It's Time We Commend Kenny Williams for his Work

Now when you read that title and you pair that with the news that Sox have pulled its offer to Johnny Damon, you're probably telling yourself that I am a crazy person or something to that effect. The truth is that Kenny Williams is playing this one very well. It is well known that Williams and super-agent Scott Boras don't get along and very rarely negotiate together (Assistant GM Rick Hahn is usually the one in charge of negotiating contracts with Boras clients). Williams isn't a person who likes to be wrapped up in the games that Boras plays to get the most money possible for his clients and there has been speculation that these same types of games have been going on with Johnny Damon.

Some people are suggesting that the Detroit Tigers never really offered a contract that spanned two years and about $14 million and now we get to see if that deal did actually exist or if Boras was just using writers and insiders to boost the price of his client.

When you read into the comments that Williams made about the offer being pulled you could tell there is still a high level of interest in Damon on the side of the Sox but this is a way to tell Damon to not let his agent get in the way of making this decision. I understand money is a big factor when deciding where to go, especially after you've already won two world championships, but it's also about comfort level and Mrs. Damon has reportedly said she prefers Chicago to Detroit (and in reality, who wouldn't?).

What this move also does is it can speed up this process immensely. I know as a Sox fan I've been scouring message boards and Twitter to try to get the latest news on where Damon has decided to play and it's been painful as a fan. I can't imagine what Williams feels like to be jerked around in this charade, so this move can work one of three ways. Either the Tigers' 2 year offer is real and Damon takes it in the next hours or day, Damon stops talking to the Sox altogether and works out a deal with the Tigers, or Damon tells Boras to get out of the way and takes the offer the Sox originally had available to him.

I think lately the owners and GMs in Major League Baseball have caught on to the way Boras works and are making a point to not outbid themselves for the services of his clients. This can be seen in the players that are firing Boras as their representation. Boras for whatever reason was extremely successful at getting his clients the maximum money available in previous years but those numbers have come down in recent years. You can say that is because of the economy and whatnot but I think the front offices are getting a grasp on how Boras works and are trying to put a stop to it.

Wherever Damon picks, we'll know that Kenny Williams and the Chicago White Sox won't be duped into outbidding themselves for a player no one else was bidding for.

Top Free Agents Available

With pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training in just a few weeks I thought it'd be a good idea to highlight some of the free agents that are shockingly still available:

1. Orlando Hudson: I'm really surprised he is still available. Granted the O-Dog was lost playing time at the end of last season, but he was still productive with an OPS of .774. He is probably overvaluing himself right now which is why some teams aren't eager to sign him because he is 33. I still think he could be productive and unfortunately I see his destination being Washington.

2. Johnny Damon: Damon hit a career high 24 home runs and had a career high .854 OPS last season, so on the surface it's hard to see why he doesn't have a job yet. But when you look a little deeper, the question has to be asked how much help did Damon receive from the new Yankee Stadium being a launching pad for home runs? Is he worth his desired $13 million? No, but he definitely deserves a pretty good pay day because he isn't showing signs of breaking down and being unproductive. I see Damon and the Yankees striking a deal in the near future.

3. Jermaine Dye: Jermaine Dye doesn't want to DH full time yet, but his defense is declining so he's put in a tough situation. The Cubs have called and seem interested in him as a 4th outfielder, I don't see Dye taking that unless there are no other options. I think he's better suited to be a DH/4th Outfielder type, a logical choice would be the White Sox, but I don't see it happening.  I don't really have a clue where he could wind up, but I'll just guess that it's the White Sox or the Cubs.

4. Erik Bedard: If you're like me, you'll notice that you probably haven't seen much on Bedard this offseason since he had surgery in August and won't be ready for the the first half of the season it looks like. When healthy, Bedard is a very good starter and could have a Pedro Martinez like impact this season for the club that signs him. I have nothing to suggest this will happen but my guess is that Bedard ends up in St. Louis, he just seems like a Cardinals like signing to sure up the back of the rotation down the stretch.

5. Ben Sheets: Sheets has been throwing for clubs recently and looks to be close to signing somewhere with a lot of interest. Sheets is a lot like Bedard in that he can be filthy when healthy, he's just never healthy. The Mariners have been touted as the winner of the off-season and I think they really think they can win it all and will look at Sheets to fill the rotation out after King Felix and Cliff Lee. The Mariners are my guess but the Dodgers or Mets might not be far behind.