Apologizing for Steroid Use is Just Smart Business

Add me to the small list of people not gushing over the apologies of some of these steroid users in baseball. Not because I think it is an unforgivable sin (I am not even sure it is one at all), or that they don’t feel really really bad about how all of this went down, or even than they want to turn public opinion around to make their lives easier. The fact of the matter is, apologizing makes smart public relations sense. In a game where millions of dollars are at stake and a player’s appearance to fans matters as much as their production on the field, public opinion is everything. Denials do nothing to ingratiate a player to their fan base, while a tearful (almost, but not enough to actually cry and thus appear weak), sincere reconciling of one man’s past with his present, splattered all over the most high-coverage venue his agent can find.

I believe this all started with Jason Giambi and his kind-of sort-of acknowledgement that he took steroids. After that, there was no story. Unless someone wanted to pry out who he got them from or how prevalent it was in the sport (far less juicy stories than the one-man drama), there just wasn’t a story there worth devoting resources too. Moreover, as a fan there is only so much hating you can do. After he has admitted it and come clean, it feels awkward to lash out and rip him for it, like the kid in school who would drop his books and laugh about it- what left is there to make fun of? Andy Pettite took this to a whole other level. He has garnered not only forgiveness, but it appears even that people forget that he took steroids at all. His lengthy, heart-wrenching (it had that impact on me, I will tell you) apology and press conference, in addition to his reputation as a stand-up individual just nullified any negative publicity he had received in conjunction with the steroids scandal.

Compare this to Roger Clemons, Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire, et al. Their denials have just made suspicion turn into certainty, and made them villains in the eyes of many baseball fans. How different this situation might be if Roger Clemons had said that he “briefly” took steroids because he was feeling pressure to succeed and felt like he needed the edge, but after a year or two he stopped because he got his life back in order. Whether that is true or not is a moot point. The fact of the matter is that by admitting a small offense he is canceling out the larger offenses described by Brian McNamee. Barry Bonds might be the only exception to this, as he was known in the media as a bad character and not a man you wanted to be around anyway. However, even he could have held an interview where he “bore his soul” for the camera and talked about his tough exterior and how lonely he feels underneath and how the only way to make himself feel special was to go out and break records. Would you feel the same about Barry after that apology?

Which brings us back to Alex Rodriguez, and the possible fall out for Miguel Tejada. Scott Boras has seen this pattern, and he knows what happens to those who deny compared to those who confess something -anything- for the camera. I am certain that he told A-Rod that the only way out of this to salvage his reputation was to bear all in an interview that would not be as hard on him than one with the major networks. NBC News, 60 Minutes or even Dateline would have looked to fry him and put him in a real tough spot, but ESPN was going much softer than they could have with Peter Gammons. Boras is a smart man, and he did his client a huge favor by guiding him in the direction of apologizing. Do I believe it? I have no idea, I just know it is good business sense.

It has yet to be seen what this means for Miguel Tejada, but if I was his agent I would have one piece of advice- confess, and make it sound awfully sincere. Not even prosecutors would have the leverage to send him to prison after that.

Teixeira Goes to the Yankees, Baltimore Shouldn't be Surprised

Let's face it, none of us expected Mark Teixeira to sign with the Orioles. Andy MacPhail made it clear he would need to take a hometown discount to play here, and knowing Scott Boras, "hometown discount" is not in the Boras negotiation dictionary. Though we may be surprised Tex will be with the Evil Empire, the fact is 8-years, $180 million is too good to pass up. We can't blame Tex for going, the Yankees for offering, or the Orioles for not offering. In baseball, you play to win, and the Yankees are willing to spend a ton of money. But for the Orioles, signing Teixeira was not going to mean a playoff appearance or even a chance at one. There is too much to do and too many positions to improve. The Orioles still have serious work to do, and now that this is over, MacPhail and company can focus back on rebuilding.

According to Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles are still going after free agents, some of whom include Braden Looper, a decent starter of the last two years for St. Louis, and former Nats starter Tim Redding. Neither are considered future pieces, both are in their early 30s. After letting Daniel Cabrera go, they need a new starter to eat up innings, since they want to keep their future starters in the farm system until they are ready. I hope they go after a bullpen pitcher and a temporary position player, whether it be left field or first base.

The fact is there will not be a star or very well known player signed by the Orioles this offseason, but that is probably a good thing. The Orioles do not want to waste money right now especially in these times. Not getting Mark Teixeira may hurt in the short term, but the Orioles knew they probably were not going to get him, and perhaps it is better this way.

(Photo credit: MLB)

Teixeira's Offer From Angels Removed, Orioles Back in Play?

The Angels have reported removed their 8-year offer to Mark Teixeira and will not pursue him further. With the Red Sox most likely out of the running voluntarily, this means the Orioles might yet have a shot with him. Although it had been reported earlier the Orioles might not be in the running anymore, with the Angels and Red Sox out, this has changed.

The consensus is that Teixeira will go to one of three teams now, the Nationals, the O's, or the Yankees. Supposedly the offers are as follows:
--Nats: 8 years, $160 million (Dave Sheinin, Washington Post)
--O's: 7 years, $140-150 million (Jeff Zrebiec, Baltimore Sun)
--Yankees: no official offer yet (Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times)

Supposedly Scott Boras, Tex's agent, has contacted the Yankees, no doubt trying to get a big offer. Had the Yankees really wanted him, they could have easily outbid the O's and Nats, so it is possible they played into the bidding to disrupt the Red Sox. The Nats and O's have put offers on the table, and the Orioles might up the offer slightly if it could push the edge.

I'm not sure why the Angels and Red Sox felt the need to withdraw their offers, but everytime Scott Boras seems to negotiate, something goes wrong. He still has not gotten a deal for Manny Ramirez and a number of his cilents, including Jeremy Guthrie just a week ago, have fired him as a result. He is a good agent that gets great money, but I'm not sure if he is getting to greedy, especially in this economy.

But with the Orioles, now is the time to make a move if you have one. Boras and Tex want a deal by Christmas. If Tex follows the money, he will either take the Nats offer or wait for the Yankees. If he does not care about ten million extra, he will sign with his boyhood team. It is now at the point where, can the Orioles afford not to sign him, and let him go to the Nats? We all hope not.

UPDATE 12/23/08: MASN's Roch Kubatko reports the Nationals have upped their offer to 8 years, $178-184 million.

(Photo credit: Christian Petersen, Getty Images)

Free Kicks

Free Kicks is on the road this week- well, I guess Free Kicks is in the same place but I am on the road. I gotta say, this time of year it really bothers me that the state of Maryland doesn’t truly have a professional basketball team. No, the Wizards don’t really count to me, though they are the closest thing we have; there is something that just feels wrong about sharing a team with the Nationals’ fan base. And in case you Nationals fans haven’t noticed, we are all about the O’s here. However, at least we have football. Let’s line up for the kick…

Scott Boras Strikes Again

Where oh where has Drew Rosenhaus gone? What’s worse- an agent who has his clients play chicken with an organization until the team inevitably caves or an agent who is completely insane and wants to be as much of a celebrity as his clients? The former, Scott Boras, is much more dangerous to the sports world. The Dodgers are playing the Manny Ramirez deal the right way, trying to show that they are making a push for their fan base and that it is Ramirez who is turning away from the city. Boras meanwhile is pushing for a 5 year deal for a 36 year old power hitter. Don’t get me wrong, Ramirez is an incredible player- but when you are a below average fielder with Ramirez’s history of attitude issues, you should be fortunate to get the second-highest salary in baseball.

However, Boras is a brilliant agent. He will get that deal he wants, and he will get the same deals for Mark Teixeira and his other clients. He has no problem completely taking his player off the table; he will go farther in a game of chicken than any other agent. Sometimes it comes back to bite him as it did with A-Rod last offseason (I know he got the biggest deal ever but he was convinced he could get more on the free agent market and he left some cash on the table when the Yankees realized that no other team could afford Boras’ asking price), but more often than not the superstars get the superstar money, the role players get whatever is left over (less than they would normally), and the fans foot the bill. Get that extra 2 years, Manny and see what your new team can afford to put around you on the field- it won’t be much.

I’ll Leave it to Falco or Windsor for the Postgame, but…

That’s what happens when you can’t run the football. Oh yea, and can’t for the love of God stop the guy who was averaging 4 yards a carry and had never topped 21 carries or 94 yards in a game! Sean Glennon could have been replaced with a toaster and it wouldn’t have mattered with that swiss cheese front 7.

BCS Busters Still Rolling

As you know, I have always been a proponent of mid-majors making the leap into the BCS picture. There are some incredible teams- and incredible coaching staffs- that have turned former Division 1 also-rans into legitimate title contenders. Many of these teams run an unorthodox offense or defense, usually created to make the most out of their originally thin talent pool. However, despite their improvement and general dominance, they cannot get the respect they deserve. Tonight college football got to enjoy TCU-Utah in a battle of two of the most consistently dominant mid-major programs in recent history.

Though I have a soft spot for TCU, I was glad they were unable to down Utah and knock them from the ranks of the unbeaten. Look, I don’t expect the Utes to get into the championship game, but every time a mid-major or any other team goes undefeated and is ignored by the voters it puts just a little more pressure on the powers that be to do something to correct the mythical national championship. TCU actually came close to being added to the Big Twelve when the Southwest Conference was dismantled after the 1995 season. Should a team be tossed permanently from national title hopes just because it was put in a bad conference by someone else?

I wonder if they would want Utah over in the PAC 10…