They Might Be Giants

They Might Be Giants...

... If the Force Is with Tommy Tomorrow Night

Boston.com: Pats Go for Perfection

Breaking NewZzzzzz: Sox Reportedly in the Lead for Santana
Win tickets to Theo Epstein's Hot Stove Cool Music Roundtable

Clemens Adds Chiles to Legal Team

Clemens Adds Chiles to Legal Team

Roger Hires Attorney Jackie Chiles to Attack Mitchell, MLB

"That's totally inappropriate. It's lewd, lascivious, salacious, outrageous! Oh, and by the way, Roger's muscles are real, and they're spectacular." -- Seinfeld's Jackie Chiles, creating a slice of a shadow of a doubt on the Mitchell Report, which is why Roger is doing all this messy media hype...

N.Y. Times: Entertainer and Fighter Hardin Is Clemens�s Lead Lawyer

"[Rusty] Hardin�s clients have included many current or former professional athletes. He won jury acquittals for Calvin Murphy (charged with sexual assault of a child), Warren Moon (charged with domestic violence) and Steve Francis (charged with driving while intoxicated). Hardin got the drunk driving charges dismissed against the former Houston Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich, and he won a civil trial for Wade Boggs, who was accused of assaulting a flight attendant on a Yankees charter flight. The jury sided with Boggs in four minutes, according to Hardin�s Web site. ...'a rival once described [Hardin] as �slicker �n deer guts on a doorknob.� " -- 12.28.07, New York Times

A Couple of Captains

A Couple of Captains

Red Sox team captain Jason Varitek faces off with another noted captain, Captain Hook, Dec. 27, 2007 at the Magic Kingdom theme park. Varitek is vacationing with family and friends at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Clemens Hires Drebin

Clemens Hires Drebin

Clemens Hires Retired Lt. Frank Drebin to Clear Name
But Where Are the Lawsuits and Lie Detectors, Roger?

"Mrs. McNamee, your son is a ruthless, cold-blooded, sadistic animal. You must be proud of him." -- Lt. Frank Drebin, on the case for Clemens...

N.Y. Times: Clemens�s Legal Team Adds Private Investigators

"The Clemens team is walking a fine line because attacks on McNamee�s or Mitchell�s credibility could raise questions with either federal authorities or Congress. The federal authorities could seek to question Clemens directly, and even though not under oath, he would be in legal jeopardy if he did not answer truthfully. Likewise, a Congressional committee could subpoena Clemens to testify under oath if the perception grows that Clemens is undermining Mitchell, who conducted his investigation partly to satisfy Congress." -- 12.27.07, New York Times

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, where somewhere with a smile,
Rocket�s lawyer was crafting the latest flimsy denial;
While lots of players were hung by Mitchell�s Report this year,
It was the name of Clemens that confirmed our greatest fear;

Barry Bonds was still nestled all snug in his bed,
He�s not alone anymore, but his phony home run record is dead
He was named again, on The List, in the big steroids flap;
And long gone are his dreams of a Hall of Fame cap �

When suddenly out on the �Net there arose such a clatter,
�Santana Deal Done!�� But was it Ellsbury or Lester?
We tuned to NESN-HD, Sox press conference in a flash,
We saw Werner and Henry, and Theo�s big bag of cash;
Theo stood up to speak, the old Dr. Charles show,
Was this Santana's big payday? Did the Sox fork over the dough?;

Epstein stood up to speak, �Baby Jack says hi!�
But were the reports true Theo? Did Jacoby say goodbye?;
Who else hit the road? Is Clay part of this deal?
Did we outbid the Yankees?, This all seems unreal;

When, what to our wondering eyes should appear
But the face of Santana, signed for $10 million per year!
We gave a mid-level prospect, that�s the whole deal,
Johan�s in the rotation, the deal was a steal

And then back at the gates of the new Hall of Shame
Mitchell whistled, and shouted, and called all the names:

"Now, Bigbie! now, Knoblauch! now, Giambi and Gagne!
On, Sheffield! Tejada! on, Roger and Andy!
To the top of the list! Let the fans make the call!
You took steroids, I know it! Asterisk for you all!"

Yankees titles now stand at 22 not 26*,
And Hank Aaron sleeps easy now knowing 755 still sticks
Clemens won just 197, according to Schill,
And Duquette was right on, Roger was over the hill

Yet Mitchell Players keep signing, contract prices still high,
Rocket clings to his numbers, he�ll still tell the big lie,
And it's back to the game, "just forgive and forget,"
By June "it never happened," on that you can bet.

So now we have a prez of the �official� Red Sox Nation,
Or a trick to give cash to Lucchino's slick operation
And pay $250.00 for "citizenship," with no ticket at all,
Just �an opportunity� to buy a bleacher seat on top of a Wall

Back down in Ft. Myers, he walked to the mound,
The prancing and pawing of this new throwing hound,
Laying his finger aside of the seam,
He stares just like Pedro, an impossible dream?

He spoke Spanish words, and went straight to his work,
He went into his windup; then turned with a jerk,
As he threw out his hand, and was coming around,
Down toward home plate, the ball took off with a bound;

A lefthanded Petey, so lively and quick,
Hitters down in a moment, his balls miss their sticks;
His heater�s mid-nineties, curve ball has big bite,
Let�s mark Johan down for a win every night!

And there stood Curt Schilling, looking incredibly slim
About time the blog king found his way to the gym
Even Manny came early and is ready to play
He was lousy last year, but got paid big anyway

Then up went the Flag, the Sox called out by name
Putting rings on their fingers at the Opening Day game
Now Jacoby�s in center, a brand new Drew in right,
Pedroia and Youk, more bark and more bite

And then just like before, Papi swung for the sky,
Manny's ball found the Pike, �Tek hit hard line drives,
Lowell had the old stroke back, when he hit �em they flew,
They all batted around, Julio Lugo too;

The crowd sprang to their feet, to the team gave a whistle,
Coco circled the bases, Beckett threw another missile;
A new year is upon us and our favorite ballclub

"LET�S GO BACK-TO-BACK! MORE PENNANT FEVER GRIPS HUB"

...with apologies to Clement Clarke Moore or Henry Livingston, Jr.
Merry Holidays, Boston Dirt Dogs

Wishing You Nothing But the Best

Wishing You Nothing But the Best

Is the Dog Tale a Fish Story?

Schilling Update on Clemens: Innocent Until Proven Guilty?
Redesigned Roger: Fans Launch a Few Shots at Clemens
Welcome Back: Kapler Signs with Brewers

Is the Dog Tale a Fish Story?

If You Believe Papelbon's Dog Really Ate the Series Ball,
You Should Sit By the Cookies and Milk Monday Night
and Wait for Santa to Come on Down and Join You

Wilbur: Dog Gone Baseball

"My dog ate it.� -- Jon Papelbon, one of the great American actors of our generation

Meet the Rocket

Maybe It's Time for Roger to Have a Seat
and Take a Little Test

"I will be watching you and if I find that you are trying to corrupt America's Pastime, I will bring you down, baby. I will bring you down to Chinatown." -- George "Jack Byrnes" Mitchell

Smoltz Gets the Idea: 'Just Give Me a Lie Detector Test'

"Some people have some explaining to do, and as far as he [Clemens] goes, it's been pretty... it wasn't like a few times, it was in there a lot. So, I think people personally...want to hear from him. I don' think they want to hear from the attorney. I don't think they want to hear from representatives. They want to hear from him. If I was on that report, and it was not even close to legit, I'd come out swinging. I'd do whatever it took. I'd sue. I'd do whatever it takes. You can't argue with the names if they're not going to come out and fight it. I don't know whose legal advice people were receiving back in Congress [during the steroid hearings in March 2005], I don't know what they're listening to now. I don't know the ramifications. I can tell you this, they may tell me 'hey, you can't win,' I don't care. I don't care. It would be very easy. Just give me a lie detector test."-- John Smoltz, 19 years with the Atlanta Braves, in a 12.17.07 interview on the Jim Rome radio show

Schill to Clemens: Give Back Cys If You Told Lies

Schill to Clemens:
Give Back Cys If You Told Lies

Schilling Calls on Clemens to Come Clean
or Give Up Post-'96 Cys

"So as a fan my thought is that Roger will find a way in short order to organize a legal team to guarantee a retraction of the allegations made, a public apology is made, and his name is completely cleared. If he doesn�t do that then there aren�t many options as a fan for me other than to believe his career 192 wins and 3 Cy Youngs he won prior to 1997 were the end. From that point on the numbers were attained through using PED�s. Just like I stated about Jose, if that is the case with Roger, the 4 Cy Youngs should go to the rightful winners and the numbers should go away if he cannot refute the accusations." -- 12.19.07, Curt Schilling on 38Pitches.com

Read Curt's Complete Take on Clemens and the Mitchell Report at 38Pitches.com

Congress to Hold Hearings on Steroid Use
Time to Pay the Red Sox $14.95, Again, to Be an 'Official' Fan
Or $249.00 for 'Access to Purchase' 2 Monster Seats

Lying Solo?

Lying Solo?

Rocket Finally Launches a Denial

After His Pal Pettitte Offered Up His Weak Admission of Guilt,
Clemens Issues a Statement That Says He's Innocent

"I want to state clearly and without qualification: I did not take steroids, human growth hormone or any other banned substances at any time in my baseball career or, in fact, my entire life. Those substances represent a dangerous and destructive shortcut that no athlete should ever take.

"I am disappointed that my 25 years in public life have apparently not earned me the benefit of the doubt, but I understand that Senator Mitchell's report has raised many serious questions. I plan to publicly answer all of those questions at the appropriate time in the appropriate way. I only ask that in the meantime people not rush to judgment." -- 12.18.07, Clemens issues a too little, too late denial... through his agent of course... and dares to speak out on the dangers of steroids (wink)

Swimming in Steroids Talk

Carl from Aqua Teen Hunger Force Has a Few Problems
with the Mitchell Report and the Red Sox

Brian Roberts is Innocent!... Oh, Nevermind

Brian Roberts Is Innocent!
He Shouldn't Even Be on the List!
It's Not Fair to Include Brian Roberts! ...

... Oh Nevermind, Roberts Admits to Using Steroids
Mitchell-Report-Hating Media Left Searching for a Replacement 'Innocent' Player to Rally Around

Roberts Acknowledges Using Steroids... ... (wait for it) ... ... Once
Not Sure If He Did It to 'Heal Faster' or 'Help His Team' Though

"In 2003, when I took one shot of steroids, I immediately realized that this was not what I stood for or anything that I wanted to continue doing. I never used steroids, human growth hormone or any other performance enhancing drugs prior to or since that single incident." -- 12.18.07, Brian Roberts in the best confession yet

A-Rod and K-Cou

A-Rod Tells the World How Much Damage Boras Did
Did Jacoby Talk to Alex Before Signing Up with Boras?

NY Daily News: As Usual, A-Rod is Only About A-Wad

"The whole situation saddens me a little bit," Rodriguez told Couric regarding Scott Boras. "There hasn't been much back and forth talking."

Couric: "Do you talk to him (Boras) at all?"

A-Rod: "No, not right now."

Couric: "Do you think that will change?"

A-Rod: "We'll see."

It was easy envisioning Boras watching all this with a smile. Rodriguez's image is worth plenty - in terms of commissions - to Boras. So if anyone watching wound up believing Rodriguez felt terrible about bogarting Game 4, well, that's good for business.

And if anyone watching Couric's interview came away feeling sorry for poor A-Rod, and left with the impression Boras is a snake, just another agent who would mislead a client, well, no big deal. If this "60 Minutes" spot cast Boras as the bad guy, so be it. That's good for business too." -- 12.18.07, NY Daily News

NY Times: Jacoby's Agent Provides Bad Info on HGH

�Prior to 2005, a doctor had the ability to prescribe H.G.H. for recovery from injury,� said Boras, whose clients Eric Gagn�, Kevin Brown, Rick Ankiel and Ron Villone were named in Mitchell�s report. �To link players who used anabolic steroids for performance enhancement with players that had allegedly used H.G.H. prior to 2005, is wrong; those drugs are from two different arenas.�

The owners and the players union agreed to testing for steroids before the 2003 season.

�They are very different and baseball�s rules towards them have been very different,� Boras said.

�Medical practitioners widely used H.G.H. to assist many athletes in recovery from injury and would escalate athletes� ability to recover.� -- 12.16.07, New York Times

Lupica: Scott Boras Supplies Dirty Cover-Up

"Drug use in sports is classified in three ways," Dr. Gary Green said yesterday. Green is a clinical professor at UCLA's Division of Sports Medicine, works at UCLA's Olympic Analytical Lab and is Major League Baseball's consultant on performance-enhancing drugs. "There are therapeutic drugs, recreational and performance-enhancing. Steroids and HGH are performance enhancing."

Green then added, "These guys aren't going to legitimate doctors to get (HGH) because they know they wouldn't prescribe it. To suggest otherwise is just an attempt to mislead the public."

Here is something else that Boras tried to tell the public on Sunday in the Times:

"Medical practitioners widely used HGH to assist many athletes in recovery from injury and would escalate athletes' ability to recover."

Maybe his athletes...

These are the types of "medical practitioners" who traffic in HGH, which guys like Boras now want us to believe is the wonder drug of healing, instead of performance-enhancing juice. Boras thinks he can get over with this, and so does Pettitte. It only works with people who get their information - and education - on baseball drugs from people like, well, Boras and Pettitte.

When Boras talks about "medical practitioners," he must mean the Signature Pharmacy of Orlando, the pharmacy that is the total star of the Albany District Attorney's investigation into illegal Internet drug sales. It was from Signature that Rick Ankiel received eight shipments of HGH in 2004." -- 12.17.07, Mike Lupica, New York Daily News

Rodriguez Hires Manager, Keeps Boras as Agent

Dead Rats

It Was a Frosty Reception

Pats Trap Rats in Rematch

New England Stays Perfect in Storm

Pettitte: Let's Just Call It 'The Healing Era;'
Andy's Admission Puts Roger in Tough Spot

Strong Denials from Clemens, Pettitte

This Just In ...

Don't Expect Any Marion Jones-Like Apologies
From Those Two Frauds Anytime Soon

Gammons: Drug Culture Leaves Ugly Feeling

"You can blame the Players Association and you can blame Bud Selig, but the fact remains that the players who were truly clean did not exercise their power to avoid this, nor did their owners care to know as the business went from a $1.3B industry to one that topped $6.2B in 2007. Not that most owners had enough time to really understand this, which is why it's fortunate that Mitchell did not go back to the period when George W. Bush owned the Texas Rangers -- which Jose Canseco and others have fingered as a performance-enhancing Wal-Mart -- because there is no way Bush had any idea what was alleged in Canseco's book.

"The problem is that the history of the 20-something years of steroids, HGH, etc. is written by Canseco and clubhouse gophers, fired trainers and gym rats. Many of us have a problem with Mitchell throwing out names based on little to no proof other than hearsay, but he was left with few alternatives. Baseball wanted him to look at the period? He did, as best he could, and emptied it like a box of trash, with little differentiation between Roger Clemens and Brian Roberts, whose name was revelaed without evidence of any wrongdoing whatsoever. In this era of vigilante journalism, if it's a name, it's got guilt, and the fact that some "news" services ran with a phony report with 76 names Thursday morning puts "news" right there in the culture of the sewer rats.

"Mitchell's landscape is an ugly portrait, but probably generally accurate, and he gave baseball ideas on how to move forward towards a level playing field. Maybe baseball will turn to independent, stringent Olympic blood testing, maybe this will turn into a holy war with the union. Maybe the majority of players and agents will rise and take control of their sport.

"It may be that the testers will never catch up to the chemists, but in addition to the Mitchell recommendations, here are four more... " -- 12.14.07, Peter Gammons, ESPN.com blog (by subscription)

Reluctantly, Roger Enters the Hall of Shame

After Struggling to Win Only 40 Games in His Last 4 Years with the Sox,
Roger Decided He Wanted to Be a Rocket Man Again...

Rocket Man
by: Paul Paliotta (with apologies to Bernie Taupin)

As performed by Roger Clemens in the winter of 1996/1997

I packed my bags last night pre-flight
My pitching days, were near an end
And they said it was the twilight of my career by then
I miss my curve so much, I miss my strikes
I'm loading on some weight
So I think the time is right

And I think it's gonna be a long, long time
Till Mitchell comes around and then they'll find
I'm not the man they think I am at all
Oh no, no, no
I'm a Rocket Man
Rocket Man, striking out my foes on anadrol
But I think it's gonna be a long, long time

This ain't a young man's face, I'm not a kid
In fact I'm old as hell
But I got a plan to change that, and I think I will
And all the science, I don't understand
It's just a shot into my cheek
And I'm a Rocket Man, a Rocket Man!

And I think it's gonna be a long, long time
Till Mitchell comes around and then they'll find
I'm not the man they think I am at all
Oh no, no, no
I'm a Rocket Man
Rocket Man, striking out my foes on anadrol
But I think it's gonna be a long, long time

Yankee Doodle Dirty

Yankee Doodle Dirty

Wondering if Headliners Clemens, Pettitte, Giambi, and Sheffield Will Wear Yankee Caps When They Are Inducted into Baseball's Hall of Shame

Interactive: Breaking Down the Mitchell Report
No Current Sox Fingered in Mitchell Report
Clemens, Bonds, Tejada, Mo Vaughn Named
The Complete List of Names for the Hall of Shame
Read the Complete Text of the Report Here
Wilbur: An Empty Feeling

Say It Ain't Mo!

Say It Ain't Mo!

Mo Must Have Decided to Turn Himself Into a Horse

Rocket 'Roider

"Oh, my goodness gracious! Of all the dramatic things, of all the dramatic things I�ve ever seen, Andy Pettitte standing right in George Steinbrenner�s box shooting a syringe into Roger Clemens' rear end!" -- Suzyn Waldman, WCBS Radio, if she had been paying closer attention

Rocket 'Roider

CLEMENS LINKED TO STEROIDS, HGH IN MITCHELL REPORT; PETTITTE ON LIST FOR HGH USE

"According to a source familiar with information provided to Mitchell, Brian McNamee, the longtime personal trainer for the players, gave the former Senate majority leader conducting a steroids investigation for Major League Baseball information linking Clemens to the use of steroids and human growth hormone and Pettitte to human growth hormone." -- 12.13.07, NY Daily News

Look at the Photos: Roger and the Sox

The Name Game

The Name Game

Mitchell Report to Include MVPs and All-Stars

Will There Be Any Sox Heroes on the List?

"One of the two individuals familiar with report said baseball officials, upon reviewing it Tuesday, felt it was harsh. The other individual said the union was aware of at least portions of the report, and was upset by what it had seen...

"The evidence that Mitchell will use to cite players is expected to be documentary in nature � canceled checks, shipping slips, phone records � and not based on positive drug tests...

"Active players named in the report are likely to face discipline that will be less severe than the 50-game suspensions now in place for first-time positive tests for steroids. The discipline imposed will probably be based on the penalties in place in baseball when the player�s violations occurred. Baseball did not have penalty testing for steroids until 2004 and did not ban H.G.H. until before to the 2005 season." -- 12.12.07, Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times

Schilling Expects More Than One Big Name on Mitchell Report List,
Won't Be Surprised to See Teammate Named
Curt Thinks Sox Will Still Get Santana

Theo Has a Baby Boy Named Jack | Youk's an Insta-Dad, Too

Here's to the New Brewer

Here's to the New Brewer

He'll Fall to Pieces... Whenever You Call Him In

With Apologies to Patsy Cline. "I Fall to Pieces"

He falls to pieces,
Each time he loses a win
He falls to pieces.
We're just glad he's now 'old friend'

We wanted three strikes but he just missed.
He wanted us to forget, pretend we never led.
And we tried and we tried, but we never did.
He walks in and he falls to pieces.

He falls to pieces,
Each time Tito called his name.
He fell to pieces.
Just throwing gas on the flame.

Tito had to find someone else to throw,
Someone who got outs too, like Gagne used to do.
But each time he goes with Gone-yay we knew,
Takes the mound and he falls to pieces.

Another long fly and he falls to pieces.

The $10 Million Man: Gagne Passes Milwaukee Physical

Sox to Buy Salem (Virginia) Avalanche | Red Sox 2008 Spring Schedule

Ellsbury Doughboy

Sun Chronicle: An Expensive Lifetime Chance to See Ellsbury
Seacoast Online: World Series Win Boosts Sox Autograph Prices

Ellsbury Doughboy

Show Jacoby the Money!
Fans to Pay $125.00 to Have Ellsbury Sign Their Ball

Happy Holidays: Jacoby Ellsbury is signing autographs tomorrow at Emerald Square Mall in North Attleborough at Sports Treasures, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. It will cost fans $125.00 to get a baseball or photograph (up to 16x20) signed by the Sox rookie outfielder (you provide the item). For $150.00, Ellsbury will autograph a baseball bat or jersey/shirt.

Schill Chimes in on Appearances and Autographs

"Players and their agents negotiate appearance fees. The agent generally takes a %. I no longer do public signings where cash is required at the autograph table, it�s way too messy and uncomfortable.

"I have a lady named Katie Leighton who handles my off the field PR/Marketing that oversees this stuff. The only signings we�ve done since 2004 involved ALS or Shade. I signed a private exclusive deal after the 2004 season with Steiner Sports that allowed me to not have to do these public events if we chose not to. I don�t �charge� for autographs in that sense since I don�t do these shows anymore. Many of the outlets to sign autographs have removed the player/fan thing that autographs began as. It�s horribly uncomfortable." -- 12.7.07, Curt Schilling on 38Pitches.com

Survey: Is $125 too much to pay for Ellsbury's autograph?

Darth Boras Is Not Expected to Be Collecting
the Cash Directly This Weekend

Finally... Schilling Addresses Fonts and Grammar | ProJo: O Papelbon, O Papelbon

The Santana Buzz... ZZzzzzzz
NESN: Theo Talks About No Deals, and Early Reporting
Medfield Softball Fields to be Named for Shonda Schilling

For the 5th Consecutive Year Since the Stadium Opened, Pats Fans Threaten to Take Break from Eating Chicken Wings So They Can Make Gillette Sound Slightly Louder Than a Div. 3 High School Game ...We'll See at 4:15 on Sunday ...

Barry's got a new uniform

Barry's Got a Brand New Bag

... And The Tryout for His New Manager Today Went Well
Bonds* Pleads Not Guilty

Happy Campaign Trails

Happy Campaign Trails

Schill Stumps for McCain in Manchester

One voter tried to draw him out nonetheless, asking Schilling whether he would challenge Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. Another called him "Sen. Schilling."

"I'm going to stick to winning one more World Series," he said to cheers in Red Sox-supporting New Hampshire.

Schilling did say the next president has to be ready to lead on taxes and what he repeatedly called "the war in the Middle East." He said McCain, a senator from Arizona, is best suited to deal with the challenges facing the country.

"We need a man or a woman," Schilling said before stopping to take New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton off the table. "We need a man leading a team of people that we believe in." -- 12.5.07, Schilling pitches for McCain's presidential bid

McCain Hopes Schill's Pep Talk Works Better on Voters
Than It Did on Medfield High
The Real News Out of Manchester Was That Curt
Finally Found His Missing Sport Jacket
Could Shaving Be Next?

Santana Watching... Paint Dry: Twins Feel No Need to Make Trade

"If it's a Red Sox player, Red Sox timetable. That's how I would look at it. They're probably doing the same thing. We completely respect the position the Twins are in. It's their prerogative to handle this any way they see fit. I have no problem with the way they're handling this at all."
-- 12.5.07, Theo comes completely undone and mentions Twins by name Wednesday night

WAS THIS MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING?
ARE THE TWINS KEEPING SANTANA?

Buzz Updates: Santana Trade Momentum Grinds to a Halt
Schilling Offers Up 2,821 Words on the Santana Deal
First Francona Gets a Rule, Now Curt Has One, Too
And Naturally Schill Has a Few Thoughts on the Curt Clause
ProJo: Ellsbury Checks In on Trade, Boras
Things That Make You Go Hmmmmm....
Boras Has Jacoby Making the Media Rounds: Big Show Audio

The End of the Innocence

The End of the Innocence

Ellsbury's Not As Pure As the Driven Snow Anymore
Fenway Fan Favorite Fires Agent and Hires the
Guy Who Tried to Hijack Boston's World Series Spotlight

Thanks to Boras, Ellsbury May Not Be As Attractive to Twins, Theo

12.5.07: NESN's Don Orsillo on WEEI: "What you want to do in this instance, say he [Ellsbury] comes back to the Red Sox. You instantly want to sign him to a long-term deal under your terms financially now to wrap him up. The problem is, Boras is now a factor and will not allow something like that to happen without looking beyond years. That's where it becomes a factor and I think it's a little closer than people think, because I keep hearing 'he's years away from having to deal with Boras.' I don't think so. Whoever gets him is going to want to wrap him up right now."

Survey: Do You Feel Differently About Jacoby, Now?

ANGELS ARE IN THE OUTFIELD
ARE THE SOX THE LAST TEAM STANDING?

2:33 a.m. Update: No Deal; Sox Brass Has Mixed-Feelings on Trade

If the Yanks and Angels Are Out, Who's In?
Buzz Updates: All the Santana Updates from Around the Interweb
The Innocence is Lost: Ellsbury Fires Agent and Hires Boras
Gammons: Tigers Get Miguel Cabrera

Tuesday Afternoon Santana Snippets: 3:28 p.m., from Peter Gammons, ESPN: "The Twins and Red Sox are getting closer to finalizing a Johan Santana deal. Boston has sweetened its offer by adding a fifth player to the the offer -- outfield prospect Ryan Kalish, the Red Sox' ninth-round draft pick in the 2006 out of Red Bank Catholic High School (Shrewsbury, N.J.)." Gammons on ESPN News, earlier broadcast: "They've [Sox and Twins] met again [today], the Twins should just say look, we're either going to take the package for Jacoby Ellsbury, which is a 3-for-1, or we'll take the package of a 4-for-1 involving John Lester, now the stories that they went to a 5-for-1, that's not so. Now the only way the Angels pitch is better is if Jared Weaver's in the deal, maybe Nick Adenhart, and Brandon Wood. They're going to have to go to two big-time guys, I'm not sure they're going to do that, it will be interesting to see how far it goes. It behooves the Twins to at least explore the Angels as they have so much talent in their organization." Rob Bradford on WEEI: "The Twins have told the Red Sox that they do want to get this done today, one way or the other. Whether that happens or not, I don't know, but that's what they've told them. I think the Red Sox have put out the offer... they're very close, the only wild card here guys is the Yankees, everyone's saying they're out of it, if they do decide to jump back in, and include Ian Kennedy.."

Is Santana Claus Coming to Town?

Is Santana Claus
Coming to Town?

(BDD Photo Illustration)

Not Yet Virginia. All Is Calm in Tennessee.

Extra Bases: Oye Como Va...

"Epstein has been in phone contact with Twins GM Bill Smith, but I don't think they've had a face-to-face yet. Perhaps tonight. Sox have arranged for the Boston media to meet a little more formally with the Sox GM in about 90 minutes. Not expecting anything, but we'll keep you posted. Twins people, BTW, are very high on pitching prospect Justin Masterson, who they see possessing terrific setup potential." -- 4:49 p.m. update from Gordo in Nashville

Schill Joins Pap on the Santana Train

Watsonofabitch!

Watsonofabitch!

Yankee Bob Done Done It Again! Tito and Every Other
MLB Manager Must Now Wear Uniform Top or Jacket

Rob Bradford: The Francona Rule

�There�s going to be, for lack of a better term, a �Francona Rule,�� said Bob Watson, Major League Baseball�s Vice President of Rules and On-Field Operations. �You can only wear your uniform top or jacket. You can�t wear your night-shirt, or whatever it is. You can wear it before games, or after games, but not during games. You have to have your uniform top at all times.�-- 12.3.07, Bradford Files from Nashville

That's Just Yankee Bob Being Yankee Bob

Watson Started In On Tito Back In August: "Terry Francona was peeved this morning that a (major league baseball) security person made him show that he was wearing his uniform top in the second inning of Wednesday night's game with Derek Jeter at second base. ...

'The timing to me was incredible,' Francona said. 'He made me show him. I thought Jeter was going to steal third.' Francona said that the exchange caused him to miss one pitch." -- 8.30.07, Nick Cafardo, Extra Bases

Deal or No Deal?

Survey Gallery: What's the Right Price for Twins' Lefty?
Ron Sen: Santana and The Winners Curse

If you must have Santana, here he is.

The most valued commodity in baseball is low-salaried talent under your control, an approach that allows you to overspend for other areas of weakness. The Red Sox, the most successful of the Moneyball teams, clearly understand this. Spending money to make a splash guarantees nothing, and you may just lock yourself into both bad contracts and bad chemistry.

Among the Red Sox high value, low cost contracts include:

-- Kevin Youkilis
-- Jonathan Papelbon
-- Dustin Pedroia
-- Jacoby Ellsbury
-- Jon Lester
-- Clay Buchholz

Having these 'commodities', baseball's 'raw materials' as it were, is akin to having oil or gold in the ground, proven reserves, which almost certainly will rise in value.

Established players carry higher price tags for past production, and expected production at similar levels to the past. For example, with Mike Lowell, is he more likely to hit .320 with 25 homers and 120 RBI, or hit .290 with 20 homers and 90 RBI? I'd argue the latter, although quite content with the Lowell signing.

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Johan Santana, winner of a pair of Cy Young Awards, has a career on a trajectory to become a Hall of Famer. Rumor is that he has already turned down over 18 million dollars a year to pitch for the Twins. Rumor also has it that the Twins seek as much as possible for Santana (three to four upper echelon prospects including a couple of major league ready players), for ONE YEAR guaranteed of Santana. Only the richest clubs can afford to bid with both prospects and dollars, and the accompanying luxury tax considerations for some teams. Negotiating an extension would clearly be a precursor for any team willing to part with so many prospects.

We already know that no team has won the World Series with one player's salary dominating their payroll beyond a certain amount. Even with Santana's positive health history, no guarantees exist, expressed or implied that this will continue. His proven track record in the AL means a lot.

The Red Sox projected starting rotation for 2008 includes:

-- Josh Beckett (arguably the post-season MVP)
-- Daisuke Matsuzaka (seeking to meet higher standards)
-- Curt Schilling (twilight season)
-- Jon Lester (seeking breakout season)
-- Clay Buchholz (projected as a possible number one starter)
-- Tim Wakefield (possibly part of a rotation designed to allow more rest for the entire staff)

The two leading pitching prospects in the minors, Justin Masterson and Michael Bowden, both are not major league ready, from what we 'understand'.

To an extent, what transpires represents philosophy. I'd be inclined to continue the developmental pitching track, and try to avoid suffering the Winners Curse. Last year the Yankees suffered the Winners Curse with their abysmal Clemens bargain. Whether A-Rod and Mariano Rivera will continue that faux pas remains to be seen.

Whatever the Sox choose to do, I hope they educate themselves in the Winners Curse. -- Ron Sen, Boston Dirt Dogs contributor and founder of Red Sox Reality Check

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