The Rangers are busy scrambling to put together an offer Cliff Lee can't refuse. In five days Lee will be a free agent, so they have no time to waste. Problem is, the Rangers don't have "can't refuse" money. They have Rangers money, which is to say, they have money they owe A-Rod. At this point, the Rangers are better off using any extra money that have to signing Hamilton and Cruz to extensions (I don't know anything about what sorts of contracts those guys have, so that suggestion might not make any sense).
In New York, or Tampa, Cashman should be getting a budget of just how much he has to spend on Jeter, Rivera, Cliff Lee, and maybe, just maybe, Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon. They have track records. Now, there is no way to know for sure what that budget is, but it is safe to say that it will raise calls for a salary cap once more. In fact, this could be the year the Yankees break Baseball.
Meanwhile, in Arkansas, Cliff Lee's wife is complaining about Yankees fans and dropping subtle hints like, "It's so nice living close to home." This enrages Cliff Lee, a proud man. A man who throws a ball for a living. A man who throws hard. Lee is calling his agent, saying he will not accept any offer from Texas, no matter how ridiculous. Gotta love the institution of marriage.
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Rangers' contract information can be found here:
http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/2005/01/texas-rangers.html
Hamilton will have to be resigned, but he is still under control of the organization since he has just 3 years of service time. I don't know if he is arbitration eligible or not.
Can you believe that Nelson Cruz made just $440,000 last season? He's due for a raise, big time. But I don't think he's eligible for arbitration until at least next season.
I don't want any Matsui or Damon. We need young players. Just look at how well the Giants did with a lot of young players. Unbelievable!
My thoughts with respect to Hamilton and Cruz is that these are guys that the Rangers might want to sign early so as to get a discount they won't when they're in free agency; much the way the Yanks did with Cano.
I was joking about Matsui/Damon, but it's not like we don't have the money.
I am with Cliff Lee's wife. I like living close to home also!
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