Brian Cashman is serious when he said that Jeter should test the market and see if any other club wants to throw $45 million at an aging shortstop. And Jeter's agent, Casey Close, is probably being somewhat truthful when he called the Yankees' offer "baffling."
But the Yankees know what they have (and more importantly, what they'd be losing) in Jeter. Likewise, the 36-year-old knows what he has in New York.
In the Bronx, Jeter is a legend. Even if he puts on the pinstripes for the next five years and goes 0-for-2,500, he'll retire a Yankee legend. He'll be welcomed back each season to throw out a first pitch. He'll become a fixture in the ballpark, taking over the reins from Yogi Berra and the like. He'll have endorsement deals coming out the wazoo. He'll be invited to make graduation speeches. He'll have billboards, maybe even his own restaurant.
Can he get most of that even if he finishes out his career somewhere else? Maybe. But really, Jeter has nothing to gain by tarnishing his Yankee legacy. And he knows that.
The Yankees, meanwhile, are simply being smart. They know that $45 million over three years is too much money for Jeter, but they know that overpaying for Jeter is something they just have to do. That doesn't mean they're willing to open the vault and let Jeter take what he wants. They have to at least abide by some principle, even if that means paying a player $45 million when his actual baseball value is maybe one-third of that.
It's not all that dissimilar to the panic around Boston over the summer, when Tom Brady was still without a contract … even though he was under contract for the 2010 season. While much of it was contrived for sports talk radio and newspaper columns, there was plenty of talk of Brady wanting to play for San Francisco, or maybe a new Los Angeles team, or maybe the Jets! Why else would he sneak the initials J.E.T. into his first son's name?
But anyone who looked at the situation with any sort of reason knew that Brady wasn't going anywhere. Before the season began, they were proven right.
While it's a bit different for Jeter in terms of him actually being a free agent, it's still the same. He's not going anywhere.
In the meanwhile, Yankee fans and Yankee haters will spend a lot of time wondering about the future of Derek Jeter. They'll do so because, quite simply, it's fun. There may be no more entertaining idea than the thought of the Red Sox offering four years and $100 million to end his career playing at Fenway Park. It would be like Wade Boggs riding that damn horse in Yankee Stadium, except multiplied by 50. Or maybe 100.
It's funny to think about, but it won't happen. Jeter and his agent are playing hardball, and Cashman's giving it right back. "It's a business," they say.
Yet, it's bad business for both parties to sever ties with each other, and they're both acutely aware of that situation.
Derek Jeter, New York Yankee, past, present, future, always.
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