Despite Whining, Barry is Black Balled

Jeff Borris: “I offered Barry at the minimum salary, and when I ran into a brick wall, that's when I came to the conclusion that he will not be in a major league uniform in 2008. I'm not a negative person. I'm one of those 'never say never' guys. But it seems pretty clear to me that it's just not happening. We could go up and down the rosters of every single team and I could show you an awful lot of spots where he ought to be plugged in right now, but it's just not happening.”

“If everything were fair and equal in the world, Barry should get a fair market value offer. But since everything is not fair and equal, I decided to offer him for the minimum. I thought for sure there would be a taker, and there were none. If that doesn't raise the level of suspicion, I don't know what does.”

“If you look at his numbers in the outfield last year, he didn't embarrass himself. Is he the defensive gazelle that he was back in the '80s and '90s? No. But there are a lot of other outfielders I see out there who are not as good as him right now. And even if he were just average, couple that with his bat and a $390,000 salary and you have a can't-miss.”

“The rumors about Arizona, the Mets and Boston are completely false. He never had a secret workout with the Red Sox. I've had numerous conversations with all three organizations, back to the time when Barry became a free agent in November of '07, and none of those clubs are interested in him. Barry would play for any one of those clubs if they extended an offer. Would he make a difference in the standings? I think so, no matter what team he played for.”