Much pomp and circumstance surrounded the final seasons of Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte in pinstripes, but Robinson Cano was far and away the Yankees' MVP. He batted .314 with 27 home runs and 107 RBI in a contract year, and now is looking for long-term compensation.
Cano is hooked up with rapper Jay Z's Roc Nation Sports, and reportedly seeking a 10-year deal worth upward of $300 million. The Yankees have said they're willing to pony up, but 10 years is almost certainly out of the question.
In an interview with ESPN Radio's Michael Kay, Hal Steinbrenner said "I don't feel this organization is ready to do something like that," in response to a question about a decade-long contract. "I know that is a number that is out there now. We'll see if he gets it, how much he wants to be in New York. But, again, I can promise it is going to be a very, very solid offer that we do make because we are going to try. We are going to try the best we can to keep him."
Steinbrenner also called Cano a "marquee player" during the course of the interview, and expressed positivity on the prospects of keeping the star second baseman in the Bronx. "I'm optimistic and I know that we are going to make him a very, very good offer," Steinbrenner said.
Complicating matters for Cano is the Alex Rodriguez debacle, which may be causing the cash-flush Yankees to be smarter with their dollars. In 2007, the Yankees extended A-Rod's deal, giving him $275 million over 10 seasons; the decision has blown up in their faces.
Rodriguez hasn't played in more than 138 games since 2007, nor has he batted over .300 in that span. He's also been embroiled in multiple performance-enhancing drug scandals, and is facing a yearlong suspension in 2014.
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