Did anyone see the interview of him on MLB Network? Harold Reynolds asked hm why he thinks the Yankees didn't resign him. Talk about awkward. Essentially said the Yankess were listening to rumors about him and that lead to lack of or breakdown in communication. Clearly he did not want to get into details and eneded by saying he hoped he didn't have to rehash that again. Reynolds and company felt the Yankees were passing on Damon not just for money but also to help the defense.
Well if you consider he was going to make something like $13M with the Yanks and now will make $8M with the Tigers, that sounds right. I think they asked him to take a cut and he would not.
he overplayed his hand. he refused to negotiate with the yanks when the season ended because he had a good postseason. thought his stock was sky high. then reality set in. he turned down a couple more teams after that costing himself even more money. this one is mainly on boras which is awesome because boras told the yanks he would not accept anything less than 13 mill. i guess boras hasnt been keeping up with the economy the last couple years or something.
if he were younger, his stock would have been much higher. but in reality, he's 36 years old, not as good of a fielder as he once was, and throws like a girl. making him basically DH material, except he don't hit like a DH when he's outside of the launching pad known as the new Yankee Stadium.
he played a lot of games the last couple years hurt probably for this contract. id be shocked if he even played 120 games this year. dude was always limping, pulling a quad or something it seemed. hardly stole any bases atop the order. and yeah i cant stomach watching him throw. its painful.
Yes, even as he tried to put a happy face on the one-year, $8 million contract he signed with the Tigers, Damon finally made it clear that he was stung badly by the Yankees' unwillingness to pay him what he thought he was worth. "We're coming off a great year and you're told you've gotta take a pay cut," Damon said. "You're kind of like, 'A pay cut? What the heck?' It's a little humbling. "You're like, 'Wow, is that what they really think of me? Or what I do for the ballclub?' I did a lot for the ballclub. I even recruited (free agents) for those guys. I did everything." Obviously, Damon felt that helping the Yankees win a World Series was enough to warrant a new contract at the $13 million a year he'd made for his four years in pinstripes. As a result, he admitted that, yes, agent Scott Boras told GM Brian Cashman not to bother making an offer if it was for less than $13 million per. "I let Scott do his work," Damon said. "That's why he's there. In the end, I think he did a great job. It's funny, though. Every time I'm a free agent, I'm always on a new team." Yeah, Boras, what a dealmaker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Read more: Johnny Damon finally finds new home with Detroit Tigers, but still takes swing at New York Yankees
Cry me a river, Johnny. It's a business and you're a big boy. Enjoy your $8MM and having nothing to play for after the 4th of July.
