So Scott Boras predictably threw the gauntlet down in the Matt Holliday negotiations. Geez, couldn’t he wait to announce this during the World Series? Anyway, no worries, because Matt Holliday will not get Mark Teixeira money. As a matter of fact it will be hard to imagine any player this side of Albert Pujols getting Mark Teixeira years and dollars in the near future.

You have to give Boras credit for being a great salesman. Funny how this story comes out and on Sunday I was thinking how close Teixeira and Holliday are in terms of age and numbers. I find it odd that Boras called Holliday a “complete player” when in reality it’s Teixeira that fits that billing. Regardless, Holliday is looking at about a 5-6 year contract for around $100 million dollars. He will get more Carlos Beltran money than Teixeira.

I had Frank Russo poke around with his Yankee source. Last offseason Frank was accurate when he predicted the Yankees would go to $180 million, if necessary, for CC Sabathia and they coveted Teixeira. When we asked about Holliday we were told the Yankees “won’t break the bank” for him. If you remember, Frank actually told us during the summer on the radio show that Holliday yearned for pinstripes. If he really wants to play at Yankee Stadium he may have to take a discount.

When you start to look at things logically you need a Yankees/Red Sox bidding war for this to get anywhere near 8 years/$180 million. As a matter of fact I believe he has a better chance of returning to St. Louis than receiving a Teixeira deal. Even though Jason Bay is two years older there are reports already that he is looking for about a 4 year deal. I personally believe Bay is a huge health risk, but at 3-4 years and $15 million per there will be more teams willing to give him that type of contract. Bay is a decent fallback option that didn’t exist with Teixeira. There is also the home/road splits. Teixeira benefitted from his home ballpark over the years, but not to the extent of Holliday. There is only a half season of productivity with Holliday outside of Coors Field. Teixeira produced in Atlanta and Anaheim over the course of two years after leaving Texas. Even though, statistically, their close the value of a Teixeira is far more than Holliday. All the evidence you need was in his fielding display during yesterday’s Game 3.

Unless there is a mystery team ready to blow him out of the water (i.e. Anaheim) I don’t expect the bidding to get crazy for Holliday. This gives the Mets a decent chance of landing the slugger, but if all things are equal it sounds like the Bronx is a preferred destination over Flushing. I predict Holliday gets 5 years plus an option with a total value of about $115 million.

Tags: Boston Red Sox, CC Sabathia, Jason Bay, Mark Teixeira, Matt Holliday, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Scott Boras