Thursday night marked Mariano Rivera s final game at Yankee Stadium in pinstripes. Will it turn out to be the same for Robinson Cano
Cano and the Yankees appear to have drawn their battle lines for this winter s contract negotiation and they re much further apart than anyone could have expected.
An ESPN.com report Thursday indicated that Cano is seeking a 10 year contract worth $305 million an outlandish figure that would be the richest in baseball history. But based on the Yankees in season talks with their All Star second baseman the Bombers aren t prepared to give Cano anything close to that.
According to a source the Yankees approached Cano earlier this season and discussed an eight year $138 million deal the same one the Mets gave franchise player David Wright last December. Unlike Wright s deal however the Yankees were not asking Cano to defer any money. Wright deferred $15.5 million of his deal reducing the overall value of the contract by roughly $4 million.
Wright s deal pays him an average of $17.25 million over the life of the deal while Cano is reportedly seeking an average annual value of more than $30 million.
The source said that after Cano s representatives rejected the deal similar to Wright s the Yankees came back with parameters of a six year $144 million pact which would have upped the average to $24 million per season. That was also rejected by Cano s camp at which point talks broke off between the two parties for the remainder of the season.
Cano did not speak with reporters before Thursday s home finale but Brodie Van Wagenen the agent representing Cano from CAA as part of its partnership with Jay Z s Roc Nation Sports issued a statement Thursday afternoon.
Out of respect to both parties we have agreed all along with the Yankees not to comment publicly on discussions regarding Robinson s contractual future Van Wagenen said. I am abiding by that agreement and I will not confirm any discussions or offers or whether there have been offers by either side.
Corey Sipkin/New York Daily News According to ESPN Robinson Cano is asking for a 10 year $305 million deal from the Yankees.RELATED CANO KNOWS THIS COULD BE HIS YANKEE FINALE
As Robinson said yesterday he hasn t made any decisions on his future. Robinson is among the elite talents in the game and in the final few days of his contract but he and I will continue to respect the process and our promise to not discuss specifics.
Cano who turns 31 next month was in the lineup Thursday night playing second base and hitting in his customary No. 3 spot against the Rays. He went 0 for 3 with a walk in the 4 0 loss.
It could be a few guys last game here Joe Girardi said when asked about the possibility of this being Cano s final game in home pinstripes. No one knows what s going to happen in the offseason and there are no guarantees who s going to be here next year so it very possibly could. Robbie has been a joy to manage just a great player that does a lot of great things.
The talks between the Yankees and Cano s camp are believed to have taken place before Dustin Pedroia inked an eight year $110 million extension to remain with the Red Sox as their franchise player. Pedroia s deal pays him an average of $13.75 million per year through 2021 as the second baseman gave his team a hometown discount to remain in Boston for the duration of his career.
Pedroia a four time All Star two time Gold Glove winner and the 2008 American League MVP is considered by most to be the second best second baseman in the league behind Cano who has played in five All Star Games won two Gold Gloves and finished in the top six of MVP voting in each of the past three seasons. But is that margin enough to jump from $13.75 million to more than $30 million per year
Cano and his people must be counting on finding that one desperate team. The Yankees turned out to be that team in late 2007 inking Alex Rodriguez to a 10 year $275 million pact despite the absence of any other serious bidders. Will history repeat itself
In the wake of the recent deals signed by Albert Pujols (10 years/$240 million) and Prince Fielder (nine years/$214 million) and their already diminishing returns all of baseball appears to be reassessing the logic of such big money long term contracts for players near 30 or older.
I think the Yankees have shown interest in Robbie Cano I don t think there s any doubt about that said Girardi himself a free agent this winter. But with free agents and trades it takes two to tango.
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