Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain.

An agent's job is to blow smoke; effectively muddle up the situation enough that the front office-types can't tell their asses from their elbows so that his client gets exactly what he wants. It does, of course, work both ways with the front office-types trying to give the player as little as possible. In the end, the sheer amount of smoke in such a room would cause an emphysemic to hack up a lung right on the carpet.

To that end, Bean Stringfellow (a man who clearly just strode out of a Wodehouse novel) told the Herald:

"I just visited with Billy and his family the other day and I can tell you this much: Billy thoroughly enjoyed his time in Boston. It was one of the best experiences he has ever had in baseball. So, does he rule out accepting arbitration? No, he doesn’t."

He might not rule it out but I have a hard time believing that he would accept it. (Which, given my history with prognostication, probably means that he does and the Sox end up with an $8 million set up man.) Wagner has stated two goals: 1.) Get 400 saves and 2.) Win the World Series. There are clubs where he could have a chance to meet both of those goals; since both Philly and the Mets are out, LAAAAAAAAAAA should probably be looking for a reliable closer, or St. Louis, should Franklin fall back to earth, might be a suitable destination.