 Is A-Rod Coming Back? MAJOR UPDATE (5:41 p.m.): Two updates in fact, both found via MLB Trade Rumors.
This story from the Daily News is chock-full of gossipy innuendo and anonymous sources, keep that in mind as you read on. Apparently, according to the Bill Madden and Mark Feinsand, the Yankees have been holding super-secret negotiations with A-Rod to return to the Yankees in '08. Keep in mind, these negotiations have been happening through a third party. If you're worried about the Yankees "Go f*ck yourself," stance on A-Rod after he opted out, they're covering their bases in this article. Here are the terms under which the Yanks will negotiate with A-Rod:
The second stipulation further saves face for the Bombers, should they bring him back. The cold, hard business fact of the matter was the Yankees could afford to spend more on an extension because of the $21M they were in line to receive from the Rangers as part of the trade they made for A-Rod in the first place. If that money comes out of A-Rod's end, there's no business reason not to deal with him. Here's the way I see this rumor, and I'm not going any further with this thing than calling it a rumor. The Yanks are floating the idea out there through an unscrupulous journalist who loves getting A-Rod in his headlines. I highly doubt negotiations have been ongoing. I'm sure A-Rod and Boras want the Yankees to enter back into the equation, and the Yankees brass is looking for a way to do so without being used. The last thing they want to do is open negotiations and then be used merely to drive A-Rod's asking price up. As for leaving Boras out of the negotiations, I'm not even sure that's legal. It's certainly not ethical. I hate Boras as much as the next guy, but you can't force a guy to negotiate without representation. Then again, if he doesn't want to negotiate without Boras fine, he can walk. Here's the rub. This rumor is too good to be true. If this were the case, it would be a huge win for everyone involved (except Boras). A-Rod could come back to the Bronx as the poor, misunderstood and misled superstar whose heart always belonged in the Bronx. He could point the finger at his evil agent, lay all the blame on him, sign a monster contract and open the season with the fans on his side. The Yankees will have brought their best player back without losing face OR entering into a bidding war for him. Three more points. This rumor could also have sprung from the other side for a couple of reasons. The more insidious being, Boras wants a starting point when he's shopping A-Rod around. Now he can go to the other teams and say, "If you can't top $275M for 10 years, Alex is going back to New York." The second possible reason is Boras has found out that no one wants to fork over $300M+ for A-Rod's services. Maybe the deal the Yanks were going to offer was the best he could've done for his client and now he has no choice but to go crawling back to them. Neither scenario is really that crazy, if you think about it. Two: If this does happen. If the Yanks do wind up signing A-Rod, it's going to have ramifications. Jorge Posada has signed already, for all intents and purposes. The Yanks have a monster offer out there for Mariano Rivera, and I'm pretty sure he's going to accept after a little more posturing. That's two "Type A" free agents already signed by the Yankees. If A-Rod comes back, that's three. Teams are only allowed to sign three "Type A" free agents per season. That means if the door opens for A-Rod it slams shut on Andy Pettitte. [Thanks to research from commenter Scott Brosius Would Make A Good Neighbor, this whole paragraph can be ignored. Here's the link, the Yanks would still be able to sign all of their free agents.] Finally, if Boras is cut out of the picture, how can he effectively remain a super agent. What's stopping all the other teams (especially those who have been burned by him in the past) from saying they won't negotiate with his clients unless he isn't involved? This could be disastrous for Boras, and I don't see any way he lets it go down this way. On a personal note, I'd love to see Boras professionally emasculated and I think there are about 32 GMs and millions of fans out there who would agree with me. UPDATE: Jack Cobra just sent me the following question: If A-Rod goes back to the Yanks without the help of Boras, and for a reasonable contract, how will your opinion of him change (if at all)?I basically said the way he opted out is always going to be in the back of my mind, but the bottom line is I just want the Yanks to win. What do you guys think? Can all be forgiven? Leave your thoughts in the comments. 
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Two words. Soap. Opera.
Yup. One other thing I didn't mention: I wonder if Miguel Cabrera being on the market is hurting A-Rod's market value. Teams may be more willing to trade prospects for a top-shelf bat than fork over $300M+.
Nice write up Bri.
I would like to see A-Rod back despite this big mess, but I don't see it happening. But then again -- you can't predict baseball.
Are you sure that teams are only allowed to sign three "Type A" free agents?
In my opinion, he would have to do a lot of public apologizing to make up for what he did, basically begging for forgiveness. I still don't think the Yanks should take him back. I'm so tired of it being about 'A-Rod and the Yankees.' The closest thing you had to that back in the glory days was 'Jeter and the Yanks' but we all know the differences between those two. I'd be fine with no more A-Rod sneaking around with hookers on the back pages of newspapers, Cynthia wearing inflammatory shirts to the stadium, the Yanks making the post season and every idiot sports caster on ESPN, TBS, and Fox talking about what went on and if he will perform this offseason. Too much drama. Get on your knees and beg for everyone's forgiveness, or don't come back at all.
Just wanted to say hi by the way. I'm relatively new to this blog. Keep up the good work!
Scott Boras needs to fall off the face of the Earth please.
Seeing Boras' face would make it all worthwhile.
Cam,
thanks for stopping by. I think I'm with you. Just using the press to blame the whole thing on Boras isn't enough to redeem him in my eyes. It's going to take a public apology (or a 50 HR year and W.S. ring) and then some.
If he comes back, he comes back. I'm just a little tired of the drama. I don't think this is the last A-Rod story we're going to hear between now and the Winter Meetings.
Mike,
Yep, that's the info I have. 3 Type A free agents, maximum. Looking for a link right now to prove it to you.
Great article, Brian.
I'd like to see nothing better than for Boras to lose his highest profile client and get cut out of the deal. And even though I still think a-Rod is a tool, it doesn't matter... he's the best player in the league, post season not counting since he folds like a cheap tent there.
Still, teammates and fans will forgive, as long as he produces. That's the bottom line.
Would Boras have any way of scuttling the talks still? What does he still get out of it in the end? Having him as an agent had to scare away potential suitors for a-Rod's services.. the Phillies, for starters. I'd think it had to cost aRod some money as well.
If you were a betting man, what odds do you give for aRod being in pinstripes next year?
I'm going to say 10% right now, but I think the percentage is rising.
Unless A-Rod fires Boras, then goes to the negotiating table, I think Boras would still get his full cut.
We need to win. He'll get us there. Don't care about arod and his BS. The guy is an excellent baseball player, he'll win games for us.
If he's still trying to save face I don't know who he's gonna turn to. These fans have had enough.
I still remember the comments made after opting out .......... Boras- "Alex wants to be on a team where he has the best shot at a ring".
Guess he realized where it's at.
Come on back Alex, we need yer drama, bat and dirty play in the line-up.
Just thought of something-
If arod negotiates without Boras then he may be able to work out a deal with the yankees that is lucrative for both sides.
I would just remind arod that if he goes into the negotiations without an agent he doesn't have to pay anyone for their services. He can keep Boras's cut and that would be sorta like him getting a bigger contract.
If he fires Boras, it would be like getting a much bigger contract. I know a lot of NBA players who were expecting max deals were firing their agents because they didn't need them to negotiate a contract with a set value. A-Rod should do the same.
Aaron, good point. Boras probably gets at least 10%, which would be money saved on both sides.
I don't care if the Rod fools around with manly girls or girly men, in the regular season, he's the best offensive player in the game. The postseason is another story, but we'll jump off that bridge when we get there.
Most Yankee fans probably have a bad taste in their collective mouths from how the whole opt-out thing went down including what we heard about A-Rod not returning calls etc. But, at the end of the day, we want the team to win and so us Yankee fans won't hold the grudge for long if he comes back. I won't. As long as he plays well to justify the money, of course.
A Club is eligible to sign at least as many Type A and B Players as it may have lost through Players having become free agents at the close of the season just concluded.
This means the Yanks can sign back all of their Free Agents, including Pettite, regardless of "Type."
Good fact finding, Brian....After your update at 6, it sounds like a deal is more likely... what odds do you give now?
Don't get me wrong, A-Rod is still a tool. He's still a selfish player. But that greed just backfired in a major way. I doubt there are any other suitors if he's willing to sign for less. And he has Boras to thank, in part, for scaring others away.
It will be great to see Boras get his a$$ handed to him and lose his highest profile client. A little background on Boras... he was a failed minor league player with three teams that never made it to the bigs. Maybe he's trying to exact his revenge for his own failed baseball career by sticking it to GMs all around the league. In any case, this should knock the knees right out from under him.
JJ,
I'm up to 40% right now.
Scott Brosius,
Great name, first of all. Second, where did you find that info. I spent about an hour today trying to find the exact language. Thanks for clearing up the mistake.
Hey Brian -
Great blog by the way - As a NY sports fan, I find myself surprised by how consistently engrossing your thoughts about the Sixers and Eagles are. I found the info at:
http://www.mlb4u.com/wiki/index.php/Free_Agency
Glad you like the name.
I fixed the post, thanks again Brosius.
The free agent numbers could still come into play, though. Check back later for another hot stove post.