Red Sox Nation

[keithbishop]

ill take both bets.assuming all pitchers mentioned stay healthy

Cool. I'm looking forward to 2007.

[OrangeShadow]

i hear ya,i love football but i cant wait for baseball
im going down to fenway the morning tickets go on sale,im talkin like 1,2 in the morning

[keithbishop]

Gammons reported the Reds will sign SS Alex Gonzalez to a 3-year $14 mil. deal.

Are the sox still going after Lugo??

[keithbishop]

Important enough to post in 2 threads

From Peter Abraham's Lohud blog 11/17:

"* There is this idea out there that Boston can make all this money on the side with Matsuzaka. It's largely a myth. MLB controls international television rights, not individual teams. The revenue from any extra games that are televised would go to all 30 teams. The same is true of internationally sold merchandise. The Red Sox could get a sponsorship deal or two from a Japanese company but that's it. Ticket sales won't change a bit; Fenway Park is sold out every game."

http://www.lohud.com/blogs/lohudyankees.html

Abraham is a reliable source. This isn't the 1st time I've heard this info.

[PatsCrowEater]

From Peter Abraham's Lohud blog 11/17:

"* There is this idea out there that Boston can make all this money on the side with Matsuzaka. It's largely a myth. MLB controls international television rights, not individual teams. The revenue from any extra games that are televised would go to all 30 teams. The same is true of internationally sold merchandise. The Red Sox could get a sponsorship deal or two from a Japanese company but that's it. Ticket sales won't change a bit; Fenway Park is sold out every game."

http://www.lohud.com/blogs/lohudyankees.html

Abraham is a reliable source. This isn't the 1st time I've heard this info.

There are tons of ways the Red Sox can generate merchandising revenue without having to share with all those greedy other MLB teams. For example, they could manufacture Fenway Park snow globes at a cost of 75 cents each and sell them in Japan for $300.

That's just one thought. There's plenty more.

[keithbishop]

There are tons of ways the Red Sox can generate merchandising revenue without having to share with all those greedy other MLB teams. For example, they could manufacture Fenway Park snow globes at a cost of 75 cents each and sell them in Japan for $300.

That's just one thought. There's plenty more.

:clap: :clap:

[RunYouOver]

There are tons of ways the Red Sox can generate merchandising revenue without having to share with all those greedy other MLB teams. For example, they could manufacture Fenway Park snow globes at a cost of 75 cents each and sell them in Japan for $300.

That's just one thought. There's plenty more.

That's true...they just have to be creative.

I'd consider that creative


Or maybe they can make a Matsuzaka bobble head and advertise them in Japan as a must have for all sports fans, deem the Matsuzaka bobblehead a "limited edition rookie bobblehead" and sell it for $50 a piece

[OrangeShadow]

Gammons reported the Reds will sign SS Alex Gonzalez to a 3-year $14 mil. deal.

Are the sox still going after Lugo??

UGH yes they are. I would of rather kept gonzo.i cant stand lugo

[PatsCrowEater]

Larry Lucchino was in Japan today to meet with representatives of the Seibu Lions and confirmed the Red Sox have made a formal offer to acquire Daisuke Matsuzaka. It's believed the Red Sox offer is still far apart from what D-Mat's agent, Scott Boras, is expecting.

Larry held a press conference in Japan and said the Red Sox hope to enter into a "working relationship" with the Lions. If you read between the lines, that means the Red Sox are asking Seibu to give back a portion of the 51.1 ml bid to make the deal work.

Seibu doesn't have much leverage because they are having significant financial difficulties.

Interesting huh? I never thought the Red Sox would over bid for D-Mat because they planned to have the Lions give back a portion all along.

Brilliant!

[keithbishop]

Larry Lucchino was in Japan today to meet with representatives of the Seibu Lions and confirmed the Red Sox have made a formal offer to acquire Daisuke Matsuzaka. It's believed the Red Sox offer is still far apart from what D-Mat's agent, Scott Boras, is expecting.

Larry held a press conference in Japan and said the Red Sox hope to enter into a "working relationship" with the Lions. If you read between the lines, that means the Red Sox are asking Seibu to give back a portion of the 51.1 ml bid to make the deal work.

Seibu doesn't have much leverage because they are having significant financial difficulties.

Interesting huh? I never thought the Red Sox would over bid for D-Mat because they planned to have the Lions give back a portion all along.

Brilliant!

Not "give back" , per se...... from what I understand (reading between the lines combined with reporters' theories), the red sox are asking Seibu to give Matsuzaka some $$ ($2 or $3 mil. per year of his deal ) so Matsuzaka will sign for a lower amount.... say $10 mil. per season instead of $13 mil. per season..... all of which would have no impact on the $51.1 mil. posting fee. $81.1 mil. for 3 years (still more than any pitcher in history has been given) is better than $90.1 mil. for 3 years, but doesn't fall into the "brilliant" category, either. How accommodating will Bora$$ be?? This is definitely interesting.

[keithbishop]

Larry Lucchino was in Japan today to meet with representatives of the Seibu Lions and confirmed the Red Sox have made a formal offer to acquire Daisuke Matsuzaka. It's believed the Red Sox offer is still far apart from what D-Mat's agent, Scott Boras, is expecting.

Larry held a press conference in Japan and said the Red Sox hope to enter into a "working relationship" with the Lions. If you read between the lines, that means the Red Sox are asking Seibu to give back a portion of the 51.1 ml bid to make the deal work.

Seibu doesn't have much leverage because they are having significant financial difficulties.

Interesting huh? I never thought the Red Sox would over bid for D-Mat because they planned to have the Lions give back a portion all along.

Brilliant!

The "side deal" turned out to only be a rumor...... article from this evening:

http://x.go.com/cgi/x.pl?goto=http:/...112924&srvc=sz

BOSTON -- The Boston Red Sox cannot reduce their $51.1 million bid for Daisuke Matsuzaka in order to sign him, even if his Japanese team agrees to take less, baseball officials said Tuesday.





"There are no side deals in the situation," said Jimmie Lee Solomon, executive vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner's office. "Everybody's been assured that's not allowed, and everybody's been made aware of the rules."


A Red Sox official said the team is not trying to reduce the bid, called a posting fee, which was by far the highest in baseball history. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the team is not commenting publicly on the negotiations.


Solomon said the posting process was clear to all teams before it started. There has been no complaint about Boston's handling of the matter, and no reason to believe the Red Sox are not following the rules, he said.


"There were some reports that we heard, but those reports proved to be not true," he said.


Reports from Japan, where Red Sox president Larry Lucchino went to negotiate a long-term "working relationship" with Seibu, centered on the possibility that the Lions would pitch in for Matsuzaka's contract to make the deal happen.


"That would not be allowed," Solomon said. "The deal is that the Red Sox are to pay the Lions the posting fee. They are to negotiate [Matsuzaka's contract] free from any other negotiations that might be going on."

[PatsCrowEater]

I still find it interesting that Larry is in Japan talking to the Seibu Lions about forming a "working relationship." What is that all about? I'm not sure why he's talking to the Lions, the negotiations should be between the Sox and D-Mat.

This is still very interesting...

[keithbishop]

I still find it interesting that Larry is in Japan talking to the Seibu Lions about forming a "working relationship." What is that all about? I'm not sure why he's talking to the Lions, the negotiations should be between the Sox and D-Mat.

This is still very interesting...

No different than the Yankees working relationship with Matsui's former team or the Mariners working relationship with Ichiro's former team. Japanese corporate ad sales = solid revenue.

Should the Yankees sign Igawa, they will have working relationships with 2 Japanese teams.

The "under the table" rumors were blown out of the water last night by MLB officials. I wouldn't read too much into the false rumors anymore than I would blast the red sox for illegal negotiations. The red sox FO isn't foolish enough to blatantly violate MLB rules in negotiations that are under intense scrutiny. Every MLB team knows the rules.

[PatsCrowEater]

The "under the table" rumors were blown out of the water last night by MLB officials. I wouldn't read too much into the false rumors anymore than I would blast the red sox for illegal negotiations. The red sox FO isn't foolish enough to blatantly violate MLB rules in negotiations that are under intense scrutiny. Every MLB team knows the rules.

The Red Sox are still in a position to work out a deal with both Seibu and D-Mat simulataneously. There's nothing MLB can do if Seibu offers D-Mat 10-15 ml as part of a "going away gift." I'm sure that's what the Red Sox are working on.

The Sox reportedly offered 7-8 ml per year while Boras is asking for 15 ml. That large gap could certainly be narrowed once you included Siebu's "severance package."

Totally legal and absolutely brilliant if true.

[keithbishop]

The Red Sox are still in a position to work out a deal with both Seibu and D-Mat simulataneously. There's nothing MLB can do if Seibu offers D-Mat 10-15 ml as part of a "going away gift." I'm sure that's what the Red Sox are working on.

The Sox reportedly offered 7-8 ml per year while Boras is asking for 15 ml. That large gap could certainly be narrowed once you included Siebu's "severance package."

Totally legal and absolutely brilliant if true.

I'm afraid there is a HUGE misunderstanding.....

By "brilliant", if you're referring to corporate ad sales:
1. Yes, that is completely legal.
2. The Mariners did it first (Ichiro).... the Yankees did it 2nd (Matsui)..... so, I suppose it could be viewed as "brilliant" as when the Yankees and Mariners did it.

What I THINK you mean, though (and please correct me if this isn't what you mean)...... you are trying to somehow show that the red sox can somehow get a "kickback" on the $51.1 mil. posting fee....... so I'll once again quote MLB officials on this matter:

BOSTON -- The Boston Red Sox cannot reduce their $51.1 million bid for Daisuke Matsuzaka in order to sign him, even if his Japanese team agrees to take less, baseball officials said Tuesday.


"There are no side deals in the situation," said Jimmie Lee Solomon, executive vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner's office. "Everybody's been assured that's not allowed, and everybody's been made aware of the rules."


A Red Sox official said the team is not trying to reduce the bid, called a posting fee, which was by far the highest in baseball history. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the team is not commenting publicly on the negotiations.


Solomon said the posting process was clear to all teams before it started. There has been no complaint about Boston's handling of the matter, and no reason to believe the Red Sox are not following the rules, he said.


"There were some reports that we heard, but those reports proved to be not true," he said.


Reports from Japan, where Red Sox president Larry Lucchino went to negotiate a long-term "working relationship" with Seibu, centered on the possibility that the Lions would pitch in for Matsuzaka's contract to make the deal happen.


"That would not be allowed," Solomon said. "The deal is that the Red Sox are to pay the Lions the posting fee. They are to negotiate [Matsuzaka's contract] free from any other negotiations that might be going on."

What this boils down to is false rumors vs. A painfully clear picture of the truth from MLB officials. We've all seen false rumors in print many, many times in the past.

I think Matsuzaka will do quite well for the red sox, but the myths concerning any "under the table" deals have been exposed. The reasoning behind the rules is that, were side deals allowed, the entire posting process would be a joke. It wouldn't be a matter of "brilliance", it would be a disgrace to the game. There is no way that ANY red sox official would risk the penalties of such illegal activity: were there any side deals, Matsuzaka would be awarded to the 2nd highest bidder, the Mets. How would RSN fans handle the knowledge that the Mets were able to pick up Matsuzaka for a $39 mil. posting fee because a red sox official blatantly violated MLB rules?? Would RSN fans refer to that official as "brilliant"?? The Matsuzaka negotiations are under intense scrutiny by MLB.

The red sox won negotiating rights to Matsuzaka fair and square.... for $51.1 million . In order to sign him, they MUST pay the $51.1 mil. in it's entirity by Dec. 14th. In order for the Yankees to sign Igawa, the Yankees must pay $26.1 mil. by Dec. 28th. As a Yankee fan, I would be humiliated to have the knowledge that Brian Cashman or any of his subordinates attempted to cheat the system. This isn't the WWE..... and MLB has enough controversy to deal with as is with steroids. IMO, the red sox FO has more class and intelligence than you're giving them credit for.