Spring Invite for Bern, Bonds Contract Rejected, General Manager's Fastfood Marriage

RedSox GM Theo Epstein got married recently. It wasn't in Boston and it wasn't at the Four Seasons:

Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein, known for his stealth in baseball deals, quietly got married this month, according to a published report.

The Boston Globe reported Wednesday that Epstein's father, Leslie Epstein, confirmed his son married Marie Whitney in New York at the original Nathan's Famous hot dog stand, built in 1916.

"We're very happy for them, of course, but we can't say much more other than Marie has some strong childhood memories of Coney Island, and that's why we all went down to watch the orthodox rabbi who married them at Nathan's Famous. It's amazing the grip that nostalgia has on people," the elder Epstein, head of the creative writing department at Boston University, told the Globe in an e-mail.

Are you kidding me? Not only does Theo get married in the Evil Empire's lair, he does so at a Nathan's Famous? And his parents sounded thrilled about the ceremony. Sounded like a child at the dinner table after Daddy smacked Mommy during an argument. I had heard of drive-through marriages in Vegas, but hot dog stands? That takes some cajones or maybe just a little too big an obsession with frankfurters.

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The Yankees invited Bernie Williams to Spring training as a nonguaranteed minor leaguer.

Although he could more money somewhere else, Williams seems immovable. John Heyman says:
Williams still could decide to retire, too. But the third option, which is to sign a better deal with another team, seems to be out of the question.

Though Williams could have gotten a guaranteed contract elsewhere, people close to him say he considers himself a Yankee and only a Yankee.

Williams knows that if he decides to return for what amounts to a tryout, through no fault of his own he becomes the story of spring, superseding returning hero Andy Pettitte, at least until Roger Clemens decides whether to rejoin them.

If Bernie decides to accept the Spring invitation - which is a slap in the face & the ultimate portrayal of loyalty - there is always the outside chance that he could make the team. With Joe Torre's admiration for Bernie, he would push hard to make room for him on the roster. We'll see what happens, but I would think that Melky's status as a trade chip has died down - until the trading deadline maybe.

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After writing yesterday that the Bonds contract has finally been finalized, the Commish has thrown a monkey-wrench into the deal. Apparently, Bud Selig rejected the agreement:

Complicating matters, Bonds' contract was not approved by the commissioner's office because it contained a personal-appearance provision, a baseball executive said Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity because those details had not been made public.

Bonds' agent, Jeff Borris, said late Tuesday the team was redrafting the agreement and sending him a revised version by express mail for Bonds to review and sign.

Surely, there are technical reasons why the commissioner's office did not approve the contract, but there might be more behind it. Maybe Selig will reject any deal offered until Barry Bonds is forced out of baseball. Wait, that's just a fantasy of mine, but the Commish sure isn't making it easy on Bonds.