The Phillies and Cole Hamels haven’t made any progress in contract extension talks for more than a month now, leaving roughly eight months for the two sides to work out a potential deal. Hamels will be the best free agent starter on the market next winter now that Matt Cain has re-signed, and there will be plenty of suitors for the left-handed, in his prime ace.
A problem on the team’s end could be the other pitchers on the payroll. Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee will make $40MM+ combined for the next few years, and there simply might not be room for another $20MM-a-year hurler in the budget. Shane Victorino will be a free agent after the season as well, plus Jonathan Papelbon, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard will remain on the books. It’s not a question of if the Phillies want the Hamels back, but whether or not they can make it happen.
I don’t think an extension will get done during the season, but very well may get done at the beginning of Free Agency. I feel like the two sides are too far apart when it comes to what kind of contract each side wants to get done during the season.
It’s now or never. If hen reaches FA, there is a 95% chance he is gone. If they don’t sign him before then, he will be playing for a different team.
“who cares if howard is a little overpaid? he has a lot of HRs and RBIs and it’s not my money, so why does it matter?”
I think the underlining problem is years. Because look at it from Cole’s perspective. You’ve given Lee and Halladay contracts well into their thirties why can’t I get that? He’s been with the organization longer and has credentials to back up his body of work.
With all that said I voted “No” that Phillies resign him.
If the Phillies don’t, I’m sure that Washington would be willing to pay him
Strasburg, Hamels, Zimm, Gio, Detwiler would make for quite the rotation
I believe you say this same thing regarding just about every talented player who might hit the market….
Not Pujols!
I wish poles would work on my iPhone.
They work on mine.
I cannot believe the poll results. Almost fell out of my chair. People must not be paying attention. Or its wishful thinking that their team has a chance to sign him as a free agent. The chance that eh resigns in Philly is 100%. He “almost” says as much in his own interviews. Halladay and Lee are both on the wrong side of 30. Every move the Phightins have made the last 3 years has been done with resigning Cole in mind. Book it, Cole is a Phillie for atleast 5 more years.
Well to be fair you don’t know what Hamels or his agent are thinking. Also let’s not forget the player’s association, MLB, and the Dodgers will be watching.
Doesn’t matter who is watching. He was asked what he thought about Magic Johnson and his crew buying the Dodgers a week or two ago. It was a loaded question. They wanted to hear something that would hint at those guys being able to drive the market up, it being great for baseball, anything. Coles response? I didn’t know Magic Johnson liked baseball. As in, he isn’t even thinking about how it would affect his free agency. Fellas, they ask him questions on a daily basis about Free Agency. He is oblivious to it and almost disinterested. He KNOWS he is gonna remain a Phillie. I respect everyone’s opinion here on this forum. I will not try and change your minds. We will just have to see what happens, I guess. Last thing I will say is that nobody in the Tri state area, including all of my friends, are worried at all about a deal getting done. We live Philly baseball. I’d be the first one worried to death if I didn’t think he was going to be resigned. His 2008 playoffs were the stuff of Legend. Our city has Halladay and Lee, but Cole is our boy. He needs a statue outside of Citizen’s Bank. This stuff about him hitting FA is media driven. Just look at how the introductory poll paragraph was slanted.
Good luck to everyone this baseball season. Hope your team’s do well. This is a non story. Believe that!
I think RAJ has made it clear for awhile now that the team now belongs to Halladay and Lee and not Cole Hamels who has continuously taken a back seat to just about any pitcher they’ve signed.
It would have been done already. When they signed Lee, I believe it spelled the end of the Cole Hamels era in Philadelphia. They would have signed him on the cheap but when that didn’t happen, they are content with letting their home grown champion walk. I think it’s a disgrace.
“The chance that eh resigns in Philly is 100%.”
What’s the hold-up then mate? Amaro waiting for him to put up another Cy Young caliber season so he can be even more expensive?
Amaro knew this day was coming to extend Cole Hamels. He has signed big names like a fantasy player that has not produced a championship. Cole Hamels did that for this organization and is being treated like a red headed step child and has quietly taken a back seat to Lee twice, Halladay and Oswalt and whoever else they choose to sign. Plus the team has not scored for him thus costing him wins and CY Young consideration. If Cole Hamels doesn’t have a big fat FU for the Phillies, he’s crazy. His career will shine with another team while he reaches his prime and I truly hope it is a NL team so he can no-hit the team that drafted him and developed him and ultimately scorned him for years to come.
They gotta sign Hamels, they gotta
You people are out of your minds if you don’t think the Phillies will resign this guy. Every time we think the Phillies are out of money they pull more out from under the Liberty Bell. I think they have a secret stash in there.
Money isn’t as much the issue as the luxury tax will be…even the Yankees do not want to have to pay any of the new luxury tax.
It also doesn’t hep that Hamels is left-handed, and that Matt Cain, who is a righty, is getting more than $22M in his next contract which will run only to age 33.
As a result of the Matt Cain signing, I believe that $22M will be a baseline for a new contract…and with teams in the NL West likely to be able to afford Hamels (Hamels is from SoCal), I voted “no” on the poll. I see Cole Hamels pitching close to home for LA or Arizona next season.
Yep. Hammels views $22 million as a starting point.
The trouble with Hammels’ thinking is that the Giants overpaid for Cain. (I was all for the overpay, BTW) If the Giants don’t sign Cain, then Lincecum gets extreme leverage when he becomes a FA. The Giants can’t lose both pitchers if for nothing else than a fan marketing perspective.
When the Giants sign Cain, then they can afford to let Lincecum walk if Tim demands insane money. Cain now becomes the centerpiece of the Giants and they can build pitching around him.
Cain simply means more to the Giants than his actual worth. Cole Hammels is not in the same position with the Phillies. But all Hammels’ people are going to say is his numbers are stronger than Cain’s, so he deserves more money.
So, he’s going FA.
Phillies should have spent the Papelbon money on Hamels.
I think the Phillies will make a strong offer, but Hamels will be stupid to take it.
If he reaches free agency, there will be an absolute bidding war. Everybody keeps talking about the Dodgers and that’s certainly true, but keep in mind that the Cubs desperately need starting pitching and have money all over the place to spend. Same with the Mets if they manage to get past their financial troubles with the settlement in place. Unless we’re counting Darvish (and that would be an awfully big leap to conclusions) the Rangers STILL don’t have a real ace.
He’s just too good. I wouldn’t be surprised to see four or more teams making competitive ($100MM+) offers, on top of the Phillies.
I don’t think Hamels is eager to re-up with Philly until he sees some hope of an offense 1-5 years out. Utley and Howard are >30, in steep decline, and now severely injured. There’s no reliable power on the team or in the farm system. Run support has been a major problem for both Hamels and the Phils and it’s getting worse. It can’t be fun playing for a team that appears to be circling the drain. I predict he signs with the Dodgers.
If they don’t sign him, the Phillies reign in the East will be over for sometime. They will have an aging Halladay and Lee which will not be sufficeint enough in the later years. A young ace like Hamels could stabilize that rotation.
The Phils will soon realize that spending big on players will backfire.
The way it’s looking, Hamels will be the only quality FA to hit the market with so many teams locking up their quality players. He should take advantage of the opportunity. Philly should survive without him since they already have two pitchers who are better than 90% of other team’s aces. They probably need a bat most importantly.
In the limited media exposure I’ve seen, Hamels seems like kind of a pompous punk. He can say what he wants about Magic & the Dodgers, but he’ll go where the money is – whether that’s Philly, New York, LA, Boston or somewhere else.
The local Philly Comcast reporters think Hamels will re-sign with Philadelphia. Most of the national reporters think Hamels hits free agency. The key is going to be the length of contract imo. The Phils want to go 4 maybe 5 years where Hamels camp is looking for 6 +. My guess is that Hamels signs in Philly for 5 years with an option year. Why would you want to leave Halladay and Lee?
Keep in mind Philly has the 2nd most TV viewers in MLB behind the Yanks and they have a new TV deal upcoming in 2015. After seeing the TV deals signed in sports slackish LA,Hou and SD you can only imagine the revenue the Phillies are looking at.
Philly will get a deal done before 2015
His starting point should be C.C. Sabathia’s contract with the Yankees. He is on the same level if not better.