Derek Jeter recently signed a three-year contract worth up to $65 million to continue playing baseball for the New York Yankees.  At the official announcement, Jeter expressed anger that the Yankees had asked him to “go shop” himself to other teams even though Jeter told them he only wanted to play for them. He was also angry this became public knowledge.

Why would the Yankees do this?  Given Jeter’s age and known preference to stay in New York, the Yankees expected other teams wouldn’t aggressively pursue him.  The Yankees could then use this outcome (an “objective” reflection of Jeter’s market value) to justify their position.  Of course, they risked another team shooting for the moon in an attempt to lure Jeter away and also angering Jeter to the point where it could harm their long-term relationship.

Since the deal was successfully concluded, it appears the Yankees’ gambit may have paid off. Of course, we won’t really be sure until we see how Jeter produces over the course of the contract.

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Marty Latz is the founder of Latz Negotiation Institute, a national negotiation training and consulting company, and ExpertNegotiator, a Web-based software company that helps managers and negotiators more effectively negotiate and implement best practices based on the experts' proven research.  He is also the author of Gain the Edge! Negotiating to Get What You Want (St. Martin’s Press 2004). He can be reached at 480-951-3222 or Latz@ExpertNegotiator.com.