President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski yesterday seemed to indicate that the Red Sox "will do what they can" to stay under the $195M luxury-tax threshold in the new CBA, according to Brian MacPherson of the PROVIDENCE JOURNAL. Such an approach "would not necessarily require them to shed salary, but it would preclude them from making a major move for an eighth-inning reliever and a middle-of-the-order hitter." Dombrowski: "Nobody likes to bear penalties. There’s a reason they call it penalties." MacPherson notes the Red Sox have "exceeded the luxury-tax threshold in each of the last two seasons," incurring a penalty of 17.5% on the overage the first time and 30% on the overage the second time. The penalty for the second offense has "not yet been disclosed but is not expected to be" more than $5M. Under the terms of the new CBA, the Red Sox would pay a 50% penalty on their overage -- a $10M tax on a $215M payroll, for example. As it stands, "including required payments for player benefits, the Red Sox payroll for luxury-tax purposes looks to be around" $180M (PROVIDENCE JOURNAL, 12/6). In Boston, Michael Silverman notes the Red Sox are "operating with serious financial restraint." Silverman: "That does not mean they are cheap, because the payroll says they have done plenty of spending. It means that they ain’t spending this year" (BOSTON HERALD, 12/6). But also in Boston, Alex Speier writes a "large segment of the baseball industry is skeptical that Dombrowski will limit himself to such narrow parameters." He is "perennially among the most aggressive dealers of the offseason," and he always found a way to "dive into the waters of change" during his time with the Tigers (BOSTON GLOBE, 12/6).
DOWN THE ROAD: In N.Y., John Harper notes the Yankees' offseason is "defined by restraint," as the club opted not to overpay for P Rich Hill and "took a one-year flyer" on LF Matt Holliday rather than committing long-term to DH Edwin Encarnacion. This signals the Yankees are "smartly sticking to their rebuild rather than succumbing to any temptation to sell tickets." Harper: "It really shouldn’t be a surprise, based on what they’ve done the last couple of winters, avoiding the free-agent market at virtually every turn." Even though the Yankees "missed the playoffs for the third time in four years," Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner "isn’t budging." A source said that Steinbrenner has "been on the phone with GM Brian Cashman 'several times a day' throughout this off-season, taking an active role in what the ball club will and will not do in acquiring players" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 12/6). Cashman said, "We’ve got a stated effort to get younger, but the Yankee way is to stay competitive at the same time. ... The difficulty is having the patience. It's tougher to have patience in a big market than it is in a small market because you're forced to" ("MLB Now," MLB Network, 12/5).
