Another door closes on 'Tek

I love 'tek, but I have Boras, so I am glad.

I love 'tek, but I hate Boras, so I am glad.

If the red sox sign varitek I will be even more pissed than I was when we lost the texiera bidding. SAY NO TO VARITEK!! .220 batting average is inexcusable and he is only going to get worse at age 37. It would be like if the Yankees signed pudge Rodriguez back as their catcher- A TERRIBLE MOVE.

I would hardly call this "another door closes on Tek"! As was already stated, they only had "mild" interest this winter.

In 81 games last season, Ausmus batted .218 with a .303 on-base percentage, three homers and 24 RBIs.

Somebody should ask Massarotti if he thinks the Dodgers are in with the Red Sox in the conspiracy against Varitek.

This is getting old. No team is going to sign him if they have to fork a first round pick over to the Red Sox. What are these so-called "doors" that are closing? They were never open.

With Hurley out in Texas, maybe the Rangers will do Salty for Clay.

This comment could just have easily been titled "Another Door Closes for the Sox." The Sox are in need of a veteran catcher, and could have signed Asmus to fill that need.

Does anybody else realize that the Yankees just might be in need of a catcher?? They have no idea if Posada is going to be healthy and if he even is going to be able to catch. They are looking at him as a possible DH. So who do you think they are going to have as their every day catcher??? Kevin Cash?? I wouldn't put it past the Yankees, if Posada can't catch, to offer Tek a nice hefty one or two year deal. Don't forget, there is no one else out there.

And all you Tek bashers, how are you going to like seeing him in a YANKEE uniform??

djcbuffum makes a good point. Zaun and Ausmus are now gone, strengthening Tek's position a tiny bit. Still, this is more embarrassing every day. Jason, fire Boras, hammer out your own deal, and get to work. Readers' opinions aside, we all know it's going to happen. It's just a matter of how long you want to humiliate yourself "holding out."

Yeah and if he signs a minor league deal with anyone its purely an attempt too circumvent the compensation process,and if the Sox see this come to fruition they need to file a complaint against the team that uses that tool to get artound the collective bargaining agreement.Chris the Sox don't need Salty not for Buchholz!Maybe for a lower level pitcher.

Karma has come back to bite Boras after the "Manny Situation". It's called a "recession", Scott. No one is paying a 36 yr old catcher who is batting .220 anywhere NEAR $52million....except maybe the Yankees, and at best, Big Ears is going to end up as a serviceable DH.

The Rangers already wanted to do a straight up trade Buchholz for Salty. It's the Red Sox who wont make the trade. So the Rangers needing another SP is irrelevant for straight up trade of Buchholz for Salty because it wasn't the Rangers who said no to begin with.

Red Sox won't give up either Buchholz or Bowden for any of these young catchers. Let alone to a team who now has more need for pitching then ever before. Maybe it would mean a chance of Buchholz and Bowden for Salty and Hamilton?

Are we pursuing Pudge Rodriguez? The guy hits a ton in Fenway and may be starting to get more desparite than Varitek. Love Tek but he hasn't hit in awhile and seems to want $ as if he is. Maybe he just needs a new agent.

This is like a stare down of gunslingers at high noon - the Sox and Varitek, who blinks first? Is the original arbitration money out of the question for 1 or 2 years? The Sox have to be cognizant of letting Varitek save a little face here. He's as stubborn off the field as he is on it. Don't understand the impasse and the seeming lack of negotiation. Each side trying to stick it to the other, if that's what it is, isn't good business. The Red Sox are not going to trade Buchholz or Bowden or Masterson or Bard for Saltalamacchia or Teagarden and certainly not for Montero. At least not now. The potential upside if they all excel is too great. It would be a deal already done if they were willing to give up any of them.

SignTek for 1 year,trade for Salty or another young catching prospect have him learn under Tek and be done with it.

"And all you Tek bashers, how are you going to like seeing him in a YANKEE uniform??"

If that happens I'll defect to the dark side, as it won't. The last thing the Yankees need is more age. Let him go visit Damon, another Boras client, I don't care. I don't want Varitek and his giant ego anymore. I'm tired of these players holding out for every last dollar while the rest of the country is going down the tubes. ENOUGH ALREADY. Bring back Mirabelli for much less money, plus it'll make Wakefield VERY happy - who just so happens to be pitching for far less than market value.

People keep talking about chemistry - if I was on the team I'd be very annoyed with a player who SAYS he wants to be there but won't sign for a realistic amount of money.

JUST SAY NO TO VARITEK, BORAS.

Susan had the thought that just came to me too. There is a team out there who is 1) looking for a good back-up catcher 2) has enough cash to meet Tek's falling requirements and 3) Would only have to give the sox a 4rth rounder (and a kick in the junk) for signing him. I'll give you a hint: That team's name rhymes with "spankees".

We cannot afford another year of an automatic out when Tek is up at bat.
Enough of the stop-gap-fix-it-for-this-season tactics.

At this point as much as I'd hate to see our beloved Captain in a Yankees uniform, I'd much rather have an automatic out in THEIR line up than one in ours...

Its unfortunate the man who supposed to be smart dosnt understand baseball draft picks. Since his income will be reduced , I suggest he fire his agent and negotiate the contract on his own. Boris botched this and doesnt deserve to be paid...also time to invest in a young catcher.

Assuming the Red Sox are run by men, they can't simply turn around and give Varitek his arbitration number. Last I checked, the Sox didn't sell Jason a 10M put option that he can exercise after misreading the market. Perhaps a million dollar sweetner is appropriate, but if they offered 10 and the market says three, the Sox can't come back with 10. It makes them look like damn amateurs. And if Tek doesn't want to play for four, then he should roll the dice, hold out until after the draft when the compensation expires, and see if someone is then willing to pay him for the second half.

Varitek dug his own hole here, there should be no expectation for the Sox to bail him out. However the Sox are the only team that fully appreciates his value beyond his declining offensive contributions and they need to have him for a couple more years before they can find a replacement. Perhaps an incentive-laden two-year deal worth up to $8 million/year would be a good compromise. The Sox get him back at a discount but he gets a two-year deal with some securtiy to save face.

What do you think the conversations are like lately between Tek and Boras? I'd say a bit strained.

You leave an offer for arbitration on the table for $11m for your redemption year thinking there will be a 4 year deal out there? and...you don't know or were not advised that suitors might have an issue giving up a first round pick for you given your lost year with the bat in your hand in '08? Great advisement....maybe Boras was too busy yanking the Sox chain on that 5 tool first basemen to think about letting his client know the facts??? If I was Tek, I would dump Boras and be the leader he is and cut his own two year deal with Theo and the gang.