Daisuke Matsuzaka -Let The Bidding Begin.

[Centerfield]

I thought that was what happened.

[smg58]

I thought Selig could reject a bid he didn't consider to be in good faith.

If Matsuzaka is a free agent next year, whoever signs him would only get one year at a discount. That should severely limit what people are willing to bid on him, but nobody seems to be talking like that. Strange.

[Guest patona314]

In case anyone is interested, it's pretty up to date:

http://matsuzaka.blogspot.com/

[metirish]

From ESPN...

] The Boston Red Sox may have posted the top bid for the right to negotiate with Japanese right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, according to Major League Baseball sources. There has been no official announcement, and the Seibu Lions, Matsuzaka's team in Japan, have until Tuesday to accept or reject the high bid. But, according to officials monitoring the bidding, the Red Sox bid may be between $38 million and $45 million. Matsuzaka, who pitched for Japan's World Baseball Classic champions, is considered among the top prospects available this offseason. If the Lions accept the top bid, the winning bidder has 30 days to reach an agreement with Matsuzaka. If a deal cannot be reached, he would return to the Lions for the 2007 Japanese baseball season. By 5 p.m. Wednesday, major league teams interested in bidding on the rights to deal with Matsuzaka had to post a sealed bid. Major League Basball then took the highest bid and forwarded only the dollar figure -- not the identity of the team -- to the Seibu Lions. According to a source within Major League Baseball, as of Friday afternoon, Seibu had not informed MLB officially whether it had accepted the bid. There are three reasons the deal would make sense for the Red Sox: � Talent evaluators who have seen Matsuzaka say he's a top of the rotation-quality pitcher who would improve the Red Sox staff. � If Boston signs him it would effectively plant a Red Sox flag in the growing Far East market. [code:1][/code:1]

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

]alent evaluators who have seen Matsuzaka say he's a top of the rotation-quality pitcher who would improve the Red Sox staff.

He fucking better.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Cheap ass Mets get outbid again. As badly as the Mets need a top of the rotation guy, they come up short in their bid for the rights to the one guy that could help them improve. Once again, the Mets have underestimated the resolve of the opposing bidders. I swear, this damn organization just doesn't have a clue.




I think I just hurt myself.

[metirish]

I know you are taking the piss Doc...

[Guest patona314]

Rockin' Doc wrote: Cheap ass Mets get outbid again. As badly as the Mets need a top of the rotation guy, they come up short in their bid for the rights to the one guy that could help them improve. Once again, the Mets have underestimated the resolve of the opposing bidders. I swear, this damn organization just doesn't have a clue. big picture dude............................dontrelle I think I just hurt myself.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

How long does it take to mull over a $30 million bid?

I'm surprised the Lions haven't accepted the bid and allowed the negotiations to begin. I'd be very eager to get the ball rolling so that I could collect that loot.

I wonder, though, if perhaps the highest bid wasn't really as high as the Lions had hoped, and they're considering keeping Daisuke for his final season.

Probably not, but who really knows?

[nymr83]

thats an awful lot of dough, i don't know what Japanese payrolls look like but i'd have to imagine that 30 mil is 1/2 the average team's payroll for the year...

[Elster88]

We don't really know that it's the Red Sox yet, right?

[metirish]

No we don't conflicting reports have the Rangers with the highest bid,an announcent is expected Monday.

[Guest Rotblatt]

Reports out of Japan are that the Red Sox were the highest bidders, at $42M. Gammons just said the same thing, which means this looks pretty close to a done deal.

$42M. Crazy. Apparently, the Mets & Yankees both bid in the neighborhood of $30M, and were around the second & third highest bidders.

[TransMonk]

That's a lot a dough just to talk to the guy.

[metirish]

Crazy money but the Sox have a lot of money coming of the books this season and next year.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

Wow.

My guess is he'll be terrific for two years and then fade.

[metirish]

Boston.com reports it's $50 freaking million,also Sox apparently offered Drew a contract.

[HahnSolo]

Can't imagine the Fenway faithful liking Drew's laid back attitude.

[smg58]

If they have to pay Matsuzaka market value beyond this year, they'll be overpaying ludicrously for a guy who's never pitched an inning in MLB. For it to possibly be worth the Sox' while, they'd have to get him to commit long-term at a steady price, and then hope that he's as good as billed and doesn't get hurt. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I could think of a better way to blow that money.

Like on three $14 million pitchers.

[Guest Rotblatt]

Edgy DC wrote: I could think of a better way to blow that money. Like on three $14 million pitchers.

Seriously. I wanted us to bid high on him, but that's just crazy-ass talk.

[metirish]

I suspect teh Mets did bid high on him,just looks like the Sox blew the roof off.

[Guest Rotblatt]

metirish wrote: I suspect teh Mets did bid high on him,just looks like the Sox blew the roof off.

And it sounds like you're right. According to the Daily News, we came in second at $38M.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Oh, well. We didn't win the bidding for Kaz Ishii in 2001-2002. Instead we got him in 2004-2005 for Jason Phillips.

With any luck, this guy won't cost us more than a Joe Hietpas or somethng.

[Guest Edgy DC]

So, isn't it somewhat bizarre that teams are willing to pay more to another corporation for the rights to negotiate with a player than they'd ever pay to that player himself?

[metirish]

Very bizarre and even more so when the winning bid is likely higher than a few teams payrolls.

[duan]

Edgy DC wrote: So, isn't it somewhat bizarre that teams are willing to pay more to another corporation for the rights to negotiate with a player than they'd ever pay to that player himself?

to some degree this happens in football all the time. Now, it's a bit different in that what happens there is the 'buying' team is essentially buying a player out of a contract that they've signed.

So, for example a couple of seasons ago Rio Ferdinand was under contract to Leeds Utd for another 3/4 years. Manchester Utd desperately wanted him and so they paid �30 million TO LEEDS for the right to negotiate with Ferdinand.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

You had me fooled with your reference to "football." I was thinking that Rio Ferdinand was an NFL player until you got to the part about Leeds.

[nymr83]

soccer should either be called "soccer" or "futbol" to stop confusing people.

edgy- it is weird but i'm sure there are a few reasns for it, one is that we're not sure how much lower their offer to the pitcher will be than if he would have been on the market and subject to offers from others team. a second factor is that the Red Sox are probably somewhat aware of the luxury tax, the money they gave to japan isnt part of that....
given the size of the bid my explanation still wouldnt cover the difference (as it might have if the bid was 10-15 million) but its at least part of it, i think we'll have to see what he signs for before we speculate even more

[DocTee]

Official: $51.5 million. Holy Smokes.