Via George King of the NY Post:
At the beginning of the process, the Yankees were firm on their offer [to Derek Jeter], but it’s believed they upped the offer by $2 million or $3 million above the original and may have added an extra year that could be tied to a vested option.
King goes on to say that there is some belief that the Yankees are upping their offer just to top Troy Tulowitzki‘s annual average of $15.7 million. That would keep Jeter the highest paid middle infielder in baseball.
The vesting option may be a big reason Jeter is now willing to negotiate too. He’s been said to want a four or even five year deal while the Yankees have been firm on a three year deal.
A vesting option is a decent compromise although it, as King notes, cannot be based on performance, but instead must be based on starts, at-bats, or plate appearances. MVP votes or Silver Slugger awards can count though.
The Jeter-Yankees negotiations have been messy and long. Read our archives to be sure you didn’t miss a single moment of the drama.
