The 32-year-old Rodriguez, who lives in Miami, wanted to stay with the world champion Florida Marlins where he'd resurrected his career last year. But, alas, they insulted him by offering him a three-year, $24 million contract that represented a pay cut from the $10 million he earned in '03. So he severed relations with them and then proceeded to price himself out of his next two choices, the Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles. With all his options dried up, I-Rod was left to deal with the desperate Detroit Tigers who are admittedly over-paying to get free agents to come to a 119-loss team this winter. But while the Tigers were willing to meet Boras' $10 million-per-year asking price, they weren't quite so desperate as they seemed, tossing in one significant condition that essentially made their four-year, $40 million offer guaranteed for only two years. By including an "out clause" that allows them to void the contract after the 2005 season if Rodriguez goes on the disabled list for a lumbar spine injury for 35 days or more in either '04 or '05, they covered themselves in case he suffers the injury that sidelined him for five weeks in 2002. None of the offers Rodriguez turned down had such a clause.

 

This "voidable contract" is unprecedented in baseball and, in the words of one baseball person, goes to the very integrity of the game. "Is Pudge going to take a hit at the plate if might void his contract," the person asked. But with Boras it's always been only about the money, and he vowed to I-Rod he'd get him that $10 million per. Just like he vowed to Alex Rodriguez he'd get him $20 mil per. Who cares if his clients are doomed to playing out their careers with hopeless last-place teams? How long do you think it's going to take I-Rod (after hitting in spacious Comerica Park on an everyday basis) to follow A-Rod's lead in begging to be traded? What's amazing is that these guys never ask themselves: "Will my lifestyle be altered on $8 million per year instead of $10 million?" Instead of promising to get them the biggest contracts, Boras ought to be asking them where they want to play and then try to make that happen rather than scaring off teams like the Mets (for A-Rod), the Braves (for Maddux) and the Marlins (for I-Rod) with his bluster.

 

Meanwhile, for all his self-acclaimed negotiating brilliance, Boras has about the worst record of any agent in the game over the past couple of years. Earlier this winter, he turned down a reported three-year, $35 million offer from the Phillies for Kevin Millwood, claiming he had "numerous five-year offers." Then, a month later, confirming that was all bull, he accepted arbitration from the Phillies. I would love to know how he was able to convince Millwood that a non-guaranteed $12 million (through arbitration) is really better than a guaranteed $35 million. It was the same thing - just on a lesser scale - with Kenny Rogers last year.

 

Rogers made it known he wanted to stay in Texas, but Boras turned down the Rangers' two-year, $11 million offer, claiming he had other four-year, $40 million offers. They, of course, never materialized and when Texas didn't offer Rogers arbitration, the best he could get was one-year, $2 million from Minnesota. This winter, he re-signed with the Rangers for two years, $6 million, but he's still $3 million short of their original offer.

 

You have to wonder, too, if Rey Sanchez has bothered to do the math on all the money Boras has cost him. In 2001, the Royals offered Sanchez a two-year, $7.5 million deal and when Boras turned it down, they traded him to the Braves. That winter, the best Boras could get him was a one-year, $700,000 deal plus $150,000 in incentives with the Red Sox. In 2003, Sanchez signed for one-year, $1.3 million plus $100,000 in incentives from the Mets, and, finally, this winter he signed a $1.4 million, one-year deal with Tampa Bay. All told, that's $3.25 million over three years, or an approximate $4.3 million shortfall from the offer Boras turned down from Kansas City.

 

Oh yes, one more thing: Over the last five years Boras has lost nine out of 10 arbitration cases, including Charles Johnson twice. Some avenging.

good read

 

he sucks

Thats just backing up the truth...