Every fall I wonder what the dominant hot stove story is going to be. The one where, every time we do a post about it, someone says “I am SO SICK of this!”
Usually it’s a big free agent like Cliff Lee or Albert Pujols. Sometimes it’s the story of a little free agent -- a guy past his prime -- seemingly unable to ever find a team (Johnny Damon has played that part for several years now). This year it’s most definitely gonna be the A-Rod trade saga.
Why wait for the season to end to get that train a-rolling? Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that Alex Rodriguez is telling “close friends” that he wouldn’t block a trade -- as is his right -- as long as it’s to certain big market teams:
We’ve talked about the Marlins -- I could see them doing something like that and A-Rod lives in Miami. Not sure why the Angels would want him or what they’d give the Yankees back. Same with Chicago. The Dodgers have already gone on a pretty big spending spree and it seems kinda nuts that they’d consider it.
I guess less important than handicapping possible destinations, however, is figuring how much of the $114 million remaining on his contract the Yankees would be willing to eat. Probably a ton. If so, and if Rodriguez’s effective salary to a suitor is sufficiently low, any number of people would be willing to take a chance on him, I reckon. Because even if he isn’t what he once was, he still is an above average hitter who could conceivably rebound to for a year or two into some approximation of what he once was. Especially if you think that his current woes are health-related.
It would not be at all shocking for this stuff to heat up soon, so prepare yourself for A-Rod-a-palooza, people. It’s gonna pretty much dominate the offseason.