Phillies lefty Cole Hamels has no deadline in contract extension talks, he told reporters today at a press conference. MLB.com's Todd Zolecki has a transcript.
Asked whether Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee are good contract comparisons, Hamels didn't say much to reveal his asking price in years or salary. He also didn't give a "yes" or "no" when asked if he'd take less to stay in Philadelphia, replying, "The only way to answer that is I don’t know any better." When asked whether his agents are currently in negotations with the Phillies, Hamels said, "I know they're supposed to."
The Phillies will have every opportunity to extend Hamels, explained agent John Boggs in January, though not at Jered Weaver money. Team president David Montgomery expects it to come down to what each side considers an appropriate length. I imagine Hamels expects at least six guaranteed years, though that's a guess.
I don’t think this guy with be a FA
he said he hasn’t even thought about becoming a free agent. he’s re-signing, and soon.
You hope don’t you???
“I imagine Hamels expects at least six guaranteed years, though that’s a guess.” That’s probably a pretty good guess.
I’d guess that the chances of Cole resigning with the Phils is about 90% right now. An estimated $5 or $6B deal in the near future certainly helps with the finances.
I know this is probably the minority opinion around these parts, but I’m not as certain that Hamels will avoid free agency. He seemingly wants the Weaver deal as a starting point, wants 6 years, and hasn’t indicated (nor should he) that he would take a hometown discount. Yet the Phillies have never sent any signal that they would do 6 at Weaver’s AAV.
The Phillies have a boatload of money…tons of $$ coming off the books in Victorino, Polanco, Blanton, and Ruiz…two ace SP who are approaching their mid-late 30s and won’t be around for much longer…and a home grown player who hasn’t indicated that he wants to leave.
That seems to indicate to me that he’s staying.
Sounds to me like Hamels would like to stick with the familiar, as long as they don’t lowball him on the financial end. Maybe he’d give a discount, but not to the magnitude Weaver did. IMO weaver left millions on the table.
Hamels n Company may have said there is no deadline, but if a deal doesn’t get done before Opening Day, I find it hard to imagine the two sides hammering out a deal of this magnitude during the season. This, in my opinion, would mean Cole would definitely test free agency and get Cliff Lee type money from a team other than the Phillies…the ‘no deadline’ likely means there is no ‘official’ deadline on the calendar, but the end of spring training I think really signifies a deadline of sorts for the Phils and Hamels
Adrian Gonzalez’s deal was announced 2 weeks into the season in order to avoid the luxury cap hit. Chances are that if the deal is struck, it WILL be announced after the season starts.
Very true. My money’s on it becoming official the first day that it doesn’t affect the 2012 CBT balance.