WTF, Manny

Shapecity · Feb 28, 2009

Manny Ramirez probably needs one at-bat, or less, to prepare for the start of the regular season, and given that this is the last day of February, there's plenty of time for the Dodgers to haggle with Ramirez's agent, Scott Boras. The rest of us wait, and ponder some aspects of this:

1. Last winter, Boras negotiated a two-year, $36.2 million deal for Andruw Jones, structured in such a way so the agent could say Jones was making more, per year, than the $18 million annual salary received by another center fielder, Torii Hunter. At the time Jones signed the deal, of course, there was no mention of the fact the contract included deferred money that actually took the present-day value below what Hunter is earning.

But now, in the current situation, Manny's representation is clearly fighting to make the case, through reporters, that the Dodgers' $45 million offer isn't really $45 million, because of the deferred money.

In other words: Deferred money only counts as real money if and when it's useful for Boras to say it counts as real money.

2. The Dodgers' offer to Ramirez of $45 million over two years would have a present-day value of about $41 million, executives with rival teams estimate, because of the thick layers of deferred money in the contract. In the first year of the contract, the present-day value would be about $22.5 million -- which is more than the combined base salaries in 2009 of Bobby Abreu, Orlando Hudson, Pat Burrell, Joe Crede, Cliff Floyd, Mark Loretta and Takashi Saito.

The Dodgers' negotiating strategy remains sound: They should simply sit on their offer, because there is absolutely nothing in the market -- certainly not the depressed free-agent prices, in an economy which seems to get worse by the day -- that should nudge them to go way beyond where they are. They have the highest offer on the table, and they will continue to have the highest offer on the table, right up until the moment that Ramirez decides whether or not he wants to play baseball at the Dodgers' price.

3. I wrote here the other day that I don't think Boras misread the market, because Ramirez probably never had the leverage he thought he had, a problem that stems from his ugly exit from Boston. But it should be noted, as Boras now works to inflate the Dodgers' one- and two-year offers, that Ramirez and his agent have already missed the best chance to get the most money in 2009. The Dodgers offered Ramirez arbitration back in November, and coming off his staggering, historic performance of August and September, Ramirez might have been in position to make a case for $25 million -- or more -- in present-day money had he accepted the arbitration offer.

4. The Giants are perfectly positioned for the rebound date, by the way. If Manny gets so angry and frustrated with the Dodgers that he decides to break up with them, the Giants will be there for him (with less money, yes, but offering emotional support and an opportunity for Manny to stick it directly to L.A.). The Giants' Bill Neukom isn't ruling out anything, Andrew Baggarly writes.

The Dodgers' feud with Ramirez has gotten very public, writes Bill Shaikin. Frank McCourt and Boras are playing a dangerous game, writes Bill Plaschke.

The Ramirez saga is best enjoyed from afar, writes Bruce Jenkins. Everybody needs to call their accountant to understand this, writes Ramona Shelburne.

Joe Torre has Manny issues, writes Bob Klapisch.
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Source: Buster Olney ESPN

BasX · Feb 28, 2009

"A well-placed source with knowledge of the situation tells the Daily News that Manny Ramirez's agent Scott Boras asked the team to up his client's offer to $55 million. And that is where the whole thing broke down. This source also said that it was Boras, not the Dodgers, who requested as far back as last fall that a portion of the money be deferred so the total value of the package could be greater. At the end of Wednesday's meeting at Dodger Stadium, it was made clear to Boras that while there was no firm deadline, club officials expected to hear back from him in response to their two-year, $45 million offer and that they only wanted to hear one of two possible answers: yes or no. Instead, Boras came back to them with a counter-proposal of increasing the offer to two years and $55 million, a deal that would carry an average annual value of $27.5 million - the exact same average annual value carried by the 10-year, $275 million contract of Alex Rodriguez, another Boras client. Given that the Dodgers already believed they were offering $45 million more than any other team has offered Ramirez, there was no way they were going to increase their offer by another $10 million."
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http://www.prosportsdaily.com/comme...ncrease-manny-offer-to-55-million-208094.html

Mamba · Feb 28, 2009

When your talking about that much money, WTF is the difference between $10 million. If the Dodgers cave in and give him $55, they'll still make a profit on him by selling Manny jerseys, dreads, t-shirts, and other Manny memorabilia. And to Manny, does $10 million make a HUGE difference to you?

44Thrilla · Feb 28, 2009

I'm buying his jersey as soon as he signs just to piss off all the idiot Red Sox fans around here that are constantly trashing him.

Lost One · Mar 1, 2009

Black Mamba said: ↑

When your talking about that much money, WTF is the difference between $10 million. If the Dodgers cave in and give him $55, they'll still make a profit on him by selling Manny jerseys, dreads, t-shirts, and other Manny memorabilia. And to Manny, does $10 million make a HUGE difference to you?
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The Manny dreads are retarded

huevonkiller · Mar 1, 2009

44Thrilla said: ↑

I'm buying his jersey as soon as he signs just to piss off all the idiot Red Sox fans around here that are constantly trashing him.
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Good call dude.

Mamba · Mar 1, 2009

Oh my god, HK and Thrilla getting along !?

Shapecity · Mar 2, 2009

Dodgers have pulled their offer off the table and McCourt said they will need to negotiate from square one.

44Thrilla · Mar 2, 2009

Black Mamba said: ↑

Oh my god, HK and Thrilla getting along !?
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We get along just fine considering how much I hate the Lakers and Colts and he hates the Celtics and Patriots.

JE · Mar 2, 2009

All teams need to send a message to Manny and drop negotiations with him.

Its only collusion if they can prove that its a collectively pre-meditated effort.

When you're getting the offers that Manny has, and repeatedly turn them down, and are still un-signed well into spring training, then you need to be made an example of.

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WTF, Manny

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44Thrilla cuatro cuatro

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WTF, Manny

Shapecity S2/JBB Teamster Staff Member Administrator

BasX I Win

Mamba The King is Back Staff Member Global Moderator

44Thrilla cuatro cuatro

Lost One ...

huevonkiller Change (Deftones)

Mamba The King is Back Staff Member Global Moderator

Shapecity S2/JBB Teamster Staff Member Administrator

44Thrilla cuatro cuatro

JE Suspended

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