Yankees, Robinson Cano Continue Discussing Contract

Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner commented on contract talks with second baseman Robinson Cano to David Lennon of Newsday on his way out of the MLB owners meetings today in Manhattan, saying, "We've had several conversations with [agent] Brodie [Van Wagenen], just as we did with [former agent] Scott [Boras] and a lot of it is procedural.  But we're going to continue in the weeks to come to work through things and try to come to an agreement."  Steinbrenner later added, "We want him to end his career here."  Cano has sat atop our 2014 Free Agents Power Rankings since the beginning.  More on the Yankees:

• Can a team with a $228MM payroll earn the designation "scrappy?"  Steinbrenner used that adjective, expressing admiration for the Yankees' young players and cheap veterans that have allowed them to successfully weather injuries to key players so far.  As for getting below the $189MM luxury tax threshold next year, Steinbrenner said, "The math works to me if the young kids do their job.  It has to happen. And I've been saying that for over a year now — that's the goal we're going to push for.  But again, I'll reiterate what I always reiterate, which is we're always going to field a championship-caliber team. That's what the fans expect. That's what we expect. It's going to happen. Not going to win every year. Nobody ever does. But we're going to do what we can to field the best team we can."
• "We're going to sit down and figure out what to do when this season ends, hopefully the beginning of November," said Steinbrenner in regard to manager Joe Girardi and his expiring contract.
  
• Yankees outfielder Brennan Boesch says he left his agent, Scott Boras, and returned to his old agent, Van Wagenen of CAA, according to David Waldstein of the New York Times on May 1st.  Boesch will be arbitration eligible for the first time after this season and can hit the open market after the 2015 season.  Stay on top of the representation for over 1,000 players with MLBTR's agency database.
• "He’s a good guy and I think he can be a really good player, too. He’ll be back. I just wanted to let him know that it’s up to him," Yankees infielder Jayson Nix told Waldstein, recounting a conversation with the recently-designated Chris Nelson.
• The shift from center to left field shouldn't damage Curtis Granderson's free agent value much, opined multiple executives in speaking with Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.  Granderson isn't concerned, saying, "Not an issue for me at all. Just want to help this team in any way I can. If they need me to go back to shortstop like I did in high school, I’ll do that."