I am not sure how the word “baffling” can be childish. It is Close’s perception of the Yankees posture, and I think he is dead on. Cashman has developed a reputation for keeping things very close to the vest. Heck, did anyone even hear the name Rothschild before he was hired? With Jeter, however, the entire organization is lining up to chime in on the process. What happened to not negotiating in public? That’s very baffling to me.

And, before you place all the blame on Close for being baffled, the Yankees’ tone was set early on when Hal Steinbrenner used a rare public appearance to say “things could get messy”.

The Yankees have handled this negotiation in a very regretful manner and have betrayed the principals that they claim to portray. Why they’ve decided to take that tact with Jeter is, well, for lack of a better word, baffling.

Taking the other side, the one with the very short line, calling the Yankees position (the side with the deep pockets) using the word “baffling” to describe the Yankees position strikes me as childish and churlish. Close, for all his great skills (today’s NYT if you will) missed the ball by a mile. His failure to come up with a more appropriate pitch must have been happened at a tasteful dinner for four with Minka and his trophy wife where beauty distracted him from his dictionary. We have all suffered the same plight in the company of pulchritude,

[15] If Cashman (and the rest of the Yankees brass) were actually interested in playing by Jeter’s “rules” (such a rulebook could be called “how to be a professional”) – they never would have stooped to using the news media to explain their negotiating position.

[8] I don’t think he’s a self centered jock at all, Alex. I remember you posted this article here on the Banter.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=bryant_howard&id=4068889

For me he is all class. He doesn’t want any attention for any of the things he feels he’s suppose to do.

Does he feel entitled to certain amount of respect because of how he has carried himself? Yes, absolutely. This is not Terrell Owens type of respect we are talking about either. Who doesn’t want respect and/or things to be handled on the up-and-up? If that makes him selfish, well, then, we’ve all been guilty of that at one point or another and it’s not even about being human. It is absolutely about respect. I’m not talking about the $’s or the terms of the contract, but strictly how the Yanks have handled themselves in this instance.

In the end it’s not my money, I feel the Yanks could have handled this much better. I would never tell me my girlfriend, you know what, go see if you find someone better. Just because she didn’t like that I didn’t get her flowers on a particular day. That would be disrespectful and diminishing our relationship. Or, you know who many times I bought you dinner already? I’ve fed you enough so you’ll never have to go hungry.

The Yankees, I feel they have diminished Jeter to just another FA. That’s what bugs me. They can play hardball with someone like Kerry Wood and leak out information to the press there, but not in this instance. Baffling indeed.

Anyway. Hey, I’m gonna be in NYC for T-Day! It’s been quite a while since I’ve done this, but, lots of family will be squished into a tiny apartment, everything will smell great, that kind of thing.

Jeter hasn’t done anything in this process to merit the negative reaction he seems to be getting. It’s almost as if some people are anticipating his response, and simply can’t wait to lower the boom. I’d liked to think Jeter has earned the benefit of the doubt, but an increasing number of Yankee fans seem ready to attack.

No look, Jeter has always handled himself well, but he’s not without his flaws. He has drawn a very clear line for the media, and he’s never really deviated. Even when people said he was boring. Even when people said he was letting Arod twist in the wind. Even when he seemed overly harsh to a scrub catcher after getting a dislocated shoulder.

I think you can draw some conlcusions over, what a 15 year period, from how a guy has composed himself in the public eye.

But, Alex, you have a finer eye for these things.