Robinson Cano still wants to become the best-paid player in MLB history. The free agent second baseman hasn’t budged from his asking price of $310 million, a source told Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.
There’s no debating that Cano is the top free agent available. The 31-year-old finished the 2013 season with 27 home runs, 107 RBI, a .314 batting average and 7.6 wins above replacement.
But reaching the $300 million threshold will not be easy even at a time that baseball teams are flush with cash. A $300 million contract would surpass Alex Rodriguez’s 10-year, $275 million contract as the richest in MLB history, and it’s unclear which teams will compete with the New York Yankees for Cano’s services.
The Los Angeles Dodgers aren’t expected to sign the second baseman despite the fact that they have been among the game’s most aggressive spenders since 2012.
“You already know that guy in New York is going to be paid,” Dodgers owner Magic Johnson told USA TODAY last month. “Not by us. But he’s going to get paid.”
Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos recently said the Blue Jays “feel good” about their club policy of setting a five-year limit for contracts.
“For the most part it’s the basic framework, and being averse to the incredibly long terms we’ve seen with some of the seven, eight year deals,” Anthopoulos said, according to Shi Davidi.
Cano is represented by Jay Z’s Roc Nation and the Creative Artists Agency.
