OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Oakland A's have offered American League MVP Jason Giambi
his purported asking price of $90 million for six years and even gone one
better, bringing the amount up to $91 million in order to top Atlanta star
Chipper Jones' recent contract, according to a story published in the San Francisco Chronicle.
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| 2000 SEASON
STATISTICS |
| AB |
R |
H |
HR |
RBI |
AVG. |
| 510 |
108 | 170 |
43 | 137 |
.333 | |
|
But matching the asking price and
completing a deal are two very different things. Deferred compensation is
now the issue, and it could be enough to derail what would be the biggest
contract in Bay Area sports history. "The issue is not dollars," A's
general manager Billy Beane told the newspaper.
"It's a matter of creatively getting this
done. ... I hate to say we're at an impasse, because it sounds like we're
knocking our heads against a wall, but it's kind of like 'If you're not
going to do this, I don't know what else we can talk about.' "
Though Beane
refused to discuss specifics, the A's apparently would like to defer as much
as one-sixth of the deal, a total of $15 million, in what has become a
common arrangement in big-money contracts. That, however, means that the A's
-- rather than Giambi -- would gain interest on the deferred sum. In
essence, then, Giambi would receive $12.5 million per season in present-day
worth. "There are significant issues that remain," said Giambi's agent, Arn
Tellem. "With respect to the last proposal, deferment is a serious obstacle
to getting a deal done."
The A's are a low-budget team, and their position
has been that they cannot afford to have one player's salary take up more
than a third of the payroll. Giambi's stance throughout has been that while
he is willing to accept less than market value to remain in Oakland, he
doesn't want to be paid drastically less than other players of his stature.
"Jason's requests have always been in line for a player of his caliber,"
Beane said. "He isn't being unreasonable, absolutely."
Currently, Toronto
star Carlos Delgado's four-year deal, which averages $17 million per season,
is the benchmark for big-name first basemen. The contract does not include
any deferred salary, and Delgado's agent, David Sloane, said his personal
philosophy is to avoid deferred money unless the player pushes for it as a
means to get a deal done. "There is too little advantage to the player with
deferred money," Sloane said. "Say a baseball fan makes $200 a week, but is
only paid $160 a week and gets the other $40 five years later. Well, that
$40 is now going to be worth more like $27.50."
"(Deferment) reduces the
amount paid out significantly, with a 25-year payment -- after which Jason
will be 55 years old," Tellem said. "That makes the value of the deal
dramatically less than what his peers are making. Jason has given the A's
every break throughout his career, and he is willing to take less -- but not
dramatically less."
Beane, who long has said he isn't optimistic and isn't
pessimistic about coming to terms with the team's best player, now is
leaning toward pessimistic. Asked if he believes a deal will get done
before pitchers and catchers report four weeks from today, Beane said, "I
don't see that happening."
Giambi wasn't available for comment,
but last week he said that he felt good about the negotiations, though he
thought that deferment issues might become a problem. Though Beane said no
talks are scheduled at this point, Tellem said earlier this week that he
plans to talk to the A's again next week, and last night he said that talks
certainly have not broken off and that Giambi still wishes to spend the rest
of his career in Oakland.
Giambi will make $4 million this season, the
final one in a three-year deal, and he is eligible for free agency next
winter.
The A's other top potential free agents, closer Jason Isringhausen
and newly acquired outfielder Johnny Damon, have said that they are watching
the team's negotiations with Giambi closely, because his status is likely to
affect their decisions after the season. Isringhausen has been particularly
adamant that he won't consider a long-term deal with Oakland unless Giambi
is signed to a multiyear deal.
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