Prince Fielder

A person familiar with the talks between the Brewers and Prince Fielder suggests that the eight year, $180MM+ contracts signed by Joe Mauer and Mark Teixeira are viewed as just a starting point by the first baseman's people, says SI.com's Jon Heyman. Another suggested that Fielder is seeking to join Alex Rodriguez in the $200MM club.

Owner Mark Attanasio remains hopefully that they'll be able to keep their star first baseman, but he and Scott Boras "appear to have taken a vow of silence regarding the most important player negotiations in the Brewers' history." One player told Heyman that he thinks the team's chances of retaining Fielder are "very slim," and a team official conceded that even though he enjoys Milwaukee, the team doesn't sense that he'll take a discount to remain there.

"When you evaluate players at the major league level, those who have done certain things by age 25 are extraordinary, and two of those things are 40 home runs and 125 RBIs. You certainly can count the number of players who have done that,'' said Boras. "Extraordinary performance at a young age gives you totally different career indices."

There's no denying that Fielder has been immensely productive in his young career, but such production at first base isn't the same as getting from a catcher or shortstop/third baseman. Teixeira, another Boras client and first baseman, is viewed as a better bet to remain productive into his 30's because there are no concerns about his size going forward.

Fielder, 26 in May, has hit .288/.393/.575 over the last three seasons, averaging 43 homers per year. He'll make $10.5MM this season, and will be eligible for arbitration in 2011 before becoming a free agent after that season. Ryan Howard, Albert Pujols, and Adrian Gonzalez can all potentially be part of the same free agent class, so if a team doesn't want to meet Fielder's demands, they'll have plenty of alternatives.

Brewers owner Mark Attanasio told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that talks with Prince Fielder about a contract extension are "ongoing." Attanasio did not say whether the club had made Fielder an offer and neither did Brewers GM Doug Melvin. But the club owner said deals of this magnitude can take a while.

"When you talk about $100 million type contracts, it's nine figures," Attanasio said. "Those are complex transactions. They don't get done with a quick conversation and a handshake. Everything has to line up to make it work. There's a mutual intent on both sides to try to make it work." 

The Brewers discussed an extension with agent Scott Boras last month, but no details emerged about the contract talks. Fielder is under contract for this year, when he'll earn $10.5MM and the Brewers have Fielder under team control in 2011, when the first baseman will earn a raise in his final arbitration year.