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Whether in time it will become the American League East version of the 1929 St. Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago, only the 2004 baseball schedule -- and beyond -- will reveal.
But in finalizing a heart-shaped deal to acquire Alex Rodriguez from Texas, the New York Yankees, in one staggering blow, yet again have dynamited the game's salary structure to smithereens and knocked the wind out of the Boston Red Sox -- for the weekend, at least, if not more.
Moving quickly and decisively to fill a gaping hole at third base created by Aaron Boone's knee injury, the Yankees have completed a deal to send Alfonso Soriano and a minor-leaguer to Texas for Rodriguez, sources told SportsLine.com on Sunday. No official announcement will be made until it gets the expected approval of the commissioner's office.
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| Alex Rodriguez will bolster the Yankees' lineup and dishearten their bitter rivals in Boston.(AP) |
But unlike Boston's near-miss earlier this winter, the Yankees have made like Mariano Rivera and closed this one out.
The trade not only moves the largest contract in baseball history, it also catapults the rebuilt Yankees' staggering payroll close to $200 million. Aside from the Yankees, whose payroll was close to $180 million last summer, never before in baseball history has a club even approached the $150 million mark.
The trade also pairs Rodriguez, who has agreed to play third base, with Derek Jeter on the left side of the New York infield and is certain to bring up the question of how much longer Jeter, the Yankees' captain, will remain at shortstop. Rodriguez is the reigning Gold Glove winner at the position; if Boone comes back healthy in 2005, might Jeter slide over to second base and create room for Rodriguez at shortstop?
It's an intriguing question, particularly now that New York in 2004 appears set to play either Miguel Cairo or Enrique Wilson at second base, but it is a question for now best suited for the rain delays later in the season.
What the Yankees are certain of as they prepare for the opening of their spring camp in Tampa, Fla., next week is that their lineup projects an incredible array of All-Stars and balance: Kenny Lofton (a lefty swinger), Jeter (right), Rodriguez (right), Jason Giambi (left), Gary Sheffield (right), Bernie Williams (switch), Jorge Posada (switch) and Hideki Matsui (left).
The fact that Rodriguez has agreed to play third base in New York underscores two things: How badly he wants to play for a contender and how hollow his words have been this winter about being satisfied to remain in Texas. Rodriguez, 28, is not getting any younger, and it's pretty clear his career path had reached a fork in the road. That the losing and the differences with manager Buck Showalter were threatening to sap Rodriguez's spirits became abundantly clear this winter.
Even given the prospect of giving up shortstop, Rodriguez is said to be thrilled with this deal.
"I think he is," one person close to Rodriguez said Saturday afternoon. "There's a lot to digest when you're going to a team of this magnitude. But this is something Alex has always dreamed about, playing for a perennial contender. A team of excellence like the Yankees, any player would covet that."
As happy as Rodriguez is, Boston undoubtedly felt the pangs left by a fondly recalled summertime fling upon learning this stunning bit of Valentine's Day news. Still, after a winter spent wooing Rodriguez and attempting to trade outfielder Manny Ramirez to Texas to make room, it isn't as if the offseason was a clunker for the Red Sox.
Far from it. Despite not acquiring A-Rod, Boston did, among other things, trade for Curt Schilling and sign free-agent closer Keith Foulke. In many people's eyes, Boston was set to open spring training as the AL East favorites.
Now? The Yankees' lineup is going to score a ton of runs, and Javier Vazquez, acquired from Montreal over the winter, might just be the nastiest pitcher going right now in either league. Toss in Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown and a revamped bullpen that includes Paul Quantrill and Tom "Flash" Gordon leading to Rivera and what's left is ... a pretty good certainty that the Yankees offense will punish an awful lot of folks this summer, and some remaining questions about the pitching staff.
The Yankees? The Red Sox? Flip a coin. Take your pick. Both organizations, in maniacal pursuit of each other, just may nuke everything in their path in this wildly entertaining -- and obscene -- baseball arms race.
"Why don't we just mail in the ------- season?" grumbled one source with another American League East club Saturday after hearing the news. "Why the hell are the rest of us showing up? This is all about Boston and New York. This is about (Boston CEO Larry) Lucchino vs. The Evil Empire. That pissed Mr. Steinbrenner off. That's what this is all about. No doubt in my mind.
"Sure, you can give up Soriano, even though he's a great player, because there are a lot of second basemen around. Look at that lineup now, how would you like to go through that four times? Jesus, not me. It's a joke."
Of course, the Yankees' failure to win a World Series for three consecutive seasons is no laughing matter in New York -- or, especially, in Tampa, not only the spring home of the Yanks, but the full-time home of Steinbrenner.
Things always have been testy between the Yankees and Boston. It's just that Lucchino and Steinbrenner have taken this rivalry to unprecedented new heights -- particularly since December 2003, when the Red Sox, in an effort to box out the Yankees during the clubs' pursuit of free agent pitcher Jose Contreras, bought up all of the rooms in the hotel in which Contreras was staying so New York officials could not get close to him.
The Yanks, of course, won that bidding war despite Boston's best efforts. Then they won the division last summer and beat Boston in a thrilling seven-game American League Championship Series.
And as good a winter as the Red Sox have had, New York scooping up a Valentine's Day treat in A-Rod is simply one more reminder in the rich, loaded AL East that the Yankees are experts at getting the last laugh.
The good thing is that, after a winter of moves and speculation, there are only a few more days until pitchers and catcher report and the talking subsides. Then the Red Sox can begin to roll that boulder uphill once more, and see how far they get.
