"The great dragon was hurled down" - the end of Satan Boras?

[Noe]

Yankees negotiating with A-Rod and not with Scott Boras?

Not sure if I believe this report or not.  It seems odd that Scott Boras would allow this to happen, but then again, he works for A-Rod and not the other way around.  But this would set a a precedent.  Word is that the Angels and Trolley Dojers both would rather trade for Miguel Cabrera than deal with Scott Boras.

If Boras loses the leverage of the Los Angeles teams, he has very little to maneuver teams into a bidding war for his client.  Is this story about the Yankees a way for Boras to save face and say that he wasn't really involved in the Yankee dealings so he was cut out by A-Rod.  The truth may be that Boras is firmly involved to try one last gasp maneuver on the Angels or Dojers to get them to pony up and bid against one another.

This is somewhat interesting.

[pravata]

"the source said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the deal had not been made public. 'The Yankees don't have a choice. How are they going to compete without Alex?' "

That is some shit.

[Noe]

Scott Boras has his fingerprints all over this story.  It's all part of his plan to lure someone back into the bidding for A-Rod.  Namely the Angels.

[kevwun]

I don't know if I believe that either.  Arod really likes money.  I don't believe "below market contract" is in his vocabulary.

[S.P. Rodriguez]

Yankees negotiating with A-Rod and not with Scott Boras?

Not sure if I believe this report or not.  It seems odd that Scott Boras would allow this to happen, but then again, he works for A-Rod and not the other way around.  But this would set a a precedent.  Word is that the Angels and Trolley Dojers both would rather trade for Miguel Cabrera than deal with Scott Boras.

If Boras loses the leverage of the Los Angeles teams, he has very little to maneuver teams into a bidding war for his client.  Is this story about the Yankees a way for Boras to save face and say that he wasn't really involved in the Yankee dealings so he was cut out by A-Rod.  The truth may be that Boras is firmly involved to try one last gasp maneuver on the Angels or Dojers to get them to pony up and bid against one another.

This is somewhat interesting.

ESPN's take on it:  http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3109894

[Noe]

This is the view of a New York Yankee beat writer:

Peter Abraham doesn't buy it

Looks like he has a similar opinion about A-Rod's maneuver.  This is about getting the Angels to back off Miguel Cabrera and to talk dollars with Boras.

[Gizzmonic]

Scott Boras has his fingerprints all over this story.  It's all part of his plan to lure someone back into the bidding for A-Rod.  Namely the Angels.

I think there's no way in Hell A-Rod goes back to the Yanks.  I think he hated his time there.  I dunno where he ends up, but it will be very interesting to see how these negotiations shake out.

[pravata]

Strap on your tin foil beanies,

(blogger) It is widely accepted that he's not happy with the negative publicity Boras created for Rodriguez during the infamous World Series announcement.
http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/11/14/yankees-want-a-rod-but-not-scott-boras/

(blogger) Whether the Yankees are trying to drive-up the price their competitors in Los Angeles or Boston would have to pay ARod or trying to drive down the price the Yankees would have to pay to Lowell or to the MArlins for Miguel Cabrera is not known.
http://www.faketeams.com/story/2007/11/14/9368/1809

And Mike Lupica's answer to the question “Does he want to go into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee or a Toledo Mud Hen?”

(Mike Lupica on what Rodriguez needs to do to get back with the Yankees)  he tells them he will eat some of the money the Yankees were getting on the last three years (from) the Rangers. Then he tells them he is sorry for the way his agent, Scott Boras, opted out of his contract, ... Finally, (he) tells them that he wants to spend the rest of his career as a Yankee, the way a great Yankee named Bernie Williams did once.
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2007/11/14/2007-11-14_arod_might_have_staying_power_with_yanke.html

Oh bother.  Why not just sign with the freakin Angels and be done?

[kevwun]

Mike Lupica is more annoying than pinwheel, if that's possible.

[Bench]

Yankees negotiating with A-Rod and not with Scott Boras?

Not sure if I believe this report or not.  It seems odd that Scott Boras would allow this to happen, but then again, he works for A-Rod and not the other way around.  But this would set a a precedent.  Word is that the Angels and Trolley Dojers both would rather trade for Miguel Cabrera than deal with Scott Boras.

If Boras loses the leverage of the Los Angeles teams, he has very little to maneuver teams into a bidding war for his client.  Is this story about the Yankees a way for Boras to save face and say that he wasn't really involved in the Yankee dealings so he was cut out by A-Rod.  The truth may be that Boras is firmly involved to try one last gasp maneuver on the Angels or Dojers to get them to pony up and bid against one another.

This is somewhat interesting.

According to Rosenthal, if true this is a clear violation of the CBA.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7446572

"The Yankees will be in violation of baseball's collective-bargaining agreement if they exclude agent Scott Boras from their negotiations with his client, Alex Rodriguez.

'That clearly is a violation of the Basic Agreement,' Michael Weiner, the general counsel of the players' union, told FOXSports.com on Wednesday.
'Once a player designates an agent, a club cannot refuse to meet with that agent.'"

[Froback]

Who said they refused?  They can still meet with him, but meet with A-Rod too, right?  Hard to prove, unless there is something they can point to.

You can bet that Boras is riding A-Rod about not letting them do this, but unless they are refusing to talk to Boras, I fail to see how talking directly with A-Rod without Boras present violates anything.  Now A-Rod could screw the Yankee's over by claiming they told him they would only deal directly with him, not Boras (even if they didn't say that).

[Bench]

Who said they refused?  They can still meet with him, but meet with A-Rod too, right?  Hard to prove, unless there is something they can point to.

You can bet that Boras is riding A-Rod about not letting them do this, but unless they are refusing to talk to Boras, I fail to see how talking directly with A-Rod without Boras present violates anything.  Now A-Rod could screw the Yankee's over by claiming they told him they would only deal directly with him, not Boras (even if they didn't say that).

The whole story is that the Yanks won't meet with Boras. The quotes are along the lines of "we'll talk with Alex, but not if Boras is in the room." My guess is that the CBA says you cannot meet with a player without getting permission from his agent. That seems pretty normal to me; no different in a lawsuit not allowing one sides attorney to directly contact the other party.

[HudsonHawk]

Who said they refused?

The article in question.

  They can still meet with him, but meet with A-Rod too, right?  Hard to prove, unless there is something they can point to.

No.  Boras has been designated as ARod's agent for this purpose.  The club can require ARod's attendance at the negotiations only once.  Other than that, they have to deal with the agent.

You can bet that Boras is riding A-Rod about not letting them do this, but unless they are refusing to talk to Boras, I fail to see how talking directly with A-Rod without Boras present violates anything. 

Again, the article explicitly states that they are refusing to allow Boras into the room.  Secondly, talking directly with ARod and not Boras is a violation of the CBA. 

[toddthebod]

According to John Sterling, A-Rod to the Yankees is a done deal.  WFAN is saying that it's probably going to be 10 years $27 million / year.  For what it's worth.

[Bench]

According to John Sterling, A-Rod to the Yankees is a done deal.  WFAN is saying that it's probably going to be 10 years $27 million / year.  For what it's worth.

That's basically the equivalent of Milo "breaking" a story. You don't really expect it to come from him, but you know if it does he probably has a pretty good source.

[pravata]

The article in question.

No.  Boras has been designated as ARod's agent for this purpose.  The club can require ARod's attendance at the negotiations only once.  Other than that, they have to deal with the agent.

Again, the article explicitly states that they are refusing to allow Boras into the room.  Secondly, talking directly with ARod and not Boras is a violation of the CBA. 

How does HH know this and Hank Steinbrenner doesn't?  Yankees are looking like fools.  Also, Rivera is sitting on their 3 year $45 million offer saying "...there is Joe with the Dodgers.”

[Noe]

How does HH know this and Hank Steinbrenner doesn't?  Yankees are looking like fools.  Also, Rivera is sitting on their 3 year $45 million offer saying "...there is Joe with the Dodgers.”

I'm with Hudson on this one, what the article says is not left to interpetation... it seems pretty cut and dried that the Yankees want Boras no where near this negotiation or else they will stop the proceedings.  And this will be precedent setting.

BTW - 270 million and A-Rod pays the Yankees back 21 million sounds fishy to me given what Boras said was the threshold.  Almost 100 million less to be in a place that supposedly A-Rod hates to be?

That dog won't hunt, unless the Boras camps goes running back to Arte Moreno and says "270 million, can you top that?" next.

[Astroholic]

I'm with Hudson on this one, what the article says is not left to interpetation... it seems pretty cut and dried that the Yankees want Boras no where near this negotiation or else they will stop the proceedings.  And this will be precedent setting.

BTW - 270 million and A-Rod pays the Yankees back 21 million sounds fishy to me given what Boras said was the threshold.  Almost 100 million less to be in a place that supposedly A-Rod hates to be?

That dog won't hunt, unless the Boras camps goes running back to Arte Moreno and says "270 million, can you top that?" next.

I think that Boras placed Arod out of the market with his crazy demands.  When the market dried up, they had to go back to the team that would pay the most (which looks like less than ARod gave up).  I say hurray to the owners/gms of the Angels and Dodgers, and whoever else shunned Boras and his outrageous demands. 
P.S. Until this deal is inked, I think it is possible for one of the owners to loose their mind.

[Outlawscotty]

Considering the loss of the 21.3MM subsidy from the Rangers, were the Yankees responsible for the tax on the entire contract or just the portion they paid?  In other words, collusion be damned, was this a way to avoid a little more luxury tax on the Yankees end?  Surely A-Rod nor the Yankees intended to help the Rangers this much without something in return.  Now Boras on the other hand would do something just to this effect in order to open up more cash for the Rangers to spend on his free agents.

[pravata]

Murray Chass of the NY Times adds his tin foil thoughts,

One possibility is that Boras was too aggressive in advising Rodriguez to opt out, assuring him that there were teams prepared to offer contracts of $350 million or more. Or perhaps Boras told Rodriguez that the Yankees were bluffing when they said they would not negotiate with him as a free agent if he opted out and they would cave in rather than lose him.

Or, as a Rodriguez friend suggested, Rodriguez has potentially lucrative business interests that will be more profitable in New York than anywhere else.

Maybe Boras, admitting a huge mistake, is engineering the entire situation, telling Rodriguez to appear to shed him and approach the Yankees alone because they are his best bet for the many millions he seeks. Contributing to that suspicion was Boras’s reported presence yesterday in Miami, where Rodriguez lives.
Link

[Astroholic]

Murray Chass of the NY Times adds his tin foil thoughts,

One possibility is that Boras was too aggressive in advising Rodriguez to opt out, assuring him that there were teams prepared to offer contracts of $350 million or more. Or perhaps Boras told Rodriguez that the Yankees were bluffing when they said they would not negotiate with him as a free agent if he opted out and they would cave in rather than lose him.

Or, as a Rodriguez friend suggested, Rodriguez has potentially lucrative business interests that will be more profitable in New York than anywhere else.

Maybe Boras, admitting a huge mistake, is engineering the entire situation, telling Rodriguez to appear to shed him and approach the Yankees alone because they are his best bet for the many millions he seeks. Contributing to that suspicion was Boras’s reported presence yesterday in Miami, where Rodriguez lives.
Link

Still don't see how they are negotiating without an agent because, as was pointed out yesterday, that breaks some agreement with the union.

[pravata]

Still don't see how they are negotiating without an agent because, as was pointed out yesterday, that breaks some agreement with the union.

from the article cited,

"Rodriguez also let the Yankees know he was willing to do the deal without Boras.

But Yankees officials, knowing the rules, said yesterday they would negotiate with anyone Rodriguez chose. Randy Levine, the Yankees’ president, was once the owners’ chief labor negotiator and knows a club cannot bar a player from using the representative of his choice."

[kevwun]

From what I've read, Arod would have to fire Boras and choose to represent himself in the negotiations in order to not violate the CBA.  He can't have an agent and not use him to negotiate his deal.

[pravata]

From what I've read, Arod would have to fire Boras and choose to represent himself in the negotiations in order to not violate the CBA.  He can't have an agent and not use him to negotiate his deal.

Rodriguez, on his website, and quoted in NY Daily News,

"After spending time with Cynthia and my family over these last few weeks, it became clear to me that I needed to make an attempt to engage the Yankees regarding my future with the organization," Rodriguez said in the statement. "... As a result, I reached out to the Yankees through mutual friends and conveyed that message....
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2007/11/15/2007-11-15_arod_yankees_closing_in_on_10year_275_mi-1.html

[kevwun]

From Rosenthal's article posted above

The Yankees can avoid Boras only if Rodriguez fires the agent and chooses either to represent himself or pick another representative.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7446572

If the Yankees negotiate a deal with Arod without going through Boras, they are violating the CBA.  It appears that it doesn't matter if it was done with Arod's consent.  It looks like talking to the Yankees is fine, but when it comes down to the actual contract Boras will have to be involved if Arod hasn't fired him.

[pravata]

From Rosenthal's article posted above

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7446572

If the Yankees negotiate a deal with Arod without going through Boras, they are violating the CBA.  It appears that it doesn't matter if it was done with Arod's consent.  It looks like talking to the Yankees is fine, but when it comes down to the actual contract Boras will have to be involved if Arod hasn't fired him.

Like this?

A team, of course, can talk directly with a player as long as it doesn't try to circumvent his representation.

The Padres went the direct route last week with right-hander Greg Maddux, another Boras client, when the San Diego club and pitcher came to a verbal agreement on a one-year extension to his contract worth $10 million. The paperwork on the deal, said Padres general manager Kevin Towers at the time, was being handled by Boras.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071114&content_id=2300695&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp

[Noe]

Like this?

A team, of course, can talk directly with a player as long as it doesn't try to circumvent his representation.

The Padres went the direct route last week with right-hander Greg Maddux, another Boras client, when the San Diego club and pitcher came to a verbal agreement on a one-year extension to his contract worth $10 million. The paperwork on the deal, said Padres general manager Kevin Towers at the time, was being handled by Boras.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071114&content_id=2300695&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp

The problem in all this is the Boras reputation will take a major hit if the premiere player in the entire league cannot be represented in such a way as promised by the agent.  IOW - Boras becomes less and less the shrewd negotiator that can make owners and team bow to his tatics and come running to the player's demands simply because Boras deems it so.

It didn't happen with Dice-K (circumstances did not allow it), Pudge Rodriquez, Magglio Ordonez... and now, if it happens with A-Rod, the premiere guy... Boras becomes a joke of his own making (and/or reputation).  Why would Boras allow himself to be painted in such a bad light?  I mean, he... is... SATAN!  There is quite of bit of lofty expectations once one obtains such a reputation of evilness.  To allow this to happen is to allow this to paint you out to be a pussy cat and not a Dragon with fangs.

[pravata]

The problem in all this is the Boras reputation will take a major hit if the premiere player in the entire league cannot be represented in such a way as promised by the agent.  IOW - Boras becomes less and less the shrewd negotiator that can make owners and team bow to his tatics and come running to the player's demands simply because Boras deems it so.

It didn't happen with Dice-K (circumstances did not allow it), Pudge Rodriquez, Magglio Ordonez... and now, if it happens with A-Rod, the premiere guy... Boras becomes a joke of his own making (and/or reputation).  Why would Boras allow himself to be painted in such a bad light?  I mean, he... is... SATAN!  There is quite of bit of lofty expectations once one obtains such a reputation of evilness.  To allow this to happen is to allow this to paint you out to be a pussy cat and not a Dragon with fangs.

He's starting to jerk the Tigers around about Kenny Rogers.  They're not happy.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/SPORTS0104/711140365

[S.P. Rodriguez]

I think Kevin Millwood should be added to the list of players where Boras' tactics did not yield the desired results. 

[pravata]

This is all but over, the latest,

"Alex has instructed me to discuss contract terms with Brian Cashman and Randy Levine," Boras said
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-sp.bbnotes15nov15,0,210676.story

Lee Jenkins at SI, reminds us that Rodriguez did the same thing for his first contract with Seattle.

He instructed his agent, Scott Boras, to work on a deal that would keep him in Seattle. Boras asked for $14 million over four years. The Mariners countered with $7 million for four years. Boras balked. He knew Rodriguez could do better in arbitration.

But Rodriguez didn't care. Rejecting counsel, he signed for four years, $10.5 million.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/lee_jenkins/11/15/arod.yankees/

So, what was all that Boras was yelling about during the World Series?

[Noe]

This is all but over, the latest,

"Alex has instructed me to discuss contract terms with Brian Cashman and Randy Levine," Boras said
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-sp.bbnotes15nov15,0,210676.story

Lee Jenkins at SI, reminds us that Rodriguez did the same thing for his first contract with Seattle.

He instructed his agent, Scott Boras, to work on a deal that would keep him in Seattle. Boras asked for $14 million over four years. The Mariners countered with $7 million for four years. Boras balked. He knew Rodriguez could do better in arbitration.

But Rodriguez didn't care. Rejecting counsel, he signed for four years, $10.5 million.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/lee_jenkins/11/15/arod.yankees/

So, what was all that Boras was yelling about during the World Series?

"And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven (or maybe Anaheim), having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss (or maybe California), and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time (or maybe not)."

I wonder how A-Rod's children's children will fair with Satan on the loose again.

[pravata]

this was about so much more than creating a baseball team,

Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras, wasn't a part of the negotiations, in which Goldman Sachs managing directors John Mallory and Gerald Cardinale conducted shuttle diplomacy.
Link

Sorry Scottie, you're just too small time.

[Gizzmonic]

I fail to see how this is a losing situation for Boras.  He got his client more money and more years on his contract.  All this cloak-and-dagger stuff about other people's roles in the negotiations doesn't really matter.  I don't think this will change his effectiveness.

I honestly thought A-Rod hated the Yankees and the press situation in New York, and was going to bolt for Anaheim or LA.  Guess that shows what I know.

[Noe]

I fail to see how this is a losing situation for Boras.  He got his client more money and more years on his contract. 

Steve Phillips of ESPN pretty much said the same thing last night.  He made a compelling argument for a win-win-win (Yankees-A-Rod-Boras) situation.  He said he couldn't understand the talk around the city (New Jack City where he still lives) about anyone losing face, including A-Rod.  Everyone got what they wanted, including Boras.

Hmmmmm....

Interesting to say the least that this was the intention all along for Boras, but he is one shrewd evil man if his intention was to cause a furor in the MLB with his antics and thus manuever the Yankees into a position of take it or leave it, make his client have to reach out the club via a third party situation, have his client eat some amount of humble pie, get *less* money than promise by him (Boras overshot the estimate by nearly 100 million dollars and two years) and then become nothing more than a paper filer in this whole situation.

If Boras *planned* this to happen all along and *this* is what he intended to do to get A-Rod 270 million (and also help out his friend Mr. Hicks by getting rid of a debt of 21 million bones), he indeed is on the top of his game.

I don't know though, I have a hard time buying that whole "I meant to do that"-Pee Wee Herman-falling off his bike-shaking himself off and walking away sell by Boras.  I just don't think he's *THAT* good.

I think Boras screwed up and A-Rod and others cleaned up his mess.

[pravata]

I fail to see how this is a losing situation for Boras.  He got his client more money and more years on his contract.  All this cloak-and-dagger stuff about other people's roles in the negotiations doesn't really matter.  I don't think this will change his effectiveness.

I honestly thought A-Rod hated the Yankees and the press situation in New York, and was going to bolt for Anaheim or LA.  Guess that shows what I know.

Part of his effectiveness depends on his reputation as a negotiator. (Buster Olney summarizes nicely) He has failed spectacularly in this instance.  Every step he made was wrong.  No one believes he had anything to do with this contract.  At one point Boras was trying to position Rodriguez as part owner of whatever team he went to.  The $350 million threshold was widely ridiculed. 

What brought about this outcome was Rodriguez's wife telling Rodriguez to go fix it.   And the Yes Networks executive, the Goldman Sachs guys, realizing what Rodriguez means to their marketing. 

Boras' tactics are becoming tedious to more teams.  Worse for him, this is not the only instance of his clients bypassing him to negotiate with teams directly.  RedSox pulled it off, and the Padres more recently.  Kenny Rogers and the Tigers may also box him out. (eta: not a new thing though, Rodriguez did it before as well as AJones.)  If he can't create the illusion of competing offers, through lies, he's sunk.   He will be seen as an obstruction and he wont get the clients.

[pravata]

...I think Boras screwed up and A-Rod and others cleaned up his mess.

C-Rod fixed this.  If this is what Boras intended, he's slipping.  His reputation for greed has taken a hit, he stands to make a cool 1.4 million per for 10 years off this deal.  That's walking around money. 

[Noe]

Part of his effectiveness depends on his reputation as a negotiator. (Buster Olney summarizes nicely) He has failed spectacularly in this instance.  Every step he made was wrong.  No one believes he had anything to do with this contract.  At one point Boras was trying to position Rodriguez as part owner of whatever team he went to.  The $350 million threshold was widely ridiculed. 

What brought about this outcome was Rodriguez's wife telling Rodriguez to go fix it.   And the Yes Networks executive, the Goldman Sachs guys, realizing what Rodriguez means to their marketing. 

Boras' tactics are becoming tedious to more teams.  Worse for him, this is not the only instance of his clients bypassing him to negotiate with teams directly.  RedSox pulled it off, and the Padres more recently.  Kenny Rogers and the Tigers may also box him out. (eta: not a new thing though, Rodriguez did it before as well as AJones.)  If he can't create the illusion of competing offers, through lies, he's sunk.   He will be seen as an obstruction and he wont get the clients.

One of the telling things to me was how Ned Colletti was leading the charge with the Dojers to basically keep Boras at arms length and don't show this guy any sort of love.  Larry Luccino of the Red Sox has the same attitude and in their dealings with Boras recently, the player either had no other options or leverage (Dice-K) or the player had more control over Boras and how he felt the situation should be handled (Varitek).  Now A-Rod's situation shows that if the player sincerely hopes to deal with the big money teams, most of Boras' antics will no longer work for at least half of those teams (New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers).  So who does Boras have left to draw blood from?  New York Mets, Anaheim Angels, maybe Texas Rangers (just because he did it once before).  That is not enough to create the sort of environment that Boras needs.

Oh, and that whole thing about the Detroit Tigers being Boras' safe harbor (see: Ordonez, Magglio or Rodriquez, Pudge), well judging by the Kenny Rogers situation, that is in jeopardy of going away too.

[SaltyParker]

I just read where Kenny Rogers fired Boras as his agent. Another blow to Satan.

[Lefty]

I just read where Kenny Rogers fired Boras as his agent. Another blow to Satan.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3115759

Also, Warren Buffett was the impetus behind the Goldman Sachs guys getting involved in lieu of Boras:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119526835344296733.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news

[Mr. Happy]

I think that Boras placed Arod out of the market with his crazy demands.  When the market dried up, they had to go back to the team that would pay the most (which looks like less than ARod gave up).  I say hurray to the owners/gms of the Angels and Dodgers, and whoever else shunned Boras and his outrageous demands. 
P.S. Until this deal is inked, I think it is possible for one of the owners to loose their mind.

I think that you have nailed this dead on.

[strosrays]

Also, Warren Buffett was the impetus behind the Goldman Sachs guys getting involved in lieu of Boras:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119526835344296733.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news

"Amid deafening criticism by sports writers and on talk radio, a worried Mr. Rodriguez called Mr. Buffett, say people familiar with the matter. The two had become friends a few years ago, after the slugger flew to Omaha to meet with the investing guru and rabid baseball fan. After that, the two met socially several more times, say the people familiar with the matter. Signifying their mutual admiration, an autographed Rodriguez jersey hangs at Berkshire Hathaway's Omaha headquarters."


From Satan to Plankton, in the space of a phone call.

Also, Buffett is a huge Cubs fan, which is kind of funny.

.

[Limey]

Also, Buffett is a huge Cubs fan, which is kind of funny.

But he's not too stupid as to buy 'em.

[Astroholic]

I think that you have nailed this dead on.

My theory was based on the old cry wolf fairy tale.  I think Boras has "screamed wolf/screwed enough people" that his tactics will no longer work.  I can't say I am upset about it either.  We shall see what happens with his other clients (namely that fat CF he represents).

[austro]

$275M/10yrs is what results from a tactic that "no longer works"? Granted, it's not $350M, but it's still a tidy sum. And nobody wishes that Boras would disappear more than I do. But I think it's a little premature to declare that the witch is dead.

[pravata]

$275M/10yrs is what results from a tactic that "no longer works"? Granted, it's not $350M, but it's still a tidy sum. And nobody wishes that Boras would disappear more than I do. But I think it's a little premature to declare that the witch is dead.

Does it matter that Boras had nothing to do with negotiating that contract?

[Astroholic]

Does it matter that Boras had nothing to do with negotiating that contract?

Yes it matters.  I say the witch is dead, or at least dying. 

[pravata]

Yes it matters.  I say the witch is dead, or at least dying. 

Especially after the Maddux deal and being fired by Rogers.  The Yankees/Rodriguez deal gets the (deserved) attention, but there are other things that suggest Boras' reputation is on the down swing.

[chuck]

But he's not too stupid as to buy 'em.

You have just created for me my new greatest fear - that Berkshire Hathaway will buy the Chicago Cubs.

[Phil_in_CS]

You have just created for me my new greatest fear - that Berkshire Hathaway will buy the Chicago Cubs.

HB normally goes more for capital appreciation than for cash generation. The Cubs do pretty well in an current income standpoint, and with good management they could be as valuable as the Mets or Red Sox in a few years time.

Would depend on if Buffet looked on this as a hobby (like most owners) or simply brought in good management and then stood back (as an investor)

[pravata]

HB normally goes more for capital appreciation than for cash generation. The Cubs do pretty well in an current income standpoint, and with good management they could be as valuable as the Mets or Red Sox in a few years time.

Would depend on if Buffet looked on this as a hobby (like most owners) or simply brought in good management and then stood back (as an investor)

One of my favorite Buffett anecdotes, couple years ago one of his companies bought a controlling interest in Fingers Furniture.  He came to Houston to meet the principals at Fingers.   When asked whether he'd like a tour of one of the stores, he replied, "I've seen furniture".   Then again he's also become much more interested in charity work and giving his money away.