Rodriguez Reportedly Agrees to Yankees' Outline
Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees have agreed to the outline of a record $275 million, 10-year contract, a deal that potentially would allow him to earn millions more if he sets the career home-run record.
The amount of the guaranteed money was disclosed by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke yesterday on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized. A-Rod and his wife met Wednesday in Tampa, Fla., with brothers Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, but the parameters of the agreement were set in place last weekend.
"The meeting was a final get-together," the senior vice president of the Yankees, Hank Steinbrenner said. "He wanted to make sure myself and my brother knew that he was sincere and serious." The Yankees still must draft the agreement with Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras. Asked whether the only remaining details were putting the deal on paper, Steinbrenner responded, "pretty much so." Boras wasn't a part of the negotiations, in which Goldman Sachs managing directors John Mallory and Gerald Cardinale conducted shuttle diplomacy.
The Yankees were notified by Boras on October 28 that Rodriguez was opting out of the final three seasons of his $252 million, 10-year contract — the previous record — and becoming a free agent. New York maintained then that it no longer would negotiate with A-Rod because the decision eliminated a $21.3 million subsidy from Texas that was negotiated in the 2004 trade.
About a week later, A-Rod contacted Mallory, a friend who works in private wealth management in Goldman's Los Angeles office. Rodriguez knew the Yankees have a close relationship with the investment bank, which was instrumental in the launch of the team's YES Network.
Mallory called Cardinale, who works in the merchant banking section in New York and helped finance the network. Cardinale in turn got in touch with Yankees president Randy Levine.
The sides still are working on putting together a provision that would allow Rodriguez to share revenue created by his pursuit of the career home record held by Barry Bonds, who was indicted yesterday on perjury and obstruction charges. A-Rod has 518 homers, 244 shy of the mark.
