects Kansas City might want, and can Seattle sign him beyond this year? The team ought to have confidence it can sign Beltran. It is one of the top revenue-producing teams in baseball and ought to act like it. The Royals might not choose to trade Beltran, even though they are resigned to losing him after this season. The Mariners might not be willing to give up Soriano or minor-league pitchers Clint Nageotte and Travis Blackley. Therefore, the best opportunity to use the Sasaki money could be in taking on the $14 million contract of Chicago White Sox outfielder Magglio Ordonez The White Sox need to cut payroll and apparently are hanging their hat on Carlos Lee, a 27-year-old outfielder who hit 31 home runs last year and recently got a two-year deal worth $15 million. Ordonez, a .307 lifetime hitter who hit 29 home runs last season, is an excellent outfielder who plays right well enough that Ichiro could easily hold down center. Ordonez wields a big bat the Mariners have been missing. The finances work out well, the White Sox saving $10.5 million by taking on Winn's salary, the Mariners making up most of the difference with Sasaki's salary. None of the scenarios is perfect. But the Mariners need to make something happen. They can't waste a windfall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwsox Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 the Detroit Free Press Article ripping Boras over IRod Pudge's agent plays market January 21, 2004 BY MICHAEL ROSENBERG FREE PRESS COLUMNIST Sometimes you wonder why athletes need agents at all. Everybody knows when guys can play, owners blow out arms throwing millions of dollars at them, and they're so popular they have accidental sex on the way to the ballpark. With life going so good, how can an agent make it better? But then you look at Scott Boras. He's the agent for catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who is weighing a four-year, $40-million offer from the Tigers. If you're going for every last dollar, Boras is your man. Look at what Boras said last week in his effort to help Rodriguez. "I don't want to mislead Chicago Cubs fans into thinking Greg Maddux is coming to Chicago," Boras told the Chicago Tribune. "There are a number of teams still involved." What? You don't see how that affects Pudge Rodriguez? Here's how: There is no way the Cubs will sign Maddux and Rodriguez. But if they are in danger of losing Maddux, there is a chance the Cubs could sign Rodriguez, at least theoretically. So that possibility creates competition for Rodriguez. And now there is a four-year, $40-million offer on the table for Rodriguez. Two weeks ago, the conventional wisdom was that Pudge would be lucky to get three years and $24 million. That change doesn't happen unless there is competition -- or, put more accurately, the fear of competition. Because, you see, there are no indications the Cubs want Rodriguez. And there are no indications that anybody else wants Rodriguez at anywhere near the Tigers' $40-million offer. And there are no indications that anybody wants Maddux at anywhere near the Cubs' offer, which the Tribune reported is for two years and around $15 million. But teams don't tip their hands to each other. And Boras knows it. So when he says other teams are involved, he figures somebody will believe him and raise the offer. He has done this before. Boras is also Alex Rodriguez's agent, and in December 2000, Boras negotiated A-Rod's contract with the Texas Rangers. A-Rod signed for 10 years and $252 million. That is still the richest contract in baseball history; nobody else has signed for more than $20 million a year or $160 million total. And here's the beauty of that: It's highly unlikely that anybody else was close to the 10 years and $252 million the Rangers offered. Boras got the Rangers to bid against themselves, and A-Rod made an extra $50 million or $60 million off the deal, easy. Sure, A-Rod ended up with a lousy team. But that's his fault. He could have told Boras to make sure he signed with a contender. A logical conclusion to all this is that Pudge will sign with Detroit and, within minutes, Maddux will sign with Chicago. It's possible that Boras has done his job so well that somebody else will swoop in to match the Tigers' offer, sending Rodriguez to a better team for reasonably similar money. It's also possible that Boras is just using the Tigers to get another offer for Rodriguez. Or that Rodriguez will wake up and wonder why he should sign a four-year deal at age 32 with a team that won 43 games last year. And it is possible that Rodriguez will sign with the Tigers, and both player and team will be miserable. But even if that happens, Scott Boras wins. He doesn't always win -- lately he has misjudged the market, overplayed his hand or held out too long. But he wins plenty, in the one category where he keeps score: money. Boras has shown through the years that he goes for top dollar for his clients. Everything else is secondary. You and I might think his priorities are out of whack, but he probably thinks that's our problem. Scott Boras made a lot of money for Pudge Rodriguez in the last couple of weeks. Someday soon, Boras, Rodriguez and a baseball executive will smile together at a news conference. Only one of the three will be a guaranteed winner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YASNY Posted January 22, 2004 Share Posted January 22, 2004 I'm sure this isn't the first time Boras has been ripped in the press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greasywheels121 Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 Houston, Bragg Mora, Orioles OK $10.5M, Three-Year Deal INTERACTIVES 2003 Baseball Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. "We've been working diligently with the Tigers on this matter," said Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras. "We're having further meetings on Thursday." Rodriguez, 32, spent his first 12 seasons with the Rangers, then became a free agent and signed a $10 million, one-year deal with the Marlins. Rodriguez hit .313 last season with 16 homers and 85 RBIs, and he was MVP of the NL championship series win over the Chicago Cubs. After helping lead the Marlins past the New York Yankees in the World Series last season, he was never offered more than two guaranteed years by Florida. Baltimore and Seattle also were said to be interested in Rodriguez. With the Tigers, he would join one of the greatest turnaround efforts in baseball history. Detroit went 43-119 last season, setting the American League record for losses. The Tigers won five of their last six games to avoid tying the post-1900 major league record of 120 losses, set by the 1962 New York Mets. Detroit, which moved into Comerica Park in 2000, has finished with a losing record in 10 straight seasons and drew 1.37 million fans at home last season, 27th among the 30 major league teams. Trying to invigorate the team, the Tigers have reached agreements with second baseman Fernando Vina, outfielder Rondell White and right-hander Jason Johnson. Since winning their second Series title in seven seasons, the Marlins have either traded away or lost as free agents several of their key players, including Derrek Lee, Mark Redman, Juan Encarnacion, Ugueth Urbina and Braden Looper. Florida has signed closer Armando Benitez and on Wednesday added left-hander Darren Oliver, agreeing to a $750,000, one-year contract. Like Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Comerica Park is a tough place for hitters. Rodriguez is a 10-time Gold Glove winner behind the plate and won the 1999 AL MVP award. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsideirish Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 As long as the Cubs don't get him :fthecubs that's all that matters! :fthecubs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoxFan562004 Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 The saga continues..... MLB.com put up a news story late tonight with Boras saying there is no final deal and they are in negotations with another team... He didn't by any means rule out the Tigers, but said no deal was final... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwsox Posted January 29, 2004 Share Posted January 29, 2004 I'm sure this isn't the first time Boras has been ripped in the press. nor should it be, nor should it be the last Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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