Boras: Sox offer Tek, multiple offers for Tex
LAS VEGAS -- Scott Boras addressed a massive pack of reporters here at the Bellagio at roughly 4:20 p.m. local time. He said Mark Teixeira, the most prominent free agent remaining, has received contract offers from every team with interest (presumably the Red Sox, Angels, Nationals, Orioles, and Yankees). The Red Sox have offered captain Jason Varitek a contract as well, Boras said, although he did not comment when asked if the catcher had other offers.
Boras on his clients:
On local ties being a factor for Teixeira:Mark's decision is complex. There's regional ties. Certainly family is going to be part of his consideration.
How many teams have made offers so far?
Numerous.
On what else Teixeira is considering:
Obviously, the club's ability to win, and win long-term. Commitment by the owners, long-term, to the franchise being successful. Where they play, the city they're in. He's played in both leagues. He's had an opportunity to make an analysis of what's best for he and his family. And, of course, the economics.
(Inaudible)
We've been working around the clock. We've certainly had time to meet multiple times with multiple teams. And I've been [in] these things before. They could get done in a short period of time. They could certainly go beyond the time-frame of these meetings as well.
On if a contract could be done by the end of the meetings:
There are things that could occur that could allow that to happen. I can't say at this time that we're that close to a deal.
On Varitek's interest in Boston:
I think that Tek has always been a person -- he's the captain of a team, which is a rare event. And certainly Boston has let us know we want him back. We're talking about it. We also have to go out and look into other situations that will be able to him.
On the Sox' interest in Varitek:
Well, I mean, look, when a major league team approaches you about a player and offers them a contract, I guess that's serious.
So he has been offered?
Yes.
On the catching market:
The catching market is probably the hardest one to predict, particularly for journalists. Because the fact is teams that have existing catchers don't come out and say that they're unhappy with their catchers because they can't find better catchers. So until they know they can acquire a catcher, they often don't let you know that there's an opening. It's a very experience-based position. It's the one position in baseball that there's so few candidates for position and the subjective analysis is so great for that position that a lot of what's said about catchers and the importance of catchers is left off the plate. Representing a catcher is like buying submarines. You have to look way under the water to find out what's really going on.
Does CC Sabathia's signing make the Yankees more desirable?
I think it gives players more of a road map where the Yankees are going. If I'm a baseball player and I have CC Sabathia on my team, I'm thinking it would be something that would be welcome. I think from the Yankees perspective, it certainly adds a star player to the team.
Does Sabathia's contract change market for position players?
I think with position players, we've got A-Rod up there with $30 million. I don't think it has a measurable impact on a position player. We had a couple free agents sign last year. Probably when you negotiate position player contracts, the metrics you use are more defined with those players.
On if CC Sabathia's signing make the market for Derek Lowe more aggressive:
I think the market certain pitchers is a little bit more defined now. Certainly the clubs that may have been involved in CC and the clubs that have always been interested in those players. I think in this marketplace, I'd estimate that maybe 14 or 15 teams are involved in about five players.
On Boston's interest in Teixeira:
I'll let you talk to Boston when it comes to free agency.
The scene when Boras emerged from the elevator in the hallway between the main casino and the media workroom was bizarre. Bellagio personnel broke up an initial scrum with roughly 40 to 50 reporters outside a gift shop after about five minutes because it was blocking traffic and they didn't want cameras rolling.
Some Bellagio folks escorted Boras to the media workroom as all the reporters followed behind him. When he walked arrived in the room, after about five minutes, a woman by the door said, "Gosh, I thought it was Elvis."
Boras hopped up on a chair and took questions for another 20 minutes or so. You can probably tell from the selected comments above he wasn't completely forthcoming. The most concrete thing he shared, really, was that the Red Sox had, in fact, offered Varitek a contract.
Theo Epstein is meeting with Boston reporters right now, giving his response to what Boras had to say. We'll have that later.
Tek should get an offer, but no more than 2 years with a option at most. Tex is a whole nother issue, they need a new middle of the lineup producer. Tex is that guy for the next 8 yrs. If it takes $160-170mil so be it, its not like they dont have Manny's and Schillings contract off the books. Those two contracts alone should be able to pay for Varitek and Texiera.
Boras is all about what is wrong with sports ... too bad Sabathia is signing ... hopefully 161M will crush the Yankees as everyone pulls in their purse strings
Yankees Suck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think we should try to trade for K-Rod. Also, please stop making fun of me because I am well respected on the NFL general board.
I like Coldplay.
Boras is a master, he has me hooked, the globe hooked, Espn hooked, the Sporting News hooked and the rag on the other side of the Hub that calls itself a paper hooked...and he has you hooked as well...this guy is the sort of fella I love to hate....I hang on his everyword, have for years....and will for years to come, I ashamed, nonetheless, perhaps we should all just ignore him....I have seen more Boras this past week than the President and the President-elect combined.....enough, we can be sure that once he gets all of his players signed he will make sure we know, and know and know......Go Sox
Well, I don't see a lot of teams clamoring for Varitek. Boston is probably once again bidding against themselves.
It's unlikely the Yankees are included in the mix. The Red Sox should bring this one home.
Give Tex The 10 Years 205 m , If Not They Will Lose Him For Sure, They Have To Put Varitek And Texiera In a Package Deal Or Boras Will Not Do The Deal With The Sox That Is A Dealbreaker, Without a DOUBT
we don't need his lar anderson will be ready by mid season. i drink too much. go bruins.
C. C. Sabathia was 17-10 overall in 2008; 11-2 with the Brewers(NL) and 6-8 with the Indians (AL). He is on his way, now, to the "pressure cooker" in the Bronx with a mandate to win, and win big for a long time. Can he do so?
Has any pitcher brought in to NYC via a big $$$ contract done so? I don't think so, in either instance.
Glad Boras thinks Tek is a person!
As you see Boras said winning....( Red Sox)
I agree with signing Texiera and Varitek - tek 2 years and Texeria 8-10 getting one of the rangers catchers and i say we are the winners of the offseason - yankees can do whateverthey want they are grasping at straws-
Sign Mark Texiera. I don't understand why anyone who has watched a Red Sox game the last 2 years would want Jason Veritek for 2 years yet. How about one year at minimum wage and an option to retire. He can't hit, throw or run. He's an automatic out. And I don't want to hear that crap about handling pitchers. Way over-rated. Let's move on get younger and get back to the World Series.
sully no one is pulling their purse strings. rev is up atten is up so is merch. the froze tix prices and if you think it will hurt your crazy
another buy for the greedy yankees...hey maybe they might even get into the playoffs in 2009!! wont that be fun...and a world series? not in this century...keep spending your money you old crony...oh sorry...you young whipper snappers...
yes there is a RED SOX NATION...wake up...
"Yankees Suck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by Soxs Fan December 10, 08 08:15 PM"
as usual more worried about the yanks then our own team. You guys make us look dumb.
TEK should get a 3 year - $24 mil deal from the sox..... at least what I think is fair.
How come when the Yankees spend money they are greedy but when the Sox spend money they are improving the team. Drew,Lugo and Dice K add up to more than the Yankees paid for CC.
How come when the Yankees spend money they are greedy but when the Sox spend money they are improving the team. Drew,Lugo and Dice K add up to more than the Yankees paid for CC.
The red sox got caught holding the ball while Laird and Hernandez went elsewhere....The sox could have EASILY matched what Detroit offered for Laird and were DUMB not to do so! they'd have one veteran starting catcher in the fold! if Varitek doesnt return,they should trade for BRANDON INGE.A very good versatile player who can HIT,CATCH,PLAY THE OUTFIELD AND THIRD BASE!...Then add Benjie Molina......What they don't need is another year of Varitek and Kevin Cash......then they'd be right back where they started from!They need TWO veteran catchers who can hit! Also sign brad Penny,put Wakefield in the bullpen,where he would be better served.....He is NOT a reliable starter!
Boras is the worst thing in sports to me. Not getting the most $ for his clients but manipulating teams with his pool of clients. You want Teixeira? Overpay for no bat Tek or he goes to NY.
"Yankees Suck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by Soxs Fan December 10, 08 08:15 PM"
as usual more worried about the yanks then our own team. You guys make us look dumb.
If the Sox won't give up Bucholz to Texas for a catcher....add Lugo with at least a 50% subsidy and have Texas throw in Michael Young...then Lowrie becomes your utility infielder....
Package Lowell and Bucholtz and Bowden for Mauer; all this after signing Teixeira.
There aren't enough bad words to use to describe Boras.
I agree with Joe B. at 8:40pm
Boras is baseball's cancer.
Joe B you're absolutely right - why are so many people OK with Varitek being brought back for TWO more years. I understand the market for catchers is terrible which is why I can be convinced into bringing him back for ONE year.
Eliminate personal feelings from the equation and it's a no-brainer. When DVDs became the new medium for watching movies, Blockbuster didn't say, "Aw shucks, VHS brought us so many memories and really were a big part of our lives. We're stickin with VHS for 2 more years. DVDs can wait."
P.S. - If we lose out on Teixeira to the Washington Nationals I may lose my mind...
Two years for Tek, and a job with the team. Whatever Tex wants, and bid up the price for Burnett, Sheets, Pettitte so the stankees get forced into megabucks long term deals again.
Jeter is getting $19MM next year at 36. So stupid. Thank god we have Theo not Cashman. $160MM for 7 years...and an optout after 3? Imagine what Theo could do with their dough.
PS go to NY Post columns and read the yankee comments. what a bunch of blind idiots. and some great Sox posts too. You can tell by the tone of them, the yank fans are sounding a little desperate.
Lots of mindless chatter going on... let's see if I can offer some perspective:
(1) Signing Teixeira would be nice, but is not crucial. Theo and Co. have a certain price they are willing to pay... if bidding goes beyond that, they are RIGHT not sign him. Think about it, if Beckett was healthy and Lowell hadn't gotten hurt, the Sox very well could have won the Rays series and competed for a World Series. This current team is right there and the front office has already strengthened the bullpen.
(2) Varitek, despite his leadership, is totally expendable. It would be great to have him back, don't get me wrong, but at a seriously reduced pay rate and role. No one is bidding for him; don't over pay him!
(3) Back to Teixeira, everone has a short term memory... the Sox were nearly at the top of the league in runs scored -- had Ortiz and Lowell been healthy in the playoffs, they would produce more runs. Teixeira would be a nice addition, but not necessary when you also have Lars Anderson in the wings. The Sox would be smart to pay more per year ($22 million instead of $20) but restrict the number of years to 6. If someone gives Teixeira 8 years at $20 + million, let them have him. Teixeiera had plenty of bases hits and a good batting average in the playoff series against the Sox, but he was NOT a difference maker. He only had one extra base hit.
(4) CC Sabathia is a great player, having said this, this signing will ultimately hurt the Yankees. They were smart to let CC have an out clause after 3 years... that is the only thing that can save them, but the Yankees will NOT win a championship with this current team, even if they add Lowe or Burnett to the mix. The Yankees are an empire in ruin.
SO, here are the Sox priorities: (1) Trade for a young stud catcher, even if we have to give up a yound stud pitcher. (2) Commit to Lowrie at shortstop and trade Lugo. He has talent and a weakness of this management team is signing free agent shortstops out of desparation. Cut your losses and go with the kid. If he "fails" at least it is cheap. Cut your losses, yet again, with Lugo. Trade for 40 cents on the dollar. (3) Sign Teixeira at reasonable price or let him go. (4) Sign 4th outfielder (sure would be nice to have Moss or Murphy right about now, wouldn't it?).
Hope this helps offer some sound objective analysis to the Sox current situation. The Sox have a great middle of the order with Pedroia, Youk, Ortiz, Drew, Bay, and Lowell... take a deep breath... everything is going to be okay.
TEK should get a 2 year 17 million dollar deal.......with an option for a 3rd year............and that's buying his behind the plate knowledge....not his offense. I understand TEK wants as much money as he can get.....after all his ex wife probably F'd him finacially big TIME!
Adding to my last post that the Sox should sign Smoltz. He'll sign for 1 year (which is all the Sox need as a stop gap to either Bucholtz or Bowden) and will probably have a better record next year than either Lowe or Burnett at half the salary.
Tex will end up in Baltimore, Angelos will not mess this one up, he will be sign by this weekend just in time to be at Ravens/Steelers game
Hey Joe B.!
Not that this is a flame board but you have absolutely NO idea what you're talking about.
Handling of pitchers is overrated? Do you know that most pitchers don't want to have to think they want to be told what to throw and when, they like it when they have a catcher they can put that trust in and just worry about making pitches.
Jason Varitek is THE most prepared catcher in MLB period!
Next I'll take a catcher hitting 250-270 any day so long as he's sound defensively and calls a great game because that part of his game is going to win the team more games than his hitting will.
Also, let's not forget that he was going through a divorce, a nasty one at that which would distract ANY guuy so i'll cut him some slack especially given what he's given to the team over all these years.
Sign Tekfor 2 more years, have him help groom the next catcher and at the same time see what he can do when his head is totally on straight - exactly what he's done his whole career fioor the Sox!
Let's not have another Dewey situation where he went off to the O's for the last year of his career.
CC will have a good year or two, then the weight issues will catch up with him and the Jaankeys will be paying 23 mil a year for maybe 12 wins/year. He reminds me of Sid Fernandez. Everyone will be doing the Carl Pavano math about how much it cost NYY per start/win/inning.
Look for #2 in your program and #1 in your hearts, Jeetah to continue to the downhill slide too.
I don't know what the Sox offered either Tex orTek.,I'd like to see them both sign with the Sox but they are big boys and I'm sure they know what it will take for them to perform to the best of thier abilities..I wasn't a bit surprised by the Sabathia deal,I am surprised by the 5yr deal the Yanks offered Burnett.....If I were Burnett I'd sign with Atlanta......If I were Tek and Teixeira I'd sign with the Sox....
Tek should get 15 million for two years with an option for a third laced with incentives and a mutual buyout set somewhere between 350-500K.
Tek's earned a nice gold watch for his work and that gives him a year to see if he can still play enough to help the club and not embarrass himself without the added pressure of being in his walk year, but the Sox have done a lot for Tek, too.
Hopefully, with a reduced work load he'll get his stroke back in the 8 or 9 hole and have a couple more productive years while he helps groom a replacement, but if he has another tough year with the stick and he's hitting .190 going into Memorial Day Weekend of 2010, he'll hang 'em up and walk away with his head up.
It sucks to have to huddle around Scott Boras at all. It's being a seagull at a garbage dump. What a slimebag. If he were in any other business, he'd be on a curb with a harmonica right now.
In this day and age, where families are losing their homes, I think it is highly irresponsible for these athletes and agents to be seeking this kind of money. I think their should be a nationwide boycott of MLB games this year! This is way out of control!
cc will win 15 loose 12 and spend time on the dl next year.should have stayed in the nl.hope the yanks sign manny next so he can screw up that clubhouse worse then it is already.manny-jeter-arod 3 different cabs when the game is over.there is no i in team
Yanks have a new stadium, they're not worried about cost right now. Lots of fresh new cash coming in soon. So they're fine with this cost for CC.
As for Tek - maybe a 1 year with an option. max 2 yr deal.
So the ? is if we get Tex who goes? Is it Lowell? Older, injured, etc? Can he be traded? Isn't this the same deal the Sox got when they got him in the trade?
If he goes, Youk goes to 3rd and Tex at 1st. That's a solid Def infield.
Washington Nationals have offered Teixeira 10 yrs, $200 mil, no way the Sox are going to give more than that, if they do, they are crazy. I hope he goes to another team, he's not worth all this money. He's not the greatest player to ever play the game for pete's sake. We don't need that long expensive contract, with the younger kids coming up from the farm clubs. Tex, go to Washington, take that deal, and stay there!!!!!!!!!!!
Damn...give Tek a duece and a "a maybe for the 3rd...if he don't say yes..send his butt down the road, and get a young catcher up here....oh yeah sign Big Tex and Lowe then lets PLAY BALL american league teams best look out!
Damn...give Tek a duece and a "a maybe for the 3rd...if he don't say yes..send his butt down the road, and get a young catcher up here....oh yeah sign Big Tex and Lowe then lets PLAY BALL american league teams best look out!
Is anybody else tired of reading other sox fans trashing the Yankees' spending ways? It's like Don Imus telling Rush Limbaugh he talks too much. New York obviously spends more extravagantly than any other sports franchise, but we throw a fair chunk of change around ourselves. Of course, I'm not complaining about that at all. With how much my annual visit to Fenway costs me, it's nice to see that put back into the club I come to watch.
There is something wrong with the MLB system as a whole when small market teams like Minnesota just can't keep their homegrown talent. I'm not gonna pretend for a second that I have an answer. Can we just stop complaining about the Yankees' splurging? We follow suit, because we can and because we have to. Yes, we've cut our payroll to fourth highest in the league, almost half the Yankees', but complainers are calling a kettle black. Concerning payroll, don't hate team, hate the system.
Did I read that stat correctly? Is the man with the largest contract ever for a pitcher the same guy who was sub-.500 in the AL last year?
Teixeira is 28,a gold glove performer at first,a superb at offensive threat in terms of both average and power,a positive force in the dugout,possesses a work ethic that employers in any business would covet,has shown a consistency in all aspects of the game at a very high level,clearly displays an all-encompassing desire to win and has a record of excellence among position player in the A.L.offensively,defensively and as a teammate(it is easily argued that he is one of the top five players in the league and perhaps in all of baseball)...How can the Bosox not expend their enormous resources and sign him to ensure their futuresuccess
Webmaster,
I wrote two posts but apparently wasn't signed in at the time... I'm signed in now, please post my previous two entries. Thanks!
Great ...... Yankees spend $161M on CC who has proven he can't win the big ones in the post season. They'll probably land Burnett who is more likely than not to be broken down by July. Add Mike Cameron who strikes out more often than he makes contact. I'm really happy for them. The Sox have a solid foundation of quality veterans complimented by home grown studs and will be as competitive as they were last year. Maybe this year they'll even stay healthy. If they do, $300M worth of overrated players won't do the Yankees any good.
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