J.D. Drew opts out
Today we learned from Scott Boras that J.D. Drew has decided to opt out of the final three years of his contract with the Dodgers. This certainly surprised most of us in the organization, given his previous comments to the contrary, but apparently there was a change of heart.
When Bill Plunkett first wrote that J.D. would not be going anywhere, I remember congratulating him on the "big scoop," given that most of us considered it a given that he’d be returning in 2007. Here’s the article in the Orange County Register from Sept. 27:
Drew plans to stay around
DENVER – Going, going…nowhere.
The five-year, $55 million contract J.D. Drew signed with the Dodgers after the 2004 season included an opt- out clause, allowing him to end the relationship after two seasons.
But Drew said he is happy in Los Angeles and has given the clause so little thought he doesn’t even know the specifics of how he would activate it. Drew will have a brief window at the end of the World Series to exercise the opt-out clause.
“I don’t plan on (using) it,” he said Tuesday. “I’ve enjoyed my time living in Los Angeles. That’s what it was there for – to make sure (wife) Sheigh and I didn’t come all the way across the country (from their native Georgia) and get stuck in a situation we didn’t like.”
Drew said the clause has hardly come up in discussions with his agent, Scott Boras, since the original negotiations. He couldn’t imagine any reason for his opinion to change between now and the end of the season, prompting him to use the opt-out option.
“You know what – I don’t think so,” said Drew, who also has a limited no trade clause. “Ultimately it’s my decision, and we’re happy where we’re at. We love our house in Pasadena. My wife is happy. She’s made a lot of friends in our neighborhood and with the other players’ wives. That’s really the thing that was nerve-wracking about it (free agency) for me.
“At some point, you make those commitments and you stick to them.”
Considering his injury history, it’s unlikely Drew could do better on the market this winter than the three years and $33 million the Dodgers have committed to him.
—
That’s all we know for now, but it’s safe to say he won’t be back in blue in ’06. Keep an eye out on the site for more information in the form of an article from Ken Gurnick.
Inside the Dodgers 
Im SHOCKED!! I didn’t know Christmas could come in November??
I think Ned is jumping for joy. No more protecting J.D.’s injured body by resting him so much. We can get some nice durable players that pack some punch now. I love this day. I dedicate Nov. 9th 2006 as “Dodger Day”
I can’t believe this. JD gave us a good season in ’06 and certainly is a professional in making his intentions known so early. This gives Ned some much needed salary flexibility. I don’t know how JD can secure a deal like the one he opted out of. Not many guys make decisions like that. That certainly demonstrates personal integrity. Thanks JD.
sianora jd! the sand in my ****** is finally gone!!
WHAT!!!!!!
um, wow. This means something huge. My guesses of things to come:
1) Nomar gets re-signed, plays first base/second base/outfield, and next year Loney plays in Right or at first.
2) Alfonso Soriano will get a monster contract from the Dodgers with their newly freed-up resources.
3) The Dodgers will determine their centerfielder by tryout at spring training, basically. Could be Nomar, Soriano, Ethier, or Loney. I’m guessing Soriano.
4) Ethier or Loney will bat 5th to get a left-hander in the middle of the lineup.
5) The Dodgers will stick with Betemit or Laroche at third, because filling the outfield is a bigger priority.
I can guarantee 2 now, and I’m almost positive on 1. The one that makes me the happiest is 5. As for 3 and 4, that is speculation based on how Colletti apparently likes to have players earn their spots.
Lineup 2007
Furcal – SS
Ethier – LF
Nomar – RF/1B
SORIANO – CF
Loney – 1B/RF
Kent – 2B
Betemit/Laroche – 3B
Martin – C
Lineup 2008
Furcal – ss
Ethier – lf
Nomar – *2B*
Soriano – rf/cf
Loney – 1b
Betemit/Laroche – 3b
*KEMP* – CF/RF
Martin – C
I’M JUMPING FOR JOY!!!
But seriously this guy is delisual thinking his MADE OF GLASS BODY can get more money like i said before Boros is a snake in the grass!!!
Don’t let the door hit you on your way out JD! Uh… Interpol? Are you trying to spell “delusional”? Because if you are, I totally agree. How on Earth could JD Drew actually think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence? How I tell you? Just ask Scott Boras… the baseball anti-Christ.
While this is a bit unexpected, it really shouldn’t come as a complete surprise. After all, J.D. Drew’s agent is Scott Boras; you know, “baseball’s antichrist.”
Here is what Ken Rosenthal of Foxsports.com had to say:
“While Drew seems content with the Dodgers, his agent, Scott Boras, generally prefers his clients to determine their values on the open market.”
It will be interesting to see just who “on the open market” is going to be willing to offer the fragile .283 / 20 homerun / 100 RBI hitting Drew a contract that is better that the 3 year $33 million Dodger contract that Scott Boras just talked him into walking away from.
It won’t end here guys; don’t forget that Scott Boras is also Gagne’s and Maddux’s agent, too. I’m telling you, Scott Boras is single-handedly destroying the game of baseball, and he is doing so without so much as a hint of guilt. In those famous words of Jerry McGuire: “Show me the money!”
JD opting out comes as a bit of a surprise. figured he was happy in LA, but given the paucity of big bats out there, maybe he was hoping to land one last big contract. you have to figure that boras is working that angle, and working to maximize the paydays for his two clients — drew and soriano. this frees up considerable money for the dodgers to land soriano. and now, there’s also money to get zito!
i would like to see:
S furcal – ss
R soriano – cf
L loney – 1b
R garciaparra – rf
R kent – 2b
L ethier – lf
S betemit (laroche?) – 3b
P (zito, penny, lowe, maddux, bills and kuo). if we land zito and maddog, does that mean we move penny for some prospects or to upgrade 3b in order to free up a SP slot and some cash?
plus, with nomar and ethier in there, you have to figure there’s ABs for kent and repko. also, soriano would add insurance for kent at 2b.
although nomar is injury prone, no more so than drew and likely cheaper and with better fan support.
go dodgers. don’t let us down in the hot stove league…
**** drew **** Maddux & fu>>ck Boros!! don’t deal with this ***ing!! *** @@hole!!!
i swear i was starting to like Drew.
Good riddance! If I were in management I’d go into the locker room and throw out all of the princess pantyhose and dresses in the street. For what he was paid he gave very little and didn’t play all the time when the team needed him. I want to see who the ****** is that pays him more and will certainly regret it.
Woo AND hoo.
I’m not quite at the “good riddance” stage, because Drew was fairly productive, but getting the Dodgers off the hook for his age 31-33 seasons is huge. I don’t see where he thinks he’ll do better, even in this tight free agency market.
Wow…Depo actually might be as smart as people think. He gave a Boras client a big contract with a way out, so he could actually make more. And you know what, they do opt out for the hope of more money. It takes real smarts to actually know how greedy a Boras client can be. Nice Job…Depo!
As Ned said earlier this year about another Boras client (I think it was a college pitcher drafted by the Dodgers), “when its about the money, it’s always about the money.”
In this case, Depo out smarted Boras and actually helped the Dodgers. The one thing you can bank on is a Boras client going for more money. UnnnnBBBelievable.
Let’s give some good money to a person that wants to be a Dodger like NOMAR!
JD Drew is now disliked in ST. Louis, Philly, Atlanta and LA. I know I would want to sign this guy. Not bad for a guy who’s real initials are DJ. He has it all backwards!
BlueBleeder… Man… show some restraint dude. Kids read this forum you know…
stringtest – don’t take Martin for granted, man. I don’t want him to be the Mets’ next catcher in a few years.
JD FREAKING DREW IS GONE…I can’t believe it. I thought for sure we were just going to have to live with his presence in the middle of the line up.
What a great day.
Carlos Lee, Barry Zito, and possibly Schmity are going to be welcomed with open arms.
patriot — oversight on my part. thx. i completely forgot about C. odds are he’d bat 7th or 8th with that lineup, but he’d make for a solid 2 hole hitter, as would loney — both as guys who don’t strike out much and have great gap power. but loney in the 2 hole really leaves the middle of the lineup without a solid L bat.
and my mistake, thought boras represented soriano, too. maybe moving drew allows $$ for zito and maddux instead. but they certainly have the budget to bring them ALL back. question is, what about nomar and gagne, too?
Don’t underestimate Ethier.
Boras is clearly the reason this game is going in the Toilet !! See you later Drew !! I hope this back fires in your face !!!
Ned, this makes a clear statement, sign Nomar and get the best you can without giving up the farm !!
Believe in the Kids !!
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!!
I just realized that there IS a team out there that will sign J.D. Drew for more money – the San Diego Padres. Their special assistant for baseball operations is none other than PAUL DEPODESTA.
Hey, if you guys want an interesting read about J.D. Drew and Scott Boras, check out this article by Richard Lederer written on January 14, 2005: http://www.all-baseball.com/richbeat/archives/017084.html
GO DODGERS!
Gary, preach on! The farm system should not be squandered in a panic, and Ned Colletti is too prone to panic. I want him to at least talk to Grady first (Grady seems to have a calming effect on people).
But I have to disagree with you that the game is going in the toilet. First of all, MLB is not the game, it’s the league. Secondly, attendance is up, and it’s competitive. Third, the drop in TV viewing audience is due to the fact that, as any Dodger fan should know, Fox is awful. But the players are important enough that I think they should be paid what they are.
Fansince53- it is true that they’re probably going to let Dave Roberts go (again sounding familiar), but the Padres have holes now at 2nd and third base, and I would be shocked if they would put Drew in the outfield before, especially considering how they’ve already got a .400 OBP guy in Brian Giles.
But then again, leaving holes in the lineup and on the field is another trademark of how Depodesta ran the team (coughJasonPhillipscough). So that wouldn’t surprise me, except that no way San Diego ponies up that much dough. I’ll put my money (I have about $5 in change in a cup) on Drew playing in the AL East.
“I’ll put my money (I have about $5 in change in a cup) on Drew playing in the AL East.”
Looks like the Boston Red Sox would be a good fit for Drew.
On second thought… let the door hit you on your way out JD! You might injure your pinky or something and THEN where would you be! lol…
without his inky, he would tye like this
i have been away from my laptop all day.. i am barely hearing from this..i hope mike marshall jr leaves.. gives us more money to go out and get a real power hitter.. who in there right mind would give him more than he is already earning.. there is no way i want this bum back on the team next year..
BELIEVE IN BLUE!
In spite of Drew’s numbers last year, I was wishing that we could move him to some other team during the off-season. Now he’s GONE! WONDERFUL! It just opens up some real possibilities, and I’m delighted over whatever Ned can do with the freed up dollars for the next three years. Good Bye, Drew – you really didn’t do **** for us.
Wow! Boras strikes again. In Houston he screwed us with Beltran. Now he gets you guys with J.D. ,not that the Dodgers are any worse off. This with the many many slick deals he has pulled, is getting him rather wealthy at the expense of the Fans. This agent is out to corner the market any way he can. If I owned a team I would not do business with any of his clients. No team can be that stupid.
What! Drew gone? Break out the tinsle folks, because Christmas come early Dodger Fans! At this very moment I am bursting with joy. JD if you need any help packing your skirts and heels I can be at the stadium in about 25 minutes. I feel like doing a Toyota jump right now… I never thought I would say this, but thanks Mr. Boras. You just made my Christmas card list.
Hey Drew!!! Adios ****** ******!!!!!!!!
Beat it Drew!! I watched almost every game this year, and while I was never on the JD Drew hate-squad, that is the quietest 100 RBI season in the history of the game… and im not sorry to see him leave. I can not imagine he will get > $11M/year from anyone else, but WOW, who knows what goes through that guys mind. I, for one, want players who WANT to be Dodgers. Can anyone give an update on how Kemp is doing? that question just got A LOT more important!!!!
I am from Philly so JD/Boras
yeah,they are a lovable team.I now can honestly feel good about being a dodger fan again. JD/Boras never met a paycheck they were willing to earn. JD see fake injuries,number of games per season,haow well he hits in months ending in ER. Lets see JD/Georgia/Atlanta Braves plays for them but free agents to LA,signs contract with opt out because his wife and family want to be comfortable in LA because they are from Georgia and all.Something about handling his truths a bit carelessly! Oh yeah,Scott Bor-*** can you spell extortion. I wonder if he has ever been audited by IRS? He really does a lot to hide, I know this! Any as a Brooklyn/LA fan this a glorious day! Although I like Greg Maddux as a pitcher and is it Simon Gagne or Eric I forgot what he did! Only kidding I really thought he added something to the team. However PLEASE READ: NO PLAYER IS WORTH HAVING ON YOUR TEAM IF HE IS REPRESENTED BY SCOTT BOR-***. THERE ARE LOYALTY ISSUES WITH ALL HIS PLAYERS. What a great day to be a DODGER FAN!
Okay, so we lost the most expensive guy we had in the outfield. I wish you all could see me crying right now! hahahahaha Seriously, where is he gonna get more money than that? I’ve got good money that says hee goes to Boston. They just lost their version of Drew (Trot Nixon), but he wasn’t nearly as whiny or injury-prone. So we trade for Vernon Wells or buy Carlos Lee, Repko in right or center, Ethier in left or right, some quality starting pitchers, and we’ll be just fine. I totally disagree with the whole Nomar in RF thing. His body’s falling apart and that much running would probably do him in in a hurry. Who was it that said Soriano in CF? The guy has one year experience in the OF and he doesn’t really get good reads on balls. The line drives right at him would KILL him. Ask any outfielder, the line drive at you is the hardest ball to play.
JD – adios! It’s been real and it’s been fun, but you haven’t been real fun!
pls…oh pls…dodgers should trade for vernon wells…the dodgers need a power hitter and a proven gold glove cf and wells fits the description!! he’ll probably be cheaper than soriano and he’s much younger.