MONDAY 7:15pm: Langosch has an update on the situation, and says that Sanchez and Wilson both express desire to continue negotiations to stay with the Pirates despite their early contract rejections, citing a "miscommunication." The players believed the original offers to be "take-it-or-leave-it" and didn't think they were negotiable.
SUNDAY 2:27pm: MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch informs us that both Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson have rejected the contract extensions offered to them by the Pirates.
Sanchez, 31, received an offer for a two-year extension worth $10MM. Wilson, also 31, received an offer for a two-year, $8MM extension. Both extensions would have voided the players' options for 2010. Sanchez has an $8MM vesting option with 600 plate appearances, and Wilson has an $8.4MM club option. General manager Neal Huntington commented on the rejections:
Huntington felt both deals were fair, citing the fact that only four of the 107 position players that were free agents this offseason received deals greater than two years in length.
Rob Biertempfel reports that both Sanchez and Wilson responded "with a firm 'no'" to the offers.
With no counteroffers from Wilson and Sanchez, the Pirates will likely listen to offers on their middle-infield tandem as the trade deadline approaches.
