<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> The New York Yankees have been discussing a deal with their former All-Star third baseman Alex Rodriguez -- but the team says a deal can only move forward if his agent, Scott Boras, is not part of the talks, the New York Daily News reported Wednesday.</p> <div style="width: 200px;" class="io"> <div class="clearfix"> <h4 class="io-title">Your questions, A-Rod's answers</h4> </div> <table cellspacing="0" class="left"> <tbody> <tr> <td>ESPN.com's Gene Wojciechowski finds A-Rod's Web site, where he answers fan questions -- especially from Hank in the Bronx. Story •Neyer: Pay-Rod saga continues •Caple: Where is the love? •Philbrick: Save your money</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </div> According to the report, a high-ranking Yankees source said the team is willing to bring back A-Rod on a below-market contract that would make up for the $21 million subsidy from the Texas Rangers that the Yankees lost when A-Rod opted out of the final three years of his contract -- despite team comments indicating he had burned his bridges by opting out.</p> But any such deal can't take place with Boras at the table, a Yankee source said, according to the report.</p> "We will not negotiate with Scott Boras," the source told the Daily News. "He cannot be in the room."</p> Boras, regarded in some circles as the most powerful man in baseball, has been A-Rod's agent since he was a teenager.</p> The Daily News also reported that Rodriguez recently approached the Yankees about a return through a third party, and that the team wanted person-to-person talks between A-Rod and Hal and Hank Steinbrenner.</p> The New York Post said Hal Steinbrenner was non-committal when asked Tuesday if A-Rod's return was possible.</p> "Whether something did happen or not, I am not going to comment on that situation," he said, according to the Post.</p> Rodriguez opted out of the final three years and $81 million of his contract on Oct. 28. The Yankees, had earlier pledged they would not deal with him as a free agent if he opted out and made good on their word, with Hal Steinbrenner saying "I don't want anybody on my team that doesn't want to be a Yankee."</p> Later, it was reported Boras had set a minimum salary floor of $350 million for the team to start talking with its former All-Star third baseman.</div></p> http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3109894</p> Good news</p>
