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Another Cliff Lee thread...YAY!
This scares me. It was a pretty well known fact that Cliff loved his time in Philadelphia & the city gave him a ton of love. Phillies offer up a chance to pitch in (what would be) one of the greatest rotations of all-time, they can pay him more than enough, and Chester, PA is a hell of a nice place to raise a family. I will also say that I think Lee has been waiting and hoping the Phillies get in on the bidding.
Rosenthal: Phillies involved in pursuit of Cliff Lee
UPDATE: A “well-placed source” tells Jim Salisbury of CSN Philadelphia that Lee’s decision is “close.” He names the Phillies as a finalist along with the Yankees and Rangers.
Meanwhile, emboldened after the identity of the “mystery team” was finally revealed, Jon Heyman of SI.com hears that the Phillies are looking for takers for Joe Blanton in order to free up some cash. In other words, Lee should sign with the Long Island Ducks any minute now.
7:42 PM: Jayson Stark of ESPN.com speculated earlier that the Phillies could be the “mystery team” involved on Cliff Lee and now we have it confirmed.
A source with direct knowledge of the talks tells Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com that the Phillies are still bidding on the free-agent left-hander.
It’s not clear how involved they are in negotiations, but the source tells Rosenthal that the Phillies are “not out.”
It would obviously be quite a swerve if Lee ended up signing with the Phillies. It would also give them one of the most incredible starting rotations in recent memory. But before we get too far into that, just recognize that the timing on this information is curious to say the least.
We know that the Yankees have a seven-year offer on the table while the Rangers have a six-year offer with an option for a seventh year. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told George King III of the New York Post on Sunday that he would not increase the club’s current offer, which is believed to be worth around $161 million. Is there a chance that Lee’s agent Darek Braunecker is trying to make Cashman and/or Jon Daniels sweat at the last minute? I’d say at least a little bit.
-HBT
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