« Yanks Win Rights To Kei Igawa | Main | Igawa, From My Eyes Only »

November 29, 2006

No Side Deals On Japanese Imports?

From the AP -

The Boston Red Sox cannot reduce their $51.1 million bid for Daisuke Matsuzaka in order to sign him, even if his Japanese team agrees to take less, baseball officials said Tuesday.

"There are no side deals in the situation," said Jimmie Lee Solomon, executive vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner's office. "Everybody's been assured that's not allowed, and everybody's been made aware of the rules."

Funny, as soon as the Yankees win a bid to talk to a Japanese player, MLB starts making announcements on rules against chipping down posting fees.

Posted by Steve Lombardi at November 29, 2006 12:00 PM

Comments

I wouldn't read too much into it. There had been initial rumblings for the past week, maybe longer about this.

Posted by: Raf [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 29, 2006 12:43 PM

I was kinda joking with that remark.

Posted by: Steve Lombardi [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 29, 2006 12:46 PM

Yeah, but it sure does seem suspicious, and it didn't stop the Mariners from (allegedly) doing so with Ichiro. That said, I want the Sox to pay every penny of their $51,111,111.11 posting fee! And they should, and so should the Yankees.

Posted by: JeremyM [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 29, 2006 02:41 PM

it's only wrong if you get caught. Larry Lucchino was in Japan talking to Seibu, and it's speculated he's trying to convince Seibu to cover some of the cost of Mats' contract or the Sawx bid. Anyway, he calls the trip a 'fact finding' mission. What?

Posted by: Travis G. [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 29, 2006 05:05 PM