Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Cliff Lee Could Get 7 Years

Its being reported that Cliff Lee could be getting a 7 year deal. The Yankees do not seem willing to go that long on a contract, and just like that the Rangers have an in. There's no way the Rangers can compete with Yankees money, but under new team president Nolan Ryan, they are committed to spending on their team, and they have a legacy to protect, a legacy of overspending. So the Rangers may have their in if they are willing to commit to those 7 years, which the Yankees likely won't, and can remain competitive on the total dollar amount. However, the Yankees may consider including option years that become activated if certain performance requirements are reached. Hopefully, now that Mariano and Jeter are pretty much taken care of, the Lee front will start moving.

5 comments:

Rasheeda Cooper said...

My personal belief is that this may have been just a rumor started by Lee's agent that's now catching fire at the meetings. Wouldn't it be crazy though if the team that actually is considering to give him the 7-year deal is the Nationals???

Fernando Alejandro said...

I don't know that they have Cliff Lee money. They could offer the years, but not the money.

Its funny, because the Nationals certainly need pop in their lineup so I see why they would go after Werth, but given the size of their ballpark and the fact that Werth's power was displayed in such a small ballpark, I don't know that he's the cure all for their offense they hope him to be. Also, they don't have pitching, and likely won't since all their money is now wrapped up in Jayson Werth. I think this may prove to be the Miguel Tejada signing for the Nationals. The Orioles got Tejada, but then could get no one else since all their money was wrapped up in him.

Billy Walter said...

I heard today that the lerner family, the family that owns the nats, are the wealthiest owners in baseball. They own the wizards and their arena, the WNBA team in washington. and the hockey team. I wouldn't put it past them just yet

Anonymous said...

We need another good, reliable pitcher if we want to go beyond the playoff series. Who else is there that would bring us to the World Series and win it?

Fernando Alejandro said...

Billy, yeah I was surprised when the Nationals were in on Mark Teixeira a couple years back. They certainly have money to spend when they need it, and they showed that with Werth, but it also seems like they aren't completely willing to commit their money in the free agent market.

Anonymous, that's a good question. Without Lee, there is talks of going after a guy like Zack Grienke who may or may not be interested in playing in New York, and who may or may not be able to handle New York. Cashman has suggested that he has other avenues if the Yankees can't get Lee, but its hard to know what those are, and whether or not he was just bluffing. It hurts us even more if Pettitte doesn't come back.