A Rod - where will he end up?

[DisneyGiant]

My nephews are horrified at the thought of Alex Rodriguez leaving the yankees - after all they think he's the greatest player of the game - and he'd be crazy to want to leave the greatest team (remember this is through their eyes).

I am horrified at the thought - because probably more than half our wins this year are single handedly due to him. How can we replace that? Plus, he is a great role model.

Where do you think he'll end up?

All the local papers say he's out of here. Makes me sad.............

[JPL]

I think he will stay a Yankee not saying he will finish his career here but I think he will remain and try to win a Championship with them.

[WDWfanatic742]

I'm waiting on the maverick's owner to buy the cubs and have him go after a-rod. With what he is payed now with the yankee's, I can't see any other team being able to afford him.

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

I hope he stays with the Yankees. I have always been an Arod fan.

[DisneyGiant]

According to this article - he can't help but stay.

Aren't the dollar amounts discussed just fascinating? Then again - it is a business......

Baseball beat: A-Rod here to stay
THE JOURNAL NEWS


(Original publication: July 15, 2007)
Alex Rodriguez will have three years and $81 million remaining on his contract once this season is finished. There are escalator clauses in the deal that would add another $5 million in salary in 2009 and 2010.

If the Yankees offered him an extension of three years for $90 million, Rodriguez would have a total package of six seasons and $181 million. That would take him to 2013 and the age of 38.

Here is the question Scott Boras has to answer: Can his star client get more on the open market? The answer is no, which is why Rodriguez is in New York to stay.

Rodriguez has until 10 days after the World Series to decide whether to exercise the opt-out clause in his contract. The Yankees have let it be known they hope to sign him to an extension before then.

But the team also has made it clear to Boras that if no deal is reached, they will not pursue Rodriguez as a free agent. Not having the Yankees as a suitor would greatly decrease the leverage Boras loves to wield.

That leaves only six teams - the Red Sox, Mets, Dodgers, Angels, Cubs and White Sox - that could even consider the idea of signing Rodriguez for that long and that much.

Boston already has $90 million accounted for on its 2008 payroll spread among 10 players. Only two of them (Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka) are starting pitchers. Adding $30 million for Rodriguez would bring their payroll up to $120 million with 14 other roster spots to fund.

Beyond that, Rodriguez would have to be a phony of the highest order to sign with a team whose fan base has mocked and despised him for the last four seasons.

The Mets have David Wright and Jose Reyes on the left side of their infield. They don't need Rodriguez.

The Cubs will be auctioned off to the highest bidder after the season. That process will take months to finalize and be assured that commissioner Bud Selig will exact a promise of financial sanity from the winner in return for his support. Scratch them, even if billionaire publicity hound Mark Cuban ends up with the team.

The Angels, Dodgers and White Sox each have payrolls of roughly $108 million this season. Signing Rodriguez would mean they devote 28 percent of their resources to one player or climb over the luxury-tax threshold for the first time.
No owner wants to be the next Tom Hicks, the Texas fool who was duped by Boras into giving Rodriguez $252 million back in 2000. There could be a rabid dog out there (say Baltimore's Peter Angelos), but it's unlikely.

Rodriguez makes financial sense for only one team - the desperate Yankees. Excluding Rodriguez, they have $114.5 million in payroll commitments for 2008 but only $50 million in 2009 and $25 million in 2010. With the young pitching they have on the horizon, Rodriguez's salary fits in easily.

The Yankees also have a new stadium opening in 2009, which will greatly increase their revenue stream. Keeping Rodriguez also retains the $21.3 million the Rangers would owe them from 2008-10 under the teams of the 2004 trade that sent Rodriguez to New York.

That would be a healthy 23 percent of his salary over the next three seasons. Getting Rodriguez at a discount for three more seasons makes an extension far more palatable.

You will read and hear much in the coming months about whether Rodriguez is comfortable with the Yankees or wants to leave the turmoil of New York. His wife, his daughter, his legacy, his relationship with Derek Jeter, his desire to play shortstop again ... it's an endless cycle of amateur psychology and speculation.

It's all bunk. The final decision will be financial. Boras creates wealth, not happiness, and a player understands that when he hires him. They say money doesn't buy happiness. Whoever they are haven't been to listening to Boras since they were 17.

In the end, the most wealth for Rodriguez will come from staying right where he is. He's our A-Rod, whether we like it or not.

[GrmGrninGost]

At present, I don't see A Rod going anywhere. He is still a great player. The Yankees will build around him and Jeter.

[Scar]

The Mets have David Wright and Jose Reyes on the left side of their infield. They don't need Rodriguez.

Hmmm...I wonder if he'd move to 2nd?