"Publicly, at least, the Red Sox have long made clear their desire to dispose of the problematic Manny Ramirez. The question now: At what point does sanitation become too costly?

Amid a report in the Palm Beach Post that the Sox, Florida Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates had reached a tentative agreement on a deal that would send Ramirez to Florida, baseball sources continued to indicate last night the Sox are reluctant to make such a deal because the club deems the cost too high. There also is believed to be some disagreement within the Sox organization as to just how much of a distraction Ramirez has become, particularly when the Sox have won a pair of titles during his tumultuous career in Boston.

Even inside the gilded walls at Yawkey Way, it seems, the debate rages on.

In the deal as currently proposed, the Sox are required to part with Ramirez (or, more specifically, his bat) while paying the estimated $6 million remaining on his contract and giving up as many as two prospects, one to the Marlins and one to the Pirates. In return for all that, the Sox would receive outfielder Jason Bay, a talented player who has a career .892 OPS and still is roughly two months shy of his 30th birthday.

Whether the Sox would receive anything else in the deal was unclear. One scenario had 29-year-old left-handed reliever John Grabow also coming to Boston, though indications late last night were that Grabow actually would be going to the Marlins along with Ramirez.

Regardless, Bay obviously would be the centerpiece of the deal, though he is eligible for free agency at the end of the 2009 season. Bay is earning a base salary of $5.75 million this year and is due $7.5 million in 2009. Given that Bay is represented by the same hard-line agent who represents Ramirez - Scott Boras - it seems likely Bay would refrain from signing a contract extension and would take his chances in free agency late next year.

While Ramirez currently is in the final year of a club-record eight-year, $160 million contract, the Sox have $20 million options for 2009 and 2010 that might actually give them control over the player for a longer period than they would have Bay."