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Cliff Lee Rumors: Monday

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Yesterday we learned that the Nationals are out of the Cliff Lee sweepstakes and that the Yankees will not increase their offer again.  Multiple reporters have suggested Lee will decide this week.  If you believe in the mystery team, the lefty may have three legitimate suitors.  Otherwise, it's just the Yankees and Rangers.  The top bullets have the latest:

  • It's hard to find executives who expect Lee to re-sign in Texas, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter).
  • One member of the Phillies organization has said to Jack Curry of the YES Network that Lee isn't in the same class as C.C. Sabathia and Roy Halladay and would be a riskier signing (Twitter link).
  • A decision is unlikely tonight, but could come tomorrow, according to Heyman (on Twitter).
  • The Yankees are now "extremely negative" about landing Lee and they believe he is leaning toward the Phillies' offer, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter).
  • There is a belief Lee is heading to the Phillies, according to Jack Curry of the YES Network (on Twitter). Meanwhile, Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Phils "look like a very strong candidate to win Lee's services" (Twitter link).
  • Lee moved closer to a decision tonight, according to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. The Phillies entered the bidding for Lee after the winter meetings and have presented the lefty with “a spirited late bid,” Crasnick writes.
  • The Phillies, Yankees and Rangers are finalists for Lee, who appears to be close to deciding on a team, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (on Twitter).
  • The Phillies are looking to unload Joe Blanton and the $17MM that remains on his contract through 2012, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
  • The Phillies are still bidding on Lee, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. GM Ruben Amaro Jr. declined to comment, but a source told Rosenthal that the team is "not out."
  • Lee has yet to make a decision, Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times (on Twitter). "He'll make [a decision] someday," Cashman said.
  • There are still rumblings about a third team, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The mystery team's offer appears to be significantly lower than the Yankees' proposal, but it's from a place Lee "loves."
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes, "You would be surprised at how many folks [in the game] think there is a legitimate third team bidding on Lee beyond the Yankees and Rangers."  Sherman speculates on who that team might be.  Less than a third of you believe such a club exists.
  • Lee's agent Darek Braunecker has been in touch with the Yankees today, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, and he said the process is ongoing.
  • The unidentified third team is only willing to go four or five years, writes George A. King III of the New York Post.

Yankees Being Aggressive On Russell Martin

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The Yankees have continued to be aggressive on free agent catcher Russell Martin, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  Olney would not be surprised if we hear of an agreement at any time.

Martin is reportedly weighing offers from the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays, with the Yankees' proposal being for one year.  Since Martin has less than five years of service time, he'd be under team control for 2012 as an arbitration eligible player.

Rosenthal On Werth, Bill Hall, Cliff Lee

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports leads his latest column by contrasting the value of Zack Greinke and Matt Garza.  Though Greinke is widely viewed as the superior pitcher, Garza comes with an extra year of control at similar overall money.  Either righty would require a huge trade bounty.  On to Rosenthal's other rumors…

  • Jayson Werth's contract includes decent-sized bonuses for strong finishes in the MVP voting.
  • The Dodgers are in discussions with Bill Hall to be their primary left fielder.  Rosenthal feels that such a signing would be the team's last significant move.  Hall's last strong season as a regular was 2006, the 35 home run campaign for the Brewers that earned him a $24MM contract.
  • Rosenthal tweets that the lack of state income tax in Texas has minimal impact in the Cliff Lee talks, since Lee would reside in Arkansas instead.  Rosenthal feels that the income tax-related savings the Rangers could promote would be balanced by a higher salary from the Yankees plus endorsements.  George A. King III of the New York Post offers a similar take.

Cliff Lee Rumors: Sunday

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If Nolan Ryan is right in believing that Cliff Lee will weigh his options this weekend and come to a decision Monday, we'll have to wait at least another day before hearing anything concrete on Lee. In the meantime, here are the rumblings on the left-hander since yesterday….

  • The Nationals are officially out on Lee, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
  • Christian Red of The New York Daily News hears from a source that the Lee situation "should get resolved early this week."
  • SI's Jon Heyman tweets that there are "strong indications" of a third team being involved in the Lee discussions, but conventional wisdom still says it's between the Rangers and Yankees.
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman tells Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger that "nothing has happened as of yet" regarding Lee's decision.
  • Sherman's colleague, George A. King III writes that the Yankees will not increase their offer to Lee again. The Yankees have extended three offers, the longest of which is believed to be in the seven-year, $160MM range.
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post opines that Lee and agent Darek Braunecker have "used time expertly" to discomfort the Yankees and force them into upping their offer one last time prior to sealing the deal (Twitter link).
  • We heard on Saturday that some Yankees officials were expressing "a bit of skepticism" about the team's chances of landing Lee. ESPN.com's Buster Olney says the same thing today in his Insider-only blog. According to Olney, one Yankee exec told another team's GM that he figures the odds of New York signing Lee are about 50-50.
  • Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal explains how Texas' tax rates mean the Rangers could effectively match the Yankees' offer without actually matching it. Ken Belson of the New York Times made a similar observation earlier this weekend.
  • Rangers manager Ron Washington thinks Lee will be back in Texas in 2011, as Tom Spousta of the Dallas Morning News writes.
  • Ken Davidoff of Newsday examines some of the oft-repeated theories about Lee's decision, attempting to determine which ones are legitimate.

Cliff Lee Rumors: Saturday

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There was not much movement on the Cliff Lee front yesterday, but the free agent lefty could agree to a contract at any moment. Here are today's batch of rumors, with the latest news featured at the top throughout the day…

  • Brian Cashman told Marc Carig of The Star Ledger that he hasn't been to Arkansas to visit Lee since the team's last visit, but he'll go again "if necessary." (Twitter link)
  • Nolan Ryan told MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan that he expects Lee to take the weekend to mull over the offers, then come to a decision on Monday. "I've run all my traps and don't know anything," said the Hall of Famer, "so we'll just wait and see."
  • Jack Curry of the YES Network hears from people that have spoken to Yankee officials that they have expressed "a bit of skepticism" about signing Lee (Twitter link).
  • SI.com's Jon Heyman reports that the Rangers originally offered five years and $100MM, but they added a sixth guaranteed year and what is believed to be "some form of option that could turn the new deal into a seven-year contract" when they last visited Lee in Arkansas.

Russell Martin Rumors: Saturday

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Yesterday we learned that Russell Martin is deciding between three AL East teams: the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays. Before that we heard about interest from a mystery team. Here are today's rumors, with the newest at the top…

Cliff Lee Rumors: Friday

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It's a good time to be Cliff Lee. The Yankees made the left-hander a number of proposals and, after meeting with him in Arkansas, the Rangers did the same. Don't count out the Angels or Nationals, who have also expressed interest this week, and don't forget about those mystery teams. Here are yesterday's Lee rumors and we'll keep track of the latest on the 2008 Cy Young Award winner right here:

  • Rangers CEO Chuck Greenberg, co-owner Ray Davis and assistant general manager Thad Levine visited Lee's home in Little Rock on Thursday, and Levine talks to ESPNDallas.com's Richard Durrett about the trip.
  • Tyler Kepner of the New York Times gets the sense from people involved that Lee feels a pull toward Texas (Twitter link). However, Kepner expects Lee to take the Yankees' seven-year, $161MM offer.
  • Sabathia may be recruiting Lee for the Yankees, but Rangers starter Tommy Hunter tells Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News that he's trying to keep Lee in Texas.
  • The Yankees and Rangers don't expect a decision from Lee for a few days, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link).
  • Nothing appears to have changed overnight, reports ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
  • C.C. Sabathia continues to encourage his former Indians teammate to join him in New York, according to Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News.

Russell Martin Rumors: Friday

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Yesterday, we learned that free agent catcher Russell Martin has offers from the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays. He also has a multiyear offer from a mystery team, but Boston may be the favorite to sign the former Dodger. Here are today's rumors:

  • The Yankees are taking an aggressive approach with Martin, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
  • Agent Matt Colleran tells Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com that his client is deciding between the three AL East teams: the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays (Twitter link).

Odds & Ends: Greinke, Ryan, Jeter, Atkins, Garza

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On this date two years ago, the Tigers sent Matt Joyce to the Rays for Edwin Jackson. It's been a busy couple of years for Jackson, who has bounced from Detroit to Arizona to Chicago, twirling a no-hitter along the way. Here are today's links…

Odds & Ends: Giambi, Upton, Crawford, Yankees

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On this date last year, the Brewers signed Randy Wolf to a three-year, $29.75MM deal. Now, GM Doug Melvin is still on the lookout for pitching, even after acquiring Shaun Marcum. Here's another round of links for the evening…

  • The Rays have some interest in Jason Giambi, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
  • Andy McCullough of The Star-Ledger wonders how Carl Crawford’s $142MM deal will impact the Mets’ efforts to keep Jose Reyes around long-term.
  • Arizona GM Kevin Towers told Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he talked to one team about Justin Upton at the Winter Meetings (Twitter link).
  • In another piece, Nightengale details the financial commitments the Yankees and Red Sox have made. As Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail points out, it's not easy competing with those two big spenders. "We're going to start a mid-Atlantic states division,''  MacPhail said.
  • The Angels offered Carl Crawford a six-year deal worth $108MM, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link). That fell well short of the seven-year $142MM offer that lured the left fielder to Boston.
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Jack Curry of the YES Network that the team dined with Crawford's representatives even though they weren't interested in signing the outfielder. Curry suggests the dinner could have been a bluff.
  • Speaking of the Yankees, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark names them on his list of 'losers' at the 2010 Winter Meetings.
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