Derek Jeter Rumors
Odds & Ends: Marlins, Cardinals, Bruce, Jeter
Links for Saturday night...
- Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post says the Marlins are still looking for bullpen help (specifically a veteran lefty), a lefty bat off the bench, and outfield help.
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said that his team's lineup is set for 2011 after today's Lance Berkman pickup, reports Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter links). Mozeliak described the team's payroll as "leaking," adding that Berkman received a higher salary as a trade-off for just one year.
- Jay Bruce is optimistic about a new contract with the Reds according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Bruce mentions that nothing is imminent, however.
- SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that about five teams called to express interest in signing Derek Jeter before he re-upped with the Yankees, though the shortstop never considered going anywhere else. In fact, he didn't even listen to what they had to say (Twitter link).
- The recently non-tendered George Sherrill has drawn some interest according to Marc Carig of The Star Ledger (Twitter link). The Yankees are not one of the interested teams, however.
- Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News looks at Plan B and C should Texas be unable to retain Cliff Lee.
- Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic tweets that Chad MacDonald will be the Mets' new scouting director. He served as the Diamondbacks director of international scouting for the last two years.
Yankees Close To Agreement With Derek Jeter
Derek Jeter and the Yankees could have a contract finalized by Saturday, according to Roger Rubin and Bill Madden of the New York Daily News. The reported deal would pay Jeter "in the neighborhood of $19MM annually" over three years, and there could be a fourth year that vests if Jeter meets certain "reachable parameters."
The $19MM annual salary roughly matches the average salary earned by the Yankee captain over the span of the 10-year, $189MM pact he signed with New York before the 2001 season, if a mild step down from the $21MM he earned in 2010. $19MM also happens to be about the midpoint between each side's demands --- Jeter was reportedly looking for $23MM per season and the Bronx Bombers only offered a three-year, $45MM contract.
If Jeter signs by the weekend and Mariano Rivera's contract is soon finalized, the Yankees will reach their goal of having both franchise icons back in the fold before the start of the winter meetings on Monday.
Derek Jeter Rumors: Saturday
The Yankees and long-time captain Derek Jeter appeared to be closing in on a deal late last night, but there are still some hurdles that need to be cleared. Let's keep track of latest surrounded the game's active career hits leader throughout the day, with the most recent news up top...
- Jack Curry of the YES Network tweets that both Jeter and Mariano Rivera have agreed to defer money, concessions that help pushed talks along. Rivera is close to re-signing as well.
- SI.com's Jon Heyman says a contract could be finalized today. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that the deal will be for three years at $15-17MM annually, and that the fourth year option will be a "creative hybrid solution" that is not guaranteed and can't vest. (Twitter links)
- Sweeny Murti of WFAN.com tweets that the Yankees worked deep into the night to get a deal done, and they're talking about a three-year contract worth $51MM that includes a fourth year vesting option at $10MM. The two sides are reportedly "very close."
This post was originally published on November 4th, 2010.
Derek Jeter Rumors: Friday
Not only are the Yankees close to signing Mariano Rivera to a two-year deal, negotiations with Derek Jeter seemed to take a step forward yesterday. The Yankees increased their offer to Jeter and agent Casey Close lowered his asking price. Here are the latest updates on Jeter and the Yankees:
- "Significant progress" has been made between Jeter and the club over the last two days, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.
- The Yankees are still waiting to hear Jeter's response to their most recent proposal, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
- The Yankees are hesitant to add a guaranteed fourth year, though they are willing to offer Jeter more than $15MM per season, according to Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com. If the Yankees do add a fourth year, it would likely be an option triggered by performance.
Derek Jeter Rumors: Thursday
3:09pm: The Yankees have increased their offer to Jeter by an unknown amount, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News.
2:28pm: The Yankees informed Close today they're willing to improve upon their three-year, $45MM offer to Jeter, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. Jeter's side lowered their request, adds SI's Jon Heyman on Twitter.
8:03am: Derek Jeter and his agent Casey Close reached out to the Yankees to set up Tuesday's meeting in Tampa, report Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden of the New York Daily News. Hal Steinbrenner, Randy Levine, and Brian Cashman attended for the Yankees.
Money and years were not discussed, say Feinsand and Madden. Instead, the meeting concluded with the Yankees' brass asking Close for ideas on how to bridge the large gap. The tenor of the meeting was cordial, reports Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times. Close did not get back to them on Wednesday.
The Yankees were emboldened by Troy Tulowitzki's new deal, in he has a $15.7MM average salary over the next ten seasons and Cashman and company offered Jeter $15MM per year. Of course, the new part of Tulowitzki's contract is $134MM over seven years from 2014-20, which comes to $19.1MM per year. To include Tulowitzki's low 2011 and '12 salaries in an average would be disingenuous, since those weren't potential free agent seasons for him. At any rate, MLB is pleased that the Yankees have not gone overboard on their Jeter offer, report Feinsand and Madden.
Optimism Between Jeter, Yankees
WEDNESDAY, 10:59am: It appears that the Yankees told Jeter they'll raise their opening $45MM bid to the $50MM range, according to Heyman (on Twitter).
TUESDAY, 10:28pm: The Yankees and Derek Jeter are becoming optimistic about reaching a new deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The sides are having conversations designed to kickstart an agreement, Heyman reports.
Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden of the New York Daily News reported earlier tonight that agent Casey Close recently reached out to the Yankees to move negotiations forward. Both sides are in Tampa, where they met today, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Just last week, the sides appeared to be tens of millions of dollars apart and GM Brian Cashman encouraged Jeter to test the open market. It seems likely that the shortstop will return to the Bronx, but that hasn't stopped Beckett from imagining what Jeter would look like in all 29 other uniforms.
Giants Notes: Jeter, Fontenot, Uribe, Tejada
The Giants have agreed to a deal with Miguel Tejada and may still be pursuing a deal for Jason Bartlett. Here's the latest on GM Brian Sabean's search for infielders:
- The Giants contacted Derek Jeter's agent, according to the Wall Street Journal, but Brian Sabean explained to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that team's discussions with Casey Close revolved around another client, Mike Fontenot. (Twitter link). Fontenot, a non-tender candidate, would earn over $1MM next winter if the Giants tender him a contract.
- Before the Dodgers signed former Giant Juan Uribe, San Francisco offered the infielder a three-year deal worth $20MM, according to Schulman (on Twitter). That's $1MM less than the Dodgers offered and $5MM less than Uribe was asking for.
- The Giants weren't the only NL West team to lose an infielder to a division rival this week. The Padres spoke to Miguel Tejada's agent today, but weren't willing and/or able to match the Giants' $6.5MM offer, according to Dan Hayes of the North County Times (on Twitter).
Odds & Ends: Jeter, Berkman, A's, Upton, Webb
Exactly ten years ago, the Orix Blue Wave lost a 27-year-old outfielder to the Seattle Mariners. A decade later, Ichiro Suzuki has ten Gold Gloves and 2244 big league hits to his name. Here are today's links...
- Derek Jeter is meeting with agent Casey Close, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter). They met with the Yankees in Tampa today, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- An executive interested in Lance Berkman expects that it would take a one-year deal worth $7MM to sign the switch-hitter, according to Yahoo’s Jeff Passan.
- Passan reports that the A’s continue to talk with right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma, though talks appeared to sour earlier in the month.
- The Nationals are still discussing potential deals with Carl Pavano, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (on Twitter).
- D'Backs GM Kevin Towers told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert that he'll know by the end of next week's winter meetings whether it makes sense to trade Justin Upton.
- A.J. Pierzynski said on The Waddle & Silvy Show on ESPN 1000 that he's talking to the White Sox and some other teams about potential deals (via ESPNChicago). The White Sox are open to bringing the catcher back, though they didn't offer him arbitration last week.
- Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball looks back at some record salary arbitration cases from over the years. For instance, Tim Lincecum's demand for a $13MM salary last year was the most any first-time eligible pitcher has ever asked for.
- The Rangers have signed a European player for the first time in franchise history. They agreed to a minor league deal with 18-year-old Dutch middle infielder Nick Urbanus, according to the Newberg Report.
- The agent for Brandon Webb told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the former Cy Young Award winner would have interest in pitching for the Pirates. About six teams are interested in Webb, including Pittsburgh.
Yankees Rumors: Jeter, Chamberlain
The latest on the Yankees, as GM Brian Cashman prepares to rappel down a building dressed as an elf on Sunday...
- Eduardo Nunez is the team's Plan B if they are unable to re-sign Derek Jeter, reports ESPN's Buster Olney. Rather than try to sign a veteran replacement, the Yankees would install Nunez and allocate the money elsewhere. Of course, Olney feels that the Yankees would remain flexible for potential upgrades if Nunez became their starting shortstop.
- SI's Tom Verducci looks at how other teams have compensated aging icons in recent years, with Cal Ripken, Barry Larkin, George Brett, Craig Biggio, and Paul Molitor serving as examples. It may be difficult to reduce Jeter's pay from his previous $18.9MM average annual value.
- Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues estimates Joba Chamberlain's 2011 salary at a bit less than $2MM.
International Links: Marmol, Cano, Jeter, Ruiz
Baseball was an afterthought on most international sports pages this morning, due to FBC Barcelona's 5-0 humiliation of Real Madrid, but links in Spanish still abound...
- Carlos Marmol confirmed that he and the Cubs are in discussions about a long-term extension, talking to Hoy's Dionisio Soldevila. "There still isn't anything, but we're talking," Marmol said. "I would like to sign something long and stay with the team."
- Derek Jeter's double-play partner Robinson Cano thinks the shortstop "would retire before he would go to another team," Cano told Soldevila on his Dominican talk show La Semana Deportiva.
- The Rays released Cuban first baseman Jose Julio Ruiz in mid-November, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. After a long and complicated courtship, the team signed Ruiz to a minor-league deal last June and had until November 15 to offer him a $4MM major league contract. He showed little of his reputed power over the summer in brief stints with Double-A Montgomery and in the Arizona Fall League. Less than a year ago, Ruiz seemed like the most promising Cuban power hitter since Kendry Morales, drawing interest from numerous teams and being rumored as a possible successor to David Ortiz in Boston.
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