NEW ORLEANS (AP) – The blockbuster trade that would send AL MVP Alex Rodriguez to Boston for Manny Ramirez is in the hands of the teams’ owners.

“There’s dialogue ongoing between the parties, but really we’re not privy to any of it,” Rodriguez’s agent, Scott Boras, said Monday as baseball’s winter meetings wrapped up. “This is definitely an owners’ situation.”

The Red Sox and Rangers have been discussing a trade of the sports’ only $20 million men for more than a week. Talks bogged down over the sheer magnitude of the money involved – more than $300 million remaining on the two contracts – and the Rangers’ demand that Boston pay up to $5 million a year for the next six years, in addition to more than $179 million due Rodriguez.

Boston has said it will not chip in a substantial amount toward Ramirez’s salary; even without it, the Rangers would already save about $81 million in the deal. Talk on Monday reportedly focused on whether the Red Sox would include another player in lieu of cash.

Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein declined to comment on the negotiations, and Boston president Larry Lucchino has said the team was going into “radio silence” on the talks until they conclude, one way or the other.

Epstein did say before returning to Boston on Monday that he did not expect any announcements.

“If I were a betting man, I’d say there’s nothing major in our future,” he said. “We have a real strong club right now if we just fill in to complement what we have.”

Red Sox owner John Henry has not responded to an e-mail seeking comment, and Texas owner Tom Hicks has not returned calls seeking comment.

If the owners are able to work something out, the Red Sox are expected to trade shortstop Nomar Garciaparra. Epstein has said the team’s first choice was to sign Garciaparra to a long-term deal “that makes sense for both sides.”

Garciaparra turned down a four-year, $60 million offer last spring, looking for a longer and richer deal. That appeared to be a mistake in a declining market, but on Sunday former AL MVP Miguel Tejada signed a six-year, $72 million deal with Baltimore that raised doubts about whether the market was declining after all.

Garciaparra’s agent, Arn Tellem, arrived in New Orleans late in the meetings and had preliminary discussions with Epstein. Although Tellem has said the talks are a “slap in the face” of his client, Epstein said he expects no hard feeling when the team reports to spring training.

“It’s a natural part of the offseason to have all kinds of speculation out there. It’s what keeps everyone in business,” Epstein said. “The status quo is the most likely scenario.”

The most likely destination for Garciaparra, if he is traded, would be Los Angeles. Dodgers manager Jim Tracy wouldn’t confirm his team was interested except to say, “We’re looking for somebody to fit in the middle of our order.

“Nomar Garciaparra … is a name that would fit in the middle of somebody’s order,” he said. “That’s what we’re looking for.”

But it all depends on whether Hicks and Henry can work out the money. Then, Rodriguez has to waive the no-trade clause in his contract.

Rangers general manager John Hart has said he wanted the talks to conclude – one way or the other – by the end of the winter meetings so he could resume building his team. But Rodriguez will not put a deadline on the talks.

“You want your clients happy, and you want them achieving their goals,” Boras said. “One of his goals is to win.”

AP-ES-12-15-03 2105EST