Is Eight Years and $160M Enough?

It's hard to comprehend a contract to play baseball that runs eight years and will pay the player $160 million. I'm not going to get all philosophical on you, but that's a heck of a lot of money.

But is it enough? Scott Boras said at the beginning of this adventure that it would take 10 years and $200 million. I think everyone thought at that point that statement was a bunch of posturing. But with a firm offer on the table by the worst team in the league last year at eight years/$160 million, can 10/$200 million be that far off? 

Most everyone knows by now that Mark Teixeira grew up in the Chesapeake Bay watershed and would be more than happy to play for one of the teams that call that region home—if the money was right.

We can figure that the Yankees probably won't be making an offer since they're courting every single blue chip pitcher on the market. Boston covets the switch-hitting 1B as well. And the Angels, and owner Arte Moreno, would really like to keep Tex on the payroll.  The Orioles?  They made a bid as well, reportedly one fewer year and varying accounts of the dollars.

So it seems we know two things now:

1) The opening bid, and

2) The suitors are down to just four

It would shock me at this point if the Orioles' offer at this point is the winner. The Nats offer is already so well past the "feeling out" point that the O's can't come in and try to get him for anything less.

So that leaves just three, and maybe really only two. The Angels have said that Tex was their "first priority," but don't their efforts seem just a little lackadaisical? Doesn't it seem like they keep throwing their name out there just to say they were staying in it? We've seen that act for a while now, so I'd hope that we would recognize it when we see it.

And Boston really just got into it in the last couple of days. Everyone assumes that Theo Epstein will sweep in and whisk Tex away from the next biggest suitor, but has the bar already been set too high? And what would the Sox do with veteran fan favorite Mike Lowell?

Could we be seeing a situation unfolding where, like A-Rod with the Rangers, the first offer is the best?

We probably won't know for a few days at the very least. But with a solid offer on the table and apparently a lot of effort put into this from both sides already, it's not too hard to start envisioning an early present under the tree for Nats fans.

If a last place team is going to break the bank for one player, wouldn't it be a switch-hitting, gold glove caliber first baseman entering the prime of his career?  If not now, when?

But with all things related to Scott Boras, it ain't over 'til it's over.