The Philadelphia Phillies are close to offering making lefty pitcher Cole Hamels a rich man -- even richer than the initial reports of $120 million. According to CBSSports.com's baseball insider Jon Heyman, the Phils' are working on a six-year, $130 million initial offer to Hamels, which would be a bit more than what San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain signed for.
Cain signed a $112.5-million, five-year extension this spring on top of his $15-million 2012 salary, meaning the Giants had $127.5 million in commitments to him. With that in mind, Hamels' first offer from the Phillies might be for exactly $127.5 million. Or it could be for a bit more if they feel adjustments are needed based on their initial, unofficial talks with Hamels in the past couple of days. The figure is unlikely to be less.
Heyman says the Philles are currently very committed to keep Hamels, however, if a deal can't be worked out in a week or two, then the organization will look to try and trade the lefty at the trade deadline, July 31.
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