Davidoff's Baseball Insider

The relentless agent

It now appears that Johnny Damon might emerge from free agency having saved face, as the Tigers are ready to give the leftfielder-DH a two-year deal for about $14 million.

Such a package, pulled when no other team came close, shows how good agent Scott Boras is. But it also shows that Boras and Damon deserve the blame for their failure to reach agreement with the Yankees.

Boras has told many reporters, including myself, that he didn't hear from the Yankees for more than a week, and the next thing he knew, the Yankees had a deal with Nick Johnson. Yet if you believe that, you believe that Boras sat back and did nothing.

How did Boras get this Tigers deal? He romanced owner Mike Ilitch, going above Detroit general manager Dave Dombrowski, and the agent also has a strong relationship with Tigers manager Jim Leyland, beneath Dombrowski. He conducted interviews with the area media, insisting what a great fit Damon would be with the Tigers.

Why didn't he try the same tactics with the Yankees? Because he and Damon both believed the silent treatment would pressure the Yankees to bend on their offer.

I refuse to believe Boras was victimized by the Yankees, because I think too much of Boras. If he thought it would help, he would've dressed as a cookie-selling Girl Scout and rung Hal Steinbrenner's doorbell.

Room for a Sheff?

Gary Sheffield has no bona fide offers, according to a person in the loop. The Mets foolishly wore Sheffield down last year, but a National League team should consider signing the 41-year-old solely as a righthanded pinch hitter. If he starts misbehaving, just release him.

Right move on Wang

Ignore the denials. Chien-Ming Wang will sign a one-year, $2-million deal with the Nationals shortly, with another $3.25 million attainable in incentives.

Considering that Wang's return date from right shoulder surgery is uncertain, it's clear the marketplace backed up the Yankees' decision to not tender Wang a contract. The minimum the Yankees could've offered him was $4 million.

Sun sets on (some) Rays

The Yankees and Red Sox look to be excellent this coming season, but by all means, don't write off the Rays. They'll be throwing a wealth of talent out there, and their maturing as a franchise can be exemplified with this reality:

Some of their key players will be in their walk year.

Face of the franchise Carl Crawford, first baseman Carlos Peña, new closer Rafael Soriano and designated hitter Pat Burrell all will be playing for new contracts. In Crawford's case, Tampa Bay will try to extend the 28-year-old leftfielder before the Yankees can make a run at him next offseason.

"Different guys respond differently. I don't foresee a problem at all," Tampa Bay executive vice president Andrew Friedman said this past week in a telephone interview. "They're all focused on the 2010 Rays."

In fact, the situation could be a boon rather than a problem. Statistical studies indicate that many players do experience a positive bump in their walk years. With a payroll projected to be close to $80 million, the Rays aren't quite the Davids against the Goliaths that they were when they reached the 2008 World Series with a payroll of about $43 million. Yet they're still competing at a distinct disadvantage. Friedman said of the Yankees and Red Sox: "Nothing they did really surprised us. Both are going to be extremely good in 2010."