The Bronx Stop: A Yankees Blog

I read a couple articles today, totally spinning the soap opera saga that is A-Rod. The articles took a stance that everything Alex Rodriguez has done up to this point is because he wants to play for the Yankee's- and test his open market value at the same time. In other word's, A-Rod wants to stroke his ego but also play in New York, where the greatest and richest franchise in sports is. Now, to be fair to A-Rod, I do not think his decision to opt-out was all ego-stroking. His greaseball agent, Scott Boras, (whether I like it or not- and I don't) is a pretty skilled negotiator and one of his skills is the ability to get people the deal they want and at extraordinary prices. If A-Rod did in fact want to just test his open-market value, the articles I read pointed out that the time he did it was not as dumb as everyone (including me) thought it was.

Jefferey N. Gordon from the New York Time's explains:

"Here is the crucial piece of evidence that shows how much Rodriguez wants to wear pinstripes: the opt-out announcement during the final World Series game. We can assume that Rodriguez learned late last Sunday that Joe Girardi would be named the manager of the Yankees the next morning. If Rodriguez opts out after that announcement, his decision would be taken as a negative response to Girardi’s hiring."

"That is where the World Series announcement comes in. In bargaining lingo, it is a credible signal of his desire to remain a Yankee because it is costly. In other words, to show his Yankees preference, Rodriguez was forced to appear classless by disturbing the sanctity of the Series and by stepping on Boston’s triumph. That’s a cost."

I do not know whether I can buy into this or not. It seems to make a lot of sense to me, but then I think about it more and it doesn't. It is definitely very interesting to think about it. I think I will let you make up your mind, and I will hold my judgment until more of this story develops. I should remind you though that the only way I would want A-Rod back is with a pay-cut that at least equals the money we lost from the Rangers and I do not know if I see A-Rod doing that.

*Check out the first article HERE, and the second HERE.