Let the bidding war begin!
According to Bob Klapisch of the New York Times, the Yankees have already made their first official offer to Gerrit Cole. The offer is a seven-year, $245 million deal, far surpassing David Price’s previous record contract of seven years and $211 million.
I'm told #Yankees have a seven-year, $245 million offer on the table for Gerrit Cole. Would be a record-setting contract for a pitcher, surpassing Greinke’s $34.4 million AAV. Question is whether #Dodgers or #Angels will go to 8-9 or even 10 years.
— Bob Klapisch (@BobKlap) December 8, 2019
If true, it’s a great initial offer by the Yankees. They’re currently in the hunt for Cole along with the Angels and Dodgers and to a lesser extent several other teams. At this point, it’s probably up to the Angels or Dodgers to offer an eighth year, which would quickly put the contract in the $270-280 million range. My guess is the bidding war will come down to who is willing to offer that extra year, though Klapisch also points out the bidding could push for a ninth or 10th year. That seems excessive, but talents like Cole don’t hit free agency very often.
But essentially this initial offer proves that the Yankees are indeed serious in their pursuit of Cole, as other reports have suggested. This doesn’t feel like the Corbin or Machado sweepstakes of last season. With ownership giving Cashman the green light to pursue Cole all out, there seems a high likelihood that they won’t be outbid unless another team significantly overbids.
This is only the first offer in what will probably be a hotly contested bidding war, but it’s encouraging to see the Yankees wasting no time proving their interest in Cole.
