heres the latest on the puljols rumor
Pujols deal is bogged down
By Joe Strauss
Post-Dispatch
Albert Pujols at bat last summer.
(Teak Phillips/P-D)
JUPITER, Fla. - Revived contract talks between Cardinals management and the representative for first baseman Albert Pujols have done little to resolve the matters blocking a long-term deal, leaving the parties on course for an arbitration hearing Friday in Phoenix.
Three days of discussion between general partner Bill DeWitt Jr., general manager Walt Jocketty and Dan Lozano, Pujols' lead agent, failed to bring agreement on the contract's length or its financial scope as well as matters of deferred money and a no-trade clause, according to sources familiar with the process.
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The slowed progress with Pujols comes as the Cardinals and Lozano struggle to focus on specific structure. DeWitt said Monday that a potential showdown in a Phoenix hotel conference room is "not a huge concern. There are several possibilities, including a long-term agreement of undetermined length, a one-year contract or a hearing. We have to be prepared for any of them."
Pessimism regarding a long-term deal has prompted Pujols to take out a $15 million disability insurance policy on himself for the 2004 season, Lozano said.
Pujols has spent the last week in the Miami area visiting former teammate Placido Polanco and shooting a commercial for his EA Sports game. He could not be reached for comment.
The Texas Rangers' trade of shortstop and American League Most Valuable Player Alex Rodriguez to the New York Yankees may have affected the Cardinals' willingness to advance their bid. Already reluctant to set the market for a player still three years removed from free agency, the Cardinals noted that the Yankees will pay only $112 million of the $179 million owed Rodriguez for the balance of his contract - an average $16 million for seven seasons.
Should DeWitt construe that as evidence of Rodriguez' declining worth, he probably wouldn't authorize an offer approaching an average annual value of $14 million, which is believed to be Pujols' target.
DeWitt declined to draw a connection between the Rodriguez trade and a potential hearing with Pujols. But the Cardinals case is expected to focus on Pujols' value within a shifting marketplace rather than attempting to denigrate his production.
Lozano said Pujols has purchased a plane ticket for a flight to Phoenix on Thursday and will attend the hearing if it is held. It is optional for a player to attend his arbitration hearing.
The parties have considered proposals of one, three, six, seven and eight years, according to a source. The Cardinals last month submitted a $7 million arbitration bid; Pujols countered at $10.5 million, more than twice the previous record judgment ($5 million) awarded to a three-year player in arbitration.
Pujols, however, has numbers so prolific that no historic "comparables" exist for players with identical service time. Should the impasse reach a Friday hearing, the club would be in the uncomfortable position of arguing against a player who has averaged .334, 38 home runs and 127 RBIs in three major-league seasons. Last season Pujols also became his league's youngest batting champion since 1962 and led the major leagues in runs, extra-base hits and total bases last season. His 212 hits were the most by a Cardinals player since Willie McGee's 216 in 1985.
Pujols has rejected a five-year offer worth $50 million, a six-year proposal for $72 million and a seven-year, $84 million bid.
The Cardinals also have advanced an eight-year framework, according to sources. But its $100 million value would be diminished by money deferred without interest.
DeWitt would not address negotiating specifics, but a team source indicated the club's eight-year framework is structured so that Pujols would earn an average $10 million for each of his three arbitration-eligible seasons. The proposal then would be a rough copy of the five-year, $70 million deal free agent outfielder Vladimir Guerrero signed with the Anaheim Angels.
The club included deferred money in long-term contracts negotiated with center fielder Jim Edmonds, pitcher Woody Williams and third baseman Scott Rolen. Others, including closer Jason Isringhausen and catcher Mike Matheny, have agreed to set aside money on existing deals. Pujols may be less prone to defer money given his significant leverage.
Pujols also seeks blanket no-trade protection. The Cardinals, according to sources, have been reluctant to grant the request, stoking suspicion that they could retain Pujols for several seasons below market value then seek a trade when terms escalate.
One compromise would be for Pujols to accept partial no-trade protection that would call for compensation should he be moved. Edmonds' contract includes a partial no-trade clause. So too did the contract of now-departed first baseman Tino Martinez. The Cardinals granted Rolen blanket protection as part of his eight-year, $90 million deal signed in September 2002.
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