If Alex Rodriguez opts out of his contract after this season, the New York Yankees insist they won’t try to re-sign him.
“How can we? We lose all our money from Texas,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Thursday.
Rodriguez has 3 1/2 seasons left on his record $252 million, 10-year deal, but he can opt out of the contract this fall and become a free agent – a decision the slugger would have to make within 10 days of the end of the World Series.
Rodriguez is owed $24 million in each of the next three seasons by the Yankees, with Texas offsetting about $21.3 million of that. He is guaranteed an additional $3 million annually by the Rangers, the original deferred money in his contract that was converted to an assignment bonus at the time of his trade to the Yankees.
Cashman said the club has not spoken to Rodriguez or his agent, Scott Boras, about a potential contract extension.
“We’d like to have him stay,” Cashman said. “We’ll have those discussions at the end of the year.”
Back at Yankee Stadium, Detroit Tigers slugger Gary Sheffield took a few more cuts at former manager Joe Torre.
After saying recently that Torre treated black and white players differently in the New York clubhouse, Sheffield stood by those comments and explained why he has a much better relationship with his current skipper, Jim Leyland.
“He’s real,” Sheffield said. “That’s all there is to it. You get it both ways – the positive and the negative – and he’s real about both sides.”
As he has all along, Torre declined to offer much of a response to Sheffield.
“It’s all going to go back to the comments. I don’t want to go there,” Torre said.
Asked if he might talk to Sheffield if he had a chance, Torre said: “Probably not.”
Nationals: First baseman Nick Johnson, who has been sidelined all season with a broken right leg, will have another surgery on the leg and will not play in 2007.
Mets: First baseman Carlos Delgado (knee) and right fielder Lastings Milledge (flu) were out of the lineup for New York’s game in Pittsburgh.
Pirates: Shortstop Jack Wilson developed asthma-related symptoms during Pittsburgh’s game against the Mets and was assisted from the dugout during the fifth inning.
Marlins: Catcher Miguel Olivo limped out of Florida’s game against Arizona in the second inning with a left groin strain.
