Arod Opts Out; Is He Done in New York?

Incase you were in a cave last night, Alex Rodriguez made his long awaited opt out decision, and thus upstaged Boston's second World Series in four years. To nobody's surprise, Arod has decided to opt out, and try and get every cent he can on the open market. With Scott Boras as his agent, look for him to demand 10-years, $300+ million, and perhaps a share of team ownership after he retires. Way to go Arod! You couldn't wait 24 to 48 hours to announce your plan. You had to do it during the World Series. Could you be anymore of a narcissist?

The New York Yankees have stated that they will not pursue Arod should he opt out. Now that he has, it will be interesting to see if the Yankees stay to their word and let him leave the Bronx. I think they will stay out of things until the final days before a contract is signed. You know that Boras will take the offer Arod likes best with whatever team, and pass it through the Yankees' brass for them to have the final chance to re-sign Arod. Who will they get to replace his 54 homeruns, 156 RBI, and 143 runs scored? They will not let the $21 million they would have gotten from Texas to be the determining factor on whether or not they keep Arod. Unless they have a trade in place to get Miguel Cabrera, Aramis Ramirez, or someone else, I cannot imagine they would not reconsider.

If not New York, where? There will only be a few teams that can take on a massive contact Arod will require. The Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim, next to Disney World, around the corner from a Mobil in California) would be the top candidate in my opinion. They have money they have been trying to spend on big free agent to back Vladimir Guerrero in the lineup for quite sometime. Arod would give them the bat they need to fix that big offensive hole on their team. Since their 2002 championship, which was a different type team, the Angels have not hit a lick in their three postseason appearances since.

The Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants would be the 2nd and 3rd candidates. The Cubs are desperate for a title, and especially more so that the Red Sox and White Sox have broken long droughts recently. Don't be surprised if the Cubs make a big offer, and trade Aramis Ramirez (Yankees?) if they take on an Arod contract. The Giants will be free of a large Barry Bonds contract for the first time in 15 years, and could be suitors for Arod. I think they would love to have a new center piece for the franchise. The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets could be far out candidates since they are the two other teams in MLB with the cash to make things happen.

Finally, what about the Boston Red Sox? A lot of people feel they will make a push for the player they failed to obtain four years ago. If they want to pursue him, they definitely could afford a massive contract. If I were them, I would not go after Rodriguez. They have two championships since the trade to get Arod fell through, and the Yankees have none. They should re-sign Mike Lowell at three, four years if that is what he wants, and use the extra cash to go and get a #2 starter to replace Curt Schilling. I think it would be a mistake for the Red Sox to sign Arod.

When it is all set and done though, I still think Alex Rodriguez will re-sign with the Yankees. They say they won't, and maybe they will be true to their word. Remember it is Hank and Hal Steinbrenner running the show now, and perhaps they will watch every penny a lot more closely than Big Stein did. However, Arod is very valuable to the YES Network, and the future of the Yankees. They will be fine selling tickets the next two seasons (The last at old Yankees Stadium, and the first at new Yankees Stadium), but after that? With Arod, the team has drawn four million every year he has been on the team. And obviously, you cannot ignore the all-time numbers he put up last season. I would be shocked if they let him go.

Pat Morgan