By Dejan Kovacevic | 5:13 p.m. Friday
The Pirates and Pedro Alvarez continue to have an open line of communication, at least between Neal Huntington and Scott Boras, but there is no indication -- still -- that it will be used until much later tonight.
Boras' method is to wait until close to the final minute, and a glance around at several of his remaining unsigned clients confirms that will not change this year.
There is some thought that he is waiting for other shoes to drop -- he has Eric Hosmer, the No. 3 guy, and Buster Posey is the No. 5 guy -- but a call I got from San Francisco about two hours ago supports the notion that Posey probably will not end up in Alvarez's pay scale, in terms of offers. Seems unlikely with Hosmer, too, given that Kansas City went through this game with Boras last year with No. 2 overall pick Mike Moustakas and got Moustakas to blink -- $4 million bonus, just 25 percent above slot -- at 11:58 p.m. Why would the Royals change tactics now?
Where is Alvarez?
Still searching. The family source quoted in this morning's article as saying the family was out of New York and out of reach reiterated that late last night. As of mid-afternoon today, there also was no indication that Alvarez was anywhere near PNC Park or Pittsburgh, which would appear -- though not definitively -- to rule out a pre-signing physical.
That might not kill a major league contract, surprisingly. The Pirates do want the physical, but they are amenable to a major league contract. It might even provide a way for the team to get more creative with the terms, as the backloading of bonuses is highly limited except for players deemed to be two-sport athletes. (Don't ask.) Alvarez is not in that category.
Anyway, if forced to take all of my conversations, emails, texts and whatever else, and pile all of them into one big gut feeling, here it is: The Pirates have an offer on the table. They consider it quite fair. Boras wants Mark Teixeira money, meaning something in the range of $10 million. The Pirates are not going to do that, plain and simple. No chance. No circumstance. They have the money, of course. But they have no wish to spend it that way. They sound as if they would be flexible, in some form, off what is currently on the table, but that might not equate to all-out compromise. As I said, no chance, no circumstance of getting near eight figures.
Finally, this: One person I know well in the business -- not involved in these talks, but first-hand knowledgeable of these things -- texted me today to suggest that he feels Alvarez will sign because it is the right thing to do for his family. Never mind the Pirates, the agent, the slot, the image or anything else. He and his family turned down $700,000 from Boston three years ago and took plenty of guff over of it from friends and neighbors in a tight community. This figure will dwarf that one many times over.
UPDATE 7:35 p.m.: Ten of the 30 first-round picks remain unsigned, including Alvarez, Hosmer at No. 3, Posey at No. 5 and Yonder Alonso at Cincinnati's No. 6 spot. The Reds have made public that Alonso has seen his final offer.
Posted
Aug 15 2008, 05:13 PM
by
Dejan Kovacevic