I never said early afternoon. Source is in a meeting, anyway, so I can't get the goods just yet. But, hey, it's fun to string you guys along (at the same time it's being done to me). Misery loves company. Muh ha ha ha ha!
haha... Vescey... tell your source that the jerk store called... and they're running out of you. Seriously... this whole thing is effecting my board humor... LETS FINISH IT!!!
Total gut feeling on this, but my gut tells me he signs here. Everything that I've heard in reports (and from folks in the Houston sports scene) tells me he (and, particularly his wife) really loves it in Houston. The Latino community has been very open with him and the city as a whole has embraced him. It reminds me a little of that movie The Late Shift about the Leno vs Letterman late night wars. Mike Ovitz is explaining to Letterman that the offer with CBS is better than getting the Tonight Show because CBS would make him their number one signature star and, "I can't put a price tag on that." To me, that is what the Astros are essentially telling Beltran - you will be our #1 marquis guy just like Bagwell and Biggio have been for all these years. We will market our entire franchise around you. It is hard to put a price tag on that kind of pitch. Plus, even if he gets 6 or 7 million more from the Mets, that is hardly enough to negate the cost of living difference between New York and Houston. I hope I'm right because I don't know, but my gut tells me he's staying.
Yea...well...your their number one seller. I believe that was the comeback on "Seinfeld". LOL Surfguy eats his snickers on a plate with a knife and fork. Surfguy is gettin mad!!!!! BELTRAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The book was amazing, the movie mildly entertaining crap. Rich Little ON-SCREEN as Carson? c'mon Who will play Uncle Drayton when they turn this thing into a TV-movie? Larry David already has the Steinbrenner role!
Don't know if this has been posted... Story Link Friday, January 7, 2005 By BOB KLAPISCH SPORTS COLUMNIST NorthJersey.com The Mets' fantasy of a clean-sweep winter - Pedro Martinez, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado, all at Shea by Opening Day - was slowed by a 1-2 reality combination on Thursday. The first potential setback occurred in mid-afternoon, when the Yankees came to terms with Randy Johnson and prepared to unleash their dollars on Beltran. A separate, second front was opened by the Astros, who learned they have greater incentive than ever to sign the free-agent center fielder. According to a major league source, Roger Clemens has told owner Drayton McLane he'll retire if Beltran isn't re-signed by the Astros. With less than 48 hours left before the 'Stros lose their negotiating rights to Beltran, McLane is under enormous pressure to raise his offer beyond the current six-year package worth, $84 million package. Late in the evening, the Astros did just that, upping the deal to six years, $105 million – and telling Beltran to take it or leave it. “The offer we have out there, that's the only one we're going to give,” McLane told the Houston Chronicle. “There are no more… If that fits them, terrific. If not, then we have to move on." The Mets have been borderline-delirious imagining they can win the Beltran sweepstakes, but they're not completely blind. In fact, there's a healthy skepticism that, despite their staggering seven-year, $112 million offer, Beltran will return to Houston now that McLane has achieved near-parity with Fred Wilpon. But if Houston prevails, it won’t be because of Clemens' influence or McLane’s dollars. Instead, it'll be Beltran's wife, Jessica Lugo, who will have emerged as the real winner. Although she was quoted in a Puerto Rican newspaper this week saying, "I don't have a favorite (team) yet" friends says Lugo has made it clear she wants her husband to play for the Astros. The 27-year-old Beltran, quiet and religious, is depending heavily on his wife in the decision-making process. That may foil agent Scott Boras' goal of delivering his client to the highest bidder. That's why the Mets flew to Puerto Rico on Monday - not only to hand-deliver their offer, but to gauge Beltran's mood. They used every possible sales-pitch, including the one which guarantees Beltran will be the Mets' biggest star. That's a promise the Yankees can't make or keep. According to people familiar with Monday's talks in San Juan, both parties walked away smiling, but a day later, the Mets couldn't shake the feeling that Beltran's heart is elsewhere. Still, the Mets deserve credit for this much: their willingness to negotiate aggressively speaks to the Wilpons' commitment to winning, or at least putting a viewable product on the air in 2006, when their new cable network is launched. It's just too bad Fred Wilpon waited until now to start spending. Had he been this bold a year ago, the Mets might've been able to snare free agent Vladimir Guerrero and Jim Duquette, a smart executive who deserved better, probably would've kept his job. Instead, Duquette was the one saddled with the $80 million payroll and the leftover garbage from the Steve Phillips era. These days, Omar Minaya is the rising star, but the Wilpons' decision to dole out $100 million this year helps, too. The surplus cash made it possible for the Mets to sign Pedro Martinez, and they have every right to think they can score another upset in the Beltran wars. But this time, the Mets' path is littered with obstacles. Take the Yankees, for instance. All week, they've claimed to be focusing on Johnson instead of Beltran - a simple game of rope-a-dope that fooled no one. "I don't believe for one second the Yankees aren't in this," said one National League executive. It's no coincidence that Johnson's contract was completed on Thursday, giving Steinbrenner two full days to blow away the Mets' offer and appeal to Beltran's huger to play for a winner. Remember, this is a star who spent 6 1/2 years suffocating in Kansas City, so if anyone is ready for the promised land, it's Beltran. By all accounts, the Yankees are ready for him, too. Beltran is exactly the powerful, speedy under-30 talent the Bombers lack and can build their team around, especially with Jason Giambi having become a non-person, Bernie Williams' career nearly finished, and Tino Martinez in his decline phase. If the Yankees sign Beltran, questions about their aging roster will be quieted, at least temporarily. But the more significant doubts are within Beltran himself. If his friends are right, Beltran is waging an impossible war, trying to balance the efforts of his super-agent, Boras, against the wishes of his family. That's why Clemens' ultimatum to McLane, which the pitcher publicly insists publicly was never made, could be the deciding factor here. With the Astros now coughing up enough money and using Texas’ favorable tax laws to keep pace with the Mets, Beltran might just stay put. Naturally, that would be a huge victory for the Astros. The Yankees would rationalize the loss by saying they were never that interested, anyway, especially after acquiring Johnson. But the Mets? They're gotten close enough to probably feel heartbroken, even if they signed Delgado. After all, hitting the Martinez-Beltran-Delgado trifecta wouldn't just help the Mets' public relations campaign, it would make them a real threat to the Braves and Phillies. But without Beltran, the Mets' are looking at a more modest 84-87 win summer. That's why this off-season ride has been so exhausting for the team's executives. One minute they're imagining their new, hip, Latino all-star squad. The next, they're worrying about who'll drive in the runs at first base and what to do about centerfield while Mike Cameron heals from wrist surgery. The Mets' cash is on the table, but so are their hopes and dreams. Only 48 hours to go, and everyone's sweating profusely.
I say if he signs we throw a parade for Miss Lugo =) Hell if she wants to drink she can drink for free at my place any time if Beltran signs.
WOW......that is a seriously positive article for us..i guarantee anyone who is married can tell you that this... Although she was quoted in a Puerto Rican newspaper this week saying, "I don't have a favorite (team) yet" friends says Lugo has made it clear she wants her husband to play for the Astros. The 27-year-old Beltran, quiet and religious, is depending heavily on his wife in the decision-making process. That may foil agent Scott Boras' goal of delivering his client to the highest bidder. is a good thing for us
I live three blocks from Andy Pettite and I can GUARANTEE you everyone that knows them knows that's how he ended up here. Never underestimate our women and their influence...But if Houston prevails, it won’t be because of Clemens' influence or McLane’s dollars. Instead, it'll be Beltran's wife, Jessica Lugo, who will have emerged as the real winner.
