Things are starting to get interesting. Earlier tonight, Ken Rosenthal surprised us by saying that the Phillies were still in the bidding for Cliff Lee’s services. Now Comcast Sportsnet’s Jim Salisbury, who seemingly breaks every big Phils story, is citing a source that tells him the Phillies are a “finalist” for Lee and that a decision is coming soon.
In the Rosenthal story we highlighted the potential problems with a Lee deal. Simply put, it’s money. To give Lee the kind of cash he’s looking for the Phils will have to clear some major payroll while also raising the budget.
So is someone raising our hopes for nothing? Is this just an agent planted story to squeeze a few extra bucks out of New York? Could we be in for an early Christmas present? It’s hard to say. At this point, you’d have to bet against the Phils getting Lee back, but unless both Rosenthal and Salisbury are wrong.. they’re at least in this thing. So anything could happen. If you don’t believe that, go look at the Washington Nationals roster.