9:23pm: Hal Steinbrenner told Scott Boras earlier this month that the Yankees "were willing to consider a significant long-term contract" with Cano but talks didn't go beyond that, the Associated Press reports (passed on by Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News). Steinbrenner also noted that the Yankees hadn't had any extension talks with manager Joe Girardi, who is entering the last year of his current contract.
7:42am: Yankees decision makers now regret signing Alex Rodriguez to a ten-year, $275MM contract, and have become more averse to major long-term commitments, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. The Yankees’ reluctance to spend as aggressively as before will impact their contract talks with Robinson Cano, the 30-year-old second baseman scheduled to hit free agency following the 2013 season.
The Yankees have spoken to Cano’s representatives at the Boras Corporation, but the sides don’t appear to be making much progress. Boras, who also negotiated Rodriguez’s ten-year deal, might expect opening bids for ten years at $20-25MM per season, according to the Post. Sherman suggests that the Yankees would be willing to spend $171MM over seven years to retain the four-time All-Star.
Cano told reporters that “it’s not about the money,” Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger reports. But there’s no doubt that rival teams would be eager to spend on Cano if he reaches free agency. A league official told McCullough that teams would bid more than $200MM for Cano. “He can’t be replaced,” the exec said.
Both Sherman and Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News report that Cano doesn't intend to give the Yankees a hometown discount. He ranked first on MLBTR's Free Agent Power Rankings.
