Alex Rodriguez continues to be a non-factor for the Yankees, and now reports have emerged indicating that the Yankees and Marlins have discussed a potential trade that would send the third baseman/DH to Miami.
Keith Olbermann, writing on his “Baseball Nerd” blog on MLB.com, first reported that the teams have engaged in discussions about the possible trade.
Sources close to both organizations confirm the Yankees would pay all – or virtually all – of the $114,000,000 Rodriguez is owed in a contract that runs through the rest of this season and the next five. One alternative scenario has also been discussed in which the Yankees would pay less of Rodriguez’s salary, but would obtain the troubled Marlins’ reliever Heath Bell and pay what remains of the three-year, $27,000,000 deal Bell signed last winter.
Olbermann did not know how serious the discussions were, but he says a source close to the Marlins believes the trade makes sense for both sides and that a deal would eventually be made.
ESPN New York followed up on Olbermann’s report and noted that Yankees president Randy Levine and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria have casually joked about A-Rod being traded to the Marlins. Here’s how they characterized the conversation:
According to the source, Loria said in his conversation about A-Rod with Levine, “Alex is Mr. Miami, it would be great if he played here for us.”
To which Levine is said to have replied, “You can have him.”
Levine didn’t comment on his conversation with Loria, but told ESPN New York the Yankees would consider shopping Rodriguez in the offseason.
Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman called the trade talks “100 percent false,” but according to the information described above, he may not be the point man for these discussions.
Rodriguez is making $29 million this season, but he’s played so poorly in the playoffs the Yankees have benched him three times and pinch-hit for him twice. As Olbermann noted, the former three-time AL MVP is contracted to earn $114 million over the next five seasons.
A-Rod is aging, declining, losing the faith of his club, and becoming a public punching bag once again. He already has a World Series ring with the Yanks and won two MVPs with them. Given what he’s accomplished, the fact that his contract is guaranteed, and that he grew up in Miami, why wouldn’t he accept a change of scenery? At the least, it should make his final few years in baseball less complicated and stressful. I could easily see this deal going down in the near future.
