Phillies GM Pat Gillick isn’t talking about a contract extension with ace pitcher Cole Hamels at present. It seems that he first wants to see more healthy work from Hamels; Gillick expects to talk to him "at some point." Things could change, as this is Gillick’s last season as the team’s GM.
Hamels called the Phillies’ $500K renewal a "low blow" back in March. Jayson Stark noted in April that Hamels’ agent, John Boggs, isn’t one to hand out club options for free agent years.
Hamels won’t be arbitration-eligible until the 2010 season. Scott Kazmir may have raised the bar for the three arb years of a young ace. Typically those three years were going for $13.75MM, but Kazmir will earn almost $18MM.
