In the category of unsolved mysteries is the identity of the party who surfaced with the mega-offer for Mark Teixeira that prompted the brass of the Red Sox to beat a hasty retreat in Thursday night's tete-a-tete with agent Scott Boras in Dallas -- if, in fact, such a party did materialize.

Peter Gammons and Buster Olney of ESPN.com reported today that the number Teixeira and Boras have in mind is $195 million across eight years. Gammons and Olney's report had an executive familiar with the negotiations saying the Red Sox were informed they'd have to go to about $24.3 million a year over eight years -- about $195 million -- to make it happen.

After the Red Sox excused themselves from the Boras session, principal owner John Henry issued his statement: "We met with Mr. Teixeira and were very much impressed with him. After hearing about his other offers, however, it seems clear that we are not going to be a factor."

Any notion that the Yankees, hoping to subvert the Red Sox or drive up the price, forwarded a Teixeira proposal to Boras was shot down by the New York Post. "Not us," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told the paper.

The Angels, through general manager Tony Reagins, offered "no reaction" and then "no comment" when asked if he knew or sensed who might have upped the ante.

"At this point," Reagins said, "it's all pure speculation." He added that his club's offer for Teixeira was "very fair," and that the first baseman remained "our priority."

Neither the Nationals nor the Orioles were identified as having extended a fresh offer that would have sent Boston's ownership scurrying home to Red Sox Nation, no deal done.

Of course, there's also the possibility that the offer prompting Boston's reaction was a ploy, a figment of someone's active imagination. As we learned long ago, all is fair in love, war and contract negotiations for free-agent ballplayers. Boras has been known to use creative means to escalate bidding, as in the case of Alex Rodriguez and the Rangers eight years ago.

After the smoke had cleared from Henry's missive this morning, the prevailing sentiment was the Red Sox are not out of the hunt, as Henry's e-mail implied -- and might even still be the front-runners.

The truth is, we really don't know a whole lot more about where the leading contenders stand today than we did, oh, two weeks ago.

What we know pales in relation to what we do not know. We know that the Nationals and Angels have eight-year offers on the table for Teixeira, each for at least $160 million. The Orioles were reported to have offered seven years and $140 million to $150 million, adding on Thursday that they might be moved to spice up their proposal.

As for the Yankees, there is no evidence that they have come forward with any offer whatsoever for Teixeira. Given the New York media's ravenous nature, you'd have to believe that information would have surfaced, somewhere, if they had made a move on him.

So, that brings us back to the Red Sox, who were believed to have been taking an eight-year proposal for as much as $170 million to show Boras in Dallas. If that figure was close to accurate, and it didn't measure up to the number that sent Henry out the door, it follows that there is a mystery suitor -- or somebody is bluffing.

The two clubs most in need of Teixeira's gifts, obviously, are the downcast outfits closest to his Maryland origins.

The Nationals, who haven't had a winning season since they were the Expos in Montreal, are desperate for a major draw. The Orioles, who have gone even longer than the Nats without a winning season (11 years), have enough assets to believe they could go north of .500 with Teixeira.

Teixeira, Boras likes to say, is one of those rare players who can pay for himself with added income to the club. That might be the case with the Nationals and Orioles, who surely would see their turnstiles click with his arrival as an everyday meal ticket.

It must be noted, however, that winning, Teixeira has said, is a significant priority along with addressing his family's comforts. Boras can be highly convincing, but even he might be hard-pressed to show his client that Washington and Baltimore can be contenders in the foreseeable future.

The Angels know exactly what Teixeira gives them. They saw how he transformed their lineup in the second half of 2008 after coming from Atlanta. But this is a franchise loaded with talent, a club that would be competitive without him.

The Angels could take the money budgeted for Teixeira to make home improvements elsewhere, having already moved on in a sense with the signing on Friday of outfielder Juan Rivera for three years. They also could wait until the July non-waiver Trade Deadline and move on a bat, as they did with Teixeira this season.

The Red Sox covet Teixeira but don't need him. They own one of the game's premier first basemen in Kevin Youkilis and a first-class citizen, Mike Lowell, at third. They'd love to add another loud bat, naturally, but they'll still do a very nice business without Teixeira.

The Yankees, having made CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett wealthy, would enhance their lineup with Teixeira in front of Alex Rodriguez, but even they have some limits. In their ideal scenario, Teixeira returns to the Angels and Manny Ramirez goes back to the Dodgers.

It remains to be seen what Mark Teixeira considers his ideal scenario.