All the rumors over the past week had suggested that the Padres had offered Pablo Sandoval a 5-year contract in the $90-95 million range. Sources told the UT's Dennis Lin Monday night however, that the Padres actually offered more than the Red Sox and Giants, but their contract offer didn't include a 6th year as an option which is apparently what Sandoval wanted, among other things.
Source: Padres offered over $100M
Sandoval, the top third baseman on the market, declined an unprecedented Padres bid of more than $100 million, according to a source. The offer was for "more than five years," though it was unclear by how much. No option was included.
$100 million! Reading about such a hefty contract offer reminds me of a a time prior to last season when Padres President Mike Dee and his squad met with some of the Padres bloggers for the first time. He was talking about all the grandiose plans he had for the team. It was all the same stuff we'd heard before from past leadership and I told him so. I asked him skeptically what would be different this time around. As he pushed himself away from the table and started to leave he said in a dismissive way "Because this time we've got money." It was a both an attack on previous ownership and pure arrogance. I thought to myself, "wow, this dude is super cocky". But look at them now, putting their money where their mouth is. Now they just have to find someone willing to take their money.
Preller commented on his next steps after losing out on Sandoval.
"But you have to be prepared that, at the end of the day, he has other options he may take. We took a good run, and now we have to move on to other options."
Maybe they don't get an award but they get a participation ribbon in my book. Nice to see that they're at least in the discussion for highly sought after players.
Padres GM A.J. Preller: "We’re not looking to get any awards for pursuing players, just doing our due diligence." http://t.co/OS0zeZxRBy
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) November 25, 2014