Baseball's Groundhog Month

Today may be Groundhog Day but February is Groundhog month as far as baseball is concerned.

Starting around this time of year you can count on 6 weeks of stories concerning Scott Boras talking about mystery teams interested in in remaining free agent clients. Also get used to stories about 10-year MLB veterans talking about coming to camp in the best shape of their lives.

Every single year.

Groundhog month all over again.

Stephen Drew

Jose Iglesias is likely out for the season and immediately the speculation is that the Tigers will turn their attention to free agent Stephen Drew to fill the void. As a Red Sox fan I would like to see Drew signed somewhere and if he signed with Detroit the compensation pick would give Boston the 25th, 32nd, and 33rd picks in the first round of this year's MLB draft. That said - this is hardly a done deal.

First off - Drew isn't the only option for Detroit. Arizona is said to be open to dealing either Didi Gregorius or Chris Owings. Maybe a deal to the Diamondbacks for back-up catcher Bryan Holaday would make it happen? Seattle's Nick Franklin could also be a trade option. Why would the Tigers go the trade route instead of signing Drew? Two words - Scott Boras.

You can be sure that Boras will use this opportunity to start a bidding between Detroit and the Mets and maybe even the Yankees. The Tigers probably want Drew for just one year but that probably won't be enough for Boras who needs to prove he wasn't wrong in having Drew turn down the Red Sox one-year $14.1 million qualifying option.. Two years or more may make the trade route more attractive for the Tigers.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Is it me or do all the "Stephen Drew will add depth to the Red Sox" stories you are seeing smack of desperation leaking by Scott Boras. It's like Stephen Drew is slowly morphing into Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman, "I got no where else to go!" I liked Stephen Drew last year but I hope that ship has sailed... Nice article on poker Godfather Doyle Brunson... Would Dolph Lundgren have been a star if he went by Adolph Lundgren instead?... This is me when I drank Zima... When Barack Obama took office there were 37.9 million Americans living in poverty. Today there is 47.1 million - yet you won't see any stories about homelessness until a Republican is once again in the White House... Heh heh - Far Side comics in real life... If Bill Belichick played Ode to Joy on the accordion at his next press conference it would break the Internet... This week I vow to use the phrase, "Good day my jumentous fellow" and smile when saying it. Jumentous means "smelling like horse urine" but if you smile people will take it as a compliment...

Top 5 - Ellsbury Thoughts

Here's my Top 5 thoughts on Jacoby Ellsbury signing with the Yankees.

1. In the big scheme of things this is not a Yankees vs Red Sox thing - this is a Scott Boras vs Jay Z thing. And make no mistake - this was a big FU from Boras to Jay Z. Now that Ellsbury got the big contract out of the Yankees there is less money for Robinson Cano who now will have to go with someone like Seattle if he wants top, top dollar. Or he will have to take a lesser deal from the Yankees.
2. As soon as Ellsbury signed with Scott Boras every informed Red Sox fan knew he was gone. That's the way it works and I don't blame Ellsbury at all. This idea that he should be booed when he returns to Fenway is ridiculous. I wish Ellsbury nothing but the best. Boston won two World Series during his time here and Ellsbury was a big part of those titles.
3. Ellsbury won a Gold Glove with the Red Sox but many scouts say that his logical replacement - Jackie Bradly Jr. - is actually already a better defender.
4. The Red Sox drafted Ellsbury with the supplemental draft pick they got from losing Orlando Cabrera to free agency. When Johnny Damon signed with the Yankees - Boston drafted Daniel Bard with the supplemental pick. If the Red Sox can get something in between Bard and Ellsbury with the pick they'll get for losing Ellsbury then Boston fans should be happy. By the way - Jackie Bradley Jr. was drafted with the pick Boston got for losing Adrian Beltre. This, in part, is why Boston has a deep farm system and the Yankees do not.
5. As much as Ellsbury is making with the Yankees - he has the potential to make as much if he gets some type of Jockey or Calvin Klein deals. Ellsbury (and his ass) was the favorite of almost every girl in Boston. I predict it won't be long before you see 30 foot tall billboards of his backside at Times Square.

Baseball's Groundhog Month

Today may be Groundhog Day but February is Groundhog month as far as baseball is concerned.

Starting around this time of year you can count on 6 weeks of stories concerning Scott Boras talking about mystery teams interested in in remaining free agent clients. So start getting used to stories about Michael Bourn, Kyle Lohse and Rafael Soriano having interest from un-named teams. Also get used to stories about 10-year MLB veterans talking about coming to camp in the best shape of their lives.

Every single year.

Groundhog month all over again.

Jacoby Ellsbury

Alex Speier has a nice look at Jacoby Ellsbury's career so far. What Alex doesn't do is suggest what the Red Sox do with their enigmatic centerfielder.

Here's what I'd do.

First thing to know is that the Red Sox have control over Jacoby Ellsbury for one more season (2013) and that Ellsbury's agent is Scott Boras. You put those two things together and it is clear that there will be no long-term deal cut this offseason. Ellsbury will use the 2013 season as proof as his worth as a free agent. I think that's great news for the Red Sox.

Let Ellsbury put up big numbers in his walk year. If he can do something like hit 25 HR while stealing 30+ bases then that will go a long way towards getting the Red Sox back to the playoffs. The season will also allow Jackie Bradley Jr. to get more minor league seasoning before a potential September call-up. Next year will go a long way to see if Bradley can succeed Ellsbury in center if Ellsbury walks or proves too expensive.

If the Red Sox are out of the playoff hunt by the trade deadline - then the Red Sox may just trade Ellsbury (you can no longer assume the Red Sox are a playoff contending team). If they are in the hunt - a healthy Ellsbury will be a powerful weapon. Either way Red Sox fans should enjoy Ellsbury wile they can because he won't be around in 2014.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

I have to wonder if after the debacle that was the Ryan Madson non-deal with the Phillies - if Scott Boras cannot get Prince Fielder a megadeal - will he try to use a big deal for Jacoby Ellsbury to try and restore some of his lost luster? As a Red Sox fan - I hope so... I don't care how good a Rick Reilly piece is or how highly recommended it comes - I've wasted too many hours of my life reading his mailed in pieces to ever take the chance of letting him cheat me out of any more slices of my lifetime...  Cool - old picture of Mitt Romney and Muhammad Ali... I wonder if Tim Tebow is going to wear wool socks and sandals when he comes out to New England. He would certainly fit the Jesus Boots profile... If Andrew Bynum was a baseball player - he'd be JD Drew... Heh heh - is Mitt Romney's large penis the new Bababooey?... Jets fans talking about getting Peyton Manning smells a lot like Penn State fans talking about getting Nick Saban to replace Joe Paterno... When did people switch from calling the NFL Playoffs "the playoffs" to calling it "the tournament"? Was there a memo?... Best pole dance move ever!!... Every time I see Newt Gingrich speak - I keep expecting a bad lip-reading bit to break out... Taking a trip on the Orient Express is definitely on my bucket list... Farts - an under appreciated threat to astronauts (listing this under science).

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Traditionally New Year's Day was THE big day for college bowl games. This year - NO bowl games at all - not even a lousy Beef O Brady bowl. Tradition don't mean shit to the NCAA. Only TV money is important to those humunculuses in suits... This morning I was thinking that Chris Young would be a good signing for the Red Sox but then I saw that this thought and the reasoning behind it was already recently voiced... I wonder how former Patriots LB Ted Johnson is doing? I hope his early Alzheimer's and concussion related issues haven't worsened... Interesting - Christopher Hitchens a religious man? Father Barron says "Yes"... Huston Street is the highest paid player on the Padres but that should change after Carlos Quentin's arbitration is squared away. It just strikes me as strange that the two biggest salaries on any MLB payroll would come via trade weeks apart... "There are two kinds of people in his up-tight world: his victims and his women. And sometimes you can't tell them apart." That's the tagline from the 1967 Lee Marvin movie Point Blank. Can you imagine that tagline being used for a movie today?... Of course a contract has yet to be signed and who knows Scott Boras could pull a rabbit out of his hat but I think the most overlooked story this Hot Stove Winter is how Boras screwed over Ryan Madson trying to squeeze a 4th year out of the Phillies. Do you think Madson would be happy with a 3-year $33 million deal about now?... Washington fired its entire defensive staff including coordinator Nick Holt following the Alamo Bowl loss... The Texas Rangers have a prospect named Rougned Odor. I love that name! I just hope someone has that sense to make his walk-up music That Smell by Lynyrd Skynyrd... Imagine planning to go to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch your favorite team play its bowl game only to be turned away because Rick Santorum is taking up all the available seating with his entourage and press coverage? I doubt you'd be inclined to vote for Santorum after that. And I have to say that the phrase "Santorum found at Buffalo Wild Wings" sounds very much like a health code violation... Just a reminder - when the Twins traded Johan Santana to the Mets they got prospects Deolis Guerra, Carlos Gomez, Philip Humber and Kevin Mulvey in the deal. How's that working out for ya Twins fans?

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Wow is Tom Brady great. I was too young for Bobby Orr. Wayne Grezky and Michael Jordan played in other cities and as good as Larry Bird was I don't think he was ever at a level that Tom Brady has exhibited in his last two games. This article gives a nice idea of what I'm talking about... I don't care about the Emmy Awards but I did find myself being very happy for Margo Martindale winning for Best Supporting Actress... Tom Brady is on pace for 7,520 yards and 56 TD's. Dan Marino's record of 5,084 yards in a season has lasted 27-years. This is the year it gets broken... Bob Ryan had a very nice tribute to Dave Gavitt. Well worth the read... Why is it that people who claim to be "pro-choice" will ridicule you if your "choice" happens to be to drink Zima?... I might be silly but I think this is funny in any language... I think college football announcers who insist on saying "true freshman" should be forced to also say "true sophomore", "true junior" and "true senior"... When Scott Boras is recruiting a new client - how long do you think does it take for him to mention the fact that he was able to make JD Drew over $94 million for his career? That has to be a huge selling point on his negotiating skill... I will assume that Sterling, Cooper, Draper, Price did not come up with this ad campaign... Whippersnapper would be a good name for a licorice vagina shaped candy or a slang word for a newlywed wife who completely takes away her husband's manhood... Many people are surprised at how good Ryan Fitzpatrick has been but not me. I told you over 6-years ago that Fitzpatrick would be a very good NFL QB...

Kevin Millwood and Scott Boras

So today Mark Teixeira dropped Scott Boras as his agent. Big deal. Teixeira got his big pay day and doesn't really need to worry about anything until after the 2016 season when Teixeira may even decide to call it quits. Kevin Millwood meanwhile sits at home unemployed because Scott Boras can't seem to find him a major league job.

Even Javy Vazquez who will be 35 and last year posted a miserable 5.32 ERA for the Yankees got a job paying him $7 million this season pitching for the Marlins. Millwood will be 36 this season and posted a 5.10 ERA (nothing to brag about certainly) against the same competition Vazquez faced (even better competition actually when you consider Millwood had to pitch against the Yankees while Vazquez did not).

Millwood has been an innings eater and there are usually jobs for pitchers who can normally be penciled in for 190 innings. No job for Millwood though. Is Boras to blame? I know I praised Boras for getting that big contract for Millwood with Texas back in 2006 but now I think that overall Millwood has been ill-served by Boras.

I say this for three main reasons:

1. Boras really screwed Millwood with his phantom 4-year offer from mystery teams after the 2003 season which left Millwood with a 1-year deal with the Phillies as his only option.
2. Millwood has made about $89 million over 14 seasons while Vazquez (a similar pitcher) has made over $92 in 13 seasons (plus another $7 million this year). Could a replacement level agent have made Millwood more money in his career?
3. Vazquez has a job and Millwood does not.

Maybe Kevin Millwood should fire Boras and hire the folks who represent Javier Vazquez? Maybe he should have done that a long time ago.

Baseball Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous baseball thoughts and observations.

I'm amazed that some people still debate whether Ichiro Suzuki is a Hall of Fame Player or not. Ichiro has been in the league for 8 years and each year he's been an All-Star and won a Gold Glove. He's also had over 200 hits in each of his seasons and won 2 batting titles. This year Ichiro is batting .342 and shows no sign of slowing down. To top it off - when you see him play in person he's simply mesmerizing. I've seen him play a few times and you can't take your eyes off him... Bobby Abreu's batting average dropped 65 points in May. He hit just .221 for the month (not including today's game). I just don't seem to like Bobby Abreu... Speaking of Bobby Abreu - of the minor leaguers that Philly got back as part of the Cory Lidle/Abreu trade - only Matt Smith made an impact. Too bad for the Phillies that the impact was to have an 11.25 ERA in 9 games back in 2007. That trade between the Phillies and Yankees will go down in history as a textbook salary dump trade... I'm not a fan of collusion but I'd be willing to set aside my scruples for a minute to get the MLB owners to agree to block the Washington Nationals from drafting San Diego State pitcher Stephen Strasburg. Scott Boras is going to have a field day with the mess that is the Nationals front office and the money Strasburg will get will unbalance the pay scale an unprecedented amount. Then again - this could be the perfect storm that leads to a rookie pay scale... In Nick Carfardo's notes column today - he asks, "How about Omar Vizquel as a fill-in shortstop for the Red Sox until Jed Lowrie comes back?" I love that idea but there are two problems - Jed Lowrie is almost back and why would the Rangers give up the versatile Vizquel?

Manny Ramirez

The Manny Ramirez situation is very interesting. I think there are several things at play here which are worth a comment:

- The one-year $25 million offer is very smart from the Dodgers point of view. The Dodgers do need offense but they can't afford to spend that sort of money on a player who could take a month off mid-season to balky knees or a troubled hammy. By making it a one-year deal the Dodgers make sure they get Manny's full attention. He needs to play to get paid in 2010. What better way to make sure Manny focus' on the 2009 season?

- The "screw you Scott Boras" aspect of this is good PR for the club. Nobody likes Boras - nobody. Making the $25 million offer public is in effect calling Boras' bluff. Now everybody knows what the Dodgers are willing to do. If another team is willing to go to two or three years for Manny - fine. The Dodgers have both shown their fans that they were willing to pay top dollar for Manny but at the same time they stood up the the man many blame for ruining the game.

- It has to be asked if the money the Dodgers are willing to pay to Manny would be better used elsewhere. They could literally sign Adam Dunn and Ben Sheets for the same money they would pay Manny (maybe even a lot less than what Manny would cost). Dunn would give them the HR bat they need and Sheets could help fill the role of the departed Derek Lowe. The problem is for the Dodgers that they can't go and sign a Ben Sheets and then have Manny accept his $25 million offer. There's obviously a limit to the Dodgers' budget.

- An aspect that is not talked about but what may be the most important consideration for many teams is the draft picks involved. The Dodgers have compensation picks coming for losing Derek Lowe to the Braves and if they lost Manny to another team - they would have more picks coming. That would allow them to sign an Adam Dunn and a Ben Sheets without impacting their farm system too much. Maybe that's another reason they have made their bids to Manny Ramirez so public - so other teams would know where they stand and thus know what the costs would be without Boras hyping it any further.

EDIT: As an aside - look for a team like the Nationals to offer Manny a two-year deal for like $50 million if the Dodgers one-year deal looks like the only offer. The Nationals draft pick is protected (because it's first overall) and the Nationals could use Manny to sell tickets early in the year and then turn around and trade him to a contender for prospects near the trading deadline.

Offer to Manny

Scott Boras does have at least 2 offers on the table for the services of Manny Ramirez. The Dodgers have offered a 2-year $45 million contract and now Boras has a second offer.

The problem with the second offer is that the GM should have made it a 3-year deal so that Boras could honestly say that he has a 3-year deal on the table instead of making up fictitious offers from non-existent teams.

Jason Varitek

The other day it was reported that the Red Sox made Jason Varitek a one-year offer that was significantly less than the $13 million that Jorge Posada is getting paid per year. Scott Boras then came out and said that no offer had been made. Who to believe?

Let's start from the premise that Scott Boras is never to be believed and work from there. Here's what I wrote after Manny Ramirez work-stopped his way out of town:

Now the only Boras clients on the team are Jason Varitek, Jacoby Ellsbury and JD Drew. It will be interesting to see how the team handles the Varitek negotiations with Boras. I almost expect them to make a take it or leave it one-year offer (with Varitek taking it).

I think the Red Sox did make a one-year offer to Jason Varitek. I think that's the only offer they are going to make. I think they leaked this to Rob Bradford of WEEI so that other teams would know that they are not in a bidding war with the Red Sox for Jason Varitek's services. The Red Sox normally don't leak anything. They leaked it to stick it to Scott Boras.

I also think that Jason Varitek ends up taking the one-year deal (maybe the Red Sox add a team option year) because Jason Varitek likes it in Boston and really doesn't want to play anywhere else.

I was wrong about what I wrote earlier though. Alex Cora is also a Scott Boras client. It makes you wonder if the Red Sox are willing to make Julio Lugo a $9 million utility man and let Alex Cora walk just because he's a Scott Boras client.

The Yankees are pissed at Boras and if the Red Sox decide to screw Boras - then it makes you wonder how many clients Boras will be able to sign once it's known he's on the outs with the two biggest spenders in baseball.

Could this be the beginning of the end for Scott Boras?

Mike Rozier

Don't ask me why but this morning I was checking up on Mike Rozier.

No - not the former Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier.

I was thinking of the Red Sox prospect Mike Rozier. Donald from Georgia first brought Mike Rozier to my attention when he said he was better than Kyle Davies in high school.

It is sad to say but Mike Rozier seems to be a bust. After 4 seasons in the Red Sox farm system - Mike Rozier was still in Rookie and A ball this year. He managed just over 30 innings pitched and an ERA north of 7.00. I understand that Rozier was hit in the head with a baseball a couple times and maybe he just needs to recover. I've never even laid eyes on Mike Rozier but I hope he saved the bulk of his (then Red Sox record) $1.5 million signing bonus because I don't think he's going to make it in baseball. I can't imagine what it must be like being considered washed up at age 23.

One question would be interesting to get answered is whether agent Scott Boras and his staff tinkered with Rozier's mechanics. That was an allegation some leveled at Boras in relation to Craig Hansen (the former St. John's light's out closer who was so-so in the Red Sox system). If Boras did mess with Rozier's mechanics - then that's potentially two highly thought of pitching prospects that he may have ruined for the Red Sox alone. You would think some enterprising sports reporter would look into this.

The Manny Drama

If you've read this space for any length of time - you probably realize that I'm a fan of Manny Ramirez (and often an apologist as well). Like many Manny defenders - I'm done.

The situation as I see it is as follows:

- Manny Ramirez is a future Hall of Fame player who at 36-years old is past his prime but still very productive and still one of the top right-handed bats in the game.

- Manny's antics have gone from puzzling to cute to just plain annoying distractions.

- Manny has two team options each at $20 million per year on a contract he signed in 2001 negotiated by then agent Jeff Moorad. Now Manny's agent is Scott Boras who will not see a penny if those team options are exercised but who will get paid if Manny gets to sign a new multi-year deal elsewhere.

- Manny has said he is open to being traded if the trade helps the Red Sox.

The first question to ask is can Manny be traded? I'd assume that only a playoff contending team would be interested. It's unlikely that the Red Sox would trade him to an AL team. The Yankees are obviously out of the running. I doubt the Twins would make such a deal. The White Sox are set in the outfield and at DH. Ditto to a lesser degree the Tigers. The Angels could use a DH but I doubt the Red Sox would make a trade to a team they will probably play in the postseason.

That leaves the NL. The Mets have long coveted Manny but do they have the prospects to make it worth while? Ditto the Phillies. The Cubs, Brewers and Cardinals are pretty well set in the outfield. The two most logical places for Manny to land are the Dodgers and Diamondbacks. Both teams need offense and both teams have fairly well stocked farm systems. The problem with prospects is that they don't help you win right now and the Red Sox want to win this year.

That means that logically what will probably happen is that Manny plays out the rest of the year with the Red Sox and then the team declines the 2009 option making him a free agent. That's the popular belief right now. However, I can see another scenario that in my mind is even more likely. Manny plays out the season and the Red Sox pick up his 2009 option with the intention of trading him. That would be a big "screw you" to both Manny and Scott Boras for bringing these distractions down upon the Red Sox in a pennant race. That's my best guess to what will happen.

The Red Sox pick up the 2009 option and then allow Scott Boras to broker a deal so that Manny gets a new contract (at I'm guessing less than $20 million per year) and the Red Sox get prospects in return. If Manny's agent brokers the deal how can he say no? This also puts the Red Sox in the drivers seat as they would have final say on yea or nay to any deal.

Baseball Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous baseball thoughts and observations.

Much is being made about Manny Ramirez switching agents to Scott Boras. I don't think it's a big deal. First off the Red Sox hold the options for the next two year so there's leverage for Boras to work with. Secondly Boras has been taking hits - from the botched A-Rod re-signing with the Yankees to the Gary Sheffield legal battles. Boras does not want to alienate the Red Sox since they are home to many of his clients and a big money bidder on any future free agents. I see this move as Manny simply wanting to maximize his endorsement potential. Nothing more. With Manny most things get read too far into and that's the case here... Nomar as Alex Cora? If Nomar does take a utility role this season - I'm guessing he doesn't come back for 2009... Here's a question - is Todd Helton a Hall of Fame player? I'm assuming that you have to think about that for a minute. Consider this though - Helton's career batting average is 4 points higher than Wade Boggs and he will finish probably with 3 times the number of home runs than Wade Boggs. Yet Boggs was considered an automatic and but you have to stop and think about Helton? Oh and Helton has 3 Gold Gloves while the one Boggs won was a joke... Reggie Sanders hasn't hooked on with a club and will probably be all done for his career. Sanders is part of one of my favorite baseball trivia questions, "Name the six players who have both 300 HR and 300 SB?" Obviously Sanders is one with Barry Bonds and his dad being two others. Willie Mays is the fourth. Can you name the other two? Harder than it sounds...

Baseball Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous baseball thoughts and observations.

Brad Wilkerson signs with Seattle. I think this is a good signing for the Mariners. Wilkerson can play all the outfield positions plus 1st base. However, I can't help remembering that Wilkerson was taken with the 33rd pick in the first round of the 1998 draft and that Aaron Rowand was taken just two picks later. What a big difference in dollars between their two free agent contracts this winter.... Philadelphia fans must be really excited that the Mets look like they will be getting Johan Santana while the Phillies were busy signing Pedro Feliz. My honest to God first thought on hearing this underwhelming news was to think that "there goes any chance of Eric Chavez being traded this offseason. The Phillies were the only team out there who needed a 3rd baseman and who could take on Chavez's contract... I've seen some people point out that another negative for the Twins is the fact that top prospect in the Santana trade - Carlos Gomez is represented by Scott Boras. It should be pointed out that Jacoby Ellsbury is also represented by Boras... The Braves do have pretty good depth when it comes to starting pitchers but I have to think any article that proclaims Mike Hampton to be 100% healthy would be the kiss of death for the fragile pitcher. If I ran a casino - I'd have the over under date for Hampton going back on the DL set for the All-Star game. I'd also give odds for different injuries such as 25-1 for turf-toe, 4-1 on a lower back injury and 2-1 on a hamstring injury... Keith Law has a nice run down on who he considers the top 100 prospects in baseball. Its amazing how many are with Tampa Bay...

Andruw Jones

Reportedly Andruw Jones will be signing a 2-year $36.2 million contract with the Dodgers.

What gives me pause about this deal is the fact that over his career Jones has hit just .233 at Dodger Stadium with a pretty lousy .735 OPS (36 games and 133 at bats). He has hit 6 HR there which projected over a full season of 250 home at-bats would be an anemic 11 HR in Dodger Stadium for 2008. And Jones is being trumpeted as a power hitter? Yes - I know - small sample size. But for $18 million a year wouldn't you want the indicators pointing to something better?

This is a classic "on one hand and on the other" deal:

- One one hand - the deal is only for 2-years
- On the other hand - the deal pays Jones an average of $18 million a year! For a guy who only hit 26 HR last year and will be 31-years old next year
- On one hand - this deal now frees the Dodgers up to include either Juan Pierre, Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp in a trade for a top pitcher like Johan Santana or Eric Bedard
- On the other hand - pitching is not the problem for the Dodgers and this deal really doesn't give them the big bat to put them over the top.
- On one hand - this is a clear loss for uber-agent Scott Boras who was seeking a 7-year deal at $20 million a year
- On the other hand - Boras got a guy who many consider fat and lazy $18 million a year for the next two years. That's a lot of donuts.

Maybe the people most happy with this move are the Dodgers pitchers who will now have a number of mistake pitches erased by Jones' Gold Glove in center.

Scott Boras

Very interesting essay on Scott Boras in The New Yorker. The story makes Boras out to be some sort of mad scientist.

“We’re purists about the game,” Boras told me. “We’re about commitment. We’re about making you better.” He brought up, as an example, Barry Zito, the San Francisco Giants’ lefty who is known almost as much for his surfer persona as for his sweeping curveball. “What we did with Barry Zito a year and a half ago is one of my better pieces of work,” he said. “It was really about getting him to be him. I call him Zicasso. The thing is, he wants to pitch powerfully, and I’m saying, ‘No, you’re Zicasso! You got to be the artist-poet-intellectual. That’s what you’re out there to do.’ He feeds off it. ‘You’re Zicasso. You come out and you paint!’ ” He added a wavelike flourish with his arm to punctuate each new mention of Zicasso—whose performance in the past couple of years, incidentally, has not been discernibly better than it was before.

After reading that it isn't hard to believe that Peter Gammons assertion is true that Boras and his crew screwed up Red Sox prospect Craig Hansen by changing the delivery motion that made him successful as a college player into a so-so AAA pitcher.