It was less than 3 weeks ago when Alex Rodriguez decided that the middle of World Series Game 4 was the opportune time to announce he was ditching the Yankees through a clause in his contract. At the time, Howard Stern sidekick (and lifelong Yankees fanatic) Artie Lange quipped: "Don't let the free-agency door hit you on the way out" (I'm paraphrasing to keep it clean, folks).

In the wake of this stunt, our own Georges Yared referred to A-Rod as a "crybaby extraordinaire" and a "selfish, self-centered you-know-what." Georges also noted that, "The attempt to upstage the Red Sox and Rockies should not be forgiven nor forgotten by the baseball brethren." Indeed, it was a classless move, one likely perpetrated by A-Rod's agent, but certainly given the green light by the third baseman himself.

And yet, here it is mid-November, and hijo pródigo A-Rod and the Yanks are back at the table. It's all sorts of amusing, really. This morning, it hit newswires that negotiations mediated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) officials have resulted in a new contract for the clutch player who isn't. Reportedly, A-Rod wanted to restart negotiations with the team, but chose to use a third party (Goldman representatives) instead of his agent, Scott Boras.

Corporate governance experts will tell you that executives generally perform best when their interests are aligned with those of their shareholders -- a CEO who owns a big chunk of stock tends to be more concerned about the interests of investors. After all, he is one! But does the same idea apply to baseball players?

Alex Rodriguez's super agent Scott Boras is said to be looking for a 10-year, $300 million deal for the star, and The Wall Street Journal has an idea (subscription required) for a novel way for a team to come up with the cash:

That is an awful lot for any team without the Yankees' payroll to commit to. But what if, as with a Wall Street firm, a chunk of it came in the form of equity? Such risk-sharing might be attractive for some team owners, though the compensation might need to be deferred to comply with league rules...

It sounds like an interesting idea. It might encourage Rodriguez, who has developed a reputation for being enigmatic at time, to engage in PR activities and really add value to the team, on and off the field.

It's probably a long shot, but definitely interesting to think about.

Yesterday, during the Boston Red Sox' sweep of the upstart and exciting Colorado Rockies, crybaby extraordinaire Alex Rodriguez decided it was "the time" to announce he was opting out of his contract with the New York Yankees and filing for free agency. He had to make a decision within 10 days after the World Series ended, not within 10 minutes of the start of Game 4.

What a selfish, self-centered you-know-what. This guy is a total and complete goofball. Sure his stats are fearsome, but he has never won at any level a championship. He had great numbers on flailing Seattle Mariner and Texas Ranger teams, but both rarely played .500 ball. After four seasons with the Yankees, Mr. No-October has taken the chicken's way out. The attempt to upstage the Red Sox and Rockies should not be forgiven nor forgotten by the baseball brethren.

This guy comes to New York and played next to Derek Jeter -- a real ball player. Jeter will never hit the home runs that A-Rod does -- Jeter has 195 career home runs in 12 seasons, compared to Rodriguez's 500 and some. But Jeter has won more games than A-Rod ever will. Derek Jeter may be one of the most clutch players and hitters to ever play the game. Jeter may go 0-4 in a game but make a diving stop at shortstop to kill an opponent's rally. Jeter may get the stolen base at the right time to start a rally: Jeter will sacrifice himself and hit the ball to the right side to move a teammate. Bottom line, Jeter is the complete player. With him, it's all about team.

With A-Rod -- it's all about him. In the playoffs, Rodriguez has been a total and miserable failure. Jeter is clutch. In the playoffs, year-in and year-out, Derek Jeter is the toughest out. Rodriguez is 0-18 in the playoffs with runners in scoring position: the ultimate barometer.

The Boston Red Sox won the World Series last night, so what is the baseball world buzzing about today? In the same way that the antics of train wrecks like Britney Spears steal headlines away from others with worthy accomplishments, we are writing about the Yankees and their messy divorce from future Hall-of-Famer Alex Rodriguez. Yesterday, A-Rod's agent, Scott Boras, announced that the third-sacker would take his option to terminate his 10-year, $252 million contract early and put himself up for auction.

In the typical classy Yankee way, Steinbrenner the Lesser, Hank, took the opportunity to blast the player, telling the New York Daily News, "He doesn't understand the privilege of being a Yankee on a team where the owners are willing to pay $200 million to put a winning product on the field."

After years of being crucified by the New York press, fans and front office for failing to hit enough to overcome a minor-league starting rotation and a gaggle of overpaid, over-aged teammates, who wouldn't want out?

The question now is who will step forward to pay A-Rod more than his previous contract? No other team enjoys the Yankees' attendance or media income. Fortunately, we're not talking Wall Street, but baseball, and business economics are not its forte. Remember that A-Rod signed his huge contract with Texas, who, when they came back to their senses and realized they couldn't cover that salary, were forced to deal him to New York while agreeing still to cover part of his salary.

Boras, known as the superagent, is too shrewd to make such a move without confidence that a least a couple of teams will contend to sign the best player in baseball. The Chicago Cubs could use his talents, although last year's signing of Alfonso Soriano tied up a lot of Chicago's cash. The Cubs could also go on the block soon, as well, and a lot of debt might not help that.

When Barry Bonds broke Hank Aaron's all-time record for home runs, it ignited a debate: How much was the historic baseball worth, and how much would it sell for? BloggingStocks writer Tom Barlow asked the question, "What is it really worth?"

To Barlow, it's worth nothing. Bonds is a cheater. But I have another take on it, and one that ties into the way I look at stocks. When investing, I want to buy a company with some kind of moat: If the moat surrounding the value of the Bonds ball is however many homers Bonds will finish his career with, how wide is that moat? Not too wide. Here are some people who have a shot at breaking the record:

• Alex Rodriguez
• Albert Pujols
• Ken Griffey, Jr. (This is a long shot but would be the feel-good story of all-time)

I am willing to make a bet: Whoever pays $400K+ for the Bonds ball will, in 10 years at the most, own a home run ball hit by a steroid-tainted baseball player who, in addition to being among the most hated people in all of sports, is also number two on the all-time list for home runs.

Whether you're buying a baseball or a stock, you want to look for a durable moat. I don't think the Bonds ball has that, and I'd be shorting it here.

Walt Disney Corp. (NYSE: DIS), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) may be tempted to pick up the Yankee Entertainment & Sports Network, the cable TV channel that broadcasts the baseball team's games which Bloomberg News said could be worth as much as $2 billion.

The channel, whose owners include Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) and former New Jersey Nets owner Raymond Chambers, is "running a limited check" and would only consider selling if it got a price "reflecting its real value," spokesman Peter Rose told Bloomberg. Funny guy to be quoted in a baseball story. I guess anything is for sale at the right price. What an original concept.

It will be an interesting test of wills between Disney's ESPN and Comcast. ESPN remains a juggernaut for the house that Mickey built. Comcast is trying to challenge ESPN with its Comcast SportsNet channels including the one I watch in Philadelphia that broadcasts Phillies games.

Remember, we're talking about the Yankees here, one of the most recognized though not necessarily loved franchises in baseball. New Yorkers, though, continue to love their Bronx Bombers even though they have struggled this year.

But the time the YES network is sold, however, slugger Alex Rodriguez will have left the Big Apple for parts unknown. With $2 billion in the bank, I'm sure the team could afford to replace him.