There’s no futher testament to the paucity of top flight starting pitching from the current free agent crop than A.J. Burnett demanding a 5 year pact. Remarkably, the Toronto Blue Jays might well give it to him, to the tune of $50 million (presumably US Dollars, but that might explain a bit).
Supposedly, the Nationals are also very keen on Jack McKeon’s least favorite competitor, but given their unresolved ownership situation, it would be a huge surprise if MLB signed off on such a transaction.
Pittsburgh has signed OF Jason Bay to a 4 year contract extension said to be worth $18 million. Nothing like adding to the payroll to scare off Mark Cuban.
I was shocked when I heard the figure of 5yrs/$50 mil being discussed around for Burnett, but considering the Jays turned down Ryan Howard for Ted Lilly last year, they may just be dumb enough to make AJ a lottery winner.