Jon Heyman is reporting the Phillies are preparing to offer pending free agent Cole Hamels a contract extension worth up to $120 million. The length of the proposed deal is unknown but it’s expected to be for five years, giving him the same contract the Cliff Lee signed two seasons ago.
Jay’s Take – I’m on the fence about the validity of this rumor (with all due respect to Heyman). The Phillies are notorious for being tight-lipped when it comes to any signings or trades and most of the talking heads already expect the Phillies to offer Hamels a contract similar to Lee’s. In saying that, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Phillies leaked this information.
If the Phillies know that they can’t sign Hamels, they’ll have to trade him. By leaking a contract offer that they know Hamels won’t accept, they can try to save face by selling it to the fans that they did the best they could but Hamels is another greedy player who was all about the money (nothing like making the player the bad guy).
Unless Hamels is willing to give the Phillies a hometown discount (which all signs have pointed to no), there’s no way he’s going to consider this contract. He is one of the best arms in the game and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a team offer him upwards of $150 million once he hit free agency. Hamels is no dummy and has hinted he wants to see what he would be worth on the free agent market (with a disclaimer the Phillies have the first right of refusal), so unless the Phils make him a serious offer, that’s exactly what’s going to happen.
As a Phillies fan it pains me to say this but my gut tells me come the first of August Hamels will be living in a different city.
I know I’ll be getting some hate from Phillies fans but I can’t make everyone happy. What do you think? Email me at jay@thesportsriot.net and let me know.
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