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Mariners Making Serious Run At Josh Hamilton

By Steve Adams [December 6, 2012 at 6:55pm CST]

On Tuesday we learned that Josh Hamilton will give the Rangers the opportunity to match any offer another club makes before he signs. Talks were said to progress between Hamilton and the Rangers, but Texas is also in on Zack Greinke. As Hamilton works to determine where he'll play next year, we'll keep track of the latest rumors here...

The Red Sox are very unlikely on Hamilton, Heyman tweets. Assistant GM Mike Hazen says the team remains engaged with Hamilton and other free agents but the club's focus is still on its young core, tweets Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
The Mariners have discussed three-year deals with Hamilton in range of $20MM to $25MM per season, a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter).
Armstrong's point about not having exchanged figures with Hamilton yet is largely semantics, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, because they've talked enough to hammer out a deal quickly. As it stands now, Hamilton's agent is waiting for Zack Greinke to sign, because the Rangers are unlikely to sign both.
The Mariners are not close to signing Hamilton, team president Chuck Armstrong tells Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Armstrong says the Mariners are interested, but haven't exchanged numbers and figures with Hamilton.

Earlier updates:

Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio reports that Hamilton's first choice is the Rangers, but if they sign Greinke and cannot afford him, the Mariners are his primary fallback option (Twitter link).
The Mariners are making a big push for Hamilton, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, and talks are more serious between the two sides than has been let on. The holdup, not surprisingly, is the Rangers' ongoing pursuit of Greinke. If Greinke does land in Texas, Baker writes that the Mariners could make a deal for Hamilton happen "very soon" afterward.
Rangers president Nolan Ryan did not rule out signing both Hamilton and Greinke, saying in a media session that principal owners Bob Simpson and Ray Davis would have to approve such a scenario (Jeff Wilson reporting).
GM Ben Cherington and manager John Farrell represented the Red Sox in their Monday night meeting with Hamilton, reports Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com.
The Rangers won't go to five years for Hamilton, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
The Rangers met with Hamilton's agent Tuesday night but nothing has changed, GM Jon Daniels told reporters including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
We learned earlier that the Red Sox met with Hamilton before he left Nashville. It was an off-site meeting on Monday, tweets Dan Roche of WBZ.
The Mariners continue to have interest in Hamilton, but like the other teams involved, they prefer a shorter-term deal, tweets Jon Heyman.
The Rangers are being patient on Hamilton, waiting to hear if it will take more than something like three years and $75MM to sign him, writes Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
The Rangers' discussions with Hamilton are "on hold" at the moment, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, who suggests the team's involvement on Greinke may be the reason for the delay.
Most baseball people believe Hamilton will end up signing for five years or less, with some clubs exploring vesting options to protect themselves, says Heyman. He names the Mariners, Red Sox, Phillies and Brewers as teams besides the Rangers that have shown interest in the outfielder.